News this week that an Irish team has been selected to compete in the upcoming UCI Cyclocross World Cup round in Benidorm received a mixed - though mostly positive - reception. Many people were delighted to see some of our best young riders getting a chance at this level. However, some in Irish cycling questioned why the riders had to pay a portion of their own costs to go to Spain to race on a national team.
There has been an assumption that the self-funded model is not practiced, even not permitted, by Cycling Ireland. And some of those commenting online this week raised that point and wondered why the self-funded model was being allowed now.
However, Cycling Ireland high performance director Iain Dyer recently addressed this issue and set out his attitude towards self-funded Irish teams.
Advertisement
At the Cycling Ireland annual meeting in Monaghan last month, Dyer was asked about self-funded teams/riders. At the time, stickybottle was more focused on covering the questions asked of then chief executive Matt McKerrow. Indeed, the bulk of our coverage related to the questions asked of McKerrow, by representatives of Irish cycling clubs at the meeting, as that was the most obvious story to emerge on the day.
However, while Dyer's comments on self-funding were brief, they are worth exploring again in light of the part self-funded nature of the team going to Benidorm; a model that at least ensures Irish riders will be in the start line. The part self-funded model is also one that was used by many nations - including New Zealand, Australia, the United States and others - to get their teams to the road Worlds in Wollongong last September.
Speaking at the annual meeting, Dyer said in his limited time involved as high performance director, no rider had been denied the opportunity to self-fund to go to events that Cycling Ireland had not sent a team to.
Related News
He was replying to questions from Stevie McKenna of Omagh Wheelers who referenced the lack of Irish teams last year at the cyclocross Europeans or the road Worlds.
"I think there's definitely scope to look into that, assuming those (riders) would meet the eligibility criteria or the selection credentials to compete at that level," Dyer said of the concept of riders being self funded, or part self-funded, for some national teams.
"Ultimately we want anyone who is going to pull on the Ireland jersey to be at a representative level that's going to be competitive and distinguish ourselves appropriately. So that's the minimum standard involved there. I'm all ears if there's an event we can't get to. And, of course, not all of these events fall within the high performance unit's realm of delivery."
To be clear; the selection of cyclocross teams is within the remit of Cycling Ireland's Off-Road Commission. That means while the commission is part of Cycling Ireland, and funded by Cycling Ireland, the high performance unit is not responsible for cyclocross teams in the same way it is for road and track teams.
The selection of the national team for Benidorm is proof the Cycling Ireland Off-Road Commission is willing to use the rider-funded model for teams. And Dyer's remarks also make it clear he is open to using the same model for the national selections that fall under his remit; namely road and track.
Dyer added the decision not to send a team to the road Worlds was "not an easy one". However, there had been an "absolutely monumental" increase in costs of traveling abroad, and even items such as hiring vehicles had increased very significantly. He said the budget he inherited "could not cope" with the increase in expenses.
However, he assured those at the Cycling Ireland annual meeting that Team Ireland would be a "force to be reckoned with" at the Worlds in Glasgow this time, tough there would always be "difficult decisions" around selection.
