Nicole Cooke's retirement

[black'n'yellow]

Good enough for me!

But not good enough for the French legal system.

 

[fozy tornip]

I've huge respect for Nicole Cooke. Not just the UK's most successful ever road racing cyclist but a persuasive, informed, articulate voice for cycling as a personal transport alternative.
Comparing the feteing and celebrating and decorating of Wiggo with her own invisibility rather makes her point. Hope she finds some future role in cycling.

 

[deptfordmarmoset]

But not good enough for the French legal system.

True, but I think she got off on a technicality, namely that the FFC didn't observe the correct way of notifying her about her ''whereabouts'' obligations.

Anyhow, sorry for going off topic. This should be Nicole's thread not Longgone's. I hope she finds a future role in cycling.

 

[StuAff]

But not good enough for the French legal system.

Case against the husband is ongoing, so that remains to be seen.

 

[festival]

I admire Cooke's career, she was a real champion and her win in the worlds was one of the best finishes I have seen in any race.
Her lengthy retirement statement was interesting to read and I got the impression she had plenty to get of her chest but what a shame she failed to name who was in the camper van.

 

[raindog]

Nicole on 5live - worth a listen
scroll across to 1hour 55minutes
http://www.bbc.co.uk/programmes/b01pw3p6
sad to see her go

 

[rich p]

She was a class act, a trendsetter and ploughed a lonely and unfashionable furrow for years without the massive BC support that some of them get nowadays.

 

[PaulB]

What a rider she was ?!
I loved her getting results back in the day when GB cycling was on the start of it's up.
Whatever the machinations and politics of being number 1 versus Lizzie Armitstead, she has set a fantastic marker for GB women road cyclists - a truely fantastic palmares.
I can't help feeling pretty sad that a 29 year old of this calibre is leaving the women's peloton.

That's a brilliant piece by the great rider. I particularly liked her opinion on Tyler Hamilton which pretty much matches my own; why should he make massive amounts of money just by owning up to cheating? As used to be said of Richard Nixon 'Don't buy books by crooks.'

 

[johnr]

And a great inspiration to girls in sport: she was the first sportsperson my granddaughters knew the name of when they were tiny. Always a battler, she must have got thousands of girls and young women out on bikes. A very proud legacy which will be talked of for years.

Adieu and thank you, Nicole.

 

[just jim]

That was a powerful and compulsive interview, and she is right on target. Good luck for the future I say.

 

[johnr]

If there's a coup at the UCI she'd be a great person to head up women's cycling. I imagine though she's irritated too many blazer-boys at British Cycling over the years to get their backing.

 

[oldroadman]

If there's a coup at the UCI she'd be a great person to head up women's cycling. I imagine though she's irritated too many blazer-boys at British Cycling over the years to get their backing.

Gret rider who is maybe not quite the super one of a year or two back, but still a danger in any race. Has been in a lot of teams, and some of the management/financials have been shocking (like certain men's teams!!), but no discussion on her attitude to "preparation", absolutely spot on there.
It may be a pity to go so early, but after 17 years of racing, probably that's mentally enough.
As for politics, that is another ball game altogether, but I'll say one thing, I know a few people at BC, and it's insulting to use the term "blazers" as a collective, there are good people there who are doing a decent and often unappreciated job. If you have a memory try and think back to where GB were in the mid 90's compared to today. Riders, coaches, officials, workers and the much maligned "blazers" shifted a disaster into what we have today.

 

[tigger]

If there's a coup at the UCI she'd be a great person to head up women's cycling. I imagine though she's irritated too many blazer-boys at British Cycling over the years to get their backing.

Reading her website retirement page and seeing the Sky News interview, she didn't sound overly negative about BC to me, but rather pointed out how the structure and competition wasn't there for her at the beginning as a youth. In a couple of instances it seems BC reacted very swifty to the lobbying from her father and put races and procedures in place for Junior Women the following year.

 

[screenman]

I've huge respect for Nicole Cooke. Not just the UK's most successful ever road racing cyclist but a persuasive, informed, articulate voice for cycling as a personal transport alternative.
Comparing the feteing and celebrating and decorating of Wiggo with her own invisibility rather makes her point. Hope she finds some future role in cycling.

Where does Beryl stand in your list?

 

[Flying_Monkey]

Nicole Cooke would make a great BC rep at the UCI - she'd really bust things up a bit where there really still is a predominance of 'blazers', the same way she used to bust up races at her best. Head down, charge and damn the consequences... I always loved watching Cooke even if tactically sometimes she just made you wince. A fantastic talent.