British Cycling told to improve image or lose funding by UK Sport
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Published 03/03/2017 at 10:19 GMT
UK Sport chief executive Liz Nicholl has said the funding agreement between her organisation and governing body British Cycling will be contingent on following a new plan set out in the wake of an investigation into allegations of bullying, discrimination and doping in the sport.
Gold medallists Britain's Owain Doull, Britain's Edward Clancy, Britain's Steven Burke and Britain's Bradley Wiggins pose on the podium after the men's Team Pursuit finals track cycling event at the Velodrome during the Rio 2016 Olympic Games in Rio de Ja
Image credit: AFP
Nicholl said British Cycling must “restore the credibility” of the sport in light of revelations made during the Culture, Media and Sport (CMS) select committee inquiry into doping.
Speaking at the National Cycling Centre in Manchester, Nicholl was appearing alongside new British Cycling's chairman Jonathan Browning to announce the governing body's much-awaited response to claims of bullying and sexism within the organisation.
Though the intention of the event was to unveil British Cycling's draft 39-step "action plan" to improve athlete and staff welfare, it was overshadowed by a CMS Select Committee hearing earlier in the week. During this, the boss of UK Anti-Doping Nicole Sapstead revealed British Cycling and Team Sky had failed to follow guidelines on recording their athlete’s treatment and medication use.
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Bradley Wiggins is at the centre of the investigation after his TUE use was exposed.
Image credit: Reuters
Nicholl said: "I think the new leadership has to restore the credibility of British Cycling by the actions they are planning to take.
"So the actions that are in this [welfare] action plan, the actions that Jonathan [Browning] has committed to last night and the actions that align with [Sports Minister Tracey Crouch's] sports governance code will all be part of the funding agreement we have with British Cycling in the period ahead."
Browning said his organisation should be applauded for its achievements but it must now regain public trust. He said: "There's an awful lot we need to investigate in terms of how we make sure we have a robust way of not only operating in a clean way but being able to demonstrate that.
"And that includes not only having an external review of our medical services but having the right record-keeping and making sure it's as transparent as it can possibly be. We have to work with UKAD and the other authorities to make sure we can demonstrate that."
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Team Sky's principal Dave Brailsford (R) has been heavily criticised throughout the inquiry.
Image credit: Reuters
Browning defended British Cycling’s records, and said the “failures” within it’s programme came about as a result of failing to evolve along with it’s rise to dominance in competitions on the world stage.
He said: “The failures within our World Class Programme occurred at a time when our sport and indeed the wider UK high performance system were undergoing rapid transformation in terms of realising unprecedented medal success on the world stage.
“Inevitably such a transformation requires frequent adjustment and evolution of governance, policies, procedures and operating practices.”
He added: “Our cultures and behaviours must be a focus for the whole organisation and we will work with staff, riders and volunteers to develop a set of common values and behaviours by which the whole of British Cycling will live.”
At Wednesday’s hearing, Sapstead also said UKAD was no closer to solving the mystery of the jiffy bag hand-delivered to team doctor Richard Freeman by a British Cycling coach at the end of the 2011 Criterium du Dauphine, a Tour de France warm-up race.
What’s in the 39-step-plan?
The action plan includes:
- ‘Whole life’ development opportunities for every rider and improvements to the support given to riders who leave the world-class programme;
- An updated and reinforced code of conduct;
- Review procedures around complaints reporting and handling;
- Develop the Board to improve its governance to conform to the requirements of the new Code for Sports Governance; and
- Review and improve the management structure of the World Class Programme.
Additionally, UK Sport says it will:
- Review our funding agreement and our approach to case management of sports to ensure more clarity of responsibilities and accountabilities;
- Develop and implement a new cultural “health check” across all funded sports in the Tokyo cycle; and
- Renew our focus on inductions and people development programmes, placing more emphasis on the importance of culture, duty of care, leadership, management and communication.
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