Transcript: Chris Boardman on Newsnight 2 Aug 2012

[7_lives_left]

Emily Maitlis: With me now, the cycling ledgend and 1992 olymics medalist Chris Boardman.
Good of you to come in chris. Just talk us through, why are so good at
cycling? Because that really started in you era in 92.

Chris Board: Well it did and I think the real change point was lottery funding, when
that happened [pause] Well lottery funding and talent, Jason Quelly won a
gold medal in 2000 and the lottery funding came on stream. So what we were
doing in the early 90's actually was able to expand. And what happened is you
have one individual who gets a gold medal and others who train with them
say, "hang on, that's a bridgable gap, I've beaten them". And that ability,
it spreads out really. And the whole system builds from there. It has slowly
spread out amoung the disciplines.

EM: So how important is the money? In terms of, it came to cycling but it could have gone to somewhere else.

CB: I think it makes a big difference. [Track] cycling is a venue sport.
Certainly everything is built around the velodrome in manchester and
that's where it opperates out of. Road cycling is very well supported,
there is many millions in that but track cycling isn't. So financing
has made a huge difference.

EM: And Lizzy Armistead when she claimed that brilliant silver medal
made the point very quickly that women had really felt left out,
second rate in many of these sports. Is that something you recognise?

CB: There is a ways to go at the moment. Certainly in the olympic sport
there was a disparity in the maount of events for men and for women
at the last olimpic games. That has been now so that they have equal
numbers of events. On the professional side it is still very different.
And there are still differences in the olympic events in distance
for example between the mens and womens events. The women might ride 500m
in the time trial, them men ride 1km, why the difference? So there
is still a ways to go.

EM: If you look at the duo [Pendleton, Varnish] today, that very sort of
british response... It hasn't been a, what did you say?

CB: stiff upper lip

EM: ... "Rubbish days happen", That was an absolutely gutting moment,
but something I guess that every athlete gets very close to

CB: When you are pushing it to the limits then sometimes you cross that
particular threshold and that's what happened today.

EM: They just mis-timed the change over?

CB: Yes, it's a bit like handing over a batton and if you change over
outside the zone then that's the end. And to push the limts you have
to be right on the edge of that zone. That's what happend today and
they go the call wrong. It's so tragic, particularly for Jess Varnish,
this was her olympic shot for a medal, four years of work she has put
in for one lap of the track and that it was so close. World record time
and they were on track for it, but that's the way it works.

EM: Chris, alot of the olympic sports are things that we admire, we look
at them but know we are never really going to attempt. You are not
going to pick up a javelin, you are not really going to go canoeing
on a weekend. Cycling is someting that is very close to the british
character. Do you think that we are embracing that because we see
it in ourselves, because everyone is on the road now?

CB: I think it is just a wonderfully accessible tool for transport.
And something that you can do from age 8 to 80. And either side of
that as well. Unlike running you can freewheel riding a bike, you
can choose your speed, so it is massively accessible. And what I
hope is what we are seeing here is a massive advert for the sport
and we will see it ripple out and see it used more as a tool for
transport. So the implications of success here could be huge.

EM: Really, so in terms of, sort of, over turning how our cities
are run? Bradley Wigins nade the point just yesterday, after the
tragic death of the cyclist yesterday in London, that he felt that,
not speaking about the young man who died, that helmets should be
enforcable by law. Does that...

CB: I'm not sure about that actually and the statistics don't
really necessarilly support it either. It's a tool for transport
and helmets are a tool that are used when they are required
and I think that really the question is why do we need helmets
now and we didn't 10 years ago . I think they can distract...
detract, for me, from what is the real argument, why can't we
make an environment that lets this activity take place. It solves
so many problems with polution, with health, with congestion.
Why don't we invest in it?

EM: and what is that? you have a mayor of London that who is
a keen cyclist who has thrown money at it, and the boris bikes
and all the rest.

CB: There is a finite amount of road space and we are at the junction
now where you have to make a choice. And politically that is very dificult
because someone has to pay and at the moment road design is, for cyclists,
get the cyclist out of the way the car safely, rather than lets get the
car out of the way of the cyclist. And that is a big call for a politician
to make.

EM: and you don't think anyone will do that?

CB: Well I think things like we are seeing right now with the Olympics
and with the kind of focus on the sport along with upswell, the amount
of people riding in London, in what is a challenging environment,
now is a good time to make a call like that.

EM: Chris Boardman, great to have you here, thank you.

[7_lives_left]

It's available on BBC iPlayer
here
but I think it is about to disappear shortly.

If anyone wants to provide corrections I will edit them in.

Or better still If some one knows how to get the video on to youtube...

[Penfold]

Its still there and the best bit starts at time 11:30