Cycling's authorities "are under pressure to improve safety after Belgian rider Antoine Demoitie died following an accident involving a motorbike on Sunday but it will be a tough task in a sport which is still largely amateur," according to Julien Pretot of REUTERS. While the Int'l Cycling Union (UCI) "expressed its sadness over Demoitie's death on Monday without discussing the circumstances of the accident, the riders' association (CPA) has demanded a probe and improved safety measures."
Demoitie, 25, "died after being run over by a race motorbike during the Gent-Wevelgem classic -- only the latest in a string of incidents involving race vehicles over the last year."
Slovakia's Peter Sagan and Portuguese Sergio Paulinho "were sent crashing to the ground by motorbikes during last year's Vuelta, while Belgian Greg van Avermaet, who was soloing towards victory, was dismounted by a motorbike at the Clasica San Sebastian." Motorbikes "have multiple functions during a race: some transport reporters and photographers, others race stewards and the regulators who decide who can overtake and when."
Australian rider Michael Rogers asked, "Must tragic circumstances be the marker for change?" While limiting the number of vehicles involved in a race would certainly help, "that in itself would not solve the problem."
Irish rider Dan Martin said, "Motos are a necessity in our sport for both security and media presence. It's their conduct and the direction that needs governance."
Some 70 motorbikes "are on the world's biggest race, the Tour de France, although only about half of them can regularly overtake the peloton."
Tour organizer Amaury Sport Organisation "imposed training courses on the motorbike riders after Dutchman Johnny Hoogerland was sent flying into barbed wire by a French TV car during the 2011 Tour de France." ASO Competitions Dir Thierry Gouvenou said that while ASO has the means to improve safety, "other organizers may not."
He said,
"The problem is the sport is still largely amateur. Some races are still organized by amateurs and volunteers, that's the weak point. Also, some organizers have VIP motorbikes on their races. It should not be possible" (REUTERS, 3/29).
