Gerhard, 1) Just because I enjoy participating and watching a sport does not mean I should be forced to contribute towards it with no return. Why don't the provincial structures organise races themselves instead of letting event organisers make the money? At an event they can charge an entrance fee (in exchange for the funride) and generate an income stream. They are also able, with a well run event, to attract sponsors. Over time they should be able to grow the event and attract partners, not just sponsors. The model is upside down at the moment. Cycling funding exists because of the fun rider. If you look after the fun rider then your income streams will grow. Look how successful PPA have been with that model. It's not a difficult model to copy. 2) The fact the CSA, the authoritative body, cannot get buy in from their sub structures to honour their commitments suggests that the business model is not working and needs to be changed. Again, perhaps they should look at the PPA model ? 3) There is plenty of sponsorship money around. The number of sponsors there are for the mountain bike stage events is proof of this. Maybe the sponsors are putting their money where they feel they will get a return on their investment. Again, look after the fun rider, create events for the fun rider where sponsors will get a return on their investment and use the funds generated from these events to sponsor the elite athletes. The return on investment for 20 track cyclists going to worlds must be close to zero.
