MANCHESTER, England, Oct 29, 2008 (AFP) – Victoria Pendleton has told 2012
Olympic Games chiefs it will be an embarrassment if female riders are not
allowed to compete in the same number of races as male cyclists.

Pendleton triumphed in the women’s sprint in Beijing, one of eight golds
won in an impressive total haul of 13 medals secured by the British track team
at the Laoshan Velodrome.

However, in China there were only three women’s events on the track
compared to seven for men.

And that has left Pendleton feeling her achievement was “insignificant”
compared to the three golds won in Beijing by British team-mate Chris Hoy.

Pendleton insisted there was no justification for the present imbalance,
saying during a kit launch at the Manchester Velodrome Wednesday: “It will be
an embarrassment for London 2012 if there isn’t an equal number of events for
men and women at the Games. They have to be the same.

“It’s an embarrassment in this day and age that there is a discrepancy
between male and female events. We’re not living in the dark ages here”.

“Obviously I’m really happy for Chris. He’s an amazing athlete and when
anyone asks me who my hero is I say Chris Hoy, even before he became triple
Olympic champion.

“But in some respects I just wish I would have had the opportunity to do
that, but I didn’t even have the chance.

“It is unfair, especially when Chris is hailed as the nation’s hero, that I
haven’t even got the opportunity to compete in the events that he does and win
more than one medal.

“I did what I had to do and it all seems rather insignificant compared to
what he has achieved. I just want more medals to win.”

Pendleton added global action was required to make the International
Olympic Committee (IOC) add more women’s races to the Games programme.

“We are hoping to try and campaign to get it changed in 2012 but we don’t
really know how much we can do,” she said.

“It’s really not down to us. We need an international response so me alone
is pretty insignificant on the scale of things.

“All the other nations of the world have to put pressure on the IOC to make
this happen.”

File Photo by: CorVos Pro