Thanks to Trek, the Telenet UCI Cyclocross World Cup in Waterloo, Wisconsin, will offer equal payouts for the elite men and women racing. Other UCI races have offered equal purses, but this marks the first time a cyclocross World Cup will follow the trend—and it’s about time.
The disparity between elite men and women’s payouts isn’t minor: as written by the UCI, the men’s World Cup winner wins 5,000 Euros, while the women’s prize for first is designated as 2,000 Euros. 40th place in the men’s field gets the same amount as 11th in the women’s.
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“Athletes are athletes. Gender, race, size, shape, and ability do not determine a person’s value,” Trek Bicycles’ press statement read. “Desire, ambition, goals, dreams, and heart are not defined by looks. Every person should have equal opportunity to fulfill their potential, and should be equally rewarded for doing so. Trek is proud to host the first World Cup in cycling’s history to offer equal payouts to the men’s and women’s fields.”
“I’m happy and excited that Trek has stepped up and committed to being the first World Cup to pay equal prize money to the women,” said Trek rider Katie Compton, a 13-time US National Champion, two-time World Cup Overall Champion, and 23-time World Cup winner. “I don’t think people realize the large discrepancy between what the men earn for prize money compared to what the women typically earn. Trek is leading the way in valuing the women’s race as much as the men’s, and hopefully the European-based World Cups will see this and begin to follow Trek’s lead.”
Other women, including seven-time World Champion Marianne Vos weighed in, saying that this event will hopefully set a precedent for other World Cups and UCI races.
World Cup cyclocross racing has only been hosted twice before in the US, and to see this progress in women’s equality in sport is heartening.
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