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Following on from his 1965 Horizon magazine article, “The Future As A Way Of Life”, author Alvin Toffler published “Future Shock” in 1970. In the book, Toffler asserted that the accelerated rate of technological and social change left people disconnected and suffering from “shattering stress and disorientation” – in essence they were shocked by the rate of change that the future was bringing. Toffler stated that the majority of social problems are symptoms of future shock.
In these post-millennial times, the phrase “future shock” might need to be sent to the tailors for some timely alteration, though. The future Toffler described has been rushing towards us for over 50 years and its paroxysm may not be as stressful and disorientating as it once was. Instead, it could now describe the profound disappointment experienced when presented with a possible future as it relates to the present. “Really? Is that it? I’m shocked that this is all you’ve got! Oh, and by the way, I’m still waiting on that jet-pac I was promised!” we might ask in the phlegmatic 21-century. Not for us the stress of unpreparedness as the future hurtles towards us. Simply the lip-curling ennui that the future heralds such a lack of imagination.
One such possible future for men’s pro road cycling was laid out for us at the inaugural Abu Dhabi Tour which concluded its four-day run on Sunday.
The route was announced in March and, according to the General Secretary of Abu Dhabi Sports Council, it promised to “show fans around the world the beauty of our country.” The President of the UAE Cycling Federation said it would be “an amazing new professional event,” and “a major new addition to the cycling world.” The route, he continued, “has been designed to highlight Abu Dhabi and its most prominent landmarks, projecting spectacular images around the world to leave unforgettable memories of the first edition of this unique event.” Mark Cavendish gushed that he was “super excited,” when he heard about the Abu Dhabi Tour, and felt that it was “a great place to have a bike race.”
Meanwhile the CEO of RCS Sports & Events CEO proclaimed, “Cycling is the only major sport that does not take place in a closed venue, but brings the adrenaline of racing directly to the city streets, to the doorsteps of the people.” The irony of these particular words would only be truly known later.
All this, of course, is the hyperbolic stuff that press releases and conferences are made of these days. An event can’t simply happen. It must be happening (man). And, if the embellished verbiage is to be believed, it must be happening in a way that is somewhat akin to being told about the second coming of Christ at the point of orgasm. However, with every new release being little more than a superlative soup, we’re so desensitised by it all that our reaction is more akin to being told about another second place for Greg van Avermaet at the point of falling into a coma.
In September, Velon upped the interest ante by announcing a 3-year deal with the race, “working together with marketing and technology support to transform the Abu Dhabi Tour into a new magnificent race at the end of the season.” CEO Graham Bartlett concluding, “Velon will continue to bring fans into the heart of pro cycling experience with on-bike and behind the scenes footage in the first Abu Dhabi Tour and further innovations in future years.”
Not wishing to be left out of this soirée amongst the sand dunes, the UCI revealed that it would hold its very first UCI Cycling Gala in the United Arab Emirates capital. “An event,” they claimed, “conceived to celebrate the end of the UCI professional road cycling season and its stakeholders in Abu Dhabi.”
The days leading up to the event saw social media littered with images of camels, dunes, and opulent vistas from in and around the riders’ palatial accommodations. And after battling through a demanding and draining season, who could blame them for the palpable joy & awe expressed in their messages?
Photo-ops and glad-handing duties dispensed with, Thursday saw a peloton of over 100 take to the Abu Dhabi Tour start line where, officially, the temperature was 38C. However, riders reported their on-board computers showing values in excess of 50C. Inevitably, then, for much of its 174km, the race wasn’t a race at all. As Tom Boonen pointed out, “You can ride in these conditions, but you can’t race.”
Despite the lack of anything approaching a proper contest, surely the watching audience would be treated to the awe-inspiring scenery which might also lead our collective minds away from the worry that one of these poor unfortunates might keel over and die of heatstroke at any moment? In a word, no. By the time broadcasts started, the peloton was approaching Mezairaa, where they would loop round to begin nearly 70kms of laser-straight highway leading to the finish town of Madinat Zayed. With sights of riders jerseys crusted white with the salt remnants of evaporated sweat, the organisers decided the final circuit through the town should be abandoned, so the only corner most of us saw was a few hundred metres from the finish line.
Stage 2 had the peloton on a four-lane motorway. Stage 3 brought the much-anticipated climb to Jebel Hafeet. But while the scorching temperatures would certainly have made the 11km ascent a significant challenge, any excitement was diluted by yet another huge expanse of road. The only real interest came when poor Wout Poels crashed on the final bend and gifted Esteban Chaves the win. Perhaps the Team Sky rider had forgotten what a corner looked like?
The jewel in the event’s crown was to be the final stage, a 20 lap circuit in the Yas Marina Formula 1 motor-racing circuit. The fact that all 110kms of Stage 4 were contained within the confines of the 5.5km track meant that Velon could play its trump card: live images from on-board the bikes. This was it, folks. Get ready for the shock & awe. Velon’s much-vaunted future had finally arrived.
As the sun set, and the artificial lights illuminated the riders’ way around the extravagant €893 million bling-fest, the TV director occasionally cut to shots of Peter Sagan, Vincenzo Nibali or Marcel Kittel as viewed by the backside of the rider in front. For some, this endoscopic vision of the peloton might be revelatory, but when all is said and done, the view is not a vast improvement over what could be seen from a moto. In fact, the quality of the footage, wobbly and at lower resolution, is markedly worse. The only ascribable value for live on-board footage is that there’s no danger of an idiotic moto causing an unnecessary crash. Sagan, at least, should be thankful.
Truly, though, the most arresting sight in the Abu Dhabi Tour’s final stage – if not the whole event itself – was the almost total absence of spectators. It was the Marie Celeste of the bike racing. Abu Dhabi has a population in excess of 2.6 million. Yas Marina would hold almost 50,000 of them. Save for a handful of people at the finish line, every grandstand was empty. Where on earth where they? The eery, almost funereal atmosphere was compounded by having to watch the commentary-free International Feed provided by Eurosport. Scheduling issues meant that, here in the UK, only the first stage was broadcast live. The odd, crystallised light, the unnerving silence, the repetitive, somnambulant loops. Had Luis Buñuel been alive today he would have been hard pushed to create a more surreal cinematic vision than the one offered up on Sunday.
Was that it? And still no jet-pac?
And so to Cycling Gala where the UCI would manufacture a staggered exit from Abu Dhabi with all the grace and poise of a drunk, corpulent uncle negotiating his way to an impatient taxi following an ill-tempered family get-together. You know he means well, but dripping in pathos and stale, institutionalised men-only aftershave, he cuts a somewhat embarrassing figure to everyone who isn’t as intoxicated as he is.
The gala had the part of Peter Sagan played by Morten Harket from 80s pop trio, Aha, while everyone else arrived fresh from a Topman catalogue shoot. All except UCI President Brian Cookson, of course, who maintained his “rural clergyman dressed a village greengrocer” countenance. And as the social media manager dutifully posted pics of the back-slapping revelry the watching world began to wonder where all the women cycling stars were? Save for Women’s Hour Record holder, Molly Staffer van Houweling, the answer was not in Abu Dhabi for the UCI’s cycling gala.
Sensing a storm was brewing the UCI sought to counter claims that the women had been forgotten about by pointing out that women had been invited, but could not attend nor be represented. Lizzie Armitstead tweeted that she was celebrating her grandparents diamond anniversary as the reason for her absence. Questions, and a considerable amount of anger still remain, though:
Bradley Wiggins, as holder of the men’s Hour Record, sent a video message that was played to the assembled guests. Why couldn’t Armitstead and other invited recipients of awards have done the same? Why could no representative be found to accept the awards on their behalf? Indeed, it would appear that in their absence their achievements weren’t recognised at all. There was no mention of the awards at all in the post-Gala press release.
All of which highlights the other glaring omission from cycling’s latest foray into the Middle East: gender equality. The IOC pays the UCI millions of Swiss Francs to uphold its mandated charter of promoting gender equality. 13 awards for men, compared to only 5 for women. And given the UCI’s responsibilities in this regard, was there any pressure from the sport’s governing body to have a women’s race in Abu Dhabi?
The problem with rushing with such ill-deserved enthusiasm towards the oil-rich United Arab Emirates is that RCS, Velon, and the UCI seem to have forgotten all the reasons, other than the money, that bike races exist at all. From the evidence presented, Abu Dhabi has neither the par course or the climate to ensure an entertaining bike race. Beyond entertainment, we hope that elite-level, professional sport can inspire further participation at a grass-roots level. Cycling is also unique in this regard in that it also serves as a mode of transportation. But with no spectators lining the roadside, or crammed in to the Yas Marina race track, can it really be argued that bringing a race to Abu Dhabi was justified?
What appears to have happened in Abu Dhabi was that the oil-rich emirate’s money was simply the only determining factor in having an event there at all.
Welcome to the future. It’s all about the money. Can any of us say that we’re really shocked at this?