The following statement has appeared on the British Cycling website:
Brian Facer is to step down as British Cycling CEO with immediate effect, by mutual agreement with the Board of Directors.
The search for a new CEO has now commenced, with Cycling Delivery Director Danielle Every appointed as Acting CEO in the interim.
British Cycling Chair, Frank Slevin, said:
“We remain fully committed to the delivery of our ‘Lead our sport, inspire our communities’ strategy, as we continue our work to support and grow our sport and wider activities, and provide our Great Britain Cycling Team riders with the best possible platform for success.
“Our new CEO will join the organisation at an exciting time as we build towards next year’s inaugural UCI Cycling World Championships in Scotland, and the Paris Olympic and Paralympic Games in 2024.”
And… that’s it. Perhaps it’s what it doesn’t say that is of greatest interest: there’s no mention of why Brian Facer has stepped down now, or with immediate effect. And there’s no mention of that other big British Cycling news of late: the Shell sponsorship deal.
Cast your minds a little further back, and you’ll recall that the controversy over its previous deal with HSBC comes before Brian Facer’s tenure, leaving us to wonder where the corporate buck stops when it comes to the Shell deal. Is this it? Or is Facer’s departure a sign of dissent in the ranks?
I came to Singletrack having decided there must be more to life than meetings. I like all bikes, but especially unusual ones.
More than bikes, I like what bikes do. I think that they link people and places; that cycling creates a connection between us and our environment; bikes create communities; deliver freedom; bring joy; and improve fitness. They’re environmentally friendly and create friendly environments.
I try to write about all these things in the hope that others might discover the joy of bikes too.
I came to Singletrack having decided there must be more to life than meetings. I like all bikes, but especially unusual ones.
More than bikes, I like what bikes do. I think that they link people and places; that cycling creates a connection between us and our environment; bikes create communities; deliver freedom; bring joy; and improve fitness. They're environmentally friendly and create friendly environments.
I try to write about all these things in the hope that others might discover the joy of bikes too.
…and stopping Emily bridges from riding, and suggesting that people shouldn’t cycle out respect for the Queen. I would’ve thought the BoD had probably had enough of internally-created controversies.
In April it suspended its transgender policy after world governing body the UCI had stepped in to bar Emily Bridges from competing at the National Omnium Championships the previous week. Trans and non-binary athletes are still barred from competition pending the outcome of a review which is still in progress six months later.
Does anyone really think the rot at BC started or stopped at the top though?
No.
It is deeply cultural. And in my experience includes Scottish cycling.
I too wish they would rename to ‘British who-want-to-race-skinny-wheel-bikes cycling, everyone else just move on’.
They’ll just hire someone in their own mould – unlikely anything will change….
Not specific to BC at all but people at that CEO level do this pretty regularly. In post for a couple of years, step down (or “leave by mutual consent”) and then crop up again in another >£300k/year role somewhere else a couple of months later.
Kind of like Government – failure doesn’t really seem to follow them around, they just get headhunted / parachuted into another top level job and the process repeats.
£300k/year role somewhere else a couple of months later.
Kind of like Government – failure doesn’t really seem to follow them around, they just get headhunted / parachuted into another top level job and the process repeats.
And how does one find their way into a career like this?
(typing this in an office with no windows and deep into my overdraft)
I too wish they would rename to ‘British who-want-to-race-skinny-wheel-bikes cycling, everyone else just move on’.
I begrudgingly pay them because every year I might find the time to race.
Might be interesting next year as a few leagues are in talks about how to move away from BC over the Shell sponsorship. I don’t think anyone who races thinks there’s VFM in the £35 BC subs each year.
CTT obviously run everything outside BC.
As so various ‘local’ XC series (e.g Gorrick)
Not too much of a stretch to think that this time next year CX might be outside BC. Summer crit series might be harder unless something can be set up to oversee race Cats.
It’s absolutely true that they have done nothing to speak of on of-road advocacy. In fact it’s arguable they’ve been a brake on progress. I’ve seen this at close quarters.
Agreed that Cycling UK aren’t perfect but at least they are trying. Unless BC can up their game on this it would be better if they just stepped away altogether.
Unless you are into track racing and road racing which seems to be their only real interest.
That said they might be crap at that as well.
I’ve not been involved with BC before, but I’ve organised 1.5 ‘BC’ road races this year ( the .5 was due to the original org getting covid). The regions/local BC people don’t have a good word to say about BC on the road either.
As above, they really should just split, hive off the Olympic/Track programme sponsored by Shell and let everyone else get on with it.
ot too much of a stretch to think that this time next year CX might be outside BC
I very much doubt it. I voted no when the BCCA merged with BC, and, unless something big is going on, it wont branch off on its own again. Overall, I think the BC merger has not done anything for CX, though with such a small membership base, it wont do much different on its own.
It’s absolutely true that they have done nothing to speak of on of-road advocacy. In fact it’s arguable they’ve been a brake on progress. I’ve seen this at close quarters.
More than arguable. It would be inappropriate to name names but we may well know one another 🙂
At least they don’t seem to have fooled anyone with their random, poorly timed press releases on advocacy things.
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