Paid climbs for fans? The new idea from Plugge, general manager of Visma

There’s one thing that has always set cycling apart from every other sport in the world: it’s free to watch live. Whether you’re standing in a less exciting spot, at the finish line, or on the most decisive section of the race like the steepest part of a climb, it costs nothing. This is one of the reasons why crowds are always huge and the atmosphere is amazing.

But when riders have to descend from summit finishes, this is becoming a problem—or at least that’s what Richard Plugge, general manager of Visma Lease a Bike, believes. In an interview with Vive le Vélo on VRT, he warned about this risk, noting how cyclists are now used to clearing their way through the crowd by blowing whistles.

Also read: Transfer market – after 12 years, Stuyven leaves Trek, while Attila says goodbye to Visma

Here are his exact words and the two possible solutions he proposes to this issue—though both would break one of cycling’s oldest and most beautiful traditions:

“It’s becoming increasingly dangerous for the riders. They have to descend among spectators, many of whom are on bikes or in cars and aren’t used to doing so. We should try to keep people and tourists on the climb as long as possible.
Or we could charge 4 or 5 euros for access to the climb. That way, there would be far fewer spectators. A small fee would be enough to discourage many from coming. On the other hand, I truly enjoyed the atmosphere on the climbs. It was a real folk festival, but the descent of the teams back to the valley needs to be better organized.”

Dai un’occhiata alle altre notizie uscite qui su Universo Sportivo e rimanete aggiornati sui social con Universo Calcistico.