On the subject of One Cycling: Interview with Giro boss Mauro Vegni
TOUR: Mauro Vegni, have the initiators of One Cycling already contacted you and presented their plans?
Mauro Vegni: No, not yet at all. To put it this way, we're standing at the window, completely on the outside. Nobody has approached us. We're watching how this thing develops. And when they contact us, we'll see what happens. But at the moment we're just spectators.
But what do you think of the plans that have been made public so far, i.e. a new racing series, centralised marketing of television rights and the generation of new revenue?
That is difficult to estimate. First of all, we need to know how much money is involved and how it will be distributed. If there is an offer, we will of course evaluate it. But none of that has happened yet.
Is it conceivable for you - and this is also an idea that has been expressed in connection with One Cycling - that the fans standing at the side of the track should pay admission?
I would say that we are believers in cycling, religiously attached to it, so to speak. In Italy, it wouldn't work for people to pay. I'm rather afraid that those who like to watch will also leave. You should seriously think about that again. However, I can imagine situations where you have a closed group. You could perhaps try something there. But I doubt that will work in Italy.
An ongoing issue in cycling, which One Cycling also promises to address, is the participation of the racing teams in the organisers' income. What is your position on this?
The most important thing is what's on the balance sheet. What do you have that you can give me, and vice versa. If both sides contribute to increasing revenue in cycling, then of course you can talk about it. And then it can work. But the cake has to get bigger.
