Victoria Pendleton: Cycling's Golden Girl

[Doseone]

I hope that VP finds happiness once she retires from competitive cycling, but I fear that she will not.

I think sadly you are probably right.

I think we have all seen the fat dad in a track suit shouting instructions at his kid playing football

You've seen me haven't you?

 

[ColinJ]

A couple of little Pendletinis might make all the difference for her.

Maybe she will be happier doing 'normal' than she has been doing 'star' - I hope so.

BTW, did you notice that her mother was completely silent? I hope that was because she didn't want to participate rather than because the director thought she didn't matter.

Good point! I can't even remember her being on the programme.

I was quite shocked where VP's dad was looking wistfully at the champion's jersey that she'd given him. His reaction seemed to be more 'I could have been a contender' than 'My daughter, the champ'!

 

[rodgy-dodge]

I agree with Dellzeg it was heart rendering stuff. I totally empathise with her on the pleasing other people thing, however I think she's left herself wide open to more negative critism should she not do as well as she expects this coming olympics. Unless this documentary was to throw all her competitors off abought her state of mind! I hope she does well so she doesn't end up kicking herself the rest of her life like her dad.

 

[ColinJ]

I hope she does well so she doesn't end up kicking herself the rest of her life like her dad.

I don't think it is that simple. For an example, see her reaction to winning after her opponent was DQd after coming up the track in the sprint. It isn't enough to win, she'd have to win everything 'the right way'. And get world records. And be loved by the press. And for her dad to say he was so, so proud of her... And even then, she might still feel that emptiness. It isn't as though she has been an underachiever so far!

 

[lejogger]

...I couldn't help thinking that the reason why the team sacked her new fella was simple jealousy - they should have had the professionalism and the intelligence to sit around a table with a few beers and work out how they could turn the relationship to the team's advantage.

Possibly, but I can also see the other side of the coin. When it's all so secretive and Scott was living with the other coach (I can't remember his name) who insinuated that he was going home and letting off a bit of steam, probably having a fair bit of a moan about her in confidence, it would be quite a betrayal of trust to find out that Scott was involved with her romantically and the comments that he thought were private could have been getting back.
Perhaps it wasn't just the relationship but the secrecy that went with it.

 

[dellzeqq]

I think Shane Sutton acknowledged that the secrecy had been part of the problem.

It was clear, though, that when she joined the team it simply wasn't set up to accommodate a woman, and that, worse still, the attitude from Shane Sutton across to the psychologist is still concentrated purely on the personal (which was there in spades) but neglects the obvious, which is that you have to have some kind of plan, and the conversational skills to see it through.

It made me wonder what would have happened if (say) Chris Hoy had fallen head over heels in love with Dave Brailsford. I don't think the team would have been able to cope.

 

[Silver Fox]

I think Shane Sutton acknowledged that the secrecy had been part of the problem.

He also acknowledged that when the affair first came to his attention he had managed it wrong.

Always a difficult judgement call managing work place romances as they can have the potential to seriously undermine the teams effectiveness.

 

[martint235]

I've not seen that grass track racing her father did before - is it some sort of cyclocross?

Looks flipping scary to me, wouldn't take much moisture to make a grass track a bit slippy

 

[toroddf]

I think more or less all athletes on that level has got their wires crossed in some sort or another. That reminds me about Tim Henman vs Andy Murray where Tin Henman had the wires in the right place, but no killer and no winner instinct.
Victoria Pendleton came across as a killer and a complex person with unresolved issues in that programme. I do fear for her after the London olympics. She need friendly support for the rest of her life, I believe. I believe some excellent work for charities is in the cards. In that role, she will be excellent.

Btw. As the online media clever girl she is, she will probably read these comments too, sooner or later. In that case; good luck, Victoria and all the best for the rest of your life.

 

[GrumpyGregry]

She has been competing, continuously since her early teens. Not a development path likely to produce a well adjusted individual imo. Once she retires, hopefully with a stash of London 2012 Golds, she will start growing up and living a normal life. If she's lucky she will make the change gracefully and get a decent billet, most likely in the media somewhere, where highly strung high maintenance types fit right in as 'talent', and meet someone with whom she can share a stable and fulfilling relationship.

If she's unlucky..... she will end up running a bike shop somewhere.

 

[Ludwig]

I thought Victoria Pendleton was a railway station near Bolton

 

[redcard]

VP: "I've had too much success."
British Public: "Doing what?"

 

[ColinJ]

... and meet someone with whom she can share a stable and fulfilling relationship.

Clearly, you didn't watch the programme or read all of the posts above - she is engaged to one of her coaches and it caused a huge row when it first came out, leading to him being sacked. (He is now back on the support team though.)

 

[Over The Hill]

Interesting profile.
Came across as a bit of an odd ball in many ways with a lot of issues there - strange the shrink employed to sort her out seems to have not managed to do much.
She did however go off to uni and not have much to do with cycling for some time, and did rather see that cycling took her on her terms -re how she presents herself. So good for her on those points.
I could not really work out why it was such a scandal for her to have a relationship with one of her coaches. What was the big deal that made it secret at first and then that he had to be thrown off the team?

What next for her? Cycling is a bit of a liability to an image (sorry but it is) so away from that who knows. Not sure if she could take the step over to TV presenting or whatever. She seems to keep away from the camera so perhaps options limited.
There seems to be endless jobs for the boys in sport or government projects.

 

[ColinJ]

Came across as a bit of an odd ball in many ways with a lot of issues there - strange the shrink employed to sort her out seems to have not managed to do much.

Multiple World and Olympic gold medals = 'not much'?

He is there to help the team members achieve their sporting goals, he's not the team psychotherapist!