Podium Cafe, for Cycling fans

"I think, quite frankly, that the UCI has quite a lot to answer for. They seem to just spend all their time regulating saddle angles and so on when they could be helping to further developing the sport."

Emma Pooley doesn't pull her punches, as usual - interviewed at the Haute Route.

She's also auctioning some goodies for Amnesty

I really hope new investors will see that giving talented women the same sporting chance as their male counterparts in this amazing sport is worthwhile, and if we were to achieve this will mean a true lasting legacy for women’s cycling in the UK"

The crash killed three riders: Park Eun Mi (25), Lee Min Jeong (24) and Jeong Soo Jeong (19) and seriously injured Kim Seon Young (20), Jeong Eun Song (23) and Jang Jin Ha (19). The coach Jeon Jae Hyo (51), also suffered non-life threatening injuries. The team was training for an upcoming regional race.

The driver of the truck was reportedly not under the influence of alcohol, but was watching a soap opera on his DMB (digital multimedia broadcast) device and was not paying sufficient attention to the road ahead.

"The driver said he was watching the television and only after hearing a loud noise while colliding with the van did he realize he had caused an accident. He steered left immediately and braked but it was too late. We presume he was driving at around 70 kilometers per hour," a police officer said, according to the Korea Times, .

There’s one down, screaming like a pig in the middle of the cobbles

"We took into account the fact that the women, and in particular Chloe, earn bugger all from the sport. And if in fact we imposed an immediate $200 fine that would be a very severe penalty.

"For the blokes a $200 fine would be a slap on the wrist. And if the guys earning the big bucks did something similar they could expect a much more savage outcome, but Chloe would be on 10,000Euros or something a year, she has to pay for all her own accommodation, all her own living expenses.

"Chloe was very contrite and we said to her 'we respect your right to savagely criticise the attitude of the UCI and things that Pat McQuaid has done and said, but you can't attack the messenger. You can attack the message, and we respect her right to do that, but calling someone a dick or a dickhead just doesn’t elevate the discussion at all and she knew that.'"

Women’s cycling goes way back. We all know that the first official world championships for women were in 1958 (Reims France) won by Elsy Jacobs from the Luxembourg. But that was not the start of women’s cycling. In 1868 it were 3 sisters from Bordeaux France, Amélie, Finette and Rosita who challenged each other. Keeping their last name secret as it was kind of a violation of public morals to race as a woman.

But is not what I want to share with you. There is an even better story. The story of Alfonsina Morini (Strada).

Alfonsina was the first and only woman who participated in the Giro d’Italia in 1924. That year she had won 36 races and organizer Emilio Colombo invited her as most of the big teams boycotted the Giro. He thought that this stunt would give more attention to the race and he was right!

It's harder for people to follow me because I can fit into gaps where it's difficult for others. I maneuver really well in the pack. Instead of finding my way around, I 'squirrel' my way through.

Now getting "back to life" is my athletic goal. Even though this piece has taken me nearly four weeks to write - under the close eye of my speech therapist and my sports editor - I am confident I will one day fulfil my career capabilities, if not my sporting ones.

Meantime, jokes are welcome; if I don't laugh, I'll cry. One of my favourite sayings is "learn to laugh at yourself and you'll be constantly amused".

Take my Dad; he sometimes calls me Cyclops - and I'll answer to it. Isn't laughter the best medicine?

Those qualities I had as an athlete - determination, persistence, stubbornness and a strong work ethic - can now be put into my recovery. As much time and effort goes into my rehab as if it were my Olympic training program, with a far greater reward. Regardless of my athletic "head-start", this could not have been done without the support of my loving family and partner. They have gone through almost as much of an ordeal as I have. And thanks to you, the readers, who wrote to the Sunday Mail after my crash. I have read it all and it helped a lot.

Carla Swart will be joining HTC-Columbia for the 2011 season. We're proud of you and behind you all the way!

Pegasus Racing hopes to field ProTour, Continental, under-23 and women’s teams next year that will compete in Europe, North America and Australia.
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"This is an exciting development and a big commitment, which shows just how serious we are about cycling," Pegasus Sports Chief Executive Chris White told the Sydney Morning Herald.

''Not only are we looking to achieve ProTour status in 2011, we are also looking to bolster our program and make a commitment to women's cycling for the first time. We plan to be a significant, long-term player in all the major theatres of cycling around the world."