5 Findings from Female Pros in the Pinkbike State of the Sport Survey

Welcome to the 2023 Pinkbike State of the Sport Survey. This anonymous survey is designed to help shed light on key issues affecting the professional field and elite competition. We surveyed the best riders in the world to hear their thoughts, ideas, concerns, and criticisms on mountain biking as we go into 2023, all in an anonymous format. To read the introduction to the survey click here, and to see all the other currently published SOTS articles click here.
Mountain biking is historically a male-dominated sport, and so snapshots of pro riders don't often give a full representation of women's views and opinions. Women's participation in mountain biking has undoubtedly grown significantly over the last several years, however, the women's competitive side of the sport remains less developed than the men's side of things. In this survey, 58.6% of the riders were men, while the remaining 41.4% of those surveyed are women (that’s 2% more than last year - woo!). This article dives into the data that is specific to those 63 female pro riders who gave us their thoughts on the state of the sport.
The Majority of Women Surveyed Feel They've Have Experienced Sexism In The Sport

Only 25.1% of female professionals would say that they have not experienced sexism in mountain biking. That’s pretty bleak, thought it is approximately 5% higher than last year. The numbers tell us that the majority of female professional mountain bikers feel that have experienced sexism in the sport.

Women Want Female Peers In The Wings

We asked these women what they would like to see in mountain biking to make it more inclusive for female professional mountain bikers. We got a great mix of responses.

Women want to see more of their gender represented not just in the gates, but also in the field as part of the fabric of the industry. Female commentators, female officials, female mechanics, and team staff are desired, as well as women on factory teams and working in the World Cup circuit. Women would like to see their peers as mechanics, team managers, and sponsors. One survey participant also noted that there is a need to educate commentators on how to speak to female athletes, as well as a need to educate brands on how to celebrate female athletes without sexualizing them in their marketing.

For enduro-specific riders, more opportunities are sought after to allow women to run their own program, rather than having to join a team. In general, women feel that the sponsorship money seems to be there for the very top, but doesn’t seem to filter through the ranks. Some women also mentioned that it would be wonderful to see the women's final as the 'grand finale', as opposed to the men's. Women are aware that their events are scheduled early, citing that this gives them much less visibility and spectators compared to the men, thus feeding the cycle of less exposure and lower pay.

Speaking of Which, Female Pros Say There's a Pay Gap (and they’re right)

More than half of the women surveyed responded ‘strongly agree’ to the statement ‘there is a gender pay gap in mountain biking.’ Another 30.8% responded ‘agree,’ putting the total agree answers at 83.1%. 12.3% were neutral, 3.1% disagreed, and 1.5% strongly disagreed. They estimate to make 30-50% less than their male counterparts, and the comparison chart of responses proves it. When asked ‘Is mountain biking your sole income or do you have to have another job to support yourself?’, 47.62% reported it was. Yet, for over a third of women surveyed, less than 20% of their salary is guaranteed, with the rest being made up of prize money and other bonuses. Around 24% of males reported approximately 100% of their salary is guaranteed, compared to just 13% amongst women. 18 of the women reported a salary in the 60-80% category, compared to 29 men.

Most Women Want to Race the Same Courses as the Men

In response to the statement 'The course should be the same, irrespective of gender,' 52.4% strongly agreed, 34.9% agreed, 9.5% responded neutrally, and 3.1% disagreed. None strongly disagreed.The vast majority of women surveyed think that men and women should race on the same courses. Many of them feel that to promote equality and respect for women, it's important to understand that despite physiological differences from men, professional women in this sport are exceedingly capable and can compete on the same courses as the men. Women's mountain biking is evolving quickly as more opportunities are afforded women and the sport develops further. It seems like big jumps and gnarly courses are here to stay, which is exactly what most of the women want. Overall, the women we surveyed recognised that changes are being made in the industry for the better. Being able to race the same tracks (86% outwardly voted for men and women to ride the same course) was celebrated for bringing visibility and credibility to women racers. More women's events are desired to bring more women into the sport and racing scene so that the field of competitors grows and justifies an equal payment for professional (and right now probably still semi-professional) racers.

Women are fiercely competitive too, with 41.46% wanting to be not just the best they can be, but the best in the world at their discipline. Ultimately, there are still less women at the startline, leading to smaller fields. 73.3% of women would support legislation to diversify the professional field, such as an elite UCI trade team having at least 2 of the following: a male, a female, and a junior. It seems that many of the pro women we surveyed would like to be valued based on competitive results, rather than on social media followings or other metrics. We saw similar feedback from the men's side of the survey. It's important to acknowledge that the competitive mountain bike scene is subsidized by brands that want to sell their products, and that racers and brands aren't always motivated by the same things. Brands that hire racers to sell things will always be somewhat at odds with racers who feel their only job is to compete, regardless of gender.Only 2 women surveyed felt that their sponsors valued their feedback from product testing, and media coverage from events, with consistent results and active social media presence being valued the most.
93.5% of women surveyed agree with the idea of a rider’s union, with 81% of women feeling that a union would be beneficial to their interests. 79% of all women also feel that each discipline should have an independent rider's union, and 59% of women agreed or strongly agreed that the rider's union was a direct response to lack of support, communication, and transparency from the UCI and Discovery (37% were neutral, with just 4% disagreeing).