Cycling is now deemed 'cool' says Bradley Wiggins
Sir Bradley Wiggins says he couldn't have imagined the current interest in cycling when he started his career in the 1990s.
Sir Bradley Wiggins believes British success in recent years has helped turn cycling into a brand, with the sport’s market now worth £1.39bn to the UK.
In an interview with Marketing Week, the world time trial champion insists that cycling is no longer a niche sport, with his Tour de France and Olympic glory in 2012 helping to bring the sport to national prominence.
“The transformation [in cycling] is quite phenomenal,” Wiggins said.
“The growth was already huge but [the Tour and Olympics] helped bring a whole new audience to the sport and it really captured people’s imagination."
Since 2011, when Mark Cavendish was crowned world champion, interest in cycling in the UK has grown by 38% according to figures from Repucom.
Nowadays, Wiggins can be seen as a brand in himself, with Repucom claiming 81% of people in the UK aware of his exploits and 88% of them claiming to like him, making him one of the most liked personalities in the country.
And Wiggins admits that even a decade ago he would not have been able to predict cycling’s rapid increase in popularity.
Get The Leadout Newsletter
The latest race content, interviews, features, reviews and expert buying guides, direct to your inbox!
“Cycling is not a minority sport any more, it has come a long way to be accepted… and be deemed cool.
“Everyone has a bike, has access to a bike or knows someone with a bike, so I think it is just one of those things that has been lying dormant for many people, but as it has caught on people have given it another go.”
Source: Marketing Week
Wiggo on tour: check out Bradley Wiggins' customised motorhome
It could only be Wiggo's
Bradley Wiggins's classic bike collection
Thank you for reading 20 articles this month* Join now for unlimited access
Enjoy your first month for just £1 / $1 / €1
*Read 5 free articles per month without a subscription
Join now for unlimited access
Try first month for just £1 / $1 / €1
Stuart Clarke is a News Associates trained journalist who has worked for the likes of the British Olympic Associate, British Rowing and the England and Wales Cricket Board, and of course Cycling Weekly. His work at Cycling Weekly has focused upon professional racing, following the World Tour races and its characters.
-
The land of legends: Riding on Tadej Pogačar's home roads
As part of our New Worlds issue in Travel Month, Chris Marshall Bell travelled to Slovenia to find out why it produces so many WorldTour riders per head of population.
By Chris Marshall-Bell Published
-
SBT GRVL lives! The story of just how close the gravel community came to losing one of its biggest events
Here are all the details on what the revamped event will look like in 2025 as government headwinds continue to push against the event
By Logan Jones-Wilkins Published
-
Mark Cavendish and Bradley Wiggins to reunite on the bike to raise money for US hurricane relief
The British knights will be joined by Jan Ullrich at the Gran Fondo Hincapie next week
By Adam Becket Published
-
Bradley Wiggins 'a little bit nervous' as he returns to cycling
Former Tour de France winner set to ride bike again for first time in almost three years
By Tom Davidson Published
-
'I should have paid more attention to my financial affairs' - Bradley Wiggins opens up about bankruptcy
Former Tour de France winner was declared bankrupt in June
By Adam Becket Published
-
Bradley Wiggins: 'I was putting myself in some situations where someone would have found me dead in the morning'
Former Tour de France winner and Olympic champion reveals further details about his mental health struggles and suggests 2022 interview potentially saved his life
By Tom Thewlis Published
-
Bradley Wiggins joins Lance Armstrong for Tour de France podcast
The former Tour de France winner will be appearing on The Move for the next week
By Adam Becket Published
-
Bradley Wiggins declared bankrupt - reports
The Tour de France winner was in an Individual Voluntary Arrangement since 2020
By Adam Becket Published
-
Bradley Wiggins says he suffered ‘borderline rape’ during three years of 'abuse' by coach
Speaking on Fearne Cotton’s Happy Place podcast, Wiggins says he now “hates cycling” and only ever used the sport as a distraction
By Tom Thewlis Published
-
Bradley Wiggins might not be a TV pundit for much longer: 'I just want a normal job really'
Tour de France champion says that he doesn't still want to be on Eurosport in 10 years, and he thought about being a social worker
By Adam Becket Published