Par
Baptiste Hue
Published on
Nov 5, 2024 at 10:31 a.m.
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President of the 3 Days of Cherbourg-en-Cotentin since 2019, Bernard Berhault (66 years old) takes on a new hat at the head of the Channel committeedetermined to revitalize the practice of Cycling among young people.
Why did you decide to succeed Nicole Delarue as president of the Channel committee?
It was Nicole (Delarue) herself who told me that she was not leaving for a new mandate and who asked me to join the committee. So I agreed to apply to take over the presidency.
Is there a Bernard Berhault “paw”?
Those who know me know that I am into dialogue, listening… I am not the type to impose my vision of things without consultation. Very quickly, I will contact all the clubs in the department to ask them to tell us their expectations and their priorities. We want to know what they expect from the committee. We will then summarize their responses to determine our areas of work. My desire is to be a force of proposal and to work in direct contact with the clubs, serving as a relay for them with the regional committee.
A visiting candidate
Teodoro Bartuccio, candidate for the post of president of the French Cycling Federation, continues his campaign this Tuesday, November 5, 2024 in Cotentin. This morning, he will visit the racing department premises of Team Bricquebec Cotentin, in Valognes. At 2 p.m., he will attend a demonstration of the Savoir Rouler à vélo system at the Quettetot school. Finally, at 5 p.m., he will host an exchange meeting with the Manche clubs, in Valognes. “He’s someone who knows the basics of cycling, he has good ideas,” summarizes Bernard Berhault, member of his support committee. The election will take place on December 14.
Do you already have an idea of your main areas of work?
It is already clear that we want to focus on young people. We want to make young people want to cycle again. Why do kids lose interest in cycling? How can we avoid seeing small pelotons at the start of races? Cycling is a tough sport and too many young people stop in their teens. To keep them, to encourage them to get involved, we want to relaunch the U15, U17 or U19 selections to take them for great races, do training courses… We also need to think about activities for children around the cycling. Furthermore, cycling is an expensive sport, which can deter some parents. We could help out with equipment between clubs, create a exchange to collect bikes or clothing at a lower cost.
“Stop the decline in licensees”
What are the other projects to come?
We lost 93 licensees this year (1,609 licensees) and we must try to stop this fall. Many people cycle for leisure, but without joining the clubs… How can we attract them? This decline is not specific to the Manche department, since it also exists at the national level. We also want to try to harmonize the calendar. Sometimes, on the same day, there are two races 30 kilometers apart, with two pelotons of 15 guys at the start. This sometimes leads to the cancellation of races which no longer take place the following year… We also want to create challenges, bring together organizers, to encourage runners from outside to come and run here. What is certain is that cycling has evolved, behaviors have evolved, so we have to get back up to date.
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