Rapha has announced what is being billed as ‘a ground-breaking book that uncovers and celebrates the stories of black athletes across the history of cycling.’
‘Desire Discrimination Determination – Black Champions in Cycling’ claims to be the first book of its kind, providing a collation of international and historical stories of the black athlete experience in the world of competitive cycling.
Written by Dr Marlon Moncrieffe, the new book aims to make a contribution of knowledge needed in the global cycling industry, taking on issues regarding access, diversity, inclusion, representation and anti-racism in policy and practice.
The book also seeks to provide much-needed insight into the rich history of black cyclists that has been largely overlooked until now.
Marlon Moncrieffe takes his own racing experiences, research and analytical expertise through a wide range of stories, personal reflections, and oral testimonies and interviews.
Readers learn from different generations of well-known black cyclists from across the UK, USA and beyond including; Major Taylor, Maurice Burton, Russell Williams, Kittie Knox, Nelson Vails, Justin and Cory Williams, Shanaze Reade, Kévin Reza, Tre Whyte, Rashaan Bahati, David Clarke and Charlie Reynolds and more.
The book explores how these protagonists first discovered cycling, their mentors, their ambitions and desires, as well as the explicit and implicit forms of discrimination they faced due to the colour of their skin. It seeks to understand and uncover how despite the white-dominated sport they inhabited, their determination to succeed was never dampened.
Moncrieffe brings an expert interpretation of the recent cultural shifts seen through the growing participation of black people in cycling at recreational grassroots and competitive levels, providing a frank analysis of the reception black people have been given in the face of an exclusionary sense of white-only entitlement within the sport.
In a tribute to these athletes’ stories, Desire Discrimination Determination – Black Champions in Cycling is illustrated with rare photographs and reproductions spanning decades, from the first non-white rider to race the Tour de France in 1914 to the black athletes pushing boundaries in the present day.
This book is published by the bespoke design, illustration and photography teams from award-winning book publishers Rapha Editions, in collaboration with Bluetrain publishing.
www.rapha.cc/stories/black-champions-in-cycling
