"Limit the number of photographers": Flanders Classics organizer proposes a solution to motorcycles' influence of races

The motorbikes have been in center of attention these past few weeks for all the wrong reasons. In particular, it was the comments from Valentin Paret-Peintre and Luke Plapp following the Tour de Romandie, highlighting the impact TV and photographer motorbikes have had on the race, which stirred up a heated debate.

While CPA president Adam Hansen stressed out that the organization is working hard behind the scenes to prevent races being impacted by external parties, such as photographers on motorcycles, former cyclist Jelle Wallays, who currentlyworks as a regulator for organizing party Flanders Classics, proposed a solution:

"When Pogacar attacks, every photographer on a motorcycle wants a photo. Then I have to direct them: one by one, so that everyone can continue doing their job. We want to avoid them influencing the race," he tells Het Nieuwsblad.  

"That is why we sometimes work with restricted zones. This means that only two photographers are allowed to take photos in a crucial zone, precisely to limit the number of photographers riding in front of the riders. The condition, however, is that those photographers must share their photos with the other photographers present at that race."

However Wallays acknowledges that letting every photographing company have their chance at capturing the pixel-perfect moment is more of a formality, much greater issues come from having an extensive race convoy, such as the aforementioned unnatural slipstream troubles.

A challenge is keeping motorcycles with camera operators at a distance, but Flanders Classics is working hard on a solution behind the scenes, Wallays reveals: "At Flanders Classics, we are focusing heavily on a sensor that will be installed on the camera operator's motorcycle."

"The driver of that motorcycle will see a green light if he keeps enough distance, and a red light if the riders get too close and he causes them too much slipstream. That sensor is also speed-dependent. If the driver sees a red light, he knows he needs to accelerate briefly to create more distance," he concludes.