Round table discussion: motorsport & media in Belgium
It is well known that media interest in motorsport is not going well. Until about five years ago, both the Grand Prix and the national MX races could count on considerable interest from the newspapers. There was also a lot of motocross - live or not - on the VRT. In some newspapers the reporting is downright ridiculous both in terms of space and tone: 'The Belgians have not won again.'
To address this issue, the Belgian Motorcyclists' Union called on all involved; members of the press, federation officials, drivers and marketing specialists gathered together last Friday in the RTL House in Brussels. The evening was expertly led by two experienced motorcycle journalists: Thierry Sarasyn (editor-in-chief MotorWereld) and Pierre Capart (ex-editor-in-chief Moto 80) and provided many interesting opinions. We have recorded a selection of the questions and statements for you - both during and after the conference. The intention is that these conclusions will be linked to concrete actions to boost interest in motor sports. Sat at the head of the conference table Jos Driessen (chairman BMB), Paul Janssens (chairman of the BMB sports committee), Sylvain Geboers (team manager and owner), Stephane Mertens (riders' representative, former top road race star) and Edmond Detry (promoter BK motocross and Belgian GP motocross).
Pierre Capart: “In the past, and I am talking about the 1960s and 1970s, it was obvious as a newspaper journalist to follow motor sports competitions. The circumstances were often far from ideal during a distant GP, for example we had to search for a usable telephone. If one person had found a telephone, all Belgian journalists followed to call in their piece. Usually there were five or six different journalists on site. There was also solidarity between colleagues and journalists from different newspapers. In short, motorsport and motocross were an indispensable part of the newspapers.”
Thierry Sarasyn: 'In the past, newspapers and specialized motorcycle magazines were the only ones that reported on motorsport. Over the past 10 years, the internet has become just as important. I'm not just talking about websites but also about applications on iPhone, tablet, forums, digital magazines and so on. The speed at which news is spread cannot be compared at all to the past.”
Paul Janssens: “Of all sports in Belgium, motorsport is the most successful. There is no discipline that has as many world titles to its name as we do! Then I find it strange that there is such wild talk about the 5de place of the Belgian men's hockey team at the Olympic Games. The Belgian team's second place at the Motocross of Nations, on the other hand, was hushed up. I know very well that we would have more press interest if motocross were Olympic…”
Ad Van Poppel (marketing specialist and journalist): “How relevant are press conferences anymore?”
Jos Driessen: “The media attention has simply shifted. Much more attention to football and cycling than before. Motorsport came in third place for a long time. You cannot ignore the fact that it is precisely those sports that have the most resources, both through sponsors and through the government. As a result, they were also very well placed to respond to changes in the media landscape, digitalization, so to speak. In recent years, the BMB has been catching up in this area, but we must continue to work hard to reach the public in as many ways as possible.”
Paul Janssens: “How important are the national competitions actually? That is a question I would like to ask Mr Wilmotte.
Thierry Wilmotte, journalist from Le Soir: “First of all, I don't think there is a big battle between the media and motorsport or that motorsports are being neglected! From my experience I know that working conditions, especially in motocross, are not ideal; a poor internet connection or sometimes there is no press room at all. That's one aspect. On the other hand, we no longer have great champions. While it is personalities that make the general public enthusiastic about a sport. It is also not pleasant to note that the greatest Belgian motor sportsman (referring to Clément Desalle; ed.) is currently cutting himself off from the media. The fact that too much attention is paid to football, for example, is an opinion that I share! But one question I ask myself: To what extent do the various organizers work together to involve the media in their sport?”
Is there something wrong with the communication about sporting results?
Philippe Borguet, journalist for la DH and Moto80, ex-sports manager for Kawasaki Belgium: “Certainly when it comes to competitions at European Championship level, it is often very difficult to obtain results and information quickly. For example, clarity about the riders who come to a race, especially if there are last minute riders who cancel. Actually, that should be very basic in 2012, but it is still a quest again and again!'
Bart Jacobs, journalist MotorWereld and demotorsite.be: “On the one hand, organizers sometimes spend money on third-rate riders who contribute nothing, while they would be much better off investing that money in decent facilities for the press. I know that something like this requires an investment, but we are not talking about astronomical amounts here! On the other hand, I also notice that there is a lack of ambition and unity. That people do not want to properly tackle a problem such as the lack of media interest. Compared to the Netherlands, for example, I notice that the importers are more involved or proactive when it comes to national motorsport. Perhaps that is a typical example of the grass being greener on the other side, but at least there is more enthusiasm. At the moment I have the feeling that there is a lack of enthusiasm among many Belgian importers. Ultimately, we can only create more interest through the efforts of everyone involved.”
Sylvain Geboers: “In general there is a lack of media interest in motorsport. This is not only the case in Belgium, but also abroad. Belgian organizers, drivers and teams need that attention. Through this interest we can motivate sponsors to invest in our sport. The new media are of course an interesting evolution that we must respond to. On the other hand, I do note that there is a lot of attention for other sports in the printed press. Almost nothing can be found in the newspapers anymore. If there is a problem from the riders in terms of communication, availability for the press or whatever, then we have to address it. It is also up to the drivers to take their responsibility. They are the poster child for our sport.”
Claude Danis, ex BMB chairman and current safety director in MotoGP on behalf of the FIM: “Money is a very important stumbling block. Years ago we already had the need and idea to set up a communication structure within the BMB. However, the resources were not there. If there is money, the wheel that connects the organisers, teams, riders, sponsors and media turns automatically. People who can find sponsors for our sport are therefore of enormous importance.”
Christophe Weerts, PR responsible BMW Motorrad Belux: “I would first like to return to Bart's (Jacobs; ed.) comment. Of course I can only speak for BMW and I can say that we have invested heavily in sport. When we were in enduro with BMW, we supported Jean-François Goblet. A good example of our involvement in road racing is our collaboration with, for example, Stephane Mertens, who is also here tonight. But everything evolves. We are still working hard on competition in Belgium, but you should not forget that there are also other ways to reach our customers. So we have to invest in that too.”
Olivier Evrard, marketing specialist, editor-in-chief and owner of mxmag.be: “To be honest, I don't know if motorsport is that undervalued in the general media. I think we're coming from a golden period in the 70s and 80s where there was perhaps too much interest in comparison. That makes the contrast with now even greater. The profile of practitioners may also have changed over the years. Motocross is a very demanding sport, especially financially. For many families, their lives revolve around motorsports, which also makes them a bit of outsiders. All their attention goes solely to motocross. From the outside, people have no idea how things are going in our sport and there are fewer contacts with practitioners than before. The time when everyone in their village knew someone who rode a motorcycle is long gone. At the same time, various sports that were barely on the map before have developed strongly over the past thirty years. And the choice of possible events to attend has exploded for consumers.”
Edmond Detry: “The audience, the media and the sport itself are changing. That's why we have to adapt. Previously, you had specific journalists per newspaper who dealt with our sport. That no longer exists. We must take into account the demands of journalists that there is information, that there is a press room, that there is a professional press service. These are all things that we will set up from the BK Motocross in 2013.
Collaboration is very important, especially in the difficult circumstances we are experiencing now. We won't make it alone. For example, we must look for original angles to talk about motorsport in the media. Hence, for example, our collaboration with Standard to introduce football fans to motocross. It is clear that it is a difficult task to gain more interest in our sport, but I fully support the BMB in creating a new dynamic. I am convinced that we can achieve this together. We also need to learn from what other sports have done well in terms of marketing and communication.”
Stéphane mertens: “I have had a career of thirty years, one constant throughout all those years was that you have to do a lot yourself to get into the media! In my GP years I was fortunate that good sponsors such as Total and Johnson provided me with a budget that allowed me to work with the media in a professional manner. In recent years it has become somewhat easier to communicate via the Internet. But ultimately you need good results to reap the benefits. Perhaps even more so than in other sports, it is a complex exercise.”
Yes De Munck, marketing manager Rockstar Energy Suzuki"You cannot ignore the fact that our entire sector and, by extension, all mechanical sports are in the receiving end of the blows. Due to the cost of the four-stroke, the number of practitioners has decreased. Each rider in turn brings visitors to a competition. The more riders there are, the more spectators automatically find their way to a race.
Thierry Wilmotte: “To know the impact of a sport, you also have to look at the number of practitioners. And media attention is by no means solely proportional to the money involved. I do not agree with Mr Danis on that point. You can throw money at it all you want, so to speak, but that alone won't change things. I think that editors are now also taking a more critical look at the space that a particular sport deserves. In the case of hockey, for example, you should not overlook the fact that there have been twice as many permit holders in ten years!”
Paul Janssens: “That could well be the case, but in addition to the number of permit holders, motorcycles also have a significant social significance. Hundreds of thousands of people use motorcycles as a means of transportation. The motorcycle is a proven alternative to combat traffic jams, is a lot more efficient per person than a car for getting around and they take up much less space in parking lots. In other words; Motorsport directly and indirectly represents a huge number of people!”
Laurent Delbroek, Flemish environmental committee VMBB and treasurer MC Maasland: “We should not pass the blame on each other. When I hear that, on the one hand, media interest was so enormous thirty years ago without the necessary accommodation for journalists and that now - despite great efforts by most of our clubs - the attention is no longer there, I see a contradiction in that. Our clientele has also changed. In the past, someone who jumped 2 meters high was a world experience. Now there are so many other challenges for young people. Anyone who goes to Ibiza for a weekend for €50 cannot go to the motorsport competition around the corner on Sunday. That makes sense. Forty years ago, the green movement did not exist either. I notice that difference in my environment. As a school director, my colleagues know well that motocross is my hobby. I sometimes receive a critical comment about this from younger people. That would never have happened before.”
Conclusion by moderator Thierry Sarasyn: “A ready-made solution did not emerge today, nor was that the intention in advance. But I am very pleased with the many relevant comments and the level of discussion. I think that as enthusiasts we should also look very critically at our sport. We often refer to what it was like, but history will also teach us that this period was unique. Only in the 20th century and in part of the century before and after did humans use the combustion engine to move. Everything indicates that we are moving to a different type of vehicles or at least different types of propulsion. It seems logical to me that motorsport will also evolve. We also decide how that happens.”
Photos: Dirk Decoster/BMB
Also to read
A medical update from sidecarcrosser Jason Vandaele
After the second series of the Grand Prix sidecar cross in Heerde, Jason Vandaele had to go to the hospital for a medical check-up. There was a broken rib, two fractures to his eye socket...Dano Verstraten breaks tibia and fibula
Last week Dano Verstraten fell during training. The Brabander broke his tibia and fibula. As a result, the season of the 12-year-old cross rider is over prematurely. …The GasGas riders about their MXGP Galicia
The sixth Grand Prix of the season was held under the Spanish sun. Jorge Prado-Garcia lost the lead in the standings in the mud of Agueda. For their own audience…Benistant in Elzinga for the MXGP Galicia
On Saturday, Thibault Benistant was victorious, but the matches on Sunday afternoon in Lugo went less well. The Frenchman loses third place in the standings to Liam Everts. Teammate…
Your reactions