USA Cycling, the governing body responsible for the sport of cycling in the United States, have appointed TSE Consulting, the international management consulting firm specialising in sport performance, to review their athlete selection procedures for major international competitions. 

Selecting athletes for major international competitions is one of the most important, and most challenging, responsibilities for national governing bodies in sport. Finding the right balance between using objective criteria, which create consistency, and subjective decision making, which allow for a level of pragmatism, is often seen as the key to success. Regardless of approach, establishing a rigorous process that is both fair and transparent is critical in order to ensure credibility among athletes and fans.

TSE Consulting has significant experience working with national governing bodies in the area of athlete selection and high performance planning. The project will be led by Senior Consultant Steve Roush and Consultant Michelle Farrell, both of whom have extensive experience in athlete selection processes from their time working at the United States Olympic Committee.

Derek Bouchard-Hall, President & CEO of USA Cycling, commented: “We need to review our athlete selection procedures to ensure that we are doing all we can to put athletes with the best chance for success on our teams, while providing fairness and transparency. Selection decisions are among the most challenging decisions in all of sport, and given the nature of our teams and the depth of our talent pool, we must ensure that we have the best selection process. TSE Consulting came highly recommended and their extensive experience working in this area will be a great asset to us. We look forward to working with such a skilled and experienced organisation.” 

Lars Haue-Pedersen, Managing Director of TSE Consulting, added: “Athlete selection is often difficult for sports organisation as it requires significant dedication and resource allocation. We are very excited to work with USA Cycling as they review their procedures for selecting athletes, and look forward to helping them establish the best selection process possible.”