Ah, here's the other thread. I should come here more.
Frankly, I find it stunning and deeply disappointing that you can't apparently have a conversation about race in cycling without it devolving into pure idiocy and American stereotyping. The amount of ignorance and stupidity on display in my other thread even within two pages was shocking. How can a (presumably) adult go through life with so little self-reflection as to be completely unaware of his own attitude towards race relations? How do these people get through the day?
Anyways...
I don't understand why it should have anything to do with culture or economy. I understand that it's tough to be a bike racer when your roads aren't paved, and unfortunately a lot of 'black' nations are in this situation.
But, lots of Africans have emigrated to all kinds of places. I wonder if this all has more to do with the tendency of emigrants to absorb new culture selectively. I mean if I went to a new country and already looked and talked differently, maybe I would be much less likely to embrace a sport that also makes you different. Maybe I would want to blend in a little more than lycra and funny helmets allow for.