THAT Nicole Cooke’s appearance in front of the Department for Culture, Media and Sport committee on Tuesday was explosive is not in the least surprising. The retired cyclist has a reputation for speaking her mind and true to form, her words this week were excoriating.

The Welsh rider, who was Olympic and world road race champion in 2008, spent one hour giving evidence to the select committee’s doping enquiry and no one escaped her wrath. From Team Sky’s use of therapeutic use exemptions and their "mystery package" to British Cycling’s institutional sexism (as well as the UCI’s) to her complete lack of faith in UK Sport and UK Anti-Doping, Cooke pulled no punches.

Her display earlier this week was something that is so rarely seen in elite sport, particularly in Britain – someone who is willing to completely and unrestrainedly speak their mind. Cooke showed no fear about who she was criticising: from Sir Bradley Wiggins to Sir Dave Brailsford to Shane Sutton, Cooke showed no regard for reputations.

In the days following her testimony, Cooke has been called feisty and awkward. No doubt that her evidence made for uneasy listening by those at British Cycling, the governing body whose system is used as a model for those around the globe. But this does not warrant labelling her as "feisty". Incidentally, when was the last time you heard a man being described as feisty? Can’t remember? That’s because it never happens. And so this sexist label being applied to Cooke is perhaps fitting as one of her longstanding crusades has been to fight for gender equality within her sport.

The 33 year-old was born the wrong gender if she wanted to be fully supported in her career. In her autobiography, The Breakaway, released in 2014, she gave detailed accounts of instances where female riders were treated as second-class citizens in comparison to male riders. And on Tuesday Cooke was, if anything, even more damning in her assessment of the sexism that exists within British Cycling. She gave numerous examples: in 2008, British Cycling downgraded their preparations for the World Championships because there was no male rider to challenge for the title. In 2000, Cooke asked for a skin suit to compete in yet it was not provided until 2008. Asked if she believed that sexism was culturally embedded within British Cycling, she replied: “ Yes, I do”, before adding that British Cycling is “run by men, for men.”

At the hearing, Cooke admitted that British Cycling chiefs already have a somewhat unfavourable view of her, with the president calling her “difficult”. Their view is unlikely to have softened after Cooke’s performance on Tuesday. And herein lies the problem: throughout Cooke’s career, she has voiced uncomfortable truths. From her scathing assessment of drug cheats to making public the struggle she has faced being a female rider, she has said what she believes. She has spared no one, which has led to her being labelled awkward. Cooke is one of the few riders who has the guts to voice her criticisms and, for this, she should be labelled heroic, not awkward or feisty.

Cooke has no fear about who she upsets or offends and for this she is truly remarkable. It is almost impossible to describe how hard it is made for an athlete to speak out against those in authority. Cooke put her head above the parapet both during her career and on Tuesday and because she is the exception who is willing to do this, she has been branded bitter and twisted. In many respects, she has every right to be bitter; this is a rider who has been world and Olympic champion despite the system, not because of it. This is a rider who was at the very pinnacle of her sport yet was still not paid money that she was entitled to in her contracts. And the money she was owed was but a fraction of what the top male riders earned.

Cooke’s conviction to change sport for the better may or may not have been for selfish reasons, but irrespective of her motivations she changed the landscape for female riders everywhere. Cooke may not be perfect either but she is exactly the type of person that sport should be embracing, for she has the knowledge of what needs to be done and the eloquence to express her thoughts in a way few others possess. That Cooke is not embraced by the establishment and instead is branded a nuisance says much about those running both cycling and sport as a whole.

Female athletes should look at Cooke and realise how valuable she is. If every female athlete were to follow her lead then equality would come far sooner than it will at the current rate. If Cooke is difficult then every female athlete in the world should aspire to being just as difficult as she is.