The Giro is too tough to set you up for the Tour- very few riders can do both well. On the other hand without those crazy mountain stages Martin may be able to build up to the Tour now instead.
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The Giro is too tough to set you up for the Tour- very few riders can do both well. On the other hand without those crazy mountain stages Martin may be able to build up to the Tour now instead.
I cant see him back for the Tour but hop i'm wrong!
Not a good day for Roche.. went in in 7th, isn't in top ten now, can't find full results.
A big crash held up a lot of riders and there were decent time gaps.
Sounds disastrous though:
"Giro pretty much over for Roche and Rodriguez... and Niemiec... in terms of GC. It's Evans' to lose - but Uran, Quintana & Majka looming."
Edit: Roche lost 15 minutes.
Hope he's OK.
Extract from Deignan's diary:
Pro cyclists are ducking mental cases. http://www.stickybottle.com/uncatego...from-the-pain/Quote:
Swifty hit the kerb with his hip and was in so much pain afterwards that he ended up fainting in the shower on the team bus.
Some of the guys had to change bikes to finish the stage while Kosta crashed again when a car braked in front of him as he was riding back up through the cavalcade.
A few hours later though, everybody is in pretty good spirits at the dinner table and the mood was improved again when the team brought down an unexpected bottle of wine as a bit of a morale booster.
Roche diary: http://www.independent.ie/sport/othe...-30278790.html
Quote:
In the past, the fact I've been highly placed on GC has meant the overall contenders were wary of me going up the road in a breakaway. Now that I'm 15 minutes down, I will have a bit of leeway.
I still think my condition is pretty good. Okay, I won't be chasing the pink jersey any more, but every cloud has a silver lining and things could work out to my advantage yet.
Nothing stage today.
Ras start list: http://www.anpost.ie/AnPost/IrishCyc...ms+and+Riders/
SKT start with Wilson and Downey while Synergy Baku have McConvey- and there is of course loads of other Irish lads in county teams. Brammeier misses out with chicken pox of all things.
Another good result for Bennett: http://www.stickybottle.com/races-re...lothon-berlin/
Roche on the attack today, let's hope it sticks.
Edit: Deignan in there too.
Deignan had a right cut at it today and had 30 seconds at 3k but was cooked and faded away.
Bennett took 5th at 2nd stage of Worlds Port classic, another good result although he was a bit disappointed.
Deignan was on the attack today again, but missed out on the winning attack.
Bennett meanwhile took fourth at Bayern Rundhart stage 1, and while he was disappointed the team seem delighted with him. http://www.netapp-endura.com/en/news...ur-of-bavaria/
That's the attitude that will make Bennett a winner for years. He's not happy with placings in the top 5, top 10. He wants the wins
Same applies to Dan Martin
Deignan on the attack again.. may be teeing up Cataldo though as he's up there too.
Looks like Roche will be on duty minding Majka for the remainder of the Giro. In fairness Majka did mighty work for him at last year's Vuelta.
Deignan 3rd today. Ireland's first "podium" in the Giro since Roche was 3rd on a stage in 1989
Deignan's previous best Giro finsih was 5th in a stage in 2009
Some powerful riding from Philip the past few days. He sounded disappointed after today's stage despite the podium finish but did admit he could have done no more to challenge the acceleration of the Colombians.
Roche 4th on the Zoncolan today.
I know this doesn't mean much to most but yesterday's result means that 3 Irish cyclists have score world tour points. Helps for World Championship qualification etc
Roche already had a 5th place- stage 14 I think.
ha, I completely forgot about that
Sam Bennett you beauty!
http://www.cyclingnews.com/races/bay...tage-5/results
Wins the stage, takes the sprints jersey in Netapp's home race. Beat some decent sprinters there too.
Edit: Found video. Sprint at 1:39.
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=7Jg0wnC-64s
Same Bennett interview: http://caferoubaix.com/2014/06/05/sa...our-de-france/
Sweet. See the Tour De France is finishing a stage in Mulhose, close to Basel. Brilliant, always wanted to get the chance to see the Tour, brilliant:)
Did we know that Chris Froome had asthma before today?
No. Unfortunate for a top cyclist to first have a disease affecting the blood and then one affecting the lungs. He really can't catch a break.
No mention in his book either, apparently. I'm not saying he is or he isn't, but it beggars belief that Walsh can be so sure of him, whilst being openly sceptical of others who have a much more consistent career path.Quote:
Originally Posted by Mr A
Yeah.. Froome suddenly got it together at the Vuelta a few years ago and went from being a guy who wasn't going to get any sort of decent contract renewal to suddenly being a GC contender. Now he can outclimb Contador and out-TT Cancellara on his day.
Walsh has totally lost the plot.
Either Froome is possibly the greatest cycling talent of all time, or there is something else going on.
And incidentally- an inhaler can make an unbelievable difference on the bike. A couple of weeks ago I went for a spin on the bike and was utterly fecked after my usual 20k lap with a 15% ramp near the end, really in bits, because my asthma had affected my lungs. Usually I don't bother with the inhalers this time of year as the asthma rarely affects me- but really I'm meant to take it all year round. I took a few puffs after this spin and went out and did the same lap again not twenty minutes later and this time it was so much easier it was amazing to me. If it makes that much difference to a rotund bloke on a hybrid the difference it must make to a top pro in the mountains must be very significant.
He was by far the strongest rider on that Vuelta too, despite being a late call up. He would have won it easily if Sky weren't trying to hand it to Wiggins. The year before he was 5th in the Commenwealth games time trialQuote:
Originally Posted by Mr A
Froome is ludicrously thin as well at the moment. He made Contador look like a fatty on the bike yesterday, and he is hardly motoring on just bread and water himself.
Worth remembering who he was second too (and actually beat on the road) too!Quote:
Originally Posted by Dodge
Piece on this: http://www.cyclingweekly.co.uk/news/...r-video-125751
"At last year’s Tour de France, Froome said that TUEs are “rather personal” and that he did not have any"
"The UCI’s rules say that the requirement of a TUE depends on the drug which is used to treat asthma. You do not need an exemption for Salmeterol (up to a daily dose of 1600 micrograms) and/or Formoterol (up to a daily dose of 54 micrograms). Terbutaline requires an exception."
That reminds me.. whatever happened to that Cobo bloke....
Edit.. also- things are getting weird: http://www.theguardian.com/uk/2005/s...esearch.health
"Irish scientists may have a drastic answer to the great asthma epidemic. It is called bilharzia."
So.. the parasite goes, causing asthma to return. May actually make sense.
But Froome doesn't actually have asthma right?
He says he has exercise induced asthma.
Deignan will race the Tour of Switzerland. Probably mostly in support of Wiggins.
Konig is 14th for Netapp at the Dauphine for Netapp- hardly inspiring. Big showdown at the weekend but if he doesn't improve they may well decide focussing on him at the Tour isn't a good bet and will bring Bennett. Meanwhile, an interview with Bennett on CN: http://www.cyclingnews.com/news/incy...-rider-profile
Deignan second in Switzerland today, and 7th overall.
Roche shoring pre Tour De France form: http://www.stickybottle.com/races-re...-route-du-sud/
Martin doesn't look like making the Tour it would seem. He's going to do the national championships though, which Roche isn't.
Roche wins stage 2 of Route du Sud! Get in!
Deignan with another good ride to take 6th in today''s stage of Tour of Switzerland.
Edit:
Video:
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=DLiT23NHC7E&feature=youtu.be
Report:
http://www.stickybottle.com/races-re...-stage-yellow/
Should be able to finish it off and take the overall today.
Overall win confirmed. Nice.
Some of that tour is nearby, pity as football takes preference!
Bennett also won today. A Kermesse in Belgium. http://www.stickybottle.com/races-re...ay-in-belgium/
Deignan must be in with a shout of going to the Tour - he's about the only Sky climbing domestique showing any kind of consistent form. I know it wasn't the plan, but who else have they that's showing any form?
Unless they're being "cycled" to peak at the Tour...Quote:
Originally Posted by Macy