Bicycle Racing News and Opinion,
Monday, November 13, 2017
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2017 Tour de France | 2017 Giro d'Italia
Of course I believe in luck. How else does one explain the success of one's enemies? - Jean Cocteau
Latest completed racing:
- November 12: Gavere Cyclocross
- November 5: European Cyclocross Championships
- Oct 28 - Nov 5: Tour of Hainan
- November 1: Cyclocross Koppenberg
- October 29: Cyclocross Ruddervoorde
- October 28: Cincy CX, Devou Park
- October 28: Grote Prijs van Brabant
- October 19 - 24: Tour of Guangxi
Jai Hindley secures overall victory for Mitchelton-Scott at the Tour of Fuzhou
The team sent me this update:
Stage four winner Jai Hindley secured a stunning victory at the Tour of Fuzhou today after a mature and focused display from Mitchelton-SCOTT brought the race leader safely through the final day of racing.
A standout performance from Hindley and the team on the penultimate stage saw the 21-year-old attack late to take the stage win and the race leaders jersey with the team’s focus shifting immediately to the defense of the yellow jersey on today’s final race day.
A fast 127-kilometre final stage was filled with potential hazards and quite stressful, but the team rallied around Hindley and was happy to see the final come down to a bunch sprint with the stage win going to Maris Bogdanovics (Rietumu-Bank-Riga).
Hindley’s overall win was augmented by Liu Jiankun cementing his position as the best placed Chinese rider on the general classification, finishing in 16th place and just reward for five days of strong support within the team.
“It was a bit crazy in the first hour of racing,” said Hindley. “But the whole team did their best to cover moves to a man were fantastic. We knew that with the sprinters teams having an interest we weren’t the only ones that had to ride at the front.”
“There were a lot of riders that were within a minute of GC and we needed to keep a close eye on them, it was quite nerve wracking, but we got through it. I got caught up in a crash and so it was only certain once I crossed the line, for sure it was a big relief.”
Hindley’s first professional stage race win has come at the end of a long, but successful season for Mitchelton-SCOTT and sport director Dave Sanders praised the blossoming relationships within the Chinese/Australian team.
“It’s pretty exciting to see this partnership developing into something special,” said Sanders. “To win this event outright and also have the best finishing Chinese rider in a home soil race has made a big statement about the future of this team”
“All of the guys have been fantastic over the last couple of weeks here, coming from some disappointments at the Tour of Hainan to performing so well here in Fuzhou has really shown the character of the squad.”
Tour of Fuzhou stage five results:
1. Maris Bogdanovics (Rietumu-Banka-Riga) 02:44:10
2. Andriy Kulyk (Kolss-Cycling-Team) ST
3. Mykhaylo Kononenko (Kolss-Cycling-Team) ST
18. Jai Hindley (Mitchelton-SCOTT) ST
Tour of Fuzhou final general classification:
1. Jai Hindley (Mitchelton-SCOTT) 14:18:33
2. Ka Hoo Fung (Hong-Kong-China) +0:04
3. Stanislau Bazhkou Minsk-Cycling-Club) +0:15
Caleb Ewan sets sights on early season races
Ewan's Orica-Scott team sent me this:
Australia’s fastest cyclist Caleb Ewan has set his sights on another assault on the Australian cycling circuit in 2018, with confirmation of his early season race program today.
The 23-year-old, who claimed 13 victories in 2017 including six in Australia, will return to the Australian Cycling Road National Championships to defend his criterium title and line up in the road race, before heading to the Tour Down Under in Adelaide and concluding his ‘home’ tour on Australia Day at Race Melbourne as part of the Cadel Evans Great Ocean Road Race.
Caleb Ewan is ready to start winning again.
Australian Cycling Road National Championships
- Wednesday, 3 January 2018 - Criterium Championship
- Sunday, 7 January 2018 - Road Race Championship
Previously:
- 1st National Criterium Championship (2017)
- 2nd National Road Race Championship (2015)
Ewan: “I’m definitely going into the criterium to try to defend my title. We should have a really good team there so I think we have a pretty good chance. For the road race, we have a fair few options. For me, I’m hoping the race is a little bit easier, with a head wind up the climb to slow the race down going up the hill, so I can get to the finish for some sort of sprint. But as a team we have options for every race scenario.”
“Wearing the green and gold at any point is really an honour. We don’t do a lot of
crits so I haven’t been able to wear the green and gold a lot, so it would really
be a dream to wear it on the road.”
Tour Down Under
- Sunday, 14th January – People’s Choice Classic
- Tuesday, 16th to Sunday, 21st January – Tour Down Under
Previously:
- 1st People’s Choice Classic (2017, 2016)
- 6x Tour Down Under stage winner (2017 – 4, 2016 – 2)
Ewan: “Obviously, I’d like to repeat what I did last year, but it’s going to be hard to win four stages and the People’s Choice again. There’s probably only three stages that really suit sprinters in the 2018 Tour Down Under, and then there may be a fourth depending on how it is raced. Looking at the profiles, the first two stages and last stage suit me best and then maybe the third stage if it is a more negative race."
“This year, the sprint field is a lot better than it’s been in the past two years so it’s definitely going to be challenging. The Tour Down Under is one of the biggest races in Australia and being Australian, racing there, I’m very motivated to do well in my home race.”
Race Melbourne – Cadel Evans Great Ocean Road Race
- Thursday, 25th January – Race Melbourne
Previously:
- 5th Race Melbourne (2017)
Ewan: “I’d love to leave Australia on a high and try to win Race Melbourne. It’s
definitely one of my big goals for the start of the season. It’s a really fast race, obviously there’s no hills and it’s pan flat, but also because of the distance.”
“Race Melbourne has a lot of potential. It’s purely targeted to the sprinters and should continue to attract some big names. It’s right in the center of the city and the twilight timing in 2018 should add another great atmosphere lift.”
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