Bicycle Racing News and Opinion,
Tuesday, July 3, 2018
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2018 Tour de France | 2018 Giro d'Italia
The stakes they play for in politics are paper and money. The chips they play with are your life. - Molly Ivins
Current Racing
- This is national championship week.
Upcoming racing:
- July 7 - 29: Tour de France
Latest completed racing:
- June 19: Halle Ingooigem
- June 9 - 17: Tour de Suisse
- June 14 - 17: Route d'Occitanie (was Route du Sud)
- June 3 - 10: Critérium du Dauphiné
- June 10: Rund um Koln
- June 7: GP Kanton Aargau
- May 30 - June 3: Tour de Luxembourg
- June 3: GP di Lugano
- May 4 - 27: Giro d'Italia
Wilco Kelderman will not start Tour de France
Kelderman's Team Sunweb sent me this unhappy news:
Team Sunweb are sad to announce that Wilco Kelderman (NED) will be unable to start the Tour de France following a shoulder injury sustained from a crash during yesterday's national championships. This morning Kelderman underwent additional CT scans which showed that the current plate on his collarbone has bent, and with the pain this is causing, starting La Grand Boucle is no longer an option. Kelderman’s replacer will be announced alongside Team Sunweb's full line-up confirmation.
Team Sunweb physician Anko Boelens (NED): "CT scans indicate that the plate mounted on his right collarbone is bent, which reduces functionality of the shoulder joint and a lot of pain. To start the Tour de France is no option. Additional check ups will follow with international experts in this field, to determine the next steps and to decide if surgery is required. It's a complex injury with the history of injuries to the same shoulder and collarbone."
Plagued with bad luck, an extremely disappointed Kelderman said: "I am gutted. At the moment the pain is really intense, making a Tour start simply impossible. It can't get much worse after the injuries I already faced in my recent career. I have to get over it once again and I will need time."
Wilco Kelderman time-trialing at the 2017 Vuelta a España
So here is the Sunweb Tour de France start list:
Tour de France coach Tom Veelers (NED) said: “With the ambitions we have at the Tour we’ve selected the strongest possible configuration of qualities and riders. Losing Wilco to a re-injured shoulder will be a big loss for us in the team time trial and the mountain stages, but we have Laurens ten Dam to replace him, who’s Grand Tour experience is extremely extensive and will be very valuable. Whilst taking the first careful steps towards our future Tour de France GC ambitions, with the importance of learning and gaining experience this year, we’ll also go for day results on the uphill sprints.
Tom Dumoulin at the start of stage 19 of this year's Giro d'Italia
“Primarily everyone’s responsibility is to keep Tom safe during each stage. Alongside Laurens, we have Chad, Søren, Michael and Simon as the guys to help out on the medium to difficult stages and Edward and Nikias on the flat stages. We’ve never been to the Tour de France with a GC focus and it will be a completely new experience for us and a long-term challenge that we are looking forward to. We want to get through that process with Tom this year without any pressure on results, creating the foundations to build on in the years to come. The parcours provide the perfect platform for an exciting race, and after achieving this year’s GC goal of a podium at the Giro, we’re very motivated to head to France and look forward to seeing what it brings this year.”
LINE-UP
Søren Kragh Andersen (DEN)
Nikias Arndt (GER)
Tom Dumoulin (NED)
Laurens ten Dam (NED)
Simon Geschke (GER)
Chad Haga (USA)
Michael Matthews (AUS)
Edward Theuns (BEL)
Mitchelton-SCOTT women focus on general classification success at the Giro-Rosa
The team sent me this update:
Mitchelton-SCOTT women head to Italy for their main and most important goal of the season, the ten-day Giro-Rosa, with the clear ambition of claiming a general classification victory.
After a lot of focus and preparation for the WorldTour event, the Australian outfit are ready for the challenge with a stellar seven-rider team, aiming to bring the pink jersey to Mitchelton-SCOTT.
World time trial champion Annemiek van Vleuten and Emakumeen XXX. Bira winner Amanda Spratt will lead the squad having finished in third and fifth place respectively in 2017 and shown top form throughout the season.
Amanda Spratt (shown at this year's Tour Down Under) will be riding the Giro-Rosa
The race:
A team time trial once again kicks off proceedings for the 14th round of the only women's 'Grend Tour' of the season, followed by two flat stages before the race really settles into the climbs.
The first uphill finish comes on stage six, followed by a gruelling 15km uphill individual time trial on stage seven. This stage is likely to be a key indicator for who will win the overall, with no room for respite or hiding.
The sprinters should have their final opportunity on stage eight before the monstrous Queen stage on the penultimate day, which features Monte Zoncolan, a 10.1 kilometres climb at 11.9%.
The Team
Jolien D´Hoore - (BEL 27)
Gracie Elvin - (AUS 29)
Lucy Kennedy - (AUS 29)
Sarah Roy - (AUS 32)
Amanda Spratt - (AUS 30)
Annemiek van Vleuten - (NED 35)
Georgia Williams - (NZL 24)
The composition:
Having won two stages and two jerseys in 2017, Van Vleuten will be a key contender for the overall victory in what will be her tenth appearance in the race. Alongside her, in-form Spratt will be looking to use her consistent form of 2018, as the Mitchelton-SCOTT duo look to use team's numbers to their advantage.
Double New Zealand champion Georgia Williams and Australian Lucy Kennedy, who makes a come back to racing after a crash in Amstel Gold race, will provide the two leaders with important support on the climbs. Meanwhile, two recent OVO Women’s Tour stage winners in Jolien D’hoore and Sarah Roy, along with Gracie Elvin, boost the team’s strength and depth and give options for the potential sprint stages.
Annemiek van Vleuten - 3rd place overall in 2017:
“I’m really looking forward to the Giro-Rosa this year, it is a big target for the team and it will be my tenth time racing it this year. I think I have proven that I am climbing well and it will be great to have Amanda Spratt and the addition of Lucy Kennedy. I think we will have a super strong climbing team.
“Last year I won the TT and this year I think it will be even harder, it is only uphill so it will be a special time trial. The second to last day we finish uphill on the Zoncolon, the same as the men raced in this year’s Giro d’Italia, so it will be a super hard edition of the Giro-Rosa and we will for sure need our best climbing legs.”
Amanda Spratt - 5th place overall in 2017:
"My biggest feeling going into the Giro this year is excitement. Since Emakumeen XXX Bira I have had a training block in Stelvio and Livigno which went really well. I’ve had a big climbing focus and I think the body is ready for a big Giro with the team.
"We have a really strong and experienced team for the Giro, it was our first year targeting GC last year, so this year we can take a lot of what we learnt and hopefully use. I think we have riders to cover all race scenarios and I’m looking forward to showing that. I think it’s a course that suits our team and our GC ambitions. On paper it looks like the hardest Giro I will ever do and my preparation has been adjusted accordingly.
"At Bira we already saw that we can have many riders in the hilly finals with Annemiek, Georgia and myself, and we will also welcome Lucy Kennedy back who will be another key player on the mountainous days. Having numbers in the final allowed us to win Emakumeen XXX Bira and I think we will certainly look to use our numbers again at the Giro.
"With the Giro you always get used to expecting the unexpected but I think for sure the Zoncolan stage will be a decisive day. It comes so late in the Giro, and if your legs don’t come to the party then you could give away minutes on that climb alone."
Gene Bates - Sport Director:
“We are going into the Giro-Rosa with a really well-prepared team this year. Everybody is in great shape and this is a race we have highlighted as a key event for us.
“The whole team is really motivated to have the best outcome we can have in the overall classification, and I think we have the riders and team to support this objective.
“Annemiek and Spratty will be our two leaders, they both raced incredibly well last year in the Giro, and also learnt some valuable lessons along the way. This year they have continued to improve and develop in the needed areas, and we are excited to see how they can go.
"Coming into the race having had such great success thus far this season, really takes the pressure off. This year's parcours is one of the toughest we have seen, with Monte Zoncolon and a tough uphill time trial, but we are confident that it should play to our strengths.
“Each rider in the team has shown great form and had some good results already this season, so we have a lot of depth within our team line-up and we can certainly expect to have numbers in the finals and options for each stage."
Previously at the Giro-Rosa:
Last year was the first time the team really focussed on the general classification and the team walked away with two stage wins from Van Vleuten (Stage 2 and 5), third place (Van Vleuten) and fifth place (Spratt) overall and the QOM and Points jerseys.
Giro-Rosa - Race Details (6-15th July)
- Friday, 6th July: Stage 1, Verbena to Verbena, 15.5km TTT
- Saturday, 7th July: Stage 2, Ovada to Ovada, 120km
- Sunday, 8th July: Stage 3: Corbett to Corbett, 132km
- Monday, 9th July: Stage 4, Placenza to Placenta, 109km
- Tuesday, 10th July: Stage 5, Omegna to Omegna, 117km
- Wednesday, 11th July: Stage 6, Sovico to Gerola Alta, 114km
- Thursday, 12th July: Stage 7, Lanzada to Dighe di Campo , 15km ITT
- Friday, 13th July: Stage 8, San Giorgiodi to Breganze, 126km
- Saturday, 14th July: Stage 9, Tricesimo to Monte Zoncolan, 104km
- Sunday, 15th July: Stage 10, Cividale del Friuli, 120km
Total distance: 974.9km
Bora–hansgrohe becomes 11th shareholding member of Velon
Bora-hansgrohe sent me this release:
After a period of collaboration which began at the Giro d’Italia in 2017, BORA – Hansgrohe decided to join Velon as a full member. The elevation from a partner team to a shareholder gives them a seat on the Velon Board and a voice in the continuing expansion of the company.
BORA – hansrgrohe participated in the Hammer Series for the first time in Limburg, the Netherlands, earlier this month and its riders – including three-time UCI World Champion Peter Sagan – have featured in Velon’s live rider data and race media coverage at the Tour de Suisse, seen by millions around the world.
“It is important for our sport to think about future developments. I think there is a big overlap in the vision of Velon and my vision of future cycling. They launched a lot of great projects, some may need small adjustments, but you need to be part, to be able to influence those adjustments. That’s why we decided to join Velon”, said Ralph Denk, BORA – hansgrohe’s Team Manager.
Peter Sagan adds: “There have been a lot of nice videos at the Tour de Suisse and content from other races. It’s good that fans get some more insights of what racing at the highest level is about. There will be a lot more to check out in the future.”
Graham Bartlett, Chief Executive, Velon, said: “We’re delighted that BORA - hansgrohe share Velon’s vision for the sport and have chosen to invest in what we’re doing. Everyone’s looking forward to working with the team because we know how good they are, it’s great to have them fully on board.”
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