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Bicycle Racing News and Opinion,
Saturday, December 9, 2023

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2023 Tour de France | 2023 Giro d'Italia

Being Irish, he had an abiding sense of tragedy, which sustained him through temporary periods of joy. - William Butler Yeats

Bill & Carol McGann’s book The Story of the 2023 Tour de France, 2023: The Viking Again Conquers the Tour is available in both Kindle eBook & audiobook versions. To get your copy, just click on the Amazon link on the right.

Upcoming racing:

• Dec 17: World Cup Namur Cyclocross
• Dec 26: World Cup Gaver Cyclocross
• Dec 27: Superprestige Heusden Zolder
• Dec 28: Superprestige Diegem
• Dec 29: Exact Cross Loenhout-Azencross
• Jan 12-21: Santos Tour Down Under
• Jan 20: Clasica Comunitat Valenciana
• Jan 24-28: Challenge Illes Balears-Volta Ciclista a Mallorca
• Jan 28: GP d'Ouverture-La Marseillaise
• Jan 28: Cadel Evans Great Ocean Road Race
• Jan 30 - Feb 3: Saudi Tour

Latest completed racing:

• Nov 5: European Cyclocross Championships
• Nov 1: Trofee Oudenaarde-Koppenbergcross
• Oct 28: Superprestige Ruddervoorde
• Oct 22: Superprestige Overijse-Vlaanse Druivencross
• Oct 12 - 17: Tour of Guangxi
• Oct 15: Japan Cup
• Oct 15: Veneto Classic

Here’s the team’s post:

Team Bahrain Victorious is delighted to present our new 2024 season look, which sees the team transition from the traditional red to pearl white.

Building on the tremendous success of the Tour de France 2023 kit, the design keeps the striking teal touches that represent the tones of the shallow waters of the ‘two seas’ renowned for their rich pearling beds surrounding the kingdom. The gold accents across the design hark back to the team’s foundation in 2017, which perfectly highlights the pearl white design.

The new Baharin Victorious jersey. Team Bahrain Victorious photo

Along with the gold touches, the team returns to its foundation, switching back to navy blue from black. With the connotations around black and carbon, this is more than just a mere colour change; it represents a  commitment from the team and our partners to reducing our carbon footprint, aligning with the UCI’s mandate for teams to cut emissions by 2030.

In this sustainability journey, we are proud to further develop our partnership with Bapco Energies, a company with ambitious plans to pursue ‘net zero’. Bapco Energies will embark on this journey with us, providing knowledge and expertise to help reduce our team’s environmental footprint in line with the UCI targets.

Our commitment as a team towards achieving these sustainability goals is also to inspire future generations and encourage broader adoption of cycling as a sustainable form of movement.

Here’s the team’s news post:

Team gathers in Alicante, Spain from 10-21 December

With the 2024 season already fast approaching, UAE Team Emirates are pleased to announce the riders and technical staff who will work behind the scenes for the forthcoming campaign. The team is also excited to announce the 11 young riders who will make-up the Gen Z squad which will race at a Continental level.

UAE Team Emirates before the start of 2023 Giro d'Italia stage 8. Sirotti photo

The base of the World Tour team remains similar to 2023 with a couple of new recruits:

The team will continue to work under the management of Mauro Gianetti (CEO & Team Principal) and Andrea Agostini (Chief Operating Officer) while the sporting side remains supervised by Matxin Fernandez (Sports Manager).

Speaking on the announcement Mauro Gianetti said “The cohesion within our team, through both riders and staff, holds significant value for us. We prioritise having both skilled and friendly individuals who excel in their respective fields. As a squad, we place great emphasis on assembling a collective of top-tier professionals, and with this exceptional group, comprising both staff and riders, we are best placed to continue our success in the years ahead.”

Riders 2024
João Almeida (Portugal)
Igor Arrieta (Spain)
Juan Ayuso (Spain)
Filippo Baroncini (Italy)
Sjoerd Bax (Netherlands)
Mikkel Bjerg (Denmark)
Jan Christen (Switzerland)
Alessandro Covi (Italy)
Isaac Del Toro (Mexico)
Finn Fisher-Black (New Zealand)
Felix Großschartner (Austria)
Marc Hirschi (Switzerland)
Alvaro Hodeg (Colombia)
Vegard Stake Laengen (Norway)
Rafał Majka (Poland)
Brandon McNulty (USA)
Juan Sebastián Molano (Colombia)
António Morgado (Portugal)
Domen Novak (Slovenia)
Ivo Oliveira (Portugal)
Rui Oliveira (Portugal)
Tadej Pogačar (Slovenia)
Nils Politt (Germany)
Pavel Sivakov (France)
Marc Soler (Spain)
Diego Ulissi (Italy)
Jay Vine (Australia)
Michael Vink (New Zealand)
Tim Wellens (Belgium)
Adam Yates (Great Britain)

Sports Directors
Fabio Baldato (Italy), Fabrizio Guidi (Italy), Andrej Hauptman (Slovenia),Tomas Gil (Venezuela), Marco Marcato (Italy), Marco Marzano (Italy), Manuele Mori (Italy), Simone Pedrazzini (Switzerland).
Jan Polanc (Slovenia/Gen Z), Yousif Mirza (UAE/Gen Z).

Medical Staff
Raaghib Fredericks (South Africa), David Ogg (South Africa), Federico Paoletti (Italy), Adriano Rotunno (South Africa), Maurizio Piombo (Italy), Jason Suter (South Africa), Filipe Quintas de Lima (Portugal).

Training & Performance Staff
Didac Navarro (Spain), Kevin Poulton (Australia), Iñigo San Millan (Spain), Javier Sola (Spain), Jeroen Swart (South Africa), David Herrero Llorente (Spain), Gorka Prieto Bellver (Spain), Giacomo Notari (Italy/Gen Z)

Gen Z Riders
Abdulla Alhammadi (UAE)
Mohammad Almutaiwei (UAE)
Owen Cole (USA)
Luca Giaimi (Italy)
Gal Glivar (Slovenia)
Johnatan Guatibonza (Colombia)
Abdulla Jasim (UAE)
Duarte Marivoet (Belgium)
Anze Ravbar (Slovenia)
Gibbe Staes (Belgium)
Pablo Torres (Spain)

We also take the opportunity to provide a timely reminder of our team Training Camp in Alicante, Spain from 10-21 December. (Hotel Barceló La Nucia Hills.)

Here’s the team’s news:

Right before Christmas, the Movistar Team will get the entirety of its 29-rider men’s team together in Calpe (Alicante, Spain) to cover their only training camp of the 2024 pre-season.

Team Movistar at the 2023 Vuelta a España teams presentation ceremony. Sirotti photo

The Telefónica-backed squad’s stay, the Blues landing in the Spanish ‘Levante’ on Saturday 9th and staying until Wednesday 20th, will comprise, other than the usual, long training rides, a plethora of physical and technical tests, sponsor and VIP commitments and other relevant events for the Blue outfit.

The camp marks the first time Nairo Quintana, whose return to the Movistar Team was announced few days after the first logistical get-together in Pamplona, will share efforts with his new team-mates on European soil. Davide Cimolai, also confirmed last week, will also meet his new home for next season here.

The women’s Movistar Team will train together at a separate training camp after the holidays, the location and dates to be announced later.

Here’s the team’s post:

Yvon Ledanois:
“My number 1 philosophy is and always will be to pass on my experience gained in cycling. After a year spent abroad, I felt the need to help the young talents in the Arkea-B&B Hotels team. My wish is that, with my colleagues, we can achieve great seasons through the performances of our riders, starting with the next one”.

Emmanuel Hubert, General Manager:
“I’ve always said that professional life is made up of collaborations, sometimes of paths that separate temporarily, but also of reunions. I’m delighted to have a man like Yvon Ledanois on the Arkea-B&B Hotels team’s team manager team for 2024 and beyond, a man whose technical qualities, vision of the race and tactical sense are beyond question. Yvon is a leader of men who knows how to blend into a team and, above all, how to get the very best out of it. With the reinforcement of Yvon Ledanois, our sports unit, as it is now constructed and structured, gives us a strong foundation on which the riders can build to continue to move forward at UCI WorldTour level.”

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