Bicycle Racing News and Opinion,
Thursday, September 21, 2023

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2023 Tour de France | 2023 Giro d'Italia

I went to a bookstore and asked the saleswoman, 'Where's the self-help section?' She said if she told me, it would defeat the purpose. - George Carlin

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Plato's dialogue Apology is available in both Kindle eBook & audiobook versions. To get your copy, just click on the Amazon link on the right.

Current racing:

• Sept 20 - 24: Tour of Luxembourg

Upcoming racing:

• Sept 23 - Sept 30: Tour de Langkawi

Latest completed racing:

• August 26 - Sept 17: Vuelta a España
• Sept 17: Trofeo Matteoti
• Sept 16: Super 8 Classic
• Sept 16: Memorial Marco Pantani
• Sept 15: Kampioenschap van Vlaanderen
• Sept 14: Coppa Sabatini
• Sept 13: GP de Wallonie
• Sept 13: Giro della Toscana
• Sept 3 - 10: Tour of Britain
• Sept 10: GP de Montreal
• Sept 10: GP de Fourmies

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Tour de Luxembourg stage one team reports

We posted the report from stage winner Corbin Strong's Team Israel-Premier Tech with the results.

Here's the report from fourth-place Diego Ulissi's UAE Team Emirates:

Diego Ulissi came close on stage 1 of the Tour of Luxembourg with a strong 4th place on the 156km undulating parcours.

The day was won by Corbin Strong (Israel Premier Tech) in a sprint , with the Emirati squads overall contenders all finishing safely in the front group.

 

Corbin Strong wins the first stage.

Ulissi: “I felt really good today. The idea was to try the sprint with me and Marc. I was in a good position, though I got blocked in a bit in the final part, otherwise I think I could have done a bit better but sprints are like that sometimes. All the guys were good today and we’re looking forward to trying things the next days.”

Stage 2 will take the riders from Mondorf-les-Bains to Mamer(183.9km) on a similarly hilly terrain.

And here's the Tour de Luxembourg report from Team Soudal Quick-Step:

Taking in four classified climbs and many other short but sharp hills, the first day of the Tour de Luxembourg was quieter than expected, a four-man breakaway animating it from kilometer zero until the final hour of racing.

Soudal Quick-Step was among the teams controlling the gap of the escapees, which reached a maximum of six minutes before the peloton began chewing into it. Riding one of his final races as a pro, Dries Devenyns put in a huge amount of work at the front of the group, which caught the attackers on the run-in to the 2km-long Côte de Stafelter.

Dries Devenyns (shown winning stage three of the 2016 Tour of Belgium) is retiring at the end of the season.

Another attempt was quickly shut down on the descent, our riders remaining prominent as the bunch began climbing one more time. The finale proved to be a hectic one, due to the presence of a tight corner just 200 meters from the line, but even so Fausto Masnada and Ilan Van Wilder did well, both concluding the stage won by Corbin Strong (Israel – Premier Tech) in the top ten, thus helping Soudal Quick-Step take the lead in the team classification.

“We did a great work today. Things didn’t turn out quite how we wanted in the sprint, but both the legs and the confidence are there, and with four stages still to go, we’re determined to do a good race here”, explained Andrea Bagioli.

Nathan Van Hooydonck returns home but with bad news about his professional career

Van Hooydonck’s Team Jumbo-Visma posted this update:

Nathan Van Hooydonck left the University Hospital of Antwerp today. The Belgian rider of Team Jumbo-Visma is doing well under the circumstances.

Yesterday, the 27-year-old Fleming was fitted with an internal defibrillator (ICD) to correct potential future cardiac arrhythmia. After thorough testing, Van Hooydonck was diagnosed with a heart muscle anomaly that caused the disorder that nearly claimed his life last Tuesday. The findings mean the end to Van Hooydonck's professional career.

Nathan Van Hooydonck (left) on a break with Tadej Pogacar in stage 21 on the 2023 Tour de France. Sirotti photo

"I realise that I was incredibly lucky", Van Hooydonck says. "Things may have gone differently if I hadn't gotten good help so quickly. I'm fine now, but I still have to deal with the fact that this marks the end of my professional career. I would like to express my gratitude to the people who helped me, the medical team at the hospital and all the fans who sent me messages. I will now focus on my recovery and my upcoming fatherhood. Everything is going well with Alicia and the pregnancy, and we eagerly anticipate the birth. That really helps me now."

Josh Tarling wins European Time Trial Championships

Here’s the report from Tarling’s Team INEOS Genadiers

Josh Tarling stormed to victory in the European Time Trial Championships with a brilliant ride around Emmen.

Tarling started last in the 29.8 kilometre test, and quickly established himself as the man to beat, racing through the first time check with a rapid 61 kilometre-an-hour average speed.

Flat-backed Josh Tarling on his way to winning stage two of the 2023 Renewi Tour.

From there, the Welshman never looked back, extending his lead through the second time check on a pan-flat course in the Netherlands.

Ultimately, Tarling would cross the line 42 seconds up on his nearest competitor to take the win.

Michal Kwiatkowski also put in a solid performance, to come 13th.

Results

1. Josh Tarling

2. Stefan Bissegger +42"

3. Wout van Aert +43"

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