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Bicycle Racing News and Opinion,
Thursday, January 11, 2024

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2023 Tour de France | 2023 Giro d'Italia

Each morning when I awake, I experience again a supreme pleasure - that of being Salvador Dali. - Salvador Dali

Bill and Carol McGann's book The Story of the Tour de France, Vol 2: 1976 - 2018 is available in print, Kindle eBook & Audiobook versions. To get your copy, just click on the Amazon link on the right.

Upcoming racing:

• 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:

• Jan 1: GP Sven Nys
• Dec 29: Exact Cross Loenhout-Azencross
• Dec 28: Superprestige Diegem
• Dec 27: Superprestige Heusden Zolder
• Dec 26: World Cup Gaver Cyclocross
• Dec 17: World Cup Namur Cyclocross

Here’s the news from Asgreen’s Team Soudal Quick-Step:

The soon-to-be 29-year-old will focus again on the one-day races in the first part of the season.

One of the few Danish riders in history to have won a Monument, Kasper Asgreen is ready for his seventh year with Soudal Quick-Step, which he will kickstart in six weeks. Kasper is looking forward to being back at his best level for the Classics, after last season he couldn’t tackle the spring campaign at full capacity as he was still recovering from a knee injury.

Kasper Asgreen on the Old Kwaremont in the 2023 Tour of Flanders. Sirotti photo

The road back was a long and arduous one, but Kasper never gave up, and last summer he was fully rewarded for his hard work and incredible determination with a maiden stage victory at the Tour de France. It was a major confidence-boost for the powerful Dane, who is now hoping to be again among the protagonists in the one-day races he loves so much.

“I had a solid season, during which I put the injuries behind and returned to my normal self. Of course, winning that stage at the Tour de France was the cherry on the cake, it was a great day and a much-needed confidence-boost after everything I had endured. If everything goes well the next couple of months, I hope to be in contention for a good result in the Classics”, said Kasper, who for the first time in his career will kick off his season at the Opening Weekend.

“Everybody knows how much I love these races. I am delighted to get things underway at Omloop and Kuurne, having won the latter a couple of years ago. It was my first big victory and the memories of that day are still fresh. From there, it’s Strade Bianche again, and then Tirreno-Adriatico. I will continue working hard in the next weeks and hopefully be there together with the team during this year’s Spring Classics”, added the 2021 Ronde van Vlaanderen and E3 Harelbeke winner.

Here’s the update from Kuypers’ Team Intermarché-Wanty:

Gerben Kuypers will not show the colours of Charles Liégeois Raostery CX in cyclocross races anymore this season. The 23 year old Belgian rider will extend the rest period he started after the World Cup in Gavere on 26th of December because of health issues and fully concentrate on his recovery and his second road season with the structure of Intermarché-Wanty.

Gerben Kuypers wins the 2022 Essen Cross. Proximus-Alphamotorhomes photo

“Gerben Kuypers attracted a viral infection a couple of weeks ago, which then led to a vicious circle of disturbed recovery and fatigue. He especially had respiratory complaints. In the meantime his body is recovering well. We’ll hope he will be fully recovered in a couple of weeks.” - Paul Jorna (Team Doctor)

“After two weeks of recovery I'm progressively regaining my strength, however, I don’t feel fully recovered yet. Together we have chosen to take it easy in my comeback rather than to prepare for my last cyclocross races under pressure. It was of course frustrating that my good series of results was interrupted by health problems. But now the causes are identified and we have established a plan for my recovery, I'm very much looking forward to my first road races of 2024 with Wanty-ReUz-Technord and Intermarché-Wanty. From April, I'll participate in several prestigious races. This proves that also the World Team counts on me, which is a nice mark of confidence. I can't wait to get back to training, but first I need to stay patient a little longer in order to fully recover." - Gerben Kuypers

"Gerben Kuypers realised an excellent season start in cyclocross. We're of course missing his fighting spirit to make the colours of Charles Liégeois Roastery CX shine. However, within our performance team we all agree that health is a priority. An extended rest period is the best approach. In principle, Gerben planned to conclude his cyclocross season after the championships, in his home race in Middelkerke. As he did not fully recover yet and this race is approaching, we unanimously decided that he would not resume his cyclocross season and focus on his first road races instead." - Bart Wellens (Sports Director)

"After a new medical evaluation of the health condition of Gerben Kuypers, we unanimously decided to stop his cyclocross season in order to give him enough time to prepare his second road season with our structure in a serene way. As for his road programme, we stick with the initial plan we established this winter. He will almost exclusively race with the World Team, which will be a huge step forward compared to his combined programme with Wanty-ReUz-Technord in 2023. Our aim is to select him for a series of races which suit him perfectly, particularly in May and June, such as the classics Tro Bro Léon, Antwerp Port Epic, Brussels Cycling Classic or Dwars door het Hageland, and several stage races such as the Tours of Norway and Belgium. We're looking forward to witness the progression of Gerben, both on the road in 2024 as in the next cyclocross season 2024-2025." - Aike Visbeek (Performance Manager)

Here’s the team’s post:

Eleven new riders – including reigning European and national age group champions, and the most promising Israeli talents – will strengthen the new-look IPT Academy team in 2024.

Under the guidance of Tim Elverson, IPT’s new Academy Manager, the team will look to continue the level of graduation that has seen six riders – Oded Kogut, Riley Pickrell, Nadav Raisberg, Marco Frigo, Mason Hollyman, and Derek Gee – step up to the pro ranks in the past two years.

Nine riders on the team’s 20-man roster raced for the Academy in 2023. Among these are Canadian Dylan Bibic, already a world champion on the track at the age of 20, and Portuguese climber Daniel Lima.

Israeli riders Aviv Bental and Rotem Tene will also stay with the Academy in 2024, with the country’s presence being bolstered by new signings Imry Faingezicht, Matar Peretz, and Guy Tahar.

Promising time trialist Faingezicht (20) won the U23 national title in the discipline last year, two years on from claiming the junior crown. Peretz, 18, is the country’s reigning junior road race champion, while 19-year-old Tahar, placed sixth in the U23 road race.

Other new arrivals include Floris Van Tricht (Belgium), Joe Blackmore (Great Britain), and Luke Valenti (Canada).

All three of them join the Academy having already established themselves in off-road disciplines: Van Tricht won the European Gravel Championships in October, Blackmore is the British U23 XCO mountain bike champion, and Valenti claimed the Canadian under-23 cyclo-cross title last November.

Added experience comes from Pier-André Côté, who has enjoyed five seasons riding at UCI ProTeam level and won the Canadian road race championships in 2022.

Elverson says: “We’ve got some really exciting new riders joining who will complement those who were part of the team in 2023. We have a real spread of riders who can compete in all disciplines.

“We’re very proud to continue the development of Israel’s best young riders – in 2024 we’ll have six of them aged 23 or under, and I’m excited to see what they can achieve.

“Pier-André will be invaluable to the team this year. We’re going to be competing at a lot of UCI .1-ranked races, and he has great experience in these events. This knowledge will only accelerate the progress of the younger riders in the team, but, at the same time, he’ll get opportunities to compete for results.”

Moritz Kretschy (Germany), Karl Kurits (Estonia), and Kiaan Watts (New Zealand) complete the incoming riders for 2024. Kretschy finished sixth in the under-23 road race at the world championships in Glasgow last August weeks after claiming the national road and time trial titles in his age group. Kurits is a promising young sprinter who has won international races as a junior, while Watts is a former junior world champion on the track.

IPT previously unveiled the signing of reigning Spanish junior road race champion Alvaro Garcia in August.

Israel – Premier Tech Academy 2024 team roster
Aviv Bental (Israel, 20)
Dylan Bibic (Canada, 20)
Joe Blackmore (Great Britain, 20)
Pier-André Côté (Canada, 26)
Luca D’Hollander (Belgium, 20)
Imry Faingezicht (Israel, 20)
Alvaro Garcia (Spain, 18)
Moritz Kretschy (Germany, 21)
Karl Kurits (Estonia, 18)
Daniel Lima (Portugal, 19)
Jesse Maris (USA, 19)
Pau Marti (Spain, 19)
Carson Mattern (Canada, 19)
Viggo Moore (USA, 19)
Matar Peretz (Israel, 18)
Guy Tahar (Israel, 19)
Rotem Tene (Israel, 22)
Luke Valenti (Canada, 19)
Floris Van Tricht (Belgium, 22)
Kiaan Watts (New Zealand, 22)

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