Bicycle Racing News and Opinion,
Monday, July 29, 2024
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2024 Tour de France | 2024 Giro d'Italia
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Current racing:
- July 27 - August 4: Olympic cycling
Upcoming racing:
- August 4 - 8: Arctic Race of Norway
- August 5 - 9: Vuelta a Burgos
- August 10: Clasica San Sebastian
- August 11: La Polynormande
- August 12 - 18: Tour of Poland
- August 13 - 16: Tour du Limousin
- August 14 - 18: PostNord Denmark Rundt
- August 17 - Sept 8: Vuelta a España
Latest completed racing:
- July 22 - 26: Tour de Wallonie
- July 23: Vuelta a Castilla y Leon
- June 29 - July 21: Tour de France
- June 9 - 26: Many National Championships
- June 15 - 18: La Route d'Occitanie Cancelled because security forces busy with Olympics
- June 9 - 16: Tour de Suisse
- June 12 - 16: Baloise Belgium Tour
Here’s the news from the Australian Associated Press
Australian cyclist Luke Plapp's Olympics are most likely over after he needed abdominal surgery following a heavy fall in the road time trial.
While nothing officially had been said on Sunday morning in Paris, team officials were looking at options for a replacement rider.
Plapp was also picked to ride alongside Michael Matthews and Simon Clarke on August 3 in the men's road race.
Luca Plapp in the leader's yellow jersey after stage four of this year's Paris-Nice. Sprint Cycling photo
The 23-year-old was among several riders to fall on Saturday in the men's and women's time trials, which were run in treacherous conditions on a central Paris circuit.
Plapp was rushed to hospital for scans on Saturday (local time) after he fell in the rain and slid under a barrier fence after passing the first checkpoint approximately 14km into the 32.4km race.
He had set the fourth-fastest time up until that point.
The 23-year-old was conscious and was helped to his feet but appeared in obvious distress.
The Australan Olympic Committee (AOC) said he was in a "stable condition" in hospital as he awaited scans, accompanied by his parents and a team doctor, and later updated that he had undergone surgery.
"Further medical details are not available at this time," an AOC spokesperson said.
Earlier, compatriot Grace Brown won Australia's first gold medal at the Paris Games in the women's race, with many riders in the event also falling in the slippery conditions.
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Here’s the report from Alaphilippe’s Team Soudal Quick-Step:
Soudal Quick-Step bookended this year’s Czech Tour in style. After neo-pro Luke Lamperti sprinted to victory on the opening day, Julian Alaphilippe brought down the curtain over the race with a spectacular win in Sternberk, where the event came to a conclusion Sunday afternoon.
Julian Alaphilippe wins the fourth & final stage. Photo: Jan Brychta
A hilly local circuit that the peloton had to cover four times was where the stage came to life in the final 30 kilometers, as soon as the original breakaway got caught. Kasper Asgreen and Antoine Huby tried to shake things up by going on the attack, two successive moves that had the desired result, as the peloton split on Sternberk, the 1km climb which averaged 8.1% and featured some tricky cobblestone sections.
The penultimate time up there, a strong twelve-man group featuring Julian Alaphilippe zipped clear and opened a nice gap on the chasers. On the fast descent, Huby managed to come back and proved to be of great help for his countryman, setting a strong tempo and keeping things together. As the group tackled the steepest part of the hill, Alaphilippe produced a solid acceleration that only yellow jersey Marc Hirschi (UAE Team Emirates) could match after some considerable effort, and the two powered clear of the rest.
The duo worked well together, but the chasers somehow bridged across with 800 meters to go, complicating the finale. Julian kept his composure and measured his effort perfectly just as the road began to rise in the closing 300 meters, letting Hirschi open the sprint before kicking out on a right-hand bend and taking his 44th pro victory.
“I am very happy with this stage win, which wouldn’t have been possible without the beautiful work of my teammates, who controlled the stage and brought me where I needed to be going into the final laps. The circuit, with the cobbles and that descent, was hard and demanding, but I enjoyed it. I felt good today and gave my best, so I’m of course delighted with this success. It’s good for morale before travelling to Paris”, said the two-time World Champion.
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Here’s the report from Nooijen’s Team Visma | Lease a Bike:
Lieke Nooijen has won the final time trial of the Princess Anna Vasa Tour. In the final time trial, the Dutch rider was ten seconds faster than teammate Riejanne Markus. With the victory, Nooijen takes the final classification of the Polish stage race. Markus and Carlijn Achtereekte finished second and third overall.
Lieke Nooijen on her way to winning the time trial and the final GC.
On the thirteen-kilometer course, the main focus was on Nooijen and Markus, the two favorites for the day and overall victory. Markus, who started first, recorded a strong time of 17:51, taking over first place from teammate Achtereekte. Nooijen then gave everything on the rainy course and managed to take the day and overall victory with a time of 17:41.
“Despite the bad conditions, I knew it was a course that would suit me well,” Nooijen says. “Yesterday I won the stage, which allowed me to start today in the leader's jersey; this gave me extra motivation to go for it today. With the long sections in the course, I could set much pace; luckily, that went very well today.”
With two victories and the win in the time trial, the 23-year-old Dutch rider looks back on the past few days with satisfaction. “The win in the team time trial was, of course, already very nice. The second day did not go as planned, but in the third stage, we recovered well as a team, and I was happy to win. To now also win the final time trial and to finish on the podium with Riejanne and Carlijn is the perfect ending to this week.”
Nooijen, who is riding her first year of service for Team Visma | Lease a Bike, looks back on the past few months with satisfaction. “Together with Maarten van Kooij, my trainer, I have already made big steps. We have set goals, and things are getting better and better; fortunately, this is also reflected in the results. In addition, I always work with a nice group of riders and staff with whom I have a good relationship and who always help me.”
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Here’s the report from Ferrand-Prévot’s Team INEOS Grenadiers:
Pauline Ferrand-Prévot won gold at Paris 2024 in the Mountain Biking with a dominant display, winning by nearly three minutes over the rest of the field.
Ferrand-Prevot has left the rest of the racers almost three minutes behind. Getty Sport photo
A strong start saw PFP slot into third in the opening moments, before the Frenchwoman surged into the lead on a lumpy circuit at Elancourt Hill. The pace that was injected into the race saw a group of four, led by Pauline, go clear inside the first of seven laps.
On the first ascent of the second lap, Ferrand-Prevot put the hammer down, going solo and quickly building an advantage over the chasers. By the end of the lap the gap was over 30 seconds.
From there, the five-time XCO World Champion never looked back, powering up every incline and skilfully navigating every descent to draw the gap out further and further. By the end of the penultimate lap, the lead was over three minutes, and, as the Frenchwoman rounded the final bend, the enormity of what she had achieved hit her.
Pauline would cross the line to claim a first Olympic title, winning by a stunning margin of 2’57” to cap off a remarkable season on the trails.
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