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Wednesday, June 12, 2024
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2023 Tour de France | 2024 Giro d'Italia
Stupidity has a knack of getting its way. - Albert Camus
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Current racing:
- June 9 - 16: Tour de Suisse
- June 12 - 16: Baloise Belgium Tour
Upcoming racing:
- June 15 - 18: La Route d'Occitanie Cancelled because security forces busy with Olympics
- June 21 - 26: Many National Championships
- July 1 - 23: Tour de France
- July 27 - August 11: Olympic cycling
Latest completed racing:
- June 2 - 9: Critérium du Dauphiné
- June 5 - 9: ZLM Tour
- June 7: GP Canton Aargau
- June 2: Brussels Cycling Classic
- May 29: Circuit Franco-Belge
- May 4 - 26: Giro d'Italia
- May 23 - 26: Tour of Norway
- May 26: Rund um Köln
We posted the report from second-place Stephen Williams' Team Israel-Premier Tech with the results.
Here's the report from new GC leader Alberto Bettiol's Team EF Education-EasyPost:
Alberto Bettiol rocketed up the final uphill drag and rewarded his teammates with the yellow jersey at the end of the third stage of the Tour de Suisse today in Rüschlikon.
Alberto Bettiol will wear yellow in stage four. Sirotti photo
The Italian finished third in the sprint and gained enough time to take over the lead in the general classification the day before the Swiss tour heads into the Alps. Tomorrow, he’ll put his excellent form to work for the team on the race’s first mountain stage, which will finish on the snow-covered slopes of the Gotthard Pass. The 2041-meter col, which was long the main passage from northern to southern Europe over the Alps, promises to turn the GC upside down.
“Tomorrow, the Tour de Suisse will change completely,” Alberto said after he had pulled on the leader’s shirt. “But, with this yellow jersey, I give positive waves to all the team and give us confidence. We are a group of friends. We always try to do our best. When we put all of our energy together for one goal, like we saw today, we can do something great. This is our spirit. We have to approach every race like this. Today, we took the responsibility. We pulled in the final. We wanted to race hard. Thibau Nys was really, really strong. He deserved to win. But yellow is a great achievement as well. It’s payback for the work all of the riders and the staff did for me.”
Alberto especially wants to pay back Richard Carapaz, who did a tremendous job for him in the final kilometer to set him up for the sprint, as well as our young climber Georg Steinhauser, who showed that he’s still got his Giro-stage-winning form with a powerful pull over the top of the Albipass to keep Alberto in the running and help drop the sprinters.
“They did an amazing job for me,” Alberto said. “In the last kilometers, Richard helped me a lot. He put me in a perfect position. That’s not something I take for granted, because he's an Olympic champion. I really appreciate it, but this is our team spirit. We are just normal guys who work together all year and show that we can do a great job when we do. Today, I wanted to win. I didn’t. I’m not sad, because I couldn't do better. I was on Nys’s wheel and I was not able to pass him, but I took the yellow jersey, so I'm really happy. Georg did a great job too. They both worked for me and tomorrow I have to pay them back. Of course, the level here is very high. We have really strong climbers, but we never know. I’ll ride for them tomorrow in this yellow jersey and hope to give them a positive spirit.”
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Here's the Swiss Tour report from stage winner Thibau Nys' Team Lidl-Trek:
The young Belgian won the third stage with a splendid puncheur performance that left no room for his rivals
Today’s win was a special success for Thibau Nys. So much so, that before jumping onto the podium, as the adrenaline following his superb sprint began to wane, the Belgian talent of Lidl-Trek allowed himself a liberating cry.
Thibau Nys enjoys his stage win. Sirotti photo
"I had a perfect start to the season, going way better than I expected, but then I crashed in Gippingen, yesterday I was feeling shit, and then as a pro athlete, those small moments make you a little less confident and you start to think about what could go wrong and not feel so good. To finish it off, at WorldTour level at the Tour de Suisse, it’s a dream." - Thibau Nys
Nys won the third stage of the Tour de Suisse in his own way with a mixture of strength and innate class, characteristics that are becoming his trademark. Today’s stage was in his sights right from the start of the race, so much so that on Friday, after GP Kantons de Aargau, he went with team director Gregory Rast to see the finish.
"It was perfect for him, we knew that, but turning expectations into reality is always complicated. He was great." - team director Gregory Rast
All day long Nys raced safely in the group, under cover, to save energy for the finale. The last 40km would be the most difficult, the most hectic. Nys, with the precious help of his teammates, kept a cool head and the ideal position. The home idol Marc Hirschi (UAE) was the one who came closest to spoiling the party, with a powerful attack caught only in the last kilometer. Then, Thibau’s talent and will to win emerged. With a strong move through the peloton, he took the lead and, in the last 100 metres, made himself unbeatable.
Nys’ number of victories in 2024 now rises to six, with five stages and the final classification of the Tour of Hongrie. And thanks to today’s win, the trend of a victory in every stage race continues!
Thibau’s reaction:
"
It was a really difficult stage. In the end I was only thinking about what I did wrong in Gippingen and to not do it again today.
"Yesterday I was struggling a lot, today as well. I was not feeling good on the bike and had a bit of an annoying feeling all day, but the guys pulled me through it. Until like 50km to go I didn’t believe in it but I just kept fighting and the legs started to get better and better. In the end it started to get easier and everything was working out. I’m out of words for the work of my teammates. To finish it off like this, it’s more than a dream. There are a lot of emotions. It’s maybe my nicest victory ever. I’m over the moon.
"I cannot thank the Team enough today. We are here for GC with Mattias and to be able to get a chance in this Team for stages like this is already such an honor. I feel so happy for the Team to give them something back. Now it’s all in for the GC for Mattias. I would love to pull the rest of the week.
"I think I’m in the right team to grow, with the right people next to me, a lot of experienced riders. I still remember my first race with the Team as a stagiaire, sharing a room with Julien [Bernard]. It’s from those guys that you learn everything, it’s incredible to take these steps and see myself grow in this Team.
"It also looks like I always perform in Suisse and I love to race here. Nice roads, nice parcours. I would love to keep it going in the next few years as well."
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Here's the report from GC third-place Wilco Kelderman's Team Visma | Lease a Bike:
Wilco Kelderman finished sixth in the third stage of the Tour de Suisse. The Dutchman rode a strong final kilometer and led the peloton for a long time on the uphill stretch towards the finish line. In the end, Kelderman was outpaced by five others a hundred meters from the line.
Paul Lapeira & Wilco Kelderman finish 5th & 6th. Sirotti photo
The second stage in line of this Tour de Suisse had a relatively easy run-up to a tricky finale. The race opened up on the final climb of the day, just after the peloton had caught the last early breakaway rider. Cian Uijtdebroeks responded to several attacks. A little later Ben Tulett also showed his strength by following an attack.
In the last seven hundred meters the road rose seven percent. Kelderman tried it there and rode several hundred meters at the head of a now significantly thinned out peloton. The 33-year-old Dutchman, in Switzerland on his first race since his crash in Paris-Nice, held on to the lead for a long time, but had to capitulate. In the end, Kelderman finished sixth, making him the new number three in the general classification.
“This performance gives me a good feeling", Kelderman stated afterwards. "It was another hectic day. That's what the Tour de Suisse is known for. Almost every day there are fast stages, and it's up and down all day. We rode a good final as a team. We were always well in front. We knew it was going to be a tough final with a steep climb at the end. I was already thinking about attacking if I saw an opportunity. In the last few hundred meters I went for it. From that moment on I set my mind at zero and rode full speed to the finish. Unfortunately there were five riders just a little bit faster. I can be in peace with this sixth place. The good feeling prevails. I haven't raced since Paris-Nice, so I am very happy with my current shape. It gives a lot of confidence towards the next stages."
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The team sent me this news release:
Nico Denz and BORA – hansgrohe will continue to ride together in the coming seasons. The 30-year-old has extended his contract with the team ahead of the season's highlight.
Nico Denz: "After my first very successful year with BORA – hansgrohe, I'm happy to continue riding here. It's a great environment where I feel at home. I'm also delighted to be part of the new project with Red Bull. To play a support role in a Grand Tour victory is one of my biggest dreams, which I hope to fulfil here in the team."
In his first year with BORA – hansgrohe, Nico Denz scored a double victory at the Giro d'Italia. The 30-year-old won two stages within just a few days last season. This year, he has his sights set on a new Grand Tour – his debut at the Tour de France.
Nico Denz wins stage 14 of the 2023 Giro d'Italia. Sirotti photo
The dress rehearsal for this, at the Critérium du Dauphiné, has been a success, with the yellow jersey, two stage wins and a commanding victory in the team classification giving the squad confidence as it heads into July. Nico Denz was an important part of this test run and is also scheduled for the Tour de France. He will fine-tune his form at an altitude camp in the coming weeks.
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