Bicycle Racing News and Opinion,
Monday, March 18, 2024

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2023 Tour de France | 2023 Giro d'Italia

May the road rise up to meet you.
May the wind be always at your back.
May the sun shine warm upon your face;
the rains fall soft upon your fields and until we meet again,
may God hold you in the palm of His hand. - Traditional Irish Blessing

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Bill & Carol McGann's book The Story of the Tour de France, 2021: The Little Cannibal Dominates is available in both Kindle eBook & audiobook versions. To get your copy, just click on the Amazon link on the right.

Current racing:

• March 18 - 25: Volta a Catalunya

Upcoming racing:

• March 19 - 23: Settimana Internazionale Coppi e Bartali
• March 20: Classic Brugge - De Panne
• March 22: E3 Saxo Bank Classic
• March 24: Ghent - Wevelgem
• March 24: La Roue Tourangelle
• March 27: Dwars door Vlaanderen
• March 27: Paris-Camemnert Lepetit

Latest completed racing:

• March 16: Milano - Sanremo
• March 16: Classic Loire Atlantique
• March 15: Brendene Koksijde Classic
• March 14: GP de Denain
• March 13: Danilith Nokere Koerse
• March 13: Milano-Torino
• March 3 - 10: Paris-Nice
• March 4 - 10: Tirreno-Adriatico
• March 2: Strade Bianche

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Teams headed to Volta a Catalunya

Here's the news from Tadej Pogacar's UAE Team Emirates:

UAE Team Emirates resume their World Tour calendar on Catalan roads with the Volta Catalunya from 18-24 March in the north-eastern province of Spain. Meanwhile a young squad will go to Coppi e Bartali from 19-23 March led by the experienced Diego Ulissi.

For Catalunya Tadej Pogačar spearheads the squad fresh from racing in Italy. Local favourite Marc Soler and Joao Almeida will also look to be at the head of affairs in the week long stage race.

Tadej Pogacar was third at Milano-Sanremo on Saturday. RCS Sport photo

Pogačar: “It’s my first time racing in Catalunya and I’m excited about it. Its a tough parcours and looks like definitely a race for the climbers and attacking riders so I think the fans will get a good show and a nice weeks racing. We have a strong team and also tough rivals so it will be entertaining. It’s been a quick turnaround from Sanremo but it’s gone smooth and we’ll be ready to get things going on Monday.”

Sports Manager Matxin Fernandez (Spa) will guide the team with Andrej Hauptman (Slo) and Tomas Gil (Ven) as Sports Directors.

Team Bahrain Victorious posted this preview:

Following intense battles at Paris-Nice and Tirreno-Adriatico, the 103rd edition of Volta a Catalunya serves as a pivotal platform for our GC contenders to further refine their fitness and prepare for the upcoming Grand Tours, be it the Giro d’Italia or laying the early foundations for the Tour de France.

With its seven stages devoid of time trials and featuring challenging climbs, Volta a Catalunya presents the perfect platform for climbers to excel. Starting on the Sant Feliu de Guíxols coast, the riders will race over 1,173km and climb a gruelling 19,829 vertical meters With three summit finishes on stages 2, 3 and 6  before the finish in Barcelona.

Team Bahrain Victorious is packed with a lineup of climbing prowess to take advantage of the parcour, led by Wout Poels and supported by Damiano Caruso, Antonio Tiberi, Jack Haig, Wout Poels, Torstein Traeen, Nicolò Buratti, and Edoardo Zambanini.

Wout Poels wins stage 15 of the 2023 Tour de France. ASO photo

Sports Director Franco Pellizotti: “Wout will lead the team, given his great showing in previous editions of Catalunya, while Antonio is our co-leader. With an excellent team in support, we expect strong showings from Damiano, Jack, and Torstein, who will have their chances to shine in the mountain stages. I am confident that Wout can contend for a top-5 finish, and Antonio, having raced the Tirreno, is well-positioned to aim for a top-10 placement.”

Here's the Volta a Catalunya news from Simon Yates' Team Jayco AlUla:

AlUla Tour winner Simon Yates will return to action as he leads Team Jayco AlUla alongside an in-form Chris Harper at the Volta Ciclista a Catalunya.

Simon Yates wins stage 5 of the 2024 AlUla Tour.

The 31-year-old Brit is a former stage winner at the week-long race and has twice finished in the top-10 overall. The squad is packed with climbing talent with Australian Harper backing up from a strong performance at Paris-Nice, while young Colombian David Peña is back after racing the UAE Tour.

American Lawson Craddock lines-up off the back of tough edition of Tirreno-Adriatico, withfast finishing German Felix Engelhardt giving the team options in the sprints throughout the week. Rounding out the team will be Chris Juul-Jensen and Jan Maas who are set to make up the ‘engine room’.

The 103rd edition of the Volta a Catalunya features typically lumpy terrain, with two success summit finishes on stages two and three, including the ascent of Vallter 2000, the highest road climb in the region. The race will conclude with the classic and familiar circuit in Barcelona as the peloton lap around the scenic Montjuic.

And here's the Volta a Catalunya news from Team Israel-Premier Tech:

Israel – Premier Teach is lining up for the hardest edition of Volta a Catalunya in many years with a strong team led by Tour de France stage winner Michael Woods.

Michael Woods winning 2023 Tour de France stage 9. Sirotti photo

“I’m really looking forward to this race”, Woods tells. “I’ve done Volta a Catalunya every single year since turning pro and I think that this year is by far the hardest edition of the race that I’ve done.”

“There are some incredibly challenging stages and very few opportunities for the sprinters so I’m both excited but also a little afraid of how hard it’s going to be. But I think the course should suit me. I’m in good shape and we’ve got a really strong team here. It should be a fun week.”

To support Woods, IPT brings strong climbers like Matthew Riccitello, Nick Schultz, Dylan Teuns, George Bennett, Marco Frigo and Stevie Williams, who started out 2024 by winning Tour Down Under overall.

“We have a very strong lineup for one of the hardest editions of Volta a Catalunya is recent years”, sports director Sam Bewley explains. “We head to the race with a team predominately of climbers, but with the depth of the team and the nature of the course, we have good options for multiple stages and of course for the GC. We are confident in performing throughout the week with a number of different possibilities and options.”

Volta a Catalunya starts on Monday, March 18, and finishes in Barcelona on the following Sunday, March 24. Last year, Woods finished sixth overall.

IPT at Volta a Catalunya:

Riders: Michael Woods (CAN), Matthew Riccitello (USA), Nick Schultz (AUS), Dylan Teuns (BEL), George Bennett (NZL), Marco Frigo (ITA), Stevie Williams (GBR).

Sports Directors: Sam Bewley, Oscar Guerrero & Pat McCarty.

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