Bicycle Racing News and Opinion,
Thursday, October 10, 2024
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2024 Tour de France | 2024 Giro d'Italia
True terror is to wake up one morning and discover that your high school class is running the country. - Kurt Vonnegut
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:
- October 10: Gran Piemonte
Upcoming racing:
- October 12: Il Lombardia
- October 13: Chrono des Nations
Latest completed racing:
- October 8: Tre Valli Varesine
- October 7: Coppa Bernocchi
- Sept 29 - Oct 6: Le Tour de Langkawi
- October 6: Paris-Tours
- October 6: Coppa Agostoni-Giro delle Brianze
- October 5: Giro dell'Emilia
- October 3: Sparkassen Münsterland Giro
- October 1: Binche-Chimay-Binche
- September 22 - 29: World Road Cycling Championships
- September 18 - 22: Tour de Luxembourg
Here’s the team’s announcement:
The Danish classics star wants to add to his impressive list of victories, which already includes the Ronde van Vlaanderen, E3 SaxoBank Classic, and Kuurne-Brussels-Kuurne, as well as a stage at the Tour de France and four Danish time-trial titles.
Kasper Asgreen winning stage 18 of the 2023 Tour de France. Sirotti photo
Kasper loves the way that our team competes and can’t wait to lead his new teammates onto the cobbles at his favorite races.
“The main reason for me to come to this team is the way that the guys race,” Kasper says. “You can see that there's always a plan to try to win. Even if the race is not perfectly suited to them, the guys won't just sit in the bunch, waiting for the other teams to take charge. That really attracted me. On this team, we're going to do everything that we can to make races develop the way we want them to develop. That is really, really cool. For me, it’s the main thing: I like the team's approach to racing.”
EF Pro Cycling founder and CEO Jonathan Vaughters thinks that Kasper is going to fit right in with our squad.
“Kasper is a smart racer who can make big attacks stick at the ends of the toughest classics,” Vaughters says. “He can read a race very well. When the contenders are on their last legs, he’ll pick his moment to go. Time and time again, it’s the right one. He packs a great sprint too, as he showed when he won the Ronde van Vlaanderen.”
Races like Flanders and Roubaix are the ones that Kasper looks forward to most. When the peloton explodes, he comes into his own.
“When everybody's attacking and teams are struggling to keep control, that is when opportunities arise for me,” Kasper says. “That is when racing is the most exciting for me and where I see my chances. Those are the races I enjoy the most. The spring classics have a special place in my heart for sure. The main goal for the year is to lead the team to victories in the spring in Belgium. We're going to have a really, really strong team with several riders that can mix it up in the finales. That is a recipe that I believe in and one that has worked well for me.”
Kasper learned how to race when he was a kid in Denmark, where he started out riding for the local club in Kolding, the small university city where he now lives with his wife and which he will always call home. Before he took up cycling, he rode horses. From the age of four, he competed in dressage. He still draws on his childhood equestrian experience now as a pro bike racer.
“When you need to take care of an animal, you can't just leave it in the stable for two or three days at a time because you don't feel like going training,” Kasper says. “You are responsible for a living creature, so you need to go and exercise it every day at least. Maybe you don't want to do a full training session or a hard training session, but the horse still needs to be exercised. I think that gave me a lot of discipline very early on. When I started cycling, a lot of my friends in the bike club just went training with the group on Tuesday and Thursday. I would also go on the bike on Monday, Wednesday, and Friday and do the races, because I was used to having to do my sport every day. That discipline of going out every day, which I had done since I was five or six or seven years old made my transition into cycling much easier.”
Bike racing was still tough for him at first. Kasper didn’t win a race for his first three years. He loved the sport nonetheless.
“One summer, I was watching the Tour de France on television, and I said to my parents, maybe we should give road cycling a try,” Kasper says. “I had stopped riding horses and tried lots of different sports, but none really caught on. My parents wanted my brothers and me to be active outside of school. So we called the local bike shop, which had a bike club. I still go to that bike shop, where I got my first road bike. From the beginning, I was like, this is something for me. A lot of the guys I raced against had already been riding for several years, and I made a lot of stupid decisions tactically in those first years, but everybody does when they start out racing. I had some catching up to do, but I made progress every year and that was enough for me.”
Kasper’s love of the sport is still what drives him. Being a pro comes with pressures and hard times, but Kasper still knows that it is a privilege to be a bike racer. Having fun is his superpower.
“It is a hard sport, but it's harder if you don't enjoy it,” Kasper says. “We all started cycling, because we enjoy it. That's something I really, really try to remember; you don't have to do this; you get to do this; you could do anything else if you want. I am lucky enough to live in a country where education is open to anyone. So, if I want to do something else, I have every opportunity in the world, but I get to do this right now. It is a sport and it is a lot of fun.”
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Here’s the team’s news:
UAE Team Emirates head into the last Monument of the year with Il Lombardia in Italy on Saturday 12th October, with Tadej Pogačar going in search of another title at ‘The race of the fallen leaves’. The team have all eyes on them as reigning champions of the past three editions in 2021, 2022, and 2023.
Tadej Pogacar wins Il Lombardia in 2023
Pogačar will count on a strong team around him as he goes in search of a third title in Como.
Pogačar: “The first race in the rainbow colours was something special. Giro Dell’Emilia was always a race that got away from me but I was delighted to be able to take the win there finally last weekend. The shape is still very good and I want to give it one last push now for Lombardía. It’s been the perfect season for us this year. All the team we worked really hard and things really clicked for us. I’ll definitely look back on this year as a really special time. But it’s not over yet and we want to finish it off well and with a strong result in my last race of the season in Lombardia. ”
The team will also be in action in on Thursday at Gran Piemonte on 10 October, with Italian veteran Diego Ulissi captaining a youthful team. In France a select few riders will participate in the Chrono des Nations time trial in France.
Sports Manager Matxin Fernandez (Spa) along with the Sports Director pairing of Fabrizio Guidi (Ita) and Marco Marzano (Ita) will lead the squad.
Il Lombardia [1.UWT] – 12-Oct-2024
- Jan Christen (Swi)
- Finn Fisher Black (NZ)
- Marc Hirschi (Swi)
- Rafal Majka (Pol)
- Tadej Pogačar (Slo)
- Pavel Sivakov (Fra)
- Adam Yates (GB)
Gran Piemonte [1.Pro] – 10-Oct-2024
- Filippo Baroncini (Ita)
- Sjord Bax (Ned)
- Jan Christen (Swi)
- Alessandro Covi (Ita)
- Diego Ulissi (Ita)
- Luca Giami (Ita) (Gen Z)
Chrono des Nations [1.1] – 13-Oct-2024
- Mikkel Bjerg (Den)
- Jay Vine (Aus)
- Luca Giami (Ita) (Gen Z)
- Duarte Marivoet (Bel) (Gen Z)
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Here’s the team’s news:
UAE Team Emirates have renewed terms with Marc Soler who put pen to paper on a new deal to keep him at the Emirati outfit.
Soler, who has just finished off a successful Vuelta España, will continue to wear the colours of the UAE for at least another three years, penning a deal until the end of 2027. The versatile climber has been in the team since 2022 and has been part of multiple team successes both as a domestique and when seeking his own results.
Marc Soler racing in the 2024 Vuelta a España stage 14. Sirotti photo
Soler: “I feel very happy to be able to continue with UAE Team Emirates and thankful for the trust they have shown in me. In this team I find a good balance between personal ambitions and helping my teammates depending on the race, and it’s a mix I am enjoying a lot. The team is experiencing a really good period at the moment and it feels like a family environment at each race. I want to stay at the highest level for years to come and help it to win many races along the way.”
Joining the Spanish armada at UAE will be another young Spanish talent as Pablo Torres makes the step into the professional ranks for 2025. The talented 18 year old from Madrid moves up to the World Tour squad having spent the 2024 season racing with the UAE Gen Z development team. The youngster achieved great success in his first year as an under-23, most notably taking 2nd place overall at the Giro D’Italia Next Gen and winning the queen stage and finishing 2nd overall at the Tour de l’Avenir.
Torres: “For me it’s a dream to become part of the UAE Team Emirates World Tour team. I am very excited and eager to continue growing surrounded by the same people, in the best team in the world and alongside the best professionals. The treatment I have received this year has been spectacular both from the staff and from riders and I am delighted to be able to be part of the team until 2030. I have worked hard to be able to make this big step, but this has only just begun and there is still a lot of work to do to be able to give the best of myself to the team. I’m very thankful and grateful for the support and trust they have placed in me from day one.”
Mauro Gianetti (Team Principal & CEO): “We remain a team dedicated to developing the talents of the future and we believe that Pablo Torres is a rider with the qualities to make the step-up to the World Tour. He is a young rider and the focus will be on his development both as a rider and as a person, which is very important. Soler is a rider with a lot of experience and has been a key figure in the past couple of years. We feel that Marc can continue to show us his high level.”
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Here’s the team’s update:
This year’s edition of the Gran Piemonte offers a final chance for sprinters to shine in Italy or presents a golden opportunity for attackers. The Italian semi-classic often features varied routes, and for the 108th edition on October 10th, riders will tackle a 182 km course from Valdengo to Borgomanero. The latter part of the course will challenge the peloton and could lead to multiple race scenarios.
While the first part of the course is largely flat, the final 70 km become more demanding, with the climb of the Passo della Colma (8.6 km at an average gradient of 5.5%) and a technical descent that could spark attacks. Two other short ascents, the Cremosina and the Traversagna, will mark the final difficulties before a 25 km flat stretch. The race concludes with a single lap of an 11 km circuit, featuring a false flat and a slightly uphill final kilometer.
Bahrain Victorious Sports Director Roman Kreuziger shared the team’s strategy: ”I believe this course suits our roster perfectly. We’ve selected riders who are not only fast but also capable of enduring the climbing challenges. Matevz Govekar will be our key rider for the final. He’s in excellent shape and highly motivated, which can be a decisive factor at this stage of the season. He will be supported by a champion like Matej Mohorič, who will take on the role of road captain and help with the final lead-out.”
Matevz Govekar winning 2024 Tour of Britain stage 6.
Mohorič, who finished 2nd at Gran Piemonte in 2022, will be pivotal again, alongside Edoardo Zambanini, who also performed strongly in the same edition, securing 4th place. Fresh off an impressive showing at the CRO Race, Zambanini will serve as the team’s joker.
“As we reconned the tricky parts of the course this morning, it became clear that it suits Zambanini well. He’s ready to follow the key moves during the climbs,” Kreuziger added. “We also have great supporters in Nikias Arndt, Andrea Pasqualon, and Fred Wright, who had a fantastic race in Croatia, finishing on the podium of the final stage. They’re all prepared to join a breakaway if the opportunity arises.”
The lineup is rounded out by Damiano Caruso, who is feeling better after missing Tre Valli Varesine due to a stomach bug. “It will be a great warm-up ahead of Il Lombardia,” said Kreuziger.
Additionally, Sonny Colbrelli, who won Gran Piemonte for TBV in 2018, will be in the team car alongside Kreuziger. “I mentioned that motivation is key, and with Sonny encouraging our guys, they’ll be even more driven to aim for the podium,” Kreuziger concluded.
Here’s the team’s news:
Two-time Olympic Champion Remco Evenepoel headlines our seven-man squad for Saturday’s appointment.
Il Lombardia isn’t just the last Monument of the season, it’s also our team’s final race on European soil. Traveling from Bergamo to Como, the 252km route comprises eight climbs: Forcellino di Banzano, Passo di Ganda, Colle di Berbenno, Valpiana, Sella di Osgio, Madonna del Ghisallo, Cima di Sormano and San Fermo della Battaglia. Sormano will be climbed from a different side this time and a major selection could happen on its slopes, while San Fermo is set to be crested with just five kilometers to go, from its top only a fast descent remaining until the finish.
At the previous participations here, Soudal Quick-Step racked up a total of five podiums – including Paolo Bettini’s back-to-back victories – and our squad will look to get again a good result at the Italian Monument, which this year runs its 118th edition – the second-longest of the last decade.
William Junior Lecerf finishing stage 7 of the 2024 Tour of Switzerland. Sirotti photo
Our team for Il Lombardia will consist of Mattia Cattaneo, Remco Evenepoel, last year’s Piccolo Lombardia winner William Junior Lecerf, Fausto Masnada – runner-up here in 2021 – Pieter Serry, Ilan Van Wilder and Mauri Vansevenant.
“It goes without saying that on Saturday we’ll take on one of the toughest races of the season. The eight climbs on the course will gradually whittle down the peloton, and the presence of Sormano – the longest ascent of the day – inside the last 60 kilometers is sure to light up the race. We aren’t starting as the main favourites, but we are determined to do a good race, show the Wolfpack spirit and score a solid result as we bring down the curtain over our European season”, said Soudal Quick-Step sports director Davide Bramati.
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