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Monday, September 9, 2024

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2024 Tour de France | 2024 Giro d'Italia

It's not true I had nothing on, I had the radio on. - Marilyn Monroe

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Les Woodland's book Dirty Feet: How the Great Unwashed Created the Tour de France is available in print, Kindle eBook & audiobook versions. To get your copy, just click on the Amazon link on the right.

Upcoming racing:

• September 11: Giro della Toscana
• September 12: Coppa Sabatini
• September 13: Grand Prix Cycliste de Québec
• September 14: Memorial Marco Pantani
• September 15: Grand Prix Cycliste de Montréal
• October 12: Il Lombardia

Latest completed racing:

• September 8: GP de Formies
• August 17 - Sept 8: Vuelta a España
• September 3 - 8: Tour of Britain
• September 8: Bemer Cyclassics
• September 8: Grand Prix Cycliste de Quebec
• August 28 - September 1: Renewi Tour
• August 25: Bretagne Classic Ouest-France
• August 20 - 23: Tour du Poitou-Charentes en Nouvelle Aquitaine
• August 12 - 18: Tour of Poland
• August 14 - 18: PostNord Denmark Rundt
• August 13 - 16: Tour du Limousin
• August 11: La Polynormande
• August 10: Clasica San Sebastian
• August 5 - 9: Vuelta a Burgos
• August 4 - 7: Arctic Race of Norway
• July 27 - August 4: Olympic cycling

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Vuelta a España stage 21 reports, part 1

We'll post the rest of the report tomorrow.

We posted the report from the race organizer with the results.

Here's the report from GC winner Primoz Roglic's Team Red Bull-Bora-hansgrohe:

Red Bull - BORA - hansgrohe wears red tonight: Primož Roglič wins the Vuelta a Espana 2024!

Primož Roglič went into the final time trial in Madrid with a lead of more than two minutes. After 24.6 kilometres through the Spanish capital, he crossed the finish line in second place, extended his lead and finished confidently at the top of the podium. Ben O'Connor and Enric Mas took the places next to him.

It is Roglič's fourth Vuelta triumph. It brings him level with record holder Roberto Heras and adds another chapter to his impressive career.

Primoz Roglic gets to go home with another red jersey. Sirotti photo

Primož Roglič:
“The closer you get to the end, the more you want to finish it off. I tried to motivate myself to do it. I pushed, it was a fast time trial and everything went well. I'm happy. Four wins - it's crazy. I just want to enjoy it.”

Just ten weeks after the team celebrated one milestone with its new name, another has been achieved. This is only the second grand tour victory for the team. The 2022 Giro d'Italia with Jai Hindley is followed by the 2024 Vuelta with Primož Roglič.

Ralph Denk:
“This is a very special moment. This is only the second time in our 15-year team history that we have won a Grand Tour. In addition to Primož's consistently strong performance, I am particularly pleased with the great team performance. These three weeks have been a rollercoaster ride, but the guys never doubted that we would wear the red jersey in Madrid. Today is an extraordinary day, but we're working hard to ensure that it soon becomes our new standard.”

Alongside the veteran, a youngster completed the team's success. Florian Lipowitz finished his first Grand Tour. The 23-year-old finished seventh overall, making him the second-best young rider in the Tour of Spain.

Here's the Vuelta news from Team dsm-firmenich PostNL:

An almost 25 kilometre time trial through the streets of Madrid brought to a close the Vuelta a España on Sunday afternoon. With some technical sections in the opening part of the route, the majority of the parcours took place on fast and rolling roads where the time trial specialists could come to the fore. Having battled through the previous 20 stages, most of the Team dsm-firmenich PostNL squad aimed to get through the stage safely and in a good way. Former Dutch U23 time trial champion Enzo Leijnse gave the course a good go and set a good early time, stopping the clock in 28 minutes and 37 seconds, while last-down the ramp for the team, Max Poole, went two seconds faster than Leijnse come the finish.

Pavel Bittner wins stage 5. Sirotti photo

Looking back on the Vuelta, Team dsm-firmenich PostNL can reminisce about that epic stage five sprint victory with Pavel Bittner; two stage second places, three thirds and five further top tens across the 21 days of racing.

Road captain Chris Hamilton said: “I think everyone, both riders and staff, can be really pleased with how the Vuelta went. Almost every day we’ve had an impact on the race. We had some great results here, starting with the stage win with Pavel and then the podiums with Max from the breaks. We also got third with Max in the points classification which was also pretty impressive. Finally, to have eight guys arrive here in Madrid, with three first-timers in the squad, is a massive achievement so I think everyone is really happy. I think we can look back and be satisfied with how this Vuelta went.”

Team dsm-firmenich PostNL coach Phil West added: “It was the final stage today and I think we can look back on three weeks of racing and be really satisfied with what we achieved. We started the race with a goal at first for Max to see how he can come in the GC, for his development, and of course go for the sprints with Pavel. I think after a few days when Max had his crash that changed the perspective on our goals and we were very much in the mindset for stages. After that the teamwork in going after that goal with the guys and the staff has been super. On sprint days we have worked really well to support Pavel and then on the days when we searched out the break opportunities, then we showed that we can function really well as a team. Not only make the breaks but also help control the break phase and who should and shouldn’t be in there. That’s something we can take with us into other races as well. Overall, I think we can be really happy with the race. The teamwork has been really good and we’ve finished the race with eight riders, and three of them have completed their first Grand Tour, and we made some nice memories along the way. We will hope to use this and grow for the future.”

Here's the Vuelta report Team Visma | Lease a Bike:

Despite three stage wins, Team Visma | Lease a Bike ends Vuelta a España with mixed feelings

Team Visma | Lease a Bike wrapped up a Vuelta a España of two halves. The Dutch team won three stages with Wout van Aert and seemed poised to win the points and mountains classifications, but a crash by the Belgian powerhouse in the final week disrupted the plans. Robert Gesink completed his last race kilometers, ending a distinguished career that spanned 18 years.

Wout van Aert in green after stage 12, before his crash. Sirotti photo

News
In the final 25-kilometer time trial through the streets of Madrid, Edoardo Affini was the best-placed rider from the Dutch squad. The Italian set the fastest time early in the day but ultimately finished further down the rankings.

"A time trial after three tough weeks is always different," Affini said. "To be honest, I’m not entirely satisfied with my time. I went full with everything I had left in my legs. The last few weeks have been full gas every day, and that definitely takes a toll."

“It was a race with ups and downs,” summarized sports director Grischa Niermann, reflecting on the 2024 Vuelta. “With Wout, we won three stages, which is, of course, a fantastic result that any team would be more than happy with. We were on track to win the green and possibly even the KOM jersey. There were still several great opportunities for him in the final week, but unfortunately, his crash on Tuesday spoiled those plans.”

With defending champion Sepp Kuss, Team Visma | Lease a Bike also aimed for a strong GC result. “He didn’t quite have the level we had hoped for. Sepp was excellent on some stages but at other times wasn’t strong enough to follow the competition. Additionally, we lost Dylan van Baarle early on, and Cian Uijtdebroeks was also forced to withdraw from the Vuelta prematurely. Robert, Edoardo, Steven Kruijswijk, and Attila Valter rode a commendable race. As a team, we faced several setbacks, but we need to cherish the great moments we had with Wout.”

For Gesink, it’s a Vuelta he’ll never forget. The 38-year-old Dutchman rode with great joy during his final Grand Tour. “I’ve had an incredible time during these last three weeks. My coach confronted me with my numbers and stats last week, and they were excellent, even close to my best years. We won three beautiful stages with Wout and wore the red jersey for a few days,” Gesink reflected.

“I’ve genuinely enjoyed it,” Gesink continued. “Of course, I’ve known for a while that this would be my last year as a pro, so I’ve been able to savor every last time. The last training camp, the last Grand Tour. It feels like the perfect time to stop because, at times, I’ve had to push myself to the limit. Early in my career, I was driven by chasing results, but eventually, I transformed into a team player. That transformation makes me very proud. I’ve achieved some beautiful victories, secured some impressive results, and at the end of my career, I’ve helped the team win four Grand Tours. Now I’m going to enjoy my family, the free time, and cycling, continuing the healthy lifestyle I’ve adopted. It’s been a wonderful career, one I wouldn’t trade for anything.”

And here's the final Vuelta report from Mattias Skjelmose's Team Lidl-Trek:

Mattias Skjelmose, just 23 years old, has grand tour ambitions, and to that end, he targeted La Vuelta a España for nearly a year. For the first time in his young career, he had the chance to lead Lidl-Trek’s general classification efforts at a three-week stage race.

Mattias Skjelmose finishing stage 12.

He aced the test. As the stages ticked by, Skjelmose got better and better, climbing into the top 10 of the standings in Week 2, into the white jersey as the best young rider in Week 3, and into the top 5 overall with a blistering time trial on the final day of racing in Madrid.

“I cannot even imagine it. I’ve prepared for this race for 11 months,” Skjelmose said. “The main goal since September last year was this Vuelta, and to stand on the podium with the white jersey I didn’t even think of it. It’s really surreal.”

Skjelmose has proved his GC bona fides in the past, winning the prestigious Tour de Suisse in 2023, and taking top 5 at Paris-Nice (fourth), Itzulia Basque Country (third) and Tour de Suisse (third) this season. He had never been tasked with the pressure and challenge of racing for his best possible result at a grand tour before, however. He completed the 2022 Giro d’Italia and 2023 Tour de France, but had largely been riding in a support role with an eye on stage wins.

Skjelmose not only showed that he had the stamina for three weeks of racing, but that he could even take advantage of his wilting competitors. He moved within a shout of the then-white jersey leader Carlos Rodriguez on Stage 16, finishing just behind three of the final top four GC riders. He took the jersey for good on Stage 19, finishing third on the mountain top finish at Moncalvillo.

Then on Stage 21, the Danish time trial champion took eighth, 1’02” off the winner Stefan Küng, and 1’13” ahead of David Gaudu, who Skjelmose leapfrogged to finish in the top 5 overall.

“I don’t really know what to say. I think two weeks ago, it seemed really far away, both the finish of the Vuelta and this fifth place,” Skjelmose said. “And out of nowhere it’s right there. I didn’t really realize yet, I think. It’s just a dream and a goal I said a really long time ago.”

Lidl-Trek staff had a lot of faith in Skjelmose to put him in a grand tour leadership position. But no one has supported Skjelmose more than Kim Andersen, Lidl-Trek directeur sportif and Skjelmose’s longtime mentor. Andersen is a Danish cycling legend, and he has been by Skjelmose’s side for most of his major career milestones.

“Kim’s been with me since the beginning and always believed in me, and to have him behind me and speaking to me through the whole TT was incredible,” Skjelmose said. “I don’t know if he’s still alive, but I think he’s gonna be super happy.”

Andersen, famously gruff, cried when Skjelmose won the Tour de Suisse in 2023. As of press time, we have yet to confirm whether Skjelmose was able to induce waterworks a second time.

“I heard he didn’t even cry when his kids were born,” Skjelmose said, “so it would be special.”

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