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Friday, January 24, 2025
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2024 Tour de France | 2024 Giro d'Italia
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Current racing:
- January 17 - 26: Tour Down Under
Upcoming racing:
- January 25: Ruta de la Cerámica - Gran Premio Castellón
- January 29 - February 2: Challenge Vuelta a Mallorca
- January 26: Classica Comunitat a Valenciana 1969
- February 2: GP La Marseillaise
Latest completed racing:
- January 3: X20 Trofee Koksijde-Vlaamse Druivenveldrit Cross
- January 1: GP Sven Nys Cross
- December 30: Diegem Cyclocross
- December 26: Gavere Cyclocross
- December 27: Exact Cross Loenhout-Azencross
- December 15: Namur Cyclocross-Citadelcross
- November 17: Flandriencross
- November 3: European Cyclocross Championships
- November 1: X20 Trofee Oudenaarde-Koppenbergcross
We posted the report from the race organizer with the results.
Here's the report from second-place Jhonatan Narvaez's UAE Team Emirates:
Ecuadorian champion Jhonatan Narváez finished in second place on stage 3 of the Santos Tour Down Under for UAE Team Emirates-XRG, taking six bonus seconds in the process and moving up to second in the general classification. Narváez’s sprint came from a reduced group who crossed the line some five seconds behind the day’s winner, Javier Romo.
Jhonatan Narváez wins the sprint for second place. Sirotti photo
Romo’s solo escape occured shortly after the summit of the final climb, with Knotts Hill proving relatively indecisive in the general classification battle. Behind Romo’s successful late attack, a select group of the race’s best climbers were unable to shake each other free, leaving the rest of the top 10 to be decided in Uraidla from a sprint.
Knowing that bonus seconds have often decided this race in the past, Narváez made a bid for the left-hand side of the road and unleashed his strong acceleration to seal second place on the day.
With six further bonus seconds in his pocket, the 27-year-old moves up nine places in the general classification to second place, eight seconds down on the new leader, Romo. Jay Vine, meanwhile, is up to eighth overall, seven seconds behind his teammate.
“I think it was a positive day for the team,” Narváez told us during his post-race massage. “We worked hard and tried to make the race hard. It is not always best to reflect the race just by the result. We did our goal of racing hard and trying to win the stage. Of course, we did not win, but we still have many opportunities to go.
“Every one of my teammates worked well as we planned yesterday,” he continued. “The climb was hard, that is for sure. Between me and Jay, we have two strong guys to play in the race, but I must give credit to Romo because he made a smart attack. In the moment that he went, nobody chased.
“At the end of the race, you can win the race by one second and I think we are in a good position. Let’s see how the leader [Romo] is going to manage the race in the next few days and we will try to make a strategy to try and win the race through either myself or Jay.”
Before the final ascent of Knotts Hill, UAE Team Emirates-XRG had already animated the day’s racing on a number of fronts.
Behind the day’s breakaway, it was Julius Johansen and Rui Oliveira who worked hard to keep the time gap down and their teammates safe, with Rune Herregodts setting a hard pace on the climbs.
With the breakaway brought to heel, Soler used a lull in proceedings to make a daring attack off the front of the bunch. This move was aided by the work of teammate Pablo Torres behind, who tracked counter-attacks with a sense of racecraft way beyond his years.
Soler’s attack ultimately proved unfruitful, but UAE Team Emirates-XRG were not content to let the other teams dictate the pace on the final ascent of Knotts Hill.
Having largely bided his time through the opening two stages, Vine made sure to give his legs a good run-out on Thursday afternoon, making his own attack through the climb’s steepest pitches. Although he was unable to establish a sufficient gap, the positioning of Narváez left the team in a strong position coming over the final climb of the day.
With the Ecuadorian packing a more than capable sprint, he would always be favoured should a small group come to the line in Uraidla.
However, such plans took a dent when Vine found himself with a rear puncture as the peloton descended to the finish. With his momentum stalled, he could but watch as a variety of opportunists attempted to go solo.
Ultimately, it was Romo who would make his move count, with Narváez forced to settle for second from the chasing group. It was not the result that UAE Team Emirates-XRG had been chasing on stage 3, but it was enough to move both Narváez and Vine into the top 10 overall, both of whom sit within 15 seconds of the race lead heading into the fourth stage.
Tomorrow, the peloton will tackle 157.2km from Glenelg to Victor Harbor, as the race makes its way down the coast along Waitpinga Rd. With UAE Team Emirates-XRG’s seven-strong lineup reporting fit and healthy from the opening three stages, there is still all to play for in this year’s Tour Down Under.
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Here’s the Tour Down Under report from 5th-place Thomas Gloag’s Team Visma | Lease a Bike:
Thomas Gloag finished fifth in the difficult third stage of the Santos Tour Down Under. In the final on Knotts Hill, the Brit from Team Visma | Lease a Bike fought hard and ended up in the group of favourites. Javier Romo took the win and also took the lead in GC.
Thursday, in the south of Australia, the riders faced one of the toughest stages of the week. With over 3,200 altimeters, it was the first stage with serious climbs this Santos Tour Down Under. Two passages of Knotts Hill caused big differences in the peloton in the finale. Matthew Brennan, Menno Huising and Gloag survived the first passage. Gloag finished in the group of favourites after the final passage over Knotts Hill, sprinting to a very deserving fifth place.
Stage 3 gets started
“It was a difficult and technical final”, Gloag says. “But I'm super satisfied with this result. I was a little bit out of position at the start of the last climb. Fortunately, I was able to catch up with the favourites. The team helped me a lot today with positioning, which was important. We rode well at the front of the peloton for most of the day. Dylan dropping out in the first stage was a big disappointment, but we are making the best out of it. We can be proud of how we rode as a team this stage.”
“Thomas was exactly where he needed to be in the final. With the fifth place today, a lot still remains possible for the general classification”, sports director Addy Engels knows. Gloag is enjoying his time in Australia and is determined to go for a good result in the general classification. “It’s great, I have been here for several weeks for vacation with my girlfriend and training. This is one of my favourite races I have ever done. I'm extremely happy with my form right now and the 2025 start we have as a team. Let's continue that into the second half of the Tour Down Under.”
Brennan, who finished second in the first stage and thus made a great WorldTour debut, aimed high again for the third stage, but was too far behind on the final climb. “That's unfortunate. He felt very good, but lost some places on Knotts Hill. The fact that only a small group of favourites rode to the finish shows how difficult the final climb was. It would have been special if he had been in it”, Engels says.
Nevertheless, the sports director is very satisfied with his 19-year-old rider and the cooperation within the team. “Today was another great learning moment for Matthew. It is all new for him and he is really discovering professional cycling here. Matthew certainly shows here that he can do more than just sprinting. In addition, I really enjoyed how the guys worked together as a team. Menno was strong today and showed himself mostly at the front for the team. There is a lot of dedication among our young guys, which is a good development.”
The fourth stage of the Santos Tour Down Under may present a new sprint opportunity for Brennan. After two categorized climbs, there is still a long stretch to the finish line. “We will see how he will digest the climbs tomorrow. In addition, we have to make sure Thomas gets through the day well and is ready in the fifth stage for Willunga Hill, where the general classification will be determined.”
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Team Picnic-PostNL posted this stage 3 report:
After two days for the sprinters, the climbers and puncheurs had their chance on stage three with the tricky Knotts Hill cresting only seven kilometres before the finish. Team Picnic PostNL set out with the goal of protecting GC finisher Oscar Onley and worked well as a team to keep him safe throughout the stage and positioning him at the head of the group ahead of the tricky descents. Doing just that, Onley was able to start the final climb of the day in the front of the bunch where he showed good climbing legs to follow several moves. Things became tactical over the top and the race was stop-start, with stage winner Romo making a well timed move.
With no concerted chase from the reduced peloton, Onley rolled the dice and counter-attacked on one of the last kickers with two kilometres to go, but those behind then got organised and they reeled him back in with 500 metres to go. Onley finished safely in the GC group and sits amongst a group of riders that are 15 seconds behind the overall race leader.
Speaking after the stage Onley said: “The boys did really well to support me into the final two climbs today which was our goal at the start of the day because of the tricky descents. It got quite tactical in the final after the climb and I struggled to make the right decisions due to the numbers that some other teams had. It’s a bit frustrating but I’m feeling good and keen to prove to improve on things in the next harder stage here.”
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Here's the stage 3 report from Team Soudal Quick-Step:
Stage 3 of the race brought the first hard test of this edition: Knotts Hill, a climb never before used by the Tour Down Under – and to make things more complicated, the riders had to tackle it twice. The second of these ascents came around six kilometers from the finish, which was enough incentive for those willing to shake up the general classification to make a move on the demanding gradients of this 2.7km climb.
Lots of tifosi watching the stage. Sirotti photo
With the sprinters – including the leader of the GC – dropped in the last 25 kilometers after suffering throughout the day on the small hills which gave no moment of respite, it became clear the red ochre jersey will change hands in Uraidla, where the race returned for the first time since 2019. The attacks came thick and fast in the final 500 meters of Knotts Hill, as soon as the gradients reached 22%, leaving only a dozen or so riders in the select front group.
From there, Javier Romo (Movistar) zipped away in the closing kilometers and took the victory by a handful of seconds. Soudal Quick-Step’s first man to come home was Junior Lecerf, who managed to remain with the favourites until the steepest part of the last ascent and then did his best to limit the losses in the final part of the stage, concluding just outside the top 20 after four hard hours in the saddle.
Here’s the team’s announcement:
Australian sprinter and multiple Grand Tour stage winner, Caleb Ewan, has signed a one-year contract with the INEOS Grenadiers for the 2025 season.
The dynamic 30-year-old brings a decade’s worth of experience at the very highest level and boasts an impressive palmarès that includes over 60 professional victories.
Renowned for his blistering speed, the Sydneysider has claimed five Tour de France stage wins, five Giro d’Italia stage victories and a stage triumph at La Vuelta a España.
Caleb Ewan wins stage 16 of the 2019 Tour de France. Sirotti photo
Ewan’s also won multiple stages at the Tour Down Under, UAE Tour and the Tour of Britain along with twice finishing on the podium at Milan-San Remo.
Caleb Ewan said: “This is a really exciting new challenge for me and a fantastic opportunity to get back to my best with the incredible support of the INEOS Grenadiers.
“In 2025, my goal is to return to winning big races. It’s been a few years since I’ve won some of those major events but I firmly believe I have it in me. I’m still only 30, and with the right guidance and the expertise that INEOS brings, I believe I can rediscover my best form here.
“We haven’t finalized my race programme yet, but I’m looking forward to having those discussions with the team. It will be exciting to combine their ideas with my ambitions and together create an exciting race calendar.
“While the INEOS Grenadiers are often seen as a GC-focused team, I see huge potential in the wider group they have to support a sprinter. Over the past few years, I would often reference INEOS in sprint stages because their riders consistently positioned themselves perfectly in the decisive moments. That’s exactly the kind of expertise I’m excited to work with.
“Joining a new team always comes with adjustments, but I already know many of the guys, and everything I’ve heard about how the team operates gives me confidence that the integration will be smooth. I can’t wait to get started and see what we can achieve together."
Dr. Scott Drawer, Performance Director, INEOS Grenadiers, said: “Caleb’s palmarès, talent and ability to win big races speaks for itself. In our discussions with him we clearly understand where he’s currently at and what his ambitions are. We know that we have work to do together to achieve these, but both relish the opportunity.
“We have made significant changes to our performance team for 2025 and that expertise will be key in enabling not only Caleb but all our riders, to be in the best possible position to challenge at every race.
“Caleb will go straight into a team camp and thanks to our world-class staff we expect his integration to be quick and seamless. We’re all very excited to welcome him and look forward to seeing what we can achieve together this season.”
John Allert, CEO, INEOS Grenadiers, said: "Caleb is a proven winner and one of the great sprinters of this generation. Together we want to write an exciting new chapter for Caleb as an INEOS Grenadier, and the hard work required to achieve this starts today.”
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