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Bicycle Racing News and Opinion,
Tuesday, July 27, 2021

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2020 Tour de France | 2021 Giro d'Italia

The audiobook version of The Story of the Tour de France, Volume 1 is available.

I've missed more than 9000 shots in my career. I've lost almost 300 games. 26 times, I've been trusted to take the game winning shot and missed. I've failed over and over and over again in my life. And that is why I succeed. - Michael Jordan


Tour of Flanders, the Inside Story

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Tom Pidcock wins Olympic Men’s Mountain Bike Race

Here’s the report from Pidcock’s Team INEOS Grenadiers:

Tom Pidcock put in an incredible and assured ride to claim a gold medal in the Olympic Mountain Bike race.

The Brit secured the biggest victory of his career in style, making light work of the start from the fourth row, before moving into the lead group and testing the resolve of his rivals.

A pair of attacks on laps three and four saw the Swiss duo of Nino Schurter and Mathias Fluckiger distanced, with Pidcock able to control the gap back to nearest rival Fluckiger over the second half of the race.

Tom Pidcock

Tom Pidcock on his way to a Gold Medal.

The result was made even more special as it came just eight weeks after Pidcock suffered a broken collarbone in a training crash. The Grenadier looked smooth and composed on the bike over an extremely technical course, with an eventual winning margin of 20 seconds over Fluckiger. Spaniard David Valero Serrano claimed the bronze.

Tom Pidcock:
"It's unbelievable really. To keep myself calm I was just telling myself I'm going to become an Olympian - and now I'm an Olympic champion! It's incredible. Everyone works so hard for the Olympics and it's unbelievable really.

"Late last year was the first time I did a World Cup in mountain bike so it hasn't been a dream for that long. But I've worked so hard for it.

"It’s been really hard (since the injury). I haven’t done a good race since but I trained really hard. I knew I was in great shape but there’s always doubt. Once the race started I knew I was in a good place. (With the heat) obviously I didn’t feel good but everyone just told me no one is going to feel good.

"Once the race gets going it becomes routine really. The nerves go and it's just gameface."

Team DSM announces Vuelta a España roster

The team sent me this release:

With the start of the Vuelta a España less than three weeks away, Team DSM confirm their eight-rider strong roster that will line up in Burgos for the start of La Vuelta.

Romain Bardet

Romain Bardet (shown racing in the 2021 Giro d'Italia) will start the Vuelta a España in a few weeks. Sirotti photo

The Vuelta is known for its leg sapping gradients and brutally difficult climbs and this year’s edition of the race looks set to be no different, with several challenging mountain top finishes, including a brand-new climb for the race on stage 18; Altu d’El Gamoniteiru which averages an almost brutal ten percent for 15 kilometres. It’s not just the climbs that will excite the peloton as there are bunch sprint chances for the fast-men, plus hilly stages for the opportunists, while the race is sandwiched between two efforts against the clock.

After an attacking edition of the race in 2020 where every rider on the squad took a top five finish on a stage, which included four podium finishes, the team will look to race offensively once again throughout the 21 days over the challenging terrain in their quest for a solid result.

With good foundations laid through well-planned training programs and high-altitude camps, Team DSM’s Vuelta a España block will be ready to go racing when they roll out in Burgos, showcasing their distinctive two Keep Challenging stripes for the final Grand Tour of the season.

Team DSM’s Vuelta a España coach Matt Winston said: “We bring a strong team to the Vuelta once again this year, who are very motivated to end Team DSM’s year on a high note and bring home some top results. The team have gelled really well together at altitude camp with some good workshops, as we ironed out and pre-discussed our tactical plans for the race. We’ll take an offensive approach with the team, first focusing on stages and seeing where that brings us, moulding our approach to the race as we head towards Santiago de Compostela. Jai is still recovering from his injury sustained at the Giro d’Italia. There have been some ups and downs in the last period for him, so we will make the final call on whether he will take the start after as the race draws closer. After the final races that we have coming up to put the finishing touches to our hard work, we look forward to bringing our Grand Tour season to a close in Spain next month.”

Line-up:
Thymen Arensman
Romain Bardet
Alberto Dainese
Nico Denz
Chad Haga
Jai Hindley
Michael Storer
Martijn Tusveld

Janus Cycle Group — owner of Merlin and Dean — sold to former real estate executive

Bicycle Retailer & Industry News sent me this:

BOULDER, Colo. (BRAIN) — Titanium bike and component manufacturer Janus Cycle Group announced Thursday it sold all company assets to Phil Joseph, a former real estate executive.

Joseph, an avid cyclist, purchased 100% ownership stake in the assets, which include Merlin Metalworks, Dean Titanium, Knight Composites, Ionic Bikes, and Rossin Bikes. Headquarters will remain in Boulder, and all current employees — including Dean founder and master builder John Siegrist — will remain to ensure continuity of operations during the transition.

Financial terms were not disclosed, and the sale is effective immediately.

“I am excited about this incredible opportunity to own a pioneering titanium bike brand in Merlin Metalworks, an internationally known builder of hand-crafted titanium frames that started in 1986,” Joseph said. “I'm also looking forward to helping John and the customer-focused Janus team build out and grow their premier brands as we embark on our exciting growth trajectory with customer, racing, dealer and distributor partners worldwide.”

You can read the entire story here.

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