2011 Copenhagen World Championships: Elite Men Road Race

[dlwssonic]

Regardless of the arguments about the course I'm still kind of surprised about the no-show from Gilbert. I mean Cancellara finished 4th and Gilbert has been competitive on a finish like this before. Maybe it's just one race too many for him this season or maybe he needs to do the Vuelta to show his best in this race ?

I actually think he is tired of winning, he didnt seem that sad after today and he is always talking himself out of contention for races.
Anyway he can save some of his juice for next year

 

[luckyboy]

Regardless of the arguments about the course I'm still kind of surprised about the no-show from Gilbert. I mean Cancellara finished 4th and Gilbert has been competitive on a finish like this before. Maybe it's just one race too many for him this season or maybe he needs to do the Vuelta to show his best in this race ?

Not really any chance in a pure sprint, unless he wanted to sprint to be on the fringes of the top ten Belgium might as well have helped Roedlandts.

 

[roundabout]

Belgians did well to try and liven race considering the course. French ditto.

GB was hugely impressive though. Always on the front it seems.

 

[GroupDK]

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[Timmy-loves-Rabo]

Belgians did well to try and liven race considering the course. French ditto.

GB was hugely impressive though. Always on the front it seems.

they really were impressive, setting a high pace all day. Making it near impossible for anything but a sprint.

Clearly the only team who truly believed in their sprinter.

I still think it was a shocking course, but can't take anything away from the brits for this.

 

[roundabout]

Regardless of the arguments about the course I'm still kind of surprised about the no-show from Gilbert. I mean Cancellara finished 4th and Gilbert has been competitive on a finish like this before. Maybe it's just one race too many for him this season or maybe he needs to do the Vuelta to show his best in this race ?

I think he did try to sprint but didn't have it. I need to see the video of the final km to confirm it. But I suppose 5th or 15th it doesn't matter.

 

[Eyeballs Out]

Not really any chance in a pure sprint, unless he wanted to sprint to be on the fringes of the top ten Belgium might as well have helped Roedlandts.

Can't really agree with that. This finish was at least as hard as the Cap Frehel finish in the Tour where Gilbert finished a close 2nd. Beat Greipel there and you can't tell me he's slower than Cancellara so a medal was a strong possibility on his best form

 

[richwagmn]

Wonder what the outcome would've been if it was something crazy like 360km.

Maybe that would have made it interesting. Also, no water for the last 100km, put tacks on the road, maybe some dirt sections. Anything would have been an improvement.

 

[wirral]

The second Brit was Geraint Thomas in 81st place! They must have all just drooped over their bike frames with the effort.

 

[roundabout]

Cap Frehel did have one difference with a more difficult hill than I expected before the finish at about 3km to go I think. These multiple efforts are better for Gilbert than for the sprinters.

 

[Kwibus]

On this course where it was 99% sure that the race would en up in a bunchsprint there isn't anyone as deserving to win the world championship as Cavendish. Since he's been the best sprint for atleast 4 years now.

Besides that GB worked their *** off for this win so he/they fully deserve it.

edit: Incredibly strong performance by the brittish team as well, but looking at their lineup I must say they have a very very strong team atm.

 

[GroupDK]

Depends on the course.

Certainly on a course like today (and with Froome carrying his miraculous Vuelta form on especially) the UK had the best team out there. And working for Cav was their only sensible option.

On a different course the Belgians, Italians or Spanish could have been strongest.

It just depends on the course, obviously GB look awesome because they have cav and a reason to control the race.

On cycling on a whole, No way GB imo.
They have improved a great deal in the past few years tho, and kudos to that.

Yeah the course have offcourse a lot to say, but on the flat, i also finds the GB national team the strongest at the moment and they have moved a long way after the build of team sky.( there was allready solid signs for Great Britain national team some years back where they was a major factor on the track )

and the same goes for TTT in reagards to SKY.

on a bigger climp there picture would have change and there main weakness would have come in play.(or at least i think so, Wiggins & Froome have show good legs lately, but still not that explosive)

Are not familiar with the course at OL, but it dos look good for GB at OL in London...

 

[Zinoviev Letter]

On this course where it was 99% sure that the race would en up in a bunchsprint there isn't anyone as deserving to win the world championship as Cavendish. Since he's been the best sprint for atleast 4 years now.

Yes.

Cavendish has been dominant in his specialisation for years now. There's nothing disgraceful about there occasionally being a course where the best sprinter in the world can win, any more than there's something disgraceful about a course favouring the world's best puncheur or the best climber.

 

[spalco]

Am I the only one that's happy with the result?

No, you're not. But there are only about 3 or 4 of us here it seems.

 

[Libertine Seguros]

Yes.

Cavendish has been dominant in his specialisation for years now. There's nothing disgraceful about there occasionally being a course where the best sprinter in the world can win, any more than there's something disgraceful about a course favouring the world's best puncheur or the best climber.

What's disgraceful is not that there was a course where the best sprinter CAN win, but that there was a course where the best sprinter WOULD win, and there wasn't really any other option unless Cavendish or his team blew the sprint. Why make it 260km long in that case? There were 107 riders who were part of the front group coming into the final km. That's more than Vattenfall (86, even if we count the second group on the road), and that's seen as a bit of a pointless sprinter's race.

 

[Echoes]

On this course where it was 99% sure that the race would en up in a bunchsprint there isn't anyone as deserving to win the world championship as Cavendish. Since he's been the best sprint for atleast 4 years now.

Thus, Gilbert is not worthy of his win in Cureghem because it was flat and he's not a sprinter. Or he's not worthy of his two wins in Paris-Tours?

Jelle Nijdam and Willy Teirlinck were unworthy of most of their wins because they were no sprinters but attacked under the red flame.

I repeat. It has nothing to do with the course, but with the riders. Cavendish like most modern sprinters is a disgrace. The race didn't suck because it was flat, it sucked because a wheelsucker won. The Walloon Arrow is hilly but it's the same scenario too. So it sucks all the same.

Besides that GB worked their *** off for this win so he/they fully deserve it.

THEY deserve the win but not Cav ! Key difference. Cav did not work his *** off !

 

[ScottyMuser]

Just watched the final 20 kms on bbc as was watching F1 earlier - massive props to the whole team, from what I saw (i.e. last 20kms) especially Wiggo who put so much pain on everyone for 10-odd kms on his own. Think that if Sky hadn't been so much fail first year, and had more than 3 men last year, Cav would have had a chance - that was the only reason he dropped early last year.

Kudo to Mark for managing to ride the last 2km a la McEwen, after losing G, jumping from train/rider to the next to position himself. The way people were talking earlier, I assumed it was a textbook HTC-style train with a leadout, but it wasn't, up to 3-4km to go it was, then thy were all swamped. Good WC for us Brits - and could have had more if Lizzie hadn't been so poorly positioned yesterday meaning the team didn't really had a leadout for her.

Maybe next year Cav will do what he made references to last year, and try some cobbled races

 

[Sørensen]

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[Gloin22]

Thus, Gilbert is not worthy of his win in Cureghem because it was flat and he's not a sprinter. Or he's not worthy of his two wins in Paris-Tours?

Jelle Nijdam and Willy Teirlinck were unworthy of most of their wins because they were no sprinters but attacked under the red flame.

I repeat. It has nothing to do with the course, but with the riders. Cavendish like most modern sprinters is a disgrace. The race didn't suck because it was flat, it sucked because a wheelsucker won. The Walloon Arrow is hilly but it's the same scenario too. So it sucks all the same.



THEY deserve the win but not Cav ! Key difference. Cav did not work his *** off !

But so did Greipel, Goss and the rest. Usually the leaders in race dont work until the last km's/metres

 

[GroupDK]

No, you're not. But there are only about 3 or 4 of us here it seems.

No´ Im also satisfied with that CAV took it.

(Its was a sprint, and if the best sprinter these years should´nt take it. ! - who then...)

If it was up to me, I would have like Jens Voight to win it.. (but that would have been some hell of acchievement, in regards to the obvius)

Would also have been okay if Gilbert have taken it. (seems like a sympatic & jokefull fellow)

or Hoogerland

 

[El Pistolero]

Thus, Gilbert is not worthy of his win in Cureghem because it was flat and he's not a sprinter. Or he's not worthy of his two wins in Paris-Tours?

Jelle Nijdam and Willy Teirlinck were unworthy of most of their wins because they were no sprinters but attacked under the red flame.

I repeat. It has nothing to do with the course, but with the riders. Cavendish like most modern sprinters is a disgrace. The race didn't suck because it was flat, it sucked because a wheelsucker won. The Walloon Arrow is hilly but it's the same scenario too. So it sucks all the same.



THEY deserve the win but not Cav ! Key difference. Cav did not work his *** off !

It's Gullegem by the way.

 

[Libertine Seguros]

On another note, congratulations to Canada's David Veilleux, the top ProContinental rider in 19th, and Gediminas Bagdonas of Lithuania, the top Continental rider in 25th. The top rider officially designated as amateur (not in any UCI-sanctioned team) was Venezuelan Miguel Ubeto, who was 8'54" down in 116th place.

 

[Tuarts]

Wiggins won this race I think.

Smartest thing I've read so far.

 

[fatandfast]

Gilbert rode well but didn't do anything close to what he laid out in his press conference

 

[Waterloo Sunrise]

What's disgraceful is not that there was a course where the best sprinter CAN win, but that there was a course where the best sprinter WOULD win, and there wasn't really any other option unless Cavendish or his team blew the sprint. Why make it 260km long in that case? There were 107 riders who were part of the front group coming into the final km. That's more than Vattenfall (86, even if we count the second group on the road), and that's seen as a bit of a pointless sprinter's race.

He beat Goss by 50cm.

To try and pretend this was a prefect course for Cav when the final sprint was up a hill and Cancellara beat several sprinters to 4th place, is an insult to your intelligence.