2011 Copenhagen World Championships: Elite Men Road Race

[Libertine Seguros]

i really can't believe those of you on here who don't appreciate what you just saw. great britain was absolutely dominant today. they set a blistering pace in the end that eliminated any chance of an escape. this was absolutely a championship effort by the team.

It was absolutely a championship effort. Sadly the route wasn't up to producing a championship race.

I appreciate that what I just saw was a very good team effort, but what I just saw was the worst and most boring World Championships race in a decade, set on a parcours that made absolutely sure that nothing was going to happen even if people tried.

 

[goggalor]

As odd as it seems, this is a one time shot at a title. Different than 'best all-around rider'. Maybe it should be called something else...
Just like 'state champion' means you one that race....not best rider in the state.
It does seem odd....

The only true world championship race is the time trial. Unfortunately time trialing is not true cycling...

 

[spanky wanderlust]

It probably translates better from the roadside, but on the TV that race was weak.

The finish was fairly interesting, but it was your typical flat stage - dull for a while then an interesting finish. Certainly didn't have the sense of occasion that said "World championships" - at least not from the riders.

The sprint was OK, and the right man for the situation won, but that doesn't mean that it wasn't a really boring race up until that point, and shouldn't be called out on it.

so to clarify you position, are you saying you did not enjoy this race?

in all seriousness, i think your point is made. you do not like flat races. we knew this before. we have always known this.

it's just that, there are some among us who, in addition to watching skinny, girly climber types, and meaty cobbled classic types, also enjoy watching hobbits accelerating to 70kph in traffic in ridiculously small amounts of time. speed does not kill. the hobbit has proven so.

 

[Libertine Seguros]

it's just that, there are some among us who, in addition to watching skinny, girly climber types, and meaty cobbled classic types, also enjoy watching hobbits accelerating to 70kph in traffic in ridiculously small amounts of time. speed does not kill. the hobbit has proven so.

Did you also enjoy the other 5 and a half hours of not very much happening? Does the 30 seconds of excitement at the end justify making the race so long?

 

[Dekker_Tifosi]

How can you possibly like the race?

I can understand liking the winner and liking the British team effort. But the race in itself was dead boring until the final 3/4km
Even if you are a Cavendish fan and a Brit I would not understand how the race is exciting or fun in any way, except for the end obviously.

 

[hatcher]

How can you possibly like the race?

I can understand liking the winner and liking the British team effort. But the race in itself was dead boring until the final 3/4km
Even if you are a Cavendish fan and a Brit I would not understand how the race is exciting or fun in any way, except for the end obviously.

The middle section, I guess from 100 to go until 30 to go, where Italians and Belgians were attacking and forming groups each lap were pretty interesting tactically. Commenters in the race thread were certainly enjoying it, and definitely didn't think the result was a foregone conclusion.

From 30k until about 5 to go was dull, and to be honest, I imagine that's all most of the whiners actually watched.

 

[Swiss Tony]

Absolutely awesome..We are privileged to see a British Team delivery the World Champion ..
Now I realize why my better half finished 7th in the Cycling News Vuelta Fantasy League after all the ****e spouted on here

 

[Descender]

The middle section, I guess from 100 to go until 30 to go, where Italians and Belgians were attacking and forming groups each lap were pretty interesting tactically. Commenters in the race thread were certainly enjoying it, and definitely didn't think the result was a foregone conclusion.

From 30k until about 5 to go was dull, and to be honest, I imagine that's all most of the whiners actually watched.

There was nothing interesting about this race. Tactically it was null. The course was so bad no attack, no matter how hard it was, could have any success as long as a strong team like GB today was determined to chase it down. It was Zolder 2002 all over again: a disgrace to world championship cycling.

 

[Dekker_Tifosi]

The middle section, I guess from 100 to go until 30 to go, where Italians and Belgians were attacking and forming groups each lap were pretty interesting tactically. Commenters in the race thread were certainly enjoying it, and definitely didn't think the result was a foregone conclusion.

From 30k until about 5 to go was dull, and to be honest, I imagine that's all most of the whiners actually watched.

I watched from the morning till the final and I can't get excited from attacks of 5 people in the middle of the race.

If it was a 20 man group getting away like in Varese for instance, that would be interesting tactically.

 

[Mellow Velo]

Seems to me there are a whole lot of folks here blaming Cav and the GB team for making the race boring. What about all the other nations?
Belgium and France pass muster, but the rest where like timid sheep.

 

[hatcher]

There was nothing interesting about this race. Tactically it was null. The course was so bad no attack, no matter how hard it was, could have any success as long as a strong team like GB today was determined to chase it down. It was Zolder 2002 all over again: a disgrace to world championship cycling.

Yet the majority of commenters during the race thought GB were blowing it. That is all being forgotten now as apparently everyone knew Cav would win the whole time.

 

[GroupDK]

3 factors to make a scene.

spectators

course

riders.

From my viev the spectators was avesome and really had a ball.

The course, was flat with one hill. (that was the case, and before seen that stages like that can bring a fascinating show)

Then there was the riders..

Its not kvantefysik, but yeah the strongest team was GB (also been signs up to WC about theres strengt at national plan)

The strongest national team killed all attacks today because they had a primary goal in CAV, and a goal with succes, _ thats the buttom line, the strongest team was not interrested in any breakaway, and hole it together..

Really simple actually..

 

[mb2612]

The middle section, I guess from 100 to go until 30 to go, where Italians and Belgians were attacking and forming groups each lap were pretty interesting tactically. Commenters in the race thread were certainly enjoying it, and definitely didn't think the result was a foregone conclusion.

From 30k until about 5 to go was dull, and to be honest, I imagine that's all most of the whiners actually watched.

100km to 30km to go was good, but a race is good if it builds up in excitement not quitens down for the last hour-30 seconds.

No break ever looked like staying away, there was never any doubt it would be a spirnt finish, as such it was a dull race

 

[Libertine Seguros]

Seems to me there are a whole lot of folks here blaming Cav and the GB team for making the race boring. What about all the other nations?
Belgium and France pass muster, but the rest where like timid sheep.

It's not wrestling, so entertainment is not part of the job description. The GB team did their job brilliantly and deserve the plaudits they are rightly getting for it. It just wasn't very entertaining and I hope the next time we see a Worlds on a course like this is long after I'm dead.

 

[mb2612]

3 factors to make a scene.

spectators

course

riders.

From my viev the spectators was avesome and really had a ball.

The course, was flat with one hill. (that was the case, and before seen that stages like that can bring a fascinating show)

Then there was the riders..

Its not kvantefysik, but yeah the stronest team was GB (also been signs up to WC about theres strengt at national plan)

The strongest national team killed all attacks today because they had a primary goal in CAV, and a goal these succesed, _ thats the buttom line, the strongest team was not interrested in any breakaway, and hole it together..

Really simple actually..

The hill was pathetic, that was an uphill sprint where the top 3 are pure sprinters, and every race was won by the best pure sprinter. It was effectively a pan flat race.

 

[Libertine Seguros]

The hill was pathetic, that was an uphill sprint where the top 3 are pure sprinters, and every race was won by the best pure sprinter. It was effectively a pan flat race.

There was another "hill" on the course somewhere. But they put the feedzone on it, in another example of organisational genius.

 

[goggalor]

Seems to me there are a whole lot of folks here blaming Cav and the GB team for making the race boring. What about all the other nations?
Belgium and France pass muster, but the rest where like timid sheep.

I think most teams realised it was impossible to get away and so they put their faith in their sprinters. None of them are to blame for it being boring, really, least of all GB. And not Cav either. I'm definitely a hater, and haters gonna hate, but in the end it's not his fault the course was crap. He just turned up and won. It's the organisers fault it turned out to be a **** small race.

 

[el chava]

A hard parcours does not ensure a selective race, to me it is always the riders and team tactics that make the race. I seem to recall recent editions of L-B-L and queen stages of the tour that were more boring than this. And if the weather had been like it normally is in Denmark this time a year and some proper riding from some of the teams (the french excluded, they did well), this could have turned out different.

Cavendish victory wasn't set in stone though, Matt Goss was pretty close.

 

[theyoungest]

This race was even more boring than I expected. Unbelievable, what a crap course. And the weather didn't help either. But congrats to Cav, fastest sprinter in the world and the logical winner.

 

[spanky wanderlust]

Did you also enjoy the other 5 and a half hours of not very much happening? Does the 30 seconds of excitement at the end justify making the race so long?

i'm not arguing with you. you don't like flat races. that's that.

like i suggested, i'm pretty sure we get how you feel. and you are not wrong. except about the distance part. with the pace it creates attrition, even i a pack. if anything they should have made it longer. couple more laps.

i enjoyed watching what i watched of it. and did not enjoy the parts i didn't watch.

the beauty of it is that we are technically not required to watch any of it. if i didn't like cycling i could take up knitting or somesuch.

i think you are suffering vuelta withdrawal. maybe lombardia will cheer you up. or is that too flat for you?

 

[pmcg76]

Maybe there should be a seperate Worlds race like today for the spinters like there is for the TT specialists where the teams rides to control the race to set up a sprint.

Then a seperate race for all the proper cyclists with at least one proper hill on the circuit.

For people suggesting that Worlds shouldnt be designed for climbers either, they never are designed for pure climbers. The last one anyway mountainous was Colombia in 95 I think and before that Sallanches in 80.

A short hill is not a mountain.

 

[Libertine Seguros]

A hard parcours does not ensure a selective race, to me it is always the riders and team tactics that make the race. I seem to recall recent editions of L-B-L and queen stages of the tour that were more boring than this. And if the weather had been like it normally is in Denmark this time a year and some proper riding from some of the teams (the french excluded, they did well), this could have turned out different.

Cavendish victory wasn't set in stone though, Matt Goss was pretty close.

It's not ALWAYS the riders - they certainly can take a good parcours and make the race bad. And sometimes they can take a bad parcours and make it good. But this parcours was beyond bad. Certainly Cav's wins in Aubenas and Sanremo, though arguably lesser on the palmarès, were more impressive wins in more exciting races.

The weather was certainly a major factor in this - wind and rain could really have changed things a lot.

As regards the sprint, the slight uphill isn't too suited to Cavendish, certainly more beneficial to Goss (and Hushovd had he not been involved in the crash earlier on), but he was just too strong today and powered through.

 

[GroupDK]

The hill was pathetic, that was an uphill sprint where the top 3 are pure sprinters, and every race was won by the best pure sprinter. It was effectively a pan flat race.

Yeah, thats how it goes in cycling, Denmark is pretty flat country.

some races are flat and some have big mountains, and thats why the course varies from year to year..

Im not aware if you are familiar with, that some flat races & stages also can be exciting..

if you aint just think about some of the big flat races in the past..

To sum it up, its actually pretty simple (the riders make the race and in WC regi its mounted at national strength)

 

[skidmark]

Personally, I have no problem with sprinters winning. All I want is the World Championships to be entertaining, unpredictable and hard has hell. Thor won last year and it was an excellent race. But a race like today just devalues the rainbow jersey. If you can't win unless it's a 100 man bunch sprint then you should maybe try your luck on the track. I just don't think Cav is a deserving World Road Racing Champion at this point in his career.

I agree with this, with a caveat - I don't think Cav couldn't win on a harder course, I mean he won MSR from a more reduced bunch; but I would respect his win more if it was on a course that was more selective, and couldn't be won by someone who can only win from 120 man bunch sprints. I don't like Cav much, but he's a great rider, so nothing against him, he didn't make the course. It just feels crappy to see the race play out like that, with no serious break getting more than 7 seconds and whatnot.

I think I won't even watch the Olympics next year, ugh.

 

[mb2612]

Yeah, thats how it goes in cycling, Denmark is pretty flat country.

some races are flat and some have big mountains, and thats why the course varies from year to year..

Im not aware if you are familiar with, that some flat races & stages also can be exciting..

if you aint just think about some of the big flat races in the past..

To sum it up, its actually pretty simple (the riders make the race and in WC regi its mounted at national strength)

San Remo is flat and was awesome this year, Geelong was a bunch kick and was a brilliant race. You just need some sort of obstacle, and Denmark failed to provide any.