2014 19th Vattenfall Cyclassics: 246km, August 24

[BigMac]

You must give Katusha the credits for the fact they saw potential in him when BMC dropped him. He's at the moment on of the best cyclist in the world.

Should be 5 or 6th in WT rankings now. TOP3 or 4 in PCS rankings. Not sure about CQ.

 

[Geraint Too Fast]

EBH's ability to get boxed in is second to none.

 

[skidmark]

haha, Farrar beat Cav and Kittel in a sprint.

 

[Akuryo]

He was going for like 350m

Kristoff is awesome (for a sprinter)

Only as a sprinter? He is a superb rider and an even greater person.

 

[kanari]

3rd for Gerrans in this sprintining field is very impressive I must say. He sure is fast for a hilly classics guy.

 

[Luigi_Max_Again]

haha, Farrar beat Cav and Kittel in a sprint.

He must be looking for a contract.

 

[rehy90]

Kristoff = 2014 world champion...

 

[Dazed and Confused]

Long and uneventful race, but the best hard man sprinter came out tops again.
Congrats to the super viking.

 

[Luigi_Max_Again]

Kristoff = 2014 world champion...

A real possibility. However he will have more tough competition and almost no team support as Norway can only have 3 riders.

Still Hushovd managed it. How many did Norway have in 2010?

 

[Cult Classics]

A real possibility. However he will have more tough competition and almost no team support as Norway can only have 3 riders.

Still Hushovd managed it. How many did Norway have in 2010?

Rui Costa also won with two team mates.

 

[ingsve]

A real possibility. However he will have more tough competition and almost no team support as Norway can only have 3 riders.

Still Hushovd managed it. How many did Norway have in 2010?

Hushovd had 2 team mates. EBH And Kristoff.

 

[VeloHuman]

Nizzolo timed this one much better than many of the sprints in the Giro. A good sign for the future. He missed the spring classics with an injury this season but I think he'll be a nice addition to the crew of Kristoff/Bouhanni/Degenkolb/Demare for a race like Gent-Wevelgem.

 

[Beech Mtn]

Rui Costa also won with two team mates.

TBF, Valverde counts as 3-4 guys all by himself.

 

[jaylew]

Should be 5 or 6th in WT rankings now. TOP3 or 4 in PCS rankings. Not sure about CQ.

3rd behind Balaverde and Nibs. 4th in the rolling one-year ranking.

 

[argyllflyer]

Great sprint from Kristoff to win, his all the way. Shame about the abysmal crowds alongside - what can be done to get the Germans back onside with cycling?

 

[b.broadhurst]

Great sprint from Kristoff to win, his all the way. Shame about the abysmal crowds alongside - what can be done to get the Germans back onside with cycling?

Nothing until this fine batch of footballers are gone.

 

[kingjr]

Great sprint from Kristoff to win, his all the way. Shame about the abysmal crowds alongside - what can be done to get the Germans back onside with cycling?

A potential TdF-Winner. Nothing else. Been like that for more than a hundred years and it will be like that for the next hundred.

 

[Akuryo]

A potential TdF-Winner. Nothing else. Been like that for more than a hundred years and it will be like that for the next hundred.

Or TV-coverage (not only on Eurosport, but also the public service broadcasters). Kittel, Degenkolb, Greipel, Ciolek, Tony Martin, ... they all had their share of success over the last few years. That brought back some sponsors (NetApp/Ednura or Bora next season), but if the people don't know about it, it's hard to get them out there. But not only television. Journalism about cycling in Germany is embarrassing. They don't print articles very often about it, but when they do, you can be sure that it is full of ****!

 

[Cult Classics]

Germans are in a strop with cycling because of you know what. Germany is like a nation of Rabobank - played more than their part in contributing to the bad old years, but decide when things look to be improving that they're not playing any more, picked up their bicycle and went home. I don't think Vattenfall was covered by the terrestrial broadcasters, was it? Are they even covering the Tour de France now? Of course the lack of Germans capable of winning the Tour also plays a role in this and likely that's what it will take to change things.

Do you think there's anything in the fact that cycling is an 'easterners' sport? Even now, in 2014, the best cyclists (Martin, Degenkolb, Greipel, Kittel) are all from the wrong side of that invisible line. The media are all from the other side, where perhaps there is less interest.

 

[Akuryo]

Do you think there's anything in the fact that cycling is an 'easterners' sport? Even now, in 2014, the best cyclists (Martin, Degenkolb, Greipel, Kittel) are all from the wrong side of that invisible line. The media are all from the other side, where perhaps there is less interest.

Could well be, but also youth cycling plays a role. There is a great team in the eastern part of Germany: Thüringer Energie Team. Martin, Kittel, Degenkolb, Sütterlin or Gretsch all came out of this squad. That shows that only one federal state is really promoting cycling in this country. If you don't live in Thüringen or near of it, you may have a hard time to find a big enough team to support you. Or show your talent in big enough races for that matter.

 

[roundabout]

Do you think there's anything in the fact that cycling is an 'easterners' sport? Even now, in 2014, the best cyclists (Martin, Degenkolb, Greipel, Kittel) are all from the wrong side of that invisible line. The media are all from the other side, where perhaps there is less interest.

Zabel and Ullrich were easterners and there was plenty of coverage in the 90's

 

[Dr. Juice]

Germans are in a strop with cycling because of you know what. Germany is like a nation of Rabobank - played more than their part in contributing to the bad old years, but decide when things look to be improving that they're not playing any more, picked up their bicycle and went home. I don't think Vattenfall was covered by the terrestrial broadcasters, was it? Are they even covering the Tour de France now? Of course the lack of Germans capable of winning the Tour also plays a role in this and likely that's what it will take to change things.

Do you think there's anything in the fact that cycling is an 'easterners' sport? Even now, in 2014, the best cyclists (Martin, Degenkolb, Greipel, Kittel) are all from the wrong side of that invisible line. The media are all from the other side, where perhaps there is less interest.

Well said. I live in Germany and remember the time when Ullrich was riding. The state tv channels showed hours and hours of Tour de France every day. From late morning to the afternoon. Big classics like Milan San Remo live. But mostly it was the Tour and only the Tour.
They ridiculously pulled out of the Tour in 2007 when Sinkewitz and Vino were caught and claimed they would not support this farce anymore. Went back live one year and pulled out again because of a doping case. It was when german cycling was down.

The press are a bunch of hypocrites. They treated doping cases like it was a display of how dirty the sport is. As long as there is EPO free , the UCI corrupt and no doping cases ( nothing done against doping) , they are fine with it - especially if there is a german winning.
But they happily show athletic sports which is every bit as dirty as cycling. They fell in love with cycling because of a German winning and turned a blind eye on the rest. When the happy bubble went puff the media jumped on the other side.
Now that they have spit on cycling like on no other sport in history - the mass now believes cycling , only cycling, is like cancer - they say " not enough interest" when asked if they show cycling again with regard to the improved situation. What an irony.

Germany has a bunch of new champions and it's possible to have an honest career riding clean but the TV won't show it.
You will see they will show cycling again - when there is a german winning the Tour. Not even when a German wins the Giro or the Vuelta or the WC. No, if a German wins the Tour de France. Because it was always all about this f*cking race ( a great race, but nevertheless) , for them cycling is only the Tour and the Tour de France is a great instrument for mass propaganda and to "fall in love again" with their hero.
Then we will hear how good and clean cycling is.

 

[Cult Classics]

Zabel and Ullrich were easterners and there was plenty of coverage in the 90's

Kloeden too. Helps that they were all winning jerseys and getting on the podium.

 

[kingjr]

Kloeden too.

And Jens Voigt.

 

[Cult Classics]

I agree that it is all about the Tour in Germany and nothing else. I remember some of those editions of the Tour of Germany that just seemed desperate to copy the Tour de France. They copied all the jerseys, you had high mountain stages desperate to copy the Alps even though that meant spending 2 days of a week long race in Austria every year. I think they even did the penultimate day TT and ceremonial circuit race a few times. Pretty poor.

Like Rabobank, Germany bailed out at the wrong time. I just take the view that it is Germany's loss. It's not like the peloton needs German races, it's not Belgium or Italy. I wonder whether the Cyclassics should be replaced in the World Tour with a one day race in the UK (a better one than the London course). If you remember back in the day, Britain had the World Cup race and it just had no interest so it folded and Hamburg took its place. 17 years later and the situation has reversed.