Valverde said BEFORE the race he was on better form this year than last year and that the course should suit him. TODAY he flat out said that he was freezing and pulled out for his own health.
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Valverde said BEFORE the race he was on better form this year than last year and that the course should suit him. TODAY he flat out said that he was freezing and pulled out for his own health.
Armchair cyclist
Moderator
2014 was in Spain, rain but highly doubt it was cold. Rain in Richmond was minor and definitely not cold. 2014 was definitely not cold.
Everyone thought Mathieu had it. Then everyone thought Trentin had it. Then everyone thought Mads had it.
AND WE WERE RIGHT!
It wasn't cold today. A typical autumn/spring day.
Armchair cyclist
Moderator
In an ultimate attempt to steer this ridiculous discussion you are all having about the weather, off-topic, i would like to express my enormous disappointment in the fact that it has been LITERALLY DAYS since i last woke up to dozens of Sandisfan likes to my posts. What's up with that man? I thought we had some sort of unspoken agreement, where i would litter some posts and you would like them. I mean, precedents were set, expectations were created. And now i'm basically stuck at 145 likes. Not cool!
You have to add 2015 as there was rain in it. Again was light and not cold. The combination with cold causes illness.
As many riders were shivering from the COLD and saying they were frozen it was a cold rain and that does cause illness. Any temp under 18 is chilly and starting to get cold.
Alaphilippe said he was freezing and there were many riders who where shivering either after the race OR when they stopped during the race.
only if you're already ill or in contact with people who are whilst riding. Your body doesn't decide 'oh look it's below 10c and raining; lets have a bout of pneumonia!'
Accept that this kind of weather ALWAYS leads to illness within the peloton and you can be guaranteed that there would have been riders who started the race already not feeling well. Yes actually your body WILL decide to have a cold or have sinus troubles act up. This is prime weather for sinus issues (which IS a type of illness).
So, where's the quote? So he sacrificed his chances at a good result to not get sick? I don't believe that for one solitary second and I'm a huge fan. He was quoted 2 days ago in cyclingnews saying "It's not for me" talking about he course. He also talked about not looking forward to the weather:
"Even though I went well in the rain at the Worlds road races in Ponferrada and Florence, I really don't like the look of the weather forecast for Sunday,"
"You have to really be on your toes in bad weather, and constantly eating, despite perhaps having crashes happening all around you. I'd say that, physically, I'm feeling great – even better than before the Worlds in Innsbruck last year – but that the route and expected weather conditions aren't exactly perfect for me."
So more than once he said the course wasn't for him - which we all pretty much knew.
And you mentioned riderS. Where are the quotes from riders who who would have had great results but only dropped out to avoid getting sick? I still haven't seen a single one.
He also stated he was in better shape before this year's worlds coming out of la Vuelta than he was last year. Without the rain even with a course that doesn't fit him he WOULD have been in the mix. Richmond did not come close to fitting him and he finished 5th. He said that was a bad course for him. The difference is the weather wasn't horrible. He's finished top 10 many times in races on courses that are BAD for him. At that point it then become better to pull out preserve his health and get ready for the Italian fall races.
When he didn't even ride 10k in their training ride the other day, you knew he had no intention on doing anything with the weather and was likely wishing he was back in Spain instead of there. If this isn't the first time he has gotten off the bike and walked away from a race without being injured I can't remember another time he did. That actually says a LOT.
You need an infection to get ill & its very unlikely that more than 3 riders in the race have the sinus issues you describe.
Thank god it never rains at those Italian races. It'd be amusing if he threw away his chance to be world champ only to find its raining at Lombardy...
So when it rains in Italy in the fall it's a COLD rain that ensure you are freezing like they had in England?
the 2010 Lombardy was raced in worse conditions than today.
This is what winner Mr Gilbert had to say: "It was a very difficult race. It was cold and there was water everywhere after all the rain. I just kept believing. I'm used to conditions worse than this."
In fact there were only 34 finishers. Maybe the UCI should cancel the race? Just in case.
Here's the quote about his form:
Las sensaciones son muy buenas. Si el recorrido fuese el del año pasado estaría para disputarlo al cien por cien. Éste también, estoy en condiciones físicas para disputarlo pero el recorrido no es el idóneo. Será más difícil.
yeah you do. A cold is caused by a virus. Hence why there is no cure for it.
That's why any time you get this type of weather you get a LOT of sick people. Happens every time. Also happens a lot in racing like his. Weather like this and you end up with sick riders. TdF 2015 had a bunch of riders who ended up sick after racing around Paris in the cold rain. A bunch who had to cancel after Tour races they had planned on going to.
I just watched the last 40K - No doubt Pedersen was the strongest of them all in such horrible weather conditions - folks were really suffering out there. I believe Trentin and Moscon mismanaged the efforts and underestimated the other rides - even if Trentin was in the final sprint, he was empty by the last 50 meters....
I wished the weather had been a bit better to allow more dynamics during the race, but it was a good one anyways...
I wished the weather had been a bit better to allow more dynamics during the race, but it was a good one anyways...
Please. Stop embarrassing yourself.
Worlds has a very high attrition rate even in perfect conditions.
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