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2020 World Championships - now confirmed for Imola, Italy.

Page 87 - Get up to date with the latest news, scores & standings from the Cycling News Community.
Obviously his emotions at the finish aren't what I'm referring to, but rather his agitated gestures during races when something goes wrong, the faces he's making, attacking from a group that's working together only to get dropped 2 minutes later, fannying about at the back of the group, etc.
Roger that :)

In that relation I'm certainly the more indulgent observer. Though I might not exactly be the type myself, I adore "quircky" riders with passion, spicing the things up, even if its for spicy personality like Voeckler and cycling wise Alaphillipe, Jacky Durand or close to humoristic non-tactical maneuvres riders like Terpstra (he could've enlarged his palmares using his head a bit more, but then I'd missed some delicate racing). Riders riding with their heart and loosing their head in the work, so to speak.

Personalities maybe not equal to my own but in my book very welcome spicy ingredients :)

That said I'm also very keen of tactical geniuses, getting more results than maybe their capability states, and especially in the times before radio contact (yes, I'm that old).

In my book "hate" is a very strong word, which I use very rarely.

Though, there's been a few arrogant riders of whom I disliked for their personality. Hinault was one of them, but in races his efforts on his bike completely took me. Mainly due to his riding with his heart very often taking risks.
I admired Lance's championship in Oslo. He seemed so humble and talented leader already by then. But few years later he developed his arrogance and I remember entering a post Tour criterium in 2003 just after the finish where I spotted a friend behind Lance, who thought I was about to contact him for an autograph, and I rejected him like "sorry, Sir" or so. It looked like he took it not only as an offence but his eyes looked like I'd declared war. And then his conversion to the often nearly mechanical carefully calculating cynical style. So that's both personality and riding style very much in contrast what i like. And just to state clearly; this has nothing to do with the clinic stuff revealed years later. It's all about his changing charactor to me, though I've read about his dominant attitude already as a tri-athlete, but by then just after Oslo 1993 I didn't know.
Oh, a third and I think last rider, I've disliked was Christophe Moreau, loosing his composure on the bike and became corporal on more occations, e.g. against Carlos Sastre in a Tour stage. But in interviews he often seemed like a fine guy to me.

Of today's riders I really cannot find a rider I dislike, in a world where interviews often seems controlled by a team press officer.
And speaking on the bike, I adore the insane and maybe not so thought out projects based on pure passion :)
 
I just noticed there was only one rider younger than 26 in the top30: Marc Hirschi.
More than half of them were 30 ore older.

Generational change uh?
Interesting stats!
Pointing towards conclusion that experience is still essential in championships on a long challenging distance.
And that Marc Hirschi is a star in the making (Tadej Pogacar would definately be there too, playing his cards more conservative).
 
kinda stupid Van der Poel was not there, him and Dumoulin could have really done something. I don't think this course was too hard for him, what a waste....
No use speculating about what-ifs. It becomes a different race if MvP is there; the Belgians change their tactics a bit, it's even more in the French/Spanish/Italian/Slovenian interest to make the race harder instead of soft-pedalling the climbs, etc etc.


Am I alone in being disappointed in how Colombia races hard Worlds courses? Uran was their best finisher in the same group as such mountain goats as Bettiol and Geschke, and Martinez and Chaves rolled in another 2 minutes back with Benoot and Pogacar, who had both spent a lot of the race in the wind. Their best finisher at Innsbruck was Quintana in 15th.
 
No use speculating about what-ifs. It becomes a different race if MvP is there; the Belgians change their tactics a bit, it's even more in the French/Spanish/Italian/Slovenian interest to make the race harder instead of soft-pedalling the climbs, etc etc.


Am I alone in being disappointed in how Colombia races hard Worlds courses? Uran was their best finisher in the same group as such mountain goats as Bettiol and Geschke, and Martinez and Chaves rolled in another 2 minutes back with Benoot and Pogacar, who had both spent a lot of the race in the wind. Their best finisher at Innsbruck was Quintana in 15th.

I highly doubt the Spanish would have done anything different because what you saw from them today is what they had.
 
Yes/no. They had a lot of jerseys there in the last lap. I think if they'd suddenly seen a Belgian or Dutch favourite suffering, I think Bala sends one or two of his guys to put the pressure on earlier than they did.

I think they were on their limits. They had jerseys there and no one who could finish in the first chase group. Bala didn't have anymore. He didn't even manage to get into the first group. He also (to me) he sounded discouraged in an interview after the race.
 
Like Italy, I think they're strong in workhorses but lack that strong protected rider who can take a race to the line. It used to be Valverde but I think those days are numbered.

For Spain on a very different type of course (maybe more like Richmond) Cortina likely would be a strong protected rider. He's not a climber so these courses aren't going to work for him. Should see Cortina as Spain's protected rider next year at the Worlds. No way he's going to the Olympics.
 
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Ala's win reminds me a lot of Cadel Evans's attack in 2009, although I'm more sure in Cadel's case the others had nothing left to give.My respect for Roglič increased a lot when he didn't chase all out for WvA, despite all that he did for him in the Tour.
 
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Imagine killing yourself for 3 weeks for your teammate, then when said teammate has a chance to repay those efforts he flat-out refuses so he can come in sixth. Stay classy, Roglic.
Absolutely agree. The nerve of Sam Bennett to not give up the green jersey to his old teammate Sagan o_O.

As an Aussie, why did Hirschi attack and ruin his teammate Michael Matthews's chances, who's a way better sprinter?
 
Absolutely agree. The nerve of Sam Bennett to not give up the green jersey to his old teammate Sagan o_O.

As an Aussie, why did Hirschi attack and ruin his teammate Michael Matthews's chances, who's a way better sprinter?

Impressive argument. Bennet and Sagan are not even teammates and what has Matthews ever done for Hirschi? I think Roglic should have completely emptied himself for WVA, he knew he was never going to win that.

And yes, I know that it was within his rights to go for a top 10 spot (not that that means anything). I just think it would have been the right thing to do, but he didn't.
 
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Impressive argument. Bennet and Sagan are not even teammates and what has Matthews ever done for Hirschi? I think Roglic should have completely emptied himself for WVA, he knew he was never going to win that.

And yes, I know that it was within his rights to go for a top 10 spot (not that that means anything). I just think it would have been the right thing to do, but he didn't.
I did say old teammates, y'know. Until last year.
Matthews and Hirschi are both on Sunweb, by your argument why didn't they work together? Why did WvA attack and leave his "teammate" Dumoulin behind?
I know there's been lots of salty Belgians around but at least they got a medal (2 in fact). Us Aussies got sweet FA and it's all Hirschi's fault.
 
Imagine killing yourself for 3 weeks for your teammate, then when said teammate has a chance to repay those efforts he flat-out refuses so he can come in sixth. Stay classy, Roglic.

even wout doesn’t buy this line of argument. Besides that’s an awfully cynical view of the world championships. Of course it’s happened often but it doesn’t make it right. And if roglic had been able to help wout the howls of protest would have been much louder.
 
I can't believe this "Roglic should have worked for van Aert" is a thing. First of all not because it's a WC, and people are wearing their national colours and the Slovenians obviously wear them with pride. Secondly because Pogacar had already worked for Roglic, so how would he have felt? And then because van Aert knew very well what his task in the Tour-team was, he comitted to his job, he's getting payed for it. Now if the team had promised him something else or if he was just as much a GC rider as Roglic, giving up his own chances to improve Roglic's, things might even be a little bit different - but I think it still would be a "betrayal" of the Slovenian people. Finally the Belgian national team is not exactly small, it's not like van Aert never has a chance of winning anything in his colours because he's the only rider from his country in the last 10 years, while Slovenia always has a stuffed team.

It happens sometimes, but usually people are not happy with it. Did not some say Lampaert should never again be taken by the Belgian team because of what he did?
 

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