2021 World Championships in Flanders: Road Races

[Ricco']

at this point it's sign for trek and you have a good chance to win Worlds. 2019 Simmons and Tiberi, this year Baroncini and Balsamo.

Also Trek will have next year:

• Women's Road World Champion (Balsamo)
• Men's U23 Road World Champion (Baroncini)
• Women's XCO World Champion (Richards)
• Women's XCO Olympic Champion (Neff)
• Women's Cyclo-Cross World Champion (Brand)
• Men's U23 Cyclo-Cross World Champion (Ronhaar)

*- Women's ITT World Champion (Van Dijk)

*if she continues with Trek.

 

[Mayomaniac]

Balsamo is also studying at the university of Torino (at the faculty of literature, to be exact) on the side.

 

[Logic-is-your-friend]

Not following a move by Evenepoel or Mohoric seems pretty stupid to me, though. If there are five riders I will look at they are surely among them.

It isn't always as simple as saying "when A, B, C, D or E goes, you follow". Maybe you can follow A and B, but when C attacks your legs are telling you that's not a good idea. Furthermore, following an attack by guys like Mohoric, Evenepoel, Asgreen etc, likely means you are only further isolating yourself early on, because when those guys attack, chances are the few domestiques you might still have left, will likely get dropped in the process. Now you're 70k from the finish and you need to control the race on your own from a group of 15 guys.

 

[Angelo1985]

Remco starts with number 13, he was junior world champion with this number. Is this a sign? http://www.thebikecomesfirst.com/wp-content/uploads/2018/09/Remco-Evenepoel-2018-World-Champs.jpg

 

[jmdirt]

CONGRATS EB!

 

[Red Rick]

I just checked Strava.

The record of the Wijnpers segment is held by one Wout van Aert with 32 seconds.

 

[Monte Serra]

The reactions of the Dutch riders and the team manager:
https://nos.nl/artikel/2399227-wielrensters-snoeihard-na-mislopen-wereldtitel-we-reden-als-los-zand
My personal take is that team manager Loes Gunnewijk is the main culprit. I don't get the impression that the riders don't want to work for each other, but there is just a lack of a clear plan, and miscommunication abounds, just like in Tokyo. You would have thought that the Olympic road race would have been dissected within the the team straight after the race. But apparently that evaluation didn't happen until just a couple of days ago. Great way to start a world championship, by bringing up the sour grapes of yesterday.

 

[Lequack]

Slovenian team

 

[sir fly]

After four races on the course, the picture is more clear.
The idea about racing I mean, everything mentioned about the course holds.

Gradual shedding along the way, from lap to lap, seems to be the plot.
Should someone try to detonate the race from further out they'll need useful numbers in order to stay clear all the way.
The numbers will also be needed to keep opportunists at bay in the finale. Otherwise looking and hesitating might just be the buffer adventurist(s) require.

 

[Mayomaniac]

CONGRATS EB!

Junior WC, u23 EC and now elite WC. Add a few medals at both the track cycling WC and the EC and you have a nice palmares for her age.

 

[gavia88]

the circuit in Leuven is actually quite nice. Very suitable for some great racing. It's only not very suitable to make a great selection. Therefore, they better could have spiced up a bit the Flandrien circuit. And I think they could have easily done that with still more or less the same circuit. Just with some extra additions. That would made the possibility for some early racing a bit bigger. An example of a little bit more difficult loop:

-smeysberg
-moskesstraat
-hertstraat (cobbles) (known from brabantse pijl)
-Postweg (cobbles)
-speelberg (cobbles)
-Terspout
-s-bocht + Taymanstraat
-Bekestraat
-Horenberg
-cobblestone sector of the Aardeweg
-Veenweidestraat
-Smeysberg


Still no Koppenberg or something difficult in it, but the extra cobbles and the smaller distance between the climb would make it more selective.

 

[RedheadDane]

Slovenian team

What's the guy next to Pogacar (David Per?) looking for?

 

[tobydawq]

Remco starts with number 13, he was junior world champion with this number. Is this a sign? http://www.thebikecomesfirst.com/wp-content/uploads/2018/09/Remco-Evenepoel-2018-World-Champs.jpg

No.

 

[tobydawq]

What's the guy next to Pogacar (David Per?) looking for?

A Belgian fish.

 

[postmanhat]

Someone has to mention the GB team, though really I have no idea how they'll go. I expect 90% of the gameplan will be to see how Tom Pidcock feels on the day, and if necessary, switch to Ethan Hayter. Given Pidcock's highly unconventional season/build-up, my money would be on Hayter becoming the focus. They have possibly the best GB team for a World's route since 2011? Fred Wright to hopefully get in to the breaks, and both Swifts have a good chance of being there near the pointy end in support. A top ten is probably the best realistic target, unless Pidcock is somehow on a really good day.

 

[Lequack]

Some guys were spotted

 

[Orbit501]

I'm not so sure Hayter should be written off quite so easily on this parcours, and with the form he's carrying.

 

[Lequack]

Canadians

 

[SafeBet]

Someone has to mention the GB team, though really I have no idea how they'll go. I expect 90% of the gameplan will be to see how Tom Pidcock feels on the day, and if necessary, switch to Ethan Hayter. Given Pidcock's highly unconventional season/build-up, my money would be on Hayter becoming the focus. They have possibly the best GB team for a World's route since 2011? Fred Wright to hopefully get in to the breaks, and both Swifts have a good chance of being there near the pointy end in support. A top ten is probably the best realistic target, unless Pidcock is somehow on a really good day.

Fred Wright looked in very good shape at the end of the Benelux Tour and he's quite fast. I wouldn't waste him in an early break, but could sneak in a move later on.

 

[noob]

So last year the first race I watched was world's. Alaphillipe and Van der Breggen. Long attacks.

That's what non cycling fans likes to watch. We won't understand or appriciate the team aspect of cycling. That comes way behind exciting surroundings, climbs and attacks.

And I believe those picking the teams doesn't just need to create a team to win. They need to show excitement to draw new people in. Because world championships and TdF is the only thing non cycling fans bother with.

Like I am not a fan of any Van or poel anything. But make someone like Evenepoel a domestique and you're just gonna kill cycling for anyone but those already being fans.

The chaos is what draws people in. I love Alaphillipe because he's crazy enough to take a ton of chances. I wish for the next world champion to have similar qualities. And if not at least I want a surprise factor.

I hope it won't be a snoozefest.

 

[Carrick-On-Seine]

Someone has to mention the GB team, though really I have no idea how they'll go. I expect 90% of the gameplan will be to see how Tom Pidcock feels on the day, and if necessary, switch to Ethan Hayter. Given Pidcock's highly unconventional season/build-up, my money would be on Hayter becoming the focus. They have possibly the best GB team for a World's route since 2011? Fred Wright to hopefully get in to the breaks, and both Swifts have a good chance of being there near the pointy end in support. A top ten is probably the best realistic target, unless Pidcock is somehow on a really good day.

Also Jake Stewart reckons he is feeling as good as he did in early spring.
It might be just too long a race for them all.
By the way, why was Thomas not selected?

 

[Ivan_Basso_77]

OK, ragazze e ragazzi. You did well. You've won plenty the past week(s). Now it's time to be a little bit gracious to the hosts. Like Evenepoel pulling Colbrelli and then doing a fake sprint (he can obviously do much better), and like Wout pretending he couldn't go harder last week during the TT, tomorrow we here in Belgium would like to see the favour returned. Looking forward to it.

PS: We also gave away the EC football quarter final - Italy, remember please. Grazie.

La maglia dell'iride is about to come home. And all roads lead to Rome. Remember that.

Hope you are joking about the Euros, Italy was clearly the best team of the tournament.

Sonny or Matteo to win would be an amazing end for this great Italian summer.

 

[titan31]

Not following a move by Evenepoel or Mohoric seems pretty stupid to me, though. If there are five riders I will look at they are surely among them.

Someone like Teunnisen of Van Baarle (if on form) could be marking those guys as VDP is looking at WVA, Ala, Asgreen. That's about the only chance I can see a non bunch sprint here, favourites look at each other and the next tier of guys ride off if they get the right grouping.

 

[kingjr]

I honestly have no idea what to expect. Van Aert is the strongest, but there are so many others who are really, really strong. Half of them is probably going to crash out, but who is to say van Aert won't be among them.

 

[tobydawq]

So last year the first race I watched was world's. Alaphillipe and Van der Breggen. Long attacks.

That's what non cycling fans likes to watch. We won't understand or appriciate the team aspect of cycling. That comes way behind exciting surroundings, climbs and attacks.

And I believe those picking the teams doesn't just need to create a team to win. They need to show excitement to draw new people in. Because world championships and TdF is the only thing non cycling fans bother with.

Like I am not a fan of any Van or poel anything. But make someone like Evenepoel a domestique and you're just gonna kill cycling for anyone but those already being fans.

The chaos is what draws people in. I love Alaphillipe because he's crazy enough to take a ton of chances. I wish for the next world champion to have similar qualities. And if not at least I want a surprise factor.

I hope it won't be a snoozefest.

You have to be focused on trying to win, not trying to lure new fans into the sport.

You can't just be shooting left, right and centre for the lolz, creating an artificial image of the sport as being more chaotic than it really is, if it vastly decreases your chances of winning.