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Benelux Tour 2021 (August 30 - September 5)

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BlueRoads

BlueRoads

Jan 4, 2020
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Renamed it returns, the Benelux Tour, featuring 7, wildly bumpy if you believe the pictures, stages, 4 Dutch ones, 3 Belgian ones.
First one is on today, profile: flat. Or, if possible, flatter than flat. Which is good for this elite sprint field with Merlier, Groenewegen, Ewan (and Hodeg).

benelux-tour-2021-stage-1-profile-db09c18b43.jpg


profiel_rit1.jpg


Stage 2 is an ITT of 11.1k; among the starting time trialists are Evenepoel, Küng, Dumoulin and Thomas, but this short there might be some other names coming into play. Will the "hard right corner" become a pitfall for some riders? (Actually there are two hard right corners.)

profiel_rit2.jpg


Stage 3 ends with a bumpy uphill finish in Hoogerheide:

profiel_rit3.jpg


Stage 4:

profiel_rit4.jpg


Stage 5:

profiel_rit5.jpg


Stage 6 is really hilly and the longest of them all:

profiel_rit6.jpg


And stage 7 stars the Muur van Geraardsbergen:

profiel_rit7.jpg


You can now place your bets: How many stages will Evenepoel win?
Will Mads Pedersen continue his resurrection right in time for the World Championships?
Will we laugh about DSM or will they make us shut up again?
Looks like a good race for guys like Sagan and Laporte as well.
Let the fun start!

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Samu Cuenca

Samu Cuenca

Sep 26, 2020
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It's still a bit rich calling it the Benelux Tour, when they never ride through Luxembourg.
The official profiles look like they've been made by the people from the Tour of Turkey.

Evenepoel is the hot favourite and he has the strongest team in the race, but at least the weak field argument shouldn't really work here.
 
Libertine Seguros

Libertine Seguros

Feb 20, 2010
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Samu Cuenca said:
It's still a bit rich calling it the Benelux Tour, when they never ride through Luxembourg.
The official profiles look like they've been made by the people from the Tour of Turkey.

Evenepoel is the hot favourite and he has the strongest team in the race, but at least the weak field argument shouldn't really work here.
Click to expand...
I complained about that when it was still officially the "Eneco Tour of the Benelux", but Luxembourg has never appeared nor been involved in the organisation so afraid it'll be a long time before we see it in the route. Stage 5 is rather easier than I'd hoped, the biggest of the climbs on the circuit is 800m at 6,6% with a max 9%, so it's going to be all about the final weekend I suspect.
 
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Wvv

Wvv

Jan 3, 2019
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Hope Greg can show a bit of his old form. Even his legs from this year's spring would be more than good enough.

Since he got vaccinated, he can't go all the way in competition anymore. It's the first time ever in his carreer that his base level is far below the usual. Very upsetting with a World Championships in his home country coming up. Even more so when you realize he got selected for every single WC since turning pro.

He did a blood investigation and will have the results any day now, Apparently, he wouldn't be the first athlete to suffer from getting the Covid-vaccin. Such a shame.
 
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B

Bonimenier

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Apr 1, 2019
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Samu Cuenca said:
It's still a bit rich calling it the Benelux Tour, when they never ride through Luxembourg.
The official profiles look like they've been made by the people from the Tour of Turkey.

Evenepoel is the hot favourite and he has the strongest team in the race, but at least the weak field argument shouldn't really work here.
Click to expand...
Organization said that the plan is to ride through Luxembourg next year. Although it's not the first time they promised that.
 
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Boes

Boes

Oct 31, 2018
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Wvv said:
Hope Greg can show a bit of his old form. Even his legs from this year's spring would be more than good enough.

Since he got vaccinated, he can't go all the way in competition anymore. It's the first time ever in his carreer that his base level is far below the usual. Very upsetting with a World Championships in his home country coming up. Even more so when you realize he got selected for every single WC since turning pro.

He did a blood investigation and will have the results any day now, Apparently, he wouldn't be the first athlete to suffer from getting the Covid-vaccin. Such a shame.
Click to expand...

I hope so to. But we might have to consider, at 35 years old, it might be that his best days are behind him. Not everyone can be as young in hart as bala...
 
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Wvv

Wvv

Jan 3, 2019
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Boes said:
I hope so to. But we might have to consider, at 35 years old, it might be that his best days are behind him. Not everyone can be as young in hart as bala...
Click to expand...
Sure, but in the spring he was good to very decent in E3, Waregem and of course the Ronde (3rd). And he's known for always being on a certain level, never like the Tour de Limousin last month. Of course his very best days are behind him, but this isn't a normal decline for a rider like him.

I spoke to him a few days ago, and he is sincerely worried.

dusty red roads said:
When did he get vaccinated? Effects a long time after would be scary, not heard of those, but of course not impossible.
Click to expand...
Just before the Tour de France, where he also was kind of below expectations.
 
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Ricco'

Ricco'

Aug 14, 2012
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It wouldn't surprise me. This is anecdoctal evidence but I've taken my vaccine (single dose Janssen) a month and a half ago and for a while I got a bit scared because my heart rate would go higher and stronger than usual (I even got 190 bpm on a aerobic run which is weird, since at that pace I usually stay around 178). The same riding my bike, my heart monitor showed values a little bit higher than usual (nothing much, around 5bpm higher than the normal for the same rhythm) but the beats seemed much deeper and stronger, which made me abort several rides or drop the pace (I'm a bit hypochondriac too I must say).

Now for the past 2 weeks is a bit better, but I wouldn't discard it happening to some of the athletes.
 
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Boes

Boes

Oct 31, 2018
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Wvv said:
Sure, but in the spring he was good to very decent in E3, Waregem and of course the Ronde (3rd). And he's known for always being on a certain level, never like the Tour de Limousin last month. Of course his very best days are behind him, but this isn't a normal decline for a rider like him.

I spoke to him a few days ago, and he is sincerely worried.
Click to expand...

Well let's hope he can end his carreer like the champion he is with some good results the next year(s).
 
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