Current top 5 (or 10) Cyclists from your country

[Mich78BEL]

Inspired by the 'Top 10 Cyclists from your country of all time' - thread i wanted to know what do you guys think/consider to be the the current best cyclist from your country?

Belgium, imo at the moment:

1) Gilbert: one of the best one-day-race cyclist in the world at the moment, if not the best
2) Boonen: dissappointing year (mostly because of injuries)
3) Van Den Broeck: first Belgian in 25 years to place in the first 5 in the Tour De France, will be a great stage rider for the next few years but he's not a real winner
4) Devolder: only seems to perform well in his own country (2 x RvVlaanderen, 2 x Belgian Champ, 2 x Belgian time-trial Champion, 2 x Tour of Belgium but outside of the country hasn't won much)
5) Leukemans: solid year so far

 

[ingsve]

For sweden it's a little tricky. We don't have that many pro riders and it's hard to compare the quality of the best domestic riders with some of the pros.

Here is my attempt.

1) Gustav Larsson: probably one of the top 5 pure TTers in the world.

2) Thomas Löfkvist: 17th in the Tour no other swede has that capacity right now.

3) Fredrik Kessiakoff: Disappointing year but if he gets back in form he's clearly the 3rd best swede.

This is where it gets though. I'll go with...

4) Alexander Wetterhall: Good TT but also has wins on the road.

5) Jonas Ljungblad: No results to speak of anymore but he's riding much bigger races than others as a domestique so his capacity is probably still higher than most domestic riders.

 

[hrotha]

I went over to CQ to use as a starting point but I think it's pretty much the current 5 top ranked riders (although in a slightly different order):

1) Alberto Contador
2) Samuel Sánchez
3) Óscar Freire
4) Joaquim Rodríguez
5) Luis León Sánchez

 

[MrContador]

I'll have a go at the ten best Norwegian riders:

1. Edvald Boasson Hagen
2. Thor Hushovd
3. Alexander Kristoff
4. Lars Petter Nordhaug
5. Christer Rake
6. Kurt Asle Arvesen
7. Frederik Wilmann
8. Gabriel Rasch
9. Roy Hegreberg
10. Stian Remme

The first three are far ahead of the rest. Arvesen is getting too old, and has been nothing but disappointing this year. Nordhaug, Rake and Hegreberg has been surprisingly strong.

 

[maltiv]

I'll have a go at the ten best Norwegian riders:

1. Edvald Boasson Hagen
2. Thor Hushovd
3. Alexander Kristoff
4. Lars Petter Nordhaug
5. Christer Rake
6. Kurt Asle Arvesen
7. Frederik Wilmann
8. Gabriel Rasch
9. Roy Hegreberg
10. Stian Remme

The first three are far ahead of the rest. Arvesen is getting too old, and has been nothing but disappointing this year. Nordhaug, Rake and Hegreberg has been surprisingly strong.

Except from Christer Rake in 5th I agree with this. Arvesen and Wilmann should definitely be above Rake.

 

[Kazistuta]

Denmarks top5 at the moment IMO:

1) Matti Breschel - A shoe-in first Dane. Steady player in the biggest Spring classics and capable of sprinting with the best discounting the top5 sprinters.

2) Alex Rasmussen - my pick as no.2 (I guess it's not the general consensus in Denmark), since he's the Dane most capable of winning. Needs to strengthen his durability, but his TT and sprint abilities makes him a potential winning machine.

3) Jakob Fuglsang - Denmarks leading point scorer due to the fact that he excels in stage races. Some think he's over hyped, but I'm sure he'll take a major step forward in the next two years.

4) Chris Anker Sørensen - The odd-looking Dane with the (for a Dane) great climbing legs has to be part of the top5. If he could improve his TT skills he might be a future contender in the week long stage races that include harder climbs.

5) Martin Mortensen - hard to pick the last spot, but based on his performances this season I have grown rather fond of the Vacansoleil rider (interesting to see his destination next season). Some might say Bak, Vandborg, Nicki S or even Chicken deserves a spot in the top5, but with more potential in the younger Mortensen he gets my vote in this current top5 ranking.

 

[ak-zaaf]

Holland:

1. Gesink
2. Boom
3. Moerenhout
4. Ten Dam
5. Terpstra

TGBM is hors category.

 

[theyoungest]

Holland:

1. Gesink
2. Boom
3. Moerenhout
4. Ten Dam
5. Terpstra

TGBM is hors category.

I tried to think of a list, but apart from Gesink, Boom, and Mollema, it's really a toss-up. You might as well put Kruijswijk or Tjallingii in there. But it's nice to see that our three strongest riders are 25 or younger.

 

[ak-zaaf]

I tried to think of a list, but apart from Gesink, Boom, and Mollema, it's really a toss-up. You might as well put Kruijswijk or Tjallingii in there. But it's nice to see that our three strongest riders are 25 or younger.

Tjallingii, Kruiswijck, Van Emden, Langeveld, Kreder, Hoogerland, Traksel, Poels, Hummel.....

It's all pretty mediocre. =/

 

[theyoungest]

Tjallingii, Kruiswijck, Van Emden, Langeveld, Kreder, Hoogerland, Traksel, Poels, Hummel.....

It's all pretty mediocre. =/

Doesn't matter, as long as they can propel TGBM to glorious victories.

 

[hrotha]

Tjallingii, Kruiswijck, Van Emden, Langeveld, Kreder, Hoogerland, Traksel, Poels, Hummel.....

It's all pretty mediocre. =/

Wasn't Traksel supposed to be the next big thing some ages ago? Did anything happen to him?

 

[theyoungest]

Wasn't Traksel supposed to be the next big thing some ages ago? Did anything happen to him?

He broke about every bone in his body. I actually thought he made his big return this year when he won Kuurne, but after that it's been back to the same old nothing.

 

[ak-zaaf]

Wasn't Traksel supposed to be the next big thing some ages ago? Did anything happen to him?

I think he was injured for about 4 years in a row.
Turned pro at 18.
Was supposed to be the next classic king.
goddammit =/

 

[Ibanez]

Hushovd is above EBH, he just is. In two years maybe it will be the other way round, but not now.

UK:

Cavendish: One of the most high profile riders in the Peloton, and for the most part well deserved. Has to be number one.

Wiggins: Tough to pick between Wiggo and Millar for second, but Wiggins probably gets the edge despite a lacklustre year by his standards because all Millar has done is a few placings in TTs and De Panne Tour. And a great ride a Flanders. And is probably more influential in the peloton....Screw it, Millar gets second.

Millar: Er, see above.

Hammond: Doesn't win much but is a well respected pro and is one of the road captains at Cervelo I believe, which means quite a lot.

Hunt/Thomas: One is a warhorse who has been around for over a decade and as such is just about the most experienced pro we have...and the other is the biggest potential we have that has seen some results. Take your pick!

 

[Jancouver]

Czech Republic

1. Roman Kreuziger (Road)
2. Zdenek Stybar (Cyclocross World Champ)
3. Jaroslav Kulhavy (MTB Silver XC World Championship)
4. Frantisek Rabon (Road)
2. Martina Sablikova (Multiple speedskating Olympic Golds, Road & TT Czech champ)

Watch out for Sablikova in London 2012 women TT

 

[hrotha]

He broke about every bone in his body. I actually thought he made his big return this year when he won Kuurne, but after that it's been back to the same old nothing.

I think he was injured for about 4 years in a row.
Turned pro at 18.
Was supposed to be the next classic king.
goddammit =/

I see, thanks for the info. It's a pity when that sort of stuff happens. The single most talented Spanish rider I've ever seen (Miguel Morrás) had to retire after one or two years as a pro due to knee problems.

 

[Moondance]

I see this thread has already turn into a Dutch conversation

Either way, for me it's actually Gesink.... And then just blah. Obviously guys like Terpstra, Boom, TGBM, Moerenhout, Tjallingii, Ten Dam, etc., can ride a good race every now-and-again (occasionally even very good) but most of the time they're relatively meaningless in the grand scheme of things. Specifically Boom (nice win today) and TGBM have shown they can be more than just some orange coloured window dressing for the future. But having three 'significant' riders, and that's counting those two of who we can only extrapolate on their short glimpses of promise, is very weak for a country like the Netherlands.

Maybe Michel Kreder and Kruijswijk can join that terrible trio in the future, but it's still too soon to conclusively tell for those guys.

 

[stefrees]

My attempt for Brits would be:

1. Cav = no brainer
2. Based on this year from season start to now, I'd argue Russ downing- miller had a good spring that's it
3. Geraint Thomas- controversial, but promise is very high
4. Wiggins- still only 2nd Brit to win gt stage this year even if has had a poor year
5. Millar- good results earlier in year but been anonymous since

 

[LukeSchmid]

Australia

1. Cadel Evans

then in no particular order
Michael Rogers
Richie Porte
Matthew Goss
Mark Renshaw

 

[Michielveedeebee]

I see this thread has already turn into a Dutch conversation

Either way, for me it's actually Gesink.... And then just blah. Obviously guys like Terpstra, Boom, TGBM, Moerenhout, Tjallingii, Ten Dam, etc., can ride a good race every now-and-again (occasionally even very good) but most of the time they're relatively meaningless in the grand scheme of things. Specifically Boom (nice win today) and TGBM have shown they can be more than just some orange coloured window dressing for the future. But having three 'significant' riders, and that's counting those two of who we can only extrapolate on their short glimpses of promise, is very weak for a country like the Netherlands.

Maybe Michel Kreder and Kruijswijk can join that terrible trio in the future, but it's still too soon to conclusively tell for those guys.

Boom should definitly be in it though! cyclocross world champ is a major achievement against the likes of Nys, Wellens, Albert and Stybar

For Belgium: 1. Gilbert
2. Boonen
3. Vandenbroeck
4. Nys(seriously why wasn't he in there in the last list? Great palmares and still the absolute world top in cyclocross; shame his MTB WC was such a downer )
5. Devolder (was doubting between him and Nys for 4 and 5, but as his last year sucked apart from Flanders I decided to put him on 5. This year he's found his winning legs back but he must learn to be more consistent and play a role in GT stages)

 

[Clemson Cycling]

US (yeah there is a lot of age here)
1. Tyler Farrar
2. Chris Horner
3. Levi Leipheimer
4. Tejay van Garderen
5. George Hincapie
6. David Zabriske
7. Lance Armstrong (he is racing next year)
8. Christian Vandevelde
9. Taylor Phinney
10. Mattew Busche???

 

[tgsgirl]

4. Nys(seriously why wasn't he in there in the last list? Great palmares and still the absolute world top in cyclocross; shame his MTB WC was such a downer )

Because you're on a road cycling forum. Otherwise, where is four time world champ Kenny Belaey in your list?

 

[Faserr]

Germany:

1. Greipel (excluded from tour and vuelta this year, but still he managed to show that he has a lot of power, is on top form since three years - 52 wins in that time)
2. Tony Martin (he is a real powerhouse with a big engine - should try to win classics like Paris-Roubaix or Flandern instead of the Tour de France)
3. Klöden (strong rider, could have won the Tour, but I think his time is over now)
4. Voigt ("shut up legs" )
5. can't decide ... I think it's Ciolek

 

[auscyclefan94]

Aussies

1. Cadel Evans
2. Richie Porte
3. Mick Rogers
4. Robbie Mcewen
5. Matt lloyd??

I struggled to fill out the top 5. A few standouts with not much else to choose from. I guess that means a lot our aussie boys are playing support roles in their teams.

 

[Anonymous]

My attempt for Brits would be:

1. Cav = no brainer
2. Based on this year from season start to now, I'd argue Russ downing- miller had a good spring that's it
3. Geraint Thomas- controversial, but promise is very high
4. Wiggins- still only 2nd Brit to win gt stage this year even if has had a poor year
5. Millar- good results earlier in year but been anonymous since

Based on this year I would drop Brad and put Emma Pooley at #1, in fact Id drop Millar as well and put Lizzie Arminstead in the top 5 too.