L'Avenir 2024 U23s 18 to 24 August

[Armchair Cyclist]

The race that brought us Joop Zoetemelk, Greg Lemond, Miguel Indurain, Laurent Fignon, Nairo Quintana, Egan Bernal, Tadel Pogacar and many more:

Seems a shame not to have a thread for it

Only one French club team (I seem to remember rather more, and presumably fewer national teams because of that)
WCC team has 4 Eritreans, one Rwandan, one Algerian. and one Mauritian (late change)
Leading competitors (per PCS)
GBR BLACKMORE Joseph
POR MORGADO António
SWE SÖDERQVIST Jakob
BEL WIDAR Jarno
FRA ROLLAND Brieuc
ITA PINARELLO Alessandro
NED ARTZ Huub
GBR BRENNAN Matthew
AUS GREENWOOD Matthew
SLV GLIVAR Gal

• 1 flat ITT (mercifully no TTT: there is no race on the calendar less suited to it),
• two hilly potential sprints, but with plenty to upset the heavier guys
• one with a mountainous first half, but 23 km flat at the end if anyone catches up on the 25km descent
• 3 MTFs, one with last 8km on gravel

and two Italian finishes.


18/08
Stage 1 (ITT) | Sarrebourg - Sarrebourg (7.1 km)
Vertical metres 48, ProfileScore 0, PS final 25k 0

19/08
Stage 2 | Sarrebourg - Ronchamp-Champagney (184.5 km)
Vertical metres1695, ProfileScore 41, PS final 25k 19

20/08
Stage 3 | Mouchard - Plateau d'Hauteville (170.2 km)
Vertical metres 2141, ProfileScore 89, PS final 25k 60

21/08
Stage 4 | Peisey-Vallandry - La Rosière (70.7 km)
Vertical metres 2635, ProfileScore 294, PS final 25k 148

22/08
Stage 5 | La Rosière - Les Karellis (142.6 km)
Vertical metres 3552, ProfileScore 268, PS final 25k 181

23/08
Stage 6 | Les Karellis - Condoue (119.3 km)
Vertical metres 2157, ProfileScore 80, PS final 25k 0

24/08
Stage 7 | Bobbio Pelice - Colle delle Finestre (125.9 km)
Vertical meters 2640, ProfileScore 415, PS final 25k 391

Apparently TV coverage from about 1 1/2 hours to go each day.

 

[RedheadDane]

Oh! I was gonna make a post in the U23 racing thread once the coverage got started.
This is better!

 

[Samu Cuenca]

The race that brought us Joop Zoetemelk, Greg Lemond, Miguel Indurain, Laurent Fignon, Nairo Quintana, Egan Bernal, Tadel Pogacar and many more:

Seems a shame not to have a thread for it

Only one French club team (I seem to remember rather more, and presumably fewer national teams because of that)
WCC team has 4 Eritreans, one Rwandan, one Algerian.
Leading competitors (per PCS)
GBR BLACKMORE Joseph
POR MORGADO António
SWE SÖDERQVIST Jakob
BEL WIDAR Jarno
FRA ROLLAND Brieuc
ITA PINARELLO Alessandro
NED ARTZ Huub
GBR BRENNAN Matthew
AUS GREENWOOD Matthew
SLV GLIVAR Gal

• 1 flat ITT (mercifully no TTT: there is no race on the calendar less suited to it),
• two hilly potential sprints, but with plenty to upset the heavier guys
• one with a mountainous first half, but 23 km flat at the end if anyone catches up on the 25km descent
• 3 MTFs, one with last 8km on gravel

and two Italian finishes.


18/08
Stage 1 (ITT) | Sarrebourg - Sarrebourg (7.1 km)
Vertical metres 48, ProfileScore 0, PS final 25k 0

19/08
Stage 2 | Sarrebourg - Ronchamp-Champagney (184.5 km)
Vertical metres1695, ProfileScore 41, PS final 25k 19

20/08
Stage 3 | Mouchard - Plateau d'Hauteville (170.2 km)
Vertical metres 2141, ProfileScore 89, PS final 25k 60

21/08
Stage 4 | Peisey-Vallandry - La Rosière (70.7 km)
Vertical metres 2635, ProfileScore 294, PS final 25k 148

22/08
Stage 5 | La Rosière - Les Karellis (142.6 km)
Vertical metres 3552, ProfileScore 268, PS final 25k 181

23/08
Stage 6 | Les Karellis - Condoue (119.3 km)
Vertical metres 2157, ProfileScore 80, PS final 25k 0

24/08
Stage 7 | Bobbio Pelice - Colle delle Finestre (125.9 km)
Vertical meters 2640, ProfileScore 415, PS final 25k 391

Apparently TV coverage from about 1 1/2 hours to go each day.

When Fignon won the Tour de la Communauté Européenne, it wasn't really a race for the future at that point. He was already a two time TdF winner.

 

[Armchair Cyclist]

When Fignon won the Tour de la Communauté Européenne, it wasn't really a race for the future at that point. He was already a two time TdF winner.

I'll be honest, I just looked at the race palmares on PCS rather than researching the history in depth. I was a bit surprised that Fignon was so much more recent than Lemond, but didn't really hesitate to wonder why.

I see now that it is only since 1992 that it was U25, and only U23 since 2007. Everyday is a schoolday (frightening words for a teacher to type)

 

[RJH]

Morgado is so strong, he was with the best classique pros already in his first few pro months. He‘ll win at least one stage.

Favourite on paper is Widar - but question if even he himself can win almost everything all year long. Even if he doesn’t win, he‘s the man for the future. Tiny and slim, he‘s like Rujano maybe, but probably even stronger.

 

[Devil's Elbow]

If anyone was trying to design a final mountain stage to rile me up as much as possible, they could scarcely have done better than a Finestre unipuerto MTF. At least the TTT is gone...

 

[hfgon1]

Will be a interesting race. Widar seems like the favourite but there are some other strong guys. Glivar, Blackmore, Söderqvist, Morgado, Rolland, Rondel, Marti, Torres, Novak, August, Aremayne, Pescador or Zerai. Also some great guys like Brennan or Artz who will probably be able to show up even though not for the gc.

 

[Tim Cahill]

Joe is coming back into some good form, looked pretty sharp in Norway too and 1st so far here. Watch out for Michael Leonard, he's been almost anonymous since he joined Ineos but he was giving Gamper and the rest some real trouble in that Burgos breakaway on the final day.

 

[Tim Cahill]

Leonard fastest by quite a lot (7 seconds?)
Still some really good guys to come.

 

[Miss Violet Smith]

The future looks bright for Sweden with Söderquist in third place and Kagevi in seventeenth!

 

[RedheadDane]

The future looks bright for Sweden with Söderquist in third place and Kagevi in seventeenth!

And Øxenberg only finished 42nd, so @Salvarani's "Hansen Hate" might diminish slightly.

 

[Salvarani]

And Øxenberg only finished 42nd, so @Salvarani's "Hansen Hate" might diminish slightly.

Yup, redhead Danes is back on top. Hansens down to second.

 

[Rob5091]

Chapeau Michael Leonard - one of many Ineos youngsters - on stage 1 win. Lots of racing though still to come.

 

[RedheadDane]

Yup, redhead Danes is back on top. Hansens down to second.

Spoiler: Other race result

Did you check the GC for Pologne?

Not sure what redhead Dane won a race today.

 

[Tim Cahill]

Jarno 9th, 13s down is solid as the youngest guy in the race

Getting sick of these Belgian midgets

 

[RJH]

Michael Leonard had a race break from February to June, anyone knows why?…

 

[Tim Cahill]

Michael Leonard had a race break from February to June, anyone knows why?…

Injury after the UAE tour I believe.

Quite a curious rider, they signed him originally because his lactate/vo2 are apparently off the scale. Wouldn't think it looking at his results, but then again he has suffered quite a bit of bad luck. Coming 1st here by a decent margin when he weighs about 60kg against Söderqvist and Portuguese champ Morgado is an interesting result to say the least. Maybe they know what they're doing after all.

 

[Samu Cuenca]

Michael Leonard had a race break from February to June, anyone knows why?…

He suffered a hip fracture after crashing in the Clásica Jaén in February, but they apparently didn't discover that until he had finished the UAE Tour two weeks later.

 

[RJH]

Injury after the UAE tour I believe.

Appreciated, thanks.

Yes interesting rider. And interesting name since I keep asking myself how many Michael Leonards there exist on earth - lol…

 

[Eddy Evenepoel]

Possibly a breakaway win today?

Henrik Pedersen, Tim Rex & Gal Glivar with a 4:30 gap with 40 km to go, and there is a lot of downhill in the last 40 km...

 

[Samamba]

Looks like it yes, Pedersen will be leader after this stage probably too.

Typical u23 race I guess, so standard breakaway win.

 

[Eddy Evenepoel]

Pedersen ahead of Glivar!

 

[Samamba]

Must've been a crash in the peloton in the last 3km as there are splits and no one is really pushing, including guys like Widar in the last group.

 

[RedheadDane]

Now a redhead Dane won!

 

[Mayomaniac]

Must've been a crash in the peloton in the last 3km as there are splits and no one is really pushing, including guys like Widar in the last group.

And here I was wondering what happened to the newest Belgian wonderimp.