Christian said:
As it seems Jens Voigt was co-commentator for one (or a few?) Vuelta stages on the channel iTV. Is this Phil and Paul's channel?
Was Jens any good? I would be very interested in some reviews, if anyone saw it. Thanks!
Although it's a bit ridiculous from Jens in my opinion. It's maybe a bit harsh but I think you can either be a rider or a commentator, but not both. But Jens is already laying the ground work for next year I guess.
ITV is a major Uk network that seeks out a monopoly on reality tv, celebrity, game shows and all the other tabloid crap. Even their " award winning" cough, news programmes focus on celebrity when possible.
The Vuelta of course was on one of their many secondary channels, (Itv 4 to be precise) and not the whole thing but just highlights.
Now, Jens and Phil, actually were quite good. Its difficult to talk about them together though, as its different situations.
Ligget is of course scum. A proven liar and fraud who only survived the Lance scandal with his job because of the importance of celebrity in a sport as desperate for attention as cycling in the anglophone world.
Whatsmore he knows next to nothing about cycling anymore, not a hope in hell of identifying even the best classics riders, or any riders that aren't anglophone really.
For example even Tiralongo, a guy who has top 10'd gts, won a mountain stage and dropped the entire Giro field on a hill stage as well as proven himself a key mountain domestique in gt wins, Phil Ligget said on the Angliru stage that Tiralongo proved he can climb a little by holding the mountains classification at the "Santos Tour Down Under".
Still in this Vuelta it was a relief to hear him on the highlights because the real time commentator here in the UK was the most unqualified person in the history of sports announcement, carlton kirby.
But Ligget was also good because he realized the audience was small for once he was focusing on the cyclists racing and the race rather than trying to heroworship Lance and other anglophones as much as possible or to promote the Tours of California and Australia.
Now what you really wanted to hear about- Jens. I went into it thinking I wouldnt like Jens so much because i felt he was lucky to get away with those missed samples and also because he defended Lance. Also snips to interviews, funny as they sometimes may be, wouldnt neccesarily be the same thing as talking for lenghty periods of time on tv.
I thought he would maybe fly in from Germany say yes to all the questions and take the paycheck for offering his star power.
But Ill be honest Jens was really good. Apart from the bit where he had to defend Horner's performance, where he just kept repeating that Horner did well in the Tour of Utah. In that sense he is a bit like Sean Kelly and Magnus Backsted.
Sean if you ever listened to Brit Eurosport, also has to take the Omerta stance on any doping issue (due to his past) but other than that is an expert commentator.
Jens was exactly like that. He knew his stuff, the answers he gave to questions werent bs, he was opinionated (said he didn't like to see Elisonde cry because -"come on its just a bike race") and noticed stuff others didn't (like a crash in the corrner of the screen). Also occasionally funny. Not roll on the floor funny, but still.
Hes a solid commentator, and given how poor the quality of commentators is in the UK, one of the better ones.
But you can watch the whole thing through the ITV website anyway. If they dont allow you due to some geo nonesence, i hear some website called tunnelbear helps.
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