Ponferrada 2014 World Championships, Sep. 21st-28th

[Netserk]

its not the UCI dealing with the tv stations directly, there is a right holder in between who buys them from the UCI and deals with the stations - and that one changed last year. At the moment (until 2016 at least) its "Infront Sports & Media", a company directed by Philippe Blatter, the nephew of Sepp Blatter.

Eurosport uses to buy packages to be allowed to cover the events all over Europe - and as far as I know Infront denied to make them an offer like that and preferred to sell the rights individually for each country (which Eurosport was not able to deal with because of company policies + monetary issues).

It seems to me like the opposite is true for Scandinavia with Viasat having the rights in all countries instead of the channels that usually send cycling (TV2 in Denmark).

And that sucks big time, since pretty much everyone has TV2, much fewer have Viasat (TV3 Sport).

 

[greenedge]

Looking at Italian team and reading the Cassani´s explanations I am sure they will make this race "Hell of the nord" for any sprinter, otherwice Cassani end up as a complete idiot. They made the race in Italy and they will make the race here. They will problably not win it but they will be team to remember.

No chance for Degeenkolb and even Gerrans (they could drop him already in Montreal)

I thought he bridged across and had Weening ahead
And unlike 2012 where Gerrans also rode well in Canada, then flopped I think this year he has timed his peak perfectly
Whether that's enough for him to win or not, who knows but he can win from small groups of 3, to groups of 10 so I think the race lends itself to him.

That being said I tipped Sagan at the start of the year and continuing with my picks of Nibali/Contador for the TDF and Vuelta I think he should be considered the favourite here.

 

[Libertine Seguros]

Women's TTT now live (non-geo-restricted) here. On paper Rabo have the strongest team, but Specialized-Lululemon have won almost every TTT they've entered since HTC ended, and are the defending champions.

Key teams:
Specialized-Lululemon (Chantal Blaak, Lisa Brennauer, Karol-Ann Canuel, Carmen Small, Evelyn Stevens, Trixi Worrack)

Rabo-Liv-Giant (Lucinda Brand, Pauline Ferrand-Prévot, Roxane Knetemann, Anna van der Breggen, Annemiek van Vleuten, Marianne Vos)

Orica-AIS (Annette Edmondson, Melissa Hosking, Emma Johansson, Jessie Maclean, Valentina Scandolara, Amanda Spratt)

Boels-Dolmans (Lizzie Armitstead, Jessie Daams, Romy Kasper, Christine Majerus, Katarzyna Pawlowska, Ellen van Dijk)

Giant-Shimano (Marijn de Vries, Claudia Lichtenberg [Häusler], Floortje Mackaij, Sara Mustönen, Amy Pieters, Maaike Polspoel)

 

[MoreGravityPerKilo]

Who is the female commentator on the UCI channel? Quite nice coverage.

 

[Libertine Seguros]

99% sure it will be Jose Been.

Specialized are just a couple of seconds ahead of Rabo and Orica on the course at the moment.

 

[Libertine Seguros]

Optum setting a very good time with Ewart/Hall/Holcomb/Kirchmann/Walle/Wilcoxson. Taking some very strong scalps in the 2nd intermediate (Giant-Shimano some way behind), and can be no lower than 5th at that point now. They increased their advantages over those that went ahead of them as well. I think there's probably too much firepower to come for them to make a medal but they could be quite close.

 

[Libertine Seguros]

Orica just obliterated the times at the 2nd intermediate though - 35 seconds ahead with all 6 riders still intact, although MacLean is starting to drop. And Specialized are really hammering - they have almost 30 seconds over the super-stacked Rabo team!

Astana have surprised by being nowhere at the intermediates, then taking the lead away from Optum. Rabo are faster than Orica by 16" at the last intermediate and also have all 6 riders intact. Vos has had a technical problem and is dropped!

 

[Roude Leiw]

Women's TTT now live (non-geo-restricted) here. On paper Rabo have the strongest team, but Specialized-Lululemon have won almost every TTT they've entered since HTC ended, and are the defending champions.

Key teams:
Specialized-Lululemon (Chantal Blaak, Lisa Brennauer, Karol-Ann Canuel, Carmen Small, Evelyn Stevens, Trixi Worrack)

Rabo-Liv-Giant (Lucinda Brand, Pauline Ferrand-Prévot, Roxane Knetemann, Anna van der Breggen, Annemiek van Vleuten, Marianne Vos)

Orica-AIS (Annette Edmondson, Melissa Hosking, Emma Johansson, Jessie Maclean, Valentina Scandolara, Amanda Spratt)

Boels-Dolmans (Lizzie Armitstead, Jessie Daams, Romy Kasper, Christine Majerus, Katarzyna Pawlowska, Ellen van Dijk)

Giant-Shimano (Marijn de Vries, Claudia Lichtenberg [Häusler], Floortje Mackaij, Sara Mustönen, Amy Pieters, Maaike Polspoel)

Thx a lot for the link. No comments though? Has a meditative aspect just hearing the wheels turning

 

[Netserk]

Ouch!

 

[Dazed and Confused]

awful crash.

 

[Libertine Seguros]

Knetemann is gone, so Rabo are now down to four with PFP, AVDB, AVV and Brand; Boels-Dolmans are in even more trouble as Ellen van Dijk has gone too hard on the climb and they've dropped their fourth rider and had to wait for them.

Giant go 5th, slightly disappointing with their firepower, ahead of Hitec and RusVelo who are both without their biggest engines. Boels-Dolmans will actually drop in behind Astana, who did really well on the final climb thanks to strong climbers like Amialyusik and made up a lot of time.

Orica also struggling to get 4 together to the line, but they are over a minute inside Astana's time nonetheless. It would appear Astana are now guaranteed 4th place.

ABSOLUTE CARNAGE from Rabo as they have wiped out in a horrible crash. Van der Breggen is still down on the floor, and that was a really, really bad one.

Specialized will now win. Astana will now medal. They've just about cleared the road of Anna van der Breggen in time for Specialized to come through, but that looked like a really bad one and could jeopardise her Worlds.

 

[Netserk]

The rider currently lying down was the third from the front, right?

 

[Libertine Seguros]

The rider currently lying down was the third from the front, right?

Yes. Van Vleuten was the one that crashed, PFP was 2nd who went down to the right, van der Breggen was 3rd and is getting into the ambulance, and Brand was the one that just about got away with it.

Anyway, I should congratulate Specialized-Lululemon - they were well ahead of Rabo and would have won anyhow. Six riders all together until the last straight, and over a minute ahead of Orica. Congratulations are also in order to Astana; I'm sure they would rather not have won a medal thanks to a massive wipeout, but they did set the course on fire in the final third and take several places.

From the looks of things, though shaken up by the accident, van Vleuten and Ferrand-Prévot are ok and were at least able to ride in; I just hope that van der Breggen isn't too badly hurt because that looked really nasty. She will be a major card for the Dutch to play in the road race.

 

[Ryongsyong]

Great way to **** on the broadcaster that shows almost every other cycling race known to man

To be honest, you have to have a satellite dish/pay a lot of money to watch Eurosport, and then you still get shafted with annoying commercials or coverage cutting off because the channel has decided already which bits they want you to watch, or that they think you'd rather watch tennis, and those bits they do let you watch have Carlton Kirby. This is on the UCI's YouTube channel, in HD, no ads, unrestricted. It's unusual to say this, but for once the UCI are in the 21st century and it's a good thing.

 

[classicomano]

Are you sure Vos had a technical problem LS? She looked cooked to me.

 

[Dazed and Confused]

Mens TTT start times (CET):

1 14:00 TEAM ECUADOR
2 14:04 MG KVIS - WILIER
3 14:08 RABOBANK DEVELOPMENT TEAM
4 14:12 BDC MARCPOL
5 14:16 KOLSS CYCLING TEAM
6 14:20 ADRIA MOBIL
7 14:24 CAJA RURAL - SEGUROS RGA
8 14:28 CCC POLSAT POLKOWICE
9 14:32 RUSVELO
10 14:36 WANTY - GROUPE GOBERT
11 14:40 TOPSPORT VLAANDEREN - BALOISE
12 14:44 TEAM EUROPCAR
13 14:48 CANNONDALE
14 14:52 FDJ.fr
15 14:56 LOTTO BELISOL
16 15:00 GARMIN SHARP
17 15:04 LAMPRE-MERIDA
18 15:08 TREK FACTORY RACING
19 15:12 TEAM GIANT-SHIMANO
20 15:16 BELKIN-PRO CYCLING TEAM
21 15:20 ASTANA PRO TEAM
22 15:24 BMC RACING TEAM
23 15:28 TEAM KATUSHA
24 15:32 AG2R LA MONDIALE
25 15:36 TINKOFF-SAXO
26 15:40 MOVISTAR TEAM
27 15:44 TEAM SKY
28 15:48 ORICA GreenEDGE
29 15:52 OMEGA PHARMA - QUICK-STEP CYCLING TEAM

 

[l.Harm]

why so early?!

 

[Dekker_Tifosi]

So I can play golf at 17:15 without missing anything

anyway, Vos cooked in a TTT.. that is an ominous sign for the road race in my opinion. She should be able to follow wheels even at that speed.
Might be the first time in 8 years she won't finish top 2

 

[LaFlorecita]

So I can play golf at 17:15 without missing anything

anyway, Vos cooked in a TTT.. that is an ominous sign for the road race in my opinion. She should be able to follow wheels even at that speed.
Might be the first time in 8 years she won't finish top 2

Dude, golf?

 

[Red Rick]

Dude, golf?

second that

 

[Cance > TheRest]

Mens TTT start times (CET):

1 14:00 TEAM ECUADOR
2 14:04 MG KVIS - WILIER
3 14:08 RABOBANK DEVELOPMENT TEAM
4 14:12 BDC MARCPOL
5 14:16 KOLSS CYCLING TEAM
6 14:20 ADRIA MOBIL
7 14:24 CAJA RURAL - SEGUROS RGA
8 14:28 CCC POLSAT POLKOWICE
9 14:32 RUSVELO
10 14:36 WANTY - GROUPE GOBERT
11 14:40 TOPSPORT VLAANDEREN - BALOISE
12 14:44 TEAM EUROPCAR
13 14:48 CANNONDALE
14 14:52 FDJ.fr
15 14:56 LOTTO BELISOL
16 15:00 GARMIN SHARP
17 15:04 LAMPRE-MERIDA
18 15:08 TREK FACTORY RACING
19 15:12 TEAM GIANT-SHIMANO
20 15:16 BELKIN-PRO CYCLING TEAM
21 15:20 ASTANA PRO TEAM
22 15:24 BMC RACING TEAM
23 15:28 TEAM KATUSHA
24 15:32 AG2R LA MONDIALE
25 15:36 TINKOFF-SAXO
26 15:40 MOVISTAR TEAM
27 15:44 TEAM SKY
28 15:48 ORICA GreenEDGE
29 15:52 OMEGA PHARMA - QUICK-STEP CYCLING TEAM

Damn.. Gonna watch F1 from Singapore and Worlds TTT simultaneously, it seems

 

[Sasquatch]

All we need to watch from is the last 3 teams anyway.

 

[GuyIncognito]

I've never agreed as much with something I've read as I do with something I just read on another forum

'I'll watch anything. Tour of Korea? Sure. Tour of Kumano? You betcha. Trofej Porec highlights? Bring it.
Still can't bring myself to care about today's race'

 

[ILovecycling]

Dude, golf?

second that

golf is fun you anti-golfers

 

[Carols]

This is on the UCI's YouTube channel, in HD, no ads, unrestricted. It's unusual to say this, but for once the UCI are in the 21st century and it's a good thing.

'The uploader has not made this video available in your country. '

Actually it is restricted to countries that Do Not have coverage LOL. Here in the USA my pay TV coverage comes on in 5 mins.