Ted King

[MacRoadie]

Am I the only one who questions Cannondale's culpability in the Ted King situation?

With no real GC contender, there was no harm in at least trying to nurse him along a la Sky and Gerraint Thomas.

The team obviously knew how much he had been suffering the prior two days, and they had to know he was in considerable pain at the TTT start, yet he was allowed to start then unloaded after just 2k. In fact, he barely got on the back of the train.

Either you start nine or you don't start nine. If you start nine, then you start all nine to do work, or you start nine in the hopes that the injured rider can possibly contribute (like Thomas did in the second half), or you start nine to nurse the injured rider through the stage with the hope that he can recover over the next stages and contribute later in the Tour.

Allowing a rider to start a TTT, then dropping him after just 2k makes no sense.

 

[jens_attacks]

absolutely MacRoadie, they try to put all the blame on the organizers but it was 100% i say their mistake. you can't just drop him on the first 500 meters if you want to keep him in the race. so instead of doing stupid hashtags to the organizers, get some explanation from the team, directeur sportifs and their strategy

 

[avanti]

Perhaps Cannondale has a rider who they think may podium.

And the TdF has waived rules for riders who finish out of the time limit in the past (according to the media).

 

[SetonHallPirate]

2k? He didn't last nearly that long. He was dropped, for all intents and purposes, the instant the team rolled down the start ramp. Further, that's an extenuating circumstance that works against him, not in his favor.

Sounds like somebody at Cannondale should grow up.

 

[MacRoadie]

2k? He didn't last nearly that long. He was dropped, for all intents and purposes, the instant the team rolled down the start ramp. Further, that's an extenuating circumstance that works against him, not in his favor.

Sounds like somebody at Cannondale should grow up.

Oh I agree, he was never really "on", even through the slow start and those first few slow corners. They "officially" stated he was detached at 2k (I'm assuming that was the point where he began being timed on his own).

 

[MacRoadie]

Perhaps Cannondale has a rider who they think may podium.

I'd love to hear them explain THAT one:

11 Peter Sagan + :01
12 Maciej Bodnar + 18:21
13 Alessandro De Marchi + 1:24
14 Edward King
15 Kristijan Koren + 5:39
16 Alan Marangoni + 17:46
17 Moreno Moser + 9:16
18 Fabio Sabatini + 26:01
19 Brian Vandborg + 21:59

Times BEFORE TTT

 

[airstream]

+million. It's just outrageous. ASO kick away the injured guy who had to ride ITT on a road race bike.

 

[Zam_Olyas]

Perhaps Cannondale has a rider who they think may podium.

And the TdF has waived rules for riders who finish out of the time limit in the past (according to the media).

You never know, they have the great white Italian hope.

 

[The Hitch]

Cannondale also showing 0 respect to their most remarkable record. They finished 10 gts in a row without losing a man.

To me thats more impressive than a 35 minute Alpe d huez. few teams manage to string together a run of 2 yet alone 10.

They then lost 1 man in 1 gt (last years Tour) and went the next 2 again without losing a man. Could have been 3. Could have been 13 out of 14.

 

[Race Radio]

Yup, stupid move. They did not even file an official protest

Isn't it 5th man over for TTT? That leaves 2-3 guys to help Ted

Lame

 

[ElChingon]

If he's truly hurt its the best thing for King, too many times riders go on hurt and then its end of season if they do finish. Now he can heal properly and take his parents around France for a bit.

 

[TheBean]

Am I the only one who questions Cannondale's culpability in the Ted King situation?

With no real GC contender, there was no harm in at least trying to nurse him along a la Sky and Gerraint Thomas.

The team obviously knew how much he had been suffering the prior two days, and they had to know he was in considerable pain at the TTT start, yet he was allowed to start then unloaded after just 2k. In fact, he barely got on the back of the train.

Either you start nine or you don't start nine. If you start nine, then you start all nine to do work, or you start nine in the hopes that the injured rider can possibly contribute (like Thomas did in the second half), or you start nine to nurse the injured rider through the stage with the hope that he can recover over the next stages and contribute later in the Tour.

Allowing a rider to start a TTT, then dropping him after just 2k makes no sense.

I'm pretty sure Sagan and a few other Cannondale guys were only one second down on GC.

The team was put together to be a strong lead-out train. Those skills (i.e. going fast on the flats) transfer well to a TTT.

If they had left a rider back to nurse King along, he would surely have made the time cut. He came within a few seconds on his own, an admirable effort. But, they would have been one engine fewer for their primary goal - yellow on the day.

If they had won the TTT, Sagan would have been in yellow and the media would have gone freaking nuts. Cannondale's logo would have been on the chest of their star rider on every sports page in Europe and every cycling publication - internet or otherwise. So, they went for the TTT with all the strength the had available.

But, it didn't work out that way. They didn't win the TTT (obviously) and were left empty handed and without a rider. The gambled and came up short.

King likely had the opportunity to voice his opinion in the team meeting and I like to think he told the team to not sacrifice chances for yellow for his own personal ambitions. This is complete conjecture on my part, of course. Who knows, maybe he is in so much pain (unable to mount his TT bike and riding a road bike with clip-on bars instead) that it is a relief of sorts that he can now focus on rehab and the rest of the season.

 

[MacRoadie]

I'm pretty sure Sagan and a few other Cannondale guys were only one second down on GC.

Nice try:

11 Peter Sagan + :01
12 Maciej Bodnar + 18:21
13 Alessandro De Marchi + 1:24
14 Edward King
15 Kristijan Koren + 5:39
16 Alan Marangoni + 17:46
17 Moreno Moser + 9:16
18 Fabio Sabatini + 26:01
19 Brian Vandborg + 21:59

Lose a rider 4 days into a Grand Tour on the off-chance that you can get your sprinter into yellow for a couple of days? The next best-placed rider was De Marchi at +1:24.

Sagan's face and the Cannondale logo will be all over the news and on the podium every day if he rides smart and gets into green.

 

[Eyeballs Out]

Perhaps Canondale should get a power meter that tells the correct time. Or try a stopwatch

 

[MacRoadie]

Perhaps Canondale should get a power meter that tells the correct time. Or try a stopwatch

Or perhaps the beloved, can't-live-without-them race radio to convey a more accurate time update off the official race clock...

 

[Cimber]

I feel so bad for the guy. ASO are a bunch of heartless muppets.

 

[nightfend]

I think King would have been useless to them anyway with the separated shoulder. Better to head home, heal up, and aim for other goals this year.

 

[ciranda]

so instead of doing stupid hashtags to the organizers, get some explanation from the team, directeur sportifs and their strategy

Yeah, pretty much. Please do reporting instead of whining.

Sorry guys, but these views are horrible:

'On the first day of his first Tour, King’s dream spiraled into a nightmare. The following morning, he bravely continued on when others might have quit. On Tuesday, he rode alone, bravely, along the 25km team time trial route, and was near tears at the finish due to the pain. And those tears became a reality after the stage, when the race jury made a decision that, while having absolutely no impact on the race, has a massive impact on one rider’s dream.'

'If the race jury won’t listen to King’s team, they need to hear it from the fans.'

'Or, as veteran cycling journalist John Wilcockson wrote on Twitter, the riders themselves should take a stand, and refuse to start on Wednesday unless King is among them. Any one of them could have been injured in Bastia on Saturday (many of them were) and every one of them would have done everything they could to stay in the race, as King did Tuesday.'

(quotes are from a Velonews editorial)

I agree with the content. The jury should have gone with the option to overrule the time limit.

But I don't like the way these sites and 'veteran journalists' make demands and go crazy overboard. It's some twisted hometown partisanship taken too far. The sentences above are uncomfortable and in no way justifiable. If you have a news site it means you have a journalistic product and so you need distance and balance (that Wilcockson dude seems to do opinion pieces or some blog or something).

Maybe this is not a super valid argument but would these exact people campaign like that for a Spanish or Kazakh cyclist in the same situation? Would they care if instead of King it was his teammate Marangoni?

The jury made a decision that I'm sure Ted King can deal with like a grown-up, in fact he has done so judging by the statements he's made, and race again (not just try to finish) when he's healthy.

 

[TheBean]

Nice try:

11 Peter Sagan + :01
12 Maciej Bodnar + 18:21
13 Alessandro De Marchi + 1:24

Good catch.

Either way, if they had won the TTT Sagan would be in yellow. A worthy goal that would have made the sponsors extremely happy, as well as his fans.

Sometimes DS's have to make tough choices. The choice to sacrifice an injured rider to chase a top result isn't one that would require too much second guessing.

I hope King has a complete and speedy recovery, as well as a pleasant vacation in France.

 

[Netserk]

There was 0% chance for Cannondale to win the TTT.

 

[GuyIncognito]

Perhaps Canondale should get a power meter that tells the correct time. Or try a stopwatch

Don't be silly, only Sky knows such advanced methods, it'll be years before others copy them

 

[RiccoDinko]

Team Cannondale could have left a rider with Ted, but there was the possibility of two riders then being cut. I lay the blame on ASO/UCI Race Jury. His accident was caused by the bus, and finish line change Stage 1. Come on, 7 seconds, this is just too brutal on the judges part. They should be ashamed.

 

[rzombie1988]

I just hope they strictly follow the rules when the next mountain stage hits and Cav finishes it the week after.

 

[goggalor]

Why did Cannondale put him on a roadbike with clips anyway? That's a minute right there. The team has to share blame with the jury.

Anyway, this should set the standard for the rest of the race. If the grupetto misses the time limit one day and the jury lets them continue they'll take some well-deserved abuse. It's not like King was asking for charity either, it's in the rules that exceptions can be made for riders who are outside the time limit.

 

[Normandy]

I just hope they strictly follow the rules when the next mountain stage hits and Cav finishes it the week after.

All the rules I hope - holding onto cars and time limits