Tour de Pologne 2023 (July 29th - August 4th)

[Samamba]

They've done this finish before. It's not some unique finish.

This road wasn't even paved till a few months ago, it was hardly a road. They just made some stuff up because they thought this would be a spectacle, like always.

 

[Logic-is-your-friend]

This road wasn't even paved till a few months ago, it was hardly a road. They just made some stuff up because they thought this would be a spectacle, like always.

Well they weren't wrong.

 

[Rob5091]

Chapeau Majka! Climber & sprinter now! (although he needs to work on that sprint). Crazy narrow finish.

 

[Samamba]

Well they weren't wrong.

Yeah Jakobsen crash was also a spectacle. I guess they got what they wanted.

 

[Ilmaestro99]

What majka was doing the last 100m???? Worse than alaphilippe in that Liege finish

 

[Samamba]

You know what the worst thing is. They have plenty of hard climbs in the region where they are now or the region where they were in the past few years, but they rather make up things like today then do them.

 

[jaylew]

So, really narrow finishing straight and he didn't hold his line? I didn't see it and just saw the results and my thought was immediately "How on earth did Majka win a sprint, hilly or otherwise, from 25 guys?"

 

[Arked]

To be fair it was 3 guys sprinting. The rest fell behind.

 

[search]

So, really narrow finishing straight and he didn't hold his line? I didn't see it and just saw the results and my thought was immediately "How on earth did Majka win a sprint, hilly or otherwise from 25 guys?"

the finishing straight was short (200m or so), but not narrow at all, no. Only the twisty part before was.

https://twitter.com/x/status/1686025717484523520

View: https://twitter.com/inrng/status/1686025717484523520

Edit: Here's a video as well:

https://twitter.com/x/status/1686025866336161792

View: https://twitter.com/davidesportista/status/1686025866336161792

 

[Logic-is-your-friend]

Majka should get relegated.

So Van Wilder takes boni seconds.

 

[Calicimber]

Stage 5 has a pretty funny profile with short laps after hard climbs, couldn't there be lapping there? I've never seen such a stage. Are there rules about drafting off people from other parts of the race? Can you have a teammate drop a lap to help you?

 

[search]

Majka should get relegated.

So Van Wilder takes boni seconds.

van Wilder didn't really look great those past two days, did he? Deviation or not, he actually lost ground on Majka in the sprint today.

 

[Logic-is-your-friend]

van Wilder didn't really look great those past two days, did he? Deviation or not, he actually lost ground on Majka in the sprint today.

He didn't even try the last 50 meters because he knew he couldn't pass them anymore. Had Majka been in 3rd instead of Mohoric or Kwiatkowski, i'm quite sure he might have passed him (though unsure since neither Kwiat/Mohoric could, but it would have been a different sprint alltogether), but now the two faster sprinters just sprinted away from him, while his gap to Majka didn't increase unlike what you think.

I also think "not really looking great" seems like a strange way to describe his 4th and 5th place, lol. You make it sound like he lost 2 minutes like Foss or Arensman. Today he was better than Almeida, McNulty, Higuita, Dunbar... He's 20 seconds behind in GC, 16 of which come from boni seconds, he's basically a lock for a top 5, a good bet for a podium, and even a win is not entirely out of the question (but that will most likely depend on which TT game Almeida has brought to Poland).

 

[Arked]

Stage 5 has a pretty funny profile with short laps after hard climbs, couldn't there be lapping there? I've never seen such a stage. Are there rules about drafting off people from other parts of the race? Can you have a teammate drop a lap to help you?

Similar route with the same laps were raced few times before and no such thing happened. It is in fact funny stage because it may be bunch sprint where sprinters, punchers and climbers will race each other.

Top 10 from mentioned stages:
2018: Kwiatkowski, Teuns, Battaglin, Ackerman, Gasparotto, Yates, Consonni, Nizzolo, Boasson Hagen, Bakelants
2019: Mezgec, Prades, Swift, Vakoc, Latour, Majka, Battaglin, Sarreau, Hamilton, Gogl
2020: Carapaz, Ulissi, Molard, Fuglsang, Kelderman, Mezgec, Stuyven, Gibbons, Wellens, Majka
2021: Arndt, Mohoric, Oldani, Almeida, Ulissi, Hermans, Dekker, Stewart, Vendrame, Honore

 

[Logic-is-your-friend]

Stage 5 has a pretty funny profile with short laps after hard climbs, couldn't there be lapping there? I've never seen such a stage. Are there rules about drafting off people from other parts of the race? Can you have a teammate drop a lap to help you?

I know there was a dude who lapped the peloton in Denmark a few years ago, on a local lap after a short steep climb. But i can't remember his name.

 

[Tim Cahill]

That Majka deviation is insane, what are they thinking not DQing him

 

[Samamba]

Similar route with the same laps were raced few times before and no such thing happened. It is in fact funny stage because it may be bunch sprint where sprinters, punchers and climbers will race each other.

Top 10 from mentioned stages:
2018: Kwiatkowski, Teuns, Battaglin, Ackerman, Gasparotto, Yates, Consonni, Nizzolo, Boasson Hagen, Bakelants
2019: Mezgec, Prades, Swift, Vakoc, Latour, Majka, Battaglin, Sarreau, Hamilton, Gogl
2020: Carapaz, Ulissi, Molard, Fuglsang, Kelderman, Mezgec, Stuyven, Gibbons, Wellens, Majka
2021: Arndt, Mohoric, Oldani, Almeida, Ulissi, Hermans, Dekker, Stewart, Vendrame, Honore

This stage is harder overall tho, but yeah don't expect anything to happen in the hard middle part anyways. TT decides everything once again.

 

[Samu Cuenca]

I know there was a dude who lapped the peloton in Denmark a few years ago, on a local lap after a short steep climb. But i can't remember his name.

Don't feel bad. Ilmaestro can't spell it either.

 

[KZD]

That Majka deviation is insane, what are they thinking not DQing him

Majka is Polish so no surprise. Ironically, I think that without him deviating from his line, Kwiatkowski would have won.

Mohoric starting to open a gap on GC.

 

[search]

I also think "not really looking great" seems like a strange way to describe his 4th and 5th place, lol. You make it sound like he lost 2 minutes like Foss or Arensman. Today he was better than Almeida, McNulty, Higuita, Dunbar... He's 20 seconds behind in GC, 16 of which come from boni seconds, he's basically a lock for a top 5, a good bet for a podium, and even a win is not entirely out of the question (but that will most likely depend on which TT game Almeida has brought to Poland).

of course it's not horrible, but based on his abilities, I would have thought he had a good shot at winning one of those two stages. That's what my observation was based on.

 

[Logic-is-your-friend]

of course it's not horrible, but based on his abilities, I would have thought he had a good shot at winning one of those two stages. That's what my observation was based on.

I agree he is relatively punchy, but i think the climbs here are just too short or shallow so that punchy non-climbers are still there. Basically same like in Algarve, where he was the fastest of the climbers, but Cort popped up out of nowhere. He was never an outright favourite on these finishes, but more of an outsider. I think the results reflect that. Its his first non-NC race since the Giro. He said he thought his form was good but not sure how good compared to the rest. He said a top 10 in GC would be a good result, which personally i would find disappointing, but i think top 5 seems highly likely at this point.

 

[Patrysbgc]

https://imgur.com/a/LRMxxsK

This cycling afficionado's banner translates to something like "Welcome to Tour de Crap" and it really sums up everything about this race.

 

[Libertine Seguros]

Usually they'll pull people off the road if they get lapped to prevent any drafting etc.. In most races they'll then be eliminated hors delais, but a race like the Danmark Rundt last year they kinda had to make an exception otherwise the rest of the race would have been hilarious, so they kind of neutralised the gruppetto so they couldn't leave their spot while they were being passed then gave them the green light to recommence racing.

 

[ThisFrenchGuy]

the finishing straight was short (200m or so), but not narrow at all, no. Only the twisty part before was.

https://twitter.com/x/status/1686025717484523520

View: https://twitter.com/inrng/status/1686025717484523520

Edit: Here's a video as well:

https://twitter.com/x/status/1686025866336161792

View: https://twitter.com/davidesportista/status/1686025866336161792

Narrow corridor to hard corner to autobahn strip is something. The change of scale in the video is jarring.

 

[tobydawq]

I know there was a dude who lapped the peloton in Denmark a few years ago, on a local lap after a short steep climb. But i can't remember his name.

It was Remco.