who is/was the worst DS in cycling?

[Benotti69]

With all the hating on JV, is he the worst? and if not who is was?

My 2 cents JV, he called what was for his riders to try and get a podium to keep sponsors happy. No crime in that. He's running a team and not trying to keep a thread of 'ultras' happy which is impossible.

 

[boomcie]

I will never forget stage 15 of the Giro in 2009, with Serge Pauwels being forced to wait for Sastre. Van Poppel really screwed that one up. I nominate him.

 

[Chuffy]

Seeing as all the JV hate seems to rest on a single comment in one race it would take a pretty small minded person to hang him for it. Besides, isn't he only acting as DS because they're short staffed after sacking Matt White?

I would struggle to name more than a couple of DS's and even though I know a lot less than many chaps on here it strikes me that it would be hard to pick up enough knowledge about what an individual DS did during their career to make an informed decision.

 

[Timmy-loves-Rabo]

I will never forget stage 15 of the Giro in 2009, with Serge Pauwels being forced to wait for Sastre. Van Poppel really screwed that one up. I nominate him.

that was such bs, I remember being very angry at the time.
Cervelo made a lot of blunders.

 

[meandmygitane]

With all the hating on JV, is he the worst? and if not who is was?

My 2 cents JV, he called what was for his riders to try and get a podium to keep sponsors happy. No crime in that. He's running a team and not trying to keep a thread of 'ultras' happy which is impossible.

Talk of jumping out of the frying pan into the fire then: how pleased are the teams sponsors when millions of viewers hear Vaughters say "u no ride" on live TV?

Saying it may not have been so stupid, but forgetting the cameras, priceless.

 

[Ryo Hazuki]

there are a LOT but I'll say gerry van gerwen being the most idiotic imbecile ds I could name right now. de rooy was horrible as well.

 

[ingsve]

Well, we don't really have anything to go on since we only have a handful of situations where we actually know what a DS has said or done in a race out of all the hundreds of DSes in hundreds of races each year for a hundred years.

How does anyone know that what JV said isn't said by someone in virtually every race on the calender. We can't know that since we don't have anything to go on.

 

[skidmark]

Well, we don't really have anything to go on since we only have a handful of situations where we actually know what a DS has said or done in a race out of all the hundreds of DSes in hundreds of races each year for a hundred years.

How does anyone know that what JV said isn't said by someone in virtually every race on the calender. We can't know that since we don't have anything to go on.

Agreed. Although on Vaughters I just watched the first episode of the 2011 'Beyond the Peloton' about Milan-San Remo, and there's a scene where Vaughters is giving a speech on the bus, and you can just tell the Cervelo riders are just hoping he'll go away. They don't even want to make eye contact, it's cringeworthy. He's a savvy businessman and media spinster, but I don't get the feeling he's the best in the business at DSing.

With regards to the whole 'sit up' command, what do people think Riis told Nuyens, then? Something way more brilliant?

 

[sublimit]

Van Poppel could ride but from what I've heard he's a bit of a ***.
Trying to get into the head of Mark Cavendish for 1.

 

[Roland Rat]

I will never forget stage 15 of the Giro in 2009, with Serge Pauwels being forced to wait for Sastre. Van Poppel really screwed that one up. I nominate him.

Without a doubt, Van Poppel. Great rider, but the guy was a tactical idiot. Beyond the Peloton with him and that fat guy was like watching a Laurel and Hardy comedy.

 

[ak-zaaf]

Erik Dekker, Erik Breukink, JP van Poppel, Gerrie van Gerwen, Theo de Rooy....

Wow, they all have something in common.

 

[180mmCrank]

Trivia question...

Who was the DS who made a mess of the Vuelta for Robert Millar back in the day. You know the one where he was all set to win and the Spanish ganged up on him. Wasn't there some story about the DS not making the right deals with other teams . I am sure I read about this in the book about Millar.

He sounds like a strong candidate.

 

[ak-zaaf]

Trivia question...

Who was the DS who made a mess of the Vuelta for Robert Millar back in the day. You know the one where he was all set to win and the Spanish ganged up on him. Wasn't there some story about the DS not making the right deals with other teams . I am sure I read about this in the book about Millar.

He sounds like a strong candidate.

Considering how the Spanish teams used to operate he would have had to buy out about 15 teams. The most expensive stage ever. Wasn't going to happen.

 

[ultimobici]

Trivia question...

Who was the DS who made a mess of the Vuelta for Robert Millar back in the day. You know the one where he was all set to win and the Spanish ganged up on him. Wasn't there some story about the DS not making the right deals with other teams . I am sure I read about this in the book about Millar.

He sounds like a strong candidate.

Sure is! His name was Roland Berland and he was inept beyond belief. He was the main reason Millar lost the Vuelta that year.

 

[Dekker_Tifosi]

the entire old and new team ds of Rabobank, except Nico Verhoeven (he is great)

 

[Havetts]

Hated Theo de Rooij to throw out Rasmussen in yellow with only 3 stages to go.. Never disliked Breukink though.

 

[Timmy-loves-Rabo]

Erik Dekker, Erik Breukink, JP van Poppel, Gerrie van Gerwen, Theo de Rooy....

Wow, they all have something in common.

haha.

yeah rabobank have been tactically poor for so long.
Breukink is craptacular.

 

[theyoungest]

haha.

yeah rabobank have been tactically poor for so long.
Breukink is craptacular.

Van Poppel and Gerrie van Gerwen are Dutch, but not Rabobank Dutch

The Van Poppel-Pauwels story was blown way out of proportion by the Belgian media (which story isn't). Pauwels ignored team orders, Van Poppel told him to stop when it didn't matter anymore, and so everybody's right, and everybody's wrong.

Along with the entire Australian nation, I nominate Marc Sergeant.

 

[Ryo Hazuki]

sergeant is also a complete tool as we could see yesterday in the teamcar.

 

[Michielveedeebee]

I will never forget stage 15 of the Giro in 2009, with Serge Pauwels being forced to wait for Sastre. Van Poppel really screwed that one up. I nominate him.

oh yes, this idiot

 

[Michielveedeebee]

Van Poppel and Gerrie van Gerwen are Dutch, but not Rabobank Dutch

The Van Poppel-Pauwels story was blown way out of proportion by the Belgian media (which story isn't). Pauwels ignored team orders, Van Poppel told him to stop when it didn't matter anymore, and so everybody's right, and everybody's wrong.

Along with the entire Australian nation, I nominate Marc Sergeant.

why is that ?

 

[Buffalo Soldier]

Don't know who the DS was that race. But rabo really ****ed up the 2009 Omloop Het Volk by strange team tactics...

 

[Libertine Seguros]

Van Poppel could ride but from what I've heard he's a bit of a ***.
Trying to get into the head of Mark Cavendish for 1.

Well, to be fair, Mark Cavendish has done his fair share of being a ***... and let's also face it, an on-form Cavendish is incredibly hard to beat. Mind games may be one of the only avenues they hadn't already tried and failed.

I also nominate whoever it was who told Christophe Moreau to let Pineau gobble up the mountains points in the break in stage 9 of the Tour last year. Taking them could have left us with a KOM battle on the last day, cos Moreau would have been 1 point behind Charteau after the stage to Pau.

 

[Flamin]

Whoever told Paul Martens not to help and chase Rosseler's group because Freire (who already was in a chanceless position) was behind, in the Brabantse Pijl last year. Terrible. Martens would probably have won, as he was the fastest in the sprint.

 

[ansimi]

I haven't followed the sport for very long but I'm sure there have been some who were worse than incompetent or arrogant. I imagine there have been some who have pushed dangerous drugs on their riders or otherwise endangered their health, safety, and well-being.