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Will someone please shut Rob Hatch up......!!

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I've found lately imho that Jez Cox is probably the best voice from the group behind Kirby, his intonation is very nice and lively. He needs lotsa knowledge groundwork from sport itself I think, but as said voice is tolerable and nice.

Fingers crossed for J. Harris-Bass returning one day to the studio, Hatch mentioned him not long ago.
 
He thinks he's clever because he has some fancy philosopher's degree. Guess what, he's not, and on top of that he really comes with some completely boneheaded takes on cycling which exposes him completely.

Listening to Jesper Worre and Asbjørn Kragh in the studio compared to Bastian Emil is not even funny. The level is just so much different in every aspect honestly. He fits right in next to Bay, or at TV2 where Chris Anker left a big hole that nobody comes close to filling. Vinjebo is completely fine, Moberg is not, but Chris Anker was different. RIP!

He will get his time, but for now I guess this role is decent enough. I wonder if he has the drive to really go for it, because he could be the voice of cycling for the next 40 years in Denmark!

And just to make a relevant comment on Hatch since this is what the thread is for: I figure I too would dislike him in the long term due to his pronunciation and overexcitement, but I deal with it in very limited doses, and for that he's fine. I generally think though that the English speaking commentators are pretty thin on talent. The only one I really like is Magnus Backstedt.
Mostly agreed, but it hurts to see Worre and Kragh next to each other. The latter is a complete idiot (he grates me more than Holm). Worre is better in the box than in the studio, I think he's quite good with Bay.

And yes, Backstedt is by far the best of the English speaking commentators.
 
I don't like Emil Vinjebo's voice, and while Bastian Emil has a better understanding of cycling than Jørgen Leth ever had, I still think he too is talking cycling up to something it really isn't and has never been.

A perfect example of that was seen in the docuseries with Holm, where BE describes Boonen winning the 2006 Ronde with great enthusiasm, but Holm then counters him by mentioning the fact that Boonen may or may not have bought Hoste's help by giving him his Ferrari.

That said, I think it's much better to have a guy like him in the studio than some random ex-riders, cause he definitely adds something they would never be able to.
 
I don't like Emil Vinjebo's voice, and while Bastian Emil has a better understanding of cycling than Jørgen Leth ever had, I still think he too is talking cycling up to something it really isn't and has never been.

A perfect example of that was seen in the docuseries with Holm, where BE describes Boonen winning the 2006 Ronde with great enthusiasm, but Holm then counters him by mentioning the fact that Boonen may or may not have bought Hoste's help by giving him his Ferrari.

That said, I think it's much better to have a guy like him in the studio than some random ex-riders, cause he definitely adds something they would never be able to.

Holm always tries to talk everything down. He always takes the non-occupied standpoint. He adds zero value.
 
They have to talk about something for hours. Hatch does a decent job of it.
And this is my problem with Hatch. The guy is such a Europhile yet he never seems to be able to add any cultural context. Kirby and Been are good at rambling off on tangents about cuisine, wars, religion, geology etc.
On a dull six hour stage I think you kind of need things like that.
 
The only one I really like is Magnus Backstedt.
Absolutely spot on. I listened a lot magnus and he should be commentating all the major classics.

Anyway

Recently I noticed that Rob hatch is doing all the time 'if you are new to cycling', 'if you haven't been watching for long' , and constantly explaining to beginners what is happening in interesting moments of the race.

Its very strange to me, because the vast vast majority of the audience on a midweek Giro stage in any major cycling country is people who are fans of the sport and watch the races for years. They want insights, tactical analysis, cultural commentary, stories, excitement, tidbits of information from rumours at the start zone etc. On a boring day a lot of jokes as well. Instead we are explained why the breakaway goes for the 100000th time.

I've never seen another sport doing this, constantly pandering to beginners in the commentary. When you watch football matches, the commentators don't explain the offside rule or how free kicks work during the game 'if you are new to football' etc etc. But that's what I imagine Rob hutch doing in the champions league final
 
Absolutely spot on. I listened a lot magnus and he should be commentating all the major classics.

Anyway

Recently I noticed that Rob hatch is doing all the time 'if you are new to cycling', 'if you haven't been watching for long' , and constantly explaining to beginners what is happening in interesting moments of the race.

Its very strange to me, because the vast vast majority of the audience on a midweek Giro stage in any major cycling country is people who are fans of the sport and watch the races for years.

I've never seen another sport doing this, constantly pandering to beginners in the commentary. When you watch football matches, the commentators don't explain the offside rule or how free kicks work during the game 'if you are new to football' etc etc. But that's what I imagine Rob hutch doing

Agreed about Magnus but he's now a DS so is rarely available.
To be fair to Hatch - on this one occasion - I assume this is a directive from the Eurosport producer aimed at randoms who are watching the race on TV. I'm pretty sure this has been the case since the days of David Duffield (now there's a man who could ramble on about non-cycling things on a flat stage in an entertaining way) but it's just that when Hatch says it it's just more irritating.
 
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The only one I really like is Magnus Backstedt.
Sorely missed.

I do think Robbie McEwen does a good job, I tend to actually listen properly and not just half listen when he's talking.

And Kelly ... obvs I would praise him but even if I wasn't Irish I think I'd take pleasure in the quiet way he disagrees with Hatch, seeming to agree at first and then casually pointing out why what Hatch said is actually very, very wrong.
 
Mostly agreed, but it hurts to see Worre and Kragh next to each other. The latter is a complete idiot (he grates me more than Holm). Worre is better in the box than in the studio, I think he's quite good with Bay.

And yes, Backstedt is by far the best of the English speaking commentators.
Yes, and thats quite unfair to Worre. Asbjørn Kragh is obviously a lot worse and adds zero value. At least Worre and Holm adds stuff to the broadcast, but compared to Bastian, they are still a long way off for me personally.

I have zero idea why they are bringing him in though. I mentioned this earlier in the season. He seems unintelligent to me honestly, and his career was obviously very mediocre, so from that aspect he can't will add anything interesting. Holm can do that (both from T-Mobile and Quick Step), and Worre has his gig at Danmark Rundt and is quite passionate about race routes for example, so he can add pretty interesting stuff from time to time.

Holm and Bay has a good relationship though, you can tell they enjoy each other's company which is a big positive. Its just that Holm has some very weird takes from time to time on cycling, similar to Brian Nygaard, but the ladder is obviously a complete douche full of himself where as Holm is actually quite funny.
 
I think I still prefer TV2. Its pretty close honestly, as TV2 has some shitters as well like Staghøj and Moberg, but Ritter is the definition of a professional and Rolf is extremely passionate. Staghøj still thinks he's trying to educate first time 12 year old watchers on what cycling is, but peak TV2 is quite good.

A team of Ritter, Bastian, Michael Rasmussen and Rolf would be my dream scenario.
 
Is Jørgen Leth ever let near a microphone these days?
Nope, his last TdF was 2018 or 2019 as far as I can remember. He's unfortunately too old these days and he has some health issues on top of that as well. I don't really remember peak Jørgen Leth (before he got fired in 2005), but it was obvious what he could bring to the table the first year after he got hired again in 2009 despite all his flaws. A definite legend in danish cycling for sure.
 
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He might be controversial, but he's the kind of no BS kinda guy and I usually always enjoy and agree on his analysis. Bjarne Riis was like this as well though, a lot of oldschoolers were like that, so you should just take it for what it is.. a different era and different view of what it takes to reach peak performance. Also, you should consider the type of rider he was himself - he isn't trying to fatshame anyone or whatever, he's simply speaking about what he sees and how he would go about it himself which obviously was taking it to the absolute extremes at times. No harm done for me personally, but I realize some people think about stuff like that very differently than I do.

Generally though, Rasmussen is scapegoated a lot in Denmark, and you don't hear the stuff about Holm, Worre etc. even though they did the same and they played the same game as everyone else. Again, thats completely fine for me, and if I invested as much as he did, you better believe I'd do the same!
 
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