The Cycling Lounge

[Armoreska]

Finally, the overall leaders not fighting for stage victory in the final TT. It's like we're back in the human world. 9th,10th,21st,36th.

[Armoreska]

don't miss this one!!! easy to click through it to watch the main points.

SpoilerShow

the first big showing for Remco
further spoiler:

SpoilerShow

it's a victory, but it's one for the team, though he did everything alone

and who's this Alex Aranburu?

[Straka]

Wout van Aert got his first world tour win. Impressive time trial effort with a big gap to Van Garderen and a bigger gap to Dumoulin. Dumoulin still has some work to do before the Tour de France.
Froome crashed during the time trial recon and there will be no Tour for him this year.

[Cippenham]

Sorry to hear the great Chris Froome has a serious accident in training, hit a wall and has a broken leg so is out of Tour de France and for some time. A great champion anyway.

[Teproc]

Can't be happy about someone suffering an injury... but this is great news for everyone but Froome himself (and some people at Ineos, but not even all of them).

[Cippenham]

It’s serious injury, in intensive care.

[Straka]

Apparently he hit a wall at 60 km/hr resulting in multiple fractures.

Ineos/Sky will still be the team to beat with Thomas and Bernal as leaders, wouldn't actually be surprised if Bernal already takes the win this year.

[Armoreska]

Van Aert doubles up his time trial with a sprint win. What's next?

[Straka]

Despite his crash Froome still got a win today: the 2011 Vuelta. All results from Cobo in 09, 10 and 11 are cancelled due to doping offense based on biological passport irregularities.

[Straka]

Van Aert doubles up his time trial with a sprint win. What's next?

He was at the Sierra Nevada training camp with Kruijswijk, so maybe he learned some climbing too.

[Straka]

Meanwhile in Flanders: Evenepoel got his first official pro win, a stage in the Belgium Tour.

[Onderhond]

Not just the win, but the way how was incredible. Evenepoel escaped 12 km before the finish with Campenaerts, who couldn't even take the lead and eventually fell trying to keep Evenepoel's wheel, 5km from the finish. The kid just destroyed the competition all by himself.

[Lammetje]

Despite his crash Froome still got a win today: the 2011 Vuelta. All results from Cobo in 09, 10 and 11 are cancelled due to doping offense based on biological passport irregularities.

Golly! I wonder why it took so long to make this discovery.

[Armoreska]

Remco got his first Elites GC win @ Belgium Tour

[Armoreska]

Mountain of Hell 2019 tomorrow

[Straka]

The first sprint of the Tour almost never goes without incident, but what a back up plan Jumbo came up with! Great win by Teunissen.

[Armoreska]

Tomorrows TDF-stage could be epic. The last KM is on gravel.

Apparently the winner is going to win the whole tour as well

[Straka]

Not sure how Bernal will do at this finish. It is obviously something that should suit a Dan Martin type.
Aru won last time, but it didn't include the gravel section and it was the last descent ride that Aru did.

Meanwhile in Italy "Alien" van Vleuten is winning with insane gaps at the Giro Rosa.

[Armoreska]

Average stage it was, that profile wasted

GCN is now making highlights (better than Eurosport)

[Straka]

It showed that Thomas is actually in good shape again.

[Onderhond]

Teuns!

So happy for him after he lost (was it the Vuelta, was it against Woods) on a very similar finish (steep, though more trees & mist). That was already epic, this is so much better though.

[Dolwphin]

Ciccone takes yellow jersey with 6 seconds margin! Could be battle between him and Alaphilippe for yellow jersey for awhile, both threatening to do a Voeckler.

These kind of stages are grueling, thins the flock, but easier finishes invites more spectacular attacks. It was a mistake from Landa to attack before the gravel section. The last few hundred meters was spectacular though; Bardet even completely stopped on the literal finishing line out of exhaustion!

GC-results:

G
PInot +2
QuIntana +7
Buchmann +7
Fuglsang +9
Landa +9
Porte +9
Bernal +9

A. Yates +14
MartIn + 14
Uran +18
Woods +18
Bennet +18

----

Mas +33
Mollema +35
KruIjswIjk +35
NIbalI +51
Aru +1m, 2s
Konrad +1m, 8s
Bardet +1m, 9s

[Teproc]

Alaphilippe wouldn't be doing a Voeckler (or, if you're being more ambitious, a Pereiro) since he didn't get any advantage from a breakaway.

Also Alaphilippe will not be finishing in the top 10 in GC. He can't even win Paris-Nice, his recovery is not great. I doubt Ciccone would be threatening much either since he did the Giro. Top 10 would already be a huge achievment for him.

[Dolwphin]

Alaphilippe wouldn't be doing a Voeckler (or, if you're being more ambitious, a Pereiro) since he didn't get any advantage from a breakaway.

Also Alaphilippe will not be finishing in the top 10 in GC. He can't even win Paris-Nice, his recovery is not great. I doubt Ciccone would be threatening much either since he did the Giro. Top 10 would already be a huge achievment for him.

I wasn't thinking so much about GC, but rather defending the yellow jersey surprisingly well for a few tough stages, like Alaphilppe (almost) did today.

[Straka]

So GC is on hold now until the ITT next week. A boring week of sprints and some Alaphilippe stages ahead.

Good thing that MvdP is racing this weekend.

[Straka]

The last few hundred meters was spectacular though; Bardet even completely stopped on the literal finishing line out of exhaustion!

Bardet had a mechanical issue just at the finish, that was not exhaustion. However, the French should look at Pinot for a podium finish, Bardet didn't look good.

[Armoreska]

Pretty great finish today. Tuned in in time for edge of the seat action. Nothing too special though.

[Onderhond]

Nothing special, except there are very few people who can beat the odds like that ... but De Gendt is consistently one of them.
200km (full length) escape with 4 guys, then 2 guys, then just De Gendt beating a hunting peleton in the Tour. Even Alaphilippe, gunning for yellow, didn't catch him.

It was epic.

[Lammetje]

Nothing special, except there are very few people who can beat the odds like that ... but De Gendt is consistently one of them.
200km (full length) escape with 4 guys, then 2 guys, then just De Gendt beating a hunting peleton in the Tour. Even Alaphilippe, gunning for yellow, didn't catch him.

It was epic.

Well done, Thomas!

[Coryn]

Proud to be Belgian

[Chilton]

What a ride!

[matthewscott8]

Can't be happy about someone suffering an injury... but this is great news for everyone but Froome himself (and some people at Ineos, but not even all of them).

I think this is a disservice to the nobility of many of the GC riders, folks like Quintana want to beat the best, the whole cachet of winning the Tour de France is that you triumphed against all the great riders. I think for anyone to be positive about it they would have to buy that Froome was a doper.

[matthewscott8]

Chapeau to de Gendt, a true cavalier.

[Teproc]

Can't be happy about someone suffering an injury... but this is great news for everyone but Froome himself (and some people at Ineos, but not even all of them).

I think this is a disservice to the nobility of many of the GC riders, folks like Quintana want to beat the best, the whole cachet of winning the Tour de France is that you triumphed against all the great riders. I think for anyone to be positive about it they would have to buy that Froome was a doper.

He might not be an Armstrong EPO blood bag type, but the salbutamol case has shown a definite willingness to skirt the rules along the edges and to act both secretive and indignant about it, which is textbook doper. He gets the benefit of the doubt in a court of law and that's all well and good, but my sympathy doesn't stretch that far.

I also just meant that Froome being absent meant a more open field and possibly more exciting race, though Thomas may end up just as dominant, who knows.

[matthewscott8]

Can't be happy about someone suffering an injury... but this is great news for everyone but Froome himself (and some people at Ineos, but not even all of them).

I think this is a disservice to the nobility of many of the GC riders, folks like Quintana want to beat the best, the whole cachet of winning the Tour de France is that you triumphed against all the great riders. I think for anyone to be positive about it they would have to buy that Froome was a doper.

He might not be an Armstrong EPO blood bag type, but the salbutamol case has shown a definite willingness to skirt the rules along the edges and to act both secretive and indignant about it, which is textbook doper. He gets the benefit of the doubt in a court of law and that's all well and good, but my sympathy doesn't stretch that far.

I also just meant that Froome being absent meant a more open field and possibly more exciting race, though Thomas may end up just as dominant, who knows.

I think the thing he was indignant about was the situation being leaked to the press. Basically if that leak hadn't happened we wouldnt even be having this conversation. I think it's right that he's indignant about that because he got treated differently and against the rules, his whole career is tarnished because someone at WADA or UCI couldn't follow their own procedures. He gets exercise induced asthma like many pro athletes who put their bodies through insane rigours, he puffed from an inhaler after the race was over. He was capable of proving that dehydration from the race led to a higher concentation in his urine. Potentially others wouldn't have had the financial backing to make that case, but he does and is entitled to a good defence.

Thomas is odds on to win it with the bookies anyway. The most likely way he doesn't is a crash.

[Straka]

I think this is a disservice to the nobility of many of the GC riders, folks like Quintana want to beat the best, the whole cachet of winning the Tour de France is that you triumphed against all the great riders. I think for anyone to be positive about it they would have to buy that Froome was a doper.

He might not be an Armstrong EPO blood bag type, but the salbutamol case has shown a definite willingness to skirt the rules along the edges and to act both secretive and indignant about it, which is textbook doper. He gets the benefit of the doubt in a court of law and that's all well and good, but my sympathy doesn't stretch that far.

I also just meant that Froome being absent meant a more open field and possibly more exciting race, though Thomas may end up just as dominant, who knows.

I think the thing he was indignant about was the situation being leaked to the press. Basically if that leak hadn't happened we wouldnt even be having this conversation. I think it's right that he's indignant about that because he got treated differently and against the rules, his whole career is tarnished because someone at WADA or UCI couldn't follow their own procedures. He gets exercise induced asthma like many pro athletes who put their bodies through insane rigours, he puffed from an inhaler after the race was over. He was capable of proving that dehydration from the race led to a higher concentation in his urine. Potentially others wouldn't have had the financial backing to make that case, but he does and is entitled to a good defence.

It actually is still speculation what exactly the full defense of Froome was in his doping case; the details remain vague and were never shared. His career indeed has a tarnish, as does his team. The practices of Froome and his team have been on and over the edge, this does not mean they are guilty of doping, it does mean that they could have acted in line with more transparent teams out there. The Sky team entered cycling with big words of transparency and they haven't delivered. They put up smoke and mirrors backed by financial means. Any tarnish they have brought about themselves and is well deserved.

[Straka]

Thomas is odds on to win it with the bookies anyway. The most likely way he doesn't is a crash.

Odds change; at the start it was Bernal who was the favourite with the bookies. Anyway, the big mountain passes are in the last week, there is still a lot that can happen and lets hope a lot will happen.

[Armoreska]

That's the most people I've ever seen commenting on a single race here

[Armoreska]

The closest Megavalanche so far

[Armoreska]

Tomorrow is not a rest day at TdF...
Well that's new