John Degenkolb takes fourth sprint victory on stage 17 of the Vuelta
by Shane Stokes
John Degenkolb clocked up his fourth stage victory of this year’s Vuelta a España at the end of stage 17 on Wednesday, blasting into A Coruña a bike length ahead of Michael Matthews (Orica-GreenEdge) and Fabian Cancellara (Trek Factory Racing).
The Giant-Shimano rider’s success lines him up for a possible repeat of his five stage wins of two years ago and tightens his grip on the green jersey of points leader.
Inevitably, the stage was marked by a breakaway, with five riders going clear early on and building a maximum lead of just under four minutes. Four of that quintet remained out front with 20 kilometres to go and together Rohan Dennis (BMC Racing Team), Bob Jungels (Trek Factory Racing) Elia Favilli (Lampre-Merida) and Daniel Teklehaimanot (MTN-Qhubeka) fought to stay clear.
The latter was dropped inside the final ten kilometres then, just before the bunch reeled the move in, Dennis and Favilli jumped clear inside the final two kilometres. Their bid was brave but futile; they were hauled back very soon afterwards, setting things up for a bunch sprint and Degenkolb’s fourth win of the race.
The bunch split towards the end but the general classification contenders finished inside the first cluster of 41 riders, ensuring the general classification remained the same in advance of today’s category two summit finish.
Stage 17: Ortigueira > A Coruña - Stage Result
Wednesday 10th September 2014
| 1. |  |
DEGENKOLB John
Team Giant-Shimano
|
04:26:07 |
| 2. |  |
MATTHEWS Michael
Orica GreenEDGE
|
- |
| 3. |  |
CANCELLARA Fabian
Trek Factory Racing
|
- |
Degenkolb
Contador
Sanchez
Degenkolb
Team Katusha Click here to read the full stage report at CyclingTips.
Michal Kwiatkowski wins Tour of Britain’s fourth stage, moves into overall lead
Michal Kwiatkowski (Omega Pharma-QuickStep) has taken victory on the fourth stage of the Tour of Britain on Wednesday, a perfectly timed attack netting him the overall lead in addition to his stage win.
Image: Tour of Britain
A group of nine riders formed the day’s breakaway: Alex Dowsett (Movistar), Lasse Hansen (Garmin-Sharp), Peter Velits (BMC Racing), Albert Timmer (Giant-Shimano), Kristian House (Rapha Condor), Mike Northey (Madison-Genesis), Sam Harrison (NFTO), Mark Christian (Raleigh) and Sebastian Lander (BMC Racing).
Inside the final 10km Timmer, Velits and Hansen attacked out of the breakaway and went clear, hitting the base of the final climb up Avon Gorge with a gap of 30 seconds. Timmer then attacked on the climb, with Jack Bauer (Garmin-Sharp) coming across from the peloton.
The pair led the race coming into the final kilometre, but a late move from a reduced peloton saw Michal Kwiatkowski join the two leaders before blowing past to take the sprint victory ahead of Timmer and Dylan Teuns (BMC).
Kwiatkowski now leads the race overall, three seconds ahead of stage 3 winner Edoardo Zardini (Bardiani) and 14 seconds ahead of Teuns. Five stages remain in the race, including today’s 177km fifth stage from Exmouth to Exeter.
Stage 4: Worcester > Bristol - Stage Result
Wednesday 10th September 2014
| 1. |  |
KWIATKOWSKI Michal
Omega Pharma - Quick-Step
|
04:19:09 |
| 2. |  |
TIMMER Albert
Team Giant-Shimano
|
- |
| 3. |  |
TEUNS Dylan
BMC Racing Team
|
- |
Uran out of Vuelta and will undergo specialist medical treatment to try to recover for Worlds
by Shane Stokes
He was one of the big contenders coming into the Vuelta a España but Rigoberto Uran’s race has ended five days early due to a worsening of the illness which has been affecting him in recent days.
Suffering from asthmatic bronchitis, the timing of Tuesday’s day off gave an opportunity for him to recover but unfortunately for the rider and his team this didn’t happen.
“We were hoping that the rest day could help, but in the last 24 hours the situation has become even worse,” stated Uran. “You can’t race in these conditions. I’m really disappointed but this really is the wisest decision.”
Uran will undergo medical checks in Belgium at the start of next week. His team hopes that this will give him the opportunity to recover in time for the Ponferrada Worlds.
“Now the objective is to try to recover in time for the World Championships and be useful to the team for the World Championship TTT that will open the rainbow series,” he said.
He uses the form he was in prior to becoming in as the basis for some guarded optimism, although he knows that there are no guarantees.
“Fundamentally I’m in good shape so I’d really like to be there. Of course, my participation will depend on what the test results say these next few days,” he said. “The team and I don’t want to take any risks in the end of the season if the bronchial problems should continue.”
Click here to read the full story at CyclingTips.
Robert Gesink leaves La Vuelta
Meanwhile Belkin has announced that Robert Gesink has left the Vuelta due to family reasons.
“My pregnant wife has undergone surgery twice this past week. Her situation has not improved and she is still in the hospital. I will immediately leave the Vuelta to be with my family, who needs me right now,” Gesink said.
In a press release, a Belkin spokesperson wrote: “Team Belkin supports this decision and will support Robert and his wife wherever possible. The entire team wishes them all the best in this difficult time.”
Text adapted from a Belkin press release.
Valentin Iglinskiy provisionally suspended, fired by Astana after positive test for EPO
by Shane Stokes
Astana rider Valentin Iglinskiy has been fired with immediate effect from the team, with the rider getting his marching orders after the UCI handed him a provisional suspension after a positive A test for EPO.
“The Union Cycliste Internationale (UCI) announces that it has notified Kazakh rider Valentin Iglinskiy for an Adverse Analytical Finding of EPO in a sample collected in the scope of the 2014 Eneco Tour on 11 August 2014,” the UCI said in a statement. It added that he had “the right to request and attend the analysis of the B sample.”
According to a statement by his Astana team, it looks like the rider may not elect to have that second sample tested. “Valentin has admitted to using prohibited substances on his own initiative and independently, without any consultation from the Astana Pro Team staff,” it said.
“In its wish for full transparency, Astana Pro Team has refused to defend a rider who failed to respect the rules and ethics as stipulated in his contract and who has failed to behave in a manner consistent with other riders in his team and within professional cycling.”
Iglinsky is a past winner of stages in races such as the Tour of Qinghai Lake, the Tour of Bulgaria, the Presidential Tour of Turkey and the Tour du Loir et Cher, and took the overall classification in the Tour of Hainan in both 2010 and 2011. The 30 year old is the younger brother of Maxim Iglinskiy, the 2012 Liège-Bastogne-Liège winner.
Click here to read more at CyclingTips.
Pauline Ferrand-Prevot to focus on mountain bike World Cup in 2015
Pauline Ferrand-Prevot (Rabo-Liv) has been one of the high flyers in the 2014 women’s road season, winning the Fleche Wallonne World Cup, Emakumeen Euskal Bira, the French National Road Race and ITT, and finishing second at the Giro Rosa.
But the Frenchwoman, who comes from a mountain biking background, has told Cyclingnews that she’ll be increasing her focus on mountain biking in 2015.
“Next year, I want to do all the mountain bike Worlds Cups. I think it will be nice,” said Ferrand-Prevot. “I will also do the road. It will be good to race both.
“I think it’s important to keep a good balance between the road and the mountain bike. I try to chose my races and to rest as possible.”
By focusing on the MTB World Cups in 2015, Ferrand-Prevot will be hoping to help France qualify more spots for the 2016 Olympics in Rio de Janeiro.
Click here to read more at Cyclingnews.
Bretagne-Séché Environnement signs Pierrick Fédrigo as team expands
French ProContinental team Bretagne-Séché Environnement made a successful debut at the Tour de France and now the Brittany-based team is looking to expand its roster for 2015. The latest signing is 35-year-old four-time Tour de France stage winner Pierrick Fedrigo.
Pierrick Fedrigo wins stage 15 of the 2012 Tour de France.
The team has also signed up Belkin’s Jonathan Hivert for next season.
“They are riders who are hungry and can represent the image that we demonstrated on the Tour,” team manager Emmanuel Hubert told L’Équipe.
In an interview with L’Équipe, Hubert said that the team’s aggressive racing at the Tour de France — being present in many of the race’s breakaways — impressed the sponsors, who are keen to see the team grow.
“They want more of that, to pursue the adventure, but to do it on a bigger scale,” Hubert said.
Click here to read more at the Bretagne-Seche website.
Estado de Mexico-Faren riders reportedly not getting paid
Here’s a sadly all-too-common story from the women’s peloton, with a report alleging that riders from the Mexican Estado de Mexico-Faren team haven’t been paid their wages and that they’ve also suffered discrimination at the hands of team staff.
If the allegations are true, this certainly wouldn’t be the first time riders have had their paychecks withheld. Former Olympic, Commonwealth and World champion Nicole Cooke wrote in her retirement statement that she had to take four teams to court to get the wages owed to her.
Sarah Connolly has taken a close look at the issue on her blog, talking in particular about how riders can get a reputation for being “difficult” if they stand up for themselves, potentially jeopardising future contracts. Orica-AIS rider Valentina Scandolara provided some good insight along these lines on Twitter:
@_pigeons_ more Sarah(s) in women's cycling, please! Saddened&ashamed,but these things are well known in many teams in Italy. Me myself,1/2
— Valentina Scandolara (@ValeScandolara) September 10, 2014
@_pigeons_ I was a "difficult rider" coz I fighted for my rights. Luckily I ended up in @CipolliniTeam last year, and "emigrated"now.2/2
— Valentina Scandolara (@ValeScandolara) September 10, 2014
@_pigeons_ PS meaning that @CipolliniTeam is a great team who really cares about riders and their growth as cyclists and people. #THANKFUL.
— Valentina Scandolara (@ValeScandolara) September 10, 2014
Ashton Instruments previews US$500 power meter
The days of needing to spend thousands to get a powermeter are behind us, and the latest company to venture into this space is US upstart Ashton Instruments.
According to an article in Bike Radar, Ashton Instruments is in the final research and development phase of developing a powermeter that will retail for US$500. The gadget will reportedly do away with traditional strain gauges in favour of a “solid-state sensor that will provide the same data quality but without the high associated costs.”
Bike Radar reports that the power meter will insert into hollow SRAM or FSA spindles with no special tools required. Technical details are limited but the device reportedly works “by measuring the amount of twist in the bottom bracket spindle under power.”
The company expects the new device to be on the market in 2016.
Click here to read more at BikeRadar. Click here to read more at the Ashton Instruments website.
Will the Tour de France legacy deliver safer cycling in Saffron Walden?
Here’s a segment from the BBC show Inside Out East in which host David Whiteley looks at the impact the Tour de France’s visit to Essex on stage 3 of this year’s race had on the market town. It’s a reminder that while the cycling season goes on, with our attention turned elsewhere, a visit from the world’s biggest bike race can have an affect that lasts well after the race itself.
Orica-GreenEdge’s latest music video - Coldplay’s ‘A Sky Full of Stars’
Here’s Orica-GreenEdge’s latest foray into the world of music video parody/lip syncing, with their take on Coldplay’s ‘A Sky Full of Stars’. It’s shot in Girona, where a good percentage of the OGE team (and many other riders) live. Check it out:
The Rocacorba Recap
And finally this morning, here are a few things you might have missed at CyclingTips:
- Video: A rest day ride with Chris Froome
- Vuelta a Espana in photos: stages 13 to 16
- Rocacorba Daily: Wednesday September 10