Jack Bobridge claims stage 1 of the Santos Tour Down Under from day-long break
by Matt de Neef
Jack Bobridge (UniSA-Australia) has won the opening stage of the 2015 Santos Tour Down Under after escaping from a stage-long, four-rider breakaway in sight of the finish line in Campbelltown yesterday.
The breakaway was established in the opening kilometre of the race when Lieuwe Westra (Astana) broke clear of the peloton and was joined by Bobridge, Luke Durbridge (Orica-GreenEdge) and Maxim Belkov (Katusha).
Despite it being a stage that looked certain for a bunch sprint, and despite being within 15 seconds of being caught by the peloton with 13.3km to go, the quartet held off the chasing bunch to register a surprise victory. Westra was second while Durbridge rounded out the podium.
The 132.6km stage began in the the town of Tanunda in South Australia’s Barossa Valley, taking in two laps of a 32km circuit through the famous wine region before heading south and then south-west towards Adelaide.
After coming together in the opening kilometres, the four escapees set about building an advantage over the main field which grew to a maximum of 2:40.
Sky, Giant-Alpecin and Etixx-Quick-Step took responsibility for chasing down the bunch but they weren’t able to make contact on the twisty descent of Gorge Road into the finish.
Bobridge
Bobridge
Bobridge
Bobridge
Durbridge
UniSA-AustraliaClick here to read the full story on CyclingTips.
Daniel Diaz claims stage 2 of the Tour de San Luis
Argentinian national champion Daniel Diaz (Funvic Brasilinvest-São José dos Campos) has won stage 2 of the Tour de San Luis in Argentina, climbing to victory atop the Mirador de Potrero.
Etapa y general para Dani Díaz (@DaniDiazDani). Crónica de la segunda etapa del @TourSanLuis: http://t.co/oftv9y3ZHs pic.twitter.com/S6mhKJEGsB
— Zona Matxin (@ZonaMatxin) January 20, 2015
A five-rider break enjoyed the early lead but the teams of overall leader Fernando Gaviria and pre-race favourite Nairo Quintana closed down the gap before the final climb: a 4.5km ascent at 7.2%.
Rodolfo Andres Torres (Colombia) was second, six seconds behind Diaz, while Diaz’s teammate Brazilian Kleber Ramos was third, a further 18 seconds behind.
Diaz won the Tour de San Luis in 2013 and was second overall in 2012. The overall standings in this year’s race now mirror the stage 2 result with five stages left in the race.
Stage 2: La Punta > Mirador de Potrero - Stage Result
Tuesday 20th January 2015
| 1. |  |
DIAZ Daniel
Funvic Brasilinvest-São José dos Campos
|
04:33:26 |
| 2. |  |
TORRES AGUDELO Rodolfo Andres
Team Colombia
|
0:06 |
| 3. |  |
RAMOS DA SILVA Kleber
Funvic Brasilinvest-São José dos Campos
|
0:24 |
Click here to read more at Biciciclismo.com.
Valentina Scandolara wins Santos Women’s Tour; Mel Hoskins sprints to stage 4 victory
by Jessi Braverman
Italian Valentina Scandolara (Orica-AIS) won the inaugural Santos Women’s Tour in Adelaide yesterday, finishing third in the 70-minute criterium in Victoria Park.
Melissa Hoskins, Scandolara’s teammate, showcased her quick turn of speed to beat former two-time world champion Giorgia Bronzini (Wiggle Down Under) to the line.
It was a hugely successful series for Australia’s only UCI-registered squad. Orica-AIS won three of the four stages, the general classification and the team overall.
The race was action-packed from lap one with several intermediate sprints and KOM laps to guarantee a lively race. Green jersey wearer Nettie Edmondson (Wiggle Down Under) used the intermediate sprints to confirm her lead in the points competition while Loren Rowney (Roxsolt) easily added to her point tally in the KOM competition to win the red polka dot jersey.
Click here to read the full story on CyclingTips.
Cavendish philosophical after missing out on stage in Tour de San Luis
by Shane Stokes
Outfoxed by 20-year-old Colombian sprinter Fernando Gaviria on Monday’s opening stage of the Tour de San Luis, Mark Cavendish might have been excused for being bitterly disappointed at the chance to open his 2015 victory list so early on.
However the Etixx-QuickStep rider was measured after the stage, saying that there was a clear reason why things didn’t work out and that he and his team were committed to trying to rectify things in the days ahead.
“My teammates did a perfect job to keep me in front,” he said after the stage. “We were in front for the last 50 kilometres. They did an incredible job, and that’s why I am disappointed that I was unable to pay them back for their work. I think we did more than a perfect job going into the sprint.
“Gaviria got the first jump and he deserved the win,” Cavendish admitted. “I saw 300 meters to go, it was a real small sign. I waited for 200, I didn’t see 200 and then he jumped. He went super fast. I saw the line, I didn’t see 200 yet, but at that point I knew I just had to go. It was too late to catch up with him.”
Dowsett back training for hour record after broken collarbone
British rider Alex Dowsett has wasted no time getting back on the bike after breaking his collarbone roughly five weeks before an attempt at the hour record.
.@alexdowsett's already on the trainer, just 7 days after his collarbone fracture. This is why cyclists are heroes! pic.twitter.com/j8EySLKBYd
— Movistar Team (@Movistar_Team) January 20, 2015
Dowsett broke his collarbone in a training accident last Tuesday and underwent surgery on Thursday. Just a week after the initial incident, Dowsett is back in preparation for the hour record.
Dowsett is scheduled to attempt the hour record on February 27 at the Lee Valley Velodrome in London.
Click here to read more at Cycling Weekly.
Domenico Pozzovivo hoping for top five at TDU despite wrist fracture
Climber Domenico Pozzovivo (Ag2r-La Mondiale) began the 2015 season with hopes of improving on last year’s injury-plagued season, but revealed yesterday that he started the Santos Tour Down Under with a broken wrist, courtesy of a training crash.
“The X-ray didn’t show anything but a MRI scan later evidenced a small fracture”, the Italian told Cyclingnews. “Therefore I have to handle a bit more pain but it won’t affect my performance. My goal is still to make the top 5. There’s nothing to do except resting but that’s what I have on my agenda after this race anyway.”
Pozzovivo, who broke his leg in August last year after a cat crossed the road in front of him while he was descending the Stelvio, is looking forward to the rest of the TDU, despite his injury.
“I love racing in the heat and it’s great to escape the European cold,” he declared. “It was either San Luis or here. Possibly the course in Argentina suits climbers more but I prefer to take part in a WorldTour event.”
Click here to read more at Cyclingnews.
ProContinental teams announced for Cadel Evans Great Ocean Road Race
Organisers of the inaugural Cadel Evans Great Ocean Road Race on February 1 have revealed the three ProContinental teams that will start the one-day race in Geelong.
Drapac is among the three ProConti teams to line up at Cadel’s Race.
MTN-Qhubeka, UnitedHealthCare and Drapac join six WorldTour teams for the race — BMC Racing Team, Katusha, IAM Cycling, Trek Factory Racing, Etixx - Quick-Step and Orica-GreenEdge — as well as seven Continental teams.
“We’ve got a really well balanced team for the race and it’s a fantastic chance for some of our younger riders to share the road with world greats like Cadel,” Matt Goss of MTN-Qhubeka said.
“The course looks like it’ll be a tough one and the last three circuits will definitely be a difficult finish, but it will be an honour to be out there on the road with my team.”
Text adapted from a Cadel Evans Great Ocean Road Race press release.
Women’s teams announced for the Cadel Evans Great Ocean Road Race
Meanwhile the organisers of the Cadel Evans Great Ocean Road Race have also revealed the women’s teams that will line up in the women’s National Road Series race the day before the elite men’s race.
The 14 teams on the startlist will be:
Wiggle Down Under, Bicycle Superstore, Bike Bug Next Gen, Boss Racing, Building Champions Women’s Squad, CBR Women, Holden Women’s Cycling Team, Roxsolt, Specialized Securitor, SUVelo Racing, Total Rush Hyster, USG Racing, Wormall CCS and High5 Dream Team.
The women’s race will be contested over 113km on the same course as the men’s race, albeit without the three laps of the challenging finishing circuit in Geelong.
Text adapted from a Cadel Evans Great Ocean Road Race press release.
UCI blocks IAM’s personalised jerseys
The UCI has blocked IAM Cycling’s plan to have personalised jerseys for each of its riders. The Swiss-based squad had designed jerseys with each rider’s name under the IAM Logo on the back.
Dear @UCI_cycling, I think this sums up the @IAM_Cycling decision… pic.twitter.com/QK1hTOcnq3
— Scott O'Raw (@velocast) January 20, 2015
The UCI said in a statement: “It’s clear in the UCI Regulations that the upper section of any jersey shall be reserved for the team’s principal sponsors.
“Therefore, the UCI invited IAM Cycling to revise the initial design of its outfit. The new jersey was judged to be in compliance with the regulations and was therefore registered.
“Under these very same regulations, other elements of the outfit, including the helmet, are not subject to similar restrictions, giving teams more freedom in the design of their kit.”
Click here to read more at Cycling Weekly.
UniSA-Australia’s telemetry from stage 1 of the Santos Tour Down Under
Three riders from the UniSA-Australia team at this year’s Santos Tour Down Under have provided telemetry data which analytics website Today’s Plan has used to create an interesting representation of the day’s stage.
The data of Jack Haig, Steele von Hoff and Neil van der Ploeg is plotted against a map of the race route, showing each rider’s speed, distance covered and power.
Click here to see the full page.
Jaguar’s Bike Sense
Jaguar has introduced a new safety feature that alerts the driver when a cyclist passes in close proximity to the car. A bike bell rings inside the car, and the driver is given a “tap on the shoulder”. See the video below for more info.
Click here to read more at the Jaguar press release.
Rohan Dennis on attempting the hour record
On February 8 Rohan Dennis will attempt to break the world hour record. Here’s the BMC rider talking about the attempt and how it came together.
On-bike footage from stage 1 of the Tour Down Under
FDJ.fr rider Jeremy Roy had a camera mounted to his bike on the opening stage of the TDU yesterday. Here are some of the highlights of what the camera captured.
Sky vs Orica-GreenEdge: the FIFA battle
After losing the first #SKYvOGE series in 2014, it was all about redemption for the Orica-GreenEdge team. In a classic case of ‘double or nothing’ the lads challenged Team Sky to a game of FIFA on the Xbox.
The Rocacorba Recap
And finally this morning, here are a few things you might have missed at CyclingTips:
- Jack Bobridge claims stage 1 of the Santos Tour Down Under from day-long break
- 2015 bikes of the pro peloton
- Rocacorba Daily: Tuesday January 20