Daily News Digest

Gianni Meersman claims inaugural Cadel Evans Great Ocean Road Race

Gianni Meersman (Etixx-Quick-Step) has won the inaugural Cadel Evans Great Ocean Road race, sprinting to victory in Geelong at the head of a nine-rider group. Simon Clarke (Orica-GreenEdge) finished second while Cannondale-Garmin’s Nathan Haas was third.

Meersman timed his run perfectly in the nine-rider lead group to take the win.

The final selection of the action-packed race was made in the third and final circuit around Geelong when several smaller groups came together, aided in part by Cadel Evans himself.

An early breakaway of five riders — Laurent Didier (Trek), Marco Frapporti (Androni Giocattoli), Darcy Woolley (African Wildlife Safaris), Josh Taylor (Charter Mason) and Brodie Talbot (Budget Forklifts) — made the early running, building a lead of nearly five minutes. But when the race headed east roughly halfway through, Cannondale-Garmin used the crosswinds to their advantage, splitting the race apart and catching the breakaway.

For the remaining 85km the race was in pieces, with a number of small groups forming at the front then being absorbed by a reduced peloton. The decisive moves came in the final circuits with Danilo Wyss (BMC) and Peter Kennaugh (Sky) among the aggressors.

Cadel Evans, in his final race as a professional cyclist, finished fifth in the lead group, just behind Team Sky’s Luke Rowe.

1.	MEERSMAN Gianni Etixx - Quick Step	04:15:22
2.	CLARKE Simon Orica GreenEDGE	-
3.	HAAS Nathan Team Cannondale - Garmin	-

Click here for a full race report at CyclingTips.

Rachel Neylan wins elite women’s Cadel Evans Great Ocean Road Race

by Jessi Braverman

Earlier in the weekend Rachel Neylan (Building Champions Squad) soloed to victory in the elite women’s Cadel Evans Great Ocean Road Race after launching two decisive attacks in the closing kilometres of the 113km National Road Series event.

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Forty-six seconds after Neylan crossed the line, Santos Women’s Tour winner Valentina Scandolara (Orica-AIS) won a two-up sprint against Tessa Fabry (High5 Dream Team) to take second place, leaving Fabry the final spot on the podium.

A crash and some strong crosswinds in the early kilometres saw the peloton reduced to less than 25 riders after as many kilometres of racing. Orica-AIS, Wiggle Down Under and Roxsolt were well represented in the move and called the shots, leaving Neylan to fend more or less for herself as the race unfolded.

Neylan is currently without a pro contract for 2015 but is hoping that her success in this race, plus her silver medal at the Australian Road Nationals, will attract the interest of international teams.

Click here to read a full race report and see the results at CyclingTips.

Jack Bobridge unsuccessful in hour record bid, covers 51.3km for new Australian record

South Australian Jack Bobridge has been unsuccessful in his attempt to beat the world hour record set by Matthias Brändle on October 30, 2014, clocking up 51.300km in Melbourne’s DISC Velodrome on Saturday evening.

Bobridge had required roughly 207.5 laps of the 250m DISC track to beat Brändle’s mark of 51.852km, set in the city of Aigle, Switzerland. At the halfway mark of his attempt Bobridge was on schedule to cover more than 52km but he faded in the last half hour to finish more than two laps short of Brändle’s record.

“I’m in a lot of pain,” Bobridge said, somewhat predictably, after his attempt. “I can’t even explain how much pain my glutes and quads are in. That’s by far the hardest thing I’ve ever done and will ever do.”

“You gotta take your hat off to Brändle and all those guys who have set the record. It’s something special.”

Despite missing the record, Bobridge’s 51.3km was enough to claim a new Australian record, a mark previously set at 50.052km in 1997 by Bradley McGee.

Click here for a full report from the event, here at CyclingTips.

Matteo Pelucchi wins two of the four Challenge Mallorca races, Valverde and Cummings also on the winners list

The Challenge Mallorca series has come to a close in Spain with Matteo Pelucchi (IAM Cycling) the big winner, having taken out two of the four races.

Matteo Pelucchi wins the Trofeo Playa de Palma-Palma on Sunday, his second win of the four-race Challenge Mallorca series.

Pelucchi won the opening race, the Trofeo Santanyi-Ses Salines-Campos, in a bunch sprint ahead of Elia Viviani (Sky) and Jose Joaquin Rojas (Movistar).

1.	PELUCCHI Matteo IAM Cycling	04:17:55
2.	VIVIANI Elia Team Sky	-
3.	ROJAS José Joaquín Movistar Team	-

Stephen Cummmings (MTN-Qhubeka) won race #2, the Trofeo Andratx-Mirador d’Es Colomer, after attacking on the uphill finish and holding off Alejandro Valverde (Movistar).

1.	CUMMINGS Stephen MTN - Qhubeka	03:56:30
2.	VALVERDE Alejandro Movistar Team	-
3.	FORMOLO Davide Team Cannondale - Garmin	0:06

Valverde made amends the following day at the Trofeo Serra de Tramuntana, getting into the breakaway, making a decisive split in that group, then riding away from his companions one by one.

1.	VALVERDE Alejandro Movistar Team	04:34:29
2.	WELLENS Tim Lotto Soudal	1:23
3.	KöNIG Leopold Team Sky	1:33

And yesterday, in the final race of the series, Matteo Pelucchi bookended his time in Mallorca with another sprint victory in the Trofeo Playa de Palma-Palma.

1.	PELUCCHI Matteo IAM Cycling	04:06:17
2.	GREIPEL André Lotto Soudal	-
3.	SWIFT Ben Team Sky	-

Taylor Gunman wins New Zealand Cycle Classic

Taylor Gunman (Avanti) has won the 2015 New Zealand Cycle Classic in Palmerston North after five days of consistent racing.

Gunman wins NZ Cycle Classic http://t.co/ODISZ5j52H #sbscycling pic.twitter.com/ADG6FYAFHq

— CyclingCentral (@CyclingCentral) February 1, 2015

Gunman took eighth place in the prologue ITT, third on stage 1 and ninth from a breakaway on stage 2, the last of those results propelling the New Zealander into the overall lead by just one second.

Gunman was third on the uphill finish to stage 3, holding his one-second lead over teammate Jason Christie and on the final stage Gunman finished eighth, extending his final winning margin to six seconds.

Click here to read more at Cycling Central.

Mathieu van der Poel becomes youngest ever elite men’s cyclocross world champion

Twenty-year-old Dutchman Mathieu van der Poel has become the youngest-ever elite men’s world cyclocross champion after winning in Tabor, Czech Republic on Sunday.

Van der Poel attacked on the second lap of the race and was able to stay away to take the title, ahead of Wout Van Aert (Belgium) and Lars van der Haar (Netherlands)

Pauline Ferrand-Prevot wins elite women’s CX worlds

And earlier in the weekend Frenchwoman Pauline Ferrand-Prevot added an elite women’s CX world title to the world title she won on the road in Spain late last year.

Ferrand-Prevot came into the final sprint with World Cup winner Sanne Cant (Belgium) but was able to best the Belgian to continue what has been a golden 12 months for the 22-year-old.

Eric Sheppard wins Tour of the Philippines opener

Australia’s Eric Sheppard has won the opening stage of the Tour of the Philippines after outsprinting three breakaway companions at the end of Sunday’s stage.

Eric Sheppard (ATG) gana la 1a etapa del #LeTourDeFilipinas pic.twitter.com/LXRF7M878x

— Ciclismo en directo (@NCiclismo) February 1, 2015

Sheppard, who rides for the Taiwanese Attaque Team Gusto, also won the opening stage of last year’s Tour of the Philippines, before going on to finish second overall.

The UCI 2.2 race is contested over four stages and continues today with a 154.7km stage from Balanga to Iba.

Stage 1: Balanga > Balanga - Stage Result

Sunday 1st February 2015

1.	SHEPPARD Eric Attaque Team Gusto	03:16:13
2.	GALEDO Mark John Lexer Team 7 Eleven Road Bike Philippines	-
3.	LEBAS Thomas Bridgestone Anchor Cycling Team	-

1.	SHEPPARD Eric Attaque Team Gusto	03:16:03
2.	GALEDO Mark John Lexer Team 7 Eleven Road Bike Philippines	0:03
3.	LEBAS Thomas Bridgestone Anchor Cycling Team	0:04

1.	SHEPPARD Eric Attaque Team Gusto	10
2.	GALEDO Mark John Lexer Team 7 Eleven Road Bike Philippines	8
3.	LEBAS Thomas Bridgestone Anchor Cycling Team	7

1.	ZEMLYAKOV Oleg Vino 4ever	03:16:13
2.	DE JULIAN VAZQUEZ Angel Team 7 Eleven Road Bike Philippines	3:16
3.	YATES Theodore Navitas Satalyst Racing team	-

1.	Attaque Team Gusto	09:55:11
2.	Team 7 Eleven Road Bike Philippines	-
3.	Bridgestone Anchor Cycling Team	-

Disc brakes trial scheduled for the Tour of Flanders?

by Wade Wallace with Shane Stokes

CyclingTips understands from various industry sources that talks are in place with the UCI to trial disc brakes in the WorldTour peloton, possibly as soon as the Tour of Flanders 2015.

The Tour of Flanders is only two months away and sources indicate one major delay — the UCI is waiting for the industry to decide on a rotor size standard. One roadblock presented by this lack of standard relates to the logistics of neutral support.

We asked the UCI’s Technical Collaborator Johan Kucaba whether the Tour of Flanders is a likely trial for disc brakes.

“We cannot confirm this information for the moment because nothing is decided officially for the moment. It is not decided for the moment if we will allow the brakes this year or next year. Perhaps more next year, but for the moment it is not decided.”

Click here to read more at CyclingTips.

Obree on hour record: Bobridge should try again in four or five days

by Shane Stokes

Responding to Jack Bobridge’s unsuccessful attempt on Saturday to take the world hour record, former holder Graeme Obree has urged the Australian to consider trying again.

Obree set the hour record twice during the 1990s, first beating it on July 17 1993 in Norway. He was deposed by Chris Boardman but seized it again on April 27 1994. On the first of those successful attempts, Obree’s effort actually came 24 hours after he had tried, and failed, to break the record.

“I watched Bobridge’s attempt and I felt sorry for him,” he told CyclingTips on Saturday. “There is no tactics or hiding place, it is awful. I think he should consider trying again, because where he is now is an awful place to be in.

“He has got the physical ability, so if he doesn’t try again he will regret it in 20 years time,” Obree said. “When Bradley [Wiggins] steps up it will be out of his reach and he will never have got it,” he said.

Click here to read more at CyclingTips.

Rory Sutherland breaks collarbone

Australia’s Rory Sutherland (Movistar) has broken his collarbone while racing in the Trofeo Serra de Tramuntana, one of the Challenge Mallorca races.

Sutherland crashed on the descent of the Coll d’En Claret after just 17km of what was just his second race in Movistar colours. According to a team press release:

“X-Rays on Sutherland confirmed a distal left collarbone fracture, which will force Sutherland to travel back to his home in Girona tomorrow, in order to undergo more profound checks to decide on the need for surgery.”

Text adapted from a Movistar press release.

Behind the scenes of Jeremy Roy’s on-board videos from the Tour Down Under

One of the highlights of the Tour Down Under for many fans was the on-board camera videos being shot and uploaded by FDJ.fr rider Jeremy Roy. In a blog post on his website, which has since been translated and published at The Inner Ring, Roy details the process involved in getting permission for using the camera, capturing the footage then making it available online.

Here’s an excerpt, in which he talks about the actual recording of video:

“

Press a button and you’re off. Simple. It lasts for about two hours so I was activating the unit with about 90 minutes to go to be sure. There was one stage in the Tour Down Under where I wanted to film the start, so I activated it on the start line, stopped it 30 minutes after, then restarted for the finish. Filming long sections allows me to load the raw footage to Kinomap and sync the video with my GPS data.

Click here to read the full article at The Inner Ring.

The Week in Bike #53 – The Season Arc

The road season’s just getting going while the CX season is winding down. The circle of life, really, but with more awkward — especially where sprinting results, footed fencing, and US Weekly are concerned.

We hope you enjoy Cosmo Catalano’s latest episode of The Week in Bike.

Marie Wilson, Novelty Cyclist

We shared a couple of cycling-related British Pathe films with you late last week and here’s another. This clip from 1941 features “novelty cyclist” Marie Wilson and features great voiceover puns like “where there’s a wheel there’s a way”. The Hitler gag towards the end is particularly memorable too.

Helmetor!

Make sure you’re wearing a helmet, folks. Even if it is a novelty, oversized helmet as modelled here by helmet-dispensing “superhero” Helmetor.

Post by Where is the limit?®.

If the video doesn’t show up for you, click here.

What You Missed

And finally this morning, here are a few things you might have missed at CyclingTips:

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Don’t get dropped — keep up to date with regular CyclingTips content, updates, special offers and events, just by signing up to our newsletter.

Today’s feature image was shot by Con Chronis and shows Gianni Meersman alongside Cadel Evans after the former won the inaugural edition of the race named after the latter in Geelong yesterday.

Tags: 2015 Cadel Evans Great Ocean Road Race, 2015 Challenge Mallorca, 2015 New Zealand Cycle Classic, 2015 Santos Tour Down Under, 2015 Tour of Flanders, 2015 Tour of the Philippines, Alejandro Valverde, British Pathe, Cadel Evans, Cosmo Catalano, cyclocross, disc brakes, Eric Sheppard, Gianni Meersman, Graeme Obree, hour record, Jack Bobridge, Jeremy Roy, Mathieu van der Poel, Matteo Pelucchi, Pauline Ferrand-Prevot, Rachel Neylan, Rocacorba Daily, Rory Sutherland, Stephen Cummings, Taylor Gunman, The Week in Bike

jules

i’m pretty sure i met Helmetor on a shopping run a while ago as he rode past me. “Helmeeeetttt maaattee!!!”
Mark

Unfortunately I didn’t get to watch too much of the Cadel Evan’s Great Ocean Road race, but what coverage I did see was quite impressive. Given the prime spot on a Sunday, I thought Channel 7 did a fairly good job trying to do some different things, and would have been quite good from a new to the sport perspective (ie the explaining of the various aspects).

Interested to hear others thoughts?
- RWH
  
  I watched the coverage from start to finish, and for the most part Channel 7 did a pretty good job. Robbie McEwen has gone up in my books and his comments from the back of a motorbike amidst the peleton were pretty impressive. However, all of their good work for several hours was ruined when they cut to an advert just as the group was heading up Challambra for the last time and a debacle on the final 1km or so. Also seeing the live stats from one of the Avanti riders (I think) around Heart Rate, Watts, etc was pretty cool. So a few firsts
  For a first effort pretty good, but hopefully they would realise that it could have been a little better
  - Mark
    
    I missed the finish, so yeah that sounds pretty sucky… but it did sound like they were trying. Maybe better next year?
    - 900Aero
      
      Overall it was very decent coverage (Keenan & Liggett + McEwan worked really well) only marred by some long-ish ad breaks, one of which cut into the final Chalambra climb. Tough call for them as the ads pay the way but it was poorly timed nevertheless.
      - Abdu
        
        If anything, Keeno showed how much more relevant he is. So many times he handed to Phil and there was almost awkward silence because his response required a proper answer rather than rolling out the usual “heads of state coming to the front”… Keeno could reel out the stats and knowledge from his detailed preparation, and also some relevant and timely stuff. A few times Phil had no idea, and couldn’t add anything. Ok it sounds like I want to boof him, but it is so much obviously better and relevant. If Paul was wondering, he’d better start thinking about his diamond mine because he adds nothing.
    - RWH
      
      Yep I reckon if they can build on that they have a pretty good base to work from.
- Ralph
  
  Should have collected on Meersman!
- Gavin Adkins
  
  I thought it was pretty good for a first attempt. There was a snafu in the live footage of the finish and an unfortunately timed ad break towards the end. What really made it good viewing was a well-designed course and some great racing. A lot of quality in form bike riders having a red hot go made for a good afternoon on the couch.
- jules
  
  ch.7 took it seriously. too many ads but then who watches a bike race from start to end? they borrowed from SBS’s production lessons, but that’s OK.
- velocite
  
  The idea of a commentator on a moto is terrific and McEwen was simply excellent. And the MC-ing was fine as well, for a change. Good not to have to cringe at MT or the fat chap at the TDU.
- Steel
  
  Way better than channel 9. Berretta tied the whole broad cast a lot better than that stooge from 9.
  
  I really liked the motorcycle commentary innovation. There’s a lot you can tell just from being up close to the riders.
  
  I thought the introductory pieces explaining the context of the race in world cycling and mid-race pre-filmed pieces also added a bit of much needed colour to what can be a dour first 2-3 hours of racing. They weren’t pitched too low for the cycling fans, but also gave new viewers some insight into a complex sport.
  - Just sayin
    
    Beretts is a fully qualified Mamil, that’s why. Beach Road weekend warrior from way back. Being a pretty decent bloke helps too.
- PD
  
  Great that Ch7 made the commitment to cover the whole race. We rarely get to see the early parts of races/stages where breaks actually form.
- Andy Logan
  
  Overall I was impressed, they cocked up who to focus the camera on in the sprint, with Luke Rowe sprinting on the right of the camera but didn’t follow the other riders.
  
  The info from the Avanti riders was good, that came via Today’s Plan, the live tracking. I thought they did a good job and can build on that.
  
  Most importantly they seem interested, solid cross promotion with the tennis etc as well. A much better job than Nine. Ch7 will improve from this.
- Mark_Kelly
  
  I agree with RWH but would add a couple of other really bad ad break decisions: for instance we missed almost all of the climb of Ceres hill on the final approach to Geelong. In the end nothing decisive happened there but it could have and it’s a popular local ride, it would have been good to see the pros fly up it.
MK

I was very impressed with CH7. They made CH9 and Cycling Australia look stupid. CH9 because their TDU and nationals coverage was shite and CA because they kept saying how happy they were with CH9 and their multi-year agreement.
My understanding is that CH7 made an internal decision that if they were to do it, they were going to do it properly. I think this came across. Would be interesting to know if they made money or not.
Interviewing riders during the tennis was very valuable cross promotion and using a few Geelong footy players to bring the average punter along for the journey seemed to work well.
True test will be if the race can live without Cadel racing. Lets hope so.
velocite

Congratulations Eric Sheppard! Way to go..
Neil

CT any reason why the track nats have recieved so little attention? There appear to be some strong riders and good depth coming through the ranks. Surely there was more worth commenting on than Jack Bob’s effort?
- http://www.cyclingTips.com.au/ Wade Wallace
  
  I agree - the Track Nats looked fantastic. There was good coverage on the Cycling Australia website. Unfortunately we’re only small and have limited resources to work with, and after a massive month of cycling, we simply don’t have the capacity to cover the Track Nationals. The fact that there’s so much racing packed into one month means that we can’t get to them all.
  - Neil
    
    Thanks Wade and Matt. I guess I didn’t expect major coverage each day, or analysis. In some ways I kind of felt as though it was ignored though, and that a quick mention in the Rocacorba (maybe a performance highlight)would have been nice.
    I completely recognise that you’re a small site with limited resources and a road cycling focus. I guess when I see Cyclocross covered and track ignored, I probably think they are equally meritorious of a mention. In saying all this, I recognise this must be about the busiest few weeks of the year for you. There has been a ton on…
    - http://cyclingtips.com.au Matt de Neef
      
      You’re right! Very busy time of year. My reasoning wasn’t that track is any less worthy than CX, just that if it’s a choice between World Champs and National Champs, it makes sense to go with the Worlds. It took me most of three hours to put together today’s post as it was!
      - Neil
        
        Respect Matt, my two cents is only that. Take it or leave it - either way I’ll still be here tomorrow.
- http://cyclingtips.com.au Matt de Neef
  
  As Wade says it’s an issue of focusing our attention where we can. It’s worth noting, too, that CT is almost exclusively focused on road cycling. We do make exceptions here and there, resources permitting, but sadly we’re just not able to cover every cycling discipline … as much as we’d like to!
  - jules
    
    i like watching track racing, but i’m unsure it lends itself to writing articles. there are no hills, stage races, etc. it’s short and sharp.
    - Neil
      
      Agree Jules. Maybe a mention of some of the standout performances - Wight from SA in the U19 events - for example.
      - AdrianW
        
        Also note worthy performance is the daughter of Kendrick Tucker 1980 com games gold medalist. Brooke Tucker picked up a few gold and silver in the u19 women’s events. Perhaps someone to look out for in the future given her breeding and coming from a regional center.
        
        might be something there for ELLA to take up.
Cameron Harris

The winners trophies for the Cadel race were nice, and reflect the surf/ocean motif they’re going for.

However, if we’re looking for equality in cycling, can someone help us understand why the trophies for the men’s and women’s races are such different sizes?
- Markle
  
  Really? I thought they looked like a shark fin.
- Hurtin’ Albertan
  
  Right?! I still don’t understand how this day in age you can sit down in a planning meeting or whatever and make the conscious decision to make one trophy smaller than the other. Is it that hard to make them the same? C’mon.
Paolo

Woohooo for Ferrand-Prevot. Next stop MTB world champ.
Abdu

What happened with the Avanti guy copping a big headbutt from Sky’s Peter Kennaugh when Garmin Cannondale started to go and made things interesting? The CT report says Kennaugh was “aggressor” in the chase when Garmin Cannondale split the race with 85 km’s to go, bit ironically.
Kennaugh didn’t take kindly to a small fry trying to hold his place in a rapidly splintering bunch and just bullied him over with a well placed helmet. Keeno called it, Phil missed it (nothing new there), and they generally awkwardly stopped talking about it. I’ve seen other instances get a lot worse outcry, clearly Sky and Kennaugh get away with that sort of thing because they’re a big budget team.
- jules
  
  i heard Keno call it but I didn’t see it either. Avanti guy should have gone and socked him one back. of course, that’s difficult when your team has to beg for race entries. ahh, elite cycling.. the playing field is as level as the french alps themselves
velocite

Seems as though the collarbone is the sacrificial component. Someone should invent some kind of shoulder mounted shock absorber so it doesn’t get broken. An air bag? Build it into the jersey?
- 900Aero
  
  If I owned a road racing bike team I’d make the clothing sponsor sew in slim but tough padding on the shoulders, hips, knees & elbows (yes I’d mandate 3/4 sleeves/knicks) just to my riders. Probably wouldn’t save any collarbones but might help prevent a lot of road rash.

Monday February 2, 2015

by Matt de Neef - February 2, 2015