Robbie McEwen Video: On-bike action from Japan Cup criterium
Australian returns to racing and shows he’s still got ample speedHe officially retired several months ago but Robbie McEwen pinned on a race number again on Saturday and showed that he’s still got a considerable amount of oomph when it comes to a finishing sprint. The Australian rider took part in the Japan Cup criterium and despite not being in the same condition as some of those in the peloton, he finished a fine third in the race. Jaroslaw Marycz (Saxo Bank Tinkoff Bank) jumped away inside the final kilometre and soloed in to take the win. Fumi Beppu (Orica GreenEdge) was second, just ahead of McEwen. The latter has been working as sprint coach and advisor to the Orica GreenEdge team and guided Beppu in the finale of the race. His shouted directions to him can be heard in the video below, which McEwen recorded via bike-mounted camera and [...]
Video: Five top Giro riders on the significance of the event plus the 2013 route
Hesjedal, Nibali, Contador, Cavendish and Rodriguez speakSpeaking about their impressions thus far of the event as well as giving key thoughts about next year’s route, five of the top riders who were at this month’s Giro d’Italia presentation have talked about the prestigious stage race. The 2012 winner Ryder Hesjedal explained the significance of his triumph, which saw him become the first Canadian to win a GrandTour and also the first three-week race victor for Garmin Sharp. “To be a Grand Tour winner now at 31 is a real nice place to be,” he said. “To be able to do that right up to the final day, execute the time trial, leave it all out there and for it to come right and be the winner after all that…that is what you dream about.” Hesjedal, the Italian Vincenzo Nibali, Spain’s Alberto Contador plus 2012 runner up and Joaquim Rodriguez, and [...]
Video: The stars react to the 2013 Giro d’Italia, route detailed stage by stage
Riders weigh up what race, and route, mean to themHaving seen details of the testing, taxing route unveiled for next year’s Giro d’Italia, some of the world’s top riders have given their impressions of the Giro as an event and also of the parcours itself. As detailed yesterday, the 2013 edition will feature five high mountain stages with summit finishes, six medium mountain stages with one concluding in an uphill, two individual time trials [including an uphill TT], a team time trial and seven stages for sprinters or breakaway riders. “The Giro is just special,” states this year’s champion Ryder Hesjedal in the video below. “It is Italy, the passion of the racing, the history, the iconic images; the great champions have ridden these famous passes, mountains and events. You just feel that when you show up.” Alberto Contador echoes this, saying that the event means a lot to him [...]
100 year old Frenchman aiming for unique 100 kilometre record today
Evergreen cyclist stuns scientists with his fitness and healthA little over six months after 100 year old Frenchman Robert Marchand set the oldest ever track record, he continues to push back at the erosion of youth and set himself another major goal. In February he set an hour record for his age group, covering 24.251 kilometres in the World Cycling Centre in Switzerland despite being instructed by doctors not to exceed a heart-rate of 110 beats per minute. “I’m not playing at being a champion,” he said at the time. “I just wanted to do something for my 100th birthday.” Today the centenarian is aiming to become the fastest rider his age to cover 100 kilometres, or 62 miles. He has been training for that goal and is hoping to average 22.5 km/h, thus completing the distance in less than five hours. “If I make it, I'll become the best [...]
Video: Contador explains moment he seized control of 2012 Vuelta a España
Spaniard talks about indecision which preceded decisive moveThe attack looked assertive, premediated and was completely effective, but Alberto Contador has admitted he was wracked by uncertainty prior to launching the single most decisive move in this year’s Vuelta a España. Speaking in a video interview recorded after he won the race, the Saxo Bank Tinkoff Bank rider said that he originally had planned to surge far closer to the line at Fuente Dé. “I remember the night before with my team-mate Jesus Hernandez, in the room,” he said, describing their musings about what to do after each of his previous attacks on Joaquim Rodriguez failed. “‘Tomorrow maybe we can attack..’ but I think in the last three Ks, not before because before it is dangerous, it is very long to the finish line, the last climb.” Contador then explains that during the stage he told three of his team to [...]
Video preview: Daniel Lloyd details stage one of Tour of Britain
Huge crowds expected for first day of actionAs he did earlier this year on key stages of the Giro d’Italia and the Tour de France, British pro Daniel Lloyd has ridden the opening stage of the Tour of Britain and previewed the characteristics of this first day of the race. The Team IG Sigma Sport competitor finished tenth in the race last year while competing with the Garmin-Transitions team. This event is a big target for him, not least because it’s a major platform to display his talents and the team sponsors. “This is the longest edition of the race so far at 1349 kilometres,” said Lloyd in the video below. “This will be without doubt the biggest objective of the year for the six UK-based teams competing. Not only do they get a chance to compete on television, they also get a chance to pit themselves against six of [...]