Daily Cycling Facts 08.03.2014

The Drentse 8 Van Dwingeloo took place on this day in 2012, and was the first round of that year's Women's World Cup. The winner came as something as a surprise: 21-year-old Chloe Hosking, then with Specialized-Lululemon, outsprinted Giorgia Bronzini, Marianne Vos, Monia Baccaille and Emma Johansson to the line and thus marked herself out as a serious new talent.

Paris-Nice began on this day in 1966, 1967, 1970, 1987, 1992, 1998 and 2009. The 1966 edition saw Jacques Anquetil set a new record of five wins - his third and fourth wins had also been multiple victory records. It came at the height of Anquetil/Poulidor fan rivalry in France which, at times, threatened to boil over into the sort of violence asociated with Mods/Rockers rivalry on the other side of the English Channel - according to legend, a Poulidor-supporting farmer made his wife sit on a hot stove because she preferred Anquetil. True? We hope not - but either way, the following year the woman had decided that she did in fact prefer Poulidor after all. Unfortunately, her husband had now become obsessed by Felice Gimondi.

1967 was the only edition to have been won by a British cyclist - and it was none other than Tom Simpson, whose fame remains greater than that of Mark Cavendish, David Millar and Bradley Wiggins even half a century after his tragic, stupid death four months later as he climbed Mont Ventoux in the Tour de France.

1970 brought a second win for Eddy Merckx, who would become the first rider to achieve three consecutive victories. However, his record was well and truly shattered when the Irishman Sean Kelly scored his sixth consecutive win in 1987. Jean-François Bernard won in 1992, the first Frenchman to have done so for twelve years, then Frank Vandenbroucke became the first Belgian for twenty-one years in 1996. Luis León Sánchez became the third Spanish winner in 2009; the year that the race became a part of the UCI World Calendar and each rider's results began to contribute towards their World Ranking.

Peta Mullens

Peta Mullens

Born in Sale, Australia on this day in 1988, Peta Mullens is a track endurance, road cyclist and mountain biker. She was Australian Junior Women's Road Cyclist of the Year in 2006 and in 2007 won three stages and the General Classification at the Tour of the Southern Grampians, followed by another stage win at the Canberra Tour, third place in the Road Race at the Oceania Games and excellent performances at Chongming Island and the Tour de Bretagne.

Mullens won the Tour of the Southern Grampians again in 2008 and became National Under-23 Road Race Champion a year later, then had a few quieter years before winning the National Mountain Bike Cross Country Championship at Elite level in 2013. In 2014, Mullens joined the British-registered Wiggle-Honda team and was second in the National Criterium Championship.

Joost Posthuma
(image credit: Heidas CC BY-SA 3.0)

Joost Posthuma, born in the Dutch city Hengelo on this day in 1981, was among the riders who were announced with much fanfare as a part of the Leopard Trek team for 2011. In 2012, he joined Leopard team mates Andy and Frank Schleck as a part of the new Radioshack Nissan Trek Pro Cycling Team, thus dispelling rumours that he would go to the Australian GreenEDGE. The new team was, however, doomed: a series of spats and unhappiness with management styles created rifts, then the team was destroyed when manager Johan Bruyneel was implicated in the doping investigation that also led to the downfall of Lance Armstrong.

Posthuma's best results to date were overall wins at the 2008 Tour of Luxembourg and the 2009 Vuelta a Andalucia and came 8th overall at the 2011 Tour of Britain. After being unable to secure a contract for 2013, he announced his retirement.


John Herety, born in Cheadle on this day in 1958, began cycling in his childhood. In 1980, he took part in the Olympics, won the Manx Trophy, Stage 9 at the Peace Race and came 3rd among the Amateur class at the British National Championships; then - as so many other riders born outside France have done - joined the Athletic Club Boulogne-Billancourt where he raced alongside Sean Yates and won Paris-Rouen. He became National Champion the following year and 2nd overall at the 1983 Tour of Britain, the year he also married Margaret Swinnerton - the sister of Paul, Catherine and Bernadette, all of whom were professional cyclists. Herety is now the manager of Rapha-Condor-Sharp.

Peter Schep, born in Lopik in the Netherlands on this day in 1977 has been National Champion in the scratch race (2003) and points race (2004), then World Champion for the points race in 2006 and European Madison Champion in 2007.

Other cyclists born on this day: Maxime Vantomme (Belgium, 1986); Jiří Daler (Czechoslovakia, 1940); Fred Taylor (USA, 1890, died 1968); Owe Adamson (Sweden, 1935); Miho Oki (Japan, 1974); Werner Potzernheim (Germany, 1927); Luvsangiin Buudai (Mongolia, 1940); Federico Moreira (Uruguay, 1961); Hervé Boussard (France, 1966); Raúl Labbate (Argentina, 1952); Belem Guerrero (Mexico, 1974); Miguel Margalef (Uruguay, 1956); Yevgeny Klevtsov (USSR, 1929. died 2003); Laurent Bezault (France, 1966).

Cyclopunk's News Digest 26.03.12

Today: Joost Posthuma to miss Three Days and Ronde - Shelley Olds injured - Trofeo Binda 2012 video

Joost Posthuma
(image credit: Thomas Ducroquet CC BY-SA 3.0) 

Extended recovery for RadioShack rider
Joost Posthuma is still ill - the 30-year-old Dutchman had been feeling better and was entered into the Criterium International at the weekend. However, the strain of competition caused a relapse:

Joost posthuma ‏ @joostposthumaThat was not good. My sickness starts again. #badluck 

Then:

Tomorrow taking to the hospital for scans. My sinuses are still inflamed.

"My priority now is to get better," he says on his website. "I've already played around with my health for too long." He will miss both the Three Days of De Panne and the Ronde van Vlaanderen.




Shelley Olds injured

Shelley Olds
(image credit: AA Drink-Leontien.nl)

AA Drink-Leontien.nl bosses have confirmed that Shelley Olds broke her wrist during a fall at Sunday's Trofeo Binda. The 31-year-old American, who was fifth in the race last year, was taken to hospital for treatment before returning to the team's training base in Girona. "In the first descent of the race she was involved in a significant crash," says manager Danny Stam. "I soon realised that it was not good. It's too bad this happened to her, because she's been riding well this last week and would have been a very valuable team member at the Ronde van Vlaanderen."

Trofeo Binda 2012
A one-hour programme covering the Trofeo Binda has appeared online, courtesy of Girdon2009 who also has a selection of other women's cycling videos on YouTube. Here it is - click here for the full-size YouTube version!

Daily Cycling Facts 08.03.12

Paris-Nice began on this day in 1966, 1967, 1970, 1987, 1992, 1998 and 2009. The 1966 edition saw Jacques Anquetil set a new record of five wins - his third and fourth wins had also been multiple victory records. It came at the height of Anquetil/Poulidor fan rivalry in France which, at times, threatened to boil over into the sort of violence asociated with Mods/Rockers rivalry on the other side of the English Channel - according to legend, a Poulidor-supporting farmer made his wife sit on a hot stove because she preferred Anquetil. True? We hope not - but either way, the following year the woman had decided that she did in fact prefer Poulidor after all. Unfortunately, her husband had now become obsessed by Felice Gimondi.

1967 was the only edition to have been won by a British cyclist - and it was none other than Tom Simpson, whose fame remains greater than that of Mark Cavendish, David Millar and Bradley Wiggins even half a century after his tragic, stupid death four months later as he climbed Mont Ventoux in the Tour de France.

1970 brought a second win for Eddy Merckx, who would become the first rider to achieve three consecutive victories. However, his record was well and truly shattered when the Irishman Sean Kelly scored his sixth consecutive win in 1987. Jean-François Bernard won in 1992, the first Frenchman to have done so for twelve years, then Frank Vandenbroucke became the first Belgian for twenty-one years in 1996. Luis León Sánchez became the third Spanish winner in 2009; the year that the race became a part of the UCI World Calendar and each rider's results began to contribute towards their World Ranking.

Joost Posthuma
(image credit: Heidas CC BY-SA 3.0)

Joost Posthuma, born in the Dutch city Hengelo on this day in 1981, was among the riders who were announced with much fanfare as a part of the Leopard Trek team for 2011. In 2012, he will join Leopard team mates Andy and Frank Schleck as a part of the new Radioshack Nissan Trek Pro Cycling Team, thus dispelling rumours that he would go to the Australian GreenEDGE. His best results to date were overall wins at the 2008 Tour of Luxembourg and the 2009 Vuelta a Andalucia and came 8th overall at the 2011 Tour of Britain.

Peta Mullens, born in Sale, Australia on this day in 1988, is a track endurance and road cyclist with the AIS Women's Team. She was Australian Junior Women's Road Cyclist of the Year in 2006.

John Herety, born in Cheadle on this day in 1958, began cycling in his childhood. In 1980, he took part in the Olympics, won the Manx Trophy, Stage 9 at the Peace Race and came 3rd among the Amateur class at the British National Championships; then - as so many other riders born outside France have done - joined the Athletic Club Boulogne-Billancourt where he raced alongside Sean Yates and won Paris-Rouen. He became National Champion the following year and 2nd overall at the 1983 Tour of Britain, the year he also married Margaret Swinnerton - the sister of Paul, Catherine and Bernadette, all of whom were professional cyclists. Herety is now the manager of Rapha-Condor-Sharp.

Peter Schep, born in Lopik in the Netherlands on this day in 1977 has been National Champion in the scratch race (2003) and points race (2004), then World Champion for the points race in 2006 and European Madison Champion in 2007.

Other births: Maxime Vantomme (Belgium, 1986); Jiří Daler (Czechoslovakia, 1940); Fred Taylor (USA, 1890, died 1968); Owe Adamson (Sweden, 1935); Miho Oki (Japan, 1974); Werner Potzernheim (Germany, 1927); Luvsangiin Buudai (Mongolia, 1940); Federico Moreira (Uruguay, 1961); Hervé Boussard (France, 1966); Raúl Labbate (Argentina, 1952); Belem Guerrero (Mexico, 1974); Miguel Margalef (Uruguay, 1956); Yevgeny Klevtsov (USSR, 1929. died 2003); Laurent Bezault (France, 1966).

Cav to announce 2012 team...?

(© Mogens Engelund CC3.0)

Are we about to finally find out with which team new World Champion Mark Cavendish will be riding in 2012 following the unfortunate demise of HTC-Highroad? Rumours are circulating that we'll be enlightened at some point in the very near future, following Team Sky's conformation that whilst they have established an "oral contract," they do not have a signed contract with the rider on Tuesday morning (4th October).

For several weeks now, the greater part of the cycling world has considered it all but a foregone conclusion that he'll be going to Team Sky. However, some of those rumours this morning suggest otherwise, hinting that it could be Quick-Step who will be merging with Omega Pharma-Lotto to form Omega Pharma Quick-Step in the new year. The Belgian Gazet van Antwerpen newspaper carries quotes it arrtibutes to an anonymous Sky employee who says that "recently, we're not so certain that he'll ride for us next year. Apparently, a few things have changed since he became World Champion in Copenhagen."

One of those factors would be likely to be Quick-Step's recent decision to begin using Specialized bikes, which Mark rode so successfully with Highroad, rather than Eddy Merckx machines - Sky will remain with Pinarello until at least the end of the current three-year contract between the team and supplier. While it might at first seem that Cav is the reason for the change in supplier rather than vice-versa - manufacturers being well aware of the exposure they receive from high-profile riders, thus driving Specialized to cut the team a good deal in order to keep Cav aboard their bikes - respected blogger Inrng notes that a previous press release announcing the new deal on Specialized's website has mysteriously vanished, suggesting that they plan to re-announce it with more of a fanfare if Cav is indeed now onboard.

Were this to be the case, it would come as blessed relief to other teams - a Sky with a Missile flying within it would be an all but unstoppable force with the potential to dominate Grand Tours for the next few years; Omega Pharma Quick-Step, as a new team with several riders who have not worked together, would likely be weaker than the tried, tested and entrenched Sky line-up, and as such would be seen as more manageable even with Cav among the ranks.

Lefevre is either ignoring the rumours or
keeping his cards close to his chest
(© McSmit CC3.0)

Quick-Step currently has a full roster, meaning that one rider would have to be ejected to make room for the Manx sprinter. That could mean a costly breach of contract if nobody wants to go voluntarily, but it's a price the team might consider worth paying in order to secure him - manager Patrick Lefevre seems keen to scotch the rumours, though: "Will Cavendish next year be in my cycling team?" says the Belgian ex-professional. "I wish - but I have thirty riders under contract.”

Later in the day, news broke that Davide Malacarne would be leaving Quick-Step for Europcar - thus solving the 30 rider problem if the rumours turn out to be true.

Meanwhile, equally unconfirmed rumours stemming from a report in the Dutch De Telegraaf newspaper claim that Joost Posthuma, one of the Leopard Trek riders that have fallen prey to the Leopard-RadioShack union, may be about to announce a new contract with GreenEDGE. The Australian team, formed in January this year, is  almost certain to gain a UCI World Tour licence for 2012 - allowing them to race in the  Giro d'Italia, Tour de France and Vuelta a Espana in addition to the other 24 races in the series.

The world awaits with baited breath...