It’s still there. Mont Faron used to be a fixture on the cycling calendar, and often the first summit finish of the year, but the demise of several races mean it’s no longer used in racing and now belongs on a list of forgotten climbs… more of which below.
The racing has gone but this mountain remains as an attractive climb and a good test, plus it’s revealed a few names in recent years, including Chris Froome’s first noticeable result.
Everyone wants to win and pressure mounts on teams that have yet to win. Do early season victories matter? Does getting off to a good start in the season help a team’s results through the rest of the year and does having a poor start mean the rest of the year is going to suffer? Here’s a statistical analysis and some thoughts on the matter.
Much was made last summer of the hostile reception given to Chris Froome as he rode around France with reports of urine being thrown at him and Richie Porte saying he was punched as he climbed to La Pierre St Martin. Readers even emailed in to ask if the Tour de France is safe to visit (of course it is). In fact hostility from the crowd, or at least a few morons along the way, has long been part of the sport. Gino Bartali got lynched and Jacques Anquetil even named a boat after the jeering crowds.
A few incidents might still shock but the wonder is why an event that passes 12 million people with barely a barrier, tape or fence between athletes and spectators doesn’t see more trouble.
The UCI has announced that the Katusha team won’t be suspended after all. Despite two notifications it has decided to apply a proportionate response, judging that Luca Paolini’s cocaine use was “social” and therefore it could be set aside for anti-doping.
It’s debatable how the UCI got here under its own rules but it could be the right move given the UCI’s rule on team suspensions isn’t part of WADA’s Code so this collective punishment could fall over if put under legal pressure. Not that the team’s worries are over, if they remain members of the MPCC then they could still be sitting out some World Tour races soon.
Last Friday the UCI announced that Katusha’s Eduard Vorganov had been notified of A-sample finding of a banned substance called Meldonium. Katusha now face a suspension from racing of 15-45 days which will undermine their spring classics campaign and their membership of the self-regulatory group the MPCC means they could sit out a second period too.
This is Belgium’s version of the Galibier, Tourmalet or Stelvio. It might not be the highest nor the hardest but its name is celebrated as a place central to the sport’s history. What’s it like to ride?
Marcel Kittel gets his season off to the perfect start. He beat Mark Cavendish again, the Briton has yet to beat Kittel when they’ve raced together in a sprint finish. See of yourself with Cycling Quotient’s useful Head to Head feature but this is as much a function of the calendar and race programmes as it is comparative speed and power.
The season has barely started but look how busy it is with racing in Dubai, Australia, France and Spain right now and that’s just the men; the women are in Qatar too. Much is made of having the “best riders in the best races” but there’s something to be said about riders going their separate ways during the season too.
The first rider has been caught with a motor at a UCI race. Until now thoughts focussed on whether technology and logistics, such as how would a motor work, the possible gains and whether anyone would be reckless enough to try it. Finally someone has been caught and it opens up a range of moral and ethical questions. Is a motor worse than EPO?