National Teams in the ProTour

Since any more detail on the Aussie team under Shane Bannan is vague for now, I wanted to review the broader concept behind the Aussie squad, namely that we are seeing the emergence of several national teams. In an age when the sport is supposed to be moving towards attracting global brands, we are seeing … Read more

Wikileaks and the Kazakhs

All the storm over the recent diplomatic documents Wikileaks doesn’t surprise me, but it’s just interesting to see things put in black and white text. A bit like someone’s private, off-the-record thoughts being transcribed and made very public. It’s embarrassing. Some recent documents touch on the small world of pro cycling. Two “cables” from US … Read more

Transfer Games: what next for Riis and Astana?

For a long time the transfer season revolved around Alberto Contador. The saga of his team for 2011 meant many other big names could not move until the Spaniard made up his mind. For example Astana recruited Kreuziger and Menchov went to Geox but only after Contador had announced he was going and in turn … Read more

"If the President phones?"

The RTL L’Equipe podcast is a good listen, one of the best podcasts going. Monday’s edition included a telephone interview with Astana’s Yvon Sanquer, the DS imported at the end of 2009 to replace Bruyneel and his entourage. Stuck in the middle with you When asked who was the team leader, Sanquer was firm that … Read more