A bicycle race is an exercise in hierarchy. We start with riders on equal time and by the end they are arranged in order. Tests like summit finishes and time trials help impose a reasonable order and over the years we’ve got used to seeing teams controlling events in stage races and relying on set piece moments to define the race, a “train” imposing itself of the race.
Only this year’s Paris-Nice has none of these cues, the route is a blank canvas where riders will have to take risks to win.
Professional cycling teams are ranked into three tiers. The top level is UCI Pro Team and the 18 teams here have automatic and obligatory access to the big races on the UCI’s World Tour calendar. In addition, there is a range of rules governing these teams that aim to ensure sporting and financial stability.
You’ll find the top-18 teams below, their sponsors explained plus riders and staff listed.
It’s all the rage these days. Alessandro Petacchi has threatened to swap the maglia azzurra of the Italian national team for that of Kazakhstan after the Italian authorities raised the idea of banning those with doping convictions from representing their country. Now Grega Bole is sporting a jersey in the colours of the Dutch national champion. Only he is Slovenian.
Lampre have been in the sport for years and years, first when Maurizio Fondriest emerged as the most powerful one day rider of the day back in 1993 and I’ve written before about just how little the kit has changed over the years. But for all the years in the sport, can you tell me what Lampre is, do you own or use any Lampre products or services? Well, they make pre-coated steel, or in plain English the white metal that encases washing machines and refrigerators. It’s also found on other things like air conditioning units, coffee machines and so on.
Italian pro team Liquigas have had a semi-permanent base on the slopes of Mount Etna this year. Etna is an active volcano in Sicily, the large island at the southern tip of the Italian peninsula. It’s black slopes often contrast with a snowy peak and at times, the infernal glow of lava.
Liquigas’s mountain HQ is the Rifugio Giovanni Sapienza, a mountain lodge also the choice of the Astana team. A pumice stone’s throw away lies the Hotel Corsaro, as used by two more teams, Lampre and Katusha.
Watching today’s stage of the Tour of Romandie, won by an aggressive Simon Spilak, something flashed across my mind: the Lampre kit is very old. Look at the photo above from Maurizio Fondriest’s win in the 1993 Milan – San Remo, observe the details. See how old the Fiat Tempra looks, the motorbikes seem ancient … Read more
It’s not got much coverage but the Lampre team’s existence has been under threat. The paperwork presented to the UCI before the season was deemed to have some “administrative errors” but this was code for a lack of funding for the team, the input of funds from all the team sponsors simply didn’t match the … Read more