Peter Sagan rides away from the lead group with 3.5km to go whilst Greg Van Avermaet, Bernhard Eisel and Borut Božič try to chase. These three riders were Sagan’s greatest rivals in a sprint finish. So instead of outsprinting them, he outrode them. This was the moment the race was won.
The trouble with lists is that you leave out more than you include. It’s been a good year for racing and so picking just five moments feels like defining the year by this selection when in fact the cycling season is never quite a series of stand-alone moments but instead a story full of chapters, plots and sub-plots. Put it another way, I can’t pick a fifth highlight, there are too many to chose from so here’s a look at a few more more moments from the year…
It hard to write about Sagan. He’s so good you quickly run out of adjectives. Today’s results don’t even tell the full story, he finished a second clear of the others but in fact had time to look back, sit up, cross himself and then perform a goofy “running man” celebration. It makes you wonder what the other riders think.
The Tour of Switzerland is arguably the fourth biggest stage race on the calendar. Prestigious, historic, challenging and at the height of the season this is an important event on the calendar. The 2012 race was won by Rui Costa (Movistar).
He staked his claim on Stage 2, the first road stage of the race with a summit finish in the upmarket ski resort of Verbier. The race passed over the Simplon Pass, plenty to tire the legs. As they approached the foot of the final climb the pace was fierce and a select group formed on the final climb. From this Frank Schleck attacked with six kilometres to go, a man who can now carry the adjective “aggressive” after several sharp moves during the week. It was a strong move but the group began to close in and Rui Costa jumped out. He passed Schleck in the final moments of the stage, overhauling him by just four seconds and taking the overall lead by eight seconds. This late move to catch and pass Schleck was the moment the race was won.
From L’Equipe today: Number of victories at age 22: Laurent Jalabert, 1; Sean Kelly, 2; Philippe Gilbert, 5; Peter Sagan, 33.
— Pete Geyer (@cyclingfans) June 13, 2012
That’s how good Peter Sagan is. Ok, like all statistics you can take them apart a bit, for example the age they turned pro makes a difference. But 33 wins? Even for a sprinter this is phenomenal but like those listed, Sagan seems to have something more. After all he beat Fabian Cancellara for the prologue in the Tour de Suisse.
What bike is Jérôme Coppel riding? It says Time on the side so you’d think it is a frame from the French manufacturer… but it looks very much like a Trek Speed Concept 9.0 frame, no?
Five moments from 2011. They are a personal choice like any list sometimes you omit more than you include but I’ll explain each moment. They’re presented in no particular order.
This time Stage 3 of the Tour de Suisse. Arguably the fourth biggest stage race in the world, Switzerland is Europe’s mountain nation and full of stunning roads. In this highlight of 2011 you get clever tactics, a master class descending and Peter Sagan showing that a vicious mountain pass like the Grosse Scheidegg (16km, 7.7% average, several sections at 12%) doesn’t worry him.
It’s hard to get the weather forecast right sometimes so predicting the results a 266km race is a lot harder. Nevertheless, for the fun of it here are some thoughts for Sunday’s elite men’s road world championships, starting with some scenario analysis and then a run through of the favourites.
Winning the Tour of Poland today marks Peter Sagan’s first stage race win at “World Tour” level. It wasn’t long ago when he was riding around town on his mountain bike.
