The Mouvement Pour Un Cyclisme Crédible or MPCC is sometimes the butt of jokes but what if we celebrated its achievements and laughed at those who try to mock the sport?
This group of teams has grown and led the way on anti-doping policies, often seeing the UCI copy the rules later on and taking a stance to safeguard rider health too.
The Dubai Tour starts today and so does the Etoile de Bessèges. Both offer several days of racing in the early season but the comparisons stop there as the Emirati race outbids its rivals on almost every scale. The Etoile long been an essential part of the early season in France but will it survive much longer?
ASO have announced the route for the Paris-Nice. After last year’s hilly route without time trials the 2015 race looks traditional with an opening prologue, a “summit finish” and the conclusive Col d’Eze time trial.
Mathieu van der Poel looks built for the road. When you look at riders like Lars Boom or Zdeněk Štybar you can see a crunched ball of muscle suited to shorter, explosive efforts but “VDP” is a different shape with limbs like spatulas and maybe he will cross to the road in time with great success?
Many saw my videos from the on-board cameras during the Tour Down Under and I’m grateful for it. Now I’ll explain how it was done, writes Jérémy Roy of FDJ.
This is the translation of a piece on Roy’s informative website jeremyroy.fr and he has approved its use here.
Jack Bobridge is the next to have a go at cycling’s Hour Record. Once the record was very prestigous but today it seems to be a record cherished within cycling rather than beyond it. However it is the ultimate chance to define and redefine a career.
Cycle racing seems to be going in a one way direction with teams and riders adopting more and more sports science. But a few riders still buck the trend against power meters. Are their days coming to an end?
Roma Maxima has fallen off the calendar for 2015. It was one of the few races left in a capital city. France, Italy, Belgium, Spain and the Netherlands are all seen as cycling’s heartlands but all suffer from a dwindling if not total absence of pro racing in their capital cities. Of the three grand tours last year only the Tour de France visited its capital city.
You probably know what Trek, Cannondale and Giant make but do you know your Soudal from your Jumbo or what Lampre does? All year people will be naming and even cheering these brands.
Rohan Dennis jumps clear on the climb to Paracombe to take the stage and the time bonus, putting him in the ochre jersey. It was a slender lead but enough to defend on Willunga Hill two days later.
The 2015 season has started with a tale of home advantage, an Aussie 1-2-3 on GC and local teams thriving.