Van der Poel crushes everyone in Milan-San Remo
It took only eight days of road racing for Mathieu van der Poel (Alpecin-Deceuninck) to reach his best form. That's not only amazing, it's flat out scary -- what could he do with ten days, fifteen days? The man certainly doesn't waste time. Near the top of the Poggio, the Dutchman blasted away from top favorites Wout van Aert (Jumbo-Visma), Tadej [...]
Jasper Philipsen is having a fab time. The Champ on Les Champs
Moments after Jasper Philipsen (Alpecin-Deceuninck) blew away the field to win solo -- yes, by himself, all alone in Paris, no other sprinters in camera view, he came to a euphoric stop. His teammates swarmed him, smacked him on the back, shouted congrats and -- was it Jasper himself? --who summed up the dramatic movement, winning the sprinter's Super Bowl, on [...]
Jumbo-Visma, popping bottles
Things around the dinner table are going to be pretty fab at the Jumbo Visma hotel. The champagne will flow, desserts will be indulged in, someone may even order a Hamburger American with fries. Probably the Colorado climber, Sepp Kuss -- his work is done, time to put on a kilo of fun. It's been an incredible Tour de France. [...]
Vingegaard and Pogacar crash and call truce in Tour de France.
Jonas Vingegaard and Tadej Pogacar have battled each other up the Alps and Pyrenean mountains, trading blows, attacking and defending, two evenly matched riders, head and shoulders above everyone else in the race. Today, they fought each other down the last mountain. Still trailing Vingegaard by over two minutes and almost to the hors category Hautacam, the final climb of [...]
Pogacar/ Four seconds gained, everything lost
Tadej Pogacar (UAE Team Emirates), winner of the last two editions of theTour de France, took victory on today's summit finish at Peyragudes. Hurrah, chapeau, champagne all around, and yet how disappointing. Why does this feel like such a loss? A capitulation? An acceptance of an unhappy and brutally evident reality? Pogacar isn't making up a two minute deficit to [...]
Snapped chain and vomiting. UAE loses their Tour climbers.
Two kilometers from the top of the Mur de Peguere, Rafal Majka leads Tadej Pogačar in a select group with Jonas Vingegaard and Sepp Kuss (Jumbo Visma) plus Nairo Quintana (Arkea Samsic). Tension ratchets up as everyone awaits the inevitable attack and the snap of the elastic. Only the elastic didn't snap -- instead it was Majka's chain. In an [...]