BREAKING: Strade Bianche, Tirreno-Adriatico and Milan-San Remo set to be cancelled? Froome leads Portal tributes; Cofidis boss threatens hunger strike; C4’s Jon Snow breaks quarantine for bike rides + more on live blog
SUMMARY
"We're being held against our will" – Cofidis President from UAE hotel lockdown
Four teams remain confined in a hotel following the coronavirus scare at the UAE Tour: Cofidis, FDJ, UAE Team Emirates and Gazprom.
In a statement, Cofidis president Thierry Vittu said that the situation is, “really not normal.”
“We are held against our will in a place we have not chosen and for an unknown period of time,” he said. “It is this last point that is the most difficult to live with: we constantly hope that things will get better soon and nothing happens.”
He says: “When you meet someone from the hotel in the corridor, they run away… that brings me another comparison: we are treated like plague victims. Our rooms have not been cleaned since we arrived five days ago. You have to go to the elevator and there is a cart and we get sheets, soaps, towels.”
Vittu adds: “It would be good for the media to take hold of our situation, just to add pressure where it is needed. But hey, morale remains good, this story will end well one day.”
Notre président @ThVittu a tenu à s’exprimer sur la situation difficile vécue par l’équipe sur l’ #UAETour, en confinement depuis 5j sans réelles explications. On leur envoie plein de courage en espérant une issue favorable rapide. Réaction à retrouver ici https://t.co/aQxKbvKnQA pic.twitter.com/SadeHxJEnx
— Team Cofidis (@TeamCOFIDIS) March 3, 2020
Cofidis sports director threatens hunger strike
It’s not just Cofidis president Thierry Vittu who’s unhappy with the team being kept in an Abu Dhabi hotel following the UAE Tour coronavirus scare (see below).
The team’s sports director Roberto Damiani has told Tutto Bici that he is prepared to go on hunger strike in protest at being prevented from leaving.
“I believe that we have now passed the limit of decency, albeit in the name of public health and the danger of contamination. You already know what has happened in recent days, but to date only the members of three teams have been forced to stay in their rooms for fear of coronavirus infection.
“I want to clarify that the Cofidis team has never had any problems and that we have been confined here to the fourth floor, with the other two teams, without it having been taken into consideration that for a week, at least, about 500 people have met [on the race] and stayed together for several hours a day,” he pointed out.
“I must say that RCS, as an organiser, is doing everything it can to solve the problem, but they, too, seem to be coming up against a brick wall.
“If, in the next few hours, the situation doesn’t improve. I will start a hunger strike to at least defend the riders and staff members for whom I am directly responsible at this race.”
"Keep out of the crowds; ride a bicycle to and from work"
Time for an update of this 101 year old bike ad. pic.twitter.com/VkvrSxoU3u
— Lloyd Alter (@lloydalter) March 1, 2020
The life and times of a pothole
I past this twice over the weekend. Someone had put a traffic cone in the pothole. On Sunday it had been driven over and flattened. Didn’t quite fill the hole to fix the problem.
— Andrew Storey (@BiffaBacon1) March 3, 2020
Bike tracks puzzle
Simple question.
Bicycle Tracks Puzzle 🚲
These tracks were left by a bike. Which way did it go?
Left ⬅️ or Right ➡️ pic.twitter.com/rwFeUFndzT
— Tamás Görbe (@TamasGorbe) March 1, 2020
If you’ve made up your mind, here’s the answer.
Eight-year-old Adelaide boy riding 800km for charity
Riley Evitts is going to do 800km from Melbourne to Adelaide. He’s eight.
10 Daily reports that he’s been training for nearly a year, doing 150km on Saturdays with his grandfather, Paul Turnbull.
Riley apparently came up with the idea for the ride when he was five, after meeting round-the-world unicyclist Ed Pratt.
“He had a really big adventure and I really wanted to do a big adventure like that as well.”
Riley and Turbull will leave Melbourne from Marvel Stadium on March 22 and arrive at Adelaide Oval on March 30. They’ve scheduled a rest day in there too.
He’s raising money for the Little Heroes Foundation, which supports seriously ill children.
Peers don't have to take a black cab to the House of Lords
Green Party peer Jenny Jones has been sourcing alternative forms of transport.
Last week:
I’m having to get black cabs to work and back cos of my broken foot. (And no, before you ask, I don’t claim for them.) Today had one moaning about immigrants, using ukip style ‘facts’. I asked him to stop but he wldn’t. No tip for you, then.
— Jenny Jones🕷 (@GreenJennyJones) February 27, 2020
This week:
Being picked up to go to work on a passenger bike with @pedalmeapp pic.twitter.com/MaIs5z8hSt
— Jenny Jones🕷 (@GreenJennyJones) March 3, 2020
Door to door service! Fast and reliable. As well as good fun. Really impressed with my first trip with @pedalmeapp pic.twitter.com/IDvLcyRkZK
— Jenny Jones🕷 (@GreenJennyJones) March 3, 2020
Air pollution is cutting three years from human lifespan
According to a report in the Guardian, life expectancy would rise by a year if fossil fuel emissions were cut to zero, while if all ‘controllable air pollution’ were cut, it could rise by more than 20 months.
C4’s Jon Snow is in self-isolation – but he’s still going for bike rides
Channel 4 News presenter Jon Snow is in self-isolation after coming back from Iran, where there are cases of coronavirus Covid-19.
Snow is of course also the president of Cycling UK and it’s notable that he’s still getting out on his bike.
“People have been incredibly kind and generous,” he reports in the London Evening Standard. “A bottle of wine on the step, a massive balaclava to enable me to get out incognito on my bike — yes, it’s permitted so long as I keep pedalling and give people a wide berth.”
As we reported earlier, cycling has long been recommended as a means of getting around without contracting (or transmitting) illnesses.
Watch: Denmark's Team Pursuit world record from last week
Check it out: it’s four Danish lads going round and round for slightly less time than people doing the team pursuit normally go round and round.
Astonishing performance by Denmark in the Men’s Individual Pursuit last week 😵
Before #Berlin2020: 3:48.012 🕐
After #Berlin2020: 3:44.672 🕐 pic.twitter.com/rC6JGNNfmJ— UCI Track Cycling (@UCI_Track) March 3, 2020
Swapping car parking bays for bike parking
This is how they trial bike parking in the Netherlands.
With fietsvlonders…
Invented in Rotterdam and spreading across the country, the fietsvlonder is a platform that temporarily swaps one car parking space for 8 bikes.
If successful, the curb is permanently adjusted, and it is moved to another location. @GemeenteDenHaag Vice Mayor @RvanAsten explains. pic.twitter.com/y7VPsaeedH
— Dutch Cycling Embassy (@Cycling_Embassy) March 3, 2020
Good old fietsvlonders.
Team Ineos DS, Nicolas Portal dies from suspected heart attack
La Gazzetta Dello Sport reports that Nicolas Portal, the DS of Team Ineos, has died of a heart attack. He was 40 years old. RIP https://t.co/QqWQyXcRpg
— the Inner Ring (@inrng) March 3, 2020
La Gazzetta Dello Sport has reported the death of Team Ineos Directeur Sportif Nicolas Portal. He was the DS during numerous Team Sky and Ineos Grand Tour wins.
He reportedly suffered a fatal heart attack aged just 40. Our condolences to his family and friends.
More to follow.
Chris Froome leads tributes to Nicolas Portal, who guided him to four Tour de France wins
Chris Froome, whom Nicolas Portal guided to four Tour de France victories, has led tributes to the Team Ineos sports director, who died from a heart attack today at the age of 40.
My thoughts are with Nico’s wife and children tonight. He was the kindest, happiest guy I knew and always lived life to the fullest. Rest In Peace Nico pic.twitter.com/vfYF9slMQ3
— Chris Froome (@chrisfroome) March 3, 2020
Among those also taking to social media to express their shock and grief at the passing of someone who clearly touched those with whom he came into touch through his work were riders he worked with at Team Sky and, subsequently Team Ineos, Peter Kennaugh and Tao Geoghegan Hart.
My first room mate as a pro. I Can’t believe the news of Nico Portal passing away my thoughts and love are with his family who he cherished more than anything. The friendliest most genuine, kind person you could wish to meet, words can’t explain how much he will be missed x
— Peter kennaugh (@Petekennaugh) March 3, 2020
I never met someone Nico didn’t have time for. I never met someone who didn’t think the world of Nico. He was a true inspiration. His energy, his humility & his passion for life shone so brightly. Nico Portal, it was an honour to work with you. We will all miss you immensely.
— Tao Geoghegan Hart (@taogeoghegan) March 3, 2020
Tributes have also been paid by, among others, Eurosport cycling anchor Orla Chennaoui, the UCI, and the Tour de France – a race where, besides Froome’s four wins, Portal also acted as sports director in the past two years when Geraint Thomas and Egan Bernal won the yellow jersey.
Nico Portal was a rare being in professional sport – a gentleman who always had time and a smile for everyone. I first met him a rider and through all his success as a DS, he never seemed to change. A kindly father, and father figure. My heart goes out to his family and the team.
— Orla Chennaoui (@SportsOrla) March 3, 2020
The thoughts of everyone at the UCI are with the family, friends and everyone @TeamINEOS after the tragic loss of Nicolas Portal today.
RIP Nicolas 💙 pic.twitter.com/9ojNLsaww2
— UCI (@UCI_cycling) March 3, 2020
We are saddened to hear of the sudden passing away of Nicolas Portal, who played a vital role in numerous Tours in the last few years. The organisers of the Tour de France offer their sincerest condolences to Nicolas’ family and friends as well as @TeamINEOS. pic.twitter.com/vqW2NTdZ9G
— Tour de France™ (@LeTour) March 3, 2020
Strade Bianche and Milan-San Remo set to be cancelled?
New advice from medical advisors to the Italian government tonight suggest that cycling races scheduled to take place in the country over the next month, including Strade Bianche, Tirreno-Adratico and Milan-San Remo will be cancelled due to the ongoing coronavirus crisis.
The Italian website Cyclingpro.net reports that the Comitato Scientifico, which is advising Prime Minister Giuseppe Conte on how to contain the spread of the virus, has recommended cancelling sporting events and other gatherings for the next 30 days.
We’ll have more on this developing story in the morning, but it does not look good for those races.
3 March 2020, 09:20
When was the last time you warmed up for a ride with an 11,000km smash across a continent? No, us neither.
Ben Davies riding Cairo to Cape Town in April
Top ultradistance rider tackling 11,000km route as a TCR warm-up
3 March 2020, 09:20
3 March 2020, 09:20
As far as we know, this is the first major UK sporting event cancelled with this as the claimed reason.
Cancelled! Mountain Mayhem 24hr MTB race becomes first major UK sporting event called off due to Coronavirus
Organisers say that virus spread makes event insurance too difficult
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If anyone reading this article is looking for reasonable alternatives Decathlon sell a range of bum bags including one with a bottle holder that comes with the bottle all of which are less than £20. I've got a bum bag I bought a few years ago to replace a North Face bum bag that has lasted really well including commuting and cycle touring that was only £10 and that doesn't seem to have any of the drawbacks of the pack on review.
@Borisface The frameset is similarly priced to e.g. Condor aluminium framesets such as Italia RC Integrato so it doesn't look too far off the mark. Obviously if you dress any old frame up with Campag Record 13 wireless and some decent wheels the final price is going to be somewhere north of £5k.
@Freddy56 @hotspanners Hi, just for for starters I didn’t boycott the race, if you read to the end of the article you’d have seen that I decided I was going to attend and try and implement a positive change… Just for clarity, if it helps with the credibility of my words and something I didn’t include in the blog for brevity and fear of willy-waving here’s an incomprehensive list of cycle events I’ve helped organise over the years - all Brighton Big Dog MTB events (about 12 i think), three league CX races and one Singlespeed CX Euro Champs (niche, i know), a few SAMS MTB races - maybe three or four it was a while back now, a Morvelo City Cross, I’ve stood on a corner in a high-vis vest at quite a few MTB, CX and road races too, and just helped wind up tape at last weekend’s CX race. I’ve also had the privilege to design logos, draw images, and create one-off pieces of artwork and give away prints as prizes for enough races and events for me to forget how many, all for free as part of ‘doing my bit’… Also if you made it through to the second half of the article you’ll have read that I have every sympathy for event organisers because of the experience of all the above and also from having conversations with various organisers on a regular basis so I am acutely aware of all the challenges faced. I chatted today with the future local CX race organiser mentioned, face to face in a field, and he has a similar hatred of AI and is more than happy for me to create a hand-drawn image to promote that race and also help out on the ground where possible… Might even draw a duck in there somewhere for giggles…
@Borisface Not entirely sure why some alleged good times set in the last century validate the silliness and ignorance of your rejection on the grounds of materials and weight of a bike that the reviewer (who, if you look at his bio above, has rather a lot of experience himself, not only of riding bikes but of engineering too) describes as "absolute perfection in every aspect". Thanks for the unrequested permission but I'm not actually looking to spend 6k on a bike at the moment; if I was, on the basis of this review and the photographs I'd certainly be putting this on my shortlist and looking for a test ride. But then in this area at least I have an open mind, you see.
@Freddy56 as the article says, Jo boycotted our race because he thought we’d used AI to design our flyer. I’m with him 100% but he got the facts wrong. People don’t like AI slop. It’s lazy and generic. But you’re right - these grassroots events run off volunteering. I wave flags, design kit and artwork, ferry things to our lockup etc - perhaps Jo could be the change he wants to see. He could volunteer to the London and SE CX league that he races in to help them out with artwork - he created Mint Sauce!
Currently riding home powered by this for the last 6 months after someone stole my SeeSence beam, LOVE it. super durable and batter life gets me home on full beam for 55 minutes
Comments and an article by people who organise NOTHING! Promoting an event is mostly by volunteers and an AI poster done at midnight after sorting the British cycling insurance, the toilets, the Marshalls, the council and a landowner is so draining. The effort is massive for usually a small team. Grab a flag and help rather than moaning about a generated image...o look the image is eye catching so it must work .
I have Wizzard works bag from 2018 (bought for my 30th) and this is a complete rip off it!!
6 times division champion, 1st cat road man, semi-pro for 3 years. Sub 21 min 10 and sub 55 min 25 on a steel road bike. Forty five years riding. Forgotten more about riding bikes than most on here will ever know. If you want to pay £6k for an aluminium road by all means go ahead.
@Borisface Probably for the best, if you're as ignorant about bikes and materials as your comment suggests you wouldn't appreciate it anyway. Go and buy something on the UCI weight limit made out of the latest space age super carbon and wobble around on it looking daft and feeling uncomfortable and to hell with aesthetics, practicality and real-world use cases, at least you'll have the right numbers ("6.85 kg, awesome!") and words ("Yeah, it's UHM 12k carbon, actually") for the cafe. Enjoy!
4 thoughts on “BREAKING: Strade Bianche, Tirreno-Adriatico and Milan-San Remo set to be cancelled? Froome leads Portal tributes; Cofidis boss threatens hunger strike; C4’s Jon Snow breaks quarantine for bike rides + more on live blog”
Ummmm, your in quarantine.
Ummmm, your in quarantine.
I think it’s more the
I think it’s more the arbitrary rules being applied (they tested negative, but are being kept in quarantine as they are on the same floor as someone who tested positive, while many others have left) and being treated like crap.
That fietsvlonder temporary
That fietsvlonder temporary cycle parking device is amazing, and should be adopted immediately by UK councils everywhere.
‘I’m having to get black cabs
‘I’m having to get black cabs to work and back cos of my broken foot. (And no, before you ask, I don’t claim for them.) Today had one moaning about immigrants, using ukip style ‘facts’. I asked him to stop but he wldn’t. No tip for you, then’
viz comic (remember that?) had a character called Cockney Wanker. In one episode he did ‘the knowledge’. So the examiner says to him as they are driving around London ‘I want you to take me from Victoria to Earl’s Court to White City’. After doing that successfully the examiner goes ‘excellent, now I want you to take me from Top of the Pops to Spice Girls to send ’em all back’