“What sort of person wants to hurt children?” Vandals destroy teen cyclists’ DIY bike track; Angry German cyclist gives rival the middle finger after losing sprint, and claimed it was “agreed” he could win; Weirdest altitude camp? + more on the live blog

> Cyclist has knife held to neck during ambush by masked attackers

Let’s just hope Thomas De Gendt didn’t place a bet on his Lotto Dstny teammate Lennert Van Eetvelt winning yesterday’s Vuelta stage to Pico Villuercas – because things might have got a bit frosty around the dinner table.

Two weeks ago, De Gendt took to the social media cesspit formerly known as Twitter to confidently predict that “Lennert will win a stage in La Vuelta”.

But after yesterday’s summit finish – which saw the young Belgian prodigy ‘do an Alaphilippe’, as we call it in the cycling world, by throwing his arm in the air just as Primož Roglič nipped by for the win – veteran breakaway artist De Gendt, riding the Vuelta alongside Van Eetvelt, reassessed his pre-race prediction, adding the caveat: “But he needs to keep sprinting to the line.”

(Unipublic/Sprint Cycling Agency)

The 23-year-old, meanwhile, was well aware of where he went wrong yesterday, telling reporters after the stage that his premature celebration was “a kind of stupid thing to do, but there will be more opportunities”.

“Did I think I had won when I made that arm movement? Yes,” he continued. “That’s something you learn as a rookie, that you have to sprint right to the line, and not before it.

“I didn’t sense Roglič was coming up, though, so I more or less thought I had the victory. What did I feel? Did you hear me shout? That’s what I felt.”

Nevertheless, Van Eetvelt also said he can take heart from his climbing performance, which saw him match three-time Vuelta winner Roglič on the final climb’s savage 20 per cent slopes, and almost – almost – beat him in the sprint.

“For sure, I can be more than happy with the form I had and with how the race went today. If I had been beaten in a different way, it would also have been a really nice result. But now it hurts a bit. I think in a couple of days I can be pleased with this result,” he said.

“I came here for GC and this is good confirmation of my condition. It will give me and the team confidence to go for it in the Vuelta. Of course I also have a sour feeling right now. But there are still plenty of days to come and if you see where I am in the rankings. I can only be happy.”

Just in case you weren’t sure just how steep that final climb to Pico Villuercas was at the Vuelta yesterday, check out this brilliant photo by Zac Williams, capturing the moment the DSM-Firmenich Post NL team car juddered to a halt on the mountain’s 20 per cent slopes and needed the assistance of some very helpful roadside fans to make it to the top:

(Zac Williams/SWpix.com)

Never change, cycling, never change…

Speaking of the Tour de l’Avenir, check out the brutal-looking profile of today’s stage, which crams three monster climbs into just 70km, and where GB’s up-and-coming multidisciplinary star Joe Blackmore will be hoping to improve on his current fifth place on GC:

Ouch.

And if that wasn’t enough, the Tour de l’Avenir Femmes – which last year boasted a staggeringly impressive podium of Shirin van Anrooij, Anna Shackley, and Gaia Realini – gets underway today with a two-kilometre prologue… that also finishes at altitude at La Rosière:

A hill climb to kick off a mountainous stage race? Now that’s just cruel.

Though with good old fashioned hill climbing in mind, keep an eye out for Great Britain’s extremely strong six-rider line-up, which includes Flora Perkins (who picked up two top tens at the Tour of Britain), Awen Roberts, Tour de Normandie stage winner Josie Nelson, Eilidh Shaw, Millie Couzens, and all-rounder Zoe Bäckstedt.

Is another impressive GB showing on the cards at the ‘Tour of the Future’?

More than 1,200 schools in Scotland took part in Bikeability cycle training during the 2023-24 academic year, figures collated by Cycling Scotland and local authorities have revealed, as Bikeability say the training – along with “building a network of safe, dedicated cycle lanes and preventing dangerous driving” – is essential to encouraging and supporting children to ride their bikes.

According to the recently released figures, a record number of local authorities from across rural and urban Scotland delivered Level 2 on-road cycle training, which is free for pupils and supported by Transport Scotland grants, in 100 per cent of primary schools in their area. These councils included Aberdeen, Clackmannanshire, Dundee, East Dunbartonshire, East Lothian, Western Isles, Orkney, Scottish Borders, Shetland, and Stirling.

Meanwhile, despite a reduction in the overall budget for the programme, the training was also delivered at 60 per cent of Scotland’s schools, a record, with half of the country’s local authorities  now delivering on-road cycle training in more than 85 per cent of primary schools in their area.

> Bournemouth school pupils first in UK to trial “VR immersive cycle training” – as Bikeability says new tech has the “potential to change lives”

“It’s brilliant to see the high level of training being done, in the smallest to the largest schools in Scotland – at Edderton Primary in Highland, which has just six pupils, five took part while at Dunbar Primary, 135 pupils from all five P6 classes completed Level 2 training,” Bikeability Scotland Manager David Collins said in a statement.

“Learning to cycle and road safety awareness are essential life skills and schools that commit to Bikeability Scotland are helping young people gain these. And the benefits are lifelong – providing greater transport independence and healthier, greener lifestyles.

“The positive impact of Bikeability Scotland on frequency of cycling is also shown to be greatest in schools with a higher proportion of pupils eligible for Free School Meals.

“Together with building a network of safe, dedicated cycle lanes and preventing dangerous driving, Bikeability Scotland training is essential to support children to cycle.”

> Track cyclist who won three Olympic medals for Australia before “secret switch” to Team GB could face two-year ban from UCI, as AusCycling says Matthew Richardson would have been left out of Paris 2024 squad if they knew about defection plans

Marc Soler eating a Calippo two minutes before the stage start is the most Marc Soler thing you’ll see today. pic.twitter.com/7h7zfHk1yh

— Daniel Friebe (@friebos) August 21, 2024

Cycling’s very own Ferris Bueller sure does love a pre, mid, and post-race Calippo. And in almost 40 degree heat in the middle of Spain, you can’t really blame him…

Marc Soler eating a calippo on a bike is an absolute vibe. #TDF2022 pic.twitter.com/MBDLAKAnEh

— Sadhbh O’Shea (@SadhbhOS) July 16, 2022

Not that there’s much Calippo weather coming our way in the UK anytime soon, mind you (he types, as he stares forlornly out the rain-battered window, somehow jealous of the scorching heat being withstood by the Vuelta peloton).

A year after being provisionally suspended by the UCI over alleged abnormalities in his biological passport, Australian pro Robert Stannard is set to make an “immediate” return to the World Tour with Bahrain-Victorious, and will make his comeback at the Tour of Britain at the start of September.

Stannard, who won the Tour de Wallonie, finished in the top ten of two stages of the Criterium du Dauphiné, and second in the mountains classification at the Vuelta a España while riding for Alpecin-Deceuninck in 2022 and 2023, was provisionally banned last August for the “use of prohibited methods and/or prohibited substances”.

In June, the 25-year-old accepted a back-dated four-year suspension for what the UCI described as “unexplained” abnormal values in his Athlete Biological Passport in 2018 and 2019, when he was racing for Mitchelton-Scott, now known as Jayco-AlUla.

 

 

 

 

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A post shared by Team Bahrain Victorious (@teambahrainvictorious)

The backdated nature of his ban means Stannard is free to return to racing, with the Australian immediately snapped up by Bahrain-Victorious.

“It’s awesome to be able to ride my bike again, to be able to continue my cycling career,” Stannard, who continues to deny any wrongdoing, said in a team press release announcing his signing.

“I had to make a hard choice: accept the ruling and be able to do the sport I love again, or fight to clear my name. I believe I’ve made the wisest choice. I hope to be able to do both in the long run, but for now, I am seizing with both hands the opportunity to race again!

“I feel like I’ve got my life back, in a way. I can’t wait to return to racing, and I’m so grateful to have been given this opportunity by Bahrain.”

 

 

 

 

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A post shared by Robert Stannard (@robert_stannard)

Reflecting on his case, and asserting that he has never intentionally used banned substances, Stannard continued: “Athletes with ABP violations have not returned positive blood or urine tests for anything.

“They alleged that it could only have been caused by ‘illegal means’, but throughout the entire process, provided no evidence of any wrongdoing. No evidence of doping is collected or required for them to reach this judgment.

“I hope the Tribunal ruling will be published in the future, and then people will be able to read the details and make up their own minds. But it’s certainly changed my perspective on things, on cycling, and life as a whole.”

“We are happy to have Robert joining us. Robert went through a difficult period, with a lot of confusion, but we support him, and through our medical teams’ analysis we could not conclude any wrongdoing,” Bahrain-Victorious’ performance manager Vladimir Miholjevič added.

“He has been cleared to race in the professional peloton again, and is a talented rider who we think has great potential.”

> Best road bike tyres 2024 — get more comfortable and faster with fewer punctures

After almost two decades as a professional cyclist and 81 victories, Edvald Boasson Hagen has today announced his decision to retire at the end of the 2024 season.

Regarded as one of the sport’s most exciting and promising talents when he burst onto the scene in the late 2000s, the 37-year-old Norwegian was one of many riders over the years unfairly burdened with the ‘New Eddy Merckx’ tag, especially after his stunning win at Gent-Wevelgem in 2009, while riding for HTC-High Road as a 21-year-old.

One of Team Sky’s marquee signings when the British squad was formed in 2010, Boasson Hagen – who was stubbornly referred to by commentator Carlton Kirby as ‘Eddy Boss’ throughout his career – underlined his staggering all-round ability with two stage wins at the 2011 Tour de France, one from a bunch sprint and one from a breakaway in the Alps.

(Unipublic:Graham Watson)

However, his career was viewed by many to have stagnated while at Sky, where he was often confined to domestique duty in stage races while failing to make the mark expected of him in the classics.

Things picked up again after a move to MTN-Qhubeka, winning the Tour of Britain in 2015 (his second overall victory at the race) and grabbing his third and final Tour de France stage in 2017.

The Norwegian’s last pro win, however, would come at the 2019 Critérium du Dauphiné, where he won five stages throughout his career. He then spent three increasingly lean years at TotalEnergies, before securing a last-minute deal at Decathlon-AG2R for 2024, in what has proved his final pro season.

 

 

 

 

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“There is a time for everything and after 17 years in the pro peloton, I’m proud of what I have accomplished during my career,” Boasson Hagen posted on Instagram today.

“2024 will be my last season and I am looking forward to spending more time with my family and exploring new opportunities in my life beyond cycling.

“I want to take this opportunity to thank everyone that have supported me and cheered me on, the teams I’ve been a part of and especially my family and wife, who have always been there for me. I’ve been very lucky and happy to have been able to do this for so long, and for all the friendships, and cherished memories I am left with.

“Still some races left this season, going to do my best as always!”

One of those races will be the Renewi Tour, which Boasson Hagen has won twice before, in 2009 and 2011, in its old Eneco Tour incarnation.

Now one more stage win there would be a fitting way to bow out of the sport, Eddy Boss…

Not your average altitude camp 🐄😂

Join @soudalquickstep in San Pellegrino as the riders spend 18 days at altitude to fine-tune their form and even try their hand at milking some local cows 👇

🎥 Streaming now on @RoadCode: https://t.co/EPpZrQPAQo pic.twitter.com/xwwyE7Vxt5

— Velon CC (@VelonCC) August 21, 2024

First dinosaur jerseys, now cows… I have no words.

What a day for young Pavel Bittner, who took on Wout van Aert in a drag race to the line in Seville this afternoon at the Vuelta a España, and beat the Dutch star with a superb throw to the line to secure the biggest win so far of his promising career.

At the end of another largely uneventful flat, hot day at the Spanish Grand Tour, punctuated only by Rui Costa’s late race-ending crash with EF teammate Owain Doull, Alpecin-Deceuninck once again took control in the closing kilometres for Kaden Groves.

𝑺𝒐 𝒄𝒍𝒐𝒔𝒆! 👀

📸 Pavel Bittner takes Stage 5 victory after a photo finish sprint with Wout van Aert 💪#LaVuelta24 pic.twitter.com/fTsvXxygmf

— Eurosport (@eurosport) August 21, 2024

But when, with 250m to go, Groves inexplicably looked over his right shoulder, green jersey Van Aert immediately launched to his left.

Undeterred by the Belgian’s long-range sprint, DSM-Firmenich’s 21-year-old Czech all-rounder Bittner – who entered this Vuelta in top form off the back of two stage wins in Burgos – also accelerated into the wind, setting up a hard-fought drag race sprint with Van Aert.

Pavel Bittner (DSM Firmenich-PostNL) wins Stage 5 of the Vuelta pic.twitter.com/pdjdVr0q0r

— the Inner Ring (@inrng) August 21, 2024

And while another of the peloton’s young guns was caught out by a throw for the line yesterday, Bittner had no such problems, hurling his bike at the finish to pip Van Aert to take his third win of the month – which just so happen to be the only pro wins of his young career so far – and the biggest of the lot.

Pavel Bittner has arrived.

Meanwhile over at the Tour de l’Avenir this afternoon, no middle fingers were raised (expect perhaps at the very concept of the race itself), as Israel-Premier Tech’s British pro Joe Blackmore outsprinted Jarno Widar and Pablo Torres for the win atop La Rosière at the end of brutally sharp 70km in the Alps.

Joe Blackmore wins the stage 3 of Tour de l’Avenir and takes back the leader’s jersey! #tourdelavenir https://t.co/TxbdMfgfWX pic.twitter.com/OxI2WWSIwN

— Eemeli (@LosBrolin) August 21, 2024

That victory for Blackmore – who has won three pro stage races already this year – means he leads the race overall, with Widar and Torres now at nine and 23 seconds back respectively, and everyone over 45 seconds down on the 21-year-old from Sidcup.

Meanwhile, at the Tour de l’Avenir Femmes, Britain’s Millie Couzens and Josie Nelson got off to a great start, finishing fourth and seventh respectively on the race’s 2km ‘hill climb’ prologue to the same ski station that hosted the men’s race, as Belgium’s Lore De Schepper took the stage.

> Huge discounts spotted as bike and cycling clothing prices slashed in summer clearance sales at Wiggle, Trek, Rapha, Evans Cycles and more

If you thought Lennert Van Eetvelt ‘Alaphilipping’ himself at the end of stage four of the Vuelta a España – the young Belgian raising his arm in celebration just as that wily old fox Primož Roglič nipped by him for the win – was the only finish line drama at an important stage yesterday, think again.

Over at the Tour de l’Avenir, widely regarded as a mini-Tour de France for under-23 riders and an indicator of future stardom in the pro ranks (Tadej Pogačar and Egan Bernal are recent winners), Germany’s Ole Theiler didn’t respond too kindly to fellow attacker Ludovico Crescioli’s decision to sprint by him for the stage victory in Hauteville, after sitting on his wheel for almost the entirety of their 6km winning move.

In fact, the 21-year-old could be seen offering Crescioli a middle finger salute as he crossed the line in his wake, and told reporters afterwards that the Italian had “agreed” to let him win after failing to contribute to the attack.

pic.twitter.com/f3bPbYxYDx

— Cycling out of context (@OutOfCycling) August 20, 2024

Theiler had launched off the front of the bunch with six kilometres to go of the Tour’s lumpy second road stage to Plateau d’Hauteville and was quickly followed by the 20-year-old Crescioli. The duo swiftly built up a ten-second gap over the peloton, though the TV pictures clearly showed Theiler doing the bulk of the work at the front.

In the final 150m, however, as Theiler launched his sprint, Crescioli burst past, celebrating wildly as his unimpressed German counterpart raised his middle finger behind (and Britain’s Matthew Brennan won the bunch kick behind).

It’s fair to say that, middle finger aside, Theiler wasn’t too happy with Crescioli’s actions on the run-in.

“He didn’t want to take over. He said he couldn’t get past,” Theiler explained after the stage.

“I told him, fine, but then I want to win. He said ‘okay’ and agreed that I would win. But at the end he started sprinting anyway. I’m devastated. This could have been my moment.”

Crescioli, for his part, was unruffled by his German rival’s complaints.

“We talked a bit, yes, I followed him, it was a tactic of mine and in the end I won,” the 20-year-old said, a stage win (and a middle finger) in the bag.

> “These cyclists, never respecting pedestrian crossings”: Group of pro cyclists narrowly avoid hitting elderly woman with walking aid on zebra crossing during one-day race

It’s fair to say that Theiler has had something of an eventful year as he aims to secure a pro contract.

Back in May, while riding in the breakaway at the Rund um Köln one-day race, the Team Storck rider bizarrely collided with the mobility aid of a woman who had wandered across a zebra crossing just as the race was passing by.

With nowhere to go as his breakaway companions quickly ducked left and right, Theiler hit the woman’s walking aid with his back wheel, knocking it from her hands and dragging it along the road. While the pedestrian appeared to lose her balance in the collision, both her and Theiler remained, rather miraculously, upright following the bizarre incident.

Crashing into mobility aids and giving rivals the middle finger – that’s definitely one way of making sure pro teams remember your name…

Back in July, you may remember, a housing association in south Wales came under fire after it fenced off the entrance to a woodland that was being used by children as a cycle track after the youngsters allegedly cleared it of litter – but which led to the young cyclists being sworn at and threatened by local residents.

And now, in Hadleigh, Suffolk, vandals have targeted a bike track created by two teenagers, destroying their ramps and reportedly placing branches over parts of the DIY course.

Ethan J and Ethan R, both 16 – who have permission to ride on the track in woodland at The Fuzz, just off Hadleigh’s Railway Walk – told the BBC that they do now know who is targeting them, but that it won’t put them off riding their bikes on the land.

> “They threatened to pop their tyres!” Local kids who cleared woodland of rubbish to create bike track accused of anti-social behaviour and causing “severe damage” by residents, as housing association fences off entrances to ward off young cyclists

“It’s really frustrating because we don’t know who it is,” Ethan R said. “They’ve clocked on what times we come down here and what times we haven’t, and they wait for us to go so we can’t really do anything about it.

“This is what we love, this is what we do and we can’t do it now because it’s been destroyed.”

The boys and their friends were given permission by the landowner to use the land for their bike track and to ensure it is kept litter free.

“We’re really nice lads, we’re friendly to everyone that comes down here and we like to help people with their bike riding,” Ethan R continued. “We’ll build [the ramps] back up because it’s a nice thing for everyone to [use].”

“We spend hours and hours in the afternoons and at night with torches building away trying to make sure that they are perfect for the community and for us to ride,” Ethan J added.

“There’s not much in this town that we can really do besides riding… we get great enjoyment out of it and a lot of other people do.”

> “It will be like living next to a motorway!”: Residents oppose school’s BMX cycle track project out of fears that they’d lose their “peace” and “privacy”

Meanwhile, Charlotte, one of the boys’ mothers, was scathing of those putting the teenagers in danger.

“This is what kids should be doing, being outside and playing,” she said. “It is just very sad that some people think they shouldn’t be here and taken it upon themselves to destroy their work.

“They’re not harming anybody and people are actively coming out here and laying branches so they will fall off their bikes.

“They’re laying out brambles – who does that? What sort of person would want to hurt children?”