Motorcycle thieves using angle grinder foiled by passing cyclist; Peter Sagan leaving Bora; Wattbike CEO appeals to PM; Jeremy Vine hits back at taxi page demanding reg plates on bikes; Olympic underdog; LEJOG record updates + more on the live blog

🕺

— Merijn Zeeman (@merijnzeeman) July 29, 2021

Jumbo-Visma's Merijn Zeeman knows what's up...His team must have done something incredible to get the Tour of Britain organisers on side, either that or someone on the Dutch squad planned the route. You may as well hand Wout van Aert his jersey now.

Jumbo have, as of yet only, provisionally anounced three riders for the race: Wout van Aert, Dutch national TT champs bronze medallist Koen Bouwman and third on the opening TT of the Giro, Tobias Foss. Forget the other unnamed three, that might be enough...

Way to make the domestic conti teams feel welcome...

Jonas the Dane will be a key part of Jumbo-Visma's plans to Vinge-guard Primoz Roglic at Grand Tours next year...24-year-old Vingegaard won a stage of UAE Tour earlier this year and earned a Tour de France call up when Tom Dumoulin took his break from the sport. The prospect took the chance with both hands, finishing second on GC at his debut Tour...

"I am very happy to extend my contract with the team," he said. "So far our cooperation has been successful and hopefully we will continue to achieve good successes in the future. I feel good here. That made it an easy and natural choice to stay longer with the team."

The rumours had been circling for a while, Peter Sagan will leave Bora-Hansgrohe at the end of the season, it has today been confirmed. During his time with the German team, Sagan won the last of his three world titles, Paris-Roubaix (pictured above), two green jerseys and five stages of the Tour de France.

However, by his elite standards, the 31-year-old has struggled for form in the last couple of years, winning just a Giro d'Italia points jersey, two stages of the Giro d'Italia and one stage of Volta a Catalunya in the past 24 months. That's still more than most win in a career, but hey, that's what happens when you set the bar as high as Sagan has...

In a statement on his own website, Sagan thanked Bora-Hansgrohe and team boss Ralph Denk. "We have achieved so many things and even in difficult times, we stuck together. I think that we weren’t just teammates, we were part of a big family," Sagan said.

"However, after a long and thorough discussion with my own management and under a mutual agreement with Bora-Hansgrohe, we came to the decision that it would be best if my cycle in the team came to a close and that a new chapter opened in my career. Change is part of life and growth. I’m sure Bora-Hansgrohe will continue to be successful and I wish them all the best in the coming seasons."

After Patrick Lefevere emphatically squashed premature talk of Sagan signing for Deceuninck-Quick-Step, the word on the street has been the Slovakian star will be off to Team TotalEnergies for 2022. We'll see...

Local @HerneHillVel track league popping off last night.

Basically a @fred_wright0 celebration party. Good times. pic.twitter.com/XSsQDxqewM

— AlecBriggs/ Pedaler (@Alec_Pedaler) July 29, 2021

Wattbike CEO, Rich Baker has called for the PM's help as British manufacturers are "bearing the brunt" of surging shipping costs. Customers will bear the brunt too, however, as the brand announces its flagship home trainer, the Wattbike Atom, is set for a five per cent price rise from £1,899 to £1,999 from Monday. Baker warned that prices across its range will have to rise to address spiralling costs within international shipping and parts.

"We’re calling on the Prime Minister to intervene," Baker said. "During the pandemic the message to everyone was keep exercising, stay fit and invest in your health. We’re now calling on the government to make sure that Wattbike can continue to offer our products at competitive prices and help keep the nation fit.

"We’re seeing shipping container charges 850% higher than normal and, whilst we’re not the only industry affected, this simply can’t go on. We’re calling on the Prime Minister to intervene on the ongoing international shipping chaos on behalf of manufacturers, consumers and businesses up and down the country who are bearing the brunt.

"At this rate, it’s inevitable that prices will rise across all imported goods and we’ve tried everything to avoid putting our prices up, with little help coming from Westminster. So we really want to see Boris get on his bike on this issue, for the good of all British consumers. We’ll even reserve him a Wattbike to build his fitness for the challenges ahead."

Ahead of the Euro 2020 final, Wattbike made the live blog after sending out a press release celebrating its, slightly tenuous, role in England's success...If only Marcus Rashford had thrashed out a few more intervals...

Laurens de Plus is set for a break away from his bike after being diagnosed with a viral illness.

The team has worked hard alongside Laurens to diagnose the illness and we are all behind him in his recovery. Please join us in sending him your best wishes 👇

— INEOS Grenadiers (@INEOSGrenadiers) July 28, 2021

Laurens De Plus is to take a break from cycling while he recovers from a viral illness. Ineos Grenadiers announced the news in a brief statement, saying they worked hard to diagnose the problem and the rider has their full support.

The Belgian has hopped across a few of the biggest teams in the sport, starting his career with Quick-Step, before a couple of years across the Dutch border with Jumbo-Visma. The 25-year-old joined Ineos Grenadiers at the start of the season on a three-year deal and had been touted by some as the possible long-term replacement for Dylan van Baarle in the Ineos Tour de France mountain train.

"The first job for me is to rest, then get back to physical activity step by step. The team will help me with regular meetings and medical checks to monitor how I am getting on over the next few months. Thankful for the incredible support by Ineos Grenadiers," De Plus wrote on Twitter. 

Again we see a bunch of irresponsible cyclists, putting not only themselves but pedestrians and other cyclists in danger

In plain sight of city hall @willnorman @Heidi_LDN @MayorofLondon @theJeremyVine

Time for registration plates on all bikes pic.twitter.com/k6BXWRhYwU

— TAXILEAKS© (@taxi_leaks) July 28, 2021

Taxi Leaks, 'London's no1 Taxi news website/blog', tagged Jeremy Vine in this video from the weekend of a crowd of people riding through the capital in a ride-out, thought to be linked to an anti-knife crime campaign. "Time for registration plates on all bikes", Taxi Leaks wrote, tagging Vine, London's Walking and Cycling Commissioner Will Norman, Deputy Mayor of London for Transport Heidi Alexander and the Mayor of London himself, Sadiq Khan.

Vine got back to Taxi Leaks, replying: "They're kids on bikes. I wouldn't do it, but they aren't a danger to anyone else and probably not even to themselves. Stop, let them go, and be happy that they are not all racing Subaru Imprezas at 50mph. The only dangerous thing in this film is the motor vehicle."

Just to be clear: this is what danger looks like. pic.twitter.com/7iDSjzVOPG

— Jeremy Vine (@theJeremyVine) July 29, 2021

There's only one person in danger in this clip, and that's the pedestrian at 39" who started running because someone was driving their car at him https://t.co/cTbYiYgUF8 pic.twitter.com/vbS58327kk

— Jeremy Vine (@theJeremyVine) July 29, 2021