Novak Djokovic cycles around Paris… and almost gets knocked off bike at Arc de Triomphe; Ayuso abandons Giro with bee sting; Bizarre ‘bike tip’ video; New Ventoux Strava QOM; Lime rides soar in dry weather; Weird cycling ads + more on the live blog

This might be enough internet for one day already…

Useful tips for bike chain…

pic.twitter.com/ntuhlxvXfd

— Tansu Yegen (@TansuYegen) May 27, 2025

Yep, today’s “useful tip” is essentially… don’t use completely the wrong part to fix something, just use the right one. Don’t try to patch a puncture with Blu Tack, use patches. Don’t try to fix a broken spoke with spaghetti, use a spoke. Don’t replace a worn cable with string, use a cable.

I was all set to have a quick laugh at this video’s expense, that was until seeing it’s been viewed more than 6.5m times since Tuesday evening and been reposted more than 3,000 times. Thankfully that level of traction means there are also plenty of amusing comments to share. Cue the sarcasm…

“Damn, i better go get rid of all the zip ties holding my bike chains together.”

“This is not a ‘tip’, that’s how you install a bike chain.”

“Can you show it more slowly and show more wrong ways at the beginning please?”

“Omg dude is like the three-toed sloth of bike repair.”

“I was totally planning on using a zip tie for a master link.”

“‘Fix the bike’ isn’t a ‘useful tip’, it’s just common sense.”

“I’m eagerly waiting for the next episode, where he shows that you can’t use chewing gum to repair tyre punctures but instead you must use patches and proper glue. Super interesting!”

More hot mechanical tips when we get them…

We’re running out for superlatives for Illi Gardner’s QOM-hunting abilities.

She’s almost five minutes quicker than any other female athlete and 95th on the overall leaderboard too, her ascent faster than many pro times set during the Tour de France. And all just during a “slightly spur of the moment” spin up Ventoux… 

> New Specialized Diverge leaked ahead of Unbound Gravel: more mounts, more aero and UDH look imminent for Specialized’s flagship adventure bike

Unbound seems like a decent place to put a new bike to the test, these the current scenes out on the famous peanut butter. Good to know it’s not just British bridleways that can look like that in May.

 

 

 

 

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A post shared by Chase Wark (@chasethebiker)

Joy. Relief. Defiance. Isaac del Toro let out a monstrous roar as he crossed the finish line as the winner of the Giro d’Italia’s 17th stage, shifting the momentum back in his favour and extending his lead at the head of the GC standings. 

“I want to imagine [my Giro] like this,” Del Toro reflected on the victory last night. “So far, it has been really good. I think this is my third or fourth podium this Giro. It is incredible.

“Everybody wants this and today I realised I will never give up, and I will always stay one step in front, and I will always try it. I have nothing to lose and today was not easier than yesterday, but for sure I have a better mentality.

“I predicted with the team that something like this would happen [Richard Carapaz’s attack on the Mortirolo], and of course, you don’t want to let go of all the GC riders. I went to them, I take it easy, I put a little bit of pressure on the other ones after the descent and then I just tried to relax and recover, because obviously that was a hard stage.

“We made this plan with the team and the team gave me all the confidence to try full gas. To attack on the last climb was the plan.”

The days of endless discussion about who is UAE’s leader, Del Toro or Juan Ayuso, seem like ages ago now, the Spaniard 141st on yesterday’s stage, more than 35 minutes down. UAE Team Emirates have said they hope Ayuso will be able to continue the Giro through to Rome to support Del Toro’s fight for pink.

How good is it to have a proper GC battle, by the way? In the era of Tadej Pogačar and Jonas Vingegaard’s dominance it can be easy to forget just how exciting Grand Tours can be… thousands of kilometres decided by seconds. Today should see a break in the fight for pink, unless anyone’s legs fall off completely or a team pulls of a raid for the ages. 

At just 143.9km and with just 1,543m of climbing, there’ll be plenty of riders relieved by the brief respite from the major mountains. Don’t worry, tomorrow and Saturday have more than enough climbing for your GC fix, but today looks like one for the breakaway.

Maybe if there’s enough desire from Lidl-Trek, Visma-Lease a Bike and Alpecin-Deceuninck to set up a sprint for Mads Pedersen, Olav Kooij/Wout van Aert and Kaden Groves (and their legs are good enough to survive the relentless mid-stage climbing) then we could see it controlled, but by week three of a Grand Tour most are on their knees and stages like this often go to the break.

The long flat run to the finish does work in the sprinters’ favour, however, let’s see how the day all pans out. I’ll go Mathias Vacek from the breakaway to give Lidl-Trek their seventh win of the race… or maybe Ben Turner for the Brits.

British rider Paul Double here, veins popping through the bib shorts.

Lime has reported that during the end of April into May it saw a 96 per cent year-on-year increase in trips taken on its hire bikes in London. The dry spring weather saw the most trips taken in a day on London Lime bikes since 2018, that coming on the hottest day of the year so far, May 1, according to Air Quality News. There was also a 95 per cent rise in people using Lime bikes for the first time during the same four-day hot spell.

Hal Stevenson, Lime’s director of policy for the UK and Ireland said: “Cycling is far from seasonal, but we always see an increase in rides when the weather warms up, and this year has been no different. During the heatwave in late April and early May, people across the capital hopped on two wheels to get around the city – from the office in the morning, to the park with friends after work.

“It’s great to see so many Londoners choosing to cycle – helping to reduce congestion, and improve air quality. Data shows that half of Londoners aged 18-34 now use shared e-bikes at least once a week.”

 

 

 

 

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A post shared by CAFÉ DU CYCLISTE (@cafeducycliste)

Here’s cycling apparel brand Café du Cycliste’s posts about its new PLAY Edit pieces which, naturally, feature people wearing cycling kit and a horse… any ideas?

“Horse play. Our PLAY Edit pieces reflect simpler times and broader horizons. Take time out to tune back in to life off screen,” the brand says.

Still not sure I understand…

> Bike shop ram raiders arrested and charged after “effectively destroying” shopfront and stealing two e-bikes in “aggressive” break-in

The tough breaks for Juan Ayuso just keep coming, the Spaniard having already nursed crash injuries through the Giro. Well, now the Cycling Podcast’s Daniel Friebe has reported he was also stung by a bee during yesterday’s stage and has a badly swollen eye. It’s apparently yet to be decided if he’ll make the start…

Del Toro making him pull on the Cat 2 pic.twitter.com/8koaCtokBU

— Joe Bone (@josefbone) May 29, 2025

Here’s poor Ayuso talking to the TNT Sports cameras ahead of today’s stage. He has since abandoned… 

“A bee went inside my helmet…” 🐝

Befire abandoning, Juan Ayuso gave us the full rundown of *that* incident with a bee 😳 pic.twitter.com/P5gVIGhh7E

— Cycling on TNT Sports (@cyclingontnt) May 29, 2025

“A bee went inside my helmet and I can’t see out my right eye,” Ayuso explained, revealing the swollen eye underneath his glasses. “I don’t want people to make captions of it because I know it’s going to go viral but yeah, it is what it is…”

The Spanish climber also said the UAE Team Emirates doctor recommended he didn’t try riding stage 18, Ayuso wanting to “try and give my best for the team”. Unfortunately for him, his stage and Giro has now ended prematurely and the Simpsons meme is already on the live blog… sorry, Juan…

What’s this? Some positive news about bike races being available on free-to-air telly (well, via the internet)? Surely not…

[SWpix.com]

The Lloyds Tour of Britain Women will enjoy “extensive coverage” across BBC Sport and iPlayer this summer. The race’s organisers have today announced this year’s event, from 5-8 June) will be broadcast live on the BBC iPlayer, as well as the BBC Sport website and app, with content also shared across the BBC Sport social media channels.

> “No plans” to save free-to-air Tour de France coverage, as fan behind dismissed petition asks: “Does the government truly care about growing cycling?”

Managing director of British Cycling Events, Jonathan Day, said: “We are really pleased that the BBC will broadcast the Lloyds Tour of Britain women during a huge summer of sport for women. The event is breaking records this year with the number of teams riding across the four stages, so it is brilliant news that the races will be available across BBC Sport’s platforms, allowing the British public to follow the action from this sporting spectacle.”

BBC Sport director Alex Kay-Jelski promised to “shine a spotlight on this race and its great cyclists”, saying that the BBC has a “strong track record of backing women’s sport”. The race will also be available on Discovery+ of course, but the BBC deal means it will also be available without paying £30.99-a-month.

The race is entirely in the north of England and Scotland this year, starting in Dalby Forest on June 5th and visiting Redcar, Hartlepool, Saltburn-by-the-Sea and Kelso on route to Glasgow.

Zurich’s new Bike Tunnel 🚴🏻‍♀️🚲 pic.twitter.com/YMQTzAaQoY

— non aesthetic things (@PicturesFoIder) May 27, 2025

More details on that one here…

> Zurich to open major new cycling tunnel and parking facility 

The Giro’s breakaway king Nico Denz has his third stage win at the Grand Tour, his third at the race in three years. Having a nightmare with his bottles didn’t even slow him down, the German powerhouse soon leaving his escape companions behind and riding solo to the finish in Cesano Maderno.

 

 

 

 

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A post shared by TNT Sports Cycling (@tntsportscycling)

Frustration for Mirco Maestri behind, who won the sprint for second and will be left wondering what could have been had the break come to the finish together. You can’t really argue with Denz as the worthy winner though, his advantage over a minute by the finish.

The GC group enjoyed an easier day in the saddle, rolling home almost 14 minutes down on Denz.

> Speeding motorist jailed for 10 months for killing cyclist claimed he couldn’t see hi-vis-wearing rider due to oncoming headlights – but police say “no excuse” for pensioner’s driving

A lot to unpack here. First, Novak ending up on the Tour de France’s most famous roundabout while cycling around Paris during the French Open. Second, Djokovic almost getting hit by a driver during a chaotic 22-second clip. Third, the filming fan presumably also in the driver’s seat of their vehicle… or maybe it’s a French person in a British car’s passenger seat… maybe…

🔴🇫🇷🎾ALERTE VIDÉO | Novak Djokovic aperçu en train de faire du vélo à Paris. pic.twitter.com/CNrq8bBsTP

— Jon De Lorraine (@jon_delorraine) May 28, 2025

The video has popped up on social media and appears to show the 24-time grand slam winner attempt his most difficult sporting feat yet, safely negotiating the Place Charles de Gaulle roundabout on a weekday evening in Paris. This clip was apparently filmed last night, Djokovic ‘enjoying’ the city on two wheels ahead of his second round tie today.

Back in 2016, Djokovic was banned from cycling around grounds at Wimbledon, an official at the All England Club telling the Serb not to ride his bike around the grounds after he was reportedly nearly involved in a collision with a supply vehicle while training for the event.

Djokovic was said to be unhappy with the ban, since he was not breaking any regulations, although a spokesman said that while the AELTC was in favour of cycling, that it did not encourage it during Wimbledon Fortnight itself or in the build-up to the Championships.

Djokovic isn’t the only tennis star to enjoy riding a bike for training or transport, British player Cameron Norrie making headline during his 2022 run to the semi-finals at Wimbledon after being seen rocking up to matches and training by bike. Maybe we need a societal shift so basic transport doesn’t result in tabloid headlines, after all Norrie was almost certainly quicker jumping on his bike rather than trying to negotiate the Wimbledon traffic with everyone else (and got a warm up in too…)