Labour’s shadow secretary for transport rides a bike and offers support for cycling infrastructure… gets accused of photo-op (and for riding without helmet); Eden Hazard climbs Mont Ventoux; Chris Froome denies team power struggle + more on the live blog
SUMMARY
More trouble at Mercian Cycles, Mohorič's gravel riding misadventures, and loads of news stuff at Critérium du Dauphiné... here's your Weekend Roundup
With slightly better weather over the weekend and of course, the Champions League final, you might be excused for missing out on any cycling news. So here’s all the stuff that was rocking the world of cycling these last couple of days, starting off with all the new bikes our team caught a sight of at the Critérium du Dauphiné…
> New Trek Madone breaks cover at Dauphiné… or is it an Emonda?
> Ineos Grenadiers race new Pinarello Dogma at Dauphiné
> Wilier set to launch mystery new bike
It wasn’t all about the Critérium though, there was much stuff away from France in Kansas, at the Unbound Gravel where Matej Mohorič didn’t have the best of his rides, and there was more bad news coming out for the iconic British bicycle frame manufacturers Mercian, which ceased its trading and operations two weeks ago.
> Mercian Cycles ceases trading and enters voluntary liquidation
Police investigate RideLondon incident as cyclist seriously injured in collision with driver on closed road course
Essex Police has called on RideLondon participants who may have witnessed a serious collision during the event to come forward with camera footage or information. The appeal comes after a cyclist taking part in the sportive was involved in a collision with a motorist driving on a road that was supposed to be closed to non-event traffic, the driver then leaving the scene.
Chris Froome denies rumours of rift with teammate Michael Woods ahead of Tour de France
Four-time Tour de France winner Chris Froome hasn’t been the same since his terrible 2019 crash. The rider who dominated cycling in a post-Armstrong world in the early 2010s, has been on the receiving end of many jokes and jests from fans (not lessened by his many rants and excuses over the years… rim brakes, anyone?)
The 39-year-old British rider is currently racing at the Critérium du Dauphiné, and after missing out on last year’s Tour, he has expressed his aims of getting into the squad once again.
At Tirreno-Adriatico in March, Froome said that his goal was “to try and get to the Tour in the best shape possible this year.”
And now if reports from French newspaper L’Equipe are to be believed, Froome may have made his way into Israel-Premier Tech’s TdF squad for 2024, but only “at the behest of team sponsors who want his profile/fame”, and in an even more scandalous revelation, it goes on to claim that there has been an internal power struggle within the team, notably between Froome and Canadian rider Michael Woods.
That’s news to me 🤪 what about you @rusty_woods ? 😆
— Chris Froome (@chrisfroome) June 3, 2024
However, Froome has tried to immediately quash those rumours by replying to a tweet making those claims, saying that “that’s news to him”, with a laughing emoji. He’s also tagged Woods in the reply, asking him if he’s heard anything of the sort (followed by another emoji).
The former Sky rider had fractured his wrist on day two of the Italian stage race Tirreno-Adriatico, sharing the news on Twitter saying “I can’t catch a break!”. And just last week, Froome finished the Mercan’Tour Classic Alpes-Maritimes a staggering 17 minutes and 40 seconds behind the 20-year-old explosive Groupama-FDJ rider Lenny Martinez.
Jonas Vingegaard left out of Denmark's 2024 Paris Olympic squad, as Tour de France selection also hangs in the balance
Denmark’s two-time Tour de France winner Jonas Vingegaard has been left out of the national squad for road cycling for the 2024 Paris Olympics, having been snubbed for the final place in the team for UAE Team Emirates’ rider Mikkel Bjerg.
The 27-year-old rider has expressed his desire to ride in Paris, however, it’s being reported that he may have been overlooked given his recent injuries from the Itzulia Basque Country Tour, where he suffered multiple fractures in a horror crash which also involved a number of top riders such as Remco Evenepoel and Primož Roglič.
Vingegaard is currently doing high-altitude training in the French Alps with Visma Lease a Bike teammates Christophe Laporte and Wout van Aert, with the latter also recovering from the broken collarbone and ribs injuries he suffered at the Dwars door Vlaanderen, which ruled him out for the majority of the spring classics season, including the coveted Tour of Flanders and Paris-Roubaix.
Velo also reports that while the Vingegaard and Wout van Aert are trying their best to get into top shape, the team is still unsure if the duo will be able to do so given their injuries and the demanding nature of the Tour. So, does this mean there’s a chance we’ll see Matteo Jorgensen ride for GC this time?!
Gloucestershire Police might've won the internet today...
A #madmax wannabe has been left walking down fury road after their car was prohibited for an array of faults. This included wheel nuts being replaced for spiked ones and a sharp, knife like spoiler plus other offences. The driver is now being prosecuted as a result. pic.twitter.com/3rfRyY54C6
— Glos Police Specialist Ops (@GlosPolSpecOps) June 3, 2024
*gets on a bike and sprays face with chrome* Witness me!
Bringing this iconic advert back on this World Bicycle Day
Thanks to the former Walking and Cycling Comissioner for West Midlands, Adam Tranter for refreshing my memory with this brilliant ad. “No, bikes aren’t the answer to every single journey, but they’re more versatile than you might think. It’s all about choosing the right tool for the job,” wrote Tranter.
No, bikes aren’t the answer to every single journey, but they’re more versatile than you might think. It’s all about choosing the right tool for the job.
🚴♂️ Celebrating #WorldBicycleDay by re-sharing one of my favourite projects: “The Best Tool For The Job”.
No, bikes aren’t the answer to every single journey, but they’re more versatile than you might think. It’s all about choosing the right tool for the job. 🌍💪 pic.twitter.com/MxaU02wH59
— Adam Tranter (@adamtranter) June 3, 2024
Cyclist reclaims stolen Brompton following "altercation" — as angle grinder bike robber jailed for 33 months
Police praised the “swift action of witnesses” but urged the public to consider their safety after an angle grinder bike robber was confronted as he cut through a lock and injured in an “altercation”, the offender now jailed for 33 months.
Magnus Cort holds off Primož Roglič to win stage 2 of Critérium du Dauphiné in a misty sprint finish
Heartbreak for Decathlon AG2R’s Bruno Armirail, who was caught by the peloton in the final few hundreds before the finish line on a misty afternoon at the Col de La Loge, as Uno-X’s precarious attack which somehow ended up working perfectly and placed its Danish rider Magnus Cort to take the win, holding off Bora-Hansgrohe’s Primož Roglič.
One Dane might hide another… 🇩🇰 After Mads Pedersen yesterday, today it was the turn of Magnus Cort to whoop the peloton’s ass and win the 2nd stage of @dauphine with a brutal uphill sprint. First ever WT victory for Uno-X Mobility. #Dauphine pic.twitter.com/1PpsVIDkWb
— Mihai Simion (@faustocoppi60) June 3, 2024
Cort’s win means that it’s a consecutive two victories for Danish riders at the French stage race, with yesterday’s sprint having been won by the ever-so-formidable Mads Pedersen.
Back-to-back #Dauphine stage wins and yellow jerseys for 🇩🇰Denmark! pic.twitter.com/6DMM8QgiED
— NBC Sports Cycling (@NBCSCycling) June 3, 2024
Driver accused of hit-and-run that "could have killed" teen cyclist caught by "fluke" as police track missing Apple AirPod that fell into vehicle during collision
Police in Florida have admitted it was “just a fluke” that they managed to arrest a driver suspected of a hit-and-run which left a 15-year-old cyclist unconscious with facial fractures and other injuries, one of the victim’s AirPods falling into the vehicle during the crash and giving officers a handy GPS lead when the driver returned home with the Apple product lodged under a floor mat inside the car.
How not to celebrate World Bicycle Day: London CS7 edition
To round things up this World Bicycle Day, here’s one way how not to celebrate it, courtesy of road.cc reader Hirsuite…
New domestique in the peloton or just a post-Real Madrid hobby? Eden Hazard climbs Mont Ventoux wearing Intermarché’s jersey
If I had a nickel for every time a Real Madrid player would lose interest in football, leave the club and pursue their hobby of a different sport, I’d have two nickels. Which isn’t a lot but it’s weird it’s happened twice now…
While Real Madrid players were preparing to play the match of their lives in London and bring #15 to Bernabeu, Eden Hazard, the club’s most expensive signing ever who spent the golden years of his career not too far from Wembley, was indulging himself in a completely different activity — football now a distant memory in the 33-year-old Belgian’s mind — probably.
Hazard, who had his contract with Real Madrid terminated last June, announced his retirement from professional football a couple of months later. And since then, he’s kept somewhat of a low-profile other than popping here and there for an advert, the odd-charity match, or showing up at his boyhood club Lille.
But behind the scenes, it seems that the former Belgian captain and the mercurial forward has picked up a new hobby… Any guesses, anyone?
Of course, it’s cycling! And by the looks of it, Hazard’s been putting in the effort and hours on the saddle (tut tut, me), and has managed to scale one of the most revered and iconic climbs in the world, Mont Ventoux.
From images shared by Hazard on social media, it looks like it was a well-planned ride, with the ex-footballer joined by his brothers, Thorgan (who’s still playing for Belgian club Anderlecht, by the way), Ethan and Kylian — all decked out in the jerseys of the Belgian pro cycling team Intermarché-Wanty and riding Cube bikes.
Intermarché also shared the image on its social media, writing: “Eden Hazard did it! He climbed to the top of Mont Ventoux with his CUBE and the jersey of his favorite team.”
Hazard isn’t the first celebrity to take his bike up the almost 2000-metre high climb with an average gradient of 7.4%, or 4.4%, if you take the easier Sault route. In 2016, F1 world champion Jenson Button took his bike for a spin up the mountain too, and ended up doing a tribute to Chris Froome’s infamous Tour de France stage finish by jogging up the last bit.
> Video: Chris Froome vs Mont Ventoux – the slapstick version
We are still waiting to find Hazard’s Strava profile to see his stats. Anyone reckon if a footballer’s abilities can translate to road cycling? Not a similarly ideal comparison, but last year, we did have legendary Barcelona and Stoke City player Bojan Krkić take up gravel biking and even partnered with former teammate Andrés Iniesta to launch his own bike brand.
More recently, Anne Jones, an 82-year-old cyclist from Lewisham completed a summit of the famous climb in southern France to raise funds for a youth trauma hospital and a paracycling team distributing aid to communities by bike in Gaza, despite severely inclement weather with fog so thick she nearly missed the famous Tom Simpson memorial.
In the meantime, Hazard can definitely ring up his pal Remco Evenepoel, who himself made a reverse career switch, ditching football for cycling, for any on-the-saddle tips. The time trial champion is currently out racing at the Critérium du Dauphiné (psst, we’ve come across loads of unreleased bikes, including from Trek, Pinarello and Wilier) in preparation for his first shot at Tour de France glory.
Although I’m sure he’ll have enough support from his friends over at Intermarché-Wanty. Maybe he can learn some sprinting from Biniam Girmay, who won the bunch sprint to come second at the Brussels Cycling Classic yesterday. Maybe the Belgian team’s looking for domestiques for next season?
The former Chelsea player will also be making his return to Stamford Bridge this Sunday, turning out for the World XI in West London for Soccer Aid for UNICEF 2024. By the way, it’s not soccer…
And finally, we may have a big revamp on our hands to our starting XI of the world-beating squad of ‘Footballers Who Cycle’. Some tough decisions to make there, I don’t envy whoever gets the top job of managing this squad next…
> Footballers who cycle XI — the Premier League stars who love life on two wheels
Labour’s shadow secretary promises support for local authorities to provide safe, accessible cycling infrastructure, so “everyone who wants to cycle can”... and gets accused of photo-op (and for riding without helmet)
We reported a couple of months ago that Louise Haigh, the Labour shadow secretary for transport, had been the latest to join our very warm and friendly community of cyclists. And her becoming a cyclist, felt even more resounding of a moment given that long ago, she had made some very questionable statements about active travel, and had been rightly faced the brunt of criticism from the campaigners and cycling advocates alike.
When Independent asked her a simple question of, ‘does she cycle?’, Haigh responded: “God no, have you been to Sheffield?” Telling the newspaper she drives a petrol Nissan Juke, Haigh suggested Rishi Sunak had “demeaned himself” by saying the Labour Party would pursue a ‘war on motorists’.
She went on to say 20mph speed limits and low-traffic neighbourhoods should be a matter decided by local people and argued many of the most-criticised councils who had implemented apparently unpopular schemes were Conservative local authorities.
Concluding the transport section of the interview, Haigh said there would be no Labour Party diktat that people should walk or cycle more.
But after doing her homework, learning and educating herself, she made a U-turn and in March as she finally got round to travelling through her Sheffield constituency by e-bike, which she said has the potential to “make all the difference” in encouraging even those wary of the city’s hills to cycle more.
Now, to mark the World Bicycle Day, she has shared a post on Twitter, saying that if elected in the upcoming general elections on 4th July, Labour will offer support to local authorities to “provide the safe, accessible cycling infrastructure that is right for their areas – so that everyone who wants to cycle can”.
It’s World Bicycle Day! 🚵♀️
Cycling is great for your health – and it’s a clean, cheap way to get around.
Labour will support local authorities to provide the safe, accessible cycling infrastructure that is right for their areas – so that everyone who wants to cycle can. pic.twitter.com/Tp9HpaGe4r
— Louise Haigh (@LouHaigh) June 3, 2024
Haigh – the politician likely to be tasked with heading the next government on issues of transport – was also briefed by Cycling UK on a report by the Institute for Public Policy Research (IPPR), which made the case for greater investment in cycling and walking infrastructure to help “unlock” several health, well-being, economic, and environmental benefits.
“Sheffield is known for its hills and that may be a barrier for some people who might be thinking of choosing cycling to get around,” she said.
“It was great to be out with Cycling UK and to see how much easier it is to cycle when you have an extra boost from an e-bike, it makes all the difference.”
And cyclists are chuffed to see finally some backing for cycling from the Labour party, which incidentally takes place just a week after a hilarious Lib Dem campaign photo op in Wales, featuring — yes you guessed it, Ed Davey.
“The political will and support that’s been lacking,” replied the Twitter user and cycling activist Bob from Accounts, while Rob wrote: “Hope to see real manifesto commitment to this via progressive new active travel policies.”
There were some sceptics too, who considered the post as another photo-op before the elections, and added that “support” was in fact a hollow backing and didn’t mean much given how deeply entrenched motonormativity is in the British society, and instead asked for concrete plans to improve cycling and walking to reverse the Tory government’s repeated slashings of the active travel budget amidst all the anti-cycling rhetoric.
Nice, but would be great if you could do more than “support” (meaningless) – how about committing to reversing the government’s despicable slashing of the active travel budget? https://t.co/eGhm6nrMim
— Matthew Marks (@MatthewMarks42) June 3, 2024
I think it’d be only right for me to mention here as a matter of fact that there were some comments who pointed out that Haigh was riding the bike without wearing a helmet… *throws grenade and ducks for cover*
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Latest Comments
Barry Shitpeas (Philomena Cunk's sidekick) was a very prescient character. Basically a quarter-wit expressing ignorant opinions without any understanding of the issues at hand, with ample doses of Dunning-Kruger.
Never mind the police - many cyclists (at least in the UK) would be totally unfamiliar with a velomobile, so perhaps police can be forgiven for ignorance there. (I've "normal" recumbents and even those cause lots of head-turning). And for "e-things" the tail of the market is very much wagging the dog of regulation. Or rather there's almost zero political interest in that. In an ideal world someone would find the money and time to get the police trained - but I wonder if most of them even keep abreast of things like the highway code wording tweaks? (Do those not specialised in road policing / pursuit driving get any more training than the average driver eg "enough to pass the test, once per lifetime"?)
I thought that the lengthy technical downhill section on narrow roads was a poor piece of organisation. It was inevitable that faster riders with their team car would catch up with team cars of slower riders. Riders passing each other was a bit of a lottery at times. The camera motorbikes struggled to get out of the way at times.
It's not a 'statement' though - it's road.cc's words, based on l'Equipe's interpretation. The actual statement issued on it said that the judge authorised it "guaranteeing strict proportionality between the infringements on the rights of the athlete and the stakes of the fight against doping in terms of fair competition and protection of his health."
Trust me Callum, if you'd grown up watching the Tour in the 1980s, as I did, you would not be hankering after those long flat stages that weren't even as exciting as watching paint dry, it was more like listening to paint dry. As for the supposed benefits of those long TTs, what did they give us? Indurain winning five Tours in a row without winning a single road stage in any of them. As McT says below, you simply can't Pogacar-proof a course and we just have to accept, and enjoy, the fact that we are watching the greatest GT cyclist of all time. Anyway I think it has been a great Tour so far, yes no enormous drama about the inevitable winner (though of course Vinegaard and now Lipowitz have shown us that anything can happen) but just about every day has had a fascinating plot and multiple subplots. Some time in the future there will be another Indurain-style winner, playing it cautious, following moves, making incremental gains and winning without ever lighting up the race and we'll be saying I wish the old days of Pogacar making those spectacular solo breaks were back.
The main issue is the layout of the stages with the bigger climb first then a shallow finish climb. It means pogacar can get a gap at the top of the big climb and then stretch 10-15 seconds to a minute plus at the finish over smaller riders like Vingegaard. A summit finish on the hardest climb might not lead to the most exciting racing but equally would keep the gaps closer. I totally agree with the TT kms though, they should have 60+km tts in the grand tours.
@MaxiMinimalist I mean, that statement makes it sound like they had reason to think those two are doping. Either they didn't follow procedure and are making shit up to cover themselves up or something is going on.
Quite possibly. But the changeover time loss would be a bit more significant if it was done on the flat just after the downhill when the riders are travelling faster, the deceleration, changeover and acceleration loss could easily be around 30 seconds, which is quite a lot of a 34 minute effort.
So Skoda have taken a leaf out of Dung-Old Karen Taco Trump's book and are re-naming something when they have no authority to do so?
@Mr Blackbird Fair points, though I was wondering if doing the climb and descent on a standard bike and swapping to TT for the flat section would have been worth it? Certainly quite a few riders seemed to be having handling difficulties maintaining the best line on the descent with their TT machines.
28 thoughts on “Labour’s shadow secretary for transport rides a bike and offers support for cycling infrastructure… gets accused of photo-op (and for riding without helmet); Eden Hazard climbs Mont Ventoux; Chris Froome denies team power struggle + more on the live blog”
No mention of World Bicycle
No mention of World Bicycle Day.
I only found out when I got
I only found out when I got the “World Bicycle Day 2024” badge for doing a ride this morning. Best to keep it low key anyway to avoid upsetting too many drivers?
Whilst its a rest day for me,
Whilst its a rest day for me, I could be trmpted to go out for half an hour before dinner :-/
Local rag reports cyclist
Local rag reports cyclist injured on ride london on a closed road after a collision.
https://www.gazette-news.co.uk/news/24361211.cyclist-seriously-injured-fyfiled-ridelondon/
NoDriverInvolved
https://www.instagram.com
https://www.instagram.com/reel/C7qfbK0h2mw/?igsh=MWQ1ZGUxMzBkMA==
I was sent this BBC instagram reel, showing how lovely it was to ride in Essex a few years back, if I can say 1980 was just a few years ago…
How times change…
An era before “big helmet”
An era before “big helmet” had taken a grip on the industry.
mark1a wrote:
I blame ann summers
wycombewheeler wrote:
I never did like the look of their seatposts.
Surrey Roadsafe (fresh after
Surrey Roadsafe (fresh after last week’s eductational vidoes) have shared a link to, in my view, a better one from Cycling UK.
Was in my FB feed from Surrey Police
Good video … although the
Good video … although the rider is in the door zone.
Definitely a better video.
Definitely a better video. The”good” driving example is far from it though. Poor steering control and overtaking into a closed junction on the offside. And I wish I could unsee the YouTube comments.
(Association) football has
(Association) football has been called soccer in the UK for well over a century, and some of us who are nearly that old remember attending Bobby Charlton’s Soccer Schools on the dog-shit coated playing fields of the 1980s.
By all means protest (against) creeping Americanisms, but soccer isn’t one of them even if that’s what they call the sport.
Soccer – association football
Soccer – association football
Rugger – rugby football
Please do not insult Michael
Please do not insult Michael Woods, he is Canadian (and that’s bad enough).
Just celebrating world
Just celebrating world bicycle day on CS7
Huh! I’ve managed to make it
Huh! I’ve managed to make it this late in the day before discovering that it is World Bicycle Day today, 3rd June.
Happy World Bicycle Day
Happy World Bicycle Day #bikewanker (the driver obvs ! )
Hirsute wrote:
I don’t recall ever having
I don’t recall ever having seen that ‘Bike is best’ advert before. I like it
.
.
‘gets accused of photo-op (and for riding without helmet)’
.
A Lay Bah government. A Laaaaaay Bah government.
.
LOL!!
.
(‘Pick up my guitar and play, just like yesterday, get down on my knees and pra – aaay – Won’t get fooled again, no, no.’)
.
So what island are you going
So what island are you going to seek refuge on if it’s the clean sweep that the polls are predicting for labour?
(Not) Great news from Exeter
(Not) Great news from Exeter on this world bike day – Our High Traffic Neighbourhood is to be reintroduced ?
https://www.devonlive.com/news/devon-news/exeters-ltn-scheme-sensationally-scrapped-9320745
@Haigh: Saddle too low,
@Haigh: Saddle too low, always a give-away.
Are you sure? Maybe she has
Are you sure? Maybe she has short legs?
if she had short legs it
if she had short legs it wouldn’t be too low. But looking at the foot on the bottom pedal, there does not seem like an excessive leg bend. so it doesn’t look that bad
On average an unusually
On average an unusually optimistic selection of stories.
Thanks.
Lets be honest, it is a photo
Lets be honest, it is a photo op. Who rides with a jacket like that, in that colour! even on a dry day it would get filfy! 😀
Fake virtue signalling. If she does ride, it wouldn’t be hard to get a few real photos, to convince us shes not just another shallow self-serving politician.
alexuk wrote:
I don’t know – remember all those <city> CycleChic websites, back during peak fixie/urban cycling?