“We’re here to ride bikes, not to be politicians”: Biniam Girmay “doesn’t care” about NSN Cycling’s history as Israeli team; “This isn’t a war on motorists”; Could Winter Olympics star switch to cycling?; Rapha’s RideLondon idea + more on the live blog
SUMMARY
"We're here to ride bikes, not to be politicians": Biniam Girmay "doesn't care" about NSN Cycling's history as Israeli team
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Biniam Girmay’s move to NSN Cycling turned some heads this winter, not least because, when it was first rumoured, the team was facing protests and seeing invitations to races pulled over its Israeli identity.
Bike sponsor Factor exited their relationship, as did lead sponsor Premier-Tech. Controversial team boss Sylvan Adams took a step back, investment came in from Andrés Iniesta’s NSN, and the squad got a new look and fresh start.
With the team no longer Israeli-registered and no longer riding around effectively as a billboard for the country, the noise is expected to be quiet around NSN this campaign.
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But what does Biniam Girmay, the team’s new star who won his first race for NSN last week, think about the events of the past few months and the squad’s history?
“To be honest, I don’t care,” he told Marca. Tell us how you really feel, Biniam…
“All I care about is the people on the team and the family atmosphere we have. We’re here to ride bikes, not to be politicians. The name is always the name, but we want to compete. We have ambition, and I’m here to win.”
Comparing his new team to life at Intermarché–Wanty, Girmay said: “Completely different. Here we’re a more global and international team, with many nationalities. I like this atmosphere. It’s a very well-organised team, NSN has higher-quality cyclists and staff.”
No punches pulled in this one…
Nine of the cheapest* 2026 aero road bikes (according to Liam)
Transport for London "working urgently to restore service" on Santander Cycles
Transport for London has apologised for disruption to its Santander Cycles hire bikes, the service’s app currently down and affecting riders’ journeys across the city.
A spokesperson said: “We’re very sorry for the disruption caused to Santander Cycles customers. We’re working hard to investigate the issue and restore services as soon as possible. We will keep customers informed with the latest updates.”
A second statement shared at 1pm said the problem was linked to “a connectivity issue”.
“Lack of action means more people killed cycling”: Campaigners demand change as latest stats show cyclists seriously injured in London up 14%
All roads lead to Milan-San Remo and Paris-Roubaix for Jasper Philipsen this spring
Jasper Philipsen will target a second Milan-San Remo this spring, as well as a return to Paris-Roubaix, where he has finished second behind teammate Mathieu van der Poel twice. Alpecin-Premier Tech outlined the Belgian sprinter’s spring campaign in a post on Instagram, Philipsen also taking in Omloop Het Nieuwsblad, Kuurne-Brussels-Kuurne, Dwars door Vlaanderen, and a few semi-classics and smaller races too.
Driver described as “otherwise decent individual” spared jail after ramming cyclist off the road
> Driver described as “otherwise decent individual” spared jail after ramming cyclist off the road
Some more of your reaction to RideLondon's demise
The comments rolled on into the night, here’s a few more on RideLondon being put on an “indefinite pause”…
jaymack: “While I must say that I enjoyed RideLondon I’ve enjoyed audax more. If you want to a cycle challenging distance over an interesting parcours you should give audax a go. There’s none of the bike snobbery I’ve encountered on a sportive; there’s no ‘good luck getting around on that’ and audax is all the better for it.”
Phil on Facebook: “Such a shame, as soon as the woeful Surrey County Council removed their backing it was inevitable.”
Graham on Bluesky: “They couldn’t even sell enough entries on the last running to need to run the ballot so everyone who wanted in, got in. The route was boring boring boring and only went to one ‘sight’. Miles of concrete dual carriageway, little support, roadworks galore. And a shit medal one year.”
The damp finale: Can I ride a 200km Audax 12 months in a row? Ride #12
> The damp finale: Can I ride a 200km Audax 12 months in a row? Ride #12
Looking for an event now RideLondon is gone? Rapha reckons it has got the answer
In the absence of RideLondon, Rapha wanted to shout-out its FARs, a series of big one-day rides available to its members.
The first one of 2026 is coming up on 30 May and, who knows, there might even be a bit of sunshine by then… optimistic thinking, I know…
In essence, Rapha plots a route, you ride it. One of last year’s included a 162km day out with 1,936m of climbing. Members can choose between riding solo, with friends or as part of one of a RCC Ride Leader-led groups.
Doing the maths, Rapha points out to access the rides you’ll need to be a member (£70 for the year), whereas RideLondon famously used to cost up to £99, so unsurprisingly the iconic cycling clothing brand reckons you should become an RCC member, do a couple of its rides a year, and enjoy the rest of the benefits too.
Rapha also tells us it is bringing back RCC insurance later this month and will have a new club kit out at the end of the month too.
Could this Winter Olympics star switch to pro cycling?
Two golds in the current Olympics, XC skier Johannes Klæbo likes his cycling and has hinted at switching to road racing at some point. He is already sponsored by Uno-X. But for now he’s got more medals to win this week
— the Inner Ring blog (@inrng.com) 11 February 2026 at 08:07
Johannes Høsflot Klæbo vs Primož Roglič in the winter sports x cycling royal rumble? Or is this all just a repeat of the Kristian Blummenfelt saga from the last Summer Olympics?
Yep, we were all quite excited when one of the world’s best triathletes was outspoken about his belief he could win the Tour de France within a few years. Blummenfelt ended up disappointing in Paris and the rumours quickly died down, the word from his camp that he didn’t want to give up all the money in triathlon for a lowly pro cycling contract.
What do you say, Klæbo?
For the uninitiated, the Norwegian cross-country skiing legend yesterday won his second gold of the Winter Olympics, the seventh of his career. Last year he won all six world championship events. At 29, any sport swap would need to come soon, but we’re down if he is…
"This isn't a war on motorists at all... this is about a safe, viable choice to travel in a different way"
Let’s kick off Wednesday with some comments from the West Midlands’ Active Travel Commissioner, Beccy Marston, who has been in the local press spreading the word about walking and cycling, shutting down some common misconceptions, and generally doing a good job of promoting active travel.
While projects to boost walking, cycling and wheeling usually see local newspaper headlines and social media discussion about space being taken from motorists and millions of pounds of taxpayers’ money being involved, Marston was straight to the point when talking to the Express and Star about her role.
“This isn’t a war on motorists at all. This is about giving you safe, viable choice to travel in a different way,” she said.
“It’s got to be the right tool for the job. Don’t see it as an attack on motorists, see it as a way to improve your health, the air that you breathe. Sat in traffic you are breathing in more pollution and the air you breathe on the side of the road walking is cleaner.
“People get in a car to drive to the gym to do exercise. If you cycle to your office, there is your exercise done for the day. You’ve got an hour back – it’s quicker, it’s reliable and you do more stuff, see nature. It’s worth trying it in the summer.
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Latest Comments
40% of fatal road incidents (70 deaths p.a.) in Ireland involve excess alcohol. Pass a law mandating compulsory alcohol interlocks for all motor vehicles and see what that does for road safety first.
@mitsky I didn't say it was applicable in this case or that I thought it should be, I was simply answering your question as to whether anyone had ever shot someone and been charged with anything other than murder or attempted murder, to which the answer is yes.
@perce The new troll, my friend, is solely piss and wind, the new troll is solely piss and wind.
Very correct price for a basic, no-frills frameset. Older and wiser -after a warranty case on a '100 year' Ti frameset that lasted 5 years before a drive side chain stay weld said sayonara- I'll never again purchase a really high cost Ti frame. If the replacement -3999 Euro at retail but I paid 800, which is what it took for them to +- honour the warranty- fails, I'm done. Firstly because they do fail. Titanium is very finicky where welding conditions are concerned and good luck with that warranty, better read the wording very carefully. Secondly, often the price is justified with 'it's a frame for life'. Errrr....yes, unless you decide you want something different after 5 years, it breaks or technology evolves to a point where your frameset becomes aa anachronism and after 10 years you can start hunting for spares(UDH and disc brakes, anyone?). Third: I'm getting a bit tired reading about these so-called 'magical' properties of Ti. The only magical thing about it is the corrosion resistance. All that absorbing of vibrations etc is mainly function of frame design/geometry. If you want vibration damping: larger tires, lower pressure, done.
True,but I can't count thé number of times I've seen him on TV as an invited expert for comments since
"...there was enough suspicion to warrant an out-of-hours knock on the door for the Tour’s then-top two." A generic statement that sounds like a cover-your-arse mumbling. Can they be more specific? Nope. Good to see Vaughters join Lefevere to add up some controversy to the very politically correct pro peloton. In the late 1990s and early noughties, when cycling was becoming a global phenomenom, officials, race organisers and team managers turned a blind eye on doping. Nobody wanted to slay the goose with golden eggs.
Am I missing something. Pogacar would be firm favourite no matter what you did unless you made it a very flat edition which no one would want. Outside of Pogacar its all up for grabs. You can't build a good multi-week race with Pogacar in the form he is in. Take Pogacar out and this would be fine.
Sounds a little like a pissed off driver decided to teach a cyclist a lesson by brake checking them after overtaking them. I hope I am wrong.
Moronic coppers seize and destroy third-party property without notifying the actual owners. Not to worry, compensation to be paid by public money, i.e. the taxpayer. When did the Police openly become the English people's enemy?
@jackcycles What a coincidence! I was at my local bike shop only last week, a Tuesday I think it was. I'd been watching my tomato plants not growing all morning so I said to my pal "it ain't no use to sit and wonder why Dave" and off I went. On the way back two cyclists were approaching and the wind began to howl. I'd seen them earlier knocking on Evans's door so I invited them in to take shelter from the storm. After the idiot wind had subsided and one more cup of coffee they were on their way again.Anyway, I don't think I saw any e-bikes at all, just a bloke on his way to a cello class. I'll tell you what though - I ain't buying any plants from Maggies farm no more. No sirree Bob.
4 thoughts on ““We’re here to ride bikes, not to be politicians”: Biniam Girmay “doesn’t care” about NSN Cycling’s history as Israeli team; “This isn’t a war on motorists”; Could Winter Olympics star switch to cycling?; Rapha’s RideLondon idea + more on the live blog”
A keyboard-bothering match-up that our live blogger is presumably hoping doesn’t come about.
RE: the active travel commissioner’s comments: “This isn’t a war on motorists at all. This is about giving you safe, viable choice to travel in a different way”.
Very restrained. She could have gone with:
“This isn’t a war on motorists at all. Never was. It’s been a war on people’s ability to travel safely and conveniently in the public realm, their health in general and the provision of access to pleasant spaces and amenities … all at the service of the motor industries, related trades and their political sponsors. Since before the leaded petrol scam, before the invention of ‘jaywalking’ …”
Biniam Girmaye is a cycling professional who is paid to win races, which he already did with his new team. He may or may not have opinions about Israel but he isn’t willing to express them publicly. The NSN Team PR & Comms manager did a good job. Useless controversy averted.
So… basically an audax then?
Not trying to bash Rapha too hard, but if you just want someone else to plot out a nice long ride, that you can do either by yourself or with friends, then that’s what an audax is.
I guess the RCC Leader-led groups might be nice for someone with less confidence, or if you’ve signed up to the event by yourself and want to be sure of having a group to ride with (with an audax, you’re relying on the kindness of strangers in that situation – not that that is often in short supply).