Foldable Bikes Party: August 2017

Thursday 31 August 2017

Tour de l'Avenir: Bernal wins stage 7 atop Hauteluce-Les Saisies

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You can read more at Cyclingnews.com

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Pedersen seals overall in Tour du Poitou-Charentes

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Vuelta a Espana: Mohoric wins in Cuenca

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Matej Mohoric (UAE Team Emirates) won stage 7 of the Vuelta a España from the breakaway, thinning out the 14-rider group on the late climb of the Alto del Castillo and dropping the remaining members on the descent, before holding his slim lead on the 10km run-in to Cuenca.

Pawel Poljanski (Bora-Hansgrohe) finished second, and Jose Joaquin Rojas (Movistar) third, 16 seconds back, in a trio that also contained Thomas De Gendt (Lotto Soudal) – the only riders who could stay with Mohoric on the punchy cobbled climb.

Thirteen seconds behind them, Jetse Bol (Manzana Postobon) crossed the line in a second chasing trio, and by doing so leapt up into the top 10 overall. The Dutchman had started the day 8:55 down but the Team Sky-led peloton was happy to let the break carve out a substantial advantage, crossing the line 8:38 behind the stage winner.

That meant Bol jumped above Fabio Aru into seventh place, 46 seconds down on race leader Chris Froome, who finished safely alongside his main rivals on a day when Sky controlled proceedings in the peloton from start to finish.

The journey from Lliria to Cuenca looked fairly innocuous at a glance, but the gradual hike to 1000m and the constantly undulating terrain amounted to an altitude gain of 2700 metres on what was the longest stage of the 2017 Vuelta, at 207km.

Despite a couple of tense moments when the peloton split briefly on exposed roads, it was a relaxed day for the general classification contenders as, in the absence of any real appetite for a chase in the peloton, it soon became clear that the breakaway would go all the way.

How it unfolded

You can read more at Cyclingnews.com

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8 new wheelsets from Zipp

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This article originally appeared on BikeRadar

Zipp has today announced eight new wheelsets and the focus is on disc brakes, tubeless-ready design and gravel. The new line-up introduces four top-of-the-range NSW models and four Firecrest wheelsets, including the all-new 303 Firecrest 650b Tubeless Disc-Brake, which is aimed squarely at gravelistas.

Hailing "a new era of road riding" where riders don't confine themselves to tarmac, the range updates go some way to rationalising Zipp's wheel line-up, bringing full tubeless and disc brake support to all the key models.

Notably absent from the latest updates is the distinctively scalloped 'Sawtooth' rim design, which remains the preserve the of 454 NSW halo model.

Zipp isn't ruling out bringing this to more wheels in the range and the NSW models do get Sawtooth dimples (just not the varying rim depth), but for the time being, it remains cost-prohibitive as the design and manufacturing requirements are considerably more onerous.

Discs for all

303 Firecrest 650b — for gravel AND smaller riders

202, 303, 404 and 808 NSW Tubeless Disc-Brake specs and pricing

32, 45, 58, 82mm depths
1,475g / 1,530g / 1,600g / 1,860g wheelset weights
21mm (202, 303) / 19mm (404, 808) internal widths
24 front / 24 rear J-bend Sapim CX-Ray spokes
ImPress graphics
Cognition Disc hubs with Axial Clutch mechanism, centre-lock disc mounts
Full support for thru-axles and QRs, HG/Campagnolo freehubs and XDR drivers

202 NSW

Front wheel: $1,400, €1,300, £1,100
Rear wheel: $1,800, €1,700, 1,440

303 NSW

Front wheel: $1,400, €1,300, £1,100
Rear wheel: $1,800, €1,700, 1,440

404 NSW

Front wheel: $1,400, €1,300, £1,100
Rear wheel: $1,800, €1,700, 1,440

808 NSW

Front wheel: $1,550, €1,400, £1,185
Rear wheel: $1,950, €1,800, £1,525

202, 404, 808 Firecrest Tubeless Disc-Brake specs and pricing

32, 45, 58, 82mm depths
1530g / 1715g / 1975g wheelset weights
21mm (202, 303) / 19mm (404, 808) internal width
24 front / 24 rear Sapim CX-Ray straight pull spokes
Standard decals (i.e. not ImPress)
77 / 177D hubs with 6-bolt disc mounts,
Full support for thru-axles and QRs, HG/Campagnolo freehubs and XDR drivers

202 Firecrest

Front wheel: $1,150, €1,200, £1,015
Rear wheel: $1,350, €1,400, £1,185

404 Firecrest

Front wheel: $1,150, €1,200, £1,015
Rear wheel: $1,350, €1,400, £1,185

808 Firecrest

Front wheel: $1,300, €1,350, £1,145
Rear wheel: $1,500, €1,550, £1,315

303 Firecrest 650b Tubeless Disc-Brake specs and pricing

45mm rim depth
1595g wheelset weight
21mm internal width
24 front / 24 rear Sapim CX-Ray straight pull spokes
Front wheel: $1,150, €1,200, £1,015
Rear wheel: $1,350, €1,400, £1,185

You can read more at Cyclingnews.com

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Egan Bernal: I don't want to be one of those riders who disappears at 27

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On Sunday, in a dramatic sense of timing, Team Sky announced the signing of Egan Bernal. The Colombian prodigy had just crossed the line on the final stage of the Tour de l'Avenir, wining the race in the process with one of the most assured and dominant performances in the race’s recent history.

"Team Sky are delighted to announce that Tour de l'Avenir winner Egan Bernal will ride for Team Sky from next season,” the statement read.

“His victory at under 23 cycling's most prestigious race has cemented his reputation as one of the brightest prospects in cycling, having quickly amassed an impressive palmares in just two years as a pro."

Compared to the impressive ease in which Bernal had sewn up the race – and his back-to-back stage wins in the mountains – it was quite a sober statement from the British team.

Bernal built his race victory on the first mountain stage to the top of the Col des Saisies on stage 6 when he attacked six kilometres from the finish, despite a quite significant headwind. He finished a minute ahead of his opponents and the Belgian Bjorg Lambrecht, a neo-pro for Lotto-Soudal next season, was so blown away by Bernal's superiority that he said: "He will win overall by at least five minutes."

The following day Bernal’s all-Colombian team controlled the race and the race leader won again in Sainte-Foy-Tarentaise, ahead of Lambrecht no less. On Sunday’s final stage Lambrecht didn't try to turn the race to his advantage.

You can read more at Cyclingnews.com

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2017 Tour of Alberta start list

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You can read more at Cyclingnews.com

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Sportful's latest autumn/winter 2017 range

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This article originally appeared on BikeRadar

Like most, we would welcome another six months of sunny summer riding. Lightweight jerseys, sunscreen, and a cold beer at the end of a long ride seems more appealing than shivering into a driving, wet headwind for hours on end and acquiring a special blend of Belgian toothpaste from your friend's wheel spray.

But as the clocks continue to turn, the seasons come and go, and Sportful's line-up for autumn/winter season is already here.

In the UK at least, summer 2017 hasn't really been much of a summer. We've had plenty of wet weather and grey skies and, if the past few years are anything to go by, we'll inevitably see more of the same in the coming months.

Sportful has recognised this trend of milder, wetter weather here in Europe and has incorporated a balance of water protection and breathability into many of its products.

Here, we take a look at some of the key pieces from the Italian brand's line-up.

Sportful Fiandre

Sportful Fiandre Extreme jacket

Weight: 317g
Sizes: XS–3XL
Colours: Black, Fire Red, Yellow Fluro
Price: £265 / €299.90 / $299.99

Sportful Fiandre Ultimate WS jacket

Weight: 275g
Sizes: XS–3XL
Colours: Yellow Fluro, Black, Fire Red
Price: £185 / €199.90 / $239.99

Sportful Fiandre Light Wind jacket

Weight: 213g
Sizes: XS–3XL
Colours: Black, Fire Red, Yellow Fluro, Green Fluro, Blue Flame
Price: £150 / €169.90 / $199.99

Sportful Fiandre NoRain Pro bibshort

Weight: 235g
Sizes: XS–3XL
Colours: Black
Price: £120 / €139.90 / $149.99

Sportful Fiandre NoRain bibtight

Weight: 354g
Sizes: XS–3XL
Colours: Black, Black/Yellow Fluro
Price: £130 / €144.90 / $179.99
Sportful R&D

Sportful R&D Strato top

Weight: 323g
Sizes: XS–3XL
Colours: Black, Fire Red/Black, Tradewinds/Black
Price: £120 / €149.90 / $229.99

Sportful Giara

Sportful Giara Softshell jacket

Weight: 357g
Sizes: XS–3XL
Colours: Black/Green Fluro, Black/Blue Denim
Price: £120 / €139.90 / $149.99

You can read more at Cyclingnews.com

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Wednesday 30 August 2017

Vuelta a Espana: Chris Froome extends lead as Lopez wins stage 11

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Britain's Chris Froome extends his lead in the Vuelta a Espana and Vincenzo Nibali moves second as Miguel Angel Lopez wins stage 11.

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Cannondale-Drapac launch crowdfunding campaign

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Cannondale-Drapac have turned to crowdfunding to try to stay afloat after a planned new sponsor backed out for the 2018 season.

Following the sponsorship partner's unexpected withdrawal, the American WorldTour outfit announced over the weekend that a lack of funds left the team unable to 'guarantee our financial security and subsequently our WorldTour license.' In a statement, the Slipstream Sports organisation that owns the squad said riders and staff were free to look elsewhere in the peloton for contracts, but that existing contracts would be honoured if the team found the money to continue.

Cannondale-Drapac are looking to crowdfunding, along with support from a consulting firm called the Fairly Group, as potential solutions to the problem.

#SaveArgyle is now live. Huge shout-out to our friends @Fairly_Group for their $2 MILLION match challenge. Donate: https://t.co/eJP2C2uPgC
— Cannondale-Drapac (@Ride_Argyle) August 30, 2017

The campaign, hosted on crowdfunding platform Indiegogo, has a 'flexible goal' of two million dollars, with the Fairly Group 'and other generous supporters' apparently matching all donations up to the goal. Indiegogo projects with flexible goals receive all funds raised, even if they do not reach the full goal amount.

Having re-upped with Rigoberto Urán and other top names before announcing their budgeting crisis, Cannondale-Drapac have estimated the amount they were short for 2018 at seven million dollars. A fully funded Indiegogo campaign and the full match of funds would bring them to four million dollars, more than halfway towards that amount.

You can read more at Cyclingnews.com

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Castelli to produce Giro d'Italia leaders' jerseys for next four years

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After over 20 years of Santini producing the famous Maglia Rosa, the Giro d’Italia leaders’ jerseys will be produced by another Italian brand from the 2018 season for at least four years.

Castelli will produce the famous maglia rosa for the general classification leader, maglia ciclamino for the points classification, maglia azzura for the king of the mountains, and the maglia bianca for the best placed young rider on the general classification.

Castelli has previously made the jerseys for the Giro d’Italia, with the last one worn by Miguel Indurain 25 years ago.

“We are really proud of having back the Scorpion on the roads of the Giro d’Italia,” said Castelli’s brand manager, Steve Smith. “For an Italian company being partner of RCS Sport in the toughest race in the world can only be a great joy. This is a great occasion to showcase an Italian company that’s synonymous with excellence in cycling clothing.”

Race organiser RCS added: “It’s a real pleasure to announce the return of the prestigious international brand Castelli to the Giro d’Italia family. The historic company will once again produce the Giro leader’s jerseys after our successful experience together in the 1980s and 1990s.

“We are certain that this will be an important and worthwhile partnership for both companies, for marketing and in terms of return on investment.”

You can read more at Cyclingnews.com

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Kwiatkowski, Thomas and Viviani headline Team Sky for Tour of Britain

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Team Sky have announced their squad for the Tour of Britain with in-form Elia Viviani joined by Milan-San Remo winner Michal Kwiatkowski and Geraint Thomas.

Owain Doull, Tao Geoghegan Hart and former world time trial champion Vasil Kiryienka make up the rest of the team.

The race starts in Edinburgh on September 3 and is stacked with stages designed for the sprinters. Despite announcing that he will leave Team Sky at end of the season, cutting his contract short by a year, Viviani has been in scintillating form in recent weeks. The Italian won the Cyclassics Hamburg before backing that up with two stage wins at the Tour du Poitou Charentes, and then claimed the Bretagne Classic - Ouest-France last weekend. The 28-year-old has won four stages of the Tour of Britain during his career.

Kwiatkowski has also enjoyed a successful season, book-ending a strong Tour de France with wins in Milan-San Remo and the San Sebastian Classic.

Thomas will be using the event as his first race since the Tour de France. The Welshman won the opening prologue and wore the yellow jersey for several days in July before crashing out with a broken collarbone. He has targeted a stage win rather than the overall classification at the Tour of Britain and has stated his desire to compete in the World Championships in September.

"The support from the British fans is always fantastic and it’s going to be great to race at home. We’ve got a strong squad coming and I’m really looking forward to it," Thomas said in a statement released by the team.

You can read more at Cyclingnews.com

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Jesus and Jose Herrada leave Movistar for Cofidis

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Jesus and Jose Herrada, will both leave Movistar at the end of this season after signing with the French Cofidis team for 2018.

Jesús Herrada, 27, turned pro with the Spanish WorldTour team in 2011, and has twice won the Spanish national championships road race. The latest came in June, and so he will therefore wear national champ’s colours in his first six months at Cofidis.

Having performed strongly on French soil in the past few years - with a stage win at the Critérium du Dauphiné and runner-up overall finishes at the Tour du Haut Var, Tour du Limousin, and Tour du Poitou-Charentes - he feels the French Pro Continental team is the perfect place for him to kick on and break out of his comfort zone.

“Movistar is like a family to me, so it’s not easy to change teams, but I think it’s time to move on,” he said in a statement from Cofidis.

“I looked at several options but I didn’t hesitate in going for Cofidis. I know I’ll find lots of support in this new challenge, and that’s the most important thing – confidence. I’m 27, and the time is right to take on new responsibilities and to see the level I can reach in the biggest races. I’m very happy, I’m sure I’ll continue to have successful seasons, particularly on the French calendar, where I’ve always had my best results. I also want to take on the big classics and week-long stage races. For that, Cofidis was the perfect team to join."

The Spanish champion will be joined, as he has been at Movistar since 2012, by his brother, José, four years his senior. José Herrada turned pro with the Contentpolis team in 2008, spending two seasons there and two seasons at Caja Rural before joining Movistar in 2012.

You can read more at Cyclingnews.com

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Danny van Poppel set to leave Team Sky for LottoNL-Jumbo

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Danny van Poppel will leave Team Sky and ride for LottoNL-Jumbo in 2018, according to a report in De Telegraaf. Van Poppel had previously indicated his intention of remaining at Team Sky, but the newspaper says that he has now penned a two-year deal with the Dutch squad.

Van Poppel turned professional with Vacansoleil-DCM in 2013 and switched to Trek Factory Racing when the team folded at the end of that season. In 2015 he won a stage of the Vuelta a España and was snapped up by Team Sky for the following season.

In his first year with the team, he won stages of the Tour de Yorkshire, the Vuelta a Burgos and the Arctic Race of Norway. This year brought an early stage win in the prologue of the Herald Sun Tour. However, he endured a challenging spring campaign with a string of DNFs that stretched into May. He helped Team Sky win the overall at the Hammer Series but his next individual win didn't come until the Tour de Pologne, where he also enjoyed a short stint in the leader’s jersey.

Van Poppel would be LottoNl-Jumbo’s second signing after they secured neo-pro Pascal Eenkhoorn. He would ride alongside fellow sprinter Dylan Groenewegen, who enjoyed a breakthrough victory on the Champs Elysées at the Tour de France.

Van Poppel would be the second Team Sky sprinter to depart at the end of the season, with Elia Viviani cutting short his contract with the team and moving to Quick-Step Floors. Earlier this week Team Sky announced that they had signed up and coming Norwegian sprinter Kristoffer Halvorsen in addition to GC signings Egan Bernal and Pavel Sivakov.

You can read more at Cyclingnews.com

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BMC re-sign Caruso, Drucker, Rosskopf, Ventoso

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The BMC Racing Team continues to shore up its 2018 roster, announcing that Damiano Caruso, Jempy Drucker, Joey Rosskopf, and Fran Ventoso have all signed contract extensions.

Earlier this year there had been doubts over the future of the team, with the overwhelming majority of riders out of contract at the end of 2017, but Richie Porte re-signing ahead of the Tour de France was a clear indication that the foundations had been laid for 2018 and perhaps beyond.

The team then signed Jurgen Roelandts and Alberto Bettiol, and brought up Nathan van Hooydonck from the development team, as well as extending with Michael Schär, Brent Bookwalter, Alessandro De Marchi, and Danilo Wyss. Greg Van Avermaet already had a contract for 2018, as did neo-pros Miles Scotson and Kilian Frankiny, so there are now 15 riders officially on the books for next season.

The team is expected to confirm further extensions in the coming weeks, while the departure of Manuel Quinziato, Daniel Oss, Amaël Moinard, Manuel Senni, Silvan Dillier, and Ben Hermans means the team has room to make a couple more signings, as DS Valerio Piva told Het Nieuwsblad earlier this week.

Caruso, 29, who is currently riding the Vuelta a España, puts pen to paper towards the end of a strong season that has seen him finish second at the Tour de Suisse and 11th at the Tour de France.

“It was an easy decision to re-sign with BMC Racing Team. [Team manager] Jim Ochowicz likes how I work and I like the team and how it works, so there was no reason to even think about changing teams,” said Caruso, who joined in 2015.

You can read more at Cyclingnews.com

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Vuelta a Espana: Stage 11 finish at Calar Alto “like being on the moon” - preview

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The Vuelta a España moves into the high mountains for the first time since Andorra on stage 11 at Calar Alto in Spain’s deep south, in what will be a much more serious test for the GC candidates.

Although the three climbs in the Pyrenees on stage 3 nine days ago did do some damage - just ask Alberto Contador (Trek-Segafredo), whose GC bid took a significant hit there - Wednesday’s double ration of long, tricky ascents in the little-known Sierra de Filabres are a different story altogether.

First on the menu on a day with 3,490 metres of vertical climbing - nearly 500 more than in the Pyrenean stage and almost entirely packed into the finishing third of stage 11 - is the Alto de Velefique. It is 13.2 kilometres and hosted a finish in 2009 when it was won in a breakthrough victory by Canada’s Ryder Hesjedal. But the main ascent to Calar Alto, which comes straight afterwards, is the Vuelta’s first high mountain summit finish at 15 kilometres long and reaching a maximum altitude of 2,120 metres above sea level.

The finish line is near a space observatory, their igloo-like structures the only buildings as far as the eye can see on a bleak, dry mountain range with very sparse vegetation. Bradley Wiggins once said the area reminded him of Oman, and there’s certainly a feel of the desolate rockscape beauty of Green Mountain (Jabal Al Akhdhar) to the Filabres, although Igor Anton (Dimension Data) describes it “like being on the moon.”

The last winner on the ascent with a solo attack way back in the 2006 Vuelta, Anton says, “Calar Alto is a very tough climb, but more for the length, than the gradient, and because of the wind, which can be very strong and have a big effect because it’s so open and empty.”

The gradient averages out at 5.9 percent, although there are a few ramps of 12 percent on the fairly wide highway. “There are a few breaks in the climb, there are even a few false flats and downhill sections, and it’s not got too bad a road surface,” explains Anton. “Although it was quite cold and misty when I won there, the heat could be a big factor, and so, too, is the altitude, because we go up to over 2,000 metres.”

You can read more at Cyclingnews.com

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Scott debuts the Foil Disc

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This article originally appeared on BikeRadar

Ahead of the 2015 Tour de France, Scott's aero platform the Foil received a head-to-toe redesign, morphing from a body busting-ly stiff frameset to a more comfortable, more traditional aero-looking frame.

Since then it has seen accolades the world over, including becoming the first aero bike to win on the cobbles at Paris-Roubaix.

In passing, a Scott product manager even told me that the Orica-Scott riders' Addict frames were collecting dust because the pro racers can ride the Foil everywhere, except mountain stages.

With every bike brand now jumping on the disc brake train, we're also beginning to see more aero bikes sporting hydraulics; Giant just launched the Propel Advanced Disc, for example. For Scott, which launched the Addict Disc last year, now we have the Foil Disc.

Other than the rotors and hydraulic calipers, the most noticeable difference to the Foil Disc is on the fork. Thanks to the UCI relaxing the 3:1 aerofoil rule, Scott has shrouded the flat-mount brake caliper on the fork to smooth airflow over the structure.

You can read more at Cyclingnews.com

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Trentin continues QuickStep-Floors' Grand Tour winning streak in Murcia

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At the Giro d'Italia, Fernando Gaviria was the main man for QuickStep-Floors with four stage wins. At the Tour de France, it was Marcel Kittel taking up the mantle and claiming five before crashing out. At the Vuelta a Espana, Italian Matteo Trentin has taken on the responsibility and been rewarded with two stages in the opening ten stages.

The Italian is a two-time Tour stage winner and also won a stage of his home Grand Tour last year. On his Vuelta debut, Trentin has gone to another level with his two stage wins while helping teammates Yves Lampaert and Julian Alaphilippe to their maiden Grand Tour stage wins.

In his last Grand Tour with QuickStep-Floors, Trentin is bound for Orica-Scott from 2018, he has set about ensuring the team can match its five stage wins from the Giro and the Tour, explaining after his stage 10 victory that "Now we need a fifth stage win at La Vuelta".

Trentin added that he had marked the stage as one for the breakaway and made it his objective to infiltrate the breakaway.

“I was thinking of this stage for a while now and the plan was to get in the breakaway, knowing there was a solid chance it could stick," he said.

With the category three Alto del Morrón de Totana, into the category one Collado Bermejo climbs before the descent into Murcia for the finish, the stage on paper didn't appear to suit a sprint between Trentin and Movistar's JJ Rojas considering the other riders in the breakaway. However, on the Collado Bermejo it was Trentin and teammate Niki Terpstra pushing the pace to force a selection. Cresting the climb with Jaime Roson Garcia (Caja Rural-Seguros RGA) and Jacques Janse van Rensburg (Dimension Data) for company, Ropjan and Trentin quickly rode away from the duo to set up the sprint.

You can read more at Cyclingnews.com

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Jeremy Maison signs for Fortuneo-Oscaro - News Shorts

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Two-year deal at Fortuneo-Oscaro for Maison

Jérémy Maison has added his name to the list of outgoing riders from FDJ with the 22-year-old inking a deal with Pro-Continental squad Fortuneo-Oscaro. Maison is currently riding his first Grand Tour at the Vuelta a Espana in his second year with the WorldTour team.

Warren Barguil asked team manager Emmanuel Hubert to sign the Frenchman with Maison expressing his delight to have been headhunted by a fellow new signing to the squad.

"I am very happy to join Warren and Amael next year," he said of Barguil and Moinard. "I have total confidence in Warren, he's the one who asked me to surround him. I believe in him and I think he believes in me too. We discover ourselves little by little and we have a similar vision of life and the bike He contacted me the first time when I was an espoir and then the next year I felt he wanted us to ride together for the next few years."

Yet to take a win in the professional ranks, Maison added he is aiming to reach his potential with the Breton squad.

"I'm sure we're going to do some nice things together," he added. "I know that Laurent Pichon is fully blossoming in this team and I think I can find my place easily. Emmanuel Hubert and the sports management rely on me, I want to prove to them that they are right."

Nippo-Vini Fantini announce first signings for 2018

Sicard and Grellier extend with Direct Energie

Vuelta a Espana stage 10 video highlights

You can read more at Cyclingnews.com

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Fizik 2018 range highlights

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This article originally appeared on BikeRadar

Fizik has been busy developing products for the 2018 model year. There's a new top-of-the-line shoe, two new saddles ranges and a host of other of additions.

Fizik's top of the range R1B pro-level shoe will be superseded in 2018 by two options of the all-new Infinito R1. The new design is based around a new closure concept that uses twin BOA dials.

The app also has preloaded sessions on tap, or you can define your own using numerous third party applications

The lower dial controls the volume control that was introduced on the previous R1, but now it has a reconfigured path for the BOA wires, which not only pull the shoe around your foot but also decrease the height of the outer. Fizik claims this will give a much closer, controlled and more comfortable fit.

Microtex and knitting

Winter is coming

Suede-head

Saddle up

You can read more at Cyclingnews.com

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Vuelta a Espana: Rojas forced to settle for second behind Trentin

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For José Joaquín Rojas, it appeared the Movistar rider's quest for a breakthrough Grand Tour stage would end on Stage 10 of the Vuelta a España. The two-time Spanish champion has a handful of third place finishes at the Tour de France and after crashing out for the Vuelta last appear, redemption on home roads in Murcia was on the cards.

However, with Italian Matteo Trentin enjoying a purple patch of form, Rojas knew the QuickStep-Floors rider was his most dangerous rival from the remnants of the day's breakaway. Trentin and teammate Niki Terpstra worked to trim the lead group which was down to four in the closing kilometres of the Collado Bermejo climb. Joining Trentin and Rojas was Jacques Janse Van Rensburg (Dimension Data), Rafael Reis, and Jaime Roson (Caja Rural-Seguros RGA).

Knowing his best bet for the stage win was to drop Trentin on the descent and Trentin likewise knowing Rojas was his major rival for the win, the duo jumped clear to ensure a two-up sprint for the win. Leading out into the final kilometre, it was inevitable that Trentin would be taking the win and despite Rojas jumping first, it was the Italian taking the easy win by a one-second margin.

"It was clear that Trentin was the worst contender we could fight for a stage against; he's the best sprinter in this Vuelta," Rojas said. "Finding him through a Cat-1 climb, in the roads of Murcia, just next to your home... It's sad we didn't really have a chance today. As we've said many times during this race, we must not stop trying, and for the moment we've snatched two third places, this second... We must continue to think that tomorrow's stage will be the good one."

For Rojas, who was fifth at Amstel Gold Race, it was his best personal result since winning the Spanish nationals in 2016. Despite being confident due to his local knowledge, Rojas acknowledged that with Trentin in the front group, he was always going to be riding for second place.

"I had things planned in my mind, I knew what I had to do because I knew the terrain, but in the end, I could only try to sneak a way past Trentin into the descent, because he was so strong on the climbs, and coming into a sprint we knew we couldn't beat him," he said.

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Vuelta a Espana: Chaves holds onto second despite late Roche attack

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On the fast descent off the category one Collado Bermejo, Vincenzo Nibali looked the rider most likely to steal time on his Vuelta a Espana GC rivals and improve upon his fourth place overall. However, Esteban Chaves (Orica-Scott) was attentive to the Bahrain-Merida rider and ensured the move was closed down and there would be no repeat of the stage 3 victory.

In the closing kilometres of stage 10, Nico Roche (BMC) sprung a surprise on the GC group to jump away and close the gap to Chaves and race leader Chris Froome (Team Sky). The lack of attention to Roche's move by Chaves and the GC men saw the Irishman move into equal second overall, tied on time with Chaves at 36 seconds behind Froome.

Sport director Neil Stephens, who suffered a flat tyre in the team care on the Collado Bermejo descent, explained post-stage it was disappointing to cough up almost 30 seconds to Roche. But added he believes Chaves' GC bid is still alive and well.

"The boys did a great job again. They were placed really well down the descent," Stephens said. "In the final there, Nicholas Roche was able to get a bit of a gap and it grew out before Jack was able to get back and help to limit the losses a little bit.

"It's unfortunate we lost that little bit of time, but we think our general classification ambitions are still in order and going really well."

With no change to the top-ten standings, Roche was the big GC winner on the day. The wet weather limited the risks some riders were willing to take as Adam Yates explained, adding it was still a good day for Orica-Scott all things considered.

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Giro Vanquish claims speed increases without ventilation sacrifice

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This article originally appeared on BikeRadar

After two teams raced it at the Tour de France, the Giro Vanquish MIPS aero road helmet was launched today with a price of $275 / £239 and claims of aerodynamic speed increases over the company's Synthe helmet (by 13 percent) and Air Attack (by seven percent).

A magnetic shield with a Zeiss lens is included — something Katusha and BMC racers didn't use at the Tour. Giro says the shield improves aero speed by another two percent versus the Synthe when tested at 40kph.

Vanquish replaces Air Attack

Giro kick-started the aero road helmet trend years ago with the Air Attack. That rounded helmet also came with an integrated shield option, but Giro creative director Eric Horton said the company didn't understand the shield's aerodynamics as well at that time as it does now.

Giro designers claim the slight ledge (highlighted by the color change, not the vents) acts as an aero trip layer so air flows smoothly back as if around a teardrop shape

Cycling-specific Zeiss lens shield

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Vuelta a Espana: Woods still firing on all cylinders in second week

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Michael Woods (Cannondale-Drapac) continued where he left off in the overall classification battle at the Vuelta a España on Tuesday, although his mud-spattered bike, sitting outside the team bus after stage 10, was testament to what had been a hard day's racing through ridiculously heavy rain early on and a long climb over the Collado Bermejo at the end.

Arguably the trickiest, most stressful part of the day, though, came on the long, technical descent off the Collado through dense woodland to the finish. Woods, like many other riders, told Cyclingnews that, despite taking all precautions, he came within a whisker of crashing at one point, but overall he came through well.

"Descending was really good, I put a little less pressure in the tyres today," Woods said. The Canadian continues to sit eighth overall at 1:55 from Froome.

"I messed up the first part of the descent because I was a little too far back, I thought we had two extra kilometres left to go [to the summit] but in any case, I was feeling so good I was able to get by guys just before crucial points on the descent.

"I almost went off the road at one point, and kind of did. But otherwise, I managed to make that front group and was hoping we'd be able to stick away when it split but guys kind of eased up afterwards."

The race amongst the GC contenders had stayed fairly stable on the climb itself until Vincenzo Nibali (Bahrain-Merida) opened up hostilities just before the summit and then launched himself onto the downhill with a vengeance.

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Vuelta a Espana: Trentin wins stage 10

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Matteo Trentin (Quick-Step Floors) claimed his second victory of the 2017 Vuelta a España, getting the better of Jose Joaquin Rojas (Movistar) in a two-up sprint after the duo had forged clear on the descent of the Collado Bermejo.

The Italian, who won a bunch sprint in Tarragona on stage 4, was part of a four-man group that went clear from the 20-strong breakaway on the way up the first-category climb, and by the bottom of the 20km descent just Rojas stood between him and the victory.

And in truth, the Spaniard didn't put up much of a fight. He led through the final right-hand bend and opened up his sprint from range, giving Trentin ample time to hide in the slipstream before surging through in the final 100 metres – at which point Rojas simply sat up and acknowledged defeat.

"I really wanted it. It was for a while I was thinking about this stage because the climb was hard, but it was a steady grind. It was something that I can handle pretty well," said Trentin, who made it four wins so far for Quick-Step at this Vuelta.

"I knew the downhill was really technical. For me it was good having Rojas in the front group because he was really, really good going down. I could just follow him. To be honest, when he was really pushing, I'm a good downhiller I think, but I was a bit in trouble to follow him. We could distance all the other guys on the downhill, then it was good in the sprint."

Chris Froome (Team Sky) retained his overall lead, despite a spirited onslaught from Vincenzo Nibali (Bahrain-Merida) on the long and sinuous descent, which was made all the more treacherous by the wet weather earlier in the day. Froome finished alongside most of his rivals, though there was a significant development as Nicolas Roche (BMC Racing) produced a spirited descent of his own to finish almost half a minute clear of the GC group.

How it unfolded

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Boels Ladies Tour: Van Vleuten wins prologue

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Annemiek van Vleuten (Orica-Scott) claimed a hometown victory in the prologue of the Boels Ladies Tour in Wageningen, the Netherlands on Tuesday, seeing off European champion Ellen van Dijk (Sunweb) by four seconds and Lisa Brennauer (Canyon-SRAM) by 10 seconds in the 4.3km test.

The Dutch champion started her race more than an hour before the last rider, UCI Women's WorldTour leader Anna van der Breggen (Boels Dolmans), and after setting the fastest time had a long and tense wait before being declared the winner when Van der Breggen crossed the line 14 seconds slower.

"To be able to win in your home town is really great," Van Vleuten said. "I felt some pressure so to come away with the win is really nice. I heard my name cheered a lot around the course, it is my home town so it is very special.

"I went full gas on the straight parts and didn't take big risks on the corners. They were a little bit dangerous so I don't think anybody did because the world championships is the next goal to be there in top shape."

Van Vleuten showed that her strength in time trialing is at a peak, and looked forward to the stage 3 time trial that is 16.9km in length to further open up the overall classification.

"I think the two stages at the end of the week will be really interesting and there you can make some differences if you're in really good shape," van Vleuten continued. "We have a really good team here and I am really pleased about that, I have the strongest team I could have so we will just go for it this week."

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Tuesday 29 August 2017

Boels Rental Ladies Tour 2017 start list

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DEVO: U23 Team Develop Skills at Competitive Tour de lâ€™Avenir

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The U23 team fought to the end of the very competitive Tour de landrsquo;Avenir in France, gaining valuable lessons and experience during the nine-stage race.

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Froome retains Vuelta lead as Trentin wins stage 10

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Britain's Chris Froome maintains his lead in the Vuelta a Espana as Italy's Matteo Trentin wins stage 10.

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2017 ProCX Starts on September 9th

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The 2017 Professional Cyclocross Calendar (ProCX) is set to kick off in two weeks with a total of 43 race days across 18 states and the District of Columbia.

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McLaren and Specialized release special edition Roubaix

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This story originally appeared on Bikeradar.

Quite some time ago, Specialized teamed up with McLaren to make a special edition Venge, where the British Formula 1 giant took the existing frame and optimized the carbon layup - which led to a lighter and stiffer frame.

Since then we’ve also seen the brands collaborate on a limited edition and seriously expensive S-Works Tarmac, the new Venge ViAS, a TT Lid and now a bright Orange S-Works Roubaix.

The bike is a celebration of McLaren’s 50 years of Grand Prix racing, and the bike is painted with what Specialized is calling 'Heritage Orange', paying homage to the Automaker's now trademark ‘papaya orange’ that adorned its race cars in the late 1960s.

Let’s not forget that Specialized and McLaren have a technical partnership, and the Automaker provided the data logging equipment used to develop the Rolling Efficiency Simulator - an integral piece of software used in part to design the new Roubaix.

Celebrating McLaren's 50 years of Grand Prix racing.

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Nibali: Froome has been the strongest and most explosive so far

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Vincenzo Nibali (Bahrain-Merida) remains in contention as the Vuelta a España resumes after its first rest day, but the Italian has acknowledged that race leader Chris Froome (Sky) has appeared unbeatable to this point.

Froome moved into the red jersey when Nibali won stage 3 in Andorra, and has steadily increased his overall lead since. On Sunday, Froome won on the summit finish atop Cumbres del Sol to cement his lead still further, while Nibali is now 4th overall, 1:17 down.

“At this moment, you can’t beat him. On all of the summit finishes so far, he’s shown himself to be the strongest, the most powerful, the most explosive. It’s disarming,” Nibali told La Gazzetta dello Sport. “Up to now…”

Froome and Sky’s dominance has not been the only defining characteristic of the Vuelta to date. The soaring speeds in the front group, particularly on the final climbs, has not gone unnoticed within the peloton. Nibali said that the data from his power-meter demonstrated just how tough this Vuelta has been.

“We’re going very strongly and in the bunch, nobody is talking about anything else,” Nibali said. “Besides, the computers don’t lie. We’re flying.”

Nibali began the Vuelta on the back foot following Bahrain-Merida’s lowkey showing in the opening team time trial in Nîmes, and he admitted that he has struggled on the short, explosive climbs that have littered the Vuelta route to date. Even Nibali’s canny victory in Andorra came after he had been distanced by Froome on the Alto de la Cornella.

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Landa to take over Fundacion Euskadi team - News Shorts

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Mikel Landa is set to take over the Basque development squad Fundacion Euskadi, according to a report in Spanish publication AS. Landa will take control of the squad, which is currently run by Miguel Madariaga, in the short to medium term. Current sports director, and former teammate of Landa’s at Euskaltel-Euskadi, Jorge Azanza, will take up a lead role within the team.

Madariaga has been involved with the Fundacion Euskadi team since its inception and had preparing to leave the team, but they were struggling to find a replacement.

Landa rode for the Fundacion Euskadi team in 2008 and 2009 before switching to the Orbea Continental squad at the end of the 2009 season. He stepped up to the professional ranks in 2011 with the Euskaltel-Euskadi team, which received some funding from the Fundacion Euskadi.

The team is not Landa’s first side project, after he funded the set-up of cycling website Zikloland.com at the end of last year with journalist and representative Jesús Ezkurdia. Landa will ride with Movistar next season after signing a two-year contract with the Spanish squad.

Mikel Landa (Team Sky)

Sunweb backing Bauhaus for Brussels Cycling Classic success

German Phil Bauhaus will lead Team Sunweb into the Brussels Cycling Classic on his debut at the 1.HC Belgian sprinters' race. The 23-year-old enjoyed a breakout stage win at the Critérium du Dauphiné in June and will be backed by an experienced squad for the September 2 race.

National Canadian team named for GP Québec and Montréal

Vuelta a Espana Recon Ride rest day podcast

With the Vuelta a Espana taking its first rest day of 2017, the Recon Ride has turned its attention to the opening nine days of racing and looking ahead to what's in store before rest day two.

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Vanmarcke 'cannot afford to wait' for Vaughters to find $7m

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Sep Vanmarcke is on the hunt for a new team, arguing that he “cannot afford to wait” for Jonathan Vaughters to secure the future of the Cannondale-Drapac team.

The Belgian, who leads the American team at the spring Classics, said he was shocked at last week’s news that he and the rest of the riders and staff had been released from their 2018 contracts, with a sponsorship shortfall meaning the team cannot continue beyond this season unless team manager Vaughters finds last-minute backing.

“I thought everything was alright. Dylan van Baarle and Rigoberto Urán had even signed up. And suddenly that message,” said Vanmarcke at the GP Plouay race at the weekend, according to Het Nieuwsblad.

Vanmarcke explained that the riders were told about the situation via email on Saturday, after the team received what it described as “discouraging news about a new partner we anticipated joining us in 2018.” That partner is reported to be the betting company Unibet, though the team refused to confirm or deny this when contacted by Cyclingnews.

Vanmarcke must have felt a sense of déjà vu, for this is the third time he has found himself in such a position. Just days after signing for the Rabobank team in late 2012, the Dutch bank announced it was pulling out, though the team did continue as ‘Blanco’ with prolonged Rabobank investment. Belkin then stepped in as a new sponsor but half-way through the 2014 season the consumer electronics company announced it was off, and the riders faced yet more uncertainty.

Vanmarcke stayed with the team as new investment was found and it became LottoNL-Jumbo, though his agent had started negotiating with other teams, and that looks to be the case once again.

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Dumoulin and Van der Breggen lead Dutch team for Worlds

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The Dutch national cycling team has named a strong squad for the 2017 World Championships next month in Bergen. Giro d'Italia champion Tom Dumoulin heads up the men's squad while Olympic champion Anna van der Breggen leads the women's team.

Dumoulin, who will also contest the time trial alongside teammate Wilco Kelderman, can call on a strong team for the challenging 276.5km Bergen course on September 24. Trek-Segafredo duo Bauke Mollema and Koen de Kort have earned selection while Sky's Wout Poels will be a key rider in the finale and is another option in the fight for victory. Niki Terpstra (QuickStep-Floors), Jos van Emden (LottoNL-Jumbo), Dylan van Baarle (Cannondale-Drapac), Sebastian Langeveld (Cannondale-Drapac), and Lars Boom (LottoNL-Jumbo) will be important riders across the race and can provide the Dutch will multiple options.

Ample support for Van der Breggen comes in the form of Annemiek van Vleuten (Orica-Scott) and Ellen van Dijk (Team Sunweb). Three-time road world champion Marianne Vos (WM3 Energie) adds further firepower and winning know-how to the squad, having recently won the European title.

"Past performance does not provide a guarantee for the future. The level of international women's cycling has grown sharply in recent years," said national coach Thorwald Venebergsaid. "But I'm confident that these ladies can fight for victory!"

The star studded women's squad is complemented by Chantal Blaak (Boels Dolmans), Amy Pieters (Boels Dolmans), Lucinda Brand (Sunweb) and Janneke Ensing (Alé Cipollini).

While the men's squad is still searching for its first men's rainbow jersey since Joop Zoetemelk won in 1985, the women's squad via Vos and Van Dijk has enjoyed multiple gold medals in recent years.

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Adam Yates: I’m still aiming for GC at Vuelta a Espana

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Adam Yates (Orica-Scott) does not tend to mince his words, and so far he hasn’t, he says, been finding it easy going in the 2017 Vuelta a España. But at the same time, Yates remains upbeat and he has every intention of staying in the GC game as the race now hits theoretically more favourable terrain with a series of high mountain stages.

“It’s been tough, really,” Yates told Cyclingnews when asked about the first week. “Almost every stage has been super long, most of them have been super windy and stressful, there have been crashes, the last climbs have been super steep.

“I did know what to expect, since I did the Vuelta in 2014 and it’s pretty much the same. They always seem to go along the coast where it’s more windy. But so far so good, really.”

Yates is now lying ninth overall, 1:55 behind leader Chris Froome (Team Sky), a position that is somewhat overshadowed by teammate Esteban Chaves, who is second overall, 36 seconds back. But that doesn’t mean the Bury man’s GC battle is over.

Chaves himself has already said that it’s good for the team to have two GC cards to play, just as Orica-Scott did to impressive effect in last year’s Vuelta, with Chaves taking third overall and Simon Yates taking sixth as well as one of the Australian team’s four stage wins. This time round, it’s Adam who’s working out best as Orica-Scott’s other option.

Yates is pleased that the steeper climbs that have proliferated in the first week are now pretty much over. “I feel better when the gradient is a bit lower. All these little steep finishes, I keep losing seconds here, seconds there on these climbs, but I think we’re still in a good position. Esteban second is and I’m still in the top 10,” he said.

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Scott Bowden ready for comeback after long-term knee injury

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In August 2016, Scott Bowden made his debut as a professional road cyclist. The Australian was a relative unknown when national coach Brad McGee named him in the Olympic team alongside Richie Porte, Rohan Dennis and Simon Clarke. Bowden's selection came about because he qualified for the men's mountain bike race and could therefore also contest the road race. While Rio marked the start of Bowden's road career, it also marked the beginning of the end for his career on the dirt.

Inking a deal with Australian Continental squad IsoWhey Sports Swisswellness, Bowden's focus in his single year at U23 level was to secure a move into the Pro-Continental or WorldTour ranks. His season started promisingly over the Australian summer of cycling, but a seemingly innocuous knee injury in February all but wrecked his season. Despite the misfortune of the injury, Bowden has no regrets in making the switch.

"In all honesty, it's been a really challenging 12-months physically from the point of view from the injury but also then mentally trying to deal with that and the frustrations of not being able to race," Bowden told Cyclingnews. "Particularly being a year I wanted to do something a little new and focus on the road and it hasn't exactly gone to plan. It is a long game cycling and all part of it I guess.

"When you start playing with those kind of thoughts, nothing good can come of it. To be honest, it wasn’t the result of making this choice," he said of the decision to move to the road. "Whether I'd made it or not, I could have very well have had the same injury happen."

Due to the extent of the troublesome knee injury, Bowden explained he spoke with team managers Andrew Christie-Johnstone and Steve Price, and coach Mark Fenner, telling management that he was going to "sit out" the team's European racing programme.

"It was a pretty tough call to make because I knew I wasn't going to be going well enough to even play my role as any sort of teammate in those races," Bowden recounted. "I said I wasn't going to be any help so I may as well just stay at home. It was a tough pill to swallow but I felt it was the best decision for myself and the team."

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2018 Giant Propel Advanced Disc: all in on hydraulics

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This article originally appeared on BikeRadar

Giant is all in on disc-brake aero road bikes.

Every model in the 2018 Propel Advanced aero bike line features hydraulic Shimano disc brakes, and the Taiwanese manufacturer claims the new machines are aerodynamically superior to its previous rim-brake editions and deliver a higher stiffness-to-weight ratio than the top competitors' aero bikes.

In terms of wind-tunnel measurements, Giant found the Propel Disc to be in line with the Trek Madone and the Specialized Venge ViAS Disc.

Giant spent three years developing the Propel Disc, combining wind-tunnel work at Aero Concept Engineering in France with Giant's deep in-house carbon manufacturing expertise.

There are no rim-brake Propels for 2018; the range runs from full electric/hydraulic Shimano Dura-Ace to mechanical/hydraulic Shimano Ultegra, all with Giant's own carbon tubeless wheels that come set up with sealant.

Can disc brakes really be aero?

Tunnel testing meets real-world considerations

Propel Disc vs. Specialized Venge ViAS Disc, Trek Madone and Canyon Aeroad CF SLX

But what about the CdA numbers?!

Giant Propel Disc Advanced models, prices and availability

Carbon, blue and white
Integrated seatmast
Top-level carbon
Carbon stem, carbon bar
Full Shimano Dura-Ace 9170 hydraulic Di2, including Dura-Ace power meter 52/36 and 11-28
Gavia Race 0 Tubeless 25mm
Price: $11,300

Carbon, red and orange
Integrated seatmast
Top-level carbon
Carbon stem, carbon bar
Full Shimano Ultegra hydraulic Di2 except KMC X11E-1 chain
52/36 and 11-28
Gavia Race 0 Tubeless 25mm
Price: $7,000

Carbon, green and white
Second-level carbon
Adjustable seatpost
Alloy stem, carbon bar
Full Shimano Ultegra hydraulic Di2 except KMC X11E-1 chain
52/36 and 11-28
Gavia Race 1 Tubeless 25mm
Price: $5,700

Neon red and black
Second-level carbon
Alloy/carbon fork
Adjustable seatpost
Alloy bar and stem
Full Shimano Ultegra hydraulic mechanical except KMC X11E-1 chain
Gavia Race 1 Tubeless 25mm
Price: $3,700

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Two-year extension for Calmejane at Direct Energie

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Second year neo-professional Lilian Calmejane has inked a two-year extension with Direct Energie. The 24-year-old won a stage at the Tour de France on his debut at the race in July.

With Thomas Voeckler retiring, and Bryan Coquard leaving the Pro-Continental team at the end of 2017, Calmejane will take on the mantle as a team captain. Calmejane has enjoyed a breakout season so far in 2017 with stage wins and overall victories at Etoile de Bessèges, Settimana Internazionale Coppi e Bartali, and Circuit Cycliste Sarthe-Pays de la Loire.

"There are quite a few factors that are taken into account. There is already the fact that the team is taking a new turn, where I will have a leading role to assume," Calmejane said of his decision to re-sign. "It is true that I had a fairly rapid progression and that I have many ambitions. Direct Energie trusts me and offers me a long-term project.

"Like the majority of the team today, I went through Vendée U. Jean-René (Bernaudeau) gave me my chance," he added of the team manager and the team's development squad. "Passing through Vendée U, it allowed me to have a progression over four years and to have today the responsibilities I have within Direct Energie. I have a moral duty to the team, I do not want to disappoint them."

Calmejane's first season in the pro ranks included several top-ten results before he claimed a win at the Vuelta a España on his Grand Tour debut. In 2017, the Albi native has gone to another level with the Tour de France a highlight. Along with his stage win, Calmejane also wore the polka dot jersey and was awarded the combativity award on stage three and eight.

While Calmejane wants more success from the season, he is looking forward to continuing his development with Direct Energie.

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Neben headlines eight-rider US women's Worlds roster

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USA Cycling on Monday announced 23 riders to its roster for the UCI Road World Championships in Bergen, Norway, September 16-24, including the eight riders who will represent the US in the Elite Women's time trial and road race.

Amber Neben (Team VeloConcept), the reigning time trial world champion, will be in Bergen to defend her title and take on the road race as well. Twenty-year-old Chloe Dygert (Sho-Air Twenty20), a 2015 double world champion as a Junior, will tackle the Elite women's time trial rather than attempting the U23 race. Neben and Dygert will be joined in the time trial by Lauren Stephens (Tibco-Silicon Valley Bank) and Tayler Wiles (UnitedHealthcare). Like Neben, both Wiles and Stephens will take on the rad race as well.

They'll be joined in the road race by 2016 Women's WorldTour winner Megan Guarnier (Boels Dolmans), Katie Hall (UnitedHealthcare), Ruth Winder (UnitedHealthcare), and Coryn Rivera (Team Sunweb), a powerful sprinter who could find the flat finish in Bergen to her liking.

USA Cycling also released the men's U23 and Junior rosters, as well as the women's Junior roster. The Elite men's time trial and road race rosters will be released September 9.

Among the U23 men, William Barta (Axeon Hagens Berman), Ian Garrison (Axeon Hagens Berman) and Justin Oien (Caja Rural-Seguras RGA) will take on the road race, while Neilson Powless (Axeon Hagens Berman) and Brandon McNulty (Rally Cycling), who won the junior time trial title last year, will compete in both the road race and time trial.

The Junior women's roster features Alijah Beatty (NorthStar Development) and Megan Heath (Rally Sport Cycling Team) in the road race, while Summer Moak (Sho-Air Twenty20) and Abigail Youngwerth (Sho-Air Twenty20) will take on both the road race and time trial.

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Giro picks Knits for new Empire road and MTB shoes

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This article originally appeared on BikeRadar

Nike and others have sold countless athletic shoes in recent years with lightweight knit uppers, and Giro has taken notice. The cycling brand just launched three Xnetic Knit shoes that have TPU skeletal support for cycling and DWR treatments for water repellency.

Giro reintroduced laces to modern cycling shoes with the Empire, and the new Empire E70 Knit features the same closure system but with a pliable, breathable upper and an Easton EC70 carbon sole.

While the knit upper looks like that of a running shoe, the feel is quite different. Giro worked with the knit manufacturer to tune the mix of polyester and nylon for a material that has some give, but also some supportive structure.

Giro brand manager Eric Richter said that Giro experimented with varying levels of stretch. "Our first knit prototype had no structure at all. It felt neat in the hand, but it was not efficient for pedaling," he said. "After they knit these yarns, the fibers go through a heating process, and the nylon fibers melt and fuse to the polyester. We worked until we had a knit that had enough support but felt uniquely supple."

The shoes also have a TPU skeletal support structure on the underside of the knit.

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Former Rock Racing rider Leogrande banned for second doping case

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The US Anti-Doping Agency today announced that Kayle Leogrande has been banned for eight years after testing positive for seven different banned substances in a doping control taken at this year's Dana Point Grand Prix.

Leogrande, 40, was found positive for the anti-estrogen drug raloxifene, four Selective Androgen Receptor Modulators (SARM), ostarine, RAD140, LGD4033 and andarine, ibutamoren (a growth hormone-like factor), and GW1516 sulfone (the 'exercise in a pill' drug).

Of all seven of the drugs found in Leongrande's sample, only raloxifene is approved for human use as an osteoporosis treatment. The other six are in development or, in the case of GW1516 which was abandoned by its developers after it caused cancer in lab animals, have been found unsuitable for humans.

It was the second doping case for Leogrande, who previously served a two-year ban for a non-analytical positive after admitting to using the banned blood booster EPO during the Superweek series in 2007 to his then-Rock Racing soigneur Suzanne Sonye.

Leogrande attempted to sue both Sonye and Matt Decanio - who posted a phone conversation in which Sonye described Leogrande's confession to his website - for slander, but the suit was struck down by the courts. Leogrande was then found guilty of an anti-doping rule violation by USADA because of his admission to Sonye. He later admitted to having used EPO.

Following his most recent positive test from the Dana Point Grand Prix of Cycling, where he won the Masters 35+ event, Leogrande did not request a hearing to contest the charges against him, and accepted a provisional suspension on May 25, 2017. He has been disqualified for all results on or after April 30, 2017.

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Kristin Armstrong joins USA Cycling as endurance performance director

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Three-time Olympic time trial champion Kristin Armstrong Savola will join USA Cycling's Elite Athletics department as an endurance performance director, the US governing body announced today.

Armstrong is the most-decorated US women's cyclist of all time, having won gold medals in three consecutive Olympics Games in 2008 in Beijing, 2012 in London and 2016 in Rio. She is also a two-time world champion and six-time US national champion.

"Cycling has given me so much, and I want to give back," Armstrong said. "I did not achieve my success alone, and I know others can't either. I'm really pleased USA Cycling asked me to help them improve their athlete development and support, and I look forward to joining their impressive high-performance team. My goal is to help others achieve their full potential."

Performance directors work directly with athletes on developing objectives, monitoring progress, optimizing training and competition schedules, and fully leveraging all available resources from USA Cycling, the US Olympic Committee, and USA Cycling technical partners, according to today's USA Cycling announcement. Those resources include world-class coaching, state-of-the-art equipment, wind-tunnel testing, nutrition guidance, sports psychology, and more.

"We are honored and very fortunate that Kristin will be joining USA Cycling in a vital role entirely focused on providing our best athletes with world-class development expertise and access to the outstanding technical resources available to them from USA Cycling, the US Olympic Committee, and our growing roster of high performance partners like Assos and Felt," said USA Cycling President Derek Bouchard-Hall.

"Our selection committee for this role was very enthusiastic about Kristin's ability to do exactly that, given her unquestionably distinctive qualifications for leading the next generation of American Olympic medalists."

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Bystrom joins Kristoff in move to UAE Team Emirates - News shorts

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UAE Team Emirates announced today that they have finalised a deal securing European champion Alexander Kristoff for two seasons after the Norwegian's medical exams were completed. They also announced that former U23 world champion Sven Erik Bystrom will follow his compatriot across to the squad from Katusha-Alpecin on a two-year contract.

"I'm very proud and really excited to join UAE Team Emirates," Kristoff said. "For me this is a big move since it's only the second time in my career that I've changed teams. I'm looking forward for meeting my new teammates and staff members and getting to know all the people who work on this project. I'm very confident about the future, and I'm sure that with UAE Team Emirates we will archive great results staring next Spring."

Team manager Carlo Saronni called Kristoff "a world class rider with an impressive dossier".

"His European championship title is just further proof of his winning drive," Saronni said of Kristoff. "These are the skills that piqued our interest in Alexander as someone who can make the squad even better. We were happy to see how Kristoff appreciated the significance of the project behind our team, and we are sure that this road we are taking together will bring even more prestige to Alexander's image and career.

"We also welcome Bystrom, who's a young talented rider."

Halvorsen signs with Team Sky

Team Sky announced today the signing of 21-year-old Kristoffer Halvorsen, the reigning U23 world champion who rides with Team Joker Icopal this season, where he is building a reputation as one of the most exciting young sprinters in the sport.

Tankink extends for one more year with LottoNL-Jumbo

— Bram Tankink (@bramtankink) August 28, 2017

Team Sunweb add Aussie duo Hindley and Storer

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Rally opting for three-pronged approach in Alberta

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Rally Cycling is bringing a strong team to the upcoming Tour of Alberta that features three potential leaders for the general classification battle, with Tour of Utah winner Rob Britton leading a charge that will also include 2016 Alberta stage winner Evan Huffman and climbing talent Sepp Kuss.

Jesse Anthony, Matteo Dal-Cin, Adam de Vos, Danny Pate and Colin Joyce, who won the opening Alberta stage last year and led the race for a day, will round out the US Continental team's roster.

"My main focus is to end the season with a strong result," Britton said. "The team will be looking for success in stages, however the overall will be our main focus."

Britton took the lead in Utah with a powerful performance in the race's short uphill time trial at elevation, then hung on over four more stages to take the overall win over Gavin Mannion (UnitedHealthcare) and Serghei Tvetcov (Jelly Belly-Maxxis). He suffered at the Colorado Class less than a week later and finished 30th overall.

"Honestly, I was pretty beat up after Utah and it showed in Colorado," he said. "I've had a few weeks at home to recuperate and now I'm feeling good and hungry to race again. After Alberta, I have a few races with the Canadian National Team and then I am going to do some mountain biking."

Kuss, who was second on Utah's second stage to Snowbasin Ski resort and led the race for a day, finished ninth in Utah and sixth in Colorado after an untimely mechanical doomed his efforts in Breckenridge. Huffman, who won stage 3 in Alberta last year and finished third overall, is in the midst of a stellar season that saw him win two stages at the Tour of California along with the time trial stages at the Cascade Cycling Classic and the Tour of the Gila, where he also won the overall.

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Gwin, Seagrave tops in Val di Sole World Cup finale

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Schurter caps off perfect season with Val di Sole victory

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Olympic and world champion Nino Schurter (Scott-SRAM) finished an unprecedented perfect World Cup season on Sunday when he completed his sweep of all six rounds of the 2017 Mountain Bike World Cup series in Val di Sole, Italy.

Schurter came into the final round having already assured himself of the World Cup title with five straight wins - a record for the cross-country World Cup. However, winning the final round would further cement his status as the top male mountain biker in the world.

The men raced a start loop plus seven laps of the four kilometre circuit, and Schurter immediately went to the front, joined by Manuel Fumic (Cannondale Factory). The duo had opened a gap on the chasers by the start of the first lap, however, Fumic suffered a drivetrain problem on the opening lap and fell out of contention.

Stephane Tempier (Bianchi Countervail) bridged up from the chase group to join Schurter at the front on the second lap, and the pair rode away from the rest of the field. Schurter was content to ride on Tempier's wheel for most of the race, before attacking on the final climb of the last lap to open a four second gap and take the title.

The chase group began with 11 riders and was gradually whittled down over the laps. 2012 Olympic champion Jaroslav Kulhavy (Specialized) did much of the work at the front of the group, before he was joined by two-time Olympic champion Julien Absalon (BMC), who bridged up to the group on the fourth lap. Absalon, the defending World Cup champion, was out of contention for the overall title after breaking his collarbone and missing two rounds, however, he showed that he is rapidly returning to form with a strong third place finish, just ahead of Kulhavy.

"It's amazing and unbelievable," admitted Schurter. "I have an awesome team around me and that's a big part of this success. It's impossible to get through the whole season without them. I wasn't too fresh this race; I'm starting to feel the long season, so I couldn't get away [from Tempier]. I just tried to stay with him. So I did the same as two years ago when I attacked [Julien] Absalon on that section before the downhill and it worked."

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Neff finds form with Val di Sole victory

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Two-time overall World Cup champion Jolanda Neff (Kross Racing) has struggled this season, but showed she is returning to form with her victory on Sunday at the final round of the 2017 Mountain Bike World Cup series in Val di Sole, Italy.

Yana Belomoina (CST Sandd American Eagle) had already won the overall title going into the final race, with three wins in the previous five rounds. The women raced a start loop plus six laps of the four kilometre circuit, and Neff showed her form of old with a fast start that put her into the lead by the end of the start loop.

The Swiss rider was initially joined at the front by defending overall World Cup champion Catharine Pendrel (Clif Bar), Gunn-Rita Dahle Flesjaa (Merida Gunn-Rita) and world champion Annika Langvad, but as those riders fell off the pace, Belomoina moved up to join Neff. The duo rode away from the chasers by Lap 2, and stayed together until Lap 5, when Neff attacked on a climb to solo away for the ninth World Cup win of her career, with Belomoina finishing 21 seconds back.

The chase group was whittled down to Maja Wloszczowska (Kross Racing) and Irina Kalentyeva (Moebel Maerki) by Lap 4, with Wloszczowska attacking on the final lap to finish third.

"I'm so happy about this," said Neff, "to be back racing at the top. I'm thankful to my team, who gave me the time I needed and had the faith that I would come back. I wasn't that confident of beating Yana, because she has won three World Cups this year and is so strong. It was perfect and I'm so happy."

Belomoina wins her first World Cup title with 1250 points, followed by Wloszczowska, jumping from third to second in the standings at 770 points. Langvad, after finishing fifth, moved up from fourth to third, with 744 points, while Neff jumped from 12th to fourth with her win.

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Colledani wins in Val di Sole

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Courtney claims overall World Cup victory

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Monday 28 August 2017

Partial Roster of 23 Athletes Named to Road Worlds Team

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The elite womenand#39;s, U23 menand#39;s, junior womenand#39;s, and junior menand#39;s road race and time trial squads have been named. The elite menand#39;s team will be named Sept. 9.

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Kristin Armstrong Savola Announced as Endurance Performance Director

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Alijah Beatty grabs top result for Team USA at Junior Track Worlds

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Team USA was well-represented at the 2017 UCI Junior Track World Championships in Italy, Aug. 23-27, with the nationandrsquo;s top young track cyclists on hand to compete in sprint and endurance events.

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Stybar renews with Quick-Step Floors

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Zdenek Stybar has signed a two-year contract extension with Quick-Step Floors that will keep him at the team until the end of the 2019 season. The Czech began his professional career in cyclo-cross and has won three world titles in the discipline, but his transition to the road began in earnest when he signed for Quick-Step in the spring of 2011.

“To be honest, I can’t believe I have been with the team since 2011, time surely flies when you are having a good time, but what an amazing journey it has been to race with this squad over the past years,” Stybar said in a statement released on Monday. “Having extended my contract for two more seasons means we can continue the great work we started together in 2011, which I am very grateful and happy about.”

Stybar’s time at Quick-Step has featured stage wins at the Tour de France in 2015 and the Vuelta a España in 2013, as well as victory at the 2015 Strade Bianche and overall victory at the Eneco Tour in 2013.

Stybar has been a part of Quick-Step’s cobbled Classics line-up since 2013 and his level of responsibility has grown as the years have progressed. He placed second at Paris-Roubaix in 2015 and 2017, losing out in the sprint on the velodrome on each occasion, to John Degenkolb and Greg Van Avermaet, respectively.

Despite the loss of the retired Tom Boonen, Quick-Step will boast a strong cobbled Classics squad in 2018, with Stybar following 2014 Paris-Roubaix winner Niki Terpstra in renewing with Patrick Lefevere’s squad. The team has also signed Elia Viviani from Sky, while Fernandro Gaviria remains in situ.

“This season, we have been once again one of the very best teams in the bunch by winning over and over again in so many different types of races, however, it has not been a personal best season for me,” admitted Stybar, whose lone victory to date came in the Czech national championships road race in June.

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Froome could ride Worlds time trial after Vuelta a Espana

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Chris Froome (Team Sky) has said that he is considering racing the individual time trial at the World Championships in Bergen should all go well in the Vuelta a España, where he is currently the race leader.

Speaking at a press conference on the Vuelta’s first rest day, Froome said that he would also tackle the team time trial at the Worlds, but would not line out in the road race. Froome last rode the Worlds in 2013, when Sky claimed bronze in the time trial trial in Florence. He also took part in the road race but, like the entire British team, did not finish.

Froome has won bronze twice in the time trial at the Olympic Games, in 2012 and 2016. His last outing in the individual time trial at the Worlds dates from 2009, when he finished 17th in Mendrisio

Asked if he would ride the Worlds, Froome said, “Potentially. If I come out of the Vuelta in good shape, and I’m hoping I’m not going to be on fumes in the last week, then I’d look forward to being part of the TTT over in Norway and potentially also the [individual] time trial. I don’t think the road race suits me at all, the conditions and the course, and I’d rather give that opportunity to somebody else to go for it there. But potentially the time trial and certainly the TTT, I think I could bring something to the line-up there.”

Froome has held the red jersey at the Vuelta for six days and is currently leading the race by 36 seconds from Esteban Chaves (Orica-Scott). He rounded off the opening week of the Vuelta with a victory on Cumbre del Sol on Sunday, and he smiled broadly when it was put to him that he could hardly have asked for a better opening week.

“I’m pretty happy with the start of this year’s Vuelta,” Froome said. “Up until now we’ve only had three four-kilometre climbs coming into the finish. Already to be in this position after those climbs is a dream scenario.”

Open race

Cannondale-Drapac crisis

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Viviani savours 'a day of grace' at Bretagne Classic – Ouest France

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Elia Viviani (Team Sky) described himself as being in the form of his life after claiming victory at Bretagne Classic – Ouest France in Plouay on Sunday. It was Viviani’s fourth win in the space of eight days following his victories at the EuroEyes Cyclasssics Hamburg and two stages of the Tour du Poitou-Charentes.

“Up to now, on the road, I’d never had a day of grace like this one,” Viviani told La Gazzetta dello Sport following his sprint win ahead of Alexander Kristoff (Katusha-Alpecin) and Sonny Colbrelli (Bahrain-Merida).

Viviani drew a temporary line under his track career when he landed the gold medal in the omnium at the Rio 2016 Olympics a year ago, and the Italian vowed to try to replicate that level of success on the road. The Italian fell short in the spring and suffered the disappointment of missing selection for the Giro d’Italia, but has been one of the peloton’s most consistent performers since early summer and has now won eight races in 2017.

“I’ve been thinking about this since last August, when I won gold in Rio. I was thinking about becoming an athlete capable of winning Classics on the road,” Viviani said. “I was thinking precisely of the Viviani I’ve managed to be over these past eight days.”

Ahead of Sunday’s race, Viviani had insisted that Michal Kwiatkowski would be Sky’s leader while Danny van Poppel would be the protected rider in the event of a sprint. Come the finale, however, the Italian was handed the duty of leading the team.

“After 140 kilometres, Danny told me he wasn’t on a good day and ‘Kwiato’ gave me a free hand with 20 kilometres to go,” Viviani said. “I felt the responsibility and I took some risks, including following some attacks on the climbs in the finale, like Ulissi’s one.”

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Valverde rides with Movistar on Vuelta a Espana rest day

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The Movistar team had a visitor at the Vuelta a Espana, with Alejandro Valverde joining the remaining riders for a training ride on the race’s first rest day. Valverde greeted the press on Monday morning outside the team hotel in Alicante before heading out on the ride.

"I started to ride the bike before I could walk," Valverde said ahead of the ride, according to Spanish publication AS. "The first month was the worst, later I worked a lot.

"I am not completely recovered, evidently, and I have a strange sensation in the leg, but I feel good."

Valverde is still on the path to recovery following his hefty crash on the opening stage of the Tour de France last month. The Spaniard hit the ground in a slippery corner during the time trial and collided with a barrier, breaking his kneecap. He underwent surgery and remained in Germany for several days before travelling home.

On his soon to be teammate Mikel Landa, Valverde said: "I thought he was a revelation and that he had demonstrated that. I don’t think that there are not going to be any problems in the team. There is a calendar for everyone."

Valverde was expected to be out for the rest of the season but has been training for the past week and has expressed his interest in racing at the Tour de Guangxi in October.

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Team Sky sign Pavel Sivakov

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Team Sky has announced the signing of Baby Giro winner Pavel Sivakov on a three-year contract. The news comes a day after they confirmed that they had snapped up Tour de l’Avenir winner Egan Bernal.

The 20-year-old Sivakov has been riding with the BMC Development Team for the past two seasons, and was heavily linked with a move to the WorldTour after a hugely impressive season, which has seen him take the overall title at the Baby Giro, the Ronde de l’Isard and the Giro della Valla d’Aosta Mont Blanc. He had been one of the favourites for the overall classification at the Tour de l’Avenir but suffered a poor day in the mountains on stage 7. He bounced back to take victory on the final stage by more than two minutes over his nearest challenger Neilson Powless of the USA.

“Really, signing for Team Sky is a dream for me. I’m sure that I am going to learn so much from the guys next year and I’m really looking forward to it,” Sivakov said in a team press release. “It’s definitely a big step up. The team have told me there is no pressure and that I can focus on developing and learning, but I’m excited to be involved and to play my part in the team.

“I feel that Team Sky is where I can make the most progress and become the best rider I can be. I’m also very interested in the innovation side of the sport, and so that made Team Sky a good choice for me, knowing how there is a focus on that. I’m really interested in being part of that.”

Russian by descent, Sivakov was born in Italy but spent most of his formative years in France. He continues to live and train in France. His father Alexei Sivakov is a former professional cyclist, who competed in three Tours de France with BigMat-Auber 93 and retired in 2005. His mother, Aleksandra Koliaseva, was also a professional and won the team time trial World Championship with Russia on two separate occasions. In addition to Sivakov’s successes this season, Sivakov has won the junior Tour of Flanders, the junior Tour of Austria and finished runner up at the 2016 Liege-Bastogne-Liege.

“I’ve known Pavel for a few years. He has a good pedigree as both his parents were cyclists,” said Team Sky DS Nicolas Portal. “He grew up at the foot of the Pyrenees, which might help to explain why he’s such a good climber. He’s also a really strong time triallist. He was a very good junior rider, and he has progressed to become one of the very best under-23 riders in the world.

“Pavel is a really nice guy. He’s passionate about our sport, he’s committed, and he’s motivated to succeed. He has all the qualities needed to become one of the best in the world.”

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