Indholdsfortegnelse for December 5, 2024 i Cycling Weekly

Never meet your heroes. Or so the saying goes. I recently threw caution to the wind and ignored that sage advice. This week, we give the CW Lifetime Achievement award to Greg LeMond – turn to page 38 to read our feature. The triple Tour de France winner is the seventh recipient of our award, following Brian Robinson, Sean Kelly, Barry Hoban, Sean Yates, Keith Lambert and Malcolm Elliott. But why is he my hero? Because on one sunny July afternoon in 1989 I was sitting in my living room idly flicking through the TV channels – all four of them – when I came across something that caught my eye. It was a bike race, in France, and I’d never seen anything like it in my life. The speed,…

The morning sun – the first we’ve seen in a while – slants through the cafe window and casts an angelic glow across Joe Blackmore’s face. And well it might, for this lad from London can, it seems, do no wrong right now. The 21-year-old, former dyed-in-the-wool off-road racer has spent the past season putting the finishing touches on an alchemical progression that has seen him turn mud into road race silverware and graduate from the British Cycling Academy to the WorldTour with Israel-Premier Tech, all while picking up win after win. Among them was a momentous GC victory at the prestigious French under-23 race the Tour de l’Avenir in August which in a 63-year history had counted Greg LeMond, Egan Bernal and Tadej Pogačar among its winners – but…

The biggest day of Cat Ferguson’s career so far began with an ungodly helping of rice. It was 5am when the 18-year-old’s alarm sounded in Zurich, Switzerland, two hours before sunrise. At 10am, she would start the junior road race at the UCI World Championships. It was the event Ferguson had thought about every day in the 13 months since she finished runner-up in Glasgow. First, though, under a blanket of darkness, she had to get through her breakfast: a bowl of rice six times the recommended portion size. “It’s hard when you’ve got to wake up and then chow down 400g of rice,” she says, laughing at the memory. “That’s the hardest bit.” A month on, Ferguson’s sitting on a plastic chair opposite me in London’s Lee Valley Velodrome,…

• Sebastian Grindley Signed to Lidl-Trek’s development squad next season, the 18-year-old impressed in his final year as a junior. He picked up victories in the UK and abroad, before crowning his campaign with a silver medal in the junior road race at the World Championships. • Bob Donaldson Less than two years ago, Donaldson broke his back when he was struck by a car driver near Manchester. This year, he finished second in the under-23 Paris-Roubaix, and achieved a string of top 10s at the Tour of Britain, eventually placing 11th. He’ll race for Jayco-Alula in 2025. • Georgette Rand The 18-year-old track sprinter made headlines in July when she won every event she competed in at the junior European Championships, taking home three titles. Expect to see her…

Powerful yet friendly bike light with HiLo beam The RAVEMEN PR1400 is one of the most advanced and innovative bike lights. With a design that’s similar to a car headlight, it uses an eye-friendly anti-glare low beam and far-reaching high beam. With a maximum output of 1,400 lumens, it is perfect for nighttime mountain biking, road riding, and urban commuting. The light also comes with a wired button, runtime display, and can be used as a power bank to charge your phone. Versatile and easy to use, it has an IPX8-rated waterproof design that’s reliable even in heavy rain. Price: £109.99 www.ravemen.com The Newlane Packable Helmet The Newlane Packable Helmet is the UK’s #1 foldable helmet and would make the perfect gift for anyone commuting around the city on two…

Kenilworth Common Boxing Day Cross When: Thursday 26 December Where: Kenilworth, Warwickshire This 70-year-old CX race, run by Coventry Road Club, includes a climb up Common Lane before getting onto the grass. Entry is £23.50 online. Pies and Pursuits and Team Sprint When: Friday 20 December Where: Glasgow The Glasgow Track League presents its Pies and Pursuits and Team Sprint, which includes 2km team pursuits as well as team sprints. Applications are £41 per team. The pies are probably off-bike only.…

A colleague alerts me to a recent meeting between one of the sponsors of a prominent team and a media sales team. One of the media side, not particularly a cyclist, was concerned about muffing the pronunciation of well-known rider Tadej Pogačar’s name and, in consequence, looking a bit like an idiot. “Don’t worry,” said one of their colleagues. “It’s a bit like ‘focaccia’, the Italian bread, except with a ‘P’ rather than an ‘F’. It’s not exact, but it’s close enough.” The rider was referred to as Tadej Focaccia throughout. But at least no one looked like an idiot.…

Joe Blackmore was only 19 when he began last year’s Tour of Rwanda with the British Cycling Academy. By the time the eight-stage race was over, he’d celebrated his 20th birthday, taken four top-10s and sixth overall, and lit the blue touch-paper on a season that would alter the course of his career. Here are some of his most memorable road results since. 2023 • Orlen Nations GP: 9th overall • Tour de l’Avenir: 12th overall 2024 • Tour of Rwanda: 1st overall, two stage wins, two second places • Tour de Taiwan: 1st overall, two stage podiums • Circuit des Ardennes: 1st overall, points and youth winner, a stage win • De Brabantse Pijl (first race with Israel-Premier Tech): 4th • Liège-Bastogne-Liège U23: 1st • National Championship Elite Men’s…

• Emma Finucane In Paris, the 21-year-old became the first British woman in 60 years to claim three medals at a single Olympics. What’s more, she did it on her debut. Finucane won gold in the team sprint, alongside Sophie Capewell and Katy Marchant, before collecting bronzes in the individual sprint and keirin. In October, the team sprint trio went on to become world champions, while Finucane doubled up with a solo title. • Sarah Storey It’s been another golden year for Dame Sarah, GB’s most decorated Paralympian. After earning her 18th and 19th Paralympic titles in Paris, she completed a double at the World Championships, too, winning the time trial and road race, and bringing her tally up to 39 cycling world titles. “I couldn’t have wished for a…

1 It’s big - really big! Before we dive into the multitude of new (in some cases, first of their kind) features on Wahoo’s answer to the Garmin Edge 1050, we should tackle the 400lb gorilla in the room: the sheer size of the Wahoo Elemnt Ace. The new computer measures 125x69x19mm, which is 9mm longer than the already large Garmin 1050, and a full 23mm longer than the Hammerhead Karoo, which isn’t exactly small. It’s genuinely comparable to a small iPhone, which, although it does free up a lot of screen real estate, has its drawbacks. 2 What is ‘Wahoo Wind Dynamics’? Now for the headline feature on the new Wahoo Elemnt Ace - the ‘wind sensor’. A first of its kind in the cycling computer space, the Ace’s ‘wind sensor’…

Kendurance exercise – e.g. a long, ride – or while adhering to a strictetones are a type of organic compound produced by the liver when the body is low in available carbohydrate and raised levels of fatty acids are circulating in the blood. This commonly occurs during prolonged low-carb diet. Essentially, it’s a symptom of starvation. “During this state of ‘ketosis’, ketones are used as a fuel source by the muscle, brain and heart,” says James Moran, registered dietitian and performance nutritionist at Marylebone Health. What’s in it for cyclists? It’s been proposed that ketone supplements may help endurance cyclists. “The thinking was that by taking ketone supplements before and during long training sessions or races, riders would get extra energy,” says Marc Fell, nutrition specialist with Science in Sport…

We’ve seen some nasty accidents in races in the last few seasons – the most notorious was the one at Itzulia Basque Country that brought down Jonas Vingegaard, Primož Roglič, and Remco Evenepoel among others. The long shadow it threw over the season means it was at least as consequential to the year as, say, the collected efforts of Team Ineos. How you make the sport safer is an important question, with no easy answers. At the recent race organisers’ conference, Tour de France director Christian Prudhomme drew on years of experience to tell the room, “The races need to slow down. The riders are going too fast.” He’s not really wrong, per se. But, “the riders are going too fast” is like standing by the roadside flapping your arms…

LLOYDS WOMEN’S NATIONAL ROAD SERIES • Round 1: 9th ANEXO/CAMS Women’s CiCLE Classic – 23 March • Round 2: East Cleveland Classic – 13 April • Round 3: Rapha Lincoln Grand Prix – 11 May • Round 4: South West Round – 27 July • Round 5: Curlew Cup - 17 August • Round 6: Yorkshire Round – 31 August • Round 7: Lancaster Grand Prix – TBC LLOYDS OPEN NATIONAL ROAD SERIES • Round 1: East Cleveland Classic – 13 April • Round 2: Rapha Lincoln Grand Prix – 11 May • Round 3: South West Round – 27 July • Round 4: Beaumont Trophy-17 August • Round 5: Yorkshire Round – 31 August • Round 6: Lancaster Grand Prix – TBC LLOYDS NATIONAL CIRCUIT SERIES • Round 1: LOGCO…

After a string of top 10s, Zoe Bäckstedt rode to her first elite podium of this year’s cyclo-cross season on Sunday. The 20-year-old finished third in the UCI World Cup round in Dublin, Ireland, in the city’s third year of hosting the event. Lucinda Brand (Baloise-Trek Lions) came first, unseating Fem van Empel (Visma-Lease a Bike), who had previously won four races in a row. Bäckstedt’s result earned her the win in the under-23 category, meaning she now leads the under-23 World Cup classification. “I’m so happy with today,” said the Brit, who was the youngest finisher in the top 10. “Fans were all around the course, and many were shouting my name. It was so fun to be in that atmosphere, which motivated me. Knowing I was in contention…

AusCycling’s got it all upside down The news that AusCycling will ban Matthew Richardson from ever competing for Australia, among other sanctions, reeks of hypocrisy. Australian sport has a long and distinguished tradition of gleefully accepting persons born and raised in other countries, who excel in sports, frequently ones in which Australia lacks athletes at international representative standards. These people sidestep usual citizenship pathways to expedite their ability to represent Australia. Matthew Richardson seems to me to have legitimate reasons to want to represent Great Britain. Good luck to him and shame on Australia. David McKeag, Australia!…

• Stephen Williams The Welsh rider enjoyed his best season so far, with a stage win and overall victory at the Tour Down Under, as well as a thrilling win at Flèche Wallonne, and two stage victories and the GC at the Tour of Britain. Williams turns 29 next year – it will be interesting to see how long the Israel-Premier Tech rider can hold stellar form. • Tom Pidcock It was a turbulent season for the 25-year-old Yorkshireman, but he still managed to win the Amstel Gold Race and take a memorable victory in the Paris Olympics XC mountain bike. The Ineos Grenadiers rider admitted it had been “a difficult year”, hinting at tensions in the team, but it seems he is staying put, at least for now. •…

“You’ve not travelled up just for me, have you?” asks Imogen Wolff, mortified by the fuss being made around her inside the Manchester Velodrome. To her left, among the blue seats, two light stands have been set up, ready for the photoshoot, and a small huddle has formed around the makeshift studio. Instructed by CW’s photographer to raise a finger, denoting she’s number one, Wolff demurs. “Really?” she flashes an embarrassed smile. As she lifts her arm, the medals around her neck clang together – proof that she deserves the attention, even if she’s not used to it yet. This year, in her final season as a junior, the 18-year-old emerged as one of the most promising talents on the circuit. She won her opening race day, the Trofeo Alfredo…

Where to even start with Tadej Pogačar’s remarkable year? The breadth of the 26-year-old’s achievements in 2024 speaks for itself, and forever underscores his unparalleled, era-defining greatness. We may never see the likes of it again. Among the spoils he has taken during his year of supreme dominance, three particular victories stand above the rest. Pogačar combined a debut Giro d’Italia victory, a third Tour de France yellow jersey and the road world title to become the first man since Stephen Roche in 1987 to etch cycling’s triple crown onto his palmarès. Eddy Merckx is the only other man to achieve such a feat, with Annemiek van Vleuten being the only woman to have done so. They are two of the sport’s greatest ever riders, and now Pogačar has confirmed…

At the tender age of 14, Greg LeMond started cycling in Nevada just to “get in shape for skiing”. After only a fortnight he won his first race, but his choice of outfit attracted some dirty looks. “I showed up to my first race [in 1976] riding a yellow Cinelli bike and in a yellow jersey,” the American tells me by phone. “In my second race, my friend looked at me with such disgust, and I was wondering why. Ten days later I beat him, it broke the ice, and he said: ‘I gotta tell you: you don’t wear the yellow jersey’. When he explained why, I responded, ‘What’s the Tour de France?’” A decade later, LeMond not only knew the Tour de France intimately but justified that early yellow…