Innehållsförteckning för Summer 2023 från Cycling Plus

German carbon fibre manufacturer Schmolke has been producing lightweight high-end parts since 1992, when brothers Stefan, a mechanical engineer, and his racing brother Matthias, launched the first lightweight road carbon handlebar. They’ve been producing high-end, ultralight parts ever since, including items such as: a 10g bottle cage, sub-130g handlebars, 70g stems, 55g saddles and even carbon fibre bolt kits to replace all the metal hardware on your bike. 1 Making shapes The all-new Aerrow road-bike design combines aerodynamic tube shapes with aggressive race geometry to produce a 1,000g frame (painted Medium with all hardware fitted) plus a 390g fork. The design features dropped stays, tube profiles similar to the Cervélo R5 and Cannondale SuperSix Evo, full internal routing and an aero post. 2 Superior spec As you’d expect, the bike…

● From Bédoin it’s a long, steady haul across orchards then up through woods, meeting the route from Sault at Chalet Reynard. Suddenly, as you turn from this refreshment stop, Ventoux’s bleached limestone cap fills the sky. Savour the last few hairpinned, gale-force kms to the triumphal peak. 01. Bike shop ● Provence Cycles (Porte Béchon, 84340 Malaucène) en.provence-cycles.com, closed Sun/Mon) is one of two well-regarded bike shops in Malaucène with workshop/repair, not just hire. 02. Lunch stop ● Chalet Reynard (84410 Bédoin, chalet-reynard.fr) is a rustic, gallic bar and restaurant ‘semigastronomique’ on Ventoux’s mountainside at the junction of routes from Bédoin and Sault. Food is best eaten on the descent! 03. Photo op ● The ‘sommet’ sign in front of the summit snack bar has Provence’s countryside way down…

MANAGE YOUR EXPECTATIONS “Expect that an event you have been working towards and are really focused on will be different than imagined. With videos, magazines and different sorts of media, we can get a good idea of what events will look like, but they may be different on the day; the weather will have changed, supporters might not be there… Even if we’ve done an event before, things can change year to year, so while it’s useful to prepare your bearings, we need to leave some leeway in our heads about what it will actually be like.” FIND YOUR CYCLING TRIBE “Having a sense of belonging to our sport and the community we interact with is incredibly important for motivation. Find others doing the same event as you.” PREPARE SOME…

For years, trim pro cyclists could only dream about eating burgers, pizzas or curries. But thanks to talented team chefs and savvy sports nutritionists, healthy upgrades of takeaway treats and cleaned-up comfort foods are back on the menu. Ineos Grenadiers riders now occasionally tuck into healthy pizzas or succulent chicken meatballs, while cycling chef Hannah Grant, who cooked for Saxo-Tinkoff and Orica-Scott, ran popular ‘build-your-ownburger’ nights on Grand Tour rest days. This ‘fakeaway’ trend has hit other sports too, with Premier League footballers devouring “healthy KFC”, or lean grilled chicken strips and sweet potato wedges after matches. “Most elite athletes share the preferences of their non-athlete friends, including takeaway foods, so performance chefs have become adept at creating ‘fakeaway foods’,” says Prof Mike Gleeson, an expert in exercise biochemistry and…

Ibiza Ibiza is lumpier than Menorca but short of Majorca’s peaks. Unlike the latter you’ll have the smooth roads to yourself. It feels like classic early or late season fodder: testing, yes, just not overly onerous. Formentera Rugged, windswept and only accessible by boat, Formentera, the smallest of the main Balearic Islands, ticks plenty of boxes for two-wheeled adventures. Check out the rugged plain of La Mola. The Azores Again, you’ll encounter few cyclists in this Portuguese archipelago. On the main island of Sao Miguel, the road from Ribeira Grande to the Lagoa do Fogo crater is one of cycling’s great under-the-radar climbs.…

SPECIALIZED’S S-WORKS EVADE 3 is the brand’s latest update to its highly-rated aero road helmet, bringing with it improved ventilation by drawing 10% more air through the helmet, according to Specialized, to enable riders to have one helmet they can wear all year round. The Evade 3 has nine vents: five on the front, and four making up the “diffuser” at the rear, which helps draw out the air and reduce drag. The two smallest frontal vents also work as storage ports for your sunnies. Safety isn’t compromised, with a super-light MIPS Air Node liner (with added perforations for extra breathability and weight savings) fitted into its slim internal padding, which is claimed to help “dissipate rotational forces” in the event of a crash. In fact, the helmet is very…

● DESIGNED FOR ACTIVITIES SUCH as cycling, gym workouts, yoga and Pilates, the Empower bra’s support is more than adequate. Featuring soft, recycled ECONYL fabric and the brand’s excellent overband technology (a reinforcing band of material that runs across the top of your breasts to help tame upward bounce), this racer-back bra is comfortable to wear too, its snug fit doing a first-rate job at minimising that annoying jiggle you can experience on rougher surfaces. Friendly online fittings available.…

Altura Icon Plus Jersey & Progel Plus Cargo Bib Shorts £70/£75 Sizes 8-18 (jersey); 8-20 (bibs) Colours Lilac (jersey); Black or navy (bibs) Altura’s Icon Plus jersey is a hit, with a stylish design incorporating reflective details beautifully, made in a soft and stretchy material. The neckline is well crafted and comfortable, while the zip is protected to prevent chafing and drafts. I’d opt for slightly more of a gripper on the jersey hem, but for the price it’s a great option. Altura’s Cargo shorts offer an easy-wee feature, spacious pockets and great reflective details with middling results. The shorts are designed for seamless wee stops with the back straps attaching at the sides, allowing you to pull them down without taking them off. Whilst effective for weeing, this led…

The time triallists and triathletes had the right idea. Moving like unstoppable juggernauts south down the west coast of Guernsey, these riders were not so much benefiting from the generous north-easterly wind but leaching off it. A strong tailwind is the most flattering of allies. With an invisible hand on your back, it’ll trick you into believing how brilliant you are, that you’ve stumbled upon a patch of rare form. Don’t listen to a word of it. It’s all an illusion. At least that’s what I was thinking, floundering into the severest of headwinds, riding against the tide of cyclists heading south, at half the speed. The cyclists of this island, the second largest of the Channel Islands behind Jersey, have adapted to the habits of the weather here. Usually,…

16-17 June 800 SEK Enjoy a 315km round-trip of beautiful Lake Vättern in Motala, Sweden. Shorter 100km and 150km routes are also available on 10-11 June. vatternrundan.se 2 July 85-100 Euros Take in the landmarks of this vibrant capital on a fast 60km or 120km route. Enter as an individual or a team of five to eight people. velocity.berlin 22 July 50 Euros Explore west Ireland’s Wild Atlantic Way, Loop Head Peninsula and Shannon Estuary 120/160km routes. ringofclare.ie…

“I’d been living in British Columbia, Canada, for almost two years and my visa was coming to an end. I wanted to get over to the East Coast to see family. A mate I met out there had done The Great Divide [a mountain bike route from Banff, Canada to Antelope Wells, New Mexico, criss-crossing the Continental Divide] and sparked the idea for a big cycling trip. I thought it would be a great way of seeing the country and fancied testing myself a little. I’d been riding bikes a lot, living in Fernie and then Cumberland on Vancouver Island, which both have sweet mountain bike trails. I cycled from west to east across Canada, ocean to ocean from Victoria, BC to Halifax, Nova Scotia. It took 66 days, 54…

On Saturday 1 July 2023, 176 of the planet’s best riders will line up in Bilbao for the 110th edition of La Grande Boucle. Last year, 135 riders made it to the Champs Élysées finish line. How many will make it this year? Time will tell. What’s clearer at this moment is, injury and illness allowing, who’ll be aiming to challenge for GC and the points classifications, be it in the mountains or sprints. Here, we reveal all plus the British riders and time-trial specialists to look out for… WORLDTOUR Astana Qazaqstan Team Founded 2006 Manager Alexandre Vinokourov Bike supplier Wilier 2022 UCI ranking 21 2022 highest GC 8 Alexey Lutsenko (KAZ) Mark Cavendish (GBR) WORLDTOUR EF Education-EasyPost Founded 2004 Manager Jonathan Vaughters Bike supplier Cannondale 2022 UCI ranking 18…

● Annemiek van Vleuten One last job Can Annemiek van Vleuten win yellow again in her final season? After an emphatic general classification (GC) victory in 2022 that saw her put almost four minutes into her rivals across the final weekend in the mountains, all eyes will be on Annemiek van Vleuten (Movistar Team) to defend her title and claim the yellow jersey in her final year as a professional. In the 2022 race, nearing 40, van Vleuten rode rings around her rivals on the mountain passes on her way to the second of her three ‘Grand Tour’ victories that year, having won the Giro Donne earlier in the summer. Her closest rival, Demi Vollering (SD Worx), herself a force to be reckoned with on the climbs, was a mere…

ONLY £10.99 including FREE UK delivery Souvenir edition includes: 204-page programme including Tour de France Femmes, A2 double-sided race wallchart, Basque Legends magazine plus exclusive beer mats WWW.BUYSUBSCRIPTIONS.COM/TOUR23 or call 03330 162 138† and quote ‘Tour de France 2023’ Please note the Official UK 2023 Tour De France Race Guide is only available in the UK. †UK calls will cost the same as other standard fixed line numbers (starting 01 or 02) and are included as part of any inclusive or free minutes allowances (if offered by your phone tariff). Outside of free call packages call charges from mobile phones will cost between 3p and 55p per minute. Lines are open Mon to Fri 9am–5pm. All orders are subject to availability. Please allow up to 21 days for delivery.…

Tour de Lunsar Sierra Leone, Africa 26-30 April 2023 ● The Tour de Lunsar is Sierra Leone’s biggest bike race, set up in 2013 by bike shop owner Abdul Karim Kamara as a way to give Sierra Leonians the chance to race. That first edition saw 10 riders race on bikes shipped to West Africa by the Village Bike Project. A decade later, the Tour de Lunsar has grown in size and reputation, attracting 141 competitors across the men’s, women’s and junior categories.…

Over half of all the bike parts in the world are Shimano. As are over two-thirds of gears and brakes. It’s the S of STI shifters (‘Shimano Total Integration’) and of SPD pedals (‘Shimano Pedalling Dynamics’) among other abbreviations. How come the Japanese company–started by a sole trader called Shozaburo Shimano in 1921 with a borrowed lathe and a shed, in a city more usually associated with making samurai swords–dominates the world of cycling? Partly luck. In the 1980s its big rival Suntour, after some R&D underfunding and bad breaks, fell apart like a derailleur trashed by a baggage-handler. Shimano has been No 1 since. But mainly, Shimano thrives through good old-fashioned business sense. It’s embraced change–those new-fangled ‘mountain bikes’ in the 1980s, for instance–but they stick to what they’re…

The bikes Focus Atlas 8.9 Carbon £4,199 Basso Palta Disc Ekar £5,199 Orbea Terra M21e Team 1X £5,358 Specialized Crux Expert £6,300 Need to know It’s hard to keep up with the rapidly evolving gravel bike genre, so read on to keep abreast of the innovations to look out for GRAVEL BIKES HAVEN’T BEEN around for that long in the grand scheme of road-bike things, but in the decade or so since they arrived, they’ve become a lot more diverse. There’s now everything from superlight and aero race bikes to those you could happily travel around the world on. 01 Gravel specifics What’s different on a gravel bike compared to a road bike? Well, potentially quite a lot: wheel-size options (650b or 700c?), generous tyre width (preferably tubeless), flared handlebars,…

THIS BIKE TEST HAS PROVEN THAT gravel bikes are a wide-ranging genre these days. It should also have given you plenty of food for thought if you’re planning to invest in one in 2023, helping you think about what kind of surfaces you’ll mostly be riding on and what kind of riding you’ll be doing, as well as helping you form a list of must-have details and accessories. In this test, it’s clear that Focus, with the Atlas 8.9, has shown a great understanding of what many riders are looking for in big-tyred drop-bar rides. The bike’s so capable in the rough and can carry and cope with all you’ll need to deal with on adventures big and small. Be aware that the load-ready Boost back end will, however,…

Impossible, too steep, no chance. Martim Noronha, of the local bike-hire shop, isn’t impressed with our route planning skills. And that’s before he clocks that we’ve added a 40% incline to our final day’s ride out of Funchal, the capital of Madeira. But, as with seemingly everyone we’ve met on our long weekend of his face. “You do know that you can take your bikes on the cable car, right?” riding on the island, a wide smile soon returns to The past three days have seen us watch local football team Maritimo score a rare win, get drunk with Turkish diplomats on ‘poncha’ cocktails, experience Portuguese folk singing (Fado) while eating black scabbardfish, and consume enough garlic bread to banish the threat of vampire attack. The sub-tropical climate has been…

Worth £50! Hurry! Offer ends 6 July 2023 Why subscribe? • Get a Cube Tour helmet, worth £50! (Size Medium) • Save 33% off the shop price and pay just £25.99 every 6 issues • Every issue delivered straight to your door 1 PRINT 6 issues for just £25.99! 2 DIGITAL 6 issues for just £25.99! PLUS! Access to exclusive offers and competitions as part of our Subscriber Club! Order online or by phone buysubscriptions.com/CPP407 03330 162 142 quote code CPP407 Or scan the QR code to subscribe Lines are open 8am-6pm weekdays and 9am-1pm Saturdays. Overseas orders please call +44 1604 973 751 or visit buysubscriptions.com Terms & conditions *Cube Tour Helmet offer is available for UK subscribers only and is available (in size Medium only) while stocks last. In the…

Weight 8.31kg (L) Frame Carbon Fork Carbon Gears SRAM Red AXS (46/35, 10-33) Brakes SRAM Red hydraulic disc Wheels Lios CD35 Carbon tubeless ready Finishing kit Lios one-piece carbon bar-stem, Lios D-shaped carbon post, Selle Italia Novus Evo Boost saddle, Pirelli Cinturato Velo 28c tyres, K-Edge forward bolt GPS mount THE ORIGINAL BULLET IMPRESSED us with its heady mix of value and speed at the start of 2022. Now Lios has added the new 5.56 version to sit above the standard Bullet as the Leigh-on-Seabased brand’s flagship endurance/all-rounder. The 5.56 name comes from head honcho Steve McCulley’s military-service history before he became a bike builder. The 5.56 is the calibre of bullet first adopted by the British army back in the 1980s and is now considered the go-to calibre for…

Tifosi Sledge Lite Fototec £99.99 Light-reactive shield shades for smaller faces 01 WITH THEIR 135MM-wide lens and a lean 58mm depth, these Tifosi sunglasses suit smaller faces, the curved lens helping reduce distortion. The half-frame design features a fully adjustable nosepiece and the arms have sticky temple tips, which keep the glasses secure when you’re on the road, but the lighter frame tension means they bounce a little if you venture off road. The photo-chromic lens can change tint between Cat 1 (limited protection, but not quite clear) through to Cat 3 (high protection against sun glare), making these glasses ideal for our often changeable UK conditions. At 35.6g, the Sledges are light, and come with a soft cleaning bag and a zippered hard case. Madison Stealth 3 Pack £69.99 Value-packed,…

Aerodynamics. Endurance. Gravel. Commuter. Kids’ rides. MTB. Ebikes. There’s a reason that Cube is in the top three of the world’s biggest-selling bike brands, with the German company’s exhaustive range of models ensuring that there’s a bike for every type of rider in its collection. Cube, who began life 30 years ago in 1993 and now sells bikes in 68 countries, only operate via its official Cube dealer network in the UK. This ensures a smooth customer experience and in-person expertise. As well as bikes, you can also buy a wide range of clothing, accessories and parts, suitable for cyclists of all levels. Cube is a partner of the Intermarché Circus Wanty WorldTour Team with pro riders of the calibre of Biniam Girmay and Louis Meintjes giving key feedback on…

Getting there ● We were invited to Guernsey by Condor Ferries, who operate high-speed crossings from Poole to Guernsey (3hrs, 4 times a week) aboard its Liberation ferry. We travelled as foot passengers (bikes are no additional cost). condorferries.co.uk 01 Where to stay ● We stayed at Les Rocquettes, just up the hill on the outskirts of St Peter Port, with its restaurant and spa. lesrocquettes guernsey.com 02 Where to eat ● The Hook (thehook.gg) on the seafront does superb steak and sushi, while Octopus (octopusgsy.co.uk), another seafood and steak establishment in a secluded area on the eastern edge of St Peter Port, is highly recommended. Tourist information visitguernsey.com Find, plan and share adventures with komoot Komoot is an app that lets you find, plan, and share adventures with the…

Venturing overseas for a summer cycling event or training week is a great way to explore a new country, experience iconic mountain climbs and test your speed on smooth roads in sunshine. Yet the excitement of riding abroad and those mid-ride espressos may be short-lived if you’ve left planning your trip to the last minute. Rising fuel costs, Brexit and Covid-19 have impacted the way we travel, creating extra health and administration measures. To ensure you and your bike arrive in good shape, our travel experts address the common issues. 01 GO SPECIALIST “The best thing is to ask yourself: ‘Is cycling the primary reason for my trip?’ and ‘Does my insurance cover me if I take part in a cycling event?’ advises Hugh Wilson of Pedal Cover Insurance. “Most…

GC Head-to-Head It takes two to tango Pogačar-Vingegaard is a match-up for the ages The battle for the yellow jersey of the Tour de France is always at its best when there’s a clash between two protagonists. Think Greg LeMond and Bernard Hinault or Lance Armstrong and Jan Ullrich. This clash can take many forms: racing styles, personalities, nationalities, intra-team politics, popularity, specific strengths and weaknesses. But for all the clashes, why the best rivalries work so well is because their respective differences are cancelled out. With each rider at the pinnacle of professional cycling, they can each complete a lap of France in roughly the same time. In the current era, there are several clashes that make the Tadej Pogačar-Jonas Vingegaard rivalry so riveting. Pogačar (UAE Team Emirates) is…

Swift by name, swift by nature–cycling and speed runs in the Swift family. Connor Swift’s elder cousin Ben, 35, has spent much of his career at Ineos Grenadiers, the team Connor joined for 2023. Connor shot to wider public attention when he pulled off an audacious win in the 2018 British National Road Race Championships and has ridden the previous three Tours de France, finishing all three as something of a road bodyguard to Nairo Quintana during their time at Arkéa–Samsic. Here, Connor tells us what it’s like to race the world’s toughest race. A day or two before the Tour starts, you get given a sort of medal. It’s like a big chunk of metal, in a hexagon shape, and it has the Tour map on it. It’s quite…

Clive Mitchell Cycles Truro History ● Opened by Clive in 1970 on the other side of town, the shop’s now run by his brother Fred. They’ve recently opened a big ‘destination’ branch at Summercourt, outside town to the north, within striking distance of Newquay, with parking and floors full of road bikes. The Truro centre branch, meanwhile, deals with more local trade. What makes this shop special? ● “Customer care is everything!” says Fred. “We try to be competitive, but it’s not about price–it’s about looking after people. If we do, they come back. In a place like Cornwall, if service is bad, word gets around!” What’s in store? ● In the Truro centre branch there’s a workshop and accessories on the ground floor, bikes–lots of electric and kids’–BMX is…

All of France’s great cols are unique, but Ventoux is uniquely unique. Unlike the jostling Alpine passes, it towers over Provence, alone. The 6,272ft (1,912m) summit is plainly visible for miles around. The unfamiliar scale can make it look close enough to touch; easy, even. Don’t be fooled. Ventoux attracts stories like no other, whether light-hearted (it’s been climbed on a Raleigh Chopper, and a London hire bike within the 24-hour rental period) or tragic (Tom Simpson’s exhausted death in the 1967 Tour de France). It’s a bucketlist bag, the headline attraction of many a tour company. But you can DIY it of course. There are three bases for cycling Ventoux. Some energetic riders do all three tarmac ways up in one, mammoth, go (there’s also a fourth gravel route).…

ONLY £10.99 including FREE UK delivery WWW.BUYSUBSCRIPTIONS.COM/TOUR23 or call 03330 162 138† and quote ‘Tour de France 2023’ Please note the Official UK 2023 Tour De France Race Guide is only available in the UK. †UK calls will cost the same as other standard fixed line numbers (starting 01 or 02) and are included as part of any inclusive or free minutes allowances (if offered by your phone tariff). Outside of free call packages call charges from mobile phones will cost between 3p and 55p per minute. Lines are open Mon to Fri 9am–5pm. All orders are subject to availability. Please allow up to 21 days for delivery.…

● THIS GPS BIKE COMPUTER HAS a 2.4” screen and an impressive 72-hour battery life. It’s waterproof (IXP7) with an anti-fog screen, and it attaches to the bike using a Garmin-style mount. Instead of a touchscreeen, two buttons control on/off and start/stop and cycle through the three different screens. Data includes: time, speed, temperature, distance, heart rate/cadence (via a paired device) and navigation, but you can’t customise how it’s presented. You can upload a route using the app, but it’s directional instructions rather than a more useful map.…

Scicon Aerocomfort 3.0 Road bike bag £745 This softshell bike case (reduced to £447 at time of press) folds down and includes an internal bike stand to secure the bike in place, plus you can keep your seatpost and handlebar in place. Deuter Bike 1 18 SL backpack £85 Stow all your gear and keep it organised in this lightweight 18-litre cycling backpack. Its dimensions mean you should be able to carry it on as hand luggage with most budget airlines. Assos C2 EVO jersey £105 A high-performance endurance jersey, available in both men’s and women’s versions, combining comfort and aerodynamics. The breathable UPF 50+ fabric is perfect for warm, sunny conditions.…

JUNE 25 Rapha Manchester to London Challenge Manchester 354km The ninth edition of this mighty point-to-point charity ride starts from Manchester this time, and traverses the Peak District, Midlands and Chilterns on its way to Central London. From £120 Davina’s Big Sussex Bike Ride Uckfield, East Sussex 43, 74, 120, 160km The ubiquitous TV presenter Davina McCall hosts this ride raising funds for Action Medical Research to help sick children. Choose from four routes. From £36 JULY 01 Dartmoor Classic Newton Abbot Racecourse, Devon 62, 109, 177km Beginning life in 2007, this is one of the UK’s most popular sportives (pic above), with 4,000 riders expected in 2023. £60. South Downs Gravel Epic Plumpton, East Sussex 48, 72, 101km A Glorious Gravel event around Lewes and Brighton. From £45 Struggle…

10 La Planche des Belles Filles Location Vosges, north of Belfort Elevation 1,035m or 1,146m (at Super Planche) From Plancher-les-Mines 7km averaging 8.8% to Super Planche Tour de France appearances 6 Although the Tour tends to focus much more on tradition when it comes to mountain ascents than its sister Grand Tours, the Giro d’Italia and Vuelta a España, the contemporary search for ever more challenging and, usually, steeper climbs has led to some new favourites emerging, among them the Col de la Loze, which features on this year’s race for the second time. You can file La Planche des Belles Filles here too. Just half a dozen kilometres long, but with a savagely steep final third, it appeared for the first time in 2012, the setting for Chris Froome’s…

Marion Rousse, director of the Tour de France Femmes avec Zwift, confesses to having just one regret about the race for which she’s the figurehead since its launch last year. “I would love to be riding it,” admits the 2012 French national road champion, who quit the sport three years later aged just 24 to pursue a career in the media. “Whether you’re male or female, the one race you want to take part in is, obviously, the Tour de France. I would have loved to be at the start, but it didn’t happen and I missed out on something. That’s a pity, but I’m not one to sulk in the corner. Ultimately, I’m happy that I’m in the official red Škoda that’s right behind the peloton on the road.”…

THE FIRST TOUR DE FRANCE Femmes avec Zwift last summer was a bigger success than even its greatest advocates could have anticipated. With thousands of fans lining the roadsides and worldwide media attention, the race has given women’s cycling a well-deserved boost, amid other subsequent setbacks such as the cancellation of the 2023 Women’s Tour in Britain. For this year’s edition, organiser ASO and race director Marion Rousse have shaken things up. Gone is the Champs-Élysées send-off in tandem with the final stage of the men’s race, giving the women’s race a spotlight all of its own. Also out are the back-to-back mountain stages from the end of the 2022 race. One of the few criticisms of last year’s route was that it gave an outsized advantage to Annemiek van…

There are two fewer teams lining up at the start in Clermont-Ferrand than last year’s 24. Larger seven-rider teams (compared to six in the 2022 debut) means two teams had to be sacrificed to keep the size of the peloton manageable. All 15 WorldTour teams received an automatic invite, with 2022’s number one-ranked team, SD Worx, leading the way. The 15 are supplemented by seven Continental teams, including the British-registered outfit Lifeplus Wahoo. WORLDTOUR Canyon/SRAM Racing Founded 2002 Manager Ronny Lauke Bike Supplier Canyon WWT ranking ’22 6 Highest GC ’22 3 Kasia Niewiadoma (POL) Alice Towers (GBR) WORLDTOUR EF Education-Tibco-SVB Founded 2006 Manager Rachel Hedderman Bike Supplier Cannondale WWT ranking ’22 11 Highest GC ’22 9 Veronica Ewers (USA) Zoe Bäckstedt (GBR) CONTINENTAL Ceratizit-WNT Pro Cycling Founded 2016 Manager…

AS A FORMER WORLD CHAMPION, Paris-Roubaix winner and carrier of British hopes at several Olympics, Lizzie Deignan knows pressure. But it can still catch her off guard at unexpected moments. When she got home from the first races of her comeback, her four-year-old Orla was waiting with a direct question: “Did you win?” There were no trophies for her daughter just yet. Deignan’s aims at April’s Flèche Wallonne were to position her Trek-Segafredo leader, pocket climbing rocket Gaia Realini, and find her feet. “You take a year and a half off and it feels like you’ve been away for five minutes. It’s bizarre how quickly time goes,” she says. During the familiar shock of full-bore racing, Deignan received a warm welcome. “At one point at [next race] Liège-Bastogne-Liège, I was…