Author: Alex
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Eight pairs to watch in the 2014 Vuelta a Espana
There aren’t enough race previews binding riders together into twos. Let’s be honest, all the best things come in pairs. Also Twixes. The Chrises – Chris Horner and Chris Froome Horner won last year. Froome’s one of the big favourites to win this year. What more do you need to know? Horner’s age, maybe? He’s…
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Devastating news about Domenico Pozzovivo
The Vuelta just lost a very small amount of its lustre. Our favourite rider, Domenico Pozzovivo, has had to pull out. His season’s over after a feline encounter on a training ride. At 1m65 and 53kg, Pozzovivo isn’t exactly a big bloke. You would however think that he’d come out the better of the two…
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Who’s riding the Vuelta?
Who ISN’T riding the Vuelta? The Spanish Grand Tour is generally a back-up plan or secondary target for the very best riders, which means the line-up can be a bit hit and miss. This year, for various reasons, it seems to have secured one of the strongest fields seen in any race in years. There’s…
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Velocipedes at the Empire Games
A quick update from the Commonwealth Games where, unlike the Tour de France, British riders have figured prominently. Time trials Cycling News went all Phil Liggett, calling Alex Dowsett’s win for England ‘the ride of his life’. The rider called Rohan (Dennis) came second for Australia and Geraint Thomas took bronze for Wales. In the…
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Best of the 2014 Tour de France
As I said when I did the same thing last year, everyone loves a ‘best of’. Best viewing option – mute What is it about cycling that attracts such mediocre commentary? Sean Kelly’s emotionless analysis on Eurosport is usually interesting and informative, but while his partner, Carlton Kirby, can have his moments, when he starts…
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How did Vincenzo Nibali win the 2014 Tour de France?
Last year, I looked at where Chris Froome gained time on his rivals in a bid to explain how he came to win the Tour. That’s not really so necessary this year because the result was so much more clear-cut. Vincenzo Nibali gained time on pretty much everyone, pretty much every chance he got. These…
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Marcel Kittel’s back off holiday
Because that’s where he’s been, right? On the eighth of July, he’d won three out of four stages and then, on the 27th of July, he won a fourth. In between those times, he disappeared. I can only conclude that he had a fortnight in the Bahamas. What an oddly protracted sporting event the Tour…
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A French majority on the Tour de France podium
Chances are, if you’re into cycling, you’re not anti-French. I think most of us would consider having French riders finishing second and third in the Tour to be ‘a good thing’. Okay, you’d probably prefer someone from your own country to be standing somewhere on the podium, but failing that, it doesn’t do any harm…
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Ramunas Navardauskas finds his niche
The penultimate sprint stage of the Tour de France was no such thing. Lithuanian rider, Ramunas Navardauskas got away towards the end and held everyone off for the win. If you’re thinking to yourself ‘who is Ramunas Navardauskas?‘ he’s one of those riders who doesn’t particularly have a ‘thing’. He’s quite a big guy, which…
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Alejandro Valverde falls off the podium
He’s been tottering around these last few days, but on stage 18, Alejandro Valverde finally slipped. Now he’s lying in the dirt, clawing at the air and screeching the word ‘podium’ like Gollum. There was an unseemly rush to take his place. The French have been like queuing primary school children, all pressed up against…