Vuelta starts tomorrow - all Covid tests have come back negative. Apparently has the strictest protocols of any of the three GTs (though I'm sure we heard that about the Tour and Vuelta as well...)
Other than the intrigue of Froome and Carapaz for Skineos, there's lots of British interest from some very unexpected riders making the roster of teams you wouldn't normally expect. Harry Tanfield for instance, is riding for AG2R (continuing on the theme of 'Riders who smashed Leroy out of sight in races when they were still juniors'
) and Fred Wright, Scott Davies and Stevie Williams all lining up for Bahrain McLaren, along with Hugh Carthy at EF and Mark Donovan at Sunweb
Expect JV to walk it though - their team is arguably as strong as it was at the tour and, provided Roglic doesn't have another horror show like he did at the TT on day 20 there, he should win comfortably. The sprints should be shared between Sam Bennett and Pascal Ackermann
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The Angliru is a cruel, cruel bastard of a climb. It really has no place being on a bike race - like the Zoncolan it seems it exists just to torment bicycle riders 😂
Bit pathetic if you ask me - particularly the Giro as today would have added a little bit of spice.
Legend!
Numerous steep climbs don't appear particularly steep on TV.
That one did.
“I can’t explain how delighted I am to be joining Deceuninck – Quick-Step. I have never hidden my affection for my time with the team and to me this genuinely feels like I am coming home. As well as the incredible group of riders, I can’t wait to start working again with the staff, most of which were here during my first spell and were part of one of the most successful periods of my career, an era that I am immensely proud of,” Cavendish said after the announcement.
“Even with an extremely difficult and disrupted season this year, they have shown how strong and unified they are and I am hoping to add to even more. I can’t wait to be back in the Wolfpack.”
During his time with the Belgian squad, Cavendish took 44 victories including eight Grand Tour stage wins, and joins a star-studded line-up for 2021 at Deceuninck – Quick-Step, which boasts the likes of Julian Alaphilippe, Remco Evenepoel and Sam Bennett.
“Us and Mark share many beautiful memories and have a history that goes a long way back,” team boss Patrick Lefevere added. “During his [previous] three-year spell with the team, he didn’t just claim dozens of victories for the team, he showed amazing panache and what an incredibly dedicated team player he is. We are happy to have him return to our family, as he is a leader and brings across a wealth of experience that he can share with our young riders, but at the same time we are confident he still has something to give to the team.”
So which one sets up the other for the final sprints?
Frightening thing is he went on to win Paris Roubaix juniors the next year, and the men's junior worlds time trial, so he can *literally* do anything. I hope he doesn't end up part of the Ineos sausage press and they let him do stuff like the Ardennes classics, Strade Bianche, Flanders etc.
From a cycling website;
The race will be aired live in the UK and Europe on Eurosport, Eurosport Player and on GCN+. A subscription to Eurosport Player costs £6.99 for a single month, £4.99 for a year-long monthly pass, or £39.99 for a 12-month pass with a GCN+ subscription costing the same price.
Cycling News are saying and I quote:
"The race will be aired live in the UK and Europe on Eurosport, Eurosport Player and on GCN+. A subscription to Eurosport Player costs £6.99 for a single month, £4.99 for a year-long monthly pass, or £39.99 for a 12-month pass with a GCN+ subscription costing the same price.
Race highlights are available on GCN+ in Canada, while ITV4 will also run a highlights package in the UK".