Latest Cycling News for August 3, 2004

Edited by Jeff Jones

Francisco Mancebo: Mr. Consistency

Mr. Consistency: Francisco Mancebo
Photo ©: Chris Henry/Cyclingnews

According to Illes Balears-Banesto director Eusebio Unzúe, Francisco Mancebo's greatest strength is his consistency. "He always rides using his head, at his own pace and he doesn't mind what the others do," Unzúe says. "His biggest strength is that he is very consistent. When you look at the big riders in Tour history, you see their greatest value is consistency."

After finishing sixth overall at the 2004 Tour de France - his third top-10 finish in three years - no-one would argue with that. Cyclingnews' Hernan Alvarez Macias spoke with the Illes Balears leader as he readies himself for the third Grand Tour of the year, the Vuelta a España.

Cyclingnews: What do you think about your own performance in the Tour de France?

Francisco Mancebo: Well, the first two weeks were very good for me. Honestly, I felt very good up to the last rest day; I thought I had chances of ending up on the podium. Then I got a cold during the last week as well as the fact that I was a bit tired... well, everything went down. But I am happy, though.

CN: This was your best Tour, considering you reached your best place overall in your career - or you think of another edition was more important for you?

FM: It was the best because I was there in the front and also because I attacked. In other Tours, when I finished seventh [in 2002] or ninth [in 2000] for example, I was more steady. Maybe in those years the race level was a little bit lower and I was not very aggressive. So, this year's Tour was the best for me so far, no doubt about it.

Click here for the full interview

Klöden sought after

Andreas Klöden from T-Mobile Team
Photo ©: Christine Schramm

With his contract at T-Mobile coming to an end this year, German champion and Tour runner-up Andreas Klöden is being courted by several teams. The 29 year old is managed by Tony Rominger, who told DPA that "There are offers from several teams in front of him. They will be examined. But I think that he has also obtained an agreement with Walter Godefroot in T-Mobile and will ride with them next year."

Klöden said during the Tour about T-Mobile that, "As long as this team is in business, and as long as I have a contract here, then I will ride for T-Mobile. The team and the management have stood by me through thick and thin. I am very thankful for that and I want to pay them back for their belief in me."

Cycling Australia CEO flies to Germany

Cycling Australia boss Graham Fredericks flew out of Sydney to Germany on Tuesday on a mission to instill some cohesion into the Australian Olympic cycling team. NSW rider Ben Kersten arrived at the camp in Büttgen on the weekend to a less than friendly reception from other members of the track sprint squad.

Kersten replaced Jobie Dajka, who was expelled for having lied about his use of syringes at the Australian Institute of Sport (AIS) training facility in Adelaide late last year. Dajka is appealing the exclusion to the Court of Arbitration for Sport and is expected to be heard in Sydney on Wednesday or Thursday.

Kersten's manager Phill Bates said that Kersten and the other sprint team members were "not on speaking terms" after the cool welcome they had given him. The atmosphere is so tense that Kersten is rooming not with a sprint rider but with Queensland-based endurance rider Ashley Hutchinson.

"Sean Eadie is not overly rapt (with Kersten's presence) because Ben challenged him in the Court of Arbitration," Bates said. "That was expected, but I think things have improved a fair bit with the track endurance squad going into Büttgen for training as well."

Australian Olympic Committee president John Coates confirmed that Fredericks was going to restore some unity. "(He) is leaving Australia today to go to Germany just to keep an eye on just that thing, that issue," Coates told reporters in Athens.

Coates said he had received emails from Kersten's camp after Australian cycling team manager Michael Flynn hinted that Kersten would receive an icy reception in Germany. Coates said Cycling Australia (CA) had strongly counseled team management about the decision to dump Dajka.

"They believe the matter has been addressed but to ensure if there are any lingering issues within the team that is why Graham Fredericks on the instruction of Cycling Australia is going over there," Coates said.

Bates, who has stood aside from the CA board because of his involvement with Kersten, welcomed the move. "Management has to be a little bit stronger in their approach," he said. "I've got a lot of time for Graham as an administrator and he's going to make sure that everyone does the right thing."

Bates said he had made a detailed submission to CA about the whole Olympic selection process and related issues. "An independent tribunal has been formalised to hear that report, but that won't happen until after the Olympics," he said.

© AAP

Bush and Kerry earn honorary IMBA memberships

US President George Bush's new found enthusiasm for mountain biking has been a top story recently in the media, and he's not the only presidential candidate who rides. Senator John Kerry's primary outdoor exercise is cycling - both road riding and occasionally mountain biking. This has not gone unnoticed, with the American press publishing articles comparing the two cyclists (and their bikes), who are competing for the top job in US politics.

Both Bush and Kerry are also sporting yellow "Live Strong" wristbands, which have been promoted by the Lance Armstrong Foundation (see www.wearyellow.com to help raise funds for young people with cancer. 7 million bands have now been sold for $1 each since May, and there are plans to sell another 1.8 million. President Bush and Senator Kerry are only two of the 7 million, but their high profile has helped lift the campaign to new heights.

"The fact that both presidential candidates are avid cyclists is great news for our sport," said Tim Blumenthal, executive director of the International Mountain Bicycling Association (IMBA). "IMBA is recognizing this by enrolling both candidates as honorary IMBA members and by making sure both campaigns understand our priorities."

Knee pain motivated President Bush to start mountain biking and now he's hooked on the sport. Long rides on his Texas ranch and at Camp David in Maryland are a highlight of his regular schedule. Senator Kerry has been photographed riding his road bike, but he's also known to pedal dirt trails near Sun Valley, Idaho.

Mid-Atlantic Cyclo-Cross Championship Series

The 2004 edition of the Mid-Atlantic Cyclo-Cross Championship Series has been announced with nine events taking place from October through until the beginning of December, with an additional two pre-season events in early October. This year's edition of the MACC includes seven UCI sanctioned events along with two top regional events, which will kick off the series on October 16-17. The UCI action gets under way the following weekend and the "UCI doubles" continue straight though to the end of November. The final UCI event will take place in Virginia with the return of the Reston event.

Additional information and series details will be available at www.monkeyhillcs.com/mac and www.midatlanticcross.info.

2004 Mid-Atlantic Cyclo-Cross Championship Series

Round 1 - October 16: Blue Diamond Cross, New Castle, DE
Round 2 - October 17: Evo Cross, Buckingham, PA
Round 3 - October 23: Wooden Wheels(UCI), Granogue, DE
Round 4 - October 24: Philly Cross (UCI), Philadelphia PA
Round 5 - November 6: Lower Allen Classic (UCI), Camp Hill, PA
Round 6 - November 7: Rockville Bridge (UCI), Harrisburg , PA
Round 7 - November 20: Beacon Cross (UCI), Bridgeton, NJ
Round 8 - November 21: Highland Park (UCI), Highland Park, NJ
Round 9 - December 5: Capital Cross (UCI), Reston, VA

Pre-season Events:

October 2: Ed Sander Cross, Buckeystown, MD
October 10: Lancaster, Lancaster, PA

Rider dies in Wisconsin race

A rider has died in Wisconsin, USA, after he crashed at high speed during a race. 34 year old Steve Hoff of Barron, Wis., was competing in the Firehouse 50 when the accident happened on Highway 63, north of Drummond. Hoff was travelling at an estimated 40 mph (64 km/h) when he hit another rider and came down, suffering head, upper body and leg injuries. He was taken to a hospital in Duluth, where he died.

Source: Duluth New Tribune

Obituary: Bob Thom

British cyclist and manager Bob Thom passed away aged 87 recently. His son (also called Bob) wrote the following obituary for his father.

Bob Thom joined the Wolverhampton Wheelers before the war and was still a member at the age of 87. His first bike was a "Lion" sit up and beg. He became Midland Champion, and then went to serve in the RAF in Rhodesia during the war. He returned and joined "Percy Stallard's rebels" in the BLRC he won over 20 top road and track races as an independent for Viking Cycles. Including the Tour of the Peaks and the Severn Valley Grand Prix his most outstanding win was the Pro National Road Race Championships in 1949.

In 1951, he retired from professional cycling to make way for his future brother in law, Ian Steel. Ian took his place in the Viking Team. Bob then became Team Manager in the Daily Express Tour of Britain, which Ian won. He was a mechanic on Ian's win in the Peace Race in 1952. Additionally, he worked as mechanic on 1955 Tour de France.

From there, he went on to run the Viking Team and manage British teams in The Peace Race, Tour de l'Avenir, Tour of Holland, Tour de St Lorient, Tour of Sweden, Giro Della Regioni and the World Road Championships. "Uncle Bob" as he was known has looked after the likes of Simpson, Hoban, Brittain, Elliot, Downs, Waugh and Griffiths, as well as having Les West and Bill Nickson winning the Milk Race under his guidance.

During his time as Manager, besides two Milk Race wins, Bob's riders also achieved yellow and stage wins in The Tour de l'Avenir, the Peace Race and a win in the GP Liberazione in Rome. Bob also took the women's cycling team to Japan on a number of occasions.

He became National Cyclo Cross Team manager and looked after the likes of Wreghitt and Douce to mention a few. A few years later, he became president of the BCCA. He was also instrumental in working with Charles Rhyss to bring the 'Skol Six' to Britain in the late sixties. In 1970, he was in charge of race service at the World's in Leicester and worked again at the 1982 World's in Goodwood. Here, as President of the Pedal Club, he presided over a special luncheon for members and international guests. He was also President of ESCA and of his own club, Wolverhampton Wheelers. In addition, he was a member of the Pickwick Bicycle Club for over 30 years.

Bob came to work for Viking after getting the sack from his job as a coachbuilder. He had been given the opportunity to work along with Jimmy Saville, as a stunt man and extra in the film, A Boy, a Girl and a Bike which stared honour Blackman and Diana Dors. Bob took up the offer, despite knowing he would lose his job. He stayed with Viking as sales director until it was taken over by Lambert, who sent him to work in California for a couple of years. On his return, he joined Middlemores, then Shimano agents, until taking early retirement.

During his retirement, he took off in his campervan with his wife Jean for three months, always managing to find his way to the World's and the Tour de France. For his 77th birthday, both he and Jean headed out to the Far East for a 10 week tour backpacking.

Bob rode his bike with the "Thursday" run till he was 85, and only then joined the "Thursday Old Boys" saying he wasn't so good on the hills any more. After breaking his wrist last year, he was looking forward to his comeback season when a severe stroke hospitalised him. He was about to go to a 60th birthday party when his legs went. Still retaining his great sense of humour, he even told the nurses that it was the first time he'd been legless before going into a pub. He was most concerned that the vineyards would lose trade during his stay in hospital.

Bob battled on after the family were told three times he would pass away. He ended up at a nursing home some 15 weeks later and told his wife to get her mountain bike out to ride the shortcut up to the home. He also had a satellite dish fitted in preparation for the Tour de France. He was admitted back in hospital early June with pneumonia and passed away on Monday, August 2.

Bob has left a wife Jean, sons Bob and Michael and daughter Vicky. His son Bob commented, "Dad never got old. He was at 87 still one of the lads."

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