First Edition Cycling News for March 15, 2005Edited by John Stevenson Brown to miss La PrimaveraBy Anthony Tan in Milan, Italy
After an early exit at Tirreno-Adriatico due to an inflamed Achilles tendon, Ceramica Panaria-Navigare sprinter Graeme Brown has opted to pull out of this weekend's Milan-San Remo Pro Tour race, believing it best to rest and attempt to treat an injury that has dogged him at inopportune moments for much of his pro road career. "I felt it happen at a race we did on March 5 in bitterly cold conditions," recalled Brown to Cyclingnews from his European home in Pistoia, Italy. Speaking about Milano-Torino the previous weekend where he finished second-last, over 12 minutes behind winner Fabio Sacchi (Fassa Bortolo), the 199 kilometre semi-classic was Brown's first race back in Europe after a hugely successful run of victories at the Tour de Langkawi, which saw the Sydneysider take half the 10 stages on offer and looked to be on track for a solid European campaign. "As you know, the conditions in Europe haven't been ideal for training and racing, and [the inflamed Achilles] seems to happen whenever it's really cold," he said. "In particular, going from the weather in Adelaide [at the Tour Down Under] and Malaysia [Tour de Langkawi] to this. [Brett] Lancaster's living with me here in Italy, and when he looked out the window one morning, he went: 'Hey, check this out, it's snowing!' - but the novelty soon wore off when we both realised we still had to train... " When Cyclingnews contacted Brown, the 25 year-old had just returned from an osteopathic appointment nearby, and tomorrow evening, former Australian national team rider turned physiotherapist Margaret Hemsley will pay a special visit to Brown from her home in Germany. Brown remains hopeful that Hemsley can further treat the Olympic Madison and team pursuit champion, and provide what will be the umpteenth opinion on what triggers the adverse reaction in his left Achilles. "I've seen that many physios, and they all have good stuff to say, but there still hasn't been one who's been able to pinpoint the real cause of the problem," said Brown, who added he wasn't too disappointed about missing what was formerly the opening round of the now-discontinued World Cup. "Nah, the race is almost 300 kilometres... I don't think it would have been a good idea to place any bets on myself!" he quipped. Assuming all goes well this week, Brown is slated to ride the Settimana Ciclistica Internazionale stage race in Italy from March 22-26, his main focus still being the Giro d'Italia in two months' time, the first of the year's three Grand Tours. Hondo aims for podium at Tirreno-AdriaticoThe Gerolsteiner team believes its sprinter Danilo Hondo still has a chance of making the podium of Tirreno-Adriatico when the race finishes in San Benedetto del Tronto today. Hondo is currently lying fourth, 30 seconds behind leader Oscar Freire (Rabobank) and separated from third-placed Fabrizio Guidi (Phonak) only by a countback of finish positions. "We have a podium position for Danilo within our reach," said directeur sportif Christian Henn in a team statement after Monday's stage. "Of course, we must now look out for a chance to pick up some time," said Henn, "Above all, the finish will count in the final stage." "Different American" credits the teamBobby Julich's victory in Paris-Nice on Sunday has been widely reported by the mainstream media, with a strong slant of 'American who isn't Lance Armstrong wins race'. The St Petersburg Times described him as a "different American" but Julich himself has been quick to bounce credit along to his CSC team, which, he said, "work[ed] the same way for me as I did for Vino and Jörg." "Only at CSC did I have the impression that people trusted me and the pleasure returned," Julich told Reuters. "I really want to tell everybody how important the team is to me. We train and work together and it's a great motivation to be in a race knowing everybody around you has the same goals. This team has allowed me to regain my confidence." Boonen recces Milano-SanremoTom Boonen and other members of the Quick.Step team spent yesterday reconnoitring the parcours of the Milano-Sanremo. Boonen, Kevin Hulsmans and Guido Trenti spent almost two and a half hours on the route, according to the team, and twice climbed the course's crucial hills, the the Cipressa and the Poggio. Directeur sportif Wilfried Peeters kept in radio contact with the riders to pass on his advice. "Taking a preview of the finale of the Sanremo was a great idea," Boonen said, "I've already taken part in this classic race twice but it is always a good idea to check the race route out beforehand. Riding alongside me was the experienced athlete Trenti who gave me a lot of important advice. It will be very important to start the Poggio in a good position, that way not risking being bottle-necked in the main part of the group and therefore having to use more energy than necessary to work your way up to the front of the group. I think the race will be particularly difficult from the Cipressa onwards. That said, I think a few teams such as the Fassa Bortolo and the Rabobank will be controlling the race. We'll have to do a good job in following in their tracks." Boonen also decided to gear up after checking out the climbs. "I'll be using a 41 chainring instead of a 39. I think this is the best choice and will help me in the action on the Poggio." Phonak for Milano-SanremoThe Phonak team has announced its line-up for the first one-day ProTour race of the season, Saturday's Italian classic Milano-Sanremo. Under directeur sportif René Savary, the team will field Aurélien Clerc, Martin Elmiger, Fabrizio Guidi, Robert Hunter, Nicolas Jalabert, Miguel Angel Perdiguero, Oscar Pereiro, and Bert Grabsch. Liberty Seguros for MSRLiberty Seguros team manager Manolo Saiz, who is now supervising the team at Tirreno-Adriatico, has decided the team's likely final line-up for Milano-Sanremo. Young Australian Aaron Kemps will get his first start in the Primavera, replacing Carlos Barredo, who is still recovering from flu. Igor Gonzalez de Galdeano has undergone medical checks after dropping out of Paris-Nice and may be replaced with Jan Hruska. The rest of the team will comprise Alan Davis, Ángel Vicioso, Jörg Jaksche, Giampaolo Caruso, Michele Scarponi and Sergio Paulinho. Meanwhile, Liberty rider Joseba Beloki has undergone medical examinations to try and determine the cause of a persistent infection. Beloki hopes to be well enough to ride the Setmana Catalana, March 21 - 25. Freire to ride Brabantse PijlRabobank sprinter and reigning world champion Oscar Freire will ride March 27's Brabantse Pijl, organizers have announced. Lance Armstrong is expected to decide by the end of the week whether he'll continue his Spring campaign at Brabantse Pijl after pulling out of Paris-nice last week due to illness. This year's race will comprise a single large loop of the Waals-Brabant region, followed by five smaller loops of a finishing circuit, taking in the Bruineput, the Lindeberg and the Alsemberg which will also be the finish. Eight ProTour teams are scheduled to start, including Belgian rivals Davitamon and Quick-Step. GP Eddy Merckx merges with Paris-BrusselsThe GP Eddy Merckx time trial will not be held this year. The race, which started in 1980 as an individual time trial and in 1998 became on of the very few remaining two-up time trials on the calendar, will merge with the Paris-Brussels road race from 2005. Changes in the European calendar have made it hard for the organizers to attract a high-quality field, hence the merger. The new event will have a mass-start road race format and will finish at the Atomium in Anderlechy, outside Brussels, where the GP Eddy Merckx traditionally started. Last chance to pre-enter Australian MTB nats and winIn an effort to encourage riders to pre-enter for this weekend's Australian national mountain bike championships, governing body MTBA is offering a chance to win one of ten free memberships to riders who enter by 5.30pm today. Pre-entering races helps organizers plan infrastructure and services for their events and, event spokesman Kristjan Snorrason points out, reduces the amount of queuing riders have to do to get registered to race. "I'm sure people have better things to do with their time than than stand in a queue!" he said. For more information see: www.mtbnats.com.au Prizes announced in Cyclingnews Spring Classics Fantasy Game
The Cyclingnews Fantasy Game team has been hard at work rounding up some great prizes for our first-ever Spring Classics Fantasy Game, and have come up with a perfect Grand Prize: Specialized's bump-eating carbon fiber Roubaix Pro, engineered to be quick, and to handle the worst the roads of Northern Europe can throw at it. The top-of-the-line US$4,400 Roubaix Pro comes with a full Shimano Dura-Ace group and gets its combination of speed and comfort from its lightweight carbon-fiber frame and shock-absorbing Zertz elastomer inserts. A fitting reward for the fantasy team manager whose riders prevail through the world's hardest one-day races. The first runner-up prize will also satisfy your need for speed: a pair of Zipp 404 wheels. Now with dimples for even better aerodynamics, the US$1,600 404 is the slippery workhorse of Zipp's aero wheel range. These are Zipp's most popular wheels, and for good reason: they're light (1292g per pair for the tubular version), fast and tough enough for criteriums and sprinters, as well as their obvious time trial and road racing applications. What's with the new dimples? They improve air flow over the wheel, reducing the power needed to cut through the air by 1 to 3 watts. The Cyclingnews Spring Classics 2005 Fantasy Game covers the following races: Milan - San Remo - March 19 All you need to do to enter is register and pick a team of eight riders. More prizes will be confirmed shortly. It's a great way to follow the classics! For more details and to enter your team go to fantasy.cyclingnews.com. PCW CyclingPCW Cycling Team presented by Hyundai enters its eighth season of racing with a roster of pros, masters and junior riders. Focusing on road racing, cyclocross, and mountain bike, the team will compete in the Midwest Region. PCW Cycling team goals include competing in the WORS Series, International Cycling Classic (Super Week), Crank Brothers CX and NORBA National events, in addition to participating in racing the team hosts 4 of Wisconsin's largest races. The core roster of riders from the 2004 racing season remains. In addition the team has picked up Megan Monroe on the Pro MTB team. 2005 Rocky Mountain Spine & Sport Cycling TeamRocky Mountain Spine & Sport Physical Therapy of Lone Tree, Colorado has announced its sponsorship of the 2005 Rocky Mountain Spine & Sport Cycling Team. The Denver-based team consists of category 3 and category 4 riders who will be competing in ACA and USCF events in Colorado and the surrounding region. The team also sponsors a small mountain bike team, including semi-pro Scott Fleming. Other notable racers include David Bertino, 2004 state time trial champion (category 4), and Vint Schoenfeldt, former USA National Mountain Bike Team physical therapist. (All rights reserved/Copyright Knapp Communications Pty Limited 2005) |
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