The Belgian tactic seems to be 'if we make it controlled but hard race Jarno Widar will win in the final lap' and I fully respect the guts to send 4 guys to Rwanda just to support your one favourite. Don't often see that at a World Championship.

I'll be in the market for buying a new cyclocross bike at the end of this winter (my current one is over the hill in multiple ways). Canyon would be near the top of the list, but I probably won't choose to buy from a brand which supports racists.

It does seem like public pressure is starting to work because a cycling team that stands to lose its bike sponsor if it doesn't change their name sounds like a team that is going to change their name.

🥳

First UCI elite victory as a coach is worth a celebration. Nice job Danijel!

Genuinely baffled about riders who decide that now is the perfect time to sign for a team bearing the name of a government that has been committing genocide for a while. It was already weird, but now that public opinion is finally starting to turn it's even more perplexing.

Literally my timeline right now. The president and vice-president of the Bulgarian Cycling Federartion receive huge punishments for ethical offences and at the same time the news of the Bulgarian Giro start drops. Very ironic, very cycling

After yesterday's explainer... They made it! Well, two of them did. Martin Moritz with about half an hour to spare and Victor Bosoni while the ticket shop was closing for the day. One of them will win #TCR11

Last year I posted some about the Transcontinental Race, a 5000-ish KM ultra-cycling race across Europe. This year's race is looking like it's going to come to a potential climax today with a single boat as the deciding factor. 1/x 🧵

At least until yesterday, there is a massive difference between how other GC teams like Canyon-Sram and AG Insurance are tackling this race (all rallying around the leader, no other goals), and how FDJ is riding (sprint for Wollaston, polka dots for Chabbey) #TDFF2025

Women's cycling is unfortunately turning into men's cycling at rapid speed. Colourblocking throughout the entire stage. No breakaways allowed.

It's day 1/9 of 'oh wait that's not Juliette Labous' 🙃

The fact that HBO Max is a paid subscription for multiple times the cost it used to be to watch cycling is already annoying. The fact that they've now added ads to this super expensive broadcast is completely insane. Switching to NOS every day as soon as they start broadcasting 🥲

Super excited to start learning to recognize 15 entirely redesigned kits from teams who have built up a brand identity for the entire year only to throw it away once the biggest event of the year rolls around on Saturday 🙌

That new ruling about >= 40 cm handlebars being required is absolutely bonkers and completely ignoring smaller and especially womens riders. UCI is a disgrace

Currently in the third hour of rereading everything I've ever learnt about acidification and buffering capacity and more stuff that I hadn't learnt yet to get to the bottom of a very specific issue in a rider. How's your evening going? 🫠

Sigh

In the clear-out we found some old signed casquettes but I have forgotten whose the signatures are. Anyone wanna take a crack at figuring it out?

Clearing out the attic and came across this gem of a cycling jersey. Enjoy!

Happy Pride Month everyone 💜🌈 Love is love, Trans rights are human rights, and always protect Trans kids. 🏳️‍⚧️🏳️‍🌈 In political times that feel backwards, remember our roots. Protest is a spectrum: from simply visibly existing to throwing a stone and rioting. We’re in this together and I love you all 🫶

Lauren Dickson hadn't done a UCI race 1 year ago. Insane talent. The question is not if she joins a WT team next year but which one.

I am not watching the race right now but I somehow feel like this is relevant

I don't understand how there is the possibility to show 4 different camera positions at the same time with HBO Max's multiscreen stream, and somehow the front of the peloton can't be shown for half of a long climb. Impressive stuff, Giro

Prediction: Monica Trinca Colonel wins Liege-Bastogne-Liege in 2026. Got the descending skills, the punch on short(-ish) climbs, a solid sprint, and presumably the room for a couple % improvement into next year.

Does anyone know how often Cat Ferguson has crashed this year? 4, 5 times? Sure, they're probably not all her own fault but good bike handlers don't crash THAT often

Something very weird is going on at #LaVueltaFemenina with three of the last three teams not standing ready at the start on time. Weird...

Just checking in here to say that Thomas Silva is probably the next big pick-up for one of the top WT teams. 2nd year on Caja Rural coming from a non-traditional cycling nation. 4th in GP Indurain, 8th in Brabantse Pijl, multiple top 20's in Itzulia, 2nd in Qinghai Lake '24.

Del Grosso makes a move on a cobble sector, there are a few riders on his wheel. Then there's a single corner on the cobbles. None of the gaps seem to change except that Del Grosso is suddenly 20 meters in front of everyone including the riders who were just in his wheel 😅

50+ KM of Paris-Roubaix with a broken hip 🤢

I've watched the first two MTB XC World Cups and I have to say I have doubts about MvdP's ability to transition back into MTB and win the World Championships this year. The technical level on display in Araxa last week was insane.

I do wonder whether the best tactic here is for MvdP to continue pushing, making it a 1v1 30 km timetrial against Pogacar. Only time will tell whether that's the right decision.

I doubt there are many riders in history who have within the space of a couple months been in a duo attack with both the MTB XC Olympic champion and the cyclocross World Champion and tried to drop them in corners resulting in their own crash and not that of his rivals

Matthew Brennan's positioning today has been nothing short of magical. He has not been outside of the top 20 on the cobbles and I doubt he's seen a team mate since the start of the first sector. No clue what his role within the team is but he's riding like a team leader

The most incredible result of Paris-Roubaix today if you ask me is 22nd place. The first of the riders who didn't make it into the first serious selection with like 60-70 km to go. Vera Tieleman for DD Group. First year at uci level and top 25 in Roubaix 🤯

Ferrand-Prevot winning Paris-Roubaix solo while looking like she's out on a Z2 ride is great news for MTB XC riders' mental state. It's not just them, she can also dominate the biggest races on the road.

Itzulia is crazy at the moment. GC favourites attacking with 70 k to go in the first hill stage. Insane what riders are able to do when they take in enough carbs

Might be a bit extreme as it didn't cause a crash but should we be giving an entire team a yellow card for moves like the one by RedBull just now? Coming past the group with speed and moving right across the road from right to left thereby putting everyone in the gutter. Crash 10 seconds later

Every once in a while something reminds me of the insane Bigla/Paule Ka team circa 2019-2020. Reusser, Uttrup Ludwig, Norsgaard, Chabbey, Fisher-Black, Harvey, Koppenburg, Alzini, Leth, Noskova. Insane list of names in hindsight, shame it ended how it did

My head: Why is Ellen van Dijk riding behind Elisa Longo Borghini??? She shouldn't be chasing her team ma... Oh wait... Still not adjusted to all the transfers and the Italian jersey doesn't help 😅

Basic rule of cycling: If you are three team mates in a leading group of four you use your numbers to work over the single other rider in the final. To not do that is a level of arrogance I haven't seen from Visma before. Usually they don't make mistakes like these.

Kudos to Balsamo for moving out there. Consonni was coming past anyway, no need to create extra danger. Especially great to see after yesterday

The way Matthew Brennan's career is progressing is almost exactly Peter Sagan. Not ridiculous as a junior, good season as a first year u23, moving up to World Tour as 2nd year and then starting to win punchy sprints in big races left and right. Really looking forward to this guy's progression

They're completely killing all the sprinters in Volta Catalunya, shredding the peloton down to about 40 riders... Except Kaden Groves who is still chilling in the top 10.

Ferrand-Prevot pushed the Cipressa descent and dropped exactly 1 rider with a serious chance of winning: her own team mate Marianne Vos. Transfer to Movistar's men's team incoming? Or maybe to the Dutch national women's team?

Imagine 2 races in the same area by the same organization on the same day. 1 is fairly short, has many riders and teams who have a really good reason to race from far out. The other is super long and will not be interesting until the last hour. Guess which had the start to finish broadcast... 🙃

Have to say it's a huge flex to have the UCI officially confirming you're too sexy to ride around with your shirt open. Way to go, dude!

Another World Record in the Konya Track Nations Cup 🤯 Matthew Richardson does 200m in 9.041 seconds!

Huge track cycling world record in the sprint qualifying during the morning session of a Track Nations Cup. 10 second barrier broken!