2014 Tour De France

[ScottCM]

Voigt weighs in on 2014 Tour de France route

 

It may be hard to fathom that Jens Voigt's trip to Paris on Wednesday was the first time in his lengthy career that he's attended the Tour de France route presentation, but better late than never for the ever-quotable German.

Voigt, 42, has started the Tour 16 straight times since 1998 and he's hoping that as part of the new Trek Factory Racing team in 2014 he'll close out what's expected to be his final year in the professional peloton with another Tour de France participation.

When interviewed by Cyclingnews following the unveiling of the 2014 route, Voigt was quick to comment about the challenges and pageantry of the Tour's opening stages in Great Britain.

"I saw a lot of little and winding country roads in Yorkshire so that's going to be pretty challenging and stressing for us but beautiful and spectacular images for the viewers," said Voigt.

Another early challenge in the 2014 Tour de France will be the sectors of Paris-Roubaix pave present in stage 5. Voigt has a vivid recollection of the dangers that cobbles engender in the peloton as he witnessed his teammate Fränk Schleck crash and break his collarbone in the 2010 Tour during the Tour's last foray onto northern France pave.

"I'm 50-50 [on including pave sectors again]," said Voigt. "I like it because it will produce spectacular images and it's going to be big drama, but it's pretty stressful and dangerous for us so that's why maybe I don't like it so much on a personal point of view."

[ScottCM]

While being interviewed the question of whether or not Jen thinks the Schleck brother can be back to their 2009 - 2010 from he replied with a resounding " SH.T YEAH, SH.T YEAH I expect them to be back to their best "

[Bianchisti]

Thought Sir Bradley hung up his road Lycra?

[ScottCM]

Fuglsang ready to help Nibali at 2014 Tour de France

 

 

After claiming seventh overall at this year's Tour de France, Jakob Fulgsang is ready to put his shoulder to the wheel to help Vincenzo Nibali's yellow jersey ambitions in 2014. With Nibali set to forgo the Giro d'Italia in order to focus exclusively on the Tour, Fuglsang had been provisionally pencilled in as one of Astana's leaders for the corsa rosa, although he acknowledged that he may yet be required to build his season around the Tour instead.

"I think we'll decide at the end of next month when we have the first camp with the team, but I could imagine a programme that would be Giro for me to start with and then the Tour afterwards," Fuglsang told Cyclingnews at the route presentation at the Palais des Congrès in Paris on Wednesday. "We will see how they will manage it, or if we go all in for the Tour and if Nibali and myself have to be there at 100 percent.

"Right now, it's not certain who is going to go where but we will be able to build a strong team for the Tour, that's for sure."

Although Richie Porte is expected to lead Sky at the Giro, his manager Dave Brailsford hinted that the British squad might not spread its resources as evenly between the Giro and the Tour as it did this year, when Bradley Wiggins made an abortive bid to claim the maglia rosa. The thinking could well be similar at Astana, where, regardless of his participation in the Giro, Fuglsang seems likely to act as a deluxe domestique for Nibali in July.

"For sure, I'd like to do the Giro, but I'm also aware that if we have to beat Froome and Sky in next year's edition of the Tour then we have to come with the strongest team possible. If the team wants me to be there, then I will be there and I'll be ready," Fuglsang said.

As for the 2014 parcours, Fuglsang believes that the absence of an early time trial to define the general classification will make the Tour a difficult race for any one team to control. "At the Vuelta a España this year, the jersey was changing a lot in the beginning of the race, and I think we could see something like that in the Tour too," he said. "It's going to be more difficult for sure, and more guys are going to have the chance to get the jersey and they're going to try and grab the chance."

Scarponi, Pellizotti and the MPCC

On Tuesday, it was reported that Michele Scarponi had reached a verbal agreement to sign for Astana in 2014, adding to the strength in depth at Nibali's disposal and bringing another potential Giro leader to the squad, although Fuglsang appeared unsure if news of the transfer was based on a concrete agreement or conjecture.

"I think Vino [Astana general manager Alexandre Vinokourov] said that he heard the same rumours. I don't know if he's coming or not. I think he's a good guy and for sure he's a good rider, so why not," Fuglsang said.

One Italian rider who is confirmed to ride for Astana in 2014 is Franco Pellizotti, who arrives from Androni-Venezuela, although it remains unclear as to when he will ride his first race with his new team. Pellizotti served a two-year ban from May 2010 to May 2012 after irregularities were found in his biological passport, and according to MPCC (Movement for Credible Cycling) rules, the Italian cannot ride for an MPCC-affiliated team for a further two years - that is, until May 2, 2014.

"The team is now a full member of the MPCC and that also means that if Pellizotti comes, then the team has to follow the rules of the MPCC," Fulgsang told Cyclingnews. Given the chequered history of the team, which includes Vinokourov's own two-year ban for blood doping, Fuglsang is aware of the significance of adhering to MPCC regulations.

"There's some less good things concerning doping have happened on this team in the past, and the team has tried to clean its image," Fuglsang said. "One of the points is to stay in the MPCC. They are fighting against doping and for a clean sport, and doing even more than what is done by WADA, so I think it's important to stay in there."

[ScottCM]

Quintana and Unzué fear nervous first week of Tour de France

 

 

Team manager thinks Pyrenees and time trial will be decisive

for the 2014 Tour de France, the Movistar Team is fearing a nervous first week, with the cobbled sections on stage 5 adding an extra element of danger for riders unfamiliar with the terrain.

“I witnessed first hand this year how nervous it can be,” Nairo Quintana said. “Next year the first week can become really nervous. The cobbles could make the race dangerous and difficult,” the number two and polka dot winner of this year’s event said.

Movistar Team has two aces for the overall classification with Quintana and Alejandro Valverde. Team manager Eusebio Unzué is keeping all options open. "I really don’t know if this Tour de France suits us more or less. My first impression is that the parcours might suit both Nairo and Alejandro. It’s possible they both will be at the start but nothing’s defined yet.”

Valverde finished third in this year’s Vuelta and ended on the podium of big races like Liège-Bastogne-Liège, Il Lombardia, Amstel Gold Race, Clasíca San Sebastian and the world championships road race in Florence. His only victories of the season date back to minor races in February on Mallorca and in the Ruta del Sol.

The 33-year old Spaniard didn’t study the route for the 2014 Tour in depth because he was not present in Paris. He is in Japan for the ASO’s Saitama Criterium Race. Valverde does think it might be a good parcours for him.

“Good luck will be crucial on the cobbles. Punctures and crashes are bound to happen and any stage can turn into a decisive one,” he said.

The Movistar captain knows because this year he lost his second position in the overall in the echelon stage to St. Amand-Montrond. Valverde had a puncture at the exact moment Omega Pharma-Quick Step formed the echelons which would result in a time loss of almost ten minutes for the Spaniard.

“We haven’t decided anything about my programme for next year yet,” Valverde added. “We’ll see if I will do the Giro or the Tour. I like the Tour best but we’ll have to see what’s best for the team and make our choices then.”

For team manager Unzué the most important stages will come in the second half of the three week event. “Everyone is talking about the stages in the Vosges [on Planche des Belles Filles] and yes they are hard but I don’t think they’ll be decisive for the final podium. The Alpine stages are not so demanding. The overall will be defined in the Pyrenees and in the Bergerac time trial.”

Quintana agrees with Unzué. “The time trial will be one for the riders with raw power. The gaps will be noticeable. It’s time now to talk with Eusebio to decide what it the best choice for me as well as for Alejandro to see which grand tours we’ll be riding,” the Colombian concluded.

[Jaco-fiets]

Froome welcomes balanced Tour de France route,

 

Says he and Wiggins can race together

Froome admitted that cobbles would take him out of his natural element but stressed that the likes of Nairo Quintana and Alberto Contador would find themselves in a similar scenario. Contador was present during the Tour’s last venture onto the pave producing a crucial ride in his defence of his then Tour title.

But Froome called the 2014 route balanced; adding that a Tour route should indeed test any aspiring champion’s skill over a number of terrains and scenarios.

“I still feel like there’s more I can work on,” he told Cyclingnews.

“I’m always looking to improve and I hope that the experiences from this year are something I can take into next year.”

Froome was finally asked whether the possible inclusion of Bradley Wiggins in Sky’s Tour line up could act as a hindrance rather than a help. Ever quick to deflect the mere possibility of friction within the team, Froome reiterated that the pair would act professional if the 2012 race winner was chosen to ride.

 

Would be bad for team moral if both of them ride

[ScottCM]

Would be bad for team moral if both of them ride

 

Maybe, or shall i say probably so, but seen as i'm no fan of "TEAM" Sky, i think it would make for an interesting Tour if they were.

[Frosty]

250 days [29-Oct] to go...

 

Slight overhaul to the fantasy competition too

[Cav']

A presentation with a guest appearance by Vanilla Ice (centre)

[ScottCM]

Andy Schleck: “The Tour next year is for me."

 

 

Andy Schleck (RadioShack-Leopard) seems to be one of the happiest Tour de France contenders, following the presentation of the race’s 2014 route. The 28-year-old Luxemburger, who was eventually awarded victory in the 2010 edition after Alberto Contador’s Clenbuterol positive, is especially pleased by the five summit finishes, as well as the fact that there will be just 54km against the clock in the entire three week race.

 

“It's a route with very little time trialling, which reminds me of a past Tour,” Schleck said in Wort.lu, perhaps referring to that 2010 edition, whose 52km penultimate day’s stage was the only one against the clock save for a short prologue. “I’m looking to find to old my form, and I'm certain I can go all the way.

 

“The Tour next year is for me."

 

One thing to have worried many of the race’s favourites has been the inclusion of 15.4km of the notorious Pavé du Nord, as normally experienced in April’s Paris-Roubaix. The younger of the two Schleck brothers is unfazed by this, however, since the last time the Tour crossed these roads he made significant gains on many of his overall rivals.

 

"Even ahead of the cobblestone passages I have no fear,” Schleck said. “In 2010, I came away from the events of the stage more than honourably."

 

For Schleck, who missed the 2012 Tour through injury, and rode this year’s race largely anonymously,

 

"On Sunday if the sun is out I will start the first kilometre in preparation for next year. I will give it full throttle."

 

The 2014 Tour should see Andy Schleck race alongside elder brother Fränk for the first time since the 2011 edition, when they stood either side of Australian Cadel Evans on the final podium, as they finished in second and third place.

 

Andy’s injury, sustained in the 2012 Critérium du Dauphiné, meant that he was not in the team when Fränk tested positive for banned diuretic Xipanide in that year’s Tour. The elder brother was not offered a new contract with RadioShack-Leopard when his one-year ban ended this July, but he will join Andy - and many other riders from the Luxembourg-registered team - at the new Trek Factory Racing team in 2014.

 

"Fränk and I will now make a new start,” said Andy. “The second phase of our career is beginning. I'm optimistic and I have already proved in the past that I have the motor for taking great victories."

 

For his part, Fränk is also looking forward to returning to the race that he left somewhat ignominiously in 2012, despite having more to fear than most from the cobbles of stage five. In 2010, the then Luxembourg champion came down hard on the stones of Sars-et-Rosières, and shattered his collarbone.

 

Ironically, the incident was what caused the split at the front of the peloton that Andy eventually benefited from; even with that memory, however, Fränk Schleck is as confident as his younger brother.

 

"That is past. I have long since finished with this topic,” he said yesterday, according to Wort.lu. “I am pleased that [the Tour] goes over the cobblestones, again next year. I will be able to take my revenge. I certainly respect the Pavé, but I feel no fear.

 

“I am looking forward to it immensely,” he said of the Tour’s route. “I am very pleasantly surprised. Even though I’ve not yet looked at the route in detail, I know the big climbs.

 

The fact that there is only one time trial means that me and my brother Andy will naturally be in contention,” he added. “Especially as in a time trial at the very end of a three week Tour, fatigue plays a crucial role and the distances among the favourites should not be extremely large. We will prepare optimally, visit the stages and then attack it full on. Motivation could hardly be greater for Andy and me.”

['Dale]

A presentation with a guest appearance by Vanilla Ice (centre)

 

 

And Vanilla surely Iced the Cav' in Paris...

[Cav']

 

 

 

And Vanilla surely Iced the Cav' in Paris...

Lets hope that doesnt happen in 2014....

 

Renshaw wont allow it!

[Daideron]

Cavendish looks like a school boy Yobbo!!

[T-Bob]

Etape course was revealed today. 4 days before the peloton and covers the Pau - Hautacam (average of 7.8 @ 13.6kms) and takes in the awesome Tourmalet.

 

http://www.letapedutour.com/ET1/us/the-route.html

 

http://www.letapedutour.com/ET1/img/commun/EDT14_profil.jpg

[Jaco-fiets]

Andy Schleck: “The Tour next year is for me."

 

 

Andy Schleck (RadioShack-Leopard) seems to be one of the happiest Tour de France contenders, following the presentation of the race’s 2014 route. The 28-year-old Luxemburger, who was eventually awarded victory in the 2010 edition after Alberto Contador’s Clenbuterol positive, is especially pleased by the five summit finishes, as well as the fact that there will be just 54km against the clock in the entire three week race.

 

“It's a route with very little time trialling, which reminds me of a past Tour,” Schleck said in Wort.lu, perhaps referring to that 2010 edition, whose 52km penultimate day’s stage was the only one against the clock save for a short prologue. “I’m looking to find to old my form, and I'm certain I can go all the way.

 

“The Tour next year is for me."

 

One thing to have worried many of the race’s favourites has been the inclusion of 15.4km of the notorious Pavé du Nord, as normally experienced in April’s Paris-Roubaix. The younger of the two Schleck brothers is unfazed by this, however, since the last time the Tour crossed these roads he made significant gains on many of his overall rivals.

 

"Even ahead of the cobblestone passages I have no fear,” Schleck said. “In 2010, I came away from the events of the stage more than honourably."

 

For Schleck, who missed the 2012 Tour through injury, and rode this year’s race largely anonymously,

 

"On Sunday if the sun is out I will start the first kilometre in preparation for next year. I will give it full throttle."

 

The 2014 Tour should see Andy Schleck race alongside elder brother Fränk for the first time since the 2011 edition, when they stood either side of Australian Cadel Evans on the final podium, as they finished in second and third place.

 

Andy’s injury, sustained in the 2012 Critérium du Dauphiné, meant that he was not in the team when Fränk tested positive for banned diuretic Xipanide in that year’s Tour. The elder brother was not offered a new contract with RadioShack-Leopard when his one-year ban ended this July, but he will join Andy - and many other riders from the Luxembourg-registered team - at the new Trek Factory Racing team in 2014.

 

"Fränk and I will now make a new start,” said Andy. “The second phase of our career is beginning. I'm optimistic and I have already proved in the past that I have the motor for taking great victories."

 

For his part, Fränk is also looking forward to returning to the race that he left somewhat ignominiously in 2012, despite having more to fear than most from the cobbles of stage five. In 2010, the then Luxembourg champion came down hard on the stones of Sars-et-Rosières, and shattered his collarbone.

 

Ironically, the incident was what caused the split at the front of the peloton that Andy eventually benefited from; even with that memory, however, Fränk Schleck is as confident as his younger brother.

 

"That is past. I have long since finished with this topic,” he said yesterday, according to Wort.lu. “I am pleased that [the Tour] goes over the cobblestones, again next year. I will be able to take my revenge. I certainly respect the Pavé, but I feel no fear.

 

“I am looking forward to it immensely,” he said of the Tour’s route. “I am very pleasantly surprised. Even though I’ve not yet looked at the route in detail, I know the big climbs.

 

The fact that there is only one time trial means that me and my brother Andy will naturally be in contention,” he added. “Especially as in a time trial at the very end of a three week Tour, fatigue plays a crucial role and the distances among the favourites should not be extremely large. We will prepare optimally, visit the stages and then attack it full on. Motivation could hardly be greater for Andy and me.”

 

"Ag moeder"! Andy made a funny! He must have had a wet dream thinking he can win the tour

[christopher scott]

With a 50km Time trail for the 2014 Tour de France to remember Miguel Indurain, am i the only one concerned that this might eliminate certain riders and heavily favor Team Sky Rider(s)?

 

Yes it seems like there will only be one 50km ITT where this season we saw two ITT, a 33Km and a 32km, but stretching to 50km might just make the time differences to other non TT specialist just to big to make it competitive. Just my 2c

 

http://www.cyclingne...erac-time-trial

 

Edit : Added Link

i am not sure, because there are many riders that are good climbers and time trailers as well. anyway the battles are always in the mountains, it has been ever since the first serious mountain stage was included. the race organises were called assasins, but it changed the way the race was viewed.