Cav' Posted February 19, 2016 Author Posted February 19, 2016 Volta ao Algarve, stage 3:The course:For the third year in a row, the time trial will take place earlier than usual as the riders will already make use of their TT bikes on the third day. It takes place in the same area as it has done for the last two years but the course has been changed. The distance has been reduced from 19km to 18km but the route is flatter than it was last year. Furthermore, it still includes several technical challenges.Like last year the stage goes from Vila do Bispo to Sagres but this year the riders will continue along the coast for a few more kilometres to finish the stage at the southwestern tip of the Iberian peninsula, meaning that the distance has been increased from 13.6km to 19km. Unlike last year’s stage, the 18km course both starts and finishes in Sagres. The roads are mainly flat as the riders will stay between 25m and 67m above sea level. However, it can still be split into two different parts. The first half is very technical and includes numerous turns as the riders tackle a difficult circuit in the eastern part of the city. Having almost returned to the starting ramp, the riders will face a completely different course for the final 12.5km. They consist of a long straight run along a flat road to the westernmost point of the coast. Here they will turn around before heading back to Sagres. Then they will turn right in a roundabout before heading 600m to the finish on the southernmost point of the city. The stage has been changed compared to the two latest editions but the nature is not much different. In 2015 Tony Martin beat Adriano Malori by less than a second while Geraint Thomas was 3 seconds behind in third. The German was beaten in 2014 as Michal Kwiatkowski surprised himself by beating Adriano Malori by 11 seconds and his German teammate by 13 seconds. Martin won the TT in 2013 and 2011 while Bradley Wiggins was faster in 2012. Luis Leon Sanchez won the 2010 TT while Alberto Contador took the win in 2009 and Stijn Devolder in 2008. The weatherFriday will be another day with great sunshine and a pleasant maximum temperature of 16 degrees. It will be another windy day as there will be a relatively strong wind from a northeasterly direction. It means a cross-headwind on the way out and a cross-tailwind on the way back. The speed will decrease a bit later in the day. The favourites:The combination of a very strong wind and less steep gradients made it a perfect climb for the bigger guys in today’s stage and it was no surprise to see Luis Leon Sanchez and Geraint Thomas do well in that kind of finale. The big surprise was of course Alberto Contador’s poor showing. He claims to have spent too much time in the wind but it is hard to believe that this can explain such a big time loss. The Spaniard has always been competitive in Algarve so this is very unusual for him to be so far off the pace. The GC is still wide open but we will be much wiser after tomorrow’s stage. The time trial will probably be the single most decisive stage as time gaps on the Alto do Malhao are limited. It will be a tough one for the tiny climbers as it is a great course for the big engines. The first part suits explosive and technically strong riders that can accelerate out of the corners but the final 12km are all about power. Furthermore, the wind will play a big role on these exposed coastal roads as it will be very windy. There will be less wind later in the stage and this will favour the GC riders. Fabian Cancellara has been in great condition right from the start of the season. Today he was again up there and this is a time trial that suits him really well. He is probably the best in the first technical section and he has the power to make the difference on the flats. Furthermore, the medium distance is very good for him. He is often very strong in time trials at this time of the year and now he seems to be riding better than usual. We expect him to make a difference in the technical part and then maintain it until the end so he is our favourite. Tony Martin is obviously his big rival. The German showed excellent condition in today’s stage as he limited his losses really well. He won this time trial last year and has usually been very good in Algarve. It will be a close battle with Cancellara but he will lose time in the first part. He hasn’t been time trialling too well in 2015 and as he is very focused on Rio’s hilly TT, he has been working much on his climbing. This could be a bit costly in this stage. Geraint Thomas was reportedly brutally strong in today’s stage and he was close to the win in this stage last year. He is powerful on the flats and a great bike-handler so he has all the skills to do well here. The main issue is whether his improved focus on climbing has cost him a bit of power compared to last year. After today’s performance he is the favourite to win overall and he could get it all off to a good start with a win tomorrow. Luis Leon Sanchez is stronger than he has been for several years and he is also a great time triallist. He was second in Valencia and this combination of technical skills and power suits him well. It won’t be impossible for him to make it two in a row. Jonathan Castroviejo was time trialling extremely well last year and was just a few seconds shy of a medal at the Worlds. He has had a belated start due to a training crash and crashed in today’s stage so it remains to be seen how he is feeling but he was up there in the finale of today’s stage. It’s a bit too much about power for him to win. His teammate Alex Dowsett is really suited to this kind of powerful effort and he seems to be riding well. However, he has not been able to match the best recently. Anton Vorobyev is also really strong on the flats and he has showed good form in recent months after he has finally left his health issues behind him- Nelson Oliveira has improved his level a lot recently and he was riding really strongly in today’s finale. He should be able to do well here. The same goes for his Movistar captain Ion Izagirre but this stage is probably a bit too much about power for him. It’s a good stage for Jan Barta but the Czech is usually not at his best at this time of the year. The same goe for Matthias Brändle but he usually needs a slightly shorter distance to really shine. Victor Campenaerts should also be capable of a good ride after his great performance in Valencia.Â
GrumpyOldGuy Posted February 19, 2016 Posted February 19, 2016 Quintana not looking that convincing here.?
Cav' Posted February 20, 2016 Author Posted February 20, 2016 1 Fabian CancalarraTREK - SEGAFREDO20:572 MARTIN TonyETIXX - QUICK STEP0:053 THOMAS GeraintTEAM SKY0:284 IZAGIRRE IonMOVISTAR TEAM0:375 OLIVEIRA NelsonMOVISTAR TEAM,,6 CASTROVIEJO JonathanMOVISTAR TEAM,,7 DOWSETT AlexMOVISTAR TEAM0:408 GALLOPIN TonyLOTTO SOUDAL0:519 CAMPENAERTS VictorTEAM LOTTONL - JUMBO,,10 NAVARDAUSKAS RamunasCANNONDALE PRO CYCLING TEAM0:5511 BRÄNDLE MatthiasIAM CYCLING0:5712 PINOT ThibautFDJ1:0213 CONTADOR AlbertoTINKOFF1:03
Cav' Posted February 20, 2016 Author Posted February 20, 2016 GC1. Tony Martin (Ger) Etixx - Quick-Step 9:22:17 2 Geraint Thomas (GBr) Team Sky 0:00:03 3 Jon Izaguirre (Spa) Movistar Team 0:00:20 4 Tony Gallopin (Fra) Lotto Soudal 0:00:46 5 Thibaut Pinot (Fra) FDJ 0:00:47 6 Primoz Roglic (Slo) Team LottoNl-Jumbo 0:00:52 7 Tiago Machado (Por) Team Katusha 0:00:59 8 Ilnur Zakarin (Rus) Team Katusha 0:01:04 9 Jarlinson Pantano (Col) IAM Cycling 0:01:05 10 Alberto Contador (Spa) Tinkoff Team
Cav' Posted February 20, 2016 Author Posted February 20, 2016 Stage 41. Kittel Etixx - Quick Step 4:46:35 2 Wouter Wippert (Ned) Cannondale Pro Cycling Team 3 Jens Debusschere (Bel) Lotto Soudal 4 Jonas Van Genechten (Bel) Iam Cycling 5 José JoaquÃn Rojas (Spa) Movistar Team 6 Andrea Pasqualon (Ita) Team Roth 7 Phil Bauhaus (Ger) Bora-Argon 8 Dylan Groenewegen (Ned) Team Lottonl - Jumbo 9 Samuel Caldeira (Por) W52-Fc Porto-Porto Canal 10 Jasper Stuyven (Bel) Trek - Segafredo
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