I was very happy for Damiano, because during last year Tour de France some people (*cough* journalists *cough*) were really terrible with him. Moreover, journalists had tried to eat him alive after Mendrisio Worlds. So, considering all the critics and pressure that Cunego has had to carry on his shoulder since May 2004 (and that have become even bigger over the last years), I always feel incredibly happy when he wins. When he wins, in fact, I always feel as if it's a deserved victory. I like Damiano, I can't help it.
Second in today's stage (which was very hilly and whose 7 final kms were completely uphill) was Serpa 'Zorro' Perez, whose moustache are much more stylish than Pozzato's ones. If you don't believe me, look at the pic above (by Sirotti). Third in the stage was the little Sella, José's teammate, while 4th was Peter Sagan. Unfortunately for him, Peter couldn't keep the leader jersey, which is now on Cunego's shoulders.
Amongst the riders who did a very good job today there are Hermans (the Radioshack rider was 4th), Capecchi (5th), Scarponi (who did an outstanding job for Cunego), Kiserlovski and Stortoni (Colnago riders are really brave, they always attack as soon as they can). Ballan was 15th (he was second in yesterday stage) and hopefully this means that he's back at the level that he had when he won the Varese Worlds. 25th was 40 year-old Noé, while a special mention must go to the breakaway riders du jour: Mikhail Ignatiev (who kept his knees in a very strange way while riding uphill), David Boily, Alessandro De Marchi, Elia Favilli and Alessandro Malaguti. De Marchi was the best breakawayer (?) du jour, since he abandoned the peloton after just 8 kms (18 if you consider the 10 kms between the start village and the true start of the race) and he was caught with just 6 kms to go. Therefore, chapeau to Alessandro!
RANDOM NEWS:
Talking about breakaways, you'll be happy to know that Andy Schleck was part of a breakaway during today's Ruta del Sol stage, wich was eventually won by Freire. Good to see our boy riding at the front of a race! :D
Still talking about Andy, he now has a new teammate: Thomas Rohregger, born on the 23rd December 1982, former Milram (and Pegasus) rider, winner of 2009 Tour of Austria. A good climber and another German speaker for Leopard Trek. All together now: *Herzlich Willkommen, Thomas*!!
On to another news, Jens Voigt has recently said that the riders should do something 'big', like boycotting this year Worlds, to show their disapproval of UCI's radio ban. Aren't we exaggerating a bit? (http://www.cyclingnews.com/news/voigt-calls-for-worlds-boycott-over-radio-ban ).
Still facing the news du jour, I've just read on Cyclingnews that Amstel Gold Race organisers have given their race's wild cards to the following teams: Topsport Vlaanderen (yay!), Landbouwkrediet (double yay!), Skill Shimano (we want Kenny Van Hummel!) and Verandas Willems.
I also wanted to put the link to a little Cyclingnews article in which Romain Feillu said that, perhaps, Vacansoleil shouldn't have given Riccò a contract, but unfortunately I couldn't find it anywhere. Well, it seems like someone was brave enough to say these things publicly.
Anyway, it is pretty late right now, so here I close this post (which isn't actually that great, but that was written in a big hurry). Have a good evening and a good night sleep!
(pic by Sirotti)
I really didn't understand either why Vacansoleil signed Riccó... I love the team, they're always in breakaways and always try to make an exciting race, why would they change their positive image by signing Riccó?
RispondiEliminaI'll probably visit Amstel Gold Race this year (because I do that every year), so if you want me to hold a huge Kenny-sign over my head, I would totally do that :).
Oh and btw, I've always hated Cunego (because he always seemed to be a threat to Frank Schleck like in the 2006 TdF Alpe d'Huez stage), but I completely agree with you. I'm even starting to like him now...
Let's start with saying that I hate Ricco. But I can understand Vacansoleil too. Other riders made a come back (Vino!) and did it very well. Vacansoleil was a little bit too optimistic about Ricco. I feel sad for them, not for Ricco. But they still have Hoogerland! <3
RispondiEliminaIs Kenny going to ride Amstel? That race has hills... ;)
Btw, that mustache-man scares me.
@ Anne: I think that Vacansoleil signed Riccò because of the UCI points system and also because last year Zomegnan said that this year he would have surely invited Riccò to the Giro. After knowing this fact, Vacansoleil probably thought that, by signing Riccò, they would have guaranteed themselves the chance of taking part in a GT.
RispondiEliminaToo bad that they didn't consider Riccò's personality, his past and also his family (his wife was found positive but then cleared of any accusation, while his teammate-and brother-in-law-Rossi has recently been banned for two years).
Talking about 'dangerous' contracts, I have the feeling that Katusha's decision of employing Di Luca wasn't that wise...
Back to Riccò, however, I think that Vacansoleil was pretty lucky in this very bad story. In fact, I think things could have been much worse for the team if Riccò had resulted positive to a control after a very important race...
The Kenny sign is a very good idea! I remember that at Tour 2009 every single supporter was in love with Kenny, he was the most supported guy of the peloton! Too bad that he couldn't reach Paris because of a nasty crash :(
Btw I hope you'll have the chance of seeing him in Amstel, he's a really tough fighter! Who wouldn't support him?
I must confess that, when I started following cycling, Cunego was my favourite rider (*blushes red while thinking about the past*)...
Actually, I've managed to hate him just when he won Amstel 2008 right in front of Frank :P I like Damiano because he always seems very nice with people and because most of the times he looks very happy. Moreover, yesterday he dedicated his victory to Aldo Sassi and this made me like him even more.
I actually had a lot of fun while reading the newspaper this morning: everyone said that Cunego is a big talent, that he's an important Italian rider, that he's strong, he's nice, he's mature... And who cares if those very same people had been criticising Cunego in a very harsh way since 2009!
@ Mar: Vacansoleil still has Hoogerland, Marcato,Carrara,Leukemans... They're not going to miss Riccò's absence, that's for sure.
I think Vacansoleil was a bit too brave in offering Riccò a contract last year. If I had been Vacansoleil boss, I would have waited at least 1 year and a half before of giving Riccò a contract. Considering his personality and what he did in 2008, I wouldn't have trusted him that much a few months after his comeback!
The only one who doesn't scare me in that picture is Cunego. I don't like Sella and, in addition, I find Serpa's moustache terribly disturbing!!
I'm afraid you may be right about Kenny: Amstel has some hills, so we may be unable to watch his great riding skills...Sadness :(
However, did you know that he won Veenendaal-Veenendaal some years agi? ;)
I think your family has a great sense of humour! (OK, not really, but it's very similar to mine, ha, ha!) I laughed out loud at the square-joke.
RispondiElimina...
OK, I was distracted for a moment because Jakob showed up on TV without warning... Right, good, I'm glad he did - not only because you can always look at him - but also because I was about to shout at the TV for calling Michael Rasmussen "Hero of the People". Humph! But then Jakob turned up and made me smile (until my mum said that he talks just like Bjarne Riis - I'm deeply offended!)
Enough, before I get really angry! :P
OMG Susanne, your mom said Jakob talks like Bjarne???!?! If I was sitting on a chair, I would fall of the chair.
RispondiEliminaFede, yes I know he won Veenendaal-Veenendaal! It makes me even more excited for 'my' race.
I also understand your thoughts about Vacansoleil and what you would do when you were the manager. But in cycling you don't get much time to hestitate. Sign or sign not. Not always the smartest option...
As time passes this Ricco situation makes me just sad. He was unpleasant, arrogant and stupid enough to act very irresponsably more than once, but this picking on him by so many riders just makes me feel ill at ease. Are they so much better than him? This attacking him in one of his weakest moments is not so much heroic.
RispondiEliminaFrancesca
@ Susanne: my sister thanks you for having appreciated her joke. Actually, you've just made her evening ;)
RispondiEliminaI'd love to have Jakob (or one of the Schlecks) appearing on my tv screen every time I start to get angry at a politician or at a chronist! His appearance would immediately calm me down ;)
Talking about Rasmussen I've read that Tour of Denmark organisers don't want him at their race. Now, I've read that he's said something very rude about them, but I think that the Chicken has paid enough for his mistakes. I mean, he hasn't been able to take part in any important race since 2007! Hasn't he already paid enough for his mistakes? (ok, I admit it: I quite liked Rasmussen in the past).
I quote Mar's 'OMG' as far as your mother's comment is concerned. Jakob should be deeply offended too!
@ Mar: Another glorious winner for Veenendaal-Veenendaal, yay!
You're right about the 'no time to hesitate' thing. Actually, Vacansoleil offered a contract to Riccò in a perfect moment, right before of last year Vuelta. He couldn't have refused it, it was such a great offer!
Unfortunately, I don't think I could become a successful cycling manager. I always think too much before of doing important things :S
@ Francesca: I think that many riders are so angry at Riccò because of his past, of his behaviours and, at least as far as many Italian riders are concerned, also because of his betrayal towards Aldo Sassi.
However, I completely agree with you: it's better to forget about Riccò and to stop attacking him. He already has enough troubles, he surely doesn't need his former colleagues to insult him and tell him off for his mistakes every single day. Actually, right now he should just focus on his health and on his family, without paying attention to what's going in the cycling world. He needs to get a brand new life and I hope he'll make it. I don't want another tragic story like the one of Pantani.
Riccò: Obviously, it would be better for him if people would just let him be now. I hope he's realised what he's done to himself and that he'll never do it again.
RispondiEliminaHowever, riders have it hard. They're part of a sport where everybody suspects them of doping and nothing they can say will change it. Journalists want them to say stuff about the latest doping scandal (Bertie and Andy, for example) but what are they supposed to say? They're all in the same boat so I guess it's hard for them to say anything before they know more or less for certain what has happened. When they are certain, then, they all want to put as much distance between themselves and the doper.
Re Michael Rasmussen: The 2007 Tour was the first Tour I really watched. Denmark was in fits of glee until, of course, he was thrown out. Back then I didn't really understand it (ha, ha! :P) but I understand why many people don't like him. After seeing him on Dancing With the Stars I actually quite liked him and for the first time I understood why so many Danes still like him. But I still don't want him to return to cycling. I'm not exactly sure why, though. He can be extremely unpleasant. He always snaps at reporters and journalists and loads of other people. And he has never shown any sign of remorse. Of course, he was never caught doping but he still didn't follow the rules and almost four years later he's still acting as if the system is against him. Which is exactly why DCU said that they didn't want him in the Tour of Denmark. Now, however, it looks as though DCU have caved and that Michael Rasmussen will be racing the Tour of Denmark.
It is indeed nice to have Jakob popping up on your TV now and then. It happens too rarely in my opinion, though :P
I could have slapped my mum when he said that! I HATE the way Bjarne talks! The worst part is that she's sort of right... Bjarne and Jakob are from around the same part of Denmark so their dialect is kind of alike (so is mine, though mine is slightly more "country-ish, ha, ha! :P). But Jakob certainly doesn't mumble and stutter in the same annoying way that Bjarne does!
And I'm glad I made your sister happy :P My dad always comes up with similarly stupid jokes. I would come up with an example but I can't remember any right now... He always calls Bjarne Riis for Arne Friis - I've NEVER found out why! When I was little (especially around the time Bjarne won the Tour) I actually believed that his name was Arne Friis. Yup.
OK, I've gone on for long enough now, haven't I? (Wow, it's really long, this comment! xD)
Heh, I can' wait to hear what more [backstabbing] ex-teammates say about Ricco who definitely didn't seem like a team player...
RispondiEliminaTalking about Cunego: http://cyclocosm.com/2011/02/the-enigma-of-damiano-cunego/.
RispondiEliminaMiss Fede, I hope it's ok to post a link. tell me if it's not, I'll stop doing it. It's just that I read so much about cycling, and I love to share good articles with other people who mihgjt bee interested. I would also share your blogs if I was commenting anywhere else :D
@ Susanne: you're completely right about Riccò and the other riders. I couldn't have said it better!
RispondiEliminaPoor Rasmussen, I must say that I'm a bit sorry for him... Other riders got the chance to come back, he didn't. And if a guy like Riccò could sign with Vacansoleil, I can't understand why Rasmussen can't manage to find a Continental team that is allowed to take part in some important races.
Bjarne and Jakob talk a bit in the similar way?!? I'm shocked! :O Btw I understand what you mean with the dialect justification. For example, my 'mountaneerish' dialect is the same spoken by Pinotti and Savoldelli, so I think that someone could say that I speak like them (although I must underline that, luckily, my accent isn't as strong as Savoldelli's!).
I've never heard Bjarne talking in Danish, but I don't like people who mumble or stutter too much when they're interviewed!
Arne Friis, that's fun!
Imo the square-joke is one of those jokes that make you laugh because they're so horrible that you can't help but laugh at them...
Don't worry about long comments, you're talking to the their queen! ;)
@ Sansen: Riccò didn't look like a team player indeed! Actually, I think that some of his teammates may be happier now than before. Racing with Riccò probably wouldn't have been easy for them (at least in the first months)...
@ Anne: don't worry about posting links, Anne! Actually, I really like reading the articles that readers post. So, every time you have an article that you'd like to share of things, don't hesitate! It's not a problem for me :)
RispondiEliminaThat article is very well written, since it points out many aspects of Cunego: the fact that he won a Giro at just 22, his problems with his teammates (I remember that, when he won a Giro stage in 2004, Simoni even called him 'a bastard'), his fight for a clean cycling...and his lack of important GT placements over the last years.
Actually, in 2007 he was 5th in the Giro and that year Di Luca (Giro's winner) had some problems with the anti-doping, just like Mazzoleni (3rd). Therefore I think that, 3 years and a half after that edition of the Giro, we can say that Cunego should have deserved a 3rd (or 4th) placement on that occasion. In addition, Damiano was 4th also in the 2006 Giro.
Imo, Cunego's post 2004 problems aren't due to the fact that he stopped doping in 2005 or something similar, but to the reasons below:
1st) Pressure: when Damiano won the 2004 Giro, there was a big Cunego-euphoria here in Italy (people thought that he was Coppi's natural heir).
After that year, therefore, Damiano has never been considered as a 'normal' rider again. I mean, if I arrive 5th in a Giro d'Italia, I've just made something exceptionable. If Cunego does, it is a disappointing placement.
Moreover, already in 2004 Damiano showed that he had the skills to become one of the strongest Classic riders of the world. Already after his disappointing 2005 Giro, the debates about him ('should he pay more attention to GTs or to the Ardenne's classics?') began (and I can tell you that they aren't over yet). Every time he did well in a GT stage, people told him that he should focus just on Gts. Then, every time he did well in a Classic, they told him he should just focus on Classics. Then, if he focused on Classics for a short time and didn't win anything during the Ardenne campaign, everyone was ready to ask him why he had stopped focusing on Gts. And when he did bad in Gts, everyone would ask him why he had stop focusing on the Classics. If I were him, I would have gone bananas after a few months.
Moreover, it is known that Cunego can't stand pressure too well (just see hat he did in Mendrisio 2009, when all the Italian cycling fans had great expectations for him).So, all these expectations and debates around him probably disturbed him a lot over the last years.
2nd) problems with journalists and teammates: Cunego hasn't got a very 'easy' personality (In 2004, for example, Simoni called him 'a bastard' right after a stage finish) and thi can be a problem for his teammates.
In addition, Cuenego's relationship with journalists has never been that good sine 2005. Two Giros ago, for example, he complained about a journalist who had made an interview with him. Damiano denied that he had said some of the things written in the interview and all the journalistsgot very angry at him. The journalist who had written the interview in fact is one of the best Italian ones, so many of his collegues defended him. Moreover, the journalist said that he had the recordings of the interview and that he was ready to give them to Cunego if he had forgotten what he said during it.
Since then, the Cunego-journalists relationship got even worse. They didn't write any single article about him for the whole winter and, after the 2010 Tour, some websites wrote that Cunego wasn't a champion anymore and that they'd finally understood that he was just a normal rider who was very lucky in 2004.
So, that's why I think that Cunego's post-2004 problems aren't dueto doping related things. After all, if Damiano had won the Giro thanks to doping in 2004, why would have he decided to stop taking illegal substances?
Hello ladies! :)
RispondiEliminaThis blogpost not that great Fede? I love reading these kind of posts.. full of random things and little news flashes.. just awesome :) Oh and your family is awesome too, haha. Tomorrow finally the 'real' start of the cycling season!! Yay, that's what we've been waiting for ;) I can't watch Omloop het Nieuwsblad on tv though, because I'm going to the Ster van Zwolle (1.2 race here in The Netherlands) and make photos for Ride On! and support the Rabobank CT boys! :) I hope it won't rain that much, they say it will, so fingers crossed ;) Enjoy the start of the season everyone!! :)
Hi Marleen! I'm glad that you liked my post. I wrote it pretty late in the evening, so I was afraid of making too many mistakes in it but at the same time I was too tired to check if I had written everything correctly. So, I simply wrote the 'not-that-great' part and went to bed :P
RispondiEliminaMy whole family thanks you for the compliment ;)
Unfortunately I can't watch Omloop either today (no tv broadcast) :( Btw,I managed to watch Giro of Sardinia also yesterday (Sagan is IMPRESSIVE!!!!) and this cheers me up a bit. However, I personally start to feel the true beginning of the season in March, during Tirreno-Adriatico and Paris-Nice. Just a few days to go! :D
I wish you a lot of fun at Ster van Zwolle! Take many great pictures and support the Rabobank guys also for me (and don't forget to bring an umbrella with you, although I do hope the weather will be sunny)! I can't wait to see your pictures :)
I got to watch Omloop today so I'm happy now :D At first, I was going to watch a really dodgy stream of Sporza which is fun but not very helpful if you want to know what's going on :P Then my computer wanted to punish me for making it do too much at once and shut down. Which in the end was great because it made me check TV2 Sport and for some strange reason they were actually showing it! So not only could I watch it with Danish commentators but also at our TV instead of my 10 inches computer! My dad came in, looked at the TV, said, "Is that little guy racing?" (Yeah, I really had to think about that - he meant Michael Rasmussen which might be the only bike rider he knows :P). When I answered no, he asked, "Why are they racing in the rain?" (And that was my random input of the day, ha, ha! :P)
RispondiEliminaDeep down, I guess, I think that Michael Rasmussen ought to get a second chance. Generally I do believe in second chances but I just don't like Rasmussen - and I don't like that so many Danes do like him! But let's see, he's pretty old so he probably won't be racing much longer anyway.
Bjarne Riis talks Danish in exactly the same way as he talks English. That man is not a good communicator.
I must remember to ask my dad about Arne Friis.
'Why are they racing in the rain?' LOL! This question was my random input of the day too! :D
RispondiEliminaI'm glad to know that you managed to watch Omloop. Langeveld won it and I'm extremely happy about it! Van der Flecha (he's the only Spaniard that always does well in the North races) was second and 3rd was a surprising Matthew Hayman! I'm also happy to see Offredo in 4th, he's a promising guy. Paolini is 5th and this is very good too, I was so happy when he managed to get a ProTour contract this winter! And 6th was Terpstra, yay (20th instead was my' Leukemans)! And Degenkolb was 12th, very good result for him too! (ok, perhaps it's time I stopped writing the full results of the race... ;)
I also think that everyone can get a second chance, although it's much easier to forgive a guy like Basso rather than one like Sella (or Riccò). Perhaps, if Rasmussen came back racing, he would end up like Vinokourov (I couldn't stand him at the beginning of last year, now I hope he'll never stop racing! :P)
Unfortunately not everyone can give good interviews like the Schlecks or Fuglsang (or Chris Anker Sorensen, he's always so hilarious)!
I'm curious about the Arne Friis mistery too! ;)
Thank you Fede, it was fun! Luckily it didn't rain that much, only at the end, but we brought our umbrella ;) I've just uploaded the photos, they're now at Ride On! :) Barry Markus from Rabobank won, yay! Though, Wilco Kelderman, one of our faves and also from Rabobank, fell in the last 25k and broke his collarbone.. not cool :(
RispondiEliminaBut.. I was so happy when I found out that Sebastian Langeveld won the Omloop!! Woohoo, he's been a fave of mine for quite some years now and he totally deserved it :D Also cool that Flecha was 2nd and Haymann 3rd :) Our mom called us to tell us the result, so sweet :) She's also a big cycling fan, in fact, because of her we became cycling fans. Cycling is pretty big in our family. My mom's cousin actually used to be a pro, she became 2nd at the national championship 5 times and also raced in the world championship a couple of times, her best place was 11th :) Anyway, I'm digressing here haha ;)
Tomorrow Kuurne-Brussel-Kuurne! :) And yes, I'm also looking forward to Paris-Nice and Tirreno...
I've just seen your photos on Ride On and they are really good! Thanks for sharing them! :D
RispondiEliminaI'm happy that Rabobank won, but I'm sorry for your favourite rider :( I hope he'll get better soon!
Langeveld has been a fav of mine for some years too, I think he's one of the most promising Classic riders out there!
Your mum's really sweet indeed! It's great to have a passion to share with familiars :)
My mum likes cycling too, but she always makes a mess with the riders' names (for example, she says 'Screk' rather than Schleck), so she never phones me to tell me results of the races. Usually, the one who gives me the results when I'm not home is my father. And when dad isn't home, I phone my uncle or my grandfather (when I go watching races with my family, my grandfather actually becomes our personal informer!)
Cycling is a big passion also in my family, but I've never had a pro-cyclist relative! :O That must be really cool!
I have a big respect for women cyclists. In my opinion, they work even harder than men (and they receive less attention, unfortunately). Therefore, chapeau to your mother's cousin!
In my family, the cycling passion comes from both my grandparents and it has been passed from father to son/daughter for the last decades. One of my grandfather in fact was the president of my village's cycling club, while the other one was a good climber (when he was a junior rider, he often raced against Gimondi). I love it when they talk about their past in the cycling world!
My dad has always been a big cycling lover too, just like one of his brothers, who is a bike-addicted (two days ago he went out training at 8 pm, after work :P). My mother likes cycling too and she's a big lov-lov (Lovkvist Lover;) Also my sister is a cyclist (and a lov-lov) and she's the local mountain bike champion (actually, she's the only one in her category :P). One of my grandmothers is an occasional cycling follower too (you should hear her getting angry at the Rai chronists when they digress too much!), although she always complains when her husband watches the same Tour de France stage twice on the same day (it happens when the stage is really thrilling) ;P
Back to races, Kuurne-Bruxelles-Kuurne was won by Sutton, yay for Sky! And second was Hutarovich, who outsprinted Greipel and Farrar.
GP Lugano instead was won by Basso, who dedicated the victory to Sassi. How sweet!
Thank you Fede :D Wilco actually broke that collarbone last year too, not his lucky bone I guess ;)
RispondiEliminaMy mom says hi and thanks for the compliment! Wow, your family is indeed a true cycling family! ;) Cool that your sister rides, does she want to take it further, or just for fun? :) My dad likes cycling too, but it's my mother's side of the family that is really into it. My uncles used to race as well, though no big pro races, just small ones in our country. Yeah, chapeau to my mom's cousin, she still rides a bike and is 65! :)
Kuurne-Brussel-Kuurne wasn't as fascinating as last year, but I actually thought it was cool that an outsider won :) Congrats to Chris Sutton! And yes, Ivan Basso's dedication is very sweet..
Two broken collarbones in two years, geez! Poor Wilco, he's very unlucky :(
RispondiEliminaYou come from a true cycling family too! :) And wow, riding a bike at 65... I hope I'll be as healthy as your mum's cousin in my sixties ;)
Right now my sister rides just for fun. She's always busy with school, so when she has a bit of free time she goes out training. It relaxes her.
I usually like it when outsiders win. I find it boring to see the same riders winning the same races every time. Once in a while, it's good to have a new face on the podium :)
Just 4 days to Paris-Nice, girls! Let's fasten our seatbelts, the true Classic season is about to start! ;)