Liquigas and New RSNT Giro Leaders

Two of my favorites have just been announced that they will lead their teams in the 2012 Giro d'Italia:

Basso to lead Liquigas-Cannondale at Giro d'Italia

(http://www.cyclingnews.com/news/basso-to-lead-liquigas-cannondale-at-giro-ditalia)

While Ivan Basso had previously stated he'd wait until the conclusion of the Tour de Romandie to decide if he'd contest the Giro d'Italia, his Liquigas-Cannondale team announced today that Basso will indeed captain the Italian ProTeam at its home Grand Tour, beginning May 5 in Herning, Denmark.

"I wanted to dispel any doubts a day early because my hope and desire to do the Giro are great," Basso said. "I worked so hard to prepare for this event, doing extra work that has kept me anxious to the last. But now I have the confidence to fight for the pink jersey: I'm delighted to say that I'll be there."

Basso's preparation for the Giro has been hampered this spring by a knee injury suffered at Paris-Nice, followed by a crash at Volta a Catalunya which aggravated the injury. Basso is currently in 30th overall at the Tour de Romandie, 35 seconds behind leader Luis Leon Sanchez (Rabobank) in advance of tomorrow's concluding stage - a 16.5km individual time trial.

Basso will be supported at the Giro by a strong cadre of five climbers - Valerio Agnoli, Eros Capecchi, Damiano Caruso, Cristiano Salerno and Sylvester Szmyd - while Maciej Bodnar, Paolo Longo Borghini and Fabio Sabatini will round out the nine-man roster.

"All the boys are in great condition and above all motivated to take a leading role," said Liquigas-Cannondale directeur sportif Stefano Zanatta. "In recent weeks I have felt a great desire [for the Giro] and today we've got confirmation that Ivan will do it. At his side is a team that can support him in the best way.

"The Giro has always been the most important event of our season, we know the pressures and expectations," continued Zanatta. "Riders like Szmyd, Capecchi, Agnoli, Bodnar, Longo Borghini and Sabatini assure us experience both uphill and on flat terrain. Salerno has demonstrated reliability in the mountain stages while Caruso will provide valuable support for the captain and will have the opportunity to and grow and make a quantum leap.

"For the sprints we'll play the Sabatini card: the absence of [Elia] Viviani, unfortunately, is a great loss."

Liguigas-Cannondale roster for the 2012 Giro d'Italia:

Valerio Agnoli (Ita), Ivan Basso (Ita), Maciej Bodnar (Pol), Eros Capecchi (Ita), Damiano Caruso (Ita), Paolo Longo Borghini (Ita), Fabio Sabatini (Ita), Cristiano Salerno (Ita) and Sylvester Szmyd (Pol)

Fränk Schleck to head up RadioShack-Nissan at 2012 Giro d'Italia

(http://www.cyclingnews.com/news/frank-schleck-to-head-up-radioshack-nissan-at-2012-giro-ditalia)

Team RadioShack-Nissan has confirmed that Fränk Schleck will ride the 2012 Giro d'Italia. He replaces Jakob Fuglsang, who was to have been the team's captain but had to withdraw due to a knee injury.

On Saturday evening the team confirmed Schleck's nomination, which had earlier been rumoured. He finished third last year in the Tour de France and is expected to go for the podium in Paris again this summer along with his younger brother Andy.

Schleck has ridden the Giro once before, finishing 42nd overall in 2005.

“My season was directed at peaking in the Tour,” Schleck said, "but when you think about it, this situation creates opportunities. For sure, I will come to the start with a different preparation than the other GC riders, but that is not necessarily a bad thing. My condition is not so bad and it can only grow the coming weeks.

“The Tour of Italy is one of the big monuments of cycling as well, so it is at least a big challenge for me.”

“I see a lot of opportunities for Fränk as well as for the team,” commented Team Manager Johan Bruyneel. "Fränk is a born leader and a team needs a leader. Moreover – though bad luck and circumstances did not provide the right results - he has shown in the last few weeks that his condition has already reached a high level. I am confident he can surprise us in the coming weeks.

“It all reminds me of the 2008 Tour of Italy when, one week before the start, we got an invitation for the race. In the end we won the overall.”



New RSNT Leader Needed for Giro

Fuglsang out of Giro d'Italia with knee problems

(http://www.cyclingnews.com/news/fuglsang-out-of-giro-ditalia-with-knee-problems)

Jakob Fuglsang will not be able to ride the Giro d'Italia 2012 due to knee problems. The RadioShack-Nissan rider did not start Friday's third stage of the Tour de Romandie because of the knee pain.

He has been diagnosed with an inflammation of the articular capsule and ligament of the left knee. He first noticed it two weeks ago at an altitude camp in Sierra Nevada, Spain.

"I am very disappointed," Fuglsang said. "The Giro was my big objective for this year. Yesterday I had so much pain in the last 40K, I was just miserable. At that point I realized that it might be the end of my Giro dream. Moreover I was already running behind my schedule after the scaphoid bone fracture in the Tour of Catalunya."

There is simply not enough time to clear up the problem before the start of the Giro on May 5, and the risks were too great, team doctor Andreas Gösele said. “With a quick and intensive therapy, Jakob would possibly be able to start at the Giro, but with how much risk? A good result would be out of the question and if he would have to drop out after ten stages, what would we have accomplished?"

“From a medical point of view, it is impossible to guarantee that he will be fine. It's never good to take an injured rider to the start of a Grand Tour, and neither is it good to take out the leader of a team during such an important race. We don't want to jeopardize his season and his career.”

Fuglsang was set to be RadioShack's captain in the Giro, which starts in his homeland of Denmark. "We would even have stayed in a hotel in the city where I grew up. My hand injury was already a setback. Now, with this on top, I can only agree with the doctors and not take any risk. I will look ahead. I am young and there will be other Grand Tours for me in the future."

Team manager Johan Bruyneel regretted the injury on behalf of both his rider and his team. “He invested a lot of time and even personal funds for altitude camps to be in his best shape at the start of the race. I'm really sorry for him, but it's unrealistic to bring him to the start and believe in a miracle. The Giro is a very important race for our team and now we need to study how we can alter our strategy for those three weeks."

This ruined my day

No more McEwen/O'Grady sprint fights??? I'm sad now. :'(

McEwen to close career at Amgen Tour of California

(http://www.cyclingnews.com/news/mcewen-to-close-career-at-amgen-tour-of-california)

GreenEdge's Robbie McEwen has confirmed he will stop his racing career after the Amgen Tour of California in May. The Australian indicated to Cyclingnews last November that he would convert from racer and sprint coach for his GreenEdge teammates to a completely advisory role at that time of year.

Currently racing at the Presidential Tour of Turkey, McEwen confirmed to Het Nieuwsblad that he still intends to retire from racing in May.

"I am definitely done after the Tour of California," McEwen said.

A three-time winner of the Tour de France's points competition with 12 stage wins there and 12 in the Giro d'Italia, McEwen started his career with the Rabobank team in 1996.

His contract with GreenEdge runs through 2013.

The Next Astana Team Leader?

Vinokourov: Maxim Iglinskiy won Liège-Bastogne-Liège "the Vino way"

(http://www.cyclingnews.com/news/vinokourov-maxim-iglinskiy-won-liege-bastogne-liege-the-vino-way)

Alexandre Vinokourov showed up at the start of stage 2 in the Presidential Tour of Turkey in Alanya with a large smile, as did Valentin Iglinskiy because of the win of his elder brother Maxim at Liège-Bastogne-Liège. Both Astana riders watched the last fifty kilometres of "La Doyenne" from their hotel room near the Mediterranean coast.

"We have awaited our first victory for a while but this is a wonderful time for our team," Vinokourov told Cyclingnews.

Janez Brajkovic opened the team's account at stage 3 of the Volta a Catalunya and now Astana has three wins including two major Classics back-to-back with Amstel Gold Race (by Enrico Gasparotto) and Liège-Bastogne-Liège.

"Our start of the season was far from our expectations but these two Classics have put an end to our hard time," Vino continued. "It proves that Kazakh cycling is not only about myself. I've told Iglinskiy that after what he did yesterday, I can retire quietly."

The soon-to-be Astana team manager played his part in Iglinskiy's victory in Belgium. "I called Maxim yesterday morning before the start," Vino added. "I had noticed that he had good legs at Amstel Gold Race and Fleche Wallonne. ... He rode to perfection. He did it the Vino way! I told him to wait for the Roche-aux-Faucons and go with [Joaquim] Rodriguez. When he did it, I was confident that he'd finish on the podium. He dropped Rodriguez on St-Nicolas and turned the turbo on to catch [Vincenzo] Nibali."

Vinokourov revealed why Iglinskiy didn't win a big Classic until the age of 31. "He lacked motivation," the (substitute) member of the Kazakh Parliament said. "When he won the Strade Bianche and a stage of Tirreno-Adriatico in 2010, I told Maxim: ‘you can ride like Valverde' but he said: ‘no!!! I'm not at this level'. This year he's gone to altitude training camps here and there and he's motivated again. After this victory, he can step up to another level. He'll go back to Kazakhstan tomorrow and take some rest prior to training for the Tour de France and why not the Olympic Games."

On the eve of the Amstel Gold Race, Vinokourov reassured the president of the Kazakh cycling federation Kairat Kelimbetov that a great win was around the corner. "I'm even happier that a Kazakh rider is the winner. It shuts the mouth of the people who haven't believed in Kazakh riders. I reminded Maxim last night when we spoke again at 11pm: ‘I've always believed in you.'"

As a result of the revival of the motivation at Astana, Vino himself went on the attack at the Tour of Turkey after 48km and won the intermediate sprint at Manavgat.

La Flèche Wallonne, 2012

Rodriguez wins La Flèche Wallonne

(http://www.cyclingnews.com/la-fleche-wallonne/results)

Joaquim Rodriguez (Katusha) stormed up the Mur de Huy to claim the victory at the 76th La Flèche Wallonne, overcoming wet and windy conditions to prevail in the middle race of the three Ardennes Classics.

Rodriguez, who had finished second in the previous two years, was part of a large chasing group that engulfed breakaway leaders Lars Petter Nordhaug (Team Sky) and Ryder Hesjedal (Garmin-Barracuda) on the final gruelling climb, and the Spaniard held off the challenge of Michael Albasini (GreenEdge) and defending champion Philippe Gilbert (BMC) for what was in the end a commanding victory.

Rodriguez was overcome with emotion after crossing the winning line, having erased the pain of 2010 and 2011 by finally getting his hands on the prize. He becomes the third Spaniard to win the race in the last ten years, following wins by Igor Astarloa (2003) and Alejandro Valverde (2006).

“It’s the best and most incredible victory of my whole career,” Rodriguez said. “Today is definitely one of the best days of my life. I’ve always been in love with these Classic races, and a victory in these competitions has always been one of my main goals: finally, after many good results, I managed to win.

"Obviously I have to thank my teammates: all of them did a great job from the beginning to the end. It’s true that Mur de Huy was a more suitable final part to my characteristics than Cauberg, but I have to admit it was really hard: it looked like an easy victory, but I did a strong effort in order to defeat my rivals.

"Now I can get ready for Liege-Bastogne-Liege with high motivations. I don’t think this victory will change anything, I’m not the only forerunner, there are many strong riders with chances to win. Everything changed from the Amstel Gold Race to Fleche Wallonne and everything can change on Sunday too. So we have to pay a lot of attention and work at our best if we want to take this legendary double”.

It never looked like the fanatical home fans were going to celebrating a local winner, though the supporters in the Ardennes will have been encouraged by Gilbert’s performance. He has failed to fully live up to expectations in the colours of his new team so far this season, but a sixth place in the Amstel Gold Race last Sunday followed by his podium finish here suggests that he is slowly edging towards his best form.

"I've come from a long way down, so I am satisfied to be back at this level," Gilbert said. "Being on the podium is nice, but most important is a victory. Today, Rodriguez was the deserving winner."

Wild weather in Wallonie

Wind and rain greeted the riders at the start of the 194km race in Charleroi, further dampening the spirits of the supporters who were disappointed by the withdrawals of 2010 winner Cadel Evans (BMC), Peter Sagan (Liquigas-Cannondale) and Thomas Voeckler (Europcar). But with the race underway the Belgians’ indomitable passion for professional road cycling took over, the atmosphere building with each passing kilometre.

An early breakaway saw Daniele Ratto (Liquigas-Cannondale) and Mads Christiensen (Saxo Bank) take 12 seconds out of the field, before a crash split the chasing peloton into two groups. The first group of chasers, led by Katusha, caught up and it was left to Dirk Bellemakers (Landbouwkrediet) to make the next significant move, 55km into the race.

Bellemakers was soon joined by Anthony Roux (FDJ-Big Mat) and the two men worked tirelessly to build up a yawning gap of 2:25 from Sjef De Wilde (Accent.Jobs-Willems Verandas) as they passed over the Mur de Huy for the first time in worsening rain. The first main chasing pack, led by Andy Schleck (RadioShack-Nissan), were roughly a further minute behind as the riders hurtled towards the halfway point.

With De Wilde unable to maintain his solo chase, the gap between the two leaders and the initial pack stretched to just under eight minutes at its peak, before Katusha and Lotto-Belisol traded turns on the front end to begin reducing the deficit. Sander Armee’s brave bid to bridge the gap on his own eventually ended in a stalemate, with the Topsport Vlaanderen-Mercator rider unable to get any nearer that 2:40 down as Bellemakers and Roux closed in on the final crucial 50km.

With 40km to go Andy Schleck launched an attack from the main chasing pack, as the riders approached the Mur for the second time. The deficit between the leaders and the chasing pack was halved on the Mur second time round, offering further evidence of that its final ascent in the finale would probably prove decisive. With 30km left the pack caught the breakaway and the final phase of the race was set to play itself out.

Just as Robinson Chalapud (Colombia-Coldportes) suffered a horrific-looking crash, landing face-down on the tarmac, Tom Slagter (Rabobank) and Giovanni Visconti (Movistar) broke clear, building up a 14-second advantage. The closer the riders got to the final climb of the Mur, the heavier the rain came down, and as Frank Schleck suffered a puncture at a critical stage, Hesjedal and Nordhaug made their move, attacking with 7.5km to go.

It took the chasing pack what seemed like an eternity to close them down, but eventually the final 1km climb up the Mur – a gradient of 20-25% in places – drained the strength from the legs of the breakaway duo as the walls caved in around them. Rodriguez pounced, taking 15 metres out of the chasing pack in a show of rare power. His decisive burst left him clear and gave him time to acknowledge the crowd as he crossed the line for a well deserved victory that has been a long time coming.

Full Results

1	Joaquim Rodriguez Oliver (Spa) Katusha Team	4:45:41
2	Michael Albasini (Swi) GreenEdge Cycling Team	0:00:04
3	Philippe Gilbert (Bel) BMC Racing Team
4	Jelle Vanendert (Bel) Lotto Belisol Team
5	Robert Kiserlovski (Cro) Astana Pro Team	0:00:07
6	Daniel Martin (Irl) Garmin - Barracuda	0:00:09
7	Bauke Mollema (Ned) Rabobank Cycling Team
8	Vincenzo Nibali (Ita) Liquigas-Cannondale
9	Diego Ulissi (Ita) Lampre - ISD
10	Jurgen Van Den Broeck (Bel) Lotto Belisol Team	0:00:11

Another suspension because of drugs...

Denis Galimzyanov returns positive test for EPO

(http://www.cyclingnews.com/news/denis-galimzyanov-returns-positive-test-for-epo)

Denis Galimzyanov (Katusha) has been provisionally suspended after returning an adverse analytical finding for EPO in an out-of-competition test taken on March 22.

The UCI announced the news in a communiqué on Monday afternoon. Galimzyanov has the right to request the analysis of his B sample, but remains suspended until a panel convened by the Russian Cycling Federation sits to hear his case.

Galimzyanov, who was aiming to be part of the Russian selection at the London 2012 Olympics, had a mixed start to the campaign. After going close to stage victory at the Tours of Qatar and Oman, he raced sparingly in March, citing illness. He was omitted from the Katusha team for Paris-Nice and also withdrew from the Three Days of West Flanders in March after the prologue.

The 25-year-old Galimzyanov then went on to take his first victory of the season on stage one of the Circuit de la Sarthe in April, less than two weeks after returning the positive test for EPO. He crashed out of the race the following day.

Hailing from Yekaterinburg in the Ural region of Russia, Galimzyanov raced for the Premier (later Katusha) continental team before stepping up to the ProTour ranks in 2009. He made his first major impact at the highest level last season, winning Paris-Brussels and the final stage of the Tour of Beijing.

Cocky? Or Just Confident?

Fränk Schleck declares himself one of the strongest at Amstel Gold

(http://www.cyclingnews.com/news/frank-schleck-declares-himself-one-of-the-strongest-at-amstel-gold)

He may have finished 12th at the Amstel Gold Race on Sunday, but former winner Fränk Schleck was satisfied with his own performance, where he was the best placed of the RadioShack-Nissan team.

"I had a bad position going into the Eysenbosweg but there was really no attack there," the 32-year-old said, having celebrated his birthday at the race. "So it ended up being a big group at the end. I felt good, my legs were in good shape. In the sprint I had a little cramp so I didn't have the punch I needed but it was good for my confidence and I think I was one of the strongest riders today."

Team director Kim Andersen said that given the overall result for the team - Ben Hermans 70th, Maxime Monfort 74th, Christopher Horner 82nd, Andy Schleck 91st, Jan Bakelants 118th, Laurent Didier DNF, Joost Posthuma DNF – said that it wasn't an "exceptional" day given the plan had been to get on the podium.

"With that in mind, we were in the front when the break went away," Andersen explained, with Posthuma and Laurent Didier patrolling the front of the chase. "We only used two guys, saving six others. But as the race unfolded we saw only Fränk was super strong today. It was weird to see so many sprinting for the victory at the end. I'm happy about Fränk's condition. He wanted to be in good shape and we see that he is looking good. We don't expect more from Andy at this point."

Fränk Schleck added: "Andy rode to protect me all day and he did a really good job. His shape is definitely improving. In fact all of the team worked hard all day and there was great teamwork here. I am looking forward to next week. Joost and Laurent worked so hard. Whatever Laurent had for breakfast, I want to have the same for the next races."

Amstel Gold Race 2012

(http://www.cyclingnews.com/amstel-gold-race/results)

Enrico Gasparotto (Astana Pro Team) won a thrilling Amstel Gold Race, timing his sprint to perfection atop the Cauberg, to win ahead of Jelle Vanendert (Lotto Belisol Team) and Peter Sagan (Liquigas-Cannondale).
Three time world champion Oscar Freire (Katusha Team) finished fourth after his bold attack in the closing 7 kilometres was caught in the final meters of the race. Two-time defending champion, Philippe Gilbert, (BMC Racing Team) had to settle for sixth behind Thomas Voeckler (Europcar).

BMC had controlled the race throughout much of the closing stages but Gilbert was left to do all the work on the final ascent of the Cauberg. His acceleration first brought back Niki Terpstra (Omega Pharma QuckStep) and then Freire's dying legs to within touching distance. However the move proved as a spring board for the podium placers.

Sagan was the first rider to come around the Belgian champion but he too ran out of gas, with Gasparotto accelerating on his left and Vanendert on his right.

Maastricht treaty lasts until opening climbs

The riders had left the chilly start city of Maastricht with a blessing of rain drops and a cold northern wind on their noses. Typically many riders tried break clear on the first of the 31 climbs but nobody gained enough in the first hour of the race, which was covered at 45kph.

After nearly 60 kilometers of racing a large group finally was allowed to go. Romain Bardet (AG2R La Mondiale), Pello Bilbao (Euskaltel-Euskadi), Raymond Kreder (Garmin-Barracuda), Alex Howes (Garmin-Barracuda), Steven Caethoven (Accent Jobs-Willems Veranda), Cedric Pineau (FDJ-Big Mat), Simone Stortoni (Lampre-ISD), Sébastien Delfosse (Landbouwkrediet-Euphony) and Eliot Lietar (Topsport Vlaanderen-Mercator) were the lucky men.

During the second hour they gathered a maximum lead of 13:30 on the peloton, with no teams wanting to chase. Eventually RadioShack-Nissan, BMC and Katusha took the responsibility and gradually the gap went down.

When approaching the second ascent of the Cauberg the pace in the peloton increased even more and after the Vrakelberg a first group of riders was caught behind the peloton, including outsider Cadel Evans (BMC). In front, the breakaway group lost ground. On top of the Cauberg the gap was down to less than five minutes and that was also where Evans abandoned the race.

With 55 km to go the breakaway group still had four minutes on the peloton. Jurgen Van den Broeck (Lotto-Belisol) went down on the Bemelerberg and even though he was assisted by a couple of teammates his race was almost over. When the pace increased inside the final 30 kilometres he was dropped. Meanwhile Danish rider Matti Breschel (Rabobank) also abandoned the race.

The Wolfsberg, at 41km from the finish line on the Cauberg, was the first of the last string of eight climbs. It proved to be the ground where the Astana moved forward. The gap quickly dropped below two minutes and the speed went up another notch when Chris Anker Sorensen (Saxo Bank) attacked the peloton, without much success.

In front Bardet, Bilbao, Howes and Stortoni dropped their fellow breakaway companions although Kreder and Delfosse returned little later. The six remaining leaders entered the last 30km with an advantage of 1:10.

The break split further when Bardet and Howes accelerated again.

Boasson Hagen was the first contender to attack inside the final 15 kilometres but the Sky rider was unable to gain more than 100 meters, with the BMC trio of Mauro Santambrogio, Greg Van Avermaet and Gilbert holding court at the head of the race.

Avermaet, was the perfect teammate, sacrificing his chances for Gilbert, who was either confident of taking on Sagan in the sprint or lacked the legs to attack earlier.

On the penultimate climb of the Keutenberg, Boasson Hagen was swiftly brought back, with Bardet shelling his breakaway companion for the second and final time.

Sky, Astana and Katusha were able to send probing attacks off the front, and Thomas Voeckler and Sagan went briefly alone, but it was Freire who struck a decisive blow with 7km to go, just after Bardet was finally swallowed up.

Freire has never made the podium in Amstel and with Rabobank having such a poor race with Breschel out and Gesink already dropped, Freire's former Dutch team must have been reeling when the Spaniard had a gap of 13 seconds.

But it wouldn't be a Spring Classic without Omega Pharma-Quickstep having their say, and Niki Terpstra accelerated away in pursuit of the Spaniard as the race descended from the Keutenberg.

At the foot of the Cauberg Terpstra had failed to make contact, with a tiring Van Avermaet leading a 20-strong group with Gilbert latched to his wheel.

Gilbert's attack displayed elements of panic and reluctant acceptance at the same time, the rider well aware that everyone was watching him, while also knowing that Freire was on the cusp of a shock win.

Terpstra was quickly reeled in and Gilbert's second acceleration caused the chase group to splinter. Damiano Cunego (Lampre) crashed along with Lars-Peter Nordhaug (Sky), and with a fading Freire unable to hold on the race came down to the strongest, but also the freshest in the sprint for the line.

Full Results

#	Rider Name (Country) Team	Result
1	Enrico Gasparotto (Ita) Pro Team Astana	6:32:35
2	Jelle Vanendert (Bel) Lotto Belisol Team
3	Peter Sagan (Svk) Liquigas-Cannondale	0:00:02
4	Oscar Freire Gomez (Spa) Katusha Team
5	Thomas Voeckler (Fra) Team Europcar
6	Philippe Gilbert (Bel) BMC Racing Team
7	Samuel Sanchez Gonzalez (Spa) Euskaltel - Euskadi
8	Fabian Wegmann (Ger) Garmin-Barracuda	0:00:04
9	Rinaldo Nocentini (Ita) AG2R La Mondiale
10	Bauke Mollema (Ned) Rabobank Cycling Team

Tony Martin Update

No surgery needed for Martin, who returns home

(http://www.cyclingnews.com/news/no-surgery-needed-for-martin-who-returns-home)

Tony Martin's multiple fractures do not require surgery, and so the world time trial champion has gone home to recover. The Omega Pharma-QuickStep rider was hit by a car whilst training last week, suffering fractures of the eye socket, cheekbone, jaw, shoulder blade and upper arm.

“My face is still very swollen, the left eye red and shut,” he wrote on his website. “I still can't move my arm properly.”

Because of the broken jaw, he is on a diet of “soft and liquid nourishment” such as soups and puddings. He hoped to try soft bread over the weekend.

“All in all, I and doing quite well, when you think that my accident was only two and a half days ago. It could have been much worse.”

He credited  that to his years of experience. “It is good that I landed on my left side and not face-first. Probably I have had so many crashes as a pro that I automatically curled up and prepared myself for the crash in less than a second.”

He must return for follow-up with the doctor in a week, and “I hope by then that the first signs of healing are visible.”

Amstel Gold Preview

Vanendert expects usual scenario on revised Amstel Gold Race course

(http://www.cyclingnews.com/news/vanendert-expects-usual-scenario-on-revised-amstel-gold-race-course)

There may be an alteration to the finale of Amstel Gold Race this year, but Jelle Vanendert and Lotto Belisol do not expect any significant deviation from the traditional script in the Netherlands this Sunday.

In recent years, the main contenders have by and large kept their powder dry in anticipation of the final sprint to the top of the Cauberg, where the race has finished since 2003. In a bid to encourage more attacks from further out, organisers have this year cut the distance between the penultimate climb of the Keutenberg and the finish by two kilometres.

Vanendert is not convinced that the tweak to the course will alter the approach of the main contenders, however, as any attackers over the Keutenberg still have 10 kilometres to race before reaching the foot of the Cauberg.

"It doesn't really matter, only the long descent is gone," Vanendert told reporters at Lotto Belisol's pre-race press conference in Maastricht on Friday. "I'm not convinced that it benefits the attackers. It's all wide open fields at the top of the Keutenberg, so a lot will depend on where the wind is coming from."

In the event of a group finish, Vanendert conceded that there are few riders in the peloton who can contend with the likes of the Spanish pair Alejandro Valverde (Movistar) and Joaquim Rodriguez (Katusha) on an explosive climb such as the Cauberg.

"There aren't a lot of riders capable of beating them on these finishes, except for [Philippe] Gilbert," he said.

Twelve months ago, Vanendert was Gilbert's most trusted lieutenant as he dominated Amstel Gold Race and the Ardennes classics in the colours of Omega Pharma-Lotto. A year is a long time in cycling, however, and while Gilbert struggles for form at BMC, Vanendert will lead the line for Lotto Belisol alongside Jurgen Van Den Broeck and Gianni Meersman.

After a quiet opening to the season, Vanendert gave the first significant signs of his form with a seventh place finish at Brabantse Pijl on Wednesday. Freed from the burden of supporting an outright favourite, the Belgian will have the chance to play his own hand in the coming week.

"I've worked specifically towards this time of the season," he said. "In any case, in these races, it's often a matter of riding near the front. If you can do that, it makes it all a lot easier on this type of courses."

Meersman

Gianni Meersman echoed his teammate's belief that the Amstel Gold Race would ultimately hinge on the final 800 metres up the Cauberg, and warned that the preceding 255 kilometres would be an exercise in the preservation of energy.

"On Sunday, it's clear that you must try to avoid doing anything before the last climb, and then at the foot of it, I hope that we're able to do something with Jelle and Jurgen," he said.

While Van Den Broeck and Vanendert have a greater pedigree in the late April classics, Meersman was bullish about his own chances of taking up the reins of leadership should the opportunity arise. "After 200km we'll know more and see who is the best out of the three of us," he said, when asked about Lotto Belisol's tactical approach.

Meersman approaches Amstel Gold Race still smarting from a disappointing showing at Brabantse Pijl on Wednesday. After a solid outing at the Tour of the Basque Country the previous week, the new arrival from FDJ had expected to be in the mix in the finale at Overijse.

"I thought Brabantse Pijl would be the race that suited me best out of these, but that turned out to be a failure," he admitted, adding that Amstel Gold Race was his best chance to make amends in the coming week. "The climbs there are more explosive, which is better for me and the finish is much less steep than the Mur de Huy."

13 Years in the Making

Busche, Bausch featured on cereal box

(http://www.cyclingnews.com/news/busche-bausch-featured-on-cereal-box)

For the first time since Lance Armstrong appeared a Wheaties box in 1999, the Post brand breakfast cereal has a cycling-themed box, thanks to USA Cycling. Appearing on the front cover of upcoming Grape-Nuts boxes is a small image of US Pro champion Matthew Busche, and on the back is Dotsie Bausch of the women's team pursuit squad and the elite men's sprint finish of the 2011 UCI world championships.

More than 7.5 million boxes will be produced and will appear on store shelves at the end of April ahead of the USA's National Bike Month in May.

USA Cycling partnered with Post to create the design, which offers tips for the general public on getting started in cycling, training and how to find a club.

Grape-Nuts is a sponsor of USA Cycling for 2012, and had a presence at the national championship events in the past year. The box was another aspect of the marketing, according to USA Cycling President and CEO Steve Johnson. "This will add to the ever increasing high profile of cycling in the US and sends a message of health and wellness that is associated with both Grape-Nuts and cycling."

Busche said he was happy to be a part of the campaign. "I hope that together we can promote USA Cycling and increase interest in the sport of cycling throughout the U.S. and the world," he said.

Hushovd vs. Rainbow Jersey Curse

Hushovd rode out Paris-Roubaix “in pure defiance”

(http://www.cyclingnews.com/news/hushovd-rode-out-paris-roubaix-in-pure-defiance)

Thor Hushovd was in good position in Paris-Roubaix, but a crash at nearly the same time Tom Boonen launched his ultimately successful attack once again crushed the BMC Racing Team rider's dreams of winning this race. Nevertheless, he didn't let that stop him and rode “in pure defiance” to finish 14th, over four minutes down.

Hushovd was behind Juan Antonio Flecha of Sky, who “was about to run into a police officer, so he turned away suddenly. Then I had to jump over a traffic island, but I landed crooked and with low pressure in the tires I just slipped away.

“I knew right away that the race was over for me,” he told aftenposten.no. “So I rode in pure defiance.”

The tall Norwegian irritatedly rejected the idea of a curse against him winning the race. “It's time to stop harping on the damn curse. There is no curse of the World Champion jersey, and there is no curse here in Roubaix.”

Paris-Roubaix 2012

I know I've been gone awhile, missed a few races. Between work and my personal life, I haven't had much time. So much has gone on these past few weeks, but hopefully I'll be around more.

Anyway, here is the results for the 2012 Paris-Roubaix:

Boonen triumphs at Paris-Roubaix

(http://www.cyclingnews.com/paris-roubaix/results)

Tom Boonen (Omega Pharma-QuickStep) rode into the record books with a dominant solo victory at Paris-Roubaix. The 31-year-old Belgian rode the final 52km alone to win by 1:39 over a five-man chase group led across the finish line in the Roubaix velodrome by Sébastien Turgot (Europcar). Alessandro Ballan (BMC) rounded out the podium for third place in a photo-finish with the Frenchman.

With the victory Boonen equals Roger De Vlaeminck's all-time win record of four victories in the Hell of the North, and for the second time in Boonen's career he's claimed the Tour of Flanders/Paris-Roubaix double in the same season.

"I was not really thinking about the winning race or doing a record," Boonen said. "I was just fighting myself. I was taking it step by step, cobblestone by cobblestone, kilometer by kilometer. I think if you start thinking about the 60 or 57 km, which is when I left, it's nearly impossible. It is all in your mind. I was really thinking about my lead. With the gap at 30 seconds I was trying to take it second by second. I was trying not to push it right away to one minute, tried not to force myself. It was the best way to save my strength and put all my strength into the 50km in front of me. I think it was the best option.

"The velodrome finish line, it's the only one where you can do two laps where all the people are," continued Boonen. "It's the only finish line where you have one kilometre where you can bond with the people that are there. It's just just such a special race. Paris-Roubaix, only one race like it in the world. A race like this needs a special finish. I think changing this finish line would be very stupid. It's almost more Paris-Roubaix — finishing here — than the cobblestones. I was really enjoying my two laps."

Runner-up Turgot was delighted with the result as he realised that Boonen was out of reach on Easter Sunday. "I don't realise yet how huge the performance is that I achieved," Turgot said. "I did some track and that certainly helped me in the sprint. Boonen was too strong. It was almost a miracle what he did, it was super nice," Turgot said.

A sunny, dry day for Paris-Roubaix

Right after rolling out of sunny Compiègne the attacks came thick and fast as riders sought to make the early escape. A huge group of 25 rider wasn’t allowed much distance as the peloton kept riding at high speed. Finally, after 70km of fast-paced, aggressive racing, a group of 12 riders rolled off the front and the peloton let them go. The group consisted of Guillaume Van Keirsbulck (Omega Pharma-QuickStep), Yaroslav Popovych (RadioShack-Nissan), Kenny De Haes (Lotto-Belisol), Frederik Veuchelen and Bert Jan Lindeman (Vacansoleil-DCM). David Boucher (FDJ-Big Mat). Michael Morkov (Team Saxo Bank), David Veilleux (Team Europcar), Dominic Klemme (Argos-Shimano), Laurent Mangel (Saur-Sojasun), Aleksejs Saramotins (Cofidis) and Grischa Janorschke (Team NetApp).

The pace in the peloton dropped off after covering the first two hours at a rapid 48km/h clip and as a result the 12 escapees gained a lead of four minutes in no time. Sky and BMC worked in the peloton to keep the gap under five minutes as they didn’t have a man in the lead group.

The break's advantage over the peloton remained the same until the riders hit pavé section 21, Aulny-lez-Valenciennes – Famars. In front Saramotins flatted but near the front of the peloton there was a crash. Many riders were held up by those who hit the deck and blocked the road. The biggest casualties were Dutchmen Tom Stamsnijder and Tom Leezer. French veteran Fréderic Guesdon (FDJ-Big Mat) and young prospect Tony Gallopin (RadioShack-Nissan) were also hindered by the crash and they failed to come back to the peloton.

Arenberg forest looms large

The Sky team led the peloton at high speed towards the Arenberg forest with its notorious, grueling pavé sector. The passage started dramatically as in front Janorschke crashed hard, taking Popovych and Van Keirsbulck down with him. In the peloton top favorite Tom Boonen set the pace, soon to be helped by teammate and French champion Sylvain Chavanel.

At the back of the peloton outsiders like Grégory Rast (RadioShack-Nissan) and George Hincapie (BMC) suffered flats. Once out of the forest eight riders remained in the lead with less than two minutes on the peloton. The eight surviving riders from the early break included Boucher, Veuchelen, Lindemann, Morkov, Veilleux, Klemme, Mangel and Saramotins.

After the Arenberg forest several attacks were launched from the peloton and suddenly Juan Antonio Flecha (Sky) was up the road together with Alessandro Ballan (BMC), Jimmy Casper (AG2R-La Mondiale), Mathieu Ladagnous (FDJ-Big Mat), Sébastien Turgot (Europcar) and Maarten Wynants (Rabobank). The six collected half a minute on the peloton but on pavé section 14 Gert Steegmans (Omega Pharma-QuickStep) took a strong pull to lead the peloton back to the six in the chase group. With such aggressive racing from the peloton the breakaway group didn’t stand a chance and at the feed zone, with 68km to go, there was a complete regrouping in front.

Omega Pharma-QuickStep goes long

During this tactical moment in the race Sylvain Chavanel (Omega Pharma-QuickStep) profited to sneak away with fellow French riders Mangel, Ladagnous, Turgot plus Switzerland's Michael Schär (BMC) ahead of pavé section 12 in Orchies. Turgot blasted away on the cobbles from the lead group when Chavanel flatted. Meanwhile, in the peloton Boonen accelerated and only Filippo Pozzato (Farnese Vini-Selle Italia) was able to keep up. The duo caught up with Turgot at the end of pavé section 12. Soon afterwards Terpstra and Ballan bridged up as well, creating a five-man leader’s group.

Once back on asphalted roads there was no cooperation in this group and then the Omega Pharma-Quick Step team staged a coup as Boonen went up the road together with his lieutenant Terpstra. The situation initially looked awkward, though, as Terpstra was unable to keep up with his team leader on the 5-star pavé section 11 of Auchy-les-Orchies – Bersée. With approximately 52km to go Boonen was up the road on his own.

Behind him in the chase group co-favorite Pozzato misjudged a corner on the cobbles. The Italian star crashed into Stijn Devolder (Vacansoleil-DCM) and both riders lost valuable time while Boonen collected half a minute on the first chase group.

Can Boonen do it?

The gap remained at nearly half a minute when reaching pavé section 10. Boonen made it through the unforgiving 3km-long stretch at Mons-en-Pévèle while the peloton split apart behind him. The Sky team had the numbers in this seven-man group, featuring Flecha, Boasson Hagen andHayman. The other riders in the group were Ballan, Ladagnous, Boom and Terpstra. They were caught by seven more riders with 40km to go while Boonen's lead had grown slightly to 40 seconds. The seven riders who bridged up were Ian Stannard (Sky), Johan Vansummeren (Garmin-Barracuda), Luca Paolini (Katusha), Jacopo Guarnieri (Astana), Matteo Tosatto (Saxo Bank), Wynants and Turgot. Stannard did all he could to bring the gap down but instead Boonen hit pavé section 7 with a gap of 50 seconds on the chase group of 14 riders.

The Belgian struggled to get the gap over one minute but he eventually got it on the cobbles of Cysoing à Bourghelles (pavé section 6), with 27 km to go. At the same section there were a couple of accelerations in the chase group featuring Flecha, Boom, Ballan and Vansummeren but these were all neutralized by Terpstra.

Boom switched bikes on the asphalted roads towards the last important pavé sections of Camphin-en-Pévèle and Carrefour de l’Arbre where Boonen's lead had grown to 1:20 on the chase group. Boom bounced back from his mechanical and steamed passed the group to launch a solo counter-attack. Flecha, Ballan and Ladagnous followed the Dutchman a little further back. For the first time the gap dropped but once Boonen finished the cobbles of the Carrefour de l’Arbre he still had 1:10 on Boom.

The Flecha, Ballan and Ladagnous group regained contact with Boom to form a four-rider chase, but they now seemed resigned to racing for second. The group lost horsepower at 13km remaining as Ladagnous flatted, while in front Boonen looked as smooth as ever across the pave as the distance to the Roubaix velodrome grew ever shorter.

Boonen kept his three chasers at bay and with 4km to go his lead stood at 1:32. The Belgian powerhouse soon cracked a smile for the cameras inside of 3km to go and he soon had the velodrome in Roubaix all to himself as he soaked up the adulation from the crowd and savoured every second of his triumphant 1.5 laps of the track for his fourth Paris-Roubaix victory.

Full Results

1	Tom Boonen (Bel) Omega Pharma-Quickstep	5:55:22
2	Sébastien Turgot (Fra) Team Europcar	0:01:39
3	Alessandro Ballan (Ita) BMC Racing Team
4	Juan Antonio Flecha Giannoni (Spa) Sky Procycling
5	Niki Terpstra (Ned) Omega Pharma-Quickstep
6	Lars Boom (Ned) Rabobank Cycling Team	0:01:43
7	Matteo Tosatto (Ita) Team Saxo Bank	0:03:31
8	Mathew Hayman (Aus) Sky Procycling
9	Johan Vansummeren (Bel) Garmin - Barracuda
10	Maarten Wynants (Bel) Rabobank Cycling Team