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.

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

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."

My Rabbit Is Named After Him

I'm not kidding. Meet Snickers Alejandro:

And, I think it would be awesome if Alejandro Valverde could win the 2012 Tour de France.

Valverde believes he can win the Tour de France

(http://www.cyclingnews.com/news/valverde-believes-he-can-win-the-tour-de-france)

Having come back to racing this year after a doping suspension, Alejandro Valverde (Movistar) is also back to winning ways. With four victories and a podium spot at the Tour Down Under as well as Paris-Nice in his pocket, the Spaniard's balance sheet in late March is more than promising in view of his real targets this year, the Ardennes Classics and the Tour de France.

Valverde did not expect such a successful return to competition, but he told L'Equipe that he trained as hard during the last year as when he was competing. "I knew I had good shape as I had trained well at home, but I didn't think I would be able to do such a good season start. But during the suspension, I did exactly what I did before. I trained regularly, and I had two peaks of form during the year. I trained as though I was competing, but without competing."

Turning his attention towards the Classics season, Valverde admitted that Philippe Gilbert (BMC) would be the man to beat after what the Belgian showed last season. "To me, Gilbert was the best rider in the world last year," the Spaniard continued. "I would love to be able to deliver a grand duel against him in the Ardennes Classics. I'm sure this would also be great for the spectators."

On top of his other prestigious victories, Valverde won Liège-Bastogne-Liège twice in his career, and the Flèche Wallonne once. Gilbert took all three Ardennes Classics last year, on top of his first victory of the Amstel Gold Race in 2010.

But Valverde, who also has the overall 2009 Vuelta a Espana to his account, sees himself as a contender for the Tour de France this year. Even though the 2012 parcours has widely been branded as one for the better time triallists, the Movistar rider believes in his chances to take the yellow jersey.

"My idea is to fight for the general classification," said the 31-year-old, who already has two top ten results in the Tour to his name (in 2007 and 2008). "It's clear that the amount of time trial kilometres favours those riders who are specialists against the clock, like Wiggins or Evans. But the Tour is the Tour, it is very long and anything can happen, it can be over at any day. So I will do my utmost to be there, to do the best I can, even if, to me, the favourite is Andy Schleck.

"He wants to win it, but so do I. In the time trial, we are about on the same level. I think the Tour 2012 will be very open."

Wouter Weylandt and Xavier Tondo Remembered

2011 Reader Poll: Weylandt and Tondo remembered

(http://www.cyclingnews.com/news/2011-reader-poll-weylandt-and-tondo-remembered)

Each year we ask the cycling community to vote in our reader poll. One category that always stands out is the Legend of the Year award. In most cases it's awarded to a rider who has retired - a farewell token of thanks as they leave the peloton for the real world - or in last year's case to Laurent Fignon, who gave so much to our sport.

This year, however, the Cyclingnews team has decided to acknowledge two riders - Wouter Weylandt and Xavier Tondo.

Both men were hugely popular within the sport and touched so many fans with their racing styles and personalities. They are, and will be, greatly missed.

Personally, I only got the chance to interview each rider on few occasions. At the start of Amstel Gold Race in 2010 I remember talking to Xavier. He'd just driven all the way up from Girona, Spain, to Holland in order to take part in the race. The drive, brought on by an ash cloud, meant a race against time in order to make the weekend start but as the Spaniard lined up he was a jovial as ever, chatting freely with the press and fans. He made it clear that he was here to respect the race and that it was an event he dearly enjoyed.

In an age where sports personalities are often criticised for attitude or lack of commitment, it spoke volumes of the man's passion.

My only interview with Wouter came almost a year later and on the eve of Paris-Roubaix. He'd crashed a few days earlier but at the Leopard pre-race press conference, he remained strong and full of confidence that he could pull out a performance to help his teammates. He was clearly uncomfortable and in pain as he patiently answered questions, but his resolve as well as Xavier's spirit go a long way to show just how special our sport can be: the dedication, sacrifice, hard work but most of all love everyone even remotely associated with a bike can identify with.

Every now and then an event takes place that touches everyone and unlike the controversy, racing and petty grudges we all have, unites all who hold the sport close.

This award goes to both Xavier and Wouter. May they both rest in peace.

Gesink Update

Gesink: All I need is time

(http://www.cyclingnews.com/news/gesink-all-i-need-is-time)

Robert Gesink (Rabobank) is confident that he can return to his best after a speedy recover from a broken leg. The Dutch climber crashed in training in September and broke his right femur, but with just under two months of rehabilitation he’s already back on the bike and talking up his chances of a successful Tour de France in 2012.

“I’ve been back on the bike for a month now. Everything has been fine so far. I’ve been on the rollers for a while but the weather has been nice so I’ve been out and getting some fresh air too,” he told Cyclingnews.

Since a successful surgery in the days following his crash, Gesink has had time to reflect on what has been a turbulent last twelve months. Away from the bike he had to come to terms with the loss of his father who passed away after a cycling accident. The bond between the two was of course strong, with Gesink senior Robert’s biggest fan. Despite the tremendous loss the climber used his profession to focus during the most difficult moments.

“The first year of losing a father is really tough and difficult,” he said.

“Now I’m more at ease and I’m looking back at all the good times we had together and not how much I miss him. That’s a positive development. And when I see my mum I see that’s she’s doing better and better. She’s getting on with her life and that’s a good thing to see. Of course we all really miss him a lot but it’s never going to change.

“My dad was my biggest supporter and a huge fan of cycling. He read every story in the press so the one thing I can do for him is continue cycling. It’s all easier said than done because sometimes you’re head isn’t right but now I feel more and more accepting of the situation. When I think about my dad now it’s always tough but it’s getting better.”

Gesink’s ability to train through the difficult winter saw him reap the benefits in the first part of the season. Taking two stage wins in the Tour of Oman, as well as the overall, were followed by a stage win and second overall in Tirreno. Ninth in Amstel was hardly a shabby result but from there on his season began to unravel. A mediocre Dauphine was followed by a disastrous Tour de France. Heading into the race he was expected to lead a Dutch charge and there was talk of him splitting the Contador-Schleck dominance. The stage was perfect for him too - sixth the year before, and with Denis Menchov having moved into semi-retirement at Geox, Gesink had a team totally at his disposal.

Tour troubles
 However a series of crashes and heavy time losses ruined his race. With no chance of GC success, he suffered through - hoping to find his legs in the Alps. He eventually finished 33rd overall, and more than one hour back on winner, Cadel Evans.

“Looking back, abandoning after those crashes would have made more sense,” he told Cyclingnews.

“But at that moment I felt I could do something still in the Alps and try and win a stage but I ended up underestimating the damage that the crashes did. I tried in the Alps but in the end I wasn’t good enough. It was a more difficult Tour than the one before because I had to suffer so much just to stay in the peloton. Looking back at it, for sure it would have been easy to go home and focus on the Vuelta but we made a decision at the time. Maybe I’ll learn from that in the future but looking at it now it was just three tough weeks with no good feelings.”

Despite regrouping after the Tour with a number of decent results, Gesink admits that the year was a disappointment on the bike.

“In some ways it was a lost year. If I’m honest the main goal was the Tour and I didn’t go as well as I hoped for. That was disappointing. On a private level, I lost my dad last year. I started really well because I wanted to throw myself into my cycling. It got me away from all the bad thoughts in my head. I trained well over the winter and the start of the season I was flying and riding with the best of the best. But it was all about the Tour last year and crashing there was the biggest disappointing.”

As he recovers from his broken leg in double time all attention has already turned to next year’s Tour de France, showing at the very least that he’s not afraid of the battle. Due to his injuries it’s unlikely that we’ll see him dominate races like Oman in the first part of the year, with a gentler ramp up to July. The parcours certainly does him little favours but he’s confident that his time trialling can improve over the coming months.

“It’s more for the time triallers and I’ll have to focus on that. Last year I did that and I think I improved a lot. This winter I’ll have to spend more time on that and look for more improvements in my time trialling.”

Mental toughness

Gesink has faced question marks over his fragility and frequency of crashes – even from quarters in his own team – but the 25-year-old is resolute in the sense that he has the mental pedigree to shine. With three top ten placings in grand tours it’s perhaps easy to forget how young he is, and he believes that with time he can reach even higher.

“In all the races I’ve done I’ve always been the guy that’s had to do it for the team, in more or less every race I’ve done I’ve been there to get results and I’m used to it. Of course, when you go to the Tour, the pressure is higher but I’ve shown, like when I was 6th two years ago, that I can deal with it,” he said.

“I’m pretty young so if people give me time who knows where I can be at my peak. I’ve finished two Tours but that’s still not that many. So I don’t have the experience of guys like Contador. Schleck is a little different but those two guys are the best in the world but I know that when I’m at my best I’m close to them.”

Jakob Fuglsang's Year

Jakob was one of my favorite riders this year:

Fuglsang satisfied with progress in 2011

(http://www.cyclingnews.com/news/fuglsang-satisfied-with-progress-in-2011)

Jakob Fuglsang had only one individual win in 2011 but he was still satisfied with the season. “I am really very happy with my season,” the Leopard Trek rider said. 

The main difference this year was in his racing calendar. “I rode many races, and that makes it hard to get top rankings, because it eats away at your energy,” he told the Ritzau news agency.

Fuglsang thought that this year he has proven he can ride at a high level. “I was at the forefront of races like Amstel Gold and Tour de Suisse.” He finished fourth in both of those.

His win this season was the queen stage of the Tour of Denmark. He had won his homeland race the previous three years, but only finished 18th this year.

If both the Tour de France and the Tour of Denmark were disappointing, the Vuelta a Espana made up for them. “It went better than I had expected. I had one day in the lead, was in the top ten until the final and just missed the top ten by 17 seconds.”

The 26-year-old led his team across the finish line in the best time at the opening team time trial in Benidorm.  It was his first grand tour leader's jersey.

"Enough is Enough" - At least you have a story...

Hoogerland says 'enough is enough' and ends 2011 season

(http://www.cyclingnews.com/news/hoogerland-says-enough-is-enough-and-ends-2011-season)

Johnny Hoogerland (Vacansoleil-DCM) has decided to call time on his 2011 season, citing fatigue and the injuries he sustained at the Tour de France as contributing factors. Hoogerland took out 12th in this year's Amstel Gold, but felt that continuing further this year "would hurt future seasons."

"I never had time to properly recover and regenerate since the end of the Tour," Hoogerland told De Telegraaf. "My body is just ‘done’. I’ve done two Grand Tours and rode 15 of the post-Tour criteriums. I’ve done something like 120 days of racing this year. I just don’t have the energy to continue."

The Dutch rider’s last race, the elite men’s road race in Copenhagen nearly ended well for Hoogerland, with the 28-year-old featuring in a late break that also included Thomas Voeckler. That move was eventually brought back by a tenacious British team; however it did give Hoogerland some encouragement for next year’s worlds taking place in Holland.

"It was great to have a go, but I’ll try again next year, when the championships return to Holland."

Hoogerland still thinks about what could have been at the Tour de France with ‘that crash’. In the day’s winning breakaway, he became the centre of global headlines when a media car from the convoy swerved suddenly as it attempted to drive past the escape, plowing into Hoogerland and throwing the Dutchman into a barbed wire fence on the side of the road.

Though it has helped to raise his profile, both in Holland and abroad, he regrets missing out on the opportunity to contest the finish.

"If I had won a stage and had retained the polka dot jersey for longer I would be really happy with the season. I was in really good form, but that’s life."