Sorry, mate! Teammates crash and bring down yellow jersey winner during ill-fated celebration; Wizzard frontman slams clean air zone; Decathlon becomes AG2R title sponsor – and ditches the brown shorts; Jake Paul’s Zwift “KOM” + more on the live blog

The numbers may have been slightly down on last year’s inaugural Dublin round of the UCI cyclocross World Cup, but the sizeable and vociferous crowd that did converge on the Sport Ireland campus yesterday for the event’s return were treated to a classic day of ‘cross action, filled with rain, mud, and thrilling racing.

In the women’s race, the flying Lucinda Brand put months of injuries and frustration behind her to cruise to a dominant win ahead of the in-form Ceylin del Carmen Alvarado and a strong Zoe Bäckstedt, while in the men’s race Pim Ronhaar overcame Laurens Sweeck in a two-up sprint following an epic, race-long ding-dong battle through the mud.

And while the riders who made the trip to Ireland served up a classic Sunday roast of entertainment, the continuing discussion over the cyclocross season’s hectic schedule – with the Dublin World Cup following hot on the heels of the previous day’s X20 Trofee urban ‘cross in Kortrijk – also presented an interesting post-race side dish.

(Alex Whitehead/SWpix.com)

The debate over UCI president David Lappartient’s much-discussed criticism of the selective nature of the sport’s stars – and his threat to ban these selective riders from the cyclocross world championships – continued to rumble on in Dublin, where some riders, including Eli Iserbyt, arrived in the early hours of the morning after racing in Belgium.

“The World Cup is not a ranking from which you can simply choose to your heart's content,” the Frenchman said earlier this month.

“If a cyclo-cross rider prefers a national competition while there is a World Cup, he will not participate in the next World Cup and therefore also not the cyclocross World Championships.

“The World Cup is not a competition where you can choose what you want to ride. Everyone just has to participate.”

> Lance Armstrong’s former boss Johan Bruyneel brands David Lappartient a “dictator” after UCI president threatens to ban cyclo-cross riders who skip World Cup events from world championships

While Lappartient’s comments kicked off a heated debate on social media – and saw the UCI president branded a dictator by Lance Armstrong’s former boss Johan Bruyneel – when speaking to your resident live blogger after the races, the riders themselves were quite divided in their response to the Frenchman’s controversial World Cup ultimatum.

Fresh from her confidence-boosting solo triumph, veteran road and ‘cross star Lucinda Brand was particularly critical of Lappartient and the UCI’s stance.

“I think it’s very good that they try to get World Cups in different countries, that it’s more international that way. But it was maybe not the smartest to say, ‘hey, if you’re not racing them, you cannot race worlds’ – I think they forget their own rules a bit there!” Brand told road.cc after the finish.

“The UCI have made a fourth row at the world championships for people who are good in the UCI classification in other disciplines – do you think they’ll all be racing the World Cup? No. Because they made a rule that the federations will select them. In the Belgium and the Netherlands, there are so many good riders, that you may not even be selected if the course doesn’t suit you. So if you follow the rules, it’s not even in the hands of the riders!

“I can see where it’s coming from, but for now, having a World Cup every weekend is super complicated. When I started out in cyclocross it was super special to race a World Cup, because there were only eight. But now we race so many, so it changes how we feel about the race’s calibre. Because there are races in Belgium that are super big because of their history, and there is a lot of sponsors, and TV, and money there.

“But you also want it to be international. So I think if you can create a World Cup where every country has a race and they all have their own quality, I think it can be nice.”

(Alex Whitehead/SWpix.com)

The 34-year-old Trek rider continued: “We also have to improve the travelling. For instance, Val di Sole [the World Cup round at the Trentino ski resort] is logistically difficult, and now we only go to race it. If we could maybe we could combine it with a second race, that would be great. I’m sure we can improve it, but we should do it together.”

“We want to do the other competitions, because they’re important for our sponsors This combination [between the X20 Trofee Kortrijk and the Dublin World Cup] was still possible, but you need a team around you to make it possible. I only had two bikes here, as I divided them between the two races. It was still possible, but there were more risks.

“And you want to keep performing, and all the travelling up and down, up and down, it takes a lot of energy – and that’s another reason why people start to choose between races.”

Cameron Mason struggles through the mud (Alex Whitehead/SWpix.com)

Meanwhile, the current men’s World Cup leader, Eli Iserbyt – who followed up his win in Kortrijk with third in Dublin – believes the numbers of races isn’t to blame for riders picking and choosing where to ride, but the structure and length of the season itself.

“I was in bed at 1am this morning!” the Belgian said of his pre-race preparation for Dublin. “It’s tough, but I hope I can keep doing it. It takes a lot of energy. The season is short, but I like doing a lot of races.

“The team made more bikes for me, so I had three here and three in Belgium, so a lot of wheels, a lot of everything. It’s good that the team supports me, because for us racing in Belgium is very important. And yesterday I got the win, and today I got third, so it was a good weekend.

“I think the season has to be from September to the world championships – 14 races is ideal. We start too late in my opinion. Starting in mid-October means we lose too many weeks of racing. 14 isn’t too much, the season just needs to be longer like it used to be.

“I think as riders, we’ve said for the last three years that something needs to change, because it’s not doable. And now you see riders choosing their own programme. So maybe we should listen to each other, and find a more durable programme. But in my opinion 14 is not too much.”

The 26-year-old also told road.cc that the UCI and the sport’s focus should remain on its core cyclocross talent, rather than multi-discipline stars such as Wout van Aert and Mathieu van der Poel who, Iserbyt believes, will soon turn their backs on cyclocross to fully focus on success on the road.

“I get that the UCI wants every rider at the start of every World Cup,” he said. “But for the Belgian teams, the races there are pretty important as well. So I hope we can find a world where both is possible.

“I think the road riders will shorten their cyclocross programme each year, so I think in maybe two or three years, Wout and Mathieu won’t ride any cyclocross races anymore, so we really have to focus on the riders that are now there, and build on that.”

What’s worse?
The moustache or the coat? pic.twitter.com/2znnxZaeKi

— MarkContadorCX (@MontVentoux23) November 27, 2023

First, the brown shorts are thrown out the window, now Roglič is sporting a bizarre tash and oversized purple coat combo – it’s been quite the day in cycling fashion…

Íñigo Díaz Sánchez, a 19-year-old cyclist from Spain, has died after being hit by a motorist while training with a friend in the Basque Country on Thursday.

According to the Lakua Security Department, Díaz Sánchez – who raced for the Aranako Sima-Cepial team on the road and in cyclocross – was struck by the driver on the A-3138 in the municipality of Agurain/Salvatierra in Álava, at 5.15pm on Thursday. The other cyclist was not injured.

The 19-year-old was transported to the Txagorritxu Hospital, where he died from his injuries later that night.

 

 

 

 

View this post on Instagram

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

A post shared by Euskadiko TX. Federazioa (@etxfederazioa)

“It is with great sadness that we have received the worst news,” the Basque Cycling Federation wrote on social media at the weekend.

“The family of over 6,500 cyclists that make up the ETxF would like to send their deepest condolences and hugs to the family, friends, and teammates of Íñigo Díaz Sánchez. Also to the entire families of Aranako and Arabarrak associations.”

The Movistar team also added on Twitter that they wished to “send a big hug to the family and friends of Íñigo Díaz Sánchez, as well as to all of Alava cycling. A true disgrace to lose your life doing what you like most. Rest in peace.”

At the cyclocross pic.twitter.com/ZqjXRmMOSK

— Holly (@hollycamefrom) November 26, 2023

I think that might have been an issue yesterday… 

It really is all change over at AG2R HQ today – new title sponsor, new bikes, new equipment, new kit, new black shorts…

Oh, and a brand-new sprinter in the form of Sam Bennett, as the former Tour de France green jersey winner hopes to put a frustrating, injury-plagued few years at Bora-Hansgrohe behind him, and rekindle the form that saw him become one of the world’s leading fast men and bag two Tour stages in 2020.

“There are many things that influenced it,” the 33-year-old said of the move to the French outfit now known as Decathlon-AG2R La Mondiale.

“But when I was a young amateur rider, I was watching Nico Roche and Philip Deignan in the team, and they are riders I looked up to. Then of course I saw the big opportunity to come to this team, to get an amazing race programme, to work with [new bike supplier] Van Rysel, which is fantastic.

“I think it’s the best environment for me to be in to reach my top level. So I’m excited, and it’s a new adventure.”

Bennett will also be joined by a slew of new faces at Decathlon-AG2R, with Tour and Giro stage winner Victor Lafay, Bruno Amirail, Dries De Bondt, Gianluca Pollefliets, and Sander De Pestel all unveiled as new signings during a busy morning in Lille.

Italian bike manufacturer Pinarello was last week hit by a double burglary at its showroom in Treviso, masked thieves taking 19 bikes worth a total of €250,000 during two separate raids on the same day.

According to local reports, the double burglary happened on Thursday at Pinarello’s site just outside the Veneto city, a large headquarters that is home to a showroom and the company's administrative offices.

Read more: > Pinarello bikes worth €250,000 stolen as manufacturer hit by double burglary

It’s a sad day for cycling fans everywhere, as AG2R’s iconic brown shorts – aesthetically questionable stalwarts of the peloton since their debut at the 2009 Tour de France – have been consigned to the dustbin of cycling fashion, replaced by this new, rather more conventional blue, white, and black Decathlon-inspired colour scheme:

I think we should all take a moment to solemnly reflect on the demise of a race garment that has given us all so much joy of the years, graced – if indeed graced is the right word – at the highest level by the likes of John Gadret (remember him? The wee French climber Nico Roche wanted to put through a car windscreen during the Tour de France), Maxime Bouet, Carlos Betancur, and many other mercurial gems of the sport. Good times…

RIP. It was a wonderful 14 years…

The game’s gone.

Too busy getting drenched at the Dublin round of the ‘cross World Cup to keep up with the other goings-on around the cycling world at the weekend? Well, I’ve got you covered:

> "I'll set my dog on you!": Driver dangerously passes cyclist, and then threatens to make his dog attack him

> Five years in prison and 10-year road ban for hit-and-run drink driver who had also smoked cannabis before leaving cyclist for dead with a severed foot

> How much weight can you shave off by drilling your chainring? Plus the 15g rear bike light, Wahoo x Zwift discounts, new stuff from Campagnolo and Insta360, and loads more…

> Greater Manchester Mayor Andy Burnham defends plans for a new segregated cycle path, saying drivers currently dominate the roads

> Campaigners accuse council of “failing our children” after not delivering “significant cycling infrastructure for nine years”

> Christmas is RUINED… by a Low Traffic Neighbourhood (allegedly) 

> This TWMPA 'zero carbon' gravel bike is made out of engineered ash wood