Team calls for Giro to be stopped after two weeks' racing; De Gendt feels organisers are 'hiding things' regarding Covid-19 situation; 17 police motorbike racers associated with Giro-E test positive; Video: James May builds a bike + more

Responding to EF Pro Cycling's request that the Giro d'Italia be cut short (see below) the UCI has said there will be additional general screening of teams on Thursday and Friday, on top of the testing due on the second rest day (Monday).

Jhonatan Narvaez (Ineos Grenadiers) has won from the break on a day of miserable weather in the Giro d’Italia.

The Ecuadorian was one of two riders who had seemed set to hold off the peloton to contest the win. However, the unfortunate Mark Padun (Bahrain-McLaren) suffered a puncture immediately after the final climb of the day.

Global stress Indicator: GSI
Health, emotional stress, relationship health, financial stress, endocrine function, neurological fatigue, viral load, sympathetic/ parasympathetic function all arguably more important than ‘outputs’ as they affect outputs. GSI+TSS=holistic coaching

— Nathan Haas (@NathanPeterHaas) October 15, 2020

Jonathan Thompson set off on 5th October to complete his mammoth challenge, and accompanied by a small support team, he conquered the brutal 500 mile route around North-West Scotland within a week.

A former Royal Marine, Mr Thompson was raising funds for the PTSD Resolution charity, describing PTSD as “a dreadful affliction”. He trained six times a week leading up to the event, making use of a road bike and a Wattbike Atom, and faced hilly terrain mixed with typically dreadful Scottish weather during the challenge itself. Doubling back from John o’ Groats on the final days to avoid the busy A9, the total distance was extended to 542  miles.

Mr Thompson originally aimed to raise £10,000, but has already smashed that target with the running total now over £13,000 – if you want to donate the fundraiser is still live here, and you can find out more about the PTSD Resolution charity here.

🗣 @brismithy: "Bit of a naughty moment there from Movistar" 😬

🇮🇹 #Giro d'Italia
📺 Eurosport 2
💻📱 Uninterrupted coverage: https://t.co/JYR4KRpjve
📃 LIVE blog updates: https://t.co/VpDTPFpU4C pic.twitter.com/mL4iMI2vM4

— Eurosport UK (@Eurosport_UK) October 15, 2020

The BBC reports that Japanese telecommunications company NTT has pulled out of sponsoring Africa’s top cycling team, for whom Domenico Pozzovivo is currently sitting fourth overall in the Giro d’Italia.

🇮🇹 #Giro

🚆Stage 11 of @giroditalia was a day for the fast men but for our team it was one to rally around our leader, Domenico Pozzovivo.

We continue to make history for our team as he retains 4th spot on GC, as we continue to fight for our future.#BicyclesChangeLives pic.twitter.com/Me0MrXt3nm

— NTT Pro Cycling (@NTTProCycling) October 14, 2020

Team principal Doug Ryder said the team was, “struggling to keep the lights on.”

They’ll need a new sponsor in place by November.

"We've literally got three to four weeks, so the clock is absolutely ticking. We hope we can find somebody who can keep us going."

NTT Pro Cycling was formerly MTN-Qhubeka and Team Dimension Data and is still connected to the Qhubeka charity which provides African students with bikes.

"This is our tenth year in solid partnership with them and we've helped [give more than] 100,000 bicycles to individuals and give them hope, opportunity and change lives," said Ryder.

"The team has given that initiative global exposure. We will continue to support Qhubeka, no question, but if the team doesn't exist then it will severely impact Qhubeka as a whole."

According to Thomas de Gendt, Lotto-Soudal signed the start list today but have since been discussing whether or not to ride on the team bus.

De Gendt: "I don't feel like racing today, the situation is trending the wrong direction and it feels like the organizer conceals things. We're having discussions between riders wether we should start."https://t.co/udXWmXFV7V

— La Flamme Rouge (@laflammerouge16) October 15, 2020

It's been reported that 17 police motorbike riders associated with the Giro-E tested positive for Covid-19.

Race organisers said the officers were separate from the main race, but de Gendt seems sceptical.

"I thought it was much safer in the Tour. I never felt unsafe there at any point. But I have the feeling that the organisation is hiding things and giving it a twist.

"There is a lot of money involved and for sponsors it is very important that we go to Milan. They are waiting for the government to make a decision and those decisions come too late."

We reported yesterday that Jakob Fuglsang has been letting off a bit of steam in his daily column in the Danish media.

The recurring theme is that he is disappointed-to-angry with his team.

Our favourite line was the utterly brutal one about Oscar Rodriguez. "It's not like I'm disappointed with him. I probably would not have expected more, but you are allowed to hope."

He also said of Vincenzo Nibali (presumably partly in jest): "He doesn't say hello to me. Maybe he's jealous of me."

Then there are his comments about Sicily.

It's important to note that these were produced with the assistance of Google Translate.

Jakob Fuglsang about Sicily. Yep, I can now see why Nibali might not say hi to you at the start. 🙈 #Giro pic.twitter.com/89xbobJDpR

— Mihai Simion (@faustocoppi60) October 13, 2020

Fuglsang has now pulled a very modern version of the old "I've been misquoted" in a bid to minimise the damage.

Fuglsang declares his love for Italy and says the journalist who's helping with his daily blogs during the Giro has been distorting his words https://t.co/74oZHuPjx3 (🇮🇹)

— the Inner Ring (@inrng) October 14, 2020

He said: "The translations with Google Translate, believe me, are not so reliable. I love Italy and that translation does not reflect my thoughts."

You can certainly lose a bit of nuance with any translation - particularly one generated by computer software. Not sure that explains everything though, Jakob.