Vogel, Langvad; Sherwen tributes: Daily News Digest

Welcome to your Daily News Digest. Here’s what’s happening today:

Yesterday, a legend was lost. The cycling community is grieving. We’ve gathered a few of the thousands of message left for Paul Sherwen. Have look at the bottom of today’s edition and we’d love to hear your favourite Paul memories in the comments.

Also, Christina Vogel returned to the track. And Esteban Chaves will return to the peloton after eight months away. Those stories and more in today’s Daily News Digest.

Story of the Day: Vogel returns

In an emotion return, 11-time world champion Kristina Vogel made an appearance at the Berlin Track World Cup to receive the award for German female cyclist of the year. Vogel is a paraplegic after harrowing training accident over the summer at the velodrome in Cottbus, Germany.

“It’s great to see everyone again,” Vogel said after she completed a lap of the velodrome in her wheelchair. “I do not have that much time for everyone – one [kiss], one smooch – then the next one will come.”

Vogel, the current individual track sprint world and Olympic champion, was airlifted to a Berlin hospital for emergency surgery after the June 26 accident. She learned she was a paraplegic days after the accident when she came out of a medically induced coma. However, in an interview in September she was very open considering the circumstances and opted to not blame anyone for the accident.

“No matter how you look at it, I can not walk anymore and that can not be changed,” Vogel said. “But what should I do? I think the sooner you accept a new situation, the better you can handle it.”

After the crash, fellow track riders and friends launched a crowdfunding campaign with the hashtag #staystrongkristina. The campaign raised over 120,000 euros.

Race Radio

Former mtb world champ joins Boels-Dolmans

Danish mountain biker Annika Langvad will switch her knobby tires for smooth ones in 2019, as she will ride for Boels-Dolmans in a few select races.

The 2016 cross-country world champion is no slouch on the road. She’s been the Danish individual time trial champion on three occasions and was national road race champion in 2010. She also recently contested the road race at the world road championships in Innsbruck, Austria.

Langvad is Boels-Dolmans’ final signing for the upcoming 2019 season. The move to race road is an interesting one considering the Tokyo Olympics are fast approaching. Langvad was coy in the announcement of her signing and wouldn’t elaborate on which discipline is her focus for the Games.

Guarnier joins Tibco-SVB in mentonship role

Megan Guarnier isn’t done just yet. The three-time U.S. national road champion and bronze medalist at the 2015 world road championships is returning to race for Tibco-SVB next season. She had previously announced her retirement and that her last race was the world road championships in Innsbruck, Austria.

“I have a lot of experience that I will enjoy passing on to the next generation of cyclists and it is a natural step for me to return to the team in which I kicked off my professional career,” Guarnier said. She raced for Tibco-SVB between 2010 and 2012. 2019 will be Guarnier’s 10th season racing at the professional level.

Chaves to line-up in Spain in February

Esteban Chaves (Mitchelton-Scott) will race the Vuelta a Valencia in Spain in February. The race will be Chaves’ return to the peloton after an eight-month absence due to Epstein Barr Virus. He last raced at the Giro d’Italia where he struggled through the second half of the race and barely made it to the finish.

’Gram of the day

Tech News

Focus revamps the Izalco Max, now aero and disc-only

For 2019, Focus has fully overhauled its road racing platform – the Izalco Max. The new disc-only version replaces the traditional round tubes of its predecessor and introduces aerodynamic elements such as Kammtail tube shapes and stealthy cable routing through an integrated stem. The new Izalco Max isn’t a fully-fledged aero racer like the Specialized Venge, Trek Madone or Giant Propel, but rather a lightweight all-rounder with aero cues, not too dissimilar to the Grand Tour contending Ultimate CF SLX from rival Germany company Canyon.

While marginally heavier than the previous Izalco Max, the new model claims an average aerodynamic drag reduction of 6% over the previous non-aero bike. A top-tier Max 9-Series frame is quoted at 890g (painted, medium), while an entire frame module. including the fork, R.A.T thru-axles, and proprietary aero stem and seatpost sits at an impressive 1,760g. The new Izalco Max is offered as either a 9 or 8-Series, with the cheaper 8-Series coming in at approximately 160g heavier and with marginally reduced stiffness. Full details of the new bike and available models can be found at Focus-bikes.com.

Chimera Frame Works goes live: An Australian-made steel brand

First teased at a small Sydney-based custom bike show earlier in the year, Chimera, a collaboration between Rob Benson of Tempest Bicycles and Sean Killen of Killen Bike is now live. Chimera will offer Australian-made steel frames with stock geometry, with the building duties split between the two builders depending on the model chosen. Benson will handle the more performance-focused bikes, such as the Zenith RR, while Killen’s time will be spent on the versatile All-Road model and similar Randonneur-inspired rides.

Each frameset is priced at AU$3995 including a Colombus carbon fibre fork and Chris King headset. Build times are quoted at 10-12 weeks from the time of ordering. We’ll be getting the new disc road model (first prototype pictured) to test in the near future. Still a work in progress, more information can be found at Chimeraframeworks.com.

Happy Birthday to …

Joop Zoetemelk (72). He won the Tour de France in 1980 and was the last Dutch grand tour winner until Tom Dumoulin captured the 2017 Giro d’Italia. Zoetemelk was also world champion in 1985.

Remembering Paul Sherwen

In case you missed it …

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