Published May 11, 2020 09:34PM
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Hello again, CyclingTips readers.
Welcome to another week, which gets underway with some interesting quotes from Egan Bernal, a notable Everesting effort, some less great news from the world of bike-racing team management, and a doping suspension.
Egan Bernal followed up on comments he made last week about Ineos’s plans at the upcoming Tour de France—and the climbing phenom also said he’s thinking about riding the Giro d’Italia next year. Speaking of climbing, Phil Gaimon is spending his Monday trying to break the record for the fastest Everesting.
In other news, Alexandre Vinokourov has said that his Astana team could disappear if there are no races this season. And then there’s Rémy Di Gregorio, who is back in the headlines nearly two years after testing positive for EPO at Paris-Nice as the UCI has finally handed him an official suspension.
We’ll keep bringing you the news, even when there’s no racing to watch.
Dane Cash
News Editor
| Bernal expects early stages of Tour to decide Ineos leadership, eyes 2021 Giro
Following up comments he made last week about letting the road decide who will lead Ineos at the upcoming Tour de France, Egan Bernal told La Domenica Sportiva on Sunday that he expects the challenging start of the race (assuming it goes ahead) to make it clear who deserves leadership.
“The Tour de France will be difficult from the start, so from the opening phase we will see who is the strongest. And the others will have to work for the strongest,” Bernal said.
The reigning Tour champ also touched on the topic of racing other Grand Tours, saying, “Before Covid-19 I was thinking of maybe doing the Vuelta, but at the moment I am not thinking of doing two Grand Tours, because next year I would like to do the Giro. It is a race that I wanted to ride since I was in Androni. I raced a lot in Italy, but never the Giro. Thinking about next year, it would be better to do just one Grand Tour to get to the Giro d’Italia fresh.”
| Gaimon takes on Everesting record
Phil Gaimon is spending his Monday going up (and down) a climb in Los Angeles some 60 times in pursuit of the world record for Everesting the fastest.
The retired American pro is raising money for No Kid Hungry, a charity that works to combat hunger for children in the United States. You can learn more and donate here.
| Vinokourov: ‘If there are no races, I think our team will disappear’
Like a few other team managers around the sport, Alexandre Vinokourov has expressed concern that the lack of racing and accompanying financial woes could prove too big of a challenge for Astana too overcome should things continue through the entire season.
“Will my team be in danger if there are no races? I think so, like all the other teams,” Vinokourov told Cyclism’Actu. “The sponsors want to have visibility, and for us yes, if there are no races, I think our team will disappear.”
| Di Gregorio receives doping suspension
Over two years after he tested positive for EPO while racing Paris-Nice, Rémy Di Gregorio has received a doping suspension from the UCI.
The 34-year-old was handed a four-year suspension backdated to the time of his positive test in March of 2018.
| Do e-bikes make sense for gravel?
Caley Fretz ponders an intriguing question: Do e-bikes and gravel riding go together?
| Smith Optics throws it back to the 80s with its vibrant Get Wild collection
As James Huang reports, Smith Optics has released a new and outlandish range of helmets and eyewear called the Get Wild collection.
Today’s featured image of Egan Bernal and Geraint Thomas on the sixth stage of the Tour de France comes from Kristof Ramon.