2013 Cycling Thread

[Smallville22]

Five Movistar Team riders sign bumper deals

Five Movistar Team riders have extended their contracts following impressive performances throughout the 2013 season.
Following the contract extensions of Pablo Lastras and Ruben Plaza, Movistar Team have struck deals with five further riders. Benat Intxausti, José Joaquín Rojas, Giovanni Visconti and brothers José and Jesus Herrada have agreed deals that will keep them with Eusebio Unzue’s Spanish team for at least two more years.
Jose Herrada has enjoyed his best season with the team this year, often one of their more consistent riders in the bigger races, while his ******* Jesus, who has recently turned 23, is expected to go from strength to strength following an impressive championship in Bembibre.
Intxausti, who turned pro in 2007, has also been one of the standout riders this season after an astonishing Giro d’Italia – winning a stage and finishing 8th in the overall classification.

 

[Smallville22]

Nibali happy to ride with target on his back

Vincenzo Nibali remains confident he can cope with the added pressure of being pre-race favourite for the Vuelta a Espana, which starts in the remote northwestern town of Vilanova de Arousa on Saturday.
"(Being favourite) does make me feel tense, as always, but nobody can criticise what I've done this year," the Italian Team Astana rider, who won the Giro d'Italia in May, told Reuters.
"I think it's pretty much normal. I know I've got nothing to prove after winning the Giro but I still want to do as well here as I possibly can," added the 28-year-old, whose Grand Tour breakthrough came in 2010 when he won the Vuelta.
"It's important to do well here because the world championships follow the Vuelta (on home soil at the end of September) and a lot of people will be watching my performance here as a guide to how well I can ride there."
Race organisers have included a ****** 11 summit finishes in this year's edition with the penultimate 20th stage taking in the grueling climb of the Angliru, ******* Nibali to focus on reaching peak fitness in the third week of the tour.
However, the Italian was quick to point out that he would not be resting on his laurels in the early exchanges of the 21-stage race.
"The Vuelta has a tough start with a team time trial (on Saturday) which should benefit Astana as we have some strong specialists like Jakob Fuglsang and Jani Brajkovic, and we'll be aiming to gain a few seconds advantage," he said.
"But in a race with so many difficult moments, almost anything can happen. I won't say I'm here to win, I never say that in a race, but I'm certainly here to achieve a good overall classification."
A decision on whether he will go all out for the victory in Madrid on Sept. 15 or ease back to ensure he is in top form for the world championships, his final major target for 2013, will be made early in the third week of the Vuelta.
"If I feel in good enough shape to win and have an advantage of just a minute or two, then I will go for broke in a single stage somewhere," the Italian added.
"If on the other hand, I'm suffering so badly I'm barely able to keep up with the rest of the favourites... I'll do things differently."
However, should he grab the leader's red jersey as early as Saturday or after the first mountain top finish a day later, Nibali will fight to ensure he is still wearing it in Madrid.
"A leader's jersey is always to be defended," Nibali added.
"Even if it would be quite a long way from there to Madrid."
Nibali can expect a tough challenge from local duo Joaquin Rodriguez (Katusha) and Alejandro Valverde (Movistar) with Team Sky leader Sergio Henao of Colombia also regarded as one of the favourites.

 

[Smallville22]

Van Garderen still in yellow after stage win in USA

American rider Tejay van Garderen won stage five of USA Pro Challenge to remain in the overall lead.
The BMC rider destroyed most of the field in the time trial to win by four seconds from Andrew Talansky (Garmin), with Tom Danielson (Garmin) third a further 58 seconds down.
Van Garderen is now one and a half minutes clear in the standings, with team-mate Mathias Frank second and Danielson third in the general classification.
The seven-stage race continues with a stage from Loveland to Fort Collins on Saturday before the finale in Denver on Sunday.

Stage five time trial results

1 Tejay van Garderen (USA) BMC Racing 25:01

2 Andrew Talansky (USA) Garmin +4

3 Tom Danielson (USA) Garmin +1:02

4 Steven Cummings (ENG) BMC Racing +1:04

5 Larry Warbasse (USA) BMC Racing +1:12

6 Tobias Ludvigsson (SWE) Argos +1:16

7 Kanstantsin Sivtsov (BLR) Team Sky +1:16

8 Lachlan Morton (AUS) Garmin +1:17

9 Christian Vande Velde (USA) Garmin +1:24

10 Mathias Frank (SUI) BMC Racing +1:26

 

[Smallville22]

Australian cycling boss quits

Cycling Australia (CA) president Klaus Mueller resigned on Saturday citing his inability to manage a demanding role in a sport grappling with doping slurs.
Elected in November 2009, Mueller oversaw a tumultuous period when cycling grew in Australia but it's image suffered in the **** of the high-profile doping case involving American Lance Armstrong.
While the American was stripped of his record seven Tour de France titles and handed a life ban last year, Australian duo Matt White and Stephen Hodge also admitted to doping before they retired from cycling and quit their CA posts.
"It's been an honour to lead Cycling Australia through many highs and lows," Mueller was quoted as saying in a CA statement.
"In recent times the position has grown into almost a full time role, which I can simply no longer manage.
"Given the challenges the sport is currently facing the timing is right to hand the reins over to a new leader with a different skill-set to enable the sport to realise its enormous commercial potential," added Mueller, who will stay on in the post until the end of September to ensure a smooth transition.

 

[Smallville22]

Bos withdraws due to "health conditions"

Former Olympic silver medallist Theo Bos was a late withdrawal from the Tour of Spain after tests revealed "sub-optimal health conditions" due to low cortisol levels, his Belkin team said.
The Dutch sprinter, a multiple former world track champion who turned to the road in 2009, was due to race the three-week Grand Tour which begins with a team time-trial starting in Vilanova de Arousa on Saturday.
A team statement said the 30-year-old had been sent home "because of low cortisol levels that appeared in a regular pre-race UCI (International Cycling Union) test, which is an indication of sub-optimal health conditions."
"According to the UCI riders with low cortisol levels are allowed to start in WorldTour races but the Belkin Pro Cycling medical staff has together with Theo Bos decided to let Bos travel home," it added.
The Tour is due to finish in Madrid on Sept. 15.

 

[Smallville22]

Armstrong settles £1m claim with Sunday Times

Disgraced cyclist Lance Armstrong has reached an agreement with the Sunday Times after it had sued the *****-tainted American for around £1 million, the British paper announced on Sunday.
"It is the final episode in a long legal battle between this newspaper and the fallen icon..." the paper said.
The newspaper was ****** to pay Armstrong £300,000 pounds in 2006 to settle a legal case after it had questioned his Tour de France victories in an article published two years earlier.
Armstrong also sought damages from Sunday Times chief sports writer David Walsh and deputy sports editor Alan English.
However, after the 41-year-old was stripped of his record seven Tour wins and handed a life ban last year for cheating his way to glory, the newspaper demanded a return of the payout plus interest, as well as more than £720,000 costs accrued in defending the case.
After years of denials, Armstrong confessed in an interview with Oprah Winfrey earlier this year that he used performance-enhancing ***** to cheat his way to the Tour de France wins.
The Sunday Times said it, in conjunction with Walsh and English, had "reached a mutually acceptable final resolution to all claims against Lance Armstrong related to the 2012 High Court proceedings and are entirely happy with the agreed settlement, the terms of which remain confidential."
Walsh was one of the first journalists to treat Armstrong's Tour de France feats with suspicion and he published an article questioning them as early as 1999.
However, Armstrong sued the paper in 2004 after it published an article, penned by English, which described allegations of doping contained in a book written by Walsh and French journalist Pierre Ballester.

 

[Smallville22]

Brajkovic leads as Astana win team time trial

Kazakh outfit Astana won the 27.4-km opening-stage team time trial in the Vuelta a Espana on Saturday while Slovenian Janez Brajkovic became the race leader.
Luxembourg team RadioShack Leopard finished second in the trial from Vilanova de Arousa to Sanxenxo with Omega Pharma-Quick Step of Belgium third.
Brajkovic will wear the leader's jersey on Sunday's second stage from Pontevedra to the Alto do Monte da Groba summit finish.
The race finishes in Madrid on September 15.

 

[Smallville22]

Roche wins Vuelta stage two, Nibali leads

Favourite Vincenzo Nibali seized the lead in the Vuelta a Espana on Sunday's first mountain top finish as Ireland's Nicolas Roche clinched a solo stage victory and moved into second overall.
After overnight leader and Astana team mate Janez Brajkovic of Slovenia lost contact with the front group on the final kilometre, Nibali now leads by eight seconds on Roche, with Spain's Haimar Zubeldia in third.
"Today was a key day and it worked out perfectly," Nibali, winner of this year's Giro d'Italia, said.
"This final climb wasn't really a good one for me, it wasn't steep enough and I was basically following other guys' back wheels rather than trying to ******," the Italian, Vuelta winner in 2010, added.
"But my condition is good and I wanted to make the most of it. I had great support from my squad all the way up the climb, (Dane Jakob) Fugslang was with me and I can be very satisfied."
Asked if he had not taken the leader's jersey too early in such a gruelling three-week race which has ten mountain top finishes to come, Nibali said: "We'll just have to go on the day by day, and see what happens.
"Right now, I'm just pleased to be where I am."
Nibali's Astana squad had kept the pace high prior to the second stage's main challenge, the final 11-km ascent to the Alto do Monte da Groba, a climb rearing high above Spain's Atlantic coastline in the region of Galicia.
Three early attackers on the stage, New Zealand's Greg Henderson, Dane Alex Rasmussen and Spaniard Francisco Aramendia fell back exhausted on the climb's lower slopes as Spanish squad Movistar helped Astana pile on the pressure.
As the riders climbed through dense eucalyptus and pinewoods, the high pace saw two favourites, Spain's Samuel Sanchez and Colombian Sergio Henao, slide out of a group of 25 before Roche attacked for his first Grand Tour victory in the last kilometre.
"This is really liberating for me, I've only won eight races in my career but I've had so many second places," said Roche, whose ****** Stephen won the Tour de France in 1987.
"Roche is the rider who's always in the front but never able to win. I'm over the moon."
The fifth Irishman to win a stage of the Vuelta a Espana, Roche added: "I did the Tour this summer working for (Spanish team mate) Alberto (Contador), but I've always had the Vuelta as a target for the last five years and this year was no different.
"I might finish fourth, fifth or sixth overall in Madrid, but this is what counts for now."

 

[Smallville22]

Degenkolb sprints to win in Germany

Argos-Shimano's John Degenkolb wins a bunch sprint to claim the Vattenfall Cyclassics ahead of Andre Greipel and Alexander Kristoff.

 

[Smallville22]

Van Garderen wins in Colorado

American Tejay van Garderen won the USA Pro Challenge on Sunday.
Peter Sagan wins final stage.

 

[Smallville22]

Australia throws weight behind Cookson for top UCI job

Australian cycling has thrown its weight behind Briton Brian Cookson's campaign to unseat Pat McQuaid as head of the International Cycling Union at the global governing body's election next month.
Cycling Australia's support is likely to mean Cookson can rely on three votes from Oceania's regional federation, which may prove decisive in a tightly contested poll with only 42 casting voters across the globe.
CA and delegates from New Zealand and the Oceania Confederation heard manifestos from both candidates in Sydney over the weekend, and outgoing CA president Klaus Mueller said British Cycling head Cookson was the best candidate to "restore credibility" to the sport and the UCI.
"We are confident that he is genuinely committed to developing the sport worldwide and can deliver on his objectives to help grow the sport in Australia and Oceania," Mueller said in a statement .
"His commitment to introduce reforms to address the sport's governance and anti-doping challenges were critical in our considerations."
Cookson has based his candidacy on restoring trust in the UCI which was criticised heavily for not doing enough to catch **** cheat Lance Armstrong, who was stripped of his seven Tour de France titles last year.
Mueller also fired a broadside at Irishman McQuaid, who is running for a third mandate after being re-elected unopposed in 2009.
"CA has enjoyed a very good relationship with Pat over the years and we recognise the significant work he has done to help globalise the sport and address the doping culture that besieged professional men's road cycling.
"However, the inadequate response in dealing with the fallout from the Armstrong affair and subsequent allegations brought against the UCI has emphasised a need for leadership change to allow the sport to move on and realise its enormous potential."
McQuaid suffered a blow last week when he lost Switzerland's backing for his re-election bid, having already lost the support of his home federation Cycling Ireland.
The UCI constitution only allows for presidential candidates that have been nominated by their home federation. But McQuaid has pledged to fight on pending a motion to amend the constitution that would allow his nomination by any two member federations.
CA said it would not support the motion.
"Even if those changes are legal it is entirely unsatisfactory in any democratic process and it lacks openness, transparency and integrity," Mueller said.
The election will be held at the UCI general congress in Florence on September 27, during the road world championships in Tuscany.

 

[Smallville22]

American Horner takes Vuelta lead after stage two win

American Chris Horner seized a solo victory on stage three of the Vuelta a Espana on Monday to claim the overall lead.
The 41-year-old RadioShack Leopard rider moved ahead of the splintering pack in the final kilometre of stage three's uphill finish to claim a solo stage win on the short but punchy Mirador de Lobeira climb.
Horner, who is teamless for 2014, surpassed Pino Cerami and Andrea Noe's feats. Belgian Cerami was aged 41 years and 95 days when he won a stage at the 1963 Tour de France, while Noe led the Giro d'Italia in 2007 aged 38.
"I fully appreciate how important it is to win and lead a Grand Tour at my age, the older I get the more I value racing," Horner, who turned pro in 1995 but had never previously won a Grand Tour stage in his career, told reporters.
"Just take today, I could have crashed. At my age, that would have been my career over.
"I understand that every day I race could be my last day on the bike, but I love racing so much I want to continue."
Despite his age and a knee operation which prevented the former Tour of California from training for five months earlier this year, Horner said that he had been determined to be in top shape for the Vuelta.
A victory in the toughest stage of the Tour of Utah in August and second place overall confirmed the American was on track for the Spanish Grand Tour.
"We rode a strong team time trial here on Saturday and together with (team leader Fabian) Cancellara we agreed that the leader's jersey would be an objective for the team. That kept me very motivated and focussed for today," he said.
Horner leapfrogged overnight leader Vincenzo Nibali to the top of the standings after the Italian finished 11th on Monday.
The 2013 Giro d'Italia winner now trails Horner by three seconds, with Ireland's Nicolas Roche third.
"I am going to try for the overall victory, that's for sure," Horner said. "If I can win races like the Vuelta al País Vasco [in 2010], then why can't I win this one?"
"One guy was asking me today in the peloton if I knew of any director's jobs because he wants to retire soon. But I thought it was really bizarre, I mean - how can you want to stop racing?"

Stage results

1 Christopher Horner (USA) RadioShack Leopard 4:30:18

2 Alejandro Valverde Belmonte (Spa) Movistar Team 0:00:03

3 Joaquim Rodriguez Oliver (Spa) Katusha

4 Rigoberto Uran Uran (Col) Sky Procycling

5 Daniel Martin (Irl) Garmin-Sharp

6 Bauke Mollema (Ned) Belkin Pro Cycling Team

7 Michele Scarponi (Ita) Lampre-Merida

8 Haimar Zubeldia Agirre (Spa) RadioShack Leopard 0:00:06

9 Nicolas Roche (Irl) Team Saxo-Tinkoff

10 Ivan Basso (Ita) Cannondale Pro Cycling

General classification

1 Christopher Horner (USA) RadioShack Leopard 9:37:40

2 Vincenzo Nibali (Ita) Astana Pro Team 0:00:08

3 Nicolas Roche (Irl) Team Saxo-Tinkoff 0:00:14

4 Haimar Zubeldia Agirre (Spa) RadioShack Leopard 0:00:16

5 Robert Kiserlovski (Cro) RadioShack Leopard 0:00:23

6 Alejandro Valverde Belmonte (Spa) Movistar Team 0:00:24

7 Rigoberto Uran Uran (Col) Sky Procycling 0:00:25

8 Rafal Majka (Pol) Team Saxo-Tinkoff 0:00:38

9 Roman Kreuziger (Cze) Team Saxo-Tinkoff 0:00:45

10 Leopold Konig (Cze) Team NetApp-Endura

 

[Smallville22]

Nibali goes the extra mile in Spain

Italian Vincenzo Nibali had completed the fourth stage of the Vuelta a Espana and pedalled four kilometres back to his Astana team bus for a shower before he learned he had moved into the race lead.
A late split in the pack on the hilly stage to Fisterre, won by Spain's Dani Moreno, allowed Giro d'Italia winner Nibali to move ahead of American Chris Horner and claim the lead.
"I'm surprised, I had no idea there was a gap and didn't know I was leader, I was on the team bus," said Nibali, who was rushed back to the finish area in a team van so he could accept the leader's jersey.
"I wasn't looking for the leader's jersey, all I wanted to do was stay in the front group and keep things under control," he added.
"I knew that Chris and his team wanted to keep the lead, you could see that from the way they worked hard on the front on a difficult stage all day."
Nibali now leads by three seconds from Horner with Ireland's Nicolas Roche eight seconds further back.
"I got boxed in, the split was right at the finish and there was no way to move out in any direction," Horner, who finished 26th, six seconds back, told Reuters.
The American, who at nearly 42 became the oldest Grand Tour leader when he captured the top spot on Monday, said he would ****** in the mountains to try to get the leader's jersey back later in the race.
As the pack fragmented on the ascent to Fisterre lighthouse on Galicia's Atlantic coastline, Moreno put aside his usual duties as lieutenant for overall contender and Katusha team mate Joaquim Rodriguez by sprinting to victory.
A late ****** by Swiss Fabian Cancellara brought the former Olympic and world time trial Champion to within a few metres of Moreno, who dug deep to claim the second Vuelta victory of his career. Australian Michael Matthews was third.
Moreno, winner of the Fleche Wallone Classic in the spring, said he had told his room-mate Joaquim Rodriguez that he wanted to win the stage.
"He said to go for it," Moreno said.
After moving up to eighth place overall, eight places ahead of Rodriguez thanks to Tuesday's win, Moreno said there would not be a switch in the leadership in his favour after his strong race start.
"I will be back to work for Joaquim again tomorrow although stage nine's summit finish is another personal target," he said.
The race finishes in Madrid on September 15.

 

[Smallville22]

Nibali back in front after Moreno wins stage

Katusha rider Dani Moreno claimed the host nation's first stage win of the 2013 Vuelta a Espana on Tuesday while Italy's Vincenzo Nibali regained the overall lead.
A late split in the pack on the hilly stage to Fisterre allowed Giro d'Italia winner Vincenzo Nibali to move ahead of American Chris Horner and claim the lead.
"I'm surprised, I had no idea there was a gap and didn't know I was leader, I was on the team bus," said Nibali, who was rushed back to the finish area in a team van so he could accept the leader's jersey.
"I wasn't looking for the leader's jersey, all I wanted to do was stay in the front group and keep things under control," he added.
"I knew that Chris and his team wanted to keep the lead, you could see that from the way they worked hard on the front on a difficult stage all day."
Nibali now leads by three seconds from Horner with Ireland's Nicolas Roche eight seconds further back.
"I got boxed in, the split was right at the finish and there was no way to move out in any direction," Horner, who finished 26th, six seconds back, told Reuters.
The American, who at nearly 42 became the oldest Grand Tour leader when he captured the top spot on Monday, said he would ****** in the mountains to try to get the leader's jersey back later in the race.
As the pack fragmented on the ascent to Fisterre lighthouse on Galicia's Atlantic coastline, Moreno put aside his usual duties as lieutenant for overall contender and Katusha team mate Joaquim Rodriguez by sprinting to victory.
A late ****** by Swiss Fabian Cancellara brought the former Olympic and world time trial Champion to within a few metres of Moreno, who dug deep to claim the second Vuelta victory of his career. Australian Michael Matthews was third.
Moreno, winner of the Fleche Wallone Classic in the spring, said he had told his room mate Joaquim Rodriguez that he wanted to win the stage.
"He said to go for it," Moreno told reporters.
After moving up to eighth place overall, eight places ahead of Rodriguez thanks to Tuesday's win, Moreno said there would not be a switch in the leadership in his favour after his strong race start.
"I will be back to work for Joaquim again tomorrowm although stage nine's summit finish is another personal target," he said.

Stage results

1. Daniel Moreno (Spain / Katusha) 4:37:47"

2. Fabian Cancellara (Switzerland / RadioShack) ST

3. Michael Matthews (Australia / Orica)

4. Gianni Meersman (Belgium / Omega Pharma - Quick-Step)

5. Bauke Mollema (Netherlands / Belkin)

6. Edvald Boasson Hagen (Norway / Team Sky)

7. Rinaldo Nocentini (Italy / AG2R)

8. Warren Barguil (France / Argos)

9. Sergio Henao (Colombia / Team Sky)

10. Nicolas Roche (Ireland / Saxo - Tinkoff)

General classification

1. Vincenzo Nibali (Italy / Astana) 14:15:30"

2. Chris Horner (U.S. / RadioShack) +3"

3. Nicolas Roche (Ireland / Saxo - Tinkoff) +8"

4. Haimar Zubeldia (Spain / RadioShack) +16"

5. Alejandro Valverde (Spain / Movistar) +21"

6. Robert Kiserlovski (Croatia / RadioShack) +26"

7. Rigoberto Uran (Colombia / Team Sky) +28"

8. Daniel Moreno (Spain / Katusha) +31"

9. Roman Kreuziger (Czech Republic / Saxo - Tinkoff) +42"

10. Bartosz Huzarski (Poland / NetApp) +45"

 

[Smallville22]

Matthews sprints to stage five victory

Michael Matthews of ORICA GreenEDGE won stage five of the Vuelta in a sprint finish in Lago de Sanabria.
The 22-year-old Orica-GreenEdge rider, a former under-23 world champion, outsprinted Argentina's Maximiliano Richeze and Belgian Gianni Meersman in a dash for the line at Lago de Sanabria.
Italian Vincenzo Nibali, the favourite for outright victory in Madrid on Sept. 15, maintained his slender three second lead over Chris Horner of the United States in the overall standings.
"Twenty other riders could have won today, but my team delivered me to the right position and I had the legs to finish it off," Matthews told reporters.
"I wasn't expecting to get a win here before we started, but I knew I might be able to do it because my form is good. It's my biggest win for sure.
"I could feel the pressure to get a result here but when you're going well, that pressure's not a bad thing. It's only when you're in poor shape that you suffer."
Nicknamed 'Bling' after he attended a track race in Australia as a teenager wearing a load of gold jewelry and cut-off jeans, Matthews gave special thanks to his sports director, Julian Dean.
"With about 20 kilometres to go, Julian radioed through a heck of a lot of information to us about the bunch sprint finish here, what the last few corners were like and where the difficult parts were," Matthews said.
"Without him telling us all that, I'd have been riding blind and I don't think I would have got the win."
Nibali said he was relieved that after four days of racing in Galicia on technical, narrow roads, the peloton was heading south into more straightforward terrain.
"It's been a very tough opening section of the Vuelta, but I've come through it in good shape and that's what counts," Nibali said. "I just hope tomorrow, which should be easier, we'll get through equally well."

Stage results

1. Michael Matthews (Australia / Orica) 4:28:22"

2. Maximiliano Richeze (Argentina / Lampre) ST

3. Gianni Meersman (Belgium / Omega Pharma - Quick-Step)

4. Nikias Arndt (Germany / Argos)

5. Tyler Farrar (U.S. / Garmin)

6. Edvald Boasson Hagen (Norway / Team Sky)

7. Anthony Roux (France / FDJ.fr)

8. Greg Henderson (New Zealand / Lotto)

9. Daniele Ratto (Italy / Cannondale)

10. Grega Bole (Slovenia / Vacansoleil)

General classification

1. Vincenzo Nibali (Italy / Astana) 18:43:52"

2. Chris Horner (U.S. / RadioShack) +3"

3. Nicolas Roche (Ireland / Saxo - Tinkoff) +8"

4. Haimar Zubeldia (Spain / RadioShack) +16"

5. Alejandro Valverde (Spain / Movistar) +21"

6. Robert Kiserlovski (Croatia / RadioShack) +26"

7. Rigoberto Uran (Colombia / Team Sky) +28"

8. Daniel Moreno (Spain / Katusha) +31"

9. Rafal Majka (Poland / Saxo - Tinkoff) +38"

10. Roman Kreuziger (Czech Republic / Saxo - Tinkoff) +42"

 

[Smallville22]

Australian iron man eyes endurance record

Sitting in the middle of the Vuelta pack while the main contenders prepare for the mountain challenges, Australian Adam Hansen is quietly chipping out his own niche in cycling history.
If Hansen, a rider with the Lotto-Belisol team, finishes the race in Madrid on Sept. 15, he will be the first rider since Spaniard Marino Lejaretta in 1991 to complete seven Grand Tours in succession.
Completing two Grand Tours in a single year is considered an exceptional feat for any rider and in cyclng history fewer than 40 have managed to finish all three in one season.
Hansen finished the 2011 Vuelta before completing the Giro d'Italia, Tour de France and Tour of Spain in 2012 and 2013.
"You do get in a routine," Hansen, a 32-year-old from the Gold Coast who won a stage of the Giro in May, told Reuters when asked if he has ever woken up unsure which Grand Tour he was in.
"But if you can handle the routine, you can handle the Grand Tours and you can handle the racing.
"I like doing big blocks of racing and this year so far so good. I had a good season last year, so I thought 'why not keep going and do the same again?'"
With three chunks of nearly a month each spent on the road in 2012, Hansen admits to getting homesick for his adopted European base in the town of Frydlandt nad Ostratici in the Czech Republic.
"I spend a lot of time there between the Grand Tours." he said.
"And before the Giro d'Italia I got a month off. That's a great thing about the team, they don't insist on me doing a lot of races as well as the big stage races, so I'm happy doing it."
Hansen would like to equal Lejaretta's record next year.
"I already know I'm doing the Giro d'Italia in 2014, I hope I'll get a place in the the Tour de France as well, and I love the Vuelta," he said.
"The order of the races, given the Vuelta's more low pressure, does help. Other riders I've talked to who've come here for the first time are amazed by how relaxed it is in comparison to the Tour de France, how easy it is to get in a breakaway.
"But we take this race very seriously, our team has had a guy in the break every day and I enjoy it. I just hope that the day the breakaway goes, that it'll stick - a stage win here is what I'd really like. That, and getting to Madrid."

 

[Smallville22]

Morkov denies Martin sensational solo win

Michael Morkov (Team Saxo-Tinkoff) won stage six of the Vuelta a Espana in Caceres after a sensational all day ****** from Tony Martin came agonisingly short.
World time trial champion Martin (Omega Pharma-Quick Step) attacked right at the start of the stage and stayed in front by himself but seemed destined to be reeled in with 5km to go.
However, he showed amazing resilience to stay ahead and it looked like he was going to hang on for a famous victory.
But with the finishing line just five metres away, the peloton swept past him with Morkov taking the stage win in a sprint.
Germany's Martin finished seventh in the 175 km ride from Guijuelo to Caceres.
Italian Vincenzo Nibali, the favourite for outright victory in Madrid on September 15, maintained his slender three second lead over Chris Horner of the United States in the overall standings.
"I had to try it. I was hoping two or three other guys would come with me and at the end it was so close I could have won," Martin said afterwards.
"When I found nobody else had joined me in the ****** I thought about dropping back again but I opted to keep going."
As temperatures reached 30 degrees on the rolling, feature-less plains of western Spain, Martin built an advantage of seven minutes 20 seconds before the chasing pack reeled him in.
The German, with a lead of just five seconds, then pulled away again as he approached Caceres.
"I made sure I had a little bit of energy left for the finale and I never thought I would get so close," added Martin. "But it was a good day for the fans and the sport."
Morkov said he had never taken part in a bunch sprint before Thursday's chaotic dash for the line.
"As there was nobody else in the team who was faster, I had that role," the Danish national champion explained.
"I got on Fabian Cancellara's wheel and to tell the truth I had no idea when to accelerate. I thought I had calculated wrong but there was a bit of a tailwind and that helped," he said of the Swiss rider who finished third in the stage.
"Without Cancellara accelerating though I'd never have won."

Stage result:

1. Michael Morkov (Denmark / Saxo - Tinkoff) 3:54:15"

2. Maximiliano Richeze (Argentina / Lampre) ST

3. Fabian Cancellara (Switzerland / RadioShack)

4. Tyler Farrar (U.S. / Garmin)

5. Juan Antonio Flecha (Spain / Vacansoleil)

GC:

1. Vincenzo Nibali (Italy / Astana) 22:38:07"

2. Chris Horner (U.S. / RadioShack) +3"

3. Nicolas Roche (Ireland / Saxo - Tinkoff) +8"

4. Haimar Zubeldia (Spain / RadioShack) +16"

5. Alejandro Valverde (Spain / Movistar) +21"

 

[Smallville22]

Monkey crash almost punctures Australian's title hopes

Australian mountain bike rider Daniel McConnell's dreams of winning a world title on Saturday were almost shattered in extraordinary fashion last week when he collided with a troop of monkeys while training in South Africa.
McConnell, who finished 21st in the men's cross country at last year's London Olympics, was surprised by the local fauna while training near the Pietermaritzburg course where the world championships take place this weekend.
The tumble left the 28-year-old Trek Factory Racing with a bruised shoulder and skin wounds on both hands, which at one stage looked like preventing him from participating in Saturday's cross country race.
"For a while I didn't think I would start, but now I am, I am going to give it everything," McConnell said in a Cycling Australia media release.
"The body is okay on the course, I have a fair bit of skin off, but I have got a few laps in now and am starting to feel very confident on the course."
Victory in opening round of the World Cup series - the first Australian to win a leg since Tour de France winner Cadel Evans 13 years ago - and fifth place in the last round in Canada have put him in third in the overall UCI MTB and Trials standings.
"It has been a bit of a ***** season," he added. "I had only had the one top 20 finish coming into the season and have now been on the podium twice and a sixth place too, so the consistency is there.
"I would love to think winning is a possibility here, but it hasn't been the smoothest lead into the race, but on the other side, I have also had some really good training leading in."

 

[Smallville22]

Stybar edges out Gilbert to win stage seven

Zdenek Stybar (Omega Pharma-Quick Step) edged world champion Philippe Gilbert (BMC) by a whisker to win stage seven of the Vuelta a Espana in Mairena del Aljarafe.
The pair broke away in a twisting finishing circuit on Mairena del Aljarafe's narrow streets before Stybar outduelled his Belgian rival.
German Robert Wagner was third in the 205.9-km leg from Almendralejo.
Following the last relatively flat stage before three days of mountain climbing, Italy's Vincenzo Nibali continues to lead overall with a three-second advantage over American Chris Horner.
Irishman Nicolas Roche is eight seconds off the pace in third.
Stybar, a former double world cyclo-cross champion, said beating Gilbert had been "really difficult".
"I didn't launch a perfect sprint but I still won. Whether you win by one centimetre or one millimetre, that's the most important thing," the Omega Pharma-Quick Step rider told reporters.
Stybar said team mate and world time trial champion Tony Martin of Germany, who lost Thursday's stage in the last seconds following a 175-km solo breakaway, had inspired him.
"Tony so nearly made it, he could have been a legend, and even if he lost, sitting round the dinner table last night, we all felt sad he hadn't won but motivated too," added the Czech.
Stybar was adamant his fourth victory of 2013 and first Grand Tour stage win could not make up for the agony he felt after the Paris-Roubaix classic this year when a collision with a spectator 15-km from the finish wrecked his chances of a top-three result.
"Paris-Roubaix is in April next year," he said, "and that's where I'll get my revenge".
Stybar was among several riders who criticised Friday's finish for being too risky.
"With so many sharp turns and cobblestones and 200 riders all going at full speed, it was dangerous," he explained.
One top contender, Ireland's Dan Martin, crashed in the last 10-km when he hit a hole in the road. A winner of a Tour de France stage in the Pyrenees this year and the Liege-Bastogne-Liege classic in April, Martin was taken to hospital for a check-up on injuries to his right side after completing the course in 116th place.
After three flatter stages, the race returns to hillier terrain on Saturday with a summit finish on the 14-km Altas de Penas Blancas climb in southern Spain.

Stage result:

1. Zdenek Stybar (Czech Republic / Omega Pharma - Quick-Step) 4:51:27"

2. Philippe Gilbert (Belgium / BMC Racing) ST

3. Robert Wagner (Germany / Belkin) +1"

4. Adrien Petit (France / Cofidis)

5. Juan Antonio Flecha (Spain / Vacansoleil)

6. Andrew Fenn (Britain / Omega Pharma - Quick-Step)

7. Edvald Boasson Hagen (Norway / Team Sky)

8. Danilo Wyss (Switzerland / BMC Racing)

9. Klaas Lodewyck (Belgium / BMC Racing)

10. Reinardt Janse Van Rensburg (South Africa / Argos)

GC:

1. Vincenzo Nibali (Italy / Astana) 27:29:35"

2. Chris Horner (U.S. / RadioShack) +3"

3. Nicolas Roche (Ireland / Saxo - Tinkoff) +8"

4. Haimar Zubeldia (Spain / RadioShack) +16"

5. Alejandro Valverde (Spain / Movistar) +21"

6. Robert Kiserlovski (Croatia / RadioShack) +26"

7. Rigoberto Uran (Colombia / Team Sky) +28

. Daniel Moreno (Spain / Katusha) +31"

9. Rafal Majka (Poland / Saxo - Tinkoff) +38"

10. Roman Kreuziger (Czech Republic / Saxo - Tinkoff) +42"

 

[Smallville22]

Roche takes red as Konig wins stage eight

Nicolas Roche became Ireland's first Vuelta leader for 25 years on Saturday as he ousted Vincenzo Nibali from top spot in the toughest stage in the mountains to date.
The *** of Ireland's only Tour de France winner, Stephen Roche, ended up third behind eighth stage winner Leopold Koenig of the Czech Republic and Spain's Dani Moreno on the 14-km Alto de Penas Blancas summit finish.
The Saxo-Tinkoff rider now leads overall by 17 seconds from American Chris Horner. Moreno is third while Italian Nibali, 16th in the 158.6-km leg from Jerez de la Frontera, occupies fourth position.
"I benefited from a bit of an opening when things stalled in the main pack behind Koenig," said Roche, Ireland's first leader since Sean Kelly won the race in 1988.
"I was only eight seconds behind Nibali before the stage and I've never led a Grand Tour before so I wanted to go all out and give it absolutely everything," he said.
"Right now I'm the happiest man on earth, it's been an incredible week for me," added Roche who won his first Grand Tour stage on the Vuelta's first summit finish last Sunday and also leads the King of the Mountains competition.
With two summit finishes looming on Sunday and Monday, the 29-year-old was cautious about his prospects of remaining in top spot.
"It would be pretty optimistic to say I can hold this lead all the way to Madrid," said Roche whose best Grand Tour finish is seventh in the 2010 Vuelta.
"Monday is one of the hardest stages of the entire race and if I can get through these three days in the lead that would be great."
Stage winner Koenig's small-scale NetApp Endura team are one of four non-World Tour squads to benefit from an invite to the Vuelta.
"This climb suited me down to the ground, its steeper segments were all in the early part. Once I got through that with the favourites I thought my chances were pretty good," said the Czech.
"I saw [earlier attacker Igor] Anton was suffering and managed to catch him just before the line. I'll try for the overall lead now but anything I get from here on is a bonus for me and the team."
The Vuelta's second straight mountain-top finish on Sunday is a long climb with lung-burstingly steep segments of up to 25 percent in the sierras of northern Andalusia.
The race ends in Madrid on September 15.

Stage result:

1. Leopold Koenig (Czech Republic / NetApp) 4:09:46"

2. Daniel Moreno (Spain / Katusha) +1"

3. Nicolas Roche (Ireland / Saxo - Tinkoff) +5"

4. Thibaut Pinot (France / FDJ.fr)

5. Ivan Basso (Italy / Cannondale)

6. Bart De Clercq (Belgium / Lotto)

7. Igor Anton (Spain / Euskaltel) +13"

8. Alejandro Valverde (Spain / Movistar) +19"

9. Joaquim Rodriguez (Spain / Katusha)

10. Rigoberto Uran (Colombia / Team Sky) +23"

GC:

1. Nicolas Roche (Ireland / Saxo - Tinkoff) 31:39:30"

2. Chris Horner (U.S. / RadioShack) +17"

3. Daniel Moreno (Spain / Katusha)

4. Vincenzo Nibali (Italy / Astana) +18"

5. Leopold Koenig (Czech Republic / NetApp) +29"

6. Haimar Zubeldia (Spain / RadioShack) +30"

7. Alejandro Valverde (Spain / Movistar) +31"

8. Rigoberto Uran (Colombia / Team Sky) +42"

9. Rafal Majka (Poland / Saxo - Tinkoff) +52"

10. Joaquim Rodriguez (Spain / Katusha) +1:03"