Revolution 52 – Round 1 – Friday

Round 1: 14/15/16 August – Derby

 

Saturday 14th March 2015, Afternoon Session 13.00 – 16.30, Evening Session 19.00 – 22.30.

Build-up

The Revolution Elite Championship and HOY Future Stars will begin at round 2 in Manchester on 24th October following the Special Opening Event at the Derby Arena on 14-16 August.

The Derby event is a special ‘Olympic Qualification’ event which has been developed in conjunction with Team GB to provide an opportunity to score some crucial UCI qualification points before the 15th September 2015 cut-off date.

The Stars are coming out to play in the three day, four session event. Big guns from the road return to the track in a statement of intent, on the path to Rio 2016. None bigger than former Tour de France Winner, Sir Bradley Wiggins.

The Manx Missile, Mark Cavendish who recently road the track in Europe returns in the hope of a chance of Olympic glory, riding the Madison with Sir Brad, whilst regular Trackies Ed Clancy, Owain Doull and Mark Christian will want to stamp their authority on the event.

The competition in all disciplines are once more attracting huge European athletes. Tim Veldt, Kenny de Ketele, Aaron Gate, Francois Pervis, Hugo Haak but to name a few, with the Women’s Events attracting Jolien D’Hoore, Pascale Jeuland, Laurie Berthon and Sandie Clair.

Leading British Endurance Women include the darling of the track and the biggest crowd pleaser Laura Trott, with Katie Archibald, Joanna Rowsell Shand, Elinor Barker and Grace Garner. Competing for the Sprint glory will be Rebecca James, Jessica Varnish and Danielle Khan, whilst Shanaze Reade returns to put on a show.

FRIDAY EVENING SESSION:

Doors open at 18:00. Racing from 19:00 to 22:30.

Stars were falling in more ways than one in the opening session of Revolution 52 in Derby. World Champion Sprinter Francois Pervis tumbled in a collision with Matt Rotherham late-on into the evening as the Revolution Longest Lap came to its conclusion.

Pervis had also been beating by fellow countryman Quentin Lefargue in the kilometer time trial, but surprise of the evening was Callum Skinner going one place better to top the leader board with a 1:01.135.

Crowd favorite Laura Trott road into third position in the opening race of the evening, the 3000m individual pursuit. Riding against a super strong Ciara Horne who’s shown consistant form over the Summer months on the road, pipped former National Champion Joanna Rowsell Shand in this qualifying session.

The pair locked horns again in the final play-off, but this time, Rowsell-Shand had the upper hand on Horne, producing another 03:37.

Another upset in the Women’s 500m Time Trial for the Sprinters, saw Katy Marchant taking the podium from Jess Varnish by a whisker. Youngster Danielle Khan claimed third with France’s Sandie Clair fourth.

The biggest attraction on the evening was of course, Sir Bradley Wiggin’s return to the Track. Riding in the four-man Team Pursuit, brought the crowd alive as the laps began counting down. Setting a qualifying time in first position, Great Britain was just shy of a sub four minute ride with a 04:00.324 going into the final with Youth Team 100% ME.

Substituting Jon Dibben for Ed Clancy in the podium play-off, saw the only sub four performance of the night with a 03:54.974. The Netherlands went on to beat Austria for the final placings.

 

Event 1  Individual Pursuit – Qualifying  Women

  1. Ciara Horne GB 03.37.278
  2. Joanna Rowsell Shand GB 03.37.438
  3. Laura Trott GB 03.39.586
  4. Emily Kay GB 03.42.202
  5. Leire Olaberria Esp 03.43.916
  6. Emily Nelson GB 03.46.938
  7. Katie Archibald GB 03.48.178
  8. Lydia Gurley Irl 03.48.496

Event 2  Team Pursuit – Qualifying  Men

  1. Great Britain Gbr 04.00.324
  2. 100% ME Gbr 04.04.568
  3. Netherlands Ned 04.06.251
  4. Austria Aut 04.26.297

Event 3  500m  Time Trial Women

  1. Katy Marchant GB 00.34.117
  2. Jessica Varnish GB 00.34.292
  3. Danielle Khan GB 00.34.961
  4. Sandie Clair Fra 00.35.262
  5. Yesna Rijhoff Ned 00.35.757
  6. Laurine Van Riessen Ned 00.36.006
  7. Shanaze Reade GB 00.36.472
  8. Ellie Coster GB 00.36.651

Event 4  Individual Pursuit – Finals  Women

Joanna Rowsell Shand beat Ciara Horne in the final play-off. Laura Trott beat Emily Kay for the third place.

Event 5  1km Time Trial  Men

  1. Callum Skinner GB 01.01.135
  2. Quentin Lafague Fra 01.01.878
  3. Francois Pervis Fra 01.02.336
  4. Lewis Oliva GB 01.02.749
  5. Matthew Rotherham GB 01.02.810
  6. Matthew Crampton GB 01.03.786
  7. Hugo Haak Ned 01.03.794
  8. Jose Moreno Sanchez Esp 01.04.935

Event 6  Young Riders Scratch Race  Mixed

 

The Youth Scratch race ran over two rounds with Brad Dransfield (Kirkless CA)winning both races. Thamana Nel, Tom Humphrey and Ellie Russell finished both races in the same positions. In the first round, many of the field were lapped as they settled into a high pace of the twenty lap race, but managed to stay together for round two.

Event 7  Team Pursuit – Finals  Men

Great Britain beat 100% ME in the Men’s Team Pursuit final. The Netherlands beat Austria for third place.

 

Event 8  Revolution Longest Lap – Sprinters  Men

Great Britain’s Lewis Oliva won the Revolution Longest lap sprint to the line, beating fellow countryman Callum Skinner. The Netherlands Hugo Haak came home third with France’s Quentin Lefarague fourth.

 

Event 10  Scratch Race  Women

Katie Archibald (GB)gained a lap halfway through the Women’s Scratch Race to claim the podium finishing safely in the bunch. Although several attacks were made to escape the peleton, it was Laura Trott that took the final bunch sprint.

Drucker, Guarischi and Alldis Conquer RideLondon-Surrey Classic

classic-winner-15(300)Jean-Pierre Drucker produced the sprint of his life to win the Prudential RideLondon-Surrey Classic today beating Britain’s Ben Swift and Dutchman Mike Teunissen on The Mall in central London to claim the first victory of his professional career.

The 28-year-old was part of an eight-strong group of cyclists that burst clear of the peloton with a quarter of the 200-kilometre race to go before four riders hared up Whitehall and under Admiralty Arch in pursuit of glory.

Swift led them up The Mall with the Finish Line in sight and Buckingham Palace visible in the distance, the Team Sky sprinter desperate to make amends for last year when he lost by a hair’s width to Adam Blythe.

But Drucker had been tailing him home and the Luxembourg rider launched his attack with 50 metres to go, surprising the Briton and Lotto NL-Jumbo’s Teunissen to take a hard-earned victory built on brilliant teamwork by his experienced BMC Racing Team.

Drucker threw his arm in the air as he crossed the line to thunderous roars, a huge grin breaking out on his bearded face.

“To get my first professional win in front of Buckingham Palace is so special,” said Drucker. “The crowd here is so crazy about cycling, it’s fantastic to get my first win here.

“I love racing in England. I did the Tour of Yorkshire this year and that was fantastic too. After getting my first pro win here, I love it even more.”

Swift broke his shoulder in the Yorkshire race but fought his way back from surgery to bid for victory in this event, still smarting from last year’s defeat. He led the three medallists in a hard chase along Millbank to reel in Teunissen’s team-mate Sep Vanmarcke, who had made a lone bid for victory 12km out.

Once they’d overpowered the Belgian, all the smart money was on the Sheffield man, a renowned finishing kicker. But Drucker had finished just behind ‘Manx missile’ Mark Cavendish in California earlier this year and was confident of his chances.

“I was feeling good all day and at the end I just kept my eye on Swift,” said Drucker. “I could see he was very motivated and really wanted victory in front of his own crowd. I knew he would go for the win, but I worked hard as well.

“I’m a fast guy too and I just tried not to make any mistakes. I love it when it’s hard and that was our plan. We tried to make it a hard race by moving guys to the front. It always feels so good when a plan works out.”

As for Swift, in the end he was happy enough to make the podium for the second year in a row after missing three months’ training, although he admitted to miscalculating his finish.

“I had to go really hard in the last few kilometres and I started to cramp up a little bit from the effort of chasing,” said Swift. “Even though I’d have loved to have won, I’m really, really happy.

“I had three months out of competition so this is a really nice way to come back to racing and get a good result straight away. It was good to be on the podium.

“I couldn’t see any metres-to-go boards so I got caught on the front, trying to get the others to come round me, but you could see the guys coming from behind so you couldn’t play too much cat-and-mouse.”

As for Cavendish, the much-fancied Briton was missing his key lead-out man Mark Renshaw and was not at his best after a week-long illness following the Tour de France. It quickly became clear that he wasn’t going to save himself for a final sprint as he spearheaded not one, but two attacks during the race, and coasted home 44th.

In fact, Cavendish was barely out of the camera lens in the early stages as he could be seen chatting with Britain’s other big-name star Sir Bradley Wiggins as the field of 143 riders rolled off the red carpet and away from the signing-on point at Horse Guards Parade, and he was among a group of four in a mini-break shortly after the peloton passed over Hampton Court Bridge.

The Briton was soon at the back of the race, however, where he stopped to receive mechanical attention to the front of his bike, leaving him briefly off the pace.

Madison Genesis rider Erick Rowsell, brother of Olympic gold medallist and RideLondon-Surrey 100 rider Joanna, was among a group of five who then escaped  as the peloton rattled through Byfleet to Ripley and on to the sun-splashed Surrey countryside.

Another Briton, Peter Williams of One Pro Cycling, was also in the breakaway, along with the young Italian Riccardo Stacchiotti of Vini Fantini, Topspot Vlaanderen’s Sander Helven, and Lander Seynaeve of Wanty-Group Gobert.

They opened a gap of five minutes with just over a quarter of the race gone and stayed away over the first four of the event’s five categorised climbs up Leith Hill and over Ranmore Common three times.

Rowsell, from Sutton, was racing in his own backyard and the Surrey man used his local knowledge to lead up the narrow lanes and over the summits, amassing points for the King of the Mountains competition, while Williams concentrated on securing the sprint title, out-battling Stacchiotti for the honour.

BMC sent their young Dutch stagiaire Floris Gerts up the road to try and bridge the gap, and by the time they’d completed the three Ranmore loops, he had replaced Seynaeve among the leaders. The peloton broke up on the third Ranmore climb, and Lotto NL-Jumbo charged out to reel them in like a pack of wolves hunting down their prey.

Seven men reached the base of Box Hill with just over 50km to go. But their time alone was numbered and Gerts’s team-mates Philippe Gilbert and Rohan Dennis emerged from the pack for the first time to lead the chase up the slopes, driving on at the top in an attempt to leave the race sprinters in their wake.

With an hour’s racing still to go, it was now a case of heads down for the city. Cavendish briefly launched himself out in front with Dennis, then eight burst clear to open a gap that grew to more than a minute as they reached Kingston for a second time.

Among them were Swift, Drucker, Vanmarcke and Tuenissen. The gap grew to two-and-a-half minutes and with just 15km to go the main field called off the hunt.

Vanmarcke attacked as they skirted Wimbledon Common and he opened a 16-second lead as he crossed the river at Putney Bridge. A well-practised one-day rider, the Belgian seemed to be pulling away. But he was he gasping for air, and the lead vanished as Swift led the chasers on the run-in to along Millbank and past the Houses of Parliament.

It was a hard slog. Too hard as it turned out for the Briton, as Drucker burst off his shoulder for the win of his life.

Swift may have missed out, but there was some good news for Britain as a delighted Rowsell bagged the King of the Mountains contest on the rolling hills he’s been riding since he was 14.

“They are all local roads to me,” said the 25-year-old. “I grew up riding around here and have been up Box Hill and Leith Hill hundreds of times. I knew no one in the race would know these hills as well as me.

“So to win King of the Mountains here made it a perfect day.”

It was a perfect day for Jean-Pierre Drucker too.

 

Defending champion Adam Blythe talks team tactics ahead of the Classic

The Orica-GreenEDGE rider expects this year’s Prudential RideLondon-Surrey Classic to come down to a bunch sprint on The Mall when the riders roll into the capital after conquering the Surrey Hills.

 

 

Guarischi pays tribute to her team after Grand Prix win

Velocio Sports deliver team leader Barbara Guarischi to the line in the Prudential RideLondon Grand Prix.

 

Alldis makes it third time lucky to win Handcycle Classic

A bad night’s sleep couldn’t stop Brian Alldis from fulfilling his dream of winning the 2015 Prudential RideLondon Handcycle Classic.

Kennaugh and Armitstead take National Road Race Titles

Peter Kennaugh and Lizzie Armitstead took the road race titles at today’s British Cycling National Road Championships in Lincolnshire.

Peter Kennaugh took his second successive British men’s road title in a remarkable race while Lizzie Armitstead delivered a stunning solo effort to win the women’s title.

Team Sky’s Kennaugh finally distanced a courageous Mark Cavendish on the ninth and final climb of Michaelgate in Lincoln. Ian Stannard completed the podium behind Cavendish.

After crosswinds saw the peloton ripped apart in the early stages, Kennaugh and Team Sky colleague Stannard escaped leaving Mark Cavendish, Luke Rowe, Scott Thwaites and Adam Blythe in pursuit.

Thwaites and Blythe dropped back before Luke Rowe decided to work with Cavendish to shut down the gap on his Team Sky associates with only three laps remaining.

They cut down the 40-second gap on the duo and bridged on Michaelgate – the eighth of nine ascents of the cobbles.

On the final 13-kilometre lap Stannard burst free but was caught before Kennaugh and Cavendish accelerated away leaving Rowe and 2012 champion Stannard to contest bronze.

It was fittingly left for the final climb of Michaelgate for the title to be decided and although Cavendish kept with Kennaugh the 26-year-old eventually pulled away to become the first British male to win back-to-back road titles since Roger Hammond in 2003 and 2004.

Team Wiggins’ Owain Doull impressed to finish seventh and with it take the under-23 men’s championship.

“The atmosphere is incredible and something I’ll never forget,” Kennaugh said.

“Obviously last year it meant everything – it was the first time – I’d been on the podium about four times before that so I really enjoyed this last year.

“I’m over the moon just to stay in white with my white bike and my white accessories!

“It means a lot to me and it gives you that extra motivation with that added pressure of carrying the jersey in the pro peloton – you can’t just get away with sitting at the back and stuff. You’re easily spotted.

“It’s good for the motivation – it’s good for the morale going forward for the rest of the year.”

Armitstead won her third British road title – after victories in 2011 and 2013 – with a solo attack on the penultimate climb of the famous Michaelgate. Alice Barnes, just 19 years of age, was second with Laura Trott third.

No rider was able to match Armitstead’s effort on the fourth of five times up the cobbled climb and the Boels Dolmans Cycling Team rider completed the last lap alone before crossing the finish line to the backdrop of Lincoln Cathedral.

“It means I get to be proud of being British in all the races that I do,” Armitstead said of being able to wear the British champion’s jersey.

“It means a lot – it means new kit for a start! I go to the Giro on Friday so it will be a quick turnaround for them.

“I had some good people around me before the start who told me to believe in myself and I listened.

“It was a difficult race. The longer the race went on the better I started to feel.”

Team Betch NL Superior-Brentjens rider Alice Barnes took a superb second, in her first elite road championships, to win the under-23 women’s champion title with defending champion Laura Trott, of Matrix Fitness, third.

While Armitstead savoured the win, behind her the race for silver and bronze came down to the final corners as Alice Barnes showed her huge potential in holding off the challenge of defending champion Laura Trott.

Full results from the women’s race can be found here and from the men’s race here.

Highlights of the championships will be broadcast on ITV4 at 6pm on Monday 29 June.

 

Women’s Top Ten

1 Lizzie Armitstead 02.51.14

2 Alice Barnes U23 @1.52

3 Laura Trott

4 Molly Weaver U23

5 Nikki Harris @2.01

6 Katie Archibald U23

7 Hannah Barnes U23

8 Lucy Coldwell

9 Sharon Laws

10 Hayley Simmonds

 

Men Top Ten

1 Peter Kennaugh 04.27.33

2 Mark Cavendish MBE @0.05

3 Ian Stannard @0.39

4 Luke Rowe

5 Scott Thwaites @3.00

6 Adam Blythe

7 Owain Doull U23 @6.29

8 Yanto Barker

9 Steve Lampier

10 Jonathon Mould

15 Sam Lowe U23 @8.26

18 Matt Gibson U23 @8.45

Yellow Jersey changes hands in Brighton, as Julien Vermote wins stage

15039353210_8ff59fb19a_z

Julien Vermote wins Stage Seven in Brighton

The drama continued in the Friends Life Tour of Britain as the Friends Life Yellow Jersey changed hands yet again, as the end of a thrilling stage to Brighton, won by Julien Vermote.

A trio of testing SKODA King of the Mountains climbs in the final 60-kilometres took their toll on the peloton, and Friends Life Yellow Jersey Alex Dowsett in particular, with the Movistar Team rider losing 2 minutes 34 seconds and falling to tenth place overall.

Garmin Sharp’s Dylan Van Baarle held on from the break to take third, behind Ignatas Konovalovas, but more importantly to become the sixth Friends Life Yellow Jersey of the week, taking a 19-second lead over Michal Kwiatowski into the final stage.

At the head of the stage it was Vermote, with the Omega Pharma Quick-Step rider attacking from the break on Ditchling Beacon and soloing to victory on Brighton’s Madeira Drive.

With the race behind splitting to pieces, it was an attack from Vermote’s teammate Kwiatkowski, also on Ditchling Beacon, that detached Dowsett and sent a 22-rider group away, including the likes of Bradley Wiggins, Nicolas Roche and Edoardo Zardini.

Dowsett, assisted by Giovanni Visconti, chased, but in vain and with no further help, as the Bear Road climb and fast descent to the finish prevented them from regaining contact.

Vermote was able to win alone, with Konovalovas and Van Baarle following him home, before Kwiatkowski led in the group for fourth, rejigging the Friends Life General Classification dramatically.

Dylan van Baarle, Friends Life Yellow Jersey

Dylan van Baarle, Friends Life Yellow Jersey

Speaking afterwards on his dramatic rise into the Friends Life Yellow Jersey, Van Baarle said, “I possibly went under the radar a bit I was still I think 14th in GC but they don’t know my name for now, and hopefully they will remember me.

“I’m really tired. It was a pretty hard day, we went almost from start to finish full gas and when I crossed the line i was completely dead.

“I started to think we might do it when we had ten minutes in the break. Then some DS said there were only two Movistar guys riding and then we held the pace really high. Then Julien [Vermote] said he wasn’t going to ride anymore because OPQS are chasing. At that moment me and Konovalovas went full gas to the finish line.

“Before the start of this race I knew that I wanted to show my name a little bit, show myself maybe get a top ten or top fifteen but I didn’t expect to be wearing the yellow jersey. Now I’m thinking about the podium or maybe winning.

“I like the short prologue distances for time-trial. I’m not a Wiggins that needs 50km or whatever. I’m more a prologue specialist. I will do my best and we will see what happens tomorrow. I don’t know how the legs will feel tomorrow for the other guys and it will be hard tomorrow.”

Van Baarle’s nearest challenger is Kwiatkowski, with the Polish time trial champion 19 seconds in arrears

“As you see, it’s hard racing here at Tour of Britain! The peloton couldn’t control this breakaway. Luckily we had a strong Julien Vermote there. He really deserves this win. He pulled so much for us, for me every single day and today he took a beautiful victory. Congratulations to him. We’re really happy about it.

“Of course, I wanted to also take back the yellow jersey but Van Baarle was still in front. It’s hard to control everything in a race. We accelerated on the second-to-last climb and dropped Dowsett, but it was hard to close the gap on the group between Vermote and us. But OK, I’m only 19″ down. There is the time trial tomorrow which I said earlier in this race that it would be important, even if it’s short. Anything can happen. I have done well on short time trials like the one of tomorrow. So we will see. But today we are going to celebrate the big victory of Julien.”

Having received the congratulations of his Omega Pharma Quick-Step teammates, including Mark Cavendish, immediately after the line, 25-year-old Vermote admitted he hadn’t been expect the result.

Julien Vermote wins Stage Seven

Julien Vermote winning the stage

“I’m pretty surprised I had the energy for a breakaway win to be honest. Only one day this week I didn’t ride at the front of the peloton because five days out of the six I was pulling for either Kwiatkowski or Cav. I had given my all every time but every day I seem to have recovered well and I have felt very strong.

“Today we didn’t mention me getting in the break at the team meeting but at the beginning of the stage Kwia rode up to me and said maybe it would be a good idea for me to get in the break if I was able. He thought that perhaps I would then be in a position to help him in the final stages if the peloton caught the break.

“I got in the break and I immediately felt good and when out lead went to ten minutes I remembered from the previous day how hard it is to chase down a break like that. We rode very well as a group but at 140-kilometres I stopped contributing because still my main thought was Kwia for GC back in the peloton. Anyway when we rode through the second last climb it was clear we would stay away so I started to ride full gas again and then I really wanted to win. I know my place in the team with all the great riders we have, I love to help them, but also I like to ride to get one victory for the team as well

“My teammates were so happy for me after the finish and it shows that the work I do for all of them, and the team, includes big rewards for myself too.”

In addition to the stage win, Omega Pharma Quick-Step’s third of the week, Vermote also took the Stage Seven Rouleur Combativity Award.

Reacting to losing the Friends Life Yellow Jersey, Dowsett said afterwards; “I was disappointed. I thought I woke up feeling pretty fresh, but as soon as we hit those climbs, I knew I was suffering. I got as much food down my neck as I could, and looked after myself as best as I could. The team were amazing today, it’s difficult because we had three guys up there on GC. With the finish being as hard as it was, we knew we needed a back-up plan. We didn’t want to be using Giovanni [Visconti] or [Ion] Izaguirre to work. But the gap to the break went out so much, and the other teams said if you don’t put one more guy up there, we won’t help. Visco had to do a lot of work late on, he tried to help me save it.

“It’s been a good week. Hopefully I’ll have a good TT tomorrow. One minute is a lot to make up in 8km. I’ve worn yellow, and when I came into yesterday I didn’t expect that. It’s been a nice race, Friends Life have put a lot of effort into thiss, and Mick Bennett has produced one of the best Tour of Britain’s yet.”

Elsewhere An Post Chain Reaction rider Mark McNally sealed the SKODA King of the Mountains jersey, with a 21-point lead over double stage winner Matthias Brandle.  The Liverpudlian, who took the jersey in his home city on Stage One, still has to finish the London stages, but with no categorised SKODA King of the Mountains climbs, McNally is poised to keep the jersey for the entire week.

The destination of the YodelDirect Sprints Jersey, sponsored by parcel delivery company Yodel, will be decided in London, on lap five of the final circuit race, with just current wearer Sebastian Lander of BMC Racing and Dowsett in contention.  The Movistar Team rider is two points behind the Dane, with three points for the winner of the final YodelDirect Sprint.

The Friends Life Tour of Britain concludes in central London on Sunday, with a split stage including an 8.8 kilometre individual time trial before the traditional ten lap circuit race.
Great Britain’s Chris Lawless will get the time trial underway at 11:01, with riders heading off at one-minute intervals, including Steve Cummings at 11:52 and Mark Cavendish at 12:05, before the top ten riders go at two-minute intervals, led by Alex Dowsett at 12:39, with Friends Life Yellow Jersey Dylan Van Baarle last off at 12:57.

The full time trial start list is available here.

Highlights of Stage Seven are on ITV4 at 2000 on Saturday 13 September, with live coverage of Stage 8b and highlights of the Stage 8a individual time trial from 1500 on Sunday on ITV4. Full details of the television coverage of the Friends Life Tour of Britain, including British Eurosport’s live coverage, can be found here.

For full Stage Seven results, click here.

Kittel wins stage one of Friends Life Tour of Britain in Liverpool

KittelStageOneWinToB2014

Marcel Kittel claimed his fourth win in five races in the UK this year when he took flight under the Liver Birds down the Strand in Liverpool for victory in the opening stage of the Friends Life Tour of Britain.

The German outsprinted Nicola Ruffoni and Mark Cavendish in Liverpool, to win the stage and take the race lead and the first Friends Life Yellow Jersey of 2014.

The powerful Giant Shimano rider, making his debut in the race, has now tasted success in Belfast at the Giro d’Italia and took two of the three stages held in Britain during the Tour de France Depart as well as this latest win in Liverpool.

Kittel outsprinted Ruffoni and Cavendish, although it was Adam Blythe who had led the initial dash for the line, but the NFTO rider faded to finish well down the order.

Although finishing third, for Mark Cavendish it was another painful day on British roads in a season where ill fortune has increasingly dogged him.  Having already experienced a bizarre delay with a cleat problem on lap three of the 13.8km circuit, he then crashed three laps from the end after he and lead-out man Mark Renshaw were hurrying back to the peloton following a comfort break. Riding in the shadows on a blindingly sunny afternoon they went into the back of a team car and both fell to earth.

Both remounted and rode hard to regain contact with the peloton who slowed slightly to ease that process but Renshaw indicated he wouldn’t be able to help at the finish so Cavendish was alone at the death, narrowly beating Garmin Sharp’s Tyler Farrar for fourth.

Kittel meanwhile enjoyed a relatively drama free race although his team’s decision to hug the right hand barriers down the finishing straight was perhaps fortuitous thereby missing the disruption down the left caused by Ian Stannard’s spectacular crash, in the closing kilometre.

MarcelKittelToB2014“It was pretty messy but luckily we took the decision to stay right,” said Marcel Kittel following the stage.  “To start with I thought perhaps it was the wrong decision – we had  made it earlier in the race – because there were not too many gaps but then there was a crash on the left and that allowed us to move up to the front.

“Tom Veelers did a really good job keeping me out of the wind so I could save myself for the sprint and that made it possible. I don’t know how badly Mark [Cavendish] was hurt in the crash I didn’t see it but he still tried to sprint at the end.

“It is hard work with just six man teams. We saw that today When Mark crashed and the bunch stopped riding for a while – so we then had to work hard to get the breakaway back, luckily Sky helped us.”

Kittel clearly loves the British roads, while if you include his second Giro stage win in Dublin that is now five wins in six races in the UK and Ireland.

“I am really happy to see all the fans here and to get a warm welcome, it’s been pretty successful here for me.  Maintaining the form has been hard. The season is long, I started at the Tour Down Under in January and here I am at Tour of Britain nine months later. And I will be riding in the Team Time Trial at the World Championships and a couple of races after that.

“I have definitely had ups and down. It’s  really about keeping fresh and enjoying the time – sometimes I go mountain biking and just having some fun with the team and not to be too serious.”

The large Liverpool crowds also had some home success to cheer, with An Post Chain Reaction’s Mark McNally in the day’s break, collecting the SKODA King of the Mountains jersey.

MarkMcNallyToB2014“It was a nice day out – I probably had too many friends and relatives out there to count – my girlfriend, the whole gang. The plan was for one of us in the team in the team to go for the breakaway. That always has to be the aim on the first stage.  The first time I let the other guys in the break fight it out for the Sprints and it worked out quite nicely for me in the KOM. It’s local roads for me in Stage Two so I will be up for the breakaway again buts it’s a long week. We will see how it goes” 
 
McNally was joined in the break by fellow North West rider Richard Handley, of Rapha Condor JLT andNFTO Pro Cycling’s Jon Mould, plus Bardiani CSF’s Sonny Colbrelli who initiated the break, earning the day’s Rouleur Combativity Award, and the first YodelDirect Sprint Jersey of the week.

MarkCavendishToB2014Speaking afterwards to his Omega Pharma Quick-Step team, Mark Cavendish said; “I was coming back after and I was behind a car. Someone had to stop for a puncture so the car slammed on its brakes, and there was an island in the road. If I went right, I would hit a traffic island, so I went left and I whacked another car. I hit it with my left leg and I was down on the road. I felt immediately a lot of pain on my quadriceps. It took me a lap to come back even because our team car couldn’t assist me immediately because it was on the front. At that point I wasn’t planning to sprint either, it was painful. But after a couple of laps we decided to just try anyway, but sprint seated because I was in pain. I still got third, but it’s a shame because I really wanted to try and win in front of the British public. But accidents like this are a part of cycling and it’s just a matter of bad luck. I really hope that the luck turns in the next days…”

Stage Two sees the Friends Life Tour of Britain remain on Merseyside with Knowsley hosting the start of the second day of racing.  Riders will then tackle a 200-kilometre day through North
Wales, finishing on Llandudno seafront after a challenging finale, which includes a SKODA King of the Mountains climb on the Great Orme.

Highlights of Stage One are on ITV4 at 2100 on Sunday 7 September, with live coverage resuming from 1300 on Monday on ITV4, for Stage Two from Knowsley to Llandudno.  Full details of the television coverage of the Friends Life Tour of Britain, including British Eurosport’s live coverage, can be found here.

Press Release – Cavendish Leads Classic Field

  jpeg
• Mark Cavendish headlines Prudential RideLondon-Surrey Classic
• New status and tougher route in 2014
• Race to be shown live on BBC 1
Former World Champion and 25-time Tour de France stage winner Mark Cavendish will lead the line-up in the Prudential RideLondon-Surrey Classic on Sunday 10 August, part of the Mayor of London’s multi-award winning annual festival of cycling.
The Manx cyclist will lead his Omega Pharma Quick-Step team in the event, which has been awarded 1.HC status (the second-highest international classification) by the UCI, the international cycling federation, in only its second year, and takes place on a new, tougher route this year.
Changes to the men’s pro race route will see the 200-kilometre racing start at 13:00 and focus on multiple circuits in the Surrey Hills. The changes include two climbs through Denbies Vineyard to Ranmore Common and the introduction of additional sections of the 2012 Olympic Road Race route, such as the climb of Staple Lane over the North Downs near Guildford.
The race will be covered live on BBC1 and shown internationally in more than 160 countries.
Cavendish will arrive at Prudential RideLondon from the Tour de France, where he’ll be setting his sights on winning the green points jersey, which he won in 2011.
“I’m excited to be riding in the Prudential RideLondon-Surrey Classic for the first time this year,” says Cavendish. “It’s another opportunity to race in front of the amazing crowds in Britain. Coming after the Tour de France and Commonwealth Games, more and more people are going to be at the roadside cheering us on and wanting to be a part of the weekend.”
 
“The whole event just shows the growth of cycling in Britain, so it will be great to be a part of it with my Omega Pharma Quick-Step team. We know it’s a challenging route, but we also know it’s one that can end in a sprint finish, which should suit the team and me.”
The 2013 British Champion will headline a 150-rider field comprised of 25 teams of six riders, including Cavendish’s current world number-one-ranked team Omega Pharma Quick-Step. Further details of the remaining teams and the world-class field of riders for the Prudential RideLondon-Surrey Classic will be announced in the coming weeks.
 “We are delighted to welcome Mark Cavendish and his Omega Pharma Quick-Step team to the Prudential RideLondon-Surrey Classic,” said Race Director Mick Bennett. “The fact that he and his team have chosen to ride the event, and our elevation to Hors Categorie status for 2014, underlines Prudential RideLondon’s status as the world’s greatest festival of cycling.”
 
“This year we have looked at the route and made some significant changes to the race in the Surrey Hills, with the addition of the climb through Denbies Vineyard, an exciting and innovative change that we feel will benefit both spectators and riders.”
The Prudential RideLondon-Surrey Classic starts at Queen Elizabeth Olympic Park, goes out through central London and into Surrey with the main route changes taking place in the Surrey Hills. Fans are invited to watch the race at spectator vantage points along the route including Kingston, Wimbledon, Putney and Dorking.
First riders will tackle the climb of Staple Lane, a new addition to the 2014 route, before heading into Dorking and the climb of Coldharbour and Leith Hill.
After returning to Dorking the race will tackle two circuits of the ascent through Denbies Vineyard, before racing back through Dorking and on to Box Hill. The more direct route used by the London 2012 road race, via Leatherhead, Oxshott and Esher, will see the distance from the final climb to the finish shortened, bringing in to play a greater tactical element as the sprinters’ teams battle to bring back any breakaways.
The last 25km of the race features the recently renovated Ancient Market Place in Kingston, a new sprint up Wimbledon Hill, the Chelsea Embankment, Tate Britain, Westminster Abbey and the Houses of Parliament and Whitehall. The final kilometre marker at Downing Street will see the race intensify as the peloton speeds to Trafalgar Square, through Admiralty Arch and the final sprint for the line on The Mall in front of Buckingham Palace.
The Prudential RideLondon-Surrey Classic is the fifth and final event of the Mayor of London’s Prudential RideLondon festival of cycling over the weekend of 9-10 August.
An extensive communications campaign is already underway to help businesses and the public plan and get around on the day, as well as make the most of the events over the weekend. Since May, information has been sent to more than 1 million residents and businesses along and close to the event routes to help them plan ahead – further information will follow in July. A series of public information sessions will be held next month in the affected areas to provide details of the temporary changes in place and to offer residents and businesses the opportunity to ask questions. Information on travel disruption and advice is available on www.tfl.gov.uk/prudentialridelondon. To avoid delays, wherever possible all drivers are advised to avoid areas near the event routes.

Subscribe for 10% Discount!

Join our mailing list to receive the latest cycling news and updates from our team. Receive 10% off your first order placed in our online shop!

You have Successfully Subscribed!