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Tour of Northern Europe Discussion
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| knockout |
Posted on 09-05-2023 13:26
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Grand Tour Champion
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Boring flat stage. In an ideal world, Thijssen joins the sprint but cant blame him for not doing so (at least in the context of only ten sprinters properly sprinting most of the time).
The next stage with a ton of cobbles will be crucial as Polanc is already in a good gc position but with Van Baarle, Oliveira and Cavagna ahead there is even the chance to further improve it if its the right degree of selective racing
A Big Thank You To All MG Reporters! |
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| SotD |
Posted on 10-05-2023 06:23
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World Champion
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That went significantly better than expected. Losing 3-4 minutes for Kiriakidis and Miltiadis is aproximately the half of what I would have though. I was even thinking between 10-15 minutes. Especially for Kiriakidis.
Stavrakakis with a decent stage result aswell, although he was close to an actual result.
The Huy stage is probably too difficult for Kiriakidis and Miltiadis to stay where they are, but fingers crossed and all that. Now to see if Farantakis can be bothered to sprint.
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| Ad Bot |
Posted on 24-11-2024 17:24
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| Croatia14 |
Posted on 10-05-2023 08:15
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Directeur Sportif
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Why on earth are we chasing and not attacking?
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| Nemolito |
Posted on 10-05-2023 08:17
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See, if Zepuntke hadn't wasted energy yesterdat, he could have won today  Pleasant surprise to see him get a second place in the end, woth nice domestique work by Ulloa and Pira in the break. Summerhill might have tried just a bit too hard, too soon. Fun to have Ruben wearing green tomorrow.
Thanks for the report, redordad, and congratulations on the win to Mresuperstar!
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| OlegTinkov |
Posted on 10-05-2023 08:38
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Funny, now please post the real report  , you know where guys like Senechal and Kamyshev don't finish outside the top-100!!!
Edited by OlegTinkov on 10-05-2023 15:55
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| alexkr00 |
Posted on 10-05-2023 08:51
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World Champion
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And all the GC guys ride together like the good pals that they are.
Really disappointing stage. It looks like it's still the time - trialists that end up dominating this race as long as they can go over speed bumps and city cobblestones.
The worst part is that actual good cobblers were dropped, while guys with stats in the 60s stayed with the main group.
Edited by alexkr00 on 10-05-2023 08:59
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| Fabianski |
Posted on 10-05-2023 09:03
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It's unfortunately nothing new that cobbled stages in stage races work out completely differently than they would as classics. At least PCM18/20 can't handle those in a meaningful way. Which obviously sucks big time for those who sent their top cobblers, but imho it's nothing new. Some like LPH or cycleYorkshire were lucky to have their cobblers join the BotD, others weren't.
But I think it'd be a good idea to discuss where we want to go with races like this one or Benelux. I think the idea of having an open race between TTers, puncheurs and cobblers sounds great, but PCM just can't handle them. So why not have one for TTers/puncheurs and a separate stage race for cobblers, a bit like Faso.
Congrats nonetheless to Zwift (although Dewulf confirms that cobbles skills can be neglected), and all other stage winners. And thanks to red for the reports so far, great job as always
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| knockout |
Posted on 10-05-2023 11:44
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Grand Tour Champion
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Such a huge and strong break... Glad it had somewhat limited impact on the gc. now its all about the final stage and hoping that Polanc can do well on the way to Huy. But i trust his climbing skills...
A Big Thank You To All MG Reporters! |
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| ember |
Posted on 10-05-2023 11:45
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Team Leader
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Thank you for the report, red!
And yeah, Fabianski is right, but it's definitely the hope that kills you Every year, this stage looks to be interesting, and this year especially with the route change, hopes were higher for a decisive, at least challenging, stage. We got none of it, which is unfortunate and disappointing. I'm very much for his idea of making the PT stage race including cobbles a very clear stage race for cobblers.
Now it comes down to the TT, how well different riders defended themselves on the first hilly stage, but very much how they can defend/attack on the final stage, which looks to be quite a bit more difficult for a hilly stage. Wisniowski is no longer among the GC favourites here, and if he can hold on to the podium, I'll be very, very happy. |
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| Mresuperstar |
Posted on 10-05-2023 12:07
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Didn't know Stan had that in him. Probably not the most deserved result but we will take whatever we can get this season. Thanks for the reports! 
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| SotD |
Posted on 11-05-2023 05:48
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World Champion
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Well, atleast Farantakis tried…
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| ember |
Posted on 11-05-2023 07:46
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Another flat stage survived without any bad luck, which is good! Would be very cool to see Wisniowski attack and be aggressive on such stages, but I guess that’s next to impossible without an extra ingredient, like wind or bad weather.
Thank you for the report, red! |
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| cio93 |
Posted on 11-05-2023 17:17
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Looking very good for Cavagna so far!
A great TT followed by attentive rides over the hills and cobbles to sit in p5 so far.
Stage 7 is tougher than stage 2 though, so a lot of work is still to be done to take that home.
I'm hopeful that his high GC position will continue to be advantageous though.
Furthermore, Meiler has done a decent job on all terrains too to be in the Top 20 atm, and our loanee Bissegger had a good couple of stages until the cobbles hit!
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| SotD |
Posted on 12-05-2023 07:26
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World Champion
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If we want better sprint scenarios, we really need to stop putting intermediate sprints 10km from the line. It makes no sense...
Farantakis 7th is about right, not a lot of succes from him, but atleast he showed that he was here.
Now to mess up the GC!
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| alexkr00 |
Posted on 12-05-2023 07:45
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Sadly, Van Poppel finishes what has been quite a good season for him with 2 disappointing sprint results.
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| roturn |
Posted on 12-05-2023 08:09
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So De Bie is still in for a great performance on the final hill stage. Can improve quite a bit there. Must hope for a hard stage by all puncheurs obviously so that the gaps are big.
It`s a bit of a pity that De Bie failed to do better on the first hill stage, where he went too early.
In the end the total points here might not be as high as needed, but still a win on the final day and going up as high as possible in the GC is what we are here for. |
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| Nemolito |
Posted on 12-05-2023 08:10
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Classics Specialist
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Final sprint for loanee Abdul Halil in our colours, and it was definitely one of his better ones. Nothing to be done about a strong Hsu, so happy with a second place by him. Thanks for the report, rad!
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| cunego59 |
Posted on 12-05-2023 10:54
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I didn't expect too much from Stallaert on a course like this, but 9th from the bottom in the GC is kinda funny Not an ideal end to his otherwise almost flawless season, but luckily one that doesn't matter too much. At least we're a consistent presence in breakaways, Moise Mugisha is doing a fine job!
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| cio93 |
Posted on 12-05-2023 12:58
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World Champion
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King Power going for second overall! Cavagna really has to stay with the main group tomorrow, but I'm optimistic.
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| ember |
Posted on 12-05-2023 17:12
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Team Leader
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It comes down to the Queen stage, then. Please surprise me, Wisniowski!
Well done, Bikex, Hsu is a great sprinter, very often performing great. Congratulations on the stage! |
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