About this story
This is a story about a custom team, Le Coq Sportif Pro Cycling, which I will be the sports director of. The team is based in France and I have handpicked 10 young riders (age 18-21) from the Young Riders list, all with an AVR from 61-68, and all on minimum salary contracts. Due to how I plan to write this story, this may be all the "numbers" you will ever see
A few things I would like to point out. First of all, this is my first attempt at a story. I appreciate constructive criticism (what's good, how can I improve crappy parts) but go easy on the noob! I might be moving at a slow pace, but that's mainly because I play slow, playing every stage and race in full.
Secondly, I try to approach the career and the story in a realistic way. That said, one must remember that this is a game and things can happen in the game world that wouldn't necessarily happen in the real world. Maybe Le Coq Sportif would never be interested in sponsoring a small continental team and they certainly wouldn't if I was the sports director, but that's why we have games. To make the impossible become possible
Thirdly, considering the AVR of my riders and the difficulty level, you will quickly understand that we're not aiming for any promotion in the near future. This is a story about a team that wanted to find and develop young french riders and hopefully get them signed to some of the major teams. Of course, a promotion possibility could present itself down the road, but that's not the initial goal with my team. Hopefully I can make finishing 40th interesting
Technical stuff: I play on extreme difficulty with Random potentials (whatever that is..) and the Evolution of attributes at 0.4. I also use the PCMdaily Expansion pack V2.
Coming up; The Prologue
Edited by Ollie23 on 26-07-2015 10:43
November 15th, 2013 Norwegian to head up new Continental development team in 2014
After months of planning and negotiating, Le Coq Sportif revealed in a press release last week that they would sponsor a new french Continental team. Their goal, as stated in the press release, is to «find and develop french, talented riders and give them a chance at a professional cycling career». The charitable intentions from a major producer of sports clothing is seen by many as an image campaign as they seek to establish themselves as the number 1 provider to young people across Europe.
But for most critics, this sponsorship is seen as something positive, another way for young french riders to break into the professional world of cycling. their intentions seem honest and sincere – they've already signed two top coaches, the well-known and respected Jean Philippe Rouxel, a frenchman known for developing climbers and stage riders, and Italian Simone Borgheresi who’s strenghts lie in developing sprinters and punchers. Working with top trainers at a daily level is a luxury reserved for only a few, and Le Coq Sportif increases that number.
Today, Le Coq Sportif Pro Cycling, revealed that their Sports Director for the next three years will be Norwegian Ole Lauritz Hagen, who goes by the nickname ‘Ollie’. Ollie has been working with Le Coq Sportif for the last six months getting the new team up running, signing the staff and finalizing the deal with Le Coq Sportif, and by many this is seen as Ollie’s big project. It was therefore expected that he would be kept on as Sports Director when the new team was launched, but it wasn’t made official until he signed a three-year contract this morning.
Ollie started out as a trainer in Norway when his own cycling career was cut short due to a knee injury which made it impossible for him to keep riding at a high level. He opted out and instead started to coach young teenagers before moving on to coaching U23 riders. He has since worked for several teams across Europe and had short stints as assistant Sports Director in Norwegian teams Team Joker and Sparebanken Sør. His work with younger riders is highly respected and he is seen as a great motivator and leader. He believes in treating his riders as responsible adults, let them dream big and aim high, but at the same time keeps the riders’ feet firmly planted on the ground.
What worries people around the team is his lack of experience from the Continental division, especially now that he’s given full control over his own team. His media skills could be put to work early on in a critical french media environment but if his relationship to Norwegian media is anything to go by, french journalists will like him. He’s already learning french so at least he’s preparing.
In this morning’s press conference which followed a few hours after the initial press release, Ollie repeated that Le Coq Sportif will be a development team, a team focused on finding and training french riders. He categorically denied any ambition to be promoted.
«Of course, if we want to keep developing, keep getting better and grow as a team, somewhere down the road we will have to consider promotion and whether or not we want to go for it, but at this point we have no such goal. First and foremost we need to establish ourselves in the Continental division and be the team we want to be – a team that supplies great young riders to the big teams.»
By signing a three-year contract, his contract will expire the same season as the sponsor deal with Le Coq Sportif expires.
December 28th, 2013 Le Coq Sportif Pro Cycling announce their 2014 squad and jersey
[img-r]https://c1.staticflickr.com/1/558/18883334104_bbe062e8ba_m.jpg[/img-r]The stylish black and blue jersey will be worn by Le Coq Sportif's riders in 2014. It was launched this fall as part of a PR campaign that was meant to increase interest in the team and the upstarting project. According to the marketing at Le Coq Sportif they have since been working on several different models in different colors, but in the end they decided to stick with the original as they thought changing jerseys now would confuse rather than promote.
We've been anxiously awaiting the announcement of the Le Coq Sportif Continental team for 2014 and yesterday the 10-man squad was up on their website. We stayed up all night just to bring you our thoughts on the team and the riders.
Pierrick Chevillard, 18 years old, Stage racer
178 cm, 60 kg
Ollie said in an interview earlier that he saw 4 potential stage racers and captains in his 10-man squad and Pierrick might be the most talented of them all. The 18-year old from Burgundy is quick up the mountain side and fearless downhill. He can deliver a good time trial and can keep his form and freshness through longer stage races. He needs to develop in every category to be a serious threat in a professional stage race, something that is expected of all these young riders, but Pierrick is certainly a diamond in the rough.
Michaël Cohen, 18 years old, Stage racer
178 cm, 62 kg
Just like Chevillard, Cohen is seen as someone who can take the next step up as a stage racer and captain at a high level. Tons of potential and is already at an impressive level considering his young age. Both Chevillard and Cohen will be exciting to watch in 2014.
Marius Mourot, 18 years old, Stage racer
173 cm, 54 kg
Four stage racers in one squad might seem excessive, but both Mourot and Poisson can help in different areas while they continue to develop. Mourot might be the best climber in the team, but he's not built for long stage races yet which is why he's rated lower than Chevillard and Cohen and will function as their helper in most races this season. That said, Mourot will most likely be allowed to enter stage races as captain already this season due to the length of the season and the small squad. Additionally, he needs to become a much better time trialist, but he has ton of potential.
Adrien Poisson, 18 years old, Stage racer
178 cm, 61 kg
As mentioned, both Poisson and Mourot will most likely have different roles this season than pure captains and stage riders, and just like Mourot Poisson can also be put to good use helping Chevillard and Cohen up the mountains. Fast downhill and he is a better time trialist than people think. Has a lot of the physical traits needed to survive longer stage races, but needs a lot of development before taking the next step. Could be named captain in some races this season already.
Lucien Chateau, 21 years old, Sprinter
181 cm, 80 kg
A talented sprinter who still lacks some explosiveness and top speed to win stages at the Continental level, but with coaching from Borgheresi that might not be the case in 2014. Lucien ticks all the important boxes; he has decent acceleration and is good in the flats. He's tough and doesn't back down on cobblestone and could outrun some riders downhill. As mentioned he still needs to develop before he can take that final and crucial step.
Pierrick Lhermitte, 18 years old, Sprinter
186 cm, 88 kg
Lhermitte is a bigger rider, listed as a sprinter who could also be an important fighter on flat stages. Will most likely be the one who delivers Chateau, but there's not too much difference between the two sprinters. Just like Chateau, Lhermitte lacks explosiveness and top speed and won't be a threat at the Continental level without some more development.
Johan Baudot, 21 years old, Puncher
181 cm, 85 kg
Johan has showed his potential as a fighter but Ollie expressed yesterday at the announcement that he sees Baudot as more of a Puncher. In any case, the 21-year old will be a rider the captain will appreciate. He's quick on cobblestone and on the flats and can sit with the peloton over mountains and hills. He could contribute in a sprint train, but he will most likely stay close to the captain and supply the rest of the team with food and water.
Wladimir Froment, 21 years old, Puncher
192 cm, 80 kg
One of the weaker riders in this team in our opinion. He's listed as a puncher, but we expect Baudot will deliver most of the punches this year. Froment certainly has potential, but he's struggled the last few seasons to live up to it. Maybe a professional contract and professional coaching is what Froment needs to launch his career?
Fernando Fouillet, 18 years old, Fighter
185 cm, 73 kg
One of our favorite young riders the last couple of years! He might not win many races, but he's aggressive, always tries to get in a breakaway and he never backs down. He'll keep those legs churning 'till they come off if necessary. On top of that, Fouillet is a well-rounded rider with no particular weaknesses so we're very excited to see how he'll turn out in the hands of professional trainers. He's got lots of talent and has shown steady progression the last few years. The toughest 18-year old in any race, any day!
Mickael Castan, 19 years old, Fighter
A fighter in the hilly parts of stages, but he struggles to keep a good pace in the flats and at the Continental level he'll most likely fall off when the good teams start riding hard in front. Has a lot of developing to do before he can perform well even at the Continental level, but he has a great attitude and he never goes down without a fight. One of the weaker riders in this team, but Ollie must see a lot of potential in him to give him a chance. And a contract.
Overall, we don't expect to see much from Le Coq Sportif this year. They don't have riders who can win stages or stage races and we expect them to be rather quiet in the peloton, not having strong enough riders to set the pace of the peloton. Hopefully their two captains, Cohen and Chevillard can keep up in the mountains and fight for a top 10 or top 20 spot in the stage races but looking over the team, we understand why Ollie has been so keen on lowering expectations.
Oh, and we are looking forward to seeing madman Fernando Fouillet take on the Continental division on his own!
Le Coq Confirm First Quarter Schedule
The cycling season is fast approaching and the professional teams are announcing the races they will participate in during the first three months of the season. The last schedule made official comes from the newly started Le Coq Sportif team. Ollie was not able to get his new team into any of the 1.HC/2.HC races in the first quarter of the season, but he hopes they’ll get an invitation at a later stage.
The schedule for the first three months is then sprinkled with a few more one-day races; the hilly Classic Sud Ardèche - Souvenir Francis Delpech, Paris - Troyes and Cholet - Pays De Loire, while the sprinters will be tested in the flatter GP Ville de Lillers - Souvenir Bruno Comini and Classic Loire Atlantique.
Asked to comment on the team’s first schedule, Ollie stressed that people shouldn’t have high expectations.
«We’re just getting our team together, learning to know each other and figuring out our roles in the team. We have a very young team who needs time to develop. Our primary focus for this season is to do just that; develop in training under tutelage of two great coaches and learning through racing at a Continental level.»
Asked whether he was concerned about the media pressure that follows a french cycling club, he said:
«No, not at all. Actually I appreciate it. I love the fact that there is so much interest in our team and in cycling in general.»
Ollie has been quoted several times on what could be seen as lowering expectations to his new team. If it’s meant to take the pressure of his riders or to save his own job if they can’t deliver good results, only time will tell.
Would just like to add that as you can tell from the style of writing this story is told from the perspective of local journalists following a local team and it's therefore written in the style of articles that would feature on their cycling news website. That also means that you guys are more than welcome to participate.
Mainly, what I'm thinking is that as journalists follow this team around and report on whatever they're doing, they will get the opportunity to interview the riders and the SD from time to time. If you have any questions you wanna ask a particular rider or the SD, feel free to ask in the comments and I'll try to include it in a future post.
The other way you can contribute is more from a "fan perspective". I'll try to give the riders their own personality (at least a few of them) and style of riding (smart, aggressive, arrogant, not willing to pull his weight and so on) and I would love it if you, "the fans", comes up with nicknames and I'll try to include that in future articles and maybe even get the riders' comment on their new nicknames. It would be preferable though if a few of you agreed on a nickname that fits rather than coming up with 15 different ones
Good idea or terrible?
PS: I'll separate comments from the story with italics just to separate my comments from the story if that's ok.
February 2nd, 2014 Grand Prix la Marseillaise
After a 7-day training camp in Alcamo, Italy, today was the start of the racing season for new outfit Le Coq Sportif Pro Cycling. The 138.9 kms long race featured several climbs and was seen as a challenging race for the young guns at Le Coq Sportif, but what they lacked in ability they made up for in aggressivity.
Not only did Fernando Fouillet attack several times and play an important part in reeling in the breakaway towards the end of the race, both Cohen and Chateau got away in their own little two-man breakaway up a hill. In addition, as the peloton tried to reel in the breakaway, Le Coq Sportif were riding in front for some time, narrowing the gap before the stronger teams took over.
In the end S.Colbrelli of Bardiani CSF won the mass sprint that featured everyone except 8 riders who had dropped of. Fernando Fouillet went with a group of 10 riders with just a few kilometers to go, but he didn’t have much left in his legs and had to see half the peloton pass him before he glided across the finish line in 70th.
Ollie had the following to say after the race:
«It was a good test for us and definitely gave us a lot of answers. We wanted to be up there, aggressive and test our strenght compared to some good teams and riders. I’m proud of what my riders did today. I think they wore the jersey well and got noticed. We have to start at the bottom and earn the respect of the peloton and the way we attacked and the way we put in an effort in reeling in the breakaway I think was noticed.»
The young riders’ next chance to be noticed is at the Etoile de Bessèges which starts in just three days.
February 9th, 2014 Etoile de Bessèges proves tough challenge
The first stage race for the newly started Le Coq Sportif was going to be a tough challenge that got of on the wrong foot already on stage 1 when their captain, Pierrick Chevillard, hit the pavement and lost several minutes to the peloton. His teammates fought hard to bring him back up, but he was in pain and when the front of the pack upped the speed to catch the breakaway, he couldn't stay with them. Instead, Ollie had to change tactics on the fly and made sure his team was able to bring Mickaël Cohen to the finish line without losing any time to the leaders.
Stage 2 featured a couple of breakaway attempts from Fernando Fouillet, but he was unable to get away. Chevillard decided to start stage 2 despite the crash and being 7 minutes behind the leaders was allowed to test his legs in the mountain climbs. He didn't create a gap, but he lead the peloton at a high pace to the top which forced some riders to drop off the back. The stage featured four short but steep climbs in the last 20 kms and Captain Mickaël Cohen, who looked tired and struggled to keep up with the pack, looked to be the second captain in two days to lose the leaders. Enter Fouillet. Having attacked several times already on today's stage he shouldn't have had too much energy left in his legs, but he rode like his life depended on it and gave Cohen a wheel to stick to as he brought his captain to the finish line.
Stage 3 was rather uneventful for us who follow Le Coq Sportif and it was all about healing wounds and tired legs and making sure Cohen stayed at the same time as the rest of the leaders. On stage 4 our boys in blue sat at the front, setting the pace and reeling in the breakaway only to be left behind when the finale started. Sitting at the front all day took it's toll on young legs and Cohen couldn't keep up. He came in 3 minutes behind the winner and would lose another 2 minutes and 38 seconds on the short, but challenging stage 5. A frantic pace kept the peloton stretched thin all day and several teams and plenty of riders had to let the better teams go.
Overall the Etoile de Bessèges didn't go quite as Ollie had hoped, their highest placed rider coming in at 64th, 3'28'' behind the winner, but as Ollie stated "it was a good learning experience and we'll try our best to improve in the next one."
The writing is really good, I appreciate it.
But for this writing I guess it is need a little bit pictures, like 3-4 for each post. (Podium/Finish/Crash screenshots and else)
It would be perfect.
#FREELANDA #FREELIA MISSION ACCOMPLISHED
emre99's stages Thread of the Week : Tour of California 2014 -Official PCM World Cup 2016, 10th best keirin player in the world PCM.daily Awards : 2 Nominee 0 Award
Daily Song Contest WINNER! With Foals - Mountain at my Gates with Greece! 1 like 1 girlfriend ''I call you the stage god. You are the stage god.'' -baseballover312, 15.07.2016
I will definitely include more pictures in the future. It's something that I wanted to do right away but couldn't figure out a good way to do. I think I know now though.
*Always convert the .png files to .jpeg files as they are much more easier to load. Especially for a slow internet guy!
#FREELANDA #FREELIA MISSION ACCOMPLISHED
emre99's stages Thread of the Week : Tour of California 2014 -Official PCM World Cup 2016, 10th best keirin player in the world PCM.daily Awards : 2 Nominee 0 Award
Daily Song Contest WINNER! With Foals - Mountain at my Gates with Greece! 1 like 1 girlfriend ''I call you the stage god. You are the stage god.'' -baseballover312, 15.07.2016
I tried using Grabber to take screenshots but it's a bit dated and not too easy to work with so I'm looking for something else. But for now I can use ctrl + T. Thanks again! (and I'll remember to convert the files )
No one expected anything from this team on todays time trial either, a grueling 18.6 kms long stage with two hill climbs that would seriously test the rider's legs after having completed three stages already at a frantic pace.
But Sports Director Ollie was in a very good mood after having seen his young captain Mickaël Cohen deliver an impressive time trial where he finished just 1 minute behind the much more experienced and stronger rider, winner Rigoberto Urán (Omega Pharma - Quick-Step). His time, 28'27'', was enough for 37th place, 10th among young riders and he was just seconds behind the likes of Romain Bardet (AG2R La Mondiale) and Anton Vorobyev (Team Katusha).
"I'm very happy with the performance," Ollie said after the stage. "He's an 18 year old kid who took the lead at the finish line and saw quite a few riders finish behind him. I saw some guys with wide eyes wondering who this kid was."
We mentioned in our evaluation of the squad before the season that Adrien Poisson was a better time trialist than most people think or give him credit for. Today he showed that potential, finishing 16 seconds behind his teammate Cohen and 17th among the young riders.
In what has been a tough challenge with few bright spots for Le Coq Sportif, they'll count today as a ray of sunshine.
sutty68 wrote:
Good Luck with this Ollie but you need more pictures to try and make the story come to life a bit more.
I will. The problem is that I don't have any screenshots from races yet as I've just figured out how to do so and I'm a bit further along in my career in game than in this story. So just stick with me for a few more race updates and pictures will come!
Edit: Btw, I've read through a lot of your Novo Nordisk story and it's really great. The style of reporting and pictures and everything is really good. I don't I'll get to that level! Edited by Ollie23 on 09-07-2015 15:56
It had cost him a lot to catch the breakaway but Fouillet was still taking leads trying to maintain the gap, but now the peloton had awaken and where starting to catch up. Up the next hill climb the breakaway was caught.
Captain Chevillard had a calm day for the first 100 kms but when the peloton upped the tempo he used a lot of energy trying to keep up which meant that when the front group set off in an attempt to win the stage, Chevillard dropped behind and couldn't follow the best up the last climb to the finish line. Leader Rigoberto Urán (Omega Pharma - Quick-Step) broke the rest of the pack and won the stage and the yellow jersey.
For Le Coq Sportif, the tour was a disappointment. Pierrick Chevillard finished all the way down in 115th, 10'33'' behind Urán, 29th among young riders, 8'52'' behind Sergey Chernetskiy (Team Katusha).
[center]Next Race:
February 22nd-23rd Tour du Haut VarEdited by Ollie23 on 09-07-2015 23:04
I was excited about finally including pictures from the actual races here, but when I uninstalled a program, all the pictures disappeared and I can't find them! I'm now just using steam to take screenshots, but sadly there will be a few more races updates without pictures. Sorry about that!Edited by Ollie23 on 09-07-2015 17:22
February 22nd-23rd Tour du Haut Var - Too Tough for Le Coq Sportif
Stage 1
Stage 2
A stage race with only two stages could've been just what the doctor ordered for the young Le Coq Sportif guys. Shorter race, easier to save energy and finish closer to the top than in longer races, but only two stages unfortunately meant a much higher pace through two stages even the best climbers struggled with.
It didn't help the cause that the peloton let three riders sit in a breakaway all day and settle the podium places among themselves on stage 1, the peloton coming in 2'28'' behind the winner, but Captain Pierrick Chevillard at least tried to do something special on stage 2. If not to win the race or get a top 10 finish overall, at least he wore his jersey with pride as he attacked 100 kms into the race, up the worst climb of the stage. He left the rest of the peloton in the dust up the mountain side and increased the gap downhill. The first breakaway of the day the peloton let go, but Chevillard was reeled in over the next couple of hills and when Vaugrenard, Navardauskas, Bardet and Urán increased the pace, Chevillard and his teammates fell off, like we've seen them do too many times already this season.
For the young riders of Le Coq Sportif it was a grueling 2nd stage and sprinter Pierrick Lhermitte had to withdraw on the very first climb as his legs failed him and he fell minutes behind the peloton. Chevillard was their highest placed rider in 88th, 10'27'' behind winner Fredrik Kessiakoff (Astana). A stage race to forget for sure and the team will now have 8 days to regroup before Classic Sud Ardèche on March 1st.
We caught up with Sports Director Ollie after the race and asked him to comment on the stage race. We could see the disappointment on the face of this very emotional and invested man as he tried to summarize his thoughts on yet another poor effort.
"On stage 1 we just assumed that the other teams, the stronger teams, would start riding and catching the breakaway. When they didn't we were all of a sudden off on the wrong foot and a couple of minutes behind in the overall already. On stage 2 I told Pierrick (Chevillard) that he had a free role today and that he could attack if he felt good and had the legs. I'm very happy about his attempt. He rode hard and showed his talent in the mountains."
"Now you have some days of before the next race. How do you move on from this and onto the next?"
"We'll get home tonight, meet tomorrow to look at the two stages and talk through them before we head out for a shorter ride, just to get these stages out of our legs and our minds I guess. Then it's all about refocusing. We can't dwell on these things."
If there's one team in the Continental division that needs a positive soon, it's Le Coq Sportif.
Pierrick Chevillard, 18 years old, Stage racer
I'm now just using steam to take screenshots, but sadly there will be a few more races updates without pictures. Sorry about that! 
