Disappointment in the Tour de France

Watching the Tour de France made me aware of how easy for riders to be disappointed It’s a brutal race, with no hiding place. Slightly off the pace, and you can slip minutes away. A bit of bad luck, and you can pick up nasty injury.

Tour de France

So many potential challengers saw their hopes dissipate pretty quickly after just the first week. After the first mountain stage about half the peleton must have finished much lower than they would have liked. Thibaut Pinot of Ag2R was last year seen as the great new hope of French cycling. But, this year just can’t replicate the form – despite having prepared all season. It’s a story of heaven to hell. Other French climbers, like Pierre Rolland must be similarly disappointed not to be able to build on previous years.

After the first two mountain stages and it’s chaos. Riders probably not happy include:

• Mark Cavendish has one won stage (which for many riders would make their career), but even before the unfortunate drama of the TT stage, it’s been another tough year. He might end up lucky to replicate the three stage wins in 2012 where he was acting as partial domestique for Sky. (However, having written that,  I’m sure he’ll win today now)
• BMC duo of Cadel Evans and Tejay van Garderen will have been training all year and must have fancied their chance of challenging for the podium. But after one stage, one climb, their hopes dissipated as soon as you could say – does it matter whose team leader now?
• Vasil Kiryienka. One of Team Sky’s strongmen and mountain domestique, somehow failed to meet time limit after working hard to try and get Richie Porte back on. It must be tough for a climbing domestique to suffer the indignity of missing time cut off. That’s a big blow for SKY’s supposed invincible mountain train.
• Damiano Cunego. Once a winner of the Giro, now languishing in mid podium mediocrity.
• Alberto Contador. Those gravity defying surges up the mountain passes seem to be no more. Struggling to keep up with team mate Roman Kreuziger. Perhaps he will have something special in the third week?
• Richie Porte was climbing to the seventh heaven of delight after the first mountain stage. But, then the next day  dropped off the pace. From 2nd to 33rd just for losing a minute on the first climb. It was kind of great tactics by the Spanish. But, they may rue not being able to do more to an isolated Froome.
• Andy Schleck. A former winner, but the way he time trials, it’s hard to see how he ever did.

Probably the only riders to have met and exceeded expectations?

• Chris Froome – clearly strongest rider in the tour, but relative weakness of his team, must be a cause for concern. Who would of thought it a British rider winning the Tour de France, but no chance of winning sports personality of the year?
• Marcel Kittel. Two sprint victories. If first one was fortuitous for missing the  other top sprinters. The second one showed he is one of the world class sprinters. As an added bonus Kittel was one of few pro-cyclists to challenge the likes of Contador and Valverde when they came out to support Armstrong, despite the USADA report.
• Jan Bakelants. ( A rare occurrence of a breakaway winning a stage. A fine way to win, and a mighty boost for Leopard Trek, who might struggle to do much else in this year’s tour.
• Orica Green Edge. Undreamt of publicity. They say no publicity is bad publicity. But, they must have been glad to finally win a stage in the Tour, and not just rely on a stuck bus to get on to the front pages of the cycling news. But, after winning stage and tour, they go onto win team time trial and put a second guy (and first South African) in yellow. Good tour for Orica Green edge, it should partially make up for losing the Lions tour and the Ashes