September 10th, 2008 — us-
Lance Armstrong has shocked the cycling world by announcing a comeback aged 37, after a 3 year lay off.
It is likely that he will return to Johan Bruyneels team. Bruyneel said:
“We have a close relationship and if he were to resume competing I can’t imagine him going to CSC or Rabobank…”
However, nothing has been confirmed at the present moment.
If Lance does make a comeback next year, he will face one of his greatest challenges; it is hard to say whether he will have the fitness to challenge the new generation of Contador, Valverde and the Schleck brothers.
Lance Armstrong comeback
August 16th, 2008 — Uncategorized-
Chris Hoy became the most successful Scottish Olympian through winning 3 Golds in the 2008 Beijing Olympics.
Chris Hoy won Gold in
- Team Sprint (team also set a new world record in qualifying events)
- Individual Sprint
- Keirin - Ross Edgar took Silver giving Britain a 1 - 2.
After winning the final event, Chris Hoy said:
“It’s just beyond expectations, and it’s a day we’ll remember for a long time.
“I’m very emotional, but I’m trying to keep a cap on it because I’ve got another race to go.”
The powerfully built rider, won an Olympic Gold in the 1Km pursuit. But, this event was dropped, forcing Chris to rethink his strategy. He has adapted well to the shorter sprint events. His power over longer distances means that his strategy is usually to go hard from the gun.
August 16th, 2008 — british-
Chris Newton
Born in Stockton on Tees, Chris is a versatile cyclist who has represented Great Britain in various events.
Chris missed out on the 2008 world championships due to a broken collar bone. However, in the 2008 Beijing Olympics, Chris managed to win bronze in the points race; this involved lapping the field twice. He just missed out on silver, losing out on last sprint.
Olympic Medals
2000 - Bronze - Team Pursuit
2004 - Silver - Team Pursuit
2008 - Bronze - Points Race
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August 10th, 2008 — british-
Mark Cavendish
Born in Isle of Man, 1985, Mark Cavendish has become arguably the world’s fastest sprinter, dominating the sprint stages of the 2008 Tour by winning 4 stages.
Mark initially gained success through racing on the track. As part of Team Great Britain, he became Madison world champion in 2005 (with Rob Hayles) and 2008 (Bradley Wiggins). He also won gold for Isle of Man in the 2006 Commonwealth games.
In 2005, he rode his first road races, competing in the Tour of Britain and Tour of Berlin. In 2006, he won the points competition in the Tour of Britain, helping him gain a professional contract with T-Mobile.
His first Tour de France, in 2007, was a disappointment due to a couple of heavy crashes. He abandoned as the race reached the Alps.
In 2008, riding for Team High Road/Columbia, he completed the Giro d’Italia - his first major stage race winning 2 stages in the process. In the 2008 Tour, Mark emerged as the fastest sprinter in the world, winning 4 stages and coming second to a team mate.
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August 9th, 2008 — Uncategorized-
Greg Lemond
Greg Lemond was the first American to win the Tour de France and went onto win the race a total of 3 times. He might have won it more, had it not been for a near fatal shooting accident which sidelined him for two years.
Greg Lemond was born June 26, 1961 in Lakewood California. His first passion was for skiing, but aged 13, he switched to cycling where he displayed prodigious talent.
In 1979 he won gold in the World Junior road race championship and was picked for the US Olympic squad of 1980, (although the US were to boycott the event)
With the support of Cyrille Guimard, Greg took a big jump and entered the European professional cycling scene. By 1981 he was racing for the Renault-Elf-Gitane team. Just two years after making his professional debut, he won gold in the World road race championship, aged only 22.
In his first Tour de France in 1984, Lemond finished 3rd and won the white jersey as best young rider. In 1985, Lemond found himself on the same team as French superstar Bernard Hinault. Lemond was under team orders to ride in support of Hinault. Even though at times Lemond appeared the stronger, Hinault was crowned winner for the 5th time, with Lemond 1 min 42seconds back in second place.
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August 7th, 2008 — british-
Tom Simpson - celebrating 1965 World Championship Title
An iconic cyclist of the 1960s, Tom Simpson had a unique drive and ability. He was the first British cyclist to become a major cycling star winning the World Championship in 1965. Tragically, Simpson died during the 1967 Tour de France whilst climbing Mont Ventoux. Even more shocking was the revelation that Simpson had packets of amphetamines in his back pocket, and the use of drugs had been a contributory factor to his untimely death.
Tom Simpson - Early Life
Tom Simpson was born in County Durham, the youngest child of a coal miner in 1937. The family later moved to Nottingham where Tom became interested in cycling. He competed in time trials, road races and on the track. It was on the track where he had his first taste of international success; he won a bronze medal in the 1956 Olympics as part of Great Britain’s team pursuit squad.
In April 1959, he felt he needed to travel abroad to try and win a place in a professional cycling team. (At the time the domestic British scene offered little for an aspiring professional cyclist. He left for Brittany, where he raced in amateur races and also met his future wife Helen Sherburn.
Life as a Pro Cyclist
After winning a couple of amateur races he was offered a contract with Rapha Geminiani Team, who also had British cyclist Brian Robinson on the squad.
By 1960 he completed his first Tour de France, finishing a very creditable 29th.
In 1962, he became the first British cyclist to wear the maillot jaune of the Tour, eventually finishing 6th overall.
By 1963, he was riding for a new team Peugeot BP (with distinctive black and white jerseys). He won the Milan San Remo classic in 1964.
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August 7th, 2008 — british-
Female British Cyclists
British Cycling Books
British Cycling Celebrities
Irish Cyclists
August 7th, 2008 — british-
Reade - Pendleton celebrate Gold at Track Championships 2008
Shanaze Reade was born in Crewe, in 1988. She has always been interested in sports; her first interest was athletics - 100m spring and the shot put. However, after seeing a bmx race she decided to switch sports and soon began competiting in bmx races. Shanaze Reade would often beat, not just other girls, but, also men.
In 2002, her cycling career become more serious and she won a number of junior UCI European titles.
In 2007, she won the UCI Bmx World title, aged only 17. In 2007, she also made the switch to track racing and successfully won the 2007 team sprint title with Victoria Pendleton. This world title was despite very little track training. In 2007, Shanaze Reade was awarded the Sunday Times young sportsperson of the year award. Her world track title was repeated in the 2008 World Championships held in Manchester, where she again partnered Victoria Pendleton to Gold.
2008 Beijing Olympics
Shanaze Reade is Great Britain’s sole representative in the BMX event - In the Olympics for the first time.
August 7th, 2008 — british-
Nicole Cooke is one of the world’s leading female cyclists. Born in Wales in 1983, Nicole was raised in a cycling family and became interested in cycling from an early age. As a youngster she competed in several disciplines from time trials to cyclocross and road racing; Nicole invariably won, often beating older children as well.
By the time she was 17 she had won an unprecedented collection of British National Titles and World Titles in a variety of cycling disciplines. These included Gold in Junior World Championships in Road Racing, Time Trials, and Mountain Bikes.
Nicole has a genuine passion for cycling and racing at the highest level. In an interview with Cycling News she said:
“I love to go hard and I love to train alone.”
By 2006, Nicole Cooke had become UCI’s number 1 ranking female cyclist, a position she currently holds (2008)
Her palmeres includes:
- Olympic Gold - Road Race Title Beijing 2008
- 1st Tour Grand Boucle - Tour Feminie 2006, 2007
- 1st Tour of Italy 2004
- 1st Tour of Germany 2006
- 1st UCI World Cup 2003, 2006
- 8 Times British Road Race champion, including as a junior in 1999
Nicole turned pro with an Italian team - Ausra Gruodis-Safi.
In 2008, she joined the British Team Halford Bike Hut, riding the new Chris Boardman pro Bikes
Nicole is currently based in Lugano, Switzerland, although she finds time to return home to her native Wales, in between training and racing. She is part of the Great Britain Olympic squad of 2008.
Nicole Cooke takes Olympic Gold 2008
Nicole Cooke.com
Nicole Cooke Interview
June 17th, 2008 — british-
Graeme Obree is one of the most unique cyclists. He has had a colourful cycling history which includes breaking the prestigious world hour record twice. Obree made his first attempt in Norway, 1993. At the time he was relatively unknown outside of Great Britain and few gave him any realistic chance of beating Francesco Moser’s world hour record of 51.151 KM which had stood since 1984.
At the first attempt Obree failed missing the mark by nearly 1 KM. However, Obree was determined to try again the next day. Most journalists left and Obree had to beg the officials to let him have another go. This time to many people’s surprise he was successful setting a new hour record of 51.596 KM. This record would later be surpassed by Chris Boardman just one week later. However, Obree went on to break the record a second time in April 1994.
Graeme Obree is also famous for building innovative bike designs using various spare parts. After his first world hour record there was a lot of media interest in his home made bike. Obree’s bike apparently was made with bits of an old BMX and parts from a washing machine. I think some of this got exaggerated however Obree was definitely an innovator and continues to make his own bikes. For a while Obree was feted by the European press who were intrigued with this eccentric Scottish man who had built his own bike. Perhaps unfairly this overshadowed his athletic ability and great determination. For his first record he used a position known as the tuck position this has also been labelled the “Obree” position.
A photo of Obree in the tuck position
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