Strong ACT showing in the Australian long squad for Worlds

Cycling Australia announced its long squad for the up and coming 2012 UCI Road World Championships in Limburg district, Netherlands, which starts on 16 September. It was no surprise that Canberra riders were punching above their weight again and would have been one of the first names to be penciled in by the selectors.  The biggest surprise was the selection of Rory Sutherland, however, his recent wins at the Tour of Utah and the US Pro Challenge, meant that he was more than making up numbers.

The ACT riders selected were:

Mens Elite

Rory Sutherland (United Healthcare) - One of the most successful riders on the US road circuit.  Won stages at Tour of Utah, US Pro Challenge and won the Tour Beauce and the Tour of Gila earlier this year.  While Sutherland is one of the form riders, I am not expected that he will be one of the final riders selected as only nine riders to be selected out of the 13 in the long squad.

Michael Matthews (Rabobank) - Probably Australia's form sprinter at the moment after winning the sprinters jersey at the Tour of Utah. Knows what it is like to win a world title after winning the u23 road race in Geelong.  A certain starter in Netherlands, but unlikely to be a protected rider.  Could be a surprise if there is a bunch sprint.

Michael Rogers (Team Sky) - After his hugely successful domestique role in France to bring Wiggins home to win the yellow jersey, Rogers is a guaranteed starter in the road race. Only two spots available for the time trial and one of those have already gone to Luke Durbridge. Rogers form in the TT this year and a strong Olympics performance might be enough to give Rogers the nod over Richie Porte and Cam Meyer for the final TT spot.

Womens Elite

Chloe Hosking (Team Specialized Lululemon) - European form means Hosking will be a guaranteed starter in Netherlands. Hosking will be hoping for a podium finish to help her forget about a disappointing Olympics.

Gracie Elvin (Team Faren Honda) - What a year for Gracie. Signed for Italian cycling team, Team Faren Honda, earlier this year - joining fellow ACT rider Miffy Galloway. After a string of solid performances and helping teammate Rochelle Gilmour pick a number of top 10 finishes, Gracie made it into the long squad. Elvin is the current Ocenia road race champion, so that might be sufficient to guarantee selection.

Jessie Maclean (Team GreenEdge-AIS) - A solid year in Europe for Maclean led to her selection in the road race team, including a number of top 10 finishes. With only 6 spots up for grabs, I am not expecting Jessie to make the final list.

Mens under 23

Adam Phelan (Drapac Porsche) - Only 5 spots available, yet 8 strong riders have been initially selected. With Dennis, Freiberg and McCarthy certain starters, it only leaves 2 spots left. Phelan is currently riding in the u23 Australian side in Europe. After winning the 37th edition of the GP Sportivi di Poggiana in August, I suspect that Phelan has already wrapped up one of the remaining places. Current form could mean that he will be a protected rider and will be ready to sprint for victory if McCarthy falters.

Junior Womens

Allison Rice (Suzuki-Trek) - The squad has already been finalised and Allison is a certain starter. Will likely ride both the road race and the time trial (she is the current Oceania junior time trial champion). Allison gained valuable experience at the 2011 Road World Championships, but overall she had a disappointing campaign finishing 18th in the time trial and 35th in bunch finish in the road race.  Allison will be hoping to replicate Jess Allen's 2011 podium finish in Limburg.

 

Cycling Australia will announce its final team on 10 September.

Best of luck to the ACT riders selected in the long squad.

http://www.cycling.org.au/?Page=47542

Canberra Cycling Corner - Weekly update

The cycling world was turned upside down this week with the news that Lance Armstrong no longer had the energy and drive to fight the doping charges that had been leveled at him by the US Anti-Doping Agency. Lance said "enough is enough" and would not fight the USADA charges.  What does this all mean? At stake is his seven Tour de France wins. That decision will however rest with the UCI and the Tour de France organisers.



US IS A FERTILE GROUND FOR CANBERRA CYCLISTS

Rory Sutherland continues his impressive form on the US racing circuit.  After winning a stage at the Tour of Utah and finishing second to Michael Matthews for the sprinters jersey, Rory claimed the six stage of the US Pro Challenge this morning.

Sutherland used his local knowledge to be the first to conquer Flagstaff Mountain. According media reports, stage 6 is the biggest stage of the biggest race in the US. The name Rory Sutherland may just well be etched into US Cycling folklore after that impressive win.

Sutherland and teammate Chris Jones got into a 14 man breakaway. He saved his energy to launch a counter attack on the approach to Flagstaff Mountain after Jen Voigt attacked. Sutherland, after the race, said "It’s pretty big. That’s the one. That’s the one"  He went on to say "My wife, my little boy’s here, all my friends. I’m not from here, officially, obviously, but this is home to me."

According to fellow Aussie, Ben Day, this stage was the one that every cyclist that lives in Boulder, Colorado, wants to win.

A big shout out for Rory. 

Sutherland climbing Flagstaff Mountain - No room for team cars.

http://www.sbs.com.au/cyclingcentral/road/news/39179/sutherland-wins-while-leipheimer-takes-lead-at-usa-pro-challenge

WEEKLY UPDATE OF RACES AND RESULTS

Michael Matthew (Rabobank) - Matthews was unable to replicate his success in the US at the Vattenfall Cyclassics in Hamburg. Unfortunately, Matthews was unable to finish the race.

Nathan Haas (Garmin-Sharp) - Haas is currently racing in the US Pro Challenge. What feels like his 4th race in as many weeks, unfortunately there has not been any success for Haas.  He finished in 75th position on Flagstaff Mountain and is also currently in 75th spot overall.

Rory Sutherland (United Healthcare) - Won Stage 6 of the US Pro Challenge in Colorado this morning. Is currently sitting in 37th spot. 

Micheal Rogers (Team Sky) - After a long summer, Michael has continued his strong performance at the Tour of Denmark.  Rogers managed to finish in 11th spot in the time trial overnight and after 5 stages is sitting in 9th spot.

Fabio Calabria (Team Type 1 -Sanofi) - After racing in Italy, Fabio heads to Brazil for the Tour do Rio, a five stage race.  Clocking up the frequent flyers points Fabio!!!!!

Jessie Maclean (GreenEdge-AIS) - Jessie continues her solid form in Europe for GreenEdge in 2012.  She finished in 32 spot in the Open de Suède Vargarda. She is riding for the Australian team at the Lotto-Decca Tour in Belgium. Jessie finished 9th during the first stage.

Chloe Hosking (Team Specialized-Lululemon) - After France, Chloe heads to Belgium for the Lotto-Decca Tour.  No success during the first stage, finishing down in 42nd position.

Miffy Galloway (Team Faren Honda) - No luck at the Open de Suède Vargarda in Sweden for Miffy G. Unfortunately Miffy did not finish the race, however, teammate Rochelle Gilmore finished in 15th spot.

Gracie Elvin (Team Faren Honda) - Raced in the GP de Plouay overnight in testing conditions.  Finished down the classification in 60th spot.  It was Elvin's first road World Cup race.

Allison Rice (Team Australia) - Rochelle Gilmore tweeted early in the week that Allison joined the Australian team at the Lotto-Decca Tour in the lead up to the World Championship. I have not been able to confirm the entry.  

Canberra Cycling Corner - Weekly update

The third and final grand tour, la Vuelta, started last night in the town of Pamplona, which means a few sleepless nights for keen cycling fans.  The bulls gave way to bikes as the team time trial kicked off the Vuelta. While there was a large number of Australians racing in the final grand tour, unfortunately there is no one from Canberra.

Canberra, this week, has been marked by triumph and tragedy. Adam Phelan won his first race in Italy and Michael Matthews won the sprinters jersey in the Tour of Utah. However, we woke up to the news on Tuesday morning that Robbie Williams died while on a brunch ride with his mates.

ROGERS FINALLY GETS HIS BRONZE MEDAL

Just months before the final cut off date, Michael Rogers finally found out that he would be awarded the bronze medal from the Athens Olympics time trial event.  While this is another important career result for Rogers, the reality is he missed out on standing on the dais on a monumental day because of a self-confessed drug cheat - Tyler Hamilton.  Rogers said in the Canberra Times, "It would have meant a lot more had I received it on the day - my mum and dad were over from Australia then, and my wife and her family.  This medal doesn't really replace the photo that could have been - that of being on the podium of the Olympics."

http://www.canberratimes.com.au/olympics/news-london-2012/this-doesnt-really-replace-the-photo-that-could-have-been-rogers-reacts-to-bronze-medal-20120812-2426l.html#ixzz23yKqxZzi

MATTHEWS LEAVES RABOBANK FOR ORICA-GREENEDGE

The offer of a three-year contract for rising sprinting star, Michael Matthews, was not enough to prevent him from leaving Dutch team, Rabobank, for Orica-GreenEdge.

The decision by the Rabobank officials to leave him watching the Tour de France from home may have been a strong factor in his decision to leave the team for green pastures.

With several stage wins under his belt, he is likely to be one of the main sprinters for his new team.  This could mean a debut start in the biggest cycling race in the world.

Matthews aims high.  His target is the green jersey and Peter Sagan is in his sights.

Matthews win the under23 title in Geelong in 2010

http://www.canberratimes.com.au/sport/cycling/matthews-aiming-for-green-jersey-20120818-24fmj.html

BEN HILL CONTINUES HIS IMPRESSIVE FORM IN THE SUBARU NRS

Ben Hill (RBS Morgans) continued his impressive form at the Tour of the Great South Coast.  All that is missing is a general classification win.  In horrible wet and windy conditions over the course of the ninth stage, Ben Hill narrowly missed out on another Subaru National Road Series stage win, finishing in second spot.

Teammate, Joe Lewis, was also in fine form, picking up three top 10 finishes in the first four stages.  Lewis did not start the 5th stage as he travelled to Nowra to attend the funeral of a good mate, Robbie Williams.  It was obviously a tough race for Joe and he done will well just to start this race.

WEEKLY UPDATE OF RACES AND RESULTS

Michael Matthew (Rabobank) - Won the sprinters jersey at the Tour of Utah.  Tonight all roads lead to Hamburg.  Matthews will be helping Theo Bos win the Vattenfall Cyclassics in Hamburg.

Nathan Haas (Garmin-Sharp) - Nathan stays in the USA to participate in the Quiznos Challenge.  It is a race that is growing in statue with Cadel Evans and Vincenzo Nibali joining the start list.

Micheal Rogers (Team Sky) - After a stage in the one day race in San Sebastian, Michael heads to Denmark for the Tour of Denmark that commences on 22 August.

Jessie Maclean (GreenEdge-AIS) - Jessie heads to Sweden with her GreenEdge teams to participate in the Open de Suède Vargarda in the one day stage race.

Miffy Galloway (Team Faren Honda) - Why stay in Itay when you can head to Sweden.  Miffy will be helping team mates Rochelle Gilmore secure a stage victory in Sweden.


Gracie Elvin (Team Faren Honda) - Gracie is riding in France at the Trophée d'Or Féminin.  It is a 6 stage race that comenced on 18 August.  Gracie is currently sitting in 56th spot after the first stage. After the Trophée d'Or Féminin, Gracie will start in the one day race GP de Plouay-Bretagne.

Team Suzuki-Trek - After a disappointing Lakes Oil Tour of Gippsland, Suzuki-Trek came back strong in the Tour of Great South Coast, finishing in 9th spot.

Tim Camerson (Suzuki-Trek) - He was Canberra's best finisher in the Tour of the Great South Coast (31th spot).  Although, Mitchell Pearson (Suzuki-Trek) from NSW finished in 17th spot. Ben Hill (RBS Morgans) came in at 39th spot.  Other Canberra finishers were:

         Brendan Johnston (Suzuki-Trek) - 36th spot;
         Jamie Lacey (Suzuki-Trek) - 70th spot;
         William Lind (Suzuki-Trek) - 71st spot;
         Damien Wright (Suzuki-Trek) - 89th spot;
         Mitchell Flynn (Suzuki-Trek) - 109th spot;
         Ivan Michelin-Beard (Suzuki-Trek) - 116th spot
         Joe Lewis (RBS Morgans) - DNF
         Etienne Blumstein-Jones (Glenelg Shire) - DNF 
 
Vikings Cycling Club ran the second Crace criterium today. Race results should be posted here once they are loaded. http://raceresults.vikingscycling.org.au/race/82/

Bling Matthews signs with Orica GreenEdge

Canberra's Michael Matthews has had a big week.  After winning the sprinters jersey at the Tour of Utah on Sunday, it was revealed today that he signed a two year contract with Orica-GreenEdge. 

Matthews in his sprinters jersey - Tour of Utah

After winning the under 23 World Road Championship in Geelong, Matthews signed for Rabobank.  In his maiden season, we won three stages, including Stage 3 at the Tour Down Under - his debut World Tour race.  After an early season win at the Clasica da Almeria (Spain) in 2012, a number of race crashes, it took a while before Matthews secured his next stage win - Stage 3 of the Tour of Utah and we saw the 'Bling dance'.

According to the Orica-GreenEdge media release, Matthews said "I chose ORICA-GreenEDGE for several reasons, most importantly, it will be an amazing experience to be a part of an Australian team. I really look forward to racing with and learning from some of the best Australian riders in the world."

Matthews is a good pick up for Orica-GreenEdge.  While he is still young and developing as a cyclist, he will add to the team's competitiveness in sprints, where they have lacked the bite and pizzazz in their debut season. 

I am looking forward to seeing the Orica-GreenEdge jersey down at the Canberra Cycling Club crits in 2013. 

Canberra mourns the tragic death of Robbie Williams

I woke up to the news on local radio station 2CC that there had been an accident involving a cyclist on the GDE. My immediate reaction was to pray for the cyclist.  I always get a shiver down my spine when I hear about accidents involving cyclists. Details were, however, limited at 6.45am.  It appeared that the ambulance were on the scene.

By 9.12am, the Canberra cycling community was using twitter was to express their condolences and heartfelt wishes to his family and friends.  Tragically, the cyclist, who was later named as Robbie Williams, did not regain consciousnesses and died in Calvary hospital.   

Robbie Williams was a very talented riders that was much loved in Canberra. He had ridden professionally both in Australia and Europe. His greatest win was the 2007 Goulburn to Sydney Classic, Australia's second oldest race. At the time he was riding for Drapac Porsche.



The death of any young person is a tragic loss. I did not know Robbie, but the reactions and tributes from the Canberra cycling community illustrate the type of man he was, well loved, a great person and a brilliant teammate.

Joe Lewis said on twitter "Riding for a mate this week in Tour of the South Coast. Life is precious".

Mitch Lovelock-Fay said 'Thoughts go out to Robbie Williams family! One of the Nicest guys I will ever know. A life lost too early. #RIProbbie' 

Nine hours after the incident, Europe woke up the the tragic news.  Canberra cyclists in Europe used twitter to pay tribute and to honour their mate.

Fabio Calabria, who rides with Team Type 1 - Sanofi wrote 'RIP Robbie. The world lost one of the nicest guys on and off the bike. Thoughts go out to his family.'

Miffy Galloway, who rides for Italian team, Team Faren Honda said  'News no one should have to wake up to. #RIPRobbie, a great guy who will be remembered by many for all the right reasons'.

Gracie Elvin, also from Team Faren Honda said 'Today is about perspective & appreciation. So sad to hear the passing of Robbie Williams. Sending love and support to those he left behind'. 

He will not be forgotten.  Canberra team, Suzuki-Trek, will be wearing black armbands in honour of Robbie during the next race of the Subaru National road Series, the Tour of Great South Coast.  I suspect that they will not be the only ones.  I would not be surprised to see if his former teammates at Drapac donning black armbands, plus Canberra riders like Joe Lewis and Ben Hill.

Team Quon is organising a ride in honour of Robbie this Friday in Canberra.  People should check Team Quon's twitter feed for details of the ride.

My sincere condolences to family and friends of Robbie.  

The winning streak of Canberran cyclists continue in Europe

Drapac Porsche rider, Adam Phelan won his first race in Italy on Sunday, the 37th edition of the GP Sportivi di Poggiana.  Riding for the national under 23 team, Phelan beat Gianfranco Zilioli (Team Colpack) in a sprint to the finish line

The final climb of Sella Mostacin was then the key point of the race, with a group of ten working well together to keep ahead of the peloton. The peloton, discouraged and broken by numerous withdrawals, was incapable of mounting an organized chase. When the race returned to the flat ground around Poggiana, the breakaway stopped working together and the attacks started.  The decisive attacks were made by Zilioli-Phelan.  Fortunately, the victor was Canberra's Adam Phelan.  


The Poggiana is one of the toughest under 23 category races in Italy.  After the race Phelan said "I never thought I could make it and win ... I was in the breakway for a long time and my teammates, Jay McCarthy and Nick Aitken, were truly exceptional". 

Orica-GreenEdge rider, Wesley Sulzberger, won the same race in 2008. 

I hoped the boys enjoyed the mountains

Phelan crossing the finish line

Phelan standing proudly on the podium - first win in Italy

Canberra Cycling Corner - Weekly Update

An impressive week by Canberra cyclists across the global this week.  Three cyclists picked up stage wins in Europe and the USA.  Unfortunately, our quest for Olympic gold did not prove fruitful.


STAGE WINS IN FRANCE AND THE US

It has been once of the most successful weeks in 2012 for Canberra cyclists.  It all started when Chloe Hosking won Stage 5 of La Route De France. The Stage win kept her into second place on the young rider classification and 13th overall (after 5 stages).

Across the Atlantic, two Canberra riders also enjoyed success at the Tour of Utah.  UnitedHealthcare's Rory Sutherland won the opening stage and with it the yellow jersey.  Young Canberra rider Michael Matthews, refusing to be outdone, won Stage 3.  He managed to hang on after his 5 rider breakaway got caught on the final climb.  That is Michael Matthew's second win for the season.

Chloe Hosking - Stage 5 win

Rory being interviewed after winning first stage

NO LUCK FOR CAROLINE BUCHANAN OR REBECCA HENDERSON

There was a huge expectation on Caroline Buchanan to win a medal.  She was one of the favourites.  The whole of Canberra was talking about her chances of winning gold.  Unfortunately, after strong run of results in the qualifiying races and the semi-final, Caroline has a nightmare final.  She ended up finishing 5th.  After the race Buchanan said "My house has burnt down, my brother has broken his neck, I've had setbacks in my life before but nothing compares to this."

Caroline Buchanan reflecting on what could have been

Lets hope were see Buchanan climb back on the BMX bike and heads for Rio in 2016.

 http://www.canberratimes.com.au/act-news/buchanans-disappointing-finish-20120811-240tm.html#ixzz23F7ZtuHl

Rebecca Henderson did not start with women's mountain biking race with any aspirations of winning a medal.  She was the youngest rider in the field.  Just competing in the event was a real achievement.  But in the end, it was all about the Olympic experience.  Rio 2016 is where Rebeccca will be setting her sights for Olympic success.

The 20 year old was dropped from the start and struggled to keep up with the elite women riders.  She came in 25th place.  After crossing the line, Henderson said that "This is only the beginning for me."  

WEEKLY UPDATE OF RACES AND RESULTS

Rory Sutherland (UnitedHealthcare) - Continuing in the Tour of Utah.  Did not have a good stage 5 race and slipped from 19th spot to 51st after 5 stages.  Winner of the first stage and second in the sprint jersey competition.

Michael Matthews (Rabobank) - Sitting in 65th spot in the Tour of Utah.  Currently leading the sprint classification with one stage win and a fourth place in Stage 4.

Nathan Haas (Garmin-Sharp) - Not having the best time at the Tour of Utah.  Sitting in 101st spot after five stages.

Chloe Hosking (Team Specialized-Lululemon) - Unfortunately did not start Stage 7 of La Route De France.  Had a successful race after winning Stage 5 brunch sprint.

Michael Rogers (Team Sky) - Expected to start the Clasica Ciclista San Sebastian on 14 August after a short break due to the Olympics and TDF campaign.

Fabio Calabria (Team Type 1-Sanofi ) - Raced in Italy at the G.P. Citta di Camaiore but with no success.  Managed to get a Team Type 1-Sanofi rider into the top 10.

Adam Phelan (u23 Australian National Team) - No success at the Trofeo Internazionale Bastianelli last week.  Although he helped teams Freiberg and McCarthy into 3nd and 4rd spots.

The Tour of the Great South Coast starts on 15 August 2012 in the Victorian town of Portland.  Canberra cyclists (or linked to Canberra team) racing in the event include:

Stuart Shaw - Drapac Professional Cycling
Ben Hill - RBS Morgans
Joe Lewis - RBS Morgans
Marc Williams - Team Budget Forklifts
William Lind - Suzuki-Trek
Tim Cameron - Suzuki-Trek
Ivan Michelin-Beard - Suzuki-Trek
Damien Wright - Suzuki-Trek
Mitchell Pearson - Suzuki-Trek
Mitchell Flynn - Suzuki-Trek
Brendan Johnston - Suzuki-Trek
Jamie Lacey -  Suzuki-Trek
Etienne Blumstein-Jones - Glenelg Shire

LOCAL RACING

Yesterday Canberra Cycling Club held the 2012 edition of the Iron Mike race. The CCC publicised the widely in the press and media.  Unfortunately, the race was greeted with some criticism on local website Riot-ACT because of reduced speed limits that were in place for the race.

While it was a sunny day, the winds was blowing at up to 40kms at times.  A real challenge for cyclists.

Results have not been updated.  Once updated, they should be found here.

http://www.canberracyclingclub.org.au/events/details.asp?IntContId=1680&IntCatId=33

Time for Cycling Australia to fully review its elite program

The 2012 Olympics in London is about to wrap up with only mountain biking left in the cycling program.  There has been a lot of debate in the media about Australia's success at these Olympic games in all sports.  Australia does not seem to be punching above its weight any longer. Inevitably, the talk always comes back to the level of funding.

To date, Australia has won 6 cycling medals across all disciplines (1 gold, 2 silver and 3 bronze).  I expect that medal tally to remain at 6 as we are unlikely to be successful at either the men's or women's mountain biking events.

Australian taxpayers have funded the cycling program to the tune of $31 million. Did we get value for all that money?

Compared to the Beijing Olympics where Australia won a single solitary silver medal, there has been a vast improvement in these Olympics.

The social media has pointed to London being a successful Olympics for our cyclists. I do not agree.  If it was not for the stellar performance by Anna Meares on the last night of the track cycling program, Australia may not have won a gold medal for the second Olympics in a row.

 

I would argue that London has been an unsuccessful hunting ground for the Australians.

I agree that there was a marked improvement in Australia's performance compared to Beijing. We are sitting third on the medal table, after Great Britain and Germany. 

But our success is a long way down on Great Britain that won 8 gold medals.

Benchmarking Australia's performance against the 2011 and 2012 UCI Track World Championships, you would say that there would have been an expectation that Australia would have performed better.  At the 2011 UCI Track World Championship in the Netherlands, Australia finished on top of the medal table with 8 gold, 2 silver and 2 bronze.  While we were less successful in Melbourne, we still finished on top with 6 gold, 6 silver and 3 bronze.

Where did it all go wrong in London?  Did we peak to early?

It appears that the Great British team was able to peak at the right time.  The time of the Olympics.  As Brailsford, Team GB's supremo, said 'the one thing about British cycling is that over the years we've got the experience on how to peak at the right time and we know how to manage an Olympic cycle'.  Whereas, the Australians peaked too early. 12 months too early at the 2011 Track World Championships.

Brailsford went on to say "A human being cannot stay at the same intensity for four years, it's impossible. It's difficult to peak on a given day at a given time once every four years. What really matters at the Games is that you're at your absolute peak of performance."   Australia has a lot to learn from Brailsford's comments.  Only a full and transparent review will identify why our athletes did not peak at the right time, and more importantly put in place processes and procedures to achieve better outcomes at the end of the Olympic cycle.

Australian taxpayers have spent a lot of money to gt our athletes to London.  Fairfax papers ran an analysis of the cost of Australia's Olympics medals.  With funding of $31 million, the average cost of each medal for Australia was around $5.2 million.  Whereas for Great Britain, the average cost of each medal was $3.2 million.  This is a crude method of measuring success.  However, it also suggests that the Brits are gets better outcomes from their funding.  As John Coates is quoted as saying "elite sport authorities will need to reassess their spending, more money is not necessarily the answer'. That including assessing why the British have been so successful in Beijing and now in London. 

Something went wrong with Australia's Olympic campaign.  The problem may rest with the administrators in Cycling Australia. They swept under the carpet the Bobridge and Hepburn drink driving incident in Spain either this year.  While the pair were found guilty of misconduct, there were no sanctions.  The bid for gold was too great. Cycling Australia's message to the athletes was misbehaviour would be tolerated if there was a potential gold medal at stake. There is also a selection policy that attaches a romantic sentiment for established names.  Cadel Evans should not have been selected of the road race or the time trial.  Australia's best time trialist was and still is Luke Durbridge.  Yet he was not selected. I question why?

Australia has some of the world's best athletes and some of the world's best coaches.  Yet, this has not translated into success at the velodrome or on the road at the London Olympics.

Swimming Australia announced a full review their London performance, including Swimming Australia's high performance programs and administration, after a poor performance by their recent standards.  Swimming Australia should be congratulated on announcing the review so quickly after the conclusion of swimming events at the London Olympics.

Cycling Australia should take a leaf out of Swimming Australia's book and review its high performance program, their administration, their talent selection program.  This should be a roots and all review. In fact the Crawford Report recommended that 'all national sporting organisations that are highly dependent on public funding should have rolling five year national plans that set the targets and measures by which the national sporting organisations should be judged.'  What is Cycling Australia's national plan?  This review must be transparent.  The findings should be transparent, not kept for internal consumption only.

I am hoping that Cycling Australia will not be dragged kicking and screaming into their how funds are expended.

Anything less from a full review could see Australia fall further down the international pecking order. 

Thief steal bikes worth $183,000

A brazen thief has managed to take a large number of bikes off the hands of a local Trek distributor/dealer in Canberra over the weekend.  A total of 26 bikes, worth a cool $183,000 were stolen from a bike trailer outside their Fyshwick Office.

So what were 26 high end bikes doing in a bike trailer rather than locked up in a more secure location? According to the Canberra Times, the dealer were holding the bikes storage while the offices were being renovated.

The thief better hang on to the bikes for a couple of months before selling them on ebay or through the Canberra Times. All the bikes were 2013 models which have not even hit the shops yet.

So if you see a brand new 2013 Trek for a ridiculous low price on Ebay, or see someone in jeans riding up Northbourne Ave on a brand spanking new Trek Madone 7.9, it might be worth calling Crimestoppers.

A note to the thief, Bradley Wiggins won the Tour de France on a Pinarello.  Trek are so last year's bike. 

http://www.canberratimes.com.au/act-news/former-olympian-devastated-by-bike-theft-20120807-23qxr.html

Canberra Cycling Corner - Weekly Update

The Olympics road cycling events are over and the focus has shifted to the track. Most of the road cyclists have now left London as the European and US road season re-commences after a very short break due to the Olympics.

OLYMPICS RECAP

No success for the Australian or Canberra riders during the Olympic road events.

 

Men's Road Race

The Olympic road program started with the men's road race. The Australians put veteran Olympian Stuart O'Grady in the first breakaway. It was a good move as the favourites, the Team GB missed the move and had to do all the work in the peloton. Michael Rogers valiantly tried to bridge the gap between the peloton and the breakaway, however, the rampaging peloton eventually caught him.

The race was taken out by Kazahstan rider Alexandr Vinokurov. The other interesting aspect of the road race was the spray by Mark Cavendish who claimed that the Australianss did not work hard enough to help him win the gold medal. We may be part of the Commonwealth Mark, but we are not part of the Team GB.

The best place Aussie rider was Stuart O'Grady in 6th spot. Michael Rogers finished in 91st spot.

Rank	Bib	Athlete
1	87	VINOKUROV Alexandr
2	52	URAN URAN Rigoberto
3	122	KRISTOFF Alexander
4	29	PHINNEY Taylor
5	120	LAGUTIN Sergey
6	24	O'GRADY Stuart
7	18	ROELANDTS Jurgen
8	40	RAST Gregory
9	8	PAOLINI Luca
10	82	BAUER Jack
11	31	BOOM Lars
12	96	FUGLSANG Jakob
13	43	COSTA Rui Alberto Faria
14	3	SANCHEZ GIL Luis Leon
15	85	KREUZIGER Roman
16	51	HENAO MONTOYA Sergio Luis
17	88	GRIVKO Andriy
18	4	VALVERDE BELMONTE Alejandro
19	17	GILBERT Philippe
20	54	CHAVANEL Sylvain
80	21	EVANS Cadel
83	22	GERRANS Simon
85	23	GOSS Matthew Harley
91	25	Roger Michael

Women's Road Race

Australia can into the race with Canberra's Chloe Hosking as one of the favourites for the race. The questions was whether Chloe would be able to get over Box Hill twice.

Chloe was looking good on the approach to Box Hill as the race, in terrible weather, was a mild affair.  However, after a series of attacked by the Dutch women, the bunch started to self-destructed. Chloe kept in touch with the leaders on the the start of Box Hill. Unfortunately, her legs 'blew up'  and she slipped back into the field.  There was no coming back as the attacks continued.

Chloe siad after the race ''In the end you can make a heap of excuses, but I didn't have the fitness to keep up with the other girls and that's what I want to improve.''

Chloe finished outside the time limit and therefore did not get a placing. Better luck in Rio Chloe.

The best place finished was Shara Gillow in 39th place.

 http://www.canberratimes.com.au/olympics/news-london-2012/shattered-chloe-eyeing-rio-after-london-blow-up-20120730-23a55.html#ixzz22eNILyJc

Men's Time Trial

Michael Rogers was Australia's only participant in the time trial. It was Michael Rogers third Olympics. He previous finished 4th in the time trial in Athens (should be elevated to third with doping offence of Tyler Hamilton) and fifth in Beijing road race.

Michael Rogers exceptional form continued in the race. While it was all about the 32-year-old Brit, Bradley Wiggins, who claimed his fourth Olympic gold and seventh medal in in all (a British record haul of Games medals), Rogers secured a top 10 finish - 6th overall.

Rank	Bib	Athlete
1	2	WIGGINS Bradley
2	3	MARTIN Tony
3	7	FROOME Christopher
4	4	PHINNEY Taylor
5	6	PINOTTI Marco
6	10	ROGERS Michael
7	1	CANCELLARA Fabian
8	9	GRABSCH Bert
9	19	CASTROVIEJO NICOLAS Jonathan
10	24	BRAJKOVIC Janez

Women's time trial

Impressive. That was the only way to explain Kristin Armstrong's victory in the women's time trial. The only Aussie in the race was Shara Gillow, who finished just outside the top 10 in 13th spot.

NATIONAL ROAD SERIES - LAKES OIL TOUR OF GIPPSLAND

The Lakes Oil Tour of Gippsland finished today and Canberra riders were impressive again.  There were no stage wins, however, Ben Hill (RBS Morgans) finished in second place in the overall General Classification, only 20 seconds from Tour winner - Will Walker (Drapac Porsche).

RBS Morgans took out the overall teams classification thanks to impressive efforts by Hill and Joe Lewis. Ben Hill also picking up the King of the Mountain jersey. Suzuki-Trek finish in 16th spot, 25 minutes behind team winner RBS Morgans. Hill and Lewis were the most consistent riders picking up several top 10 finishes over the 9 stages.

The next race is the Tour of the Great South Coast (Victoria) that commences on 15 August. This is another 9 stage race made up of a number of criterium races.

General classification

1	66	William WALKER (DPC)	11h20:40
2	17	Ben HILL (RMA)	20
3	11	Patrick SHAW (GEN)	24
4	33	Neil VAN DER PLOEG (STR)	25
5	9	Jai CRAWFORD (GEN)	44
6	12	Anthony GIACOPPO (GEN)	57
7	102	Alex CLEMENTS (PGN)	+1:03
8	3	Luke DAVISON (BFL)	+1:04
9	142	Gordon MCCAULEY (LKO)	+1:08
10	20	Johnnie WALKER (RMA)	+1:17
28	58	Timothy CAMERON (SZT)	+2:34
45	18	Joe LEWIS (RMA)	+7:01
50	70	Stuart SHAW (DPC)	+9:01
73	61	Damien WRIGHT (SZT)	+19:56
78	2	Marc Williams (BFL)	23:27
79	59	William LIND (SZT)	+23:56
91	64	Sam SAUTELLE (SZT)	+28:33
94	60	Ivan MICHELIN-BEARD (SZT)	+30:20
98	62	Mitchell PEARSON (SZT)	+33:34
123	161	Mitch FLYNN (SZT)	+52:55
133	63	Joshua LIND (SZT)	+1h11:22
dnf	82	Mitchell LOVELOCK-FAY (JHS)

UPCOMING RACES AND RESULTS

Nathan Haas (Garmin-Sharp) is riding in the USA this week.  He is competing in the Tour of Elk Grove, a three stage race that commenced over night.  After the ITT, Nathan is currently sitting in 50th spot.  After the Tour of Elk, Nathan will then head to the Tour of Utah.

Rory Sutherland (United Healthcare) will be hoping for more success in the US at the Tour of Utah that commences on 7 August.

Michael Matthews (Rabobank Cycling) - Seems that the whole Canberra entourage will be riding in the Tour of Utah this week. Michael will be leading Rabobank's sprint efforts.

Adam Phelan (under 23 Australian National Team) - Returns to racing after a 1 month break in the Trofeo Internazionale Bastianelli (Italy).

Jessie MacLean (GreenEdge-AIS) -Jessie was one of the Australia's best finishers in the Erpe-Mere (Belgium).  Jessie finished in 25th spot.

Chloe Hosking (Team Specialized Lululemon) is competing in the La Route de France this week. Chloe finished in 9th spot in the opening ITT Stage. 

Did Cycling Australia get it wrong with their time trial selections

The Olympic Men's time trial commences today in London. Australia's sole representative is Canberra's Michael Rogers. As a three time world time trial champion, his selection was effectively guaranteed. His win during stage 4 ITT in the 2012 Bayern-Rundfahrt further confirmed his selection.

Australia qualified for two places at the men's Olympic time trial. On 26 June, the authorities named Cadel Evans in both the road and the time trial team. When the team was announced Matt White said “this has been one of the most difficult team selections in Australia’s cycling history because we really have enough talent to field two teams of Olympic standard.”

Cadel Evans prior to Stage 20 Start - 2011 TDF

Unfortunately for Australia, we woke up to the news that Cadel Evans had pulled out of the time trial citing fatigue after a heavy schedule.  Six days after finishing the Tour De France, Evans competed in the 250km Olympic men’s road race. He was then expected to back up and perform in the time trial four days later.

The question I have of the selectors, is did they chose the wrong person? Did the selectors place too much weight on his 2011 Tour de France win rather than selecting a rider with better TT form?

I believe the selection of Cadel Evans was the wrong decision. A decision that could cost us a medal. A better selection for the time trial would have been Richie Porte or Luke 'Turbo Durbo' Durbridge'. 

For starters, Evans did not ride in the Australian National Championships.  This was important as under the selection policies of Cycling Australia (CA) - "Athletes seeking nomination to the 2012 Australian Olympic Team must compete in the 2012 Australian Championships for their relevant discipline". Although, I suspect that the Cycling Australia gave Evans an exemption from this requirement, which is permitted under CA's rules. Was that the first error?

Politics of the selection requirements aside, Evans' recent performance in time trial events has been well below his best.  I would even argue that he was well below Olympic selection. In the 2012 Tour de France, Evans came 13th in the prologue, 6th in Stage  ITT and 52nd during Stage 19 TT. Even in the Criterium Du Dauphine Evans finished a disappointing 8th in Stage 4 ITT and nineth in the prologue.  His form did not should not have guaranteed Evans one of Australia's two best time trialists.

Media reports suggest that if Evans had pulled of the time trial before that road race on Saturday, the Australian Olympic Committee may have been able to draft in Richie Porte to ride in the TT. Porte was running into form.  He came fifth in the Stage 19 ITT at the Tour de France.  Evans should have known before the road race that we was feeling tired.  He struggled on some of the mountain climbs of the Tour de France to the point that his young team mate was able to race away. He was sick with a stomach virus.  These all pointed to Evans not being in the best form of his career.

It would have been tough for the CA selectors to withdraw Evans before the road race from a discipline that he obviously loves. 

I believe that the authorities should have made the right decision back when they announced the squad.

They should have announced Luke Durbridge as Australia's second competitor. He is the reigning u23 World TT Champion.  He is the Australian national TT champion. He has time trial form. He won the time trial at the Circuit de la Sarthe, he won the prologue at the Criterium du Dauphine (ahead of Bradley Wiggins) and he came 7th in Stage 4 ITT ahead of Evans. He has been compared with the greats such as Fabian Cancellera and Bradley Wiggins. While Durbridge may not have won a medal, it would have given his olympic experience before Brazil in 2016.

There has been little media attention regarding the selection of Evans in the time trial. All the media reports have focused on him pulling out of the time trial for fatigue. May be CA was have a review after the Olympics have finished.  If they do, I hope that make the review outcomes public. 

Time to sign off and watch the Olympic time trial.  While I watch Michael Rogers, I will be reflecting on 'what if turbo durbo' was selected' and 'would he have won a medal'.

Picture from ABC website