Daily News Digest - March 19, 2021

Calendar updates, Van der Poel talks Milan-San Remo rivals: Daily News

Hello again, CyclingTips readers,

Thursday’s brought a calendar update from the UCI with new dates for quite a few postponed races, as well as some thoughts from Mathieu van der Poel ahead of Milan-San Remo.

Read on for the latest from the world of cycling.

Dane Cash
News Editor

What’s news?

UCI publishes updated 2021 road calendar

The UCI has published an updated calendar for the 2021 season with new dates for numerous postponed events, including a handful of WorldTour races.

On the men’s side, Eschborn-Frankfurt is among the events with new dates. The WorldTour one-day in Germany has been postponed from May 1 to September 19, which will coincide with the first day of the UCI Road World Championships. On the women’s side, the Women’s Tour will now be held from October 4 to 9, the Tour of Chongming Island will run from October 14 to 16, and the Ronde van Drenthe will be held on October 23, while the new Donostia San Sebastian Klasikoa will run on July 31.

Other rescheduled events include the Volta ao Algarve and the Ruta del Sol. The UCI also said that it has extended the road season to October 31 in case there are further postponements this season.

Van der Poel talks San Remo rivals

Mathieu van der Poel has offered some thoughts on his main rivals for Milan-San Remo, which takes place in Italy on Saturday. The 26-year-old Dutchman is among the bookmakers’ top favorites for the race alongside defending champion Wout van Aert and 2019 winner Julian Alaphilippe, and he confirmed that he sees them as top contenders.

“Those two are the big names. I also see Michael Matthews, and he has a fast sprint. I think he will be a guy to watch,” Van der Poel said. “I think Wout has a little bit of an advantage because he has already won the race. For him, it’s a bit easier, for sure, it will be a new race. Normally, San Remo is an honest race, and normally the strongest wins there as well.”

Van der Poel also touched on the topic of attacking on the Cipressa, which tops out around 23 km from the finish.

“It would be extremely nice to get over Cipressa with a small group and go to the Poggio for sure,” he said. “But I don’t know if you attack there, you’ll get many guys with you, and the part between them is fast so you’re at a disadvantage against a bunch.”

Majerus joins UCI Safety Commission

The CPA Women announced on Thursday that Christine Majerus has joined the UCI Safety Commission as a rider representative alongside Matteo Trentin and Philippe Gilbert.

The commission includes representatives of various stakeholders involved in professional cycling but prior to the addition of Majerus, it did not include any rider representatives from the women’s peloton.

Former NBA player Shawn Bradley paralyzed after being hit by driver

According to a statement from the Dallas Mavericks, former NBA player Shawn Bradley was left paralyzed after being hit by a motorist while riding his bike in January.

Bradley, 48, was hit from behind while riding his bike in St. George, Utah, a block away from home. Following the collision, he underwent neck surgery and has spent eight weeks in the hospital.

“With his wife Carrie at his side around the clock, and supported by an amazing team of rehabilitation specialists and family, Bradley is in good spirits,” read the statement from the Dallas Mavericks. “He plans to use his accident as a platform to bring greater public awareness to the importance of bicycle safety.”

Coming Up …

While plenty of stars are gearing up for Saturday’s Milan-San Remo, a handful of big names will be racing on Friday at the Bredene Koksijde Classic. The UCI 1.Pro-rated event will take riders 199 km on Belgian roads. There are a few cobbled sectors and a few climbs midway through the race, but a flat run-in to the line will have the fast finishers eyeing a win. Mads Pedersen and Tim Merlier will be riders to watch, while Deceuninck-Quick-Step will have multiple options, including Florian Sénéchal and Mark Cavendish.