Men's Road Cycling UCI World Tour 2023 (Tour de France)

[Olympian1010 8,251]

It’s almost like he went into the pandemic one rider and came out the other end a completely different rider 

[Olympian1010 8,251]

Asgreen  centimeters from pulling the double. It felt like a mini-classic today. A lot of fun stages and battles this year.

[heywoodu 16,059]

30 minutes ago, Federer91 said:

Nonetheless, i don't know if i have ever seen another elite athlete have such an instant, rapid decline, as Sagan has had. It's like he went to bed and woke up the next day, as a completely different person, like in a Latino telenovela... The closest one to compare is probably Gregor Schlierenzauer.

This might make for an interesting thread: list athletes who were among the very best in the world consistently for at least a few years (let's say anywhere between 2000 and now), and then had a massive and quick - and preferably not injury-related - drop while still being active  

 

Surely the combined power of Totallympics can come up with some more examples  

[heywoodu 16,059]

3 minutes ago, Olympian1010 said:

It’s almost like he went into the pandemic one rider and came out the other end a completely different rider 

But in 2020 and 2021 he was still on the better sprinters. Not really with the kind of raw speed like the real top sprinters (the likes of Sam Bennett), but with good positioning and use of experience he definitely was up there in the fight for the podium spots.

 

It really went downhill after 2021.....probably not a coincidence that's when he went from pretty good BORA-hansgrohe to TotalEnergies, one of those typical somewhat mediocre but well-willing French teams. As always, old boys Daniel Oss and Maciej Bodnar went with him, but yeah...they're not exactly the shining example of youth neither  

[Grassmarket 4,082]

32 minutes ago, heywoodu said:

This might make for an interesting thread: list athletes who were among the very best in the world consistently for at least a few years (let's say anywhere between 2000 and now), and then had a massive and quick - and preferably not injury-related - drop while still being active  

 

Surely the combined power of Totallympics can come up with some more examples  

Well,  George Best, greatest in the world 1964-71, then struggling for a payday ever after.

[heywoodu 16,059]

It's not gonna happen, but how awesome it would be if Pinot finishes his career with a win in his last ever Tour de France mountain stage in his Vosges, where the atmosphere is going to be electric  

 

 

Edited July 22, 2023 by heywoodu

[Grassmarket 4,082]

Carlos Rodriguez crashes, is going to need a concussion inspection……….would probably be off already in rugby, boxing etc.

[Grassmarket 4,082]

 Moto guides Pinot up the hill. Graciously steps aside to let him join the lead group.  

[heywoodu 16,059]

52 minutes ago, Grassmarket said:

Carlos Rodriguez crashes, is going to need a concussion inspection……….would probably be off already in rugby, boxing etc.

Feels a little like Dani Martinez in the same team last week or so: clear concussion, but they let him ride a full mountain stage after that and then pretended to take their responsibility and pull him out...

[Grassmarket 4,082]

13 minutes ago, heywoodu said:

Feels a little like Dani Martinez in the same team last week or so: clear concussion, but they let him ride a full mountain stage after that and then pretended to take their responsibility and pull him out...

Think so.  They will be shocked, shocked on Monday