“I think it’s a danger actually for women’s cycling" - Annemiek van Vleuten shares concerns over Team SD Worx dominance
Cycling
There is little doubt who is dominant force in the world of women's cycling. Team SD Worx were by far the most successful team in 2023 and given the retirement of arguably their biggest challenger, Annemiek van Vleuten, 2024 could be even more one-sided.
Sharing her concerns about the stage of the women's World Tour, van Vleuten is worried that Team SD Worx dominance could cause long-term damage. “I would like to see that more teams are on an equal level and fight each other because last season there was too much quality in one team, and it’s better if the quality gets a bit spread out,” she says on the Bobby & Jens podcast.
With the likes of Demi Vollering, Lotte Kopecky, Lorena Wiebes, Marlen Reusser and more, Team SD Worx unquestionably have a star-studded roster. Did van Vleuten ever consider joining them herself? “My reason why I went to Movistar and not to another team is because I thought it’s nicer if more teams start to fight each other and spread out the quality,” she said. “I think it’s a danger actually for women’s cycling because it makes it less effective if one team is winning too much.”
“Also for the team it’s not so nice because all the other teams are going to ride against them,” she concludes, lamenting the somewhat closed nature of elite women's cycling. “For example in Spain, there are not a lot of WorldTour level Spanish girls. So what’s going wrong there? Maybe there’s an opportunity to develop a bit more the cycling in countries that are not at the moment so well developed in cycling.”
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- That’s the most stupid thing I’ve read for a long time, did you not go to school and learn even the most basic physics? Aero depends on one thing only, drag, drag depends speed and the relationship is squared and apart from maybe at zero or the speed of sound or due to side winds that relationship is valid at all speeds, it dies not “suddenly” start at a magic number. Very simply, the faster you go the more the effect becomes important. If you think 25km/h is needed to have noticeable effects you’re delusional, athletic WR are cancelled as soon as winds top 2m/s that’s 7.2km/h, why because the assistance is already too important at that speed and the times prove it. You don’t even consider wind which can significantly increase the effective speed for aerodynamics and you underestimate speed of climbs, 6% is ridden more at 30 than 25km/h, a speed at which early generation high rims were considered to have more advantages than disadvantages. And finally, as in normal races you can’t just switch bikes according to terrain, it’s pretty pointless to discuss climbs as a separate situation, the aero will have justified itself plenty during the rest of the ride.Mistermaumau21-12-2024
- If you look at how much TP progressed in that 1 1/2 years you can no longer say that’s nothing. If Remco improves as much he’s a challenger!Mistermaumau21-12-2024
- Froome wishing to ride the Vuelta...he won't even be selected for the team!frieders320-12-2024
- Keep telling yourself that Remco but you not only have Tadeg to beat but Jonas!frieders320-12-2024
- Seems farfetched - I agree. Mas has beaten him once. Giro d'Emillia I think - 2022mobk20-12-2024
- Barring injuries, by the time Pogacar's dominance fads there will be lots of new young talent. Pogacar is about 1 1/2 years older than Remco. That's nothing.Sweep20-12-2024
- I actually don’t find that too impressive. In my later forties I did similar figures for a 3.5% gradient as a total nobody with no wind assistance. Am sure there’s margin for improvement there, especially looking at all the names on that list.Mistermaumau20-12-2024
- Jonas', was 6 years agospock12320-12-2024
- The race where he overnight suddenly turned nuclear after being packfodder at best for several years. His Sky days after that Vuelta and Pogačar’s last season shall remain the darkest post Lance stuff cycling has witnessed. Good riddance Froome.
UltimateOpportunist20-12-2024 - Finishing the Vuelta seems to be a reasonably attainable goal. Getting on the team to do that will be the more difficult challenge.
santiagobenites20-12-2024