"it doesn't mean Lenny is a cheater" - Guilty Bahrain DS explains Col du Glandon 'bidon gate'

A sticky bottle is something riders in pro cycling use to their advantage, but rarely in the way that Lenny Martínez did during stage 18 to help him gain KOM points. The absurd support he got from the team car didn't see true consequences and also led to a lot of criticism of his actions on social media and the peloton.

This happened on the first climb of the day, the Col du Glandon, after he had been dropped from the breakaway. With his KOM jersey hanging by a thread - he eventually lost it at the end of the stage to Tadej Pogacar - he asked for food and drinks from the team car. Three times.

This was also fully shown on the live TV broadcast and there was truly no way to hide from the negative commentary. He scored 20 points at the top of the climb after being able to regain contact with the group, however he was only penalized 8 at the end of the day - a positive net worth for the Frenchman's controversial actions.

But DS Roman Kreuziger was naturally also fined at the end of the day, and this morning he was asked about the incident. "I apologized and explained everything to the commissaires. There was some miscommunication between Lenny and me,. French and English, you know," Kreuziger said in an interview with Sporza. "It wasn't pretty, but it doesn't mean Lenny is a cheater or that he did anything wrong.

TV2 pundit Christian Moberg said that "I think it was over the line" and Visma boss Richard Plugge himself was also very harsh on the Frenchman and the UCI's lack of true consequences for the youngster: “Even if you’re struggling just to stay in the race, it’s not allowed. But here it had a clear impact on the classification.”

Within Bahrain as well it's clear that not everyone was on the same page, and that Kreuziger didn't push for Martínez' actions. Rather, it was a choice from the Frenchman. "But Lenny is still young and has a lot to learn. He came to our car on a part of the climb where it wasn't necessary," the former pro added. "It was the easiest part. Because after that, he showed that he's punchy enough. We're trying to turn the negativity around today."