Good to have Cian Uijtdebroeks join us on the team ride today 🤫🤣🤣🤣 #IPT2024 #trainingcamp
"Sometimes you laugh about it. We use the same set-up as world champion Remco Evenepoel" - BORA - hansgrohe DS didn't understand Cian Uijtdebroeks famous criticism of time-trial bike
CyclingSunday, 17 December 2023 at 14:10
BORA - hansgrohe Rolf Aldag has talked in-depth into the situation that developed around Cian Uijtdebroeks, and he also reveals that he never understood the criticism of BORA's time-trial bike at the Chrono des Nations.
"For outsiders this is great offseason entertainment. Grab the popcorn and Coca Cola. It is not nice for us to be in this situation. All the programs are created, that's my job, not the contracts," DS Rolf Aldag said in conversation with The Cycling Podcast. "That is why I cannot comment on the contract situation, but everything for 2024 in terms of program and planning was also in place for Cian. We assumed he would be part of the team. It hit like a bomb."
Aldag was not expecting this to happen even with the Belgian's clear discontent with some aspects of the team, and is now involved in the team's court case instead of working with Uijtdebroeks towards the 2024 season. He has said before that the case is going to court, and he worries of the consequences this may have in the future of the sport. "Because what will that mean for cycling, with all those long-term contracts?"
"Contracts always state that you can get out of an obligation if everyone supports it. I'm not happy that it's happening to a 20-year-old because he doesn't have the experience. It's much more about his future than ours. If contracts have zero value anymore, we have a problem," he says. "A lot of team managers have already responded to the situation, because they are concerned. What are we going to do now? That will be interesting."
"I was 10 kms into the race and my shifter came loose and I was immediately allowed to change bikes. But that spare bike wasn't right and I can race as fast as I want and can, but I'm not doing well," he said at the time. "I come here to learn, so it would be great if my bikes were okay." In that interview he also pointed towards he possibility of leaving the team; it was already evident at this time that he was not happy with his surroundings.
"Sometimes you laugh about it. We use the same set-up as world champion Remco Evenepoel, and it's not going too bad, right? I think it's hard to say the bike isn't competitive," Aldag responds. "I know how Soudal-Quick Step operates and have been intensively involved in developing the material. Or they must have suddenly made a magical change at Quick Step, but I don't think so. Our set-up can compete with other WorldTour teams. We were going to ride the Chrono des Nations as a test, and everyone knew that. Nothing happened there that we didn't expect."
Read also
claps 8visitors 8543
Just in
Popular news
Latest comments
- yeah, that’s a more fair assessment. “reaching mathieu’s level” doesn’t mean you’re planning to replicate his whole career. the former IS doable, potentially. it’s just the latter that likely is not.OCexile25-12-2024
- That’s not entirely true. Every person follows their own development path and peaks differently. Remco and Primoz had hardly started cycling before elite level. Jonas was pretty much under the radzr until he unexpectedly had to take over responsibility at JV. Some guys only get real good in their thirties others have peaked mid-twenties. You can’t tell in advance how and upto what level they will progress, obviously his career might not have MVDPs length but nothing says he could not end up doing a few seasons at his level.Mistermaumau25-12-2024
- well, del grosso is 21 right now. when mathieu was a year younger than that, he was already winning elite level world championships, not U23. i think del grosso will be a very good pro for years, but if he was really going to be the next van der poel someday, he’d already have to be at that level right NOW. van der poel was showing signs of true greatness when he was 15-16. THAT’S what generational talent looks like.OCexile25-12-2024
- Yeah.... gear 😅.mikolajjj24-12-2024
- It shouldn’t be about expectations in the first place should it? Besides, if you look at everyone’s calculations as a whole they don’t add up in the first place. There’ll be 2-3 riders with a 50% chance, a dozen with 10 or 20% and dozens more with a 5% so we’re expecting at least 2 if not 3 winners. Remind me again who won before her? Says it all about using data to decide on participation.Mistermaumau24-12-2024
- Ok, happy I’m not too interested in this team coz’ the account of what happened is really hard to follow.Mistermaumau24-12-2024
- The UCI is worse than USA CyclingVeganpotter24-12-2024
- It's not like they wanted her to not win😅 She had an outstanding Olympics. But there's a reason why she wasn't expected to win the road race and that's ok. Things like this happen and it's great...better than seeing expected winners win.Veganpotter24-12-2024
- Bruyneel ? The man with a lifetime ban from cycling...why do you keep giving him and his doper mate, Armstrong, a platform?DJ24-12-2024
- yeah, agree. on the subject of being a “complete rider,” i do think that’s getting more interesting. mathieu seems to have decided he wants to get much better at climbing the the high mountain passes. he appears to be looking for new challenges, which should be interesting to watch. in most cases you’d dismiss a goal like that at age 30, but it’s mvdp. he’s never going to climb with the real climbers, but if he can improve enough it could open up stage wins when the parcours isnt just purely toothy and punchy.OCexile24-12-2024