"Those tactics... I mean, they must have been smoking weed in the team car!" - Geraint Thomas stunned by Dutch approach to 2024 European Championship road race
Cycling
Last weekend in Limburg, the men's 2024 European Championship road race was held. Pre-race, the big favourites were the Belgian duo Tim Merlier and Jasper Philipsen and in the end, it was the former who took the title in a frantic bunch sprint.
On the latest episode of their Watts Occurring podcast, INEOS Grenadiers duo Luke Rowe and Geraint Thomas reflected on the race, with a few curious tactics sticking out to the Welsh pair. "There were two things from this race," Thomas begins, targeting the Dutch approach first. "I didn't see it all, but I heard that Mathieu van der Poel just wanted to create chaos and attack, Danny van Poppel, who is one of the best leadout men in the world, ends up in the break and they've got Olav Kooij who can win. Those tactics... I mean, they must have been smoking weed in the team car! Unbelievable tactics."
That wasn't all that caught the eye of the former Tour de France winner and Giro d'Italia runner-up however. "Belgium sprinted with two guys. Did Merlier get a leadout?" Thomas questions. "Yeah, he had a leadout of Bert van Lerberghe, who is with him at Quick-Step. Then Philipsen had a leadout from some Alpecin dude. Two trains," comes the answer from Rowe. "That's nuts."
Whilst Thomas had been left confused by the tactics of the Dutch and the Belgians, Rowe meanwhile, had a bone to pick with the Italian contingent in Limburg. "They took control, Affini was doing these big dog pulls and it was incredible. But then, they tried to lead it out. They had a massive numerical advantage and they were riding on huge roads on the way in. Just come late. Come late with speed," the long time INEOS road captain explains. "I mean they almost pulled it off. Consonni got a little boxed in, he was last leadout man. But I mean, if you're a director... It's obvious. Although they didn't have connection with the director, it's worth adding that. No race radios in the Euros."
Kieran WoodDeputy Editor-in-Chief
Kieran Wood is a sports journalist based in Wales and has been active in journalism since 2022. He regularly contributes to DartsNews.com and CyclingUpToDate.com, where he covers professional cycling and darts. In cycling, his work includes liveblogs from major races, including the Tour de France, the Giro d’Italia, and La Vuelta a España, alongside race reports and analysis. He has also conducted interviews with professional riders.
His reporting spans the full racing calendar, from one-day classics to stage races, with a focus on accurate, real-time coverage and clear contextual analysis. For statistics, results, and historical context, he regularly uses resources such as ProCyclingStats. To support reporting on rider activity and training context where relevant, he also references Strava.
In his work, Kieran places strong emphasis on careful sourcing, editorial accuracy, and updating articles as new, verified information becomes available.
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- He is boring
leedorney08-11-2026 - To Twoje przemyślenia te bla, bla :)
Dariusz08-11-2026 - Uwielbiam patrzeć, jak wyjeżdża na czoło peletonu i zaczyna się rzeź...Dariusz08-11-2026
- Yeah, unreal.
parisbound0008-11-2026 - there needs to be space in life for pointless comments!Ketterechts08-11-2026
- That is a very lazy way of putting it but so far on this website it seems like everyone is happy to look at everything lazily, even things that annoy them intensely. All they want to do is state their feeling and position but ask most to analyse a problem or come up with solutions or improvements and you’re stunned by silence. Nobody even really knows how this all happens. It’s very simple and quick to just say the UCI did it but I bet you they didn’t, I bet you not more than 2 people were involved, more likely just 1. The UCI may be ultimately responsible but it is not their decision, this is about hierarchy, power and delegation. The fact that protest is possible also means it isn’t over and that MORE people could get involved for a thorough review which could throw up anything. It is highly likely it was a sole commissar who decided and has that power in a first round. Therein might lie the problem the UCI has to consider, is it acceptable to give so much authority to one single person when it is quite possible for them to have a natural bias or be too easily susceptible to imposed bias. Who is to say an individual in this position isn’t susceptible to collaboration with outside players with interests in the results, nations, families, teams, betting companies, etc. On the one hand we have sports where these problems have been worked on way more to reduce such problems, on the other hand we have sports with far stricter and more draconian rules not even concerning safety or obstruction that nobody really questions like false starts or stepping out of lane or zones in athletics. If cycling hastowork on itself, it would be good if protagonists (all kinds) would start doing a little more than just moaning over outcomes.Jumpyjohn08-11-2026
- Yes, so why not make comments less pointless?Jumpyjohn08-11-2026
- What a race! I didn't expect Vanthourenhout to collapse like that, and Wyseure did take the fight to Nys, but there was no doubt at the end. I also wonder what Aubin Sparfel would be capable of were he to race in the elites now. In the U23 ranks he is making good work of Giel Lejeune, who himself is among the better riders in the elites, and a top 10 contender in the big races (3rd at Kleebergcross, 8th at Berencross and 5th at Heerderstrand). In the French Cup, Sparfel is significantly better than Romain Debord (8th at Koppenbergcross and 10th at the Euros) and Rémi Lelandais (12th at Koppenbergcross and 19th at the Euros).
Rafionain-Glas08-11-2026 - There really was nothing in it. Schreiber was so much faster, and Brand was fighting to stay in the wheel in the sprint. Schreiber did move a bit, but to say she closed the door doesn't make sense because Brand couldn't enter it anyway, abd she wasn't impeded.Rafionain-Glas08-11-2026
- He should have been allowed to go to Movistar. Right now both arent a good fit for each other and are just wasting each other's time and effortabstractengineer08-11-2026
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Tim Merlier is the new Men Elite European Road Champion 🇪🇺 The Belgian went the long way round in a thrilling sprint finale to secure his first European title 🔥
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