Welcome back to another edition of Pro Log. Here’s a rundown of the latest results before we get started:
- La Vuelta Femenina, Stage 3, Tues 5th May: 1st Cédrine Kerbaol, EF Education-EasyPost, 3h 14min 17sec; 2nd Lotte Kopecky, SD Worx-Protime, +04sec; 3rd Sarah van Damn, Visma-Lease a Bike +04sec.
- La Vuelta Femenina, Stage 2, Mon 4th May: 1st Shari Bossuyt, AG Insurance Soudal, 2h 55min 50sec; 2nd Franziska Koch, FDJ United-Suez, +00sec; 3rd Évita Muzic, FDJ United-Suez, +00sec.
- La Vuelta Femenina, Stage 1, Sun 3rd May: 1st Noemi Rüegg, EF Education-Oatly, 2h 53min 50sec; 2nd Lotte Kopecky, SD Worx-Protime, +00sec; 3rd Franziska Koch, FDJ United-Suez, +00sec.
- Men’s Tour de Romandie, Overall, Sun 3rd May: 1st Tadej Pogačar, UAE Team Emirates XRG, 20h 05min 42sec; 2nd Florian Lipowitz, Red Bull-Bora-Hansgrohe, +42sec; 3rd Lenny Martinez, Bahrain Victorious, +2min 44sec.
- Men’s Tour de Romandie, Stage 5, Sun 3rd May: 1st Tadej Pogačar, UAE Team Emirates XRG, 4h 18min 52sec; 2nd Florian Lipowitz, Red Bull-Bora-Hansgrohe, +03sec; 3rd Primož Roglič, Red Bull-Bora-Hansgrohe, +07sec.
Paul Seixas to make Tour de France debut
It is official, Paul Seixas is set to make his Tour de France debut this summer, with the 19-year-old Frenchman set to become the youngest rider on the start line for almost 90 years. The news was revealed by Decathlon CMA CGM in a heartwarming video in which Seixas breaks the news to his grandparents who are understandably delighted.
Seixas has been thriving this season with seven victories so far, including La Flèche Wallonne, and raced to second behind Tadej Pogačar at Strade Bianche and Liège-Bastogne-Liège. In his two stage races so far, Seixas finished second at the Volta ao Algarve before dominating Itzulia Basque Country.
Next on his calendar is the Tour Auvergne-Rhône-Alpes (previously called the Critérium du Dauphiné) in June before the Tour kicks off in Barcelona in July.
La Vuelta Femenina kicks off
It has been a crash-marred couple of opening days at the first Grand Tour of the season, La Vuelta Femenina. Marianne Vos broke her collarbone but still fought back to sprint at the end of Stage 1, which was won by EF’s Noemi Rüegg, who powered away on the uphill finish to take the first maillot rojo of the race. Rüegg would unfortunately have to abandon herself on Stage 2 after a heavy crash in which she fractured her right shoulder.
The second stage was won by AG Insurance-Soudal’s Shari Bossuyt in another uphill sprint from a reduced peloton, and saw Lotte Kopecky relegated to 36th place, fined and hit with a yellow card for swerving in the sprint.
Kopecky said after the race, ‘I wanted to shift gears. With the SRAM system, if you press both buttons at the same time, you shift to the small chainring. At the moment I wanted to shift up, I came into contact with Shari, that caused me to shift to the inner smaller chainring and drop the chain. After watching the video I really want to say Shari Bossuyt did not do anything wrong. So absolutely congrats to her! I don’t agree with the decision of the jury. But that’s another discussion all together.’
It’s been a rollercoaster ride so far for EF Education-Oatly, but on Stage 3 the highs returned with a late breakaway win for Cédrine Kerbaol, perfectly set up by teammate Alice Towers.
EF Education-EasyPost reveal alien Giro d’Italia kit
The latest EF Education-EasyPost switchout kit by Assos for the Giro d’Italia comes in peace, do not be alarmed. Described as a design that ‘hovers somewhere between space, time, and the Italian roads’, it showcases a light green colouring with crop circles, a giant alien head on the chest and pink crop circles. Load and brash, much like the duck-themed Rapha x Palace kit at the 2020 edition.
The squad has to change their pink threads for the Grand Tour as it clashes with the leader’s maglia rosa, much like Visma-Lease a Bike and the maillot jaune at the Tour.
Tadej Pogačar wins Tour de Romandie
Tadej Pogačar dominated the Tour de Romandie, winning four out of six stages, the overall and the points classification. The only days not swept up by the Slovenian were the prologue and the Stage 3 sprint, both won by Ineos’s breakthrough signing Dorian Godon. Pogačar finished sixth and fourth on those stages.
Last year’s Tour de France third place Florian Lipowitz was Pogačar’s closest challenger on GC, finishing 42 seconds down, while Bahrain Victorious Frenchman Lenny Martinez came home third, 2min 44sec down.