Injured Dutchman in race against time to regain form for July.
Tom Dumoulin rode a fairly light early-season this year, with only 16 race days up to May. But with a Giro-Tour double to attempt, it was a reasoned strategy.
“It’s better to be mentally fresh,” he said in the weeks approaching the Giro d’Italia. A great plan, all the way up to stage four, where the Dutchman’s race effectively ended, disastrously, after he was caught up in the crash that injured his knee. He abandoned in the rain the following day, having ridden just 1.5km of stage five.
So what now for the Sunweb rider? Can he really challenge for Tour de France victory after missing such a key block of racing and conditioning? Dan Fleeman of Dig Deep Coaching thinks it’s still possible, but it won’t be easy.
Denne historien er fra May 23, 2019-utgaven av CYCLING WEEKLY.
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Denne historien er fra May 23, 2019-utgaven av CYCLING WEEKLY.
Start din 7-dagers gratis prøveperiode på Magzter GOLD for å få tilgang til tusenvis av utvalgte premiumhistorier og 9000+ magasiner og aviser.
Allerede abonnent? Logg på
CLASSIC BIKE - JOHNNY BERRY
Johnny be good at making beautiful lightweight bikes
UK SCENE - WUNDERKIND HUDSON WINS YORKSHIRE CX
Newly crowned junior hill-climb champ shows his versatility by winning round seven on the mud
WATT WORKS FOR ME TADEJ POGAČAR
The man himself - subject of this special issue - explains the key performance changes behind his record-breaking year
11 WAYS TO POG-UP YOUR PLAN
Tadej Pocačar's performance is out of reach but you can adapt his training to raise your game. Chris Marshall-Bell consults the experts to find out how
Why do modern aero bikes look less aero?
Are today's aero bikes really faster, or is marketing just getting better? Joe Baker investigates...
REVIEW OF THE YEAR
An Olympic year is always special and the cycling season once again delivered a year of highs and lows, from Pogi's triple to Katie Archibald's pre-Olympic trip
MEET THE PARENTS
What made Tadej Pogačar the phenomenon he is today? Chris Marshall-Bell went to Slovenia to meet his mum and dad, Mirko and Marjeta
HALF MAN HALF GOAT
Tadej Pogačar may have had a phenomenal season, but has he done enough to cement his status as the greatest of all time? Chris Marshall-Bell weighs the arguments for and against
Lefevere cashes in his chips and leaves cycling management
The news that Patrick Lefevere will step down as Quick Step boss marks the end of an era, after 22 years in charge
Mathieu van der Poel weighs up skipping Tour de France
Dutchman hints at missing Tour in favour of mtb Worlds bid, reports Tom Thewlis from Dénia, Spain
