Uh-oh,” the email reads. “Someone stole your KOM.” It’s probably not the kind of thing you need when racing the Tour de France and we think we know someone who has been getting a lot of them.
“We’re in the region of Romain Bardet who has all the KOMs here and I think he’s going to lose them all,” says Oliver Naesen, rider with Ag2rCitroën, with just a tiny hint of glee ahead of stage 11 through the Massif Central. “The stage yesterday [to Issoire] and also three days ago [to Puy de Dôme] the pace was extremely high. We were raking in KOMs.”
In this respect Bardet is like any of us when the WorldTour peloton comes to town; if you’re not losing the KOM you’re probably taking a bumpy ride down the list. But we are less likely to have to face the teasing from our work colleagues. “If I see him today I will probably say, ‘Hey you lost a few,’” says Naesen.
Bardet and Naesen are just two of the 131 riders who started the Tour that are on Strava, though only around 80 post their rides for any given day on the race. Strava would like that to increase. Last year the US company became an official partner of the Tour for three years pledging to “develop new and unique experiences for its global community of athletes to follow the excitement of each stage of the race”. Currently this extends to a Tour de France club page which collates images and rides from the Tour and has 195,000 followers, and posting the relevant segments for a day’s stage on the Tour de France’s official website.
However, there are barriers to its more widespread adoption in the pro peloton and consequently giving fans the insights Strava and the Tour would like.
Denne historien er fra July 20, 2023-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
Denne historien er fra July 20, 2023-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
"We tore around the Sydney suburbs at 60kph in a terrifying, feral pack"
Fast, furious and furry tales from Australia
RIDDEN AND REVIEWED BROMPTON G LINE £2,499
A Brompton for running riot in both town and country
How do different gravel conditions impact your tyre choice?
There are a myriad of tyres on the market but selecting the right one is easier than you think
FEAST OF SWEDEN
Soon after landing in Gothenburg, I began to realise how little I knew about Sweden.
THE WORLD'S GREATEST GRAVEL EVENTS
Globe-trotting gravel racer Joe Laverick chooses his eight favourite events, from coastal Wales to the wilds of Kenya
THE CALL OF THE WILD
Tempted to embark on a long-distance bike adventure? Let former round-the-world record holder and author Julian Sayarer inspire you to strike out and hit the road
Saint Piran accused of using non-UCI legal bikes
Cornish team also alleged to owe former staff tens of thousands of pounds
JOE LAVERICK GETTING INTO THE FEED ZONE
I've ridden through hundreds of feed zones in my time racing a bike.
Lowden not ready to stop after retirement
Former Hour record holder eyes UK time trial scene
Pogačar makes history (again) at Lombardia
Slovenian makes it four in a row at the late-season Italian Monument
