Velominati Super Prestige: Men’s Olympic Road Race 2016
The Men’s Olympic Road Race, a race traditionally won by the biggest jerk in the bunch, usually after one of the coolest riders in the bunch makes a mess of things when the race is all but in his hands. Take Fabian Cancellara last time ’round, casually looking behind him as he leaned into a right-hander which he then just as casually overshot, opening the door for Alexandre Vinokourov – dirtiest rider in the bunch – to buy off the race from Rigoberto Uran Uran.
In 1980 the Rooskies won because no one else showed up to the race, then in ’84 Alexi Grewal won, beating Steve Bauer to the line. I don’t think there has ever been a nicer guy in the peloton who came second place in more important races than Steve Bauer. The Olympics, Paris-Roubaix. He got tangled up in the sprint for the Worlds once, and got sued as a result. In 1989, he flatted out of the lead group at the Worlds, when the math said Sean Kelly should have been the fastest sprinter. But math isn’t always right and Greg LeMond bested Sean to the line; there is no reason to belief Bauer wouldn’t have been in that sprint finish, with every possibility of taking top honors.
But races aren’t won on theories, and coulda-woulda-shouldas. My money is on a climber with a good descent and a fast finish, like Alejandro Valvecap. Nibali could get away, but let’s face it – it would be too glorious if he won and glorious things don’t normally happen in the Men’s Olympic Road Race. Is Armstrong coming out of retirement (again) for the race? Maybe he’ll win.
Check the start list, maybe check the 10 Riders to Watch list, and get your picks in by the time the clock goes to zero, and good luck.
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Fuck it. A man’s got to dream.
Part of me wants to pick Steevo to win with a 150k solo breakaway. Stranger things have happened.
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I won’t mind being wrong.
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Sure, why the fuck not?
C’mon Nico!
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Five wildcards, you say?! What is this madness?
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@Geraint
Your picks coming true would make me so happy. I figure G will be riding for Spidey; I’m going for a Cummings monster break. I live in hope.
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I’m too tired to think, which is normally a good thing.
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One more time…
Phinney is an outsider for sure and I’m not sure his legs are back for the climb in this course, but anyone who saw that ATOC stage where he blitzed the peloton just before the summit and mach schnell’d the descent to the beach… Could there be a repeat? He’ll have to be super-stealthy if he’s got the legs with just Bookwalter with him.
And while Nibali has worn the crown on descending machismo for years there are pedalwans with the potential to shame the sensei in the field today. I think Chavez just might have him and is a bit fresher. It’s gonna be a good one.
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Who knows really?
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Bardet can do it..
Gold! Gold! Gold!
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F*ing Delgado’ed! Oh well … Here’s my latest article for PEZ Cycling News about Coppin’s Organic Restaurant. If any of y’all are ever in DC, you have to go.
http://www.pezcyclingnews.com/features/dining-with-il-campionissimo-coppis-organic-resaurant#.V6XOumWrPPw
Cracking race, the ‘final’ seemed to be the last 100k! Proud of the way the British rode today, gutted for Geraint going down on the last descent.
Result:
1. VAN AVERMAET Greg
2. FUGLSANG Jakob
3. MAJKA Rafal
4. ALAPHILIPPE Julian
5. RODRIGUEZ OLIVER Joaquim
So does the winner (not I) get an Olympic Ring posting tag for the next four years???
Flip – 3 of my top 4 crashed on the final descent. I was feeling pretty happy to that point.
Didn’t matter that I Delgado-ed. None of my picks would’ve been top 5. That’s about right.
@chuckp
G*ddamn f*king auto spell correct. That’s Coppi’s Organic Restaurant in DC.
It doesn’t matter that I delgadoed. It doesn’t matter that I would have had the winner correct. I’m just too happy GVA won!
Well okey dokey, so when did we decide to add the Olympics to the 2016 VSP schedule? Should we assume the TT will pop up in the next couple days?
In any event, good on Greg Avermaet a deserving winner. And Sagan was a deserving winner in the Worlds! Certainly not the biggest jerks in the bunch.
@Buck Rogers
If I get another 0 tomorrow, at least ‘ll have the bottom half of the Olympic Rings going on.
Belgian gold in the road race is like USA gold in the basketball. No matter where you come from, it just feels right.
Woah, crashed and burned there. Not even sure how many of my picks even finished, they certainly didn’t trouble the medal positions.
@mulebeatsdrums
Thanks mate, wasn’t a bad pick in the end – wrong of course, but not bad! I didn’t buy the idea that Froome would be the plan A as he’s never won a big one-day race and is in with a better chance in the TT.
Absolutely gutted that Geraint crashed, he looked like he’d measured his ride nicely and was in with a very good chance. I actually cried.