Bradley Wiggins Thomas and Cummings could not win Tour de France prologue for UK
Not since 1968 have so many British road cyclists been competing in the same Tour de France. 8 Britons are set to start the race on Saturday, compared with 0 in 2005. Two significant achievements in last year’s Tour, combined with some corporate backing, seem to be behind the apparent resurgence of British cycling.
At this time last year, Bradley Wiggins and Mark Cavendish were preparing for what would come to be a surprisingly successful Tour. Then riding for US Team Garmin-Slipstream (now Garmin-Transitions),Wiggins finished 4th and Team Columbia (now HTC-Columbia) sprinter Cavendish won a remarkable six stages and came within inches of the points classification title.
These successes seem to have been immaculately time for news network Sky, who in February 2009 had announced their investment in a UK-based cycling team, the aptly named Team Sky. Active from the current season, the team is led by British cycling guru Dave Brailsford.
The purported aim of the team is to create the first British winner of the Tour. Following their signing of Wiggins on a four-year contract (worth £2 million) in December 2009, some experts, not least British ones, have been inclined to back their audacious bid.
At 30, Wiggins would be far from the only Tour-winner to have won cycling’s finest trophy well-over 25. Seven-time winner Lance Armstrong won his consecutive titles between the ages of 27 and 33.
And Wiggins is quick to affirm that no less than a victory is his personal goal in this year’s Tour. “I would never say, 'OK, this is my goal: to finish third,'" he told the Guardian as early as August 2009. “My goal is to win the race. Logically, I've got to be in with a real shot.”
Other than Wiggins, Team Sky includes two other British riders: British road race champion Geraint Thomas and Steve Cummings, who finished fifth in Stage 17 in the 2010 Giro d’Italia. Both are making their Tour debuts.
Supporting roles for Wiggins are likely to be handed both Thomas and Cummings, but a stage win or two cannot be dismissed as possibilities.
The British presence in the Tour, of course, is also down to the five riders participants outside of Team Sky. Among these, 25 year-old sprinter Cavendish is the safest bet on a real achievement this year.
The outspoken Cavendish is quick to reassert the often heard claim that he is the best sprinter in the world at present. Looking to improve on his performance in the recent Tour de Suisse, where an untimely crash and the subsequent punishment led him to withdraw, Cavendish is in with a real chance of not only stage wins, but also the green jersey that he so narrowly missed out on last year.
Then, Norwegian sprinter Thor Hushovd, the eventual winner of the points classification, was judged to have been obstructed by Cavendish in Stage 14, and the resultant punishment rendered the jersey out of reach for Cavendish. The remaining four British riders are Team Garmin-Tranisitions’ David Millar, Daniel Lloyd and Jeremy Hunt of Cervelo TestTeam, and Omega Pharma-Lotto rider Charley Wigelius.
With stage wins in the 2000, 2002 and 2003 Tours, the 33 year-old Scott Millar looks most likely to make an impact, although his riding has not recovered since his two-year doping ban in 2003. Millar did manage to claim an overall victory in this year’s Three Days of De Panne race, but will now be up against stronger competition.
As for Lloyd, Hunt and Wigelius, anything outside of strong team performances would surprise. All 30 or above, their role will most likely be to inspire future British riders to build on the successes of their countrymen.
David Millar and Geraint Thomas delivered inspired rides to finish third and fifth respectively behind Fabian Cancellara, of Switzerland, who won his fourth Tour de France prologue.
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