Gerdemann and Ciolek to Milram?
Comments
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When is Gerdermanns going to be back in competition?
I certainly think Ciolek could go. He would be top man there as opposed to no.2 sprinter."The grass is always greener on the other side - unless Jens Voigt has been riding on the other side in which case it's white with the salty, dried tears of all the riders whose souls he has crushed."0 -
I'd hold onto Gerdemann, but it's always going to be hard to keep Ciolek, he'll want his chance to win.
It would also suit Milram's style of signing second rate riders. It's a bit cruel, but maybe you know what I mean, they don't have many winners, they can pay Ciolek a lot but he risks being trounced by Cavendish.
A question, are Columbia in for the long term or just July?0 -
I can see Ciolek going, and then being comprehensively beaten by Cav, just like Steegmans will be beaten by Boonen when he goes to Tinkoff0
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While I can understand Ciolek wanting to move, I can't help thinking that he'll be making a mistake.
Columbia seem to have developed into the best sprinter's team in the business and Cav can't do all the races. As number 2, he'll probably get better opportunities with Columbia than Milram - who really aren't that good anymore. Plus he'll have the pressure of being the man who's expected to bring in the wins (like Petacchi).Twitter: @RichN950 -
RichN95 wrote:While I can understand Ciolek wanting to move, I can't help thinking that he'll be making a mistake.
Columbia seem to have developed into the best sprinter's team in the business and Cav can't do all the races. As number 2, he'll probably get better opportunities with Columbia than Milram - who really aren't that good anymore. Plus he'll have the pressure of being the man who's expected to bring in the wins (like Petacchi).
I think one of the problems is that Ciolek is quickly establishing himself as "Cav's lead-out man" rather than "Columbia's number 2 sprinter". In that case, he will end up doing all the same races as Cav and never get a chance to sprint for himself. At the moment, Greipel seems to be getting a lot more chances than Ciolek (he won this week in Austria).
So I think Ciolek could be forgiven for switching teams. He'll get many more opportunities at Milram, even if he won't be able to beat Cav.0 -
Gerdemann suggested in an interview earlier this week that he definitely would like to move, and preferably to Milram.
Ciolek has been advised to move by the likes of ex-sprinter Marcel Wüst, and since Milram are now without Petacchi, Zabel is soon to retire, and Milram-Manager Gerry van Gerwen wants to build a mostly German team, that would seem the obvious destination. Also, the response of Columbia sport-director Aldag to a possible Ciolek move was only a rather wishy-washy ‘we’d like to keep him’, as if they’re not going to try too hard.
Unlike many above, I don’t think Cavendish will always beat Ciolek. I think Ciolek the better bet for sprint finishes at the Classics and slightly-sloped finishes, and probably for long sprints too.0 -
Personally I believe that Ciolek is a more talented all-round rider than Cav and will probably be more successful in the long-run due to his ability to get over climbs. Having said that, Columbia has been accumulating young stars of the future. Even if Ciolek goes they will have youngsters like Tony Martin and Bossen Hagen, both of whom look set to be big names in years to come. As for Gerdemann, I doubt he will be missed that much. Again, they have a huge pool of talent waiting to show what it can do.0
