Team Sky TDF Squad

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Comments

  • Turfle
    Turfle Posts: 3,762
    I'd be amazed if Stannard has another 3 weeks in his legs. I know Cav and Eisel did the same Giro, but Stannard rode some tough tough Ks on the front.

    Stannard or Hayman would likely both be better, but as an all round Cav companion I'm expecting Eisel.
  • Abdoujaparov
    Abdoujaparov Posts: 642
    Eisel's got some important experience and is well-respected in the peloton. Definitely worth taking, much as I like Stannard.
  • thamacdaddy
    thamacdaddy Posts: 590
    Wiggins
    Cav
    Rogers
    Porte
    Froome
    Eisel
    EBH
    Siutsou

    I think the above 8 are probably the most likely. Wiggins really only needs Porte, Froome and Rogers with him in climbs and could possibly get away with just two supporting riders. But Sky will need a "train" of rouleurs who can control the front of races for both wiggins and cav. Siutsou is a dead cert here. Porte and Rogers can also do this. I feel however the last spot will be someone else for that role. Stannard would be perfect but as others have said Hayman, Flecha and Pate all fit this role.

    Eisel will definately be there for Cav support. Part of me also thinks perhaps swift, appollonio or kennaugh could be included for the final 1k of sprint lead outs with EBH. Kennaugh would probably be favourite here but he did do the Giro. EBH used to be part of that T-Mobile, HTC lead out train in the early days. That said we all know cav really can do it without a train, just having the team controlling the front of the race to bring back breaks would be more than enough to put him in the mix to use another team's train such as greenedge who surely will be aiming for stage wins.
  • phreak
    phreak Posts: 2,953
    However things are juggled about, one thing we can be sure of is that it'll be an incredibly strong squad.
  • r0bh
    r0bh Posts: 2,436
    thamacdaddy wrote:
    Kennaugh would probably be favourite here but he did do the Giro.

    Kennaugh definitely won't be there as he is with the GB team pursuit squad.
  • yourpaceormine
    yourpaceormine Posts: 1,245
    Doubt Ben Swift will make the team - early part of the season on track duty, then just as he makes the decision to concentrate on the road he crashed. Was it a broken collarbone, I forget? Just got back racing and doing well. In Switzerland but has he got 3 weeks of hard hard riding in him?

    If it hadn't been for the injury then maybe as Geraint rode a pretty decent Giro even though he's been on track duty.
  • mroli
    mroli Posts: 3,622
    Wiggins
    Cav
    Rogers
    Porte
    Froome
    Eisel
    EBH
    Siutsou
    Pate

    One thing you've got to say is that it is a shame for Sky that there isn't a TTT....
    http://www.georgesfoundation.org
    http://100hillsforgeorge.blogspot.com/
    http://www.12on12in12.blogspot.co.uk/
  • TMR
    TMR Posts: 3,986
    mroli wrote:
    Wiggins
    Cav
    Rogers
    Porte
    Froome
    Eisel
    EBH
    Siutsou
    Pate

    One thing you've got to say is that it is a shame for Sky that there isn't a TTT....

    LMAO - The team of Death! Some feckin' huge engines there :)
  • Anonymous
    Anonymous Posts: 79,667
    I would go for:

    Team Wiggins: Wiggo, Porte, Froome, Rodgers, Sivtsov

    Team Cav: Cav, Eisel, EBH, Stannard

    I think Eisel will be there to protect cav with Boss doing the last man lead out, or if Cav isnt up for it then sprinting himself. I had a thought the other day Cav wouldn't race and it would be Boss who would attempt the sprint.

    I think it would be silly to not have Stannard in the team, mans a pulling machine (and not withthe ladies), he caught a break single handidly in the Giro.

    I wondered if they would shove in one of the climbers (Uran and Heno) to help Wiggo over but doubt it.
  • Ron Stuart
    Ron Stuart Posts: 1,242
    Brailsford must be wondering "sh*t Bradley could actually win the Tour" and I am between a rock and a Cav place. He knows as well as I do that the best chance Bradley has of winning the Tour is to have the whole of the Sky Team dedicated to that goal and that goal alone. It has got him the results this year so far and it must be agonising for the team management to have to split the resources and focus between certain stages of the Tour. It's gonna be one of those I'm a devil if I do or a devil if I don't situations, not one I would like to make.
    It's not one of these Bradley on the sprint finishes can help with lead out points that matter more so is the sacrificing of helpers to get Cav over the mountains, this is all resources that may be badly needed. :?
  • Pross
    Pross Posts: 43,463
    I'm sure they have a plan. They will have known as well as we did when taking Cav into the team that this would be an issue as people had Wiggins down as a potential favourite as soon as the route was announced. I'm sure it would have been talked through and who will get what support agreed. If Cav wasn't happy with the proposal he wouldn't have signed and I'm sure Wiggins would have given an opinion if he felt that his chances were being compromised.
  • RichN95.
    RichN95. Posts: 27,253
    The withdrawal of Schleck helps Sky in terms of resources. He's the only one who has the potential to gain minutes in the mountains and do long range attacks. The likes of Sanchez, Rolland, Gesink and Frank S can pose problems, but not in the same way.
    Twitter: @RichN95
  • Abdoujaparov
    Abdoujaparov Posts: 642
    Four super strong domestiques is better than six mediocre ones. Wiggo should be happy he's with Sky.
  • Ron Stuart
    Ron Stuart Posts: 1,242
    Your points are all valid but do not change the fact that Bradley as a potential Tour winner would be better served by a team totally dedicated to that aim. I wouldn't be to sure about Bradley's so comfort with Cav in the team either, it may have been agreed but that doesn't stop a guy from having reservations.
    Not saying he can't win, just saying the winning could be easier if that was all that was at stake. He probably won't get a better chance and he would realise that only to well.
  • iainf72
    iainf72 Posts: 15,784
    Having Cavendish on the team isn't a problem. It's just how much do you dedicate to him. I'd suggest 1 other.
    Fckin' Quintana … that creep can roll, man.
  • Jez mon
    Jez mon Posts: 3,809
    Actually, despite what I've said before, having Cav on the team might be good for Wiggo. It takes some of the media spotlight away from him in the first few stages.

    Having said that, it is a difficult balancing act.
    You live and learn. At any rate, you live
  • rebs
    rebs Posts: 891
    Only problem with Cav being in the team. Is if he doesn't get least 2 stage wins in the 1st week. He may want to start demanding more effort for the leadouts.

    He gets 2 wins at least he'll start looking to London.

    One thing for sure. I'm not looking forward to being in Pate's shoes over the tour. He'll be having ALOT of work to do.
  • TheHelpfulDevil
    TheHelpfulDevil Posts: 129
    has a team ever won the yellow and green with different riders in the tour before? or has any team come close. T-mobile maybe?
  • rick_chasey
    rick_chasey Posts: 75,661
    TheHelpfulDevil wrote:
    has a team ever won the yellow and green with different riders in the tour before? or has any team come close. T-mobile maybe?

    Telekom won both I believe in '97.
    _
  • Ron Stuart
    Ron Stuart Posts: 1,242
    Rick Chasey wrote:
    TheHelpfulDevil wrote:
    has a team ever won the yellow and green with different riders in the tour before? or has any team come close. T-mobile maybe?

    Telekom won both I believe in '97.

    Yep, and by the way Jan also won the young riders jersey and Telekom won the team GC. Pundits must have thought Jan was very likely to win more TDF's after the 97 tour.
  • rick_chasey
    rick_chasey Posts: 75,661
    He won it by 9 minutes..

    Destroyed everyone.
    _
  • cycling5280
    cycling5280 Posts: 279
    RichN95 wrote:
    The withdrawal of Schleck helps Sky in terms of resources. He's the only one who has the potential to gain minutes in the mountains and do long range attacks. The likes of Sanchez, Rolland, Gesink and Frank S can pose problems, but not in the same way.

    Andy Schlecks days of long range attacks are over. The peloton will never allow him that much of a cushion that far out.
    http://www.1kmtogo.blogspot.com
  • timoid.
    timoid. Posts: 3,133
    Rick Chasey wrote:
    TheHelpfulDevil wrote:
    has a team ever won the yellow and green with different riders in the tour before? or has any team come close. T-mobile maybe?

    Telekom won both I believe in '97.


    Telekom also did the double in 1996 (Riis (or Ullrich) and Zabel)

    Hinault did the double on his own in 1979, Merckx did the double three times including a monstrous clean sweep of yellow, green and (whatever colour it was back then) mountains jerseys in 1969.
    It's a little like wrestling a gorilla. You don't quit when you're tired. You quit when the gorilla is tired.
  • Cumulonimbus
    Cumulonimbus Posts: 1,730
    ONCE came close to doing the double in 1995 with Jalabert taking green (and 4th overall) but Zulle lost out to Indurain. Seems to have been a common theme around those times...
  • mroli
    mroli Posts: 3,622
    http://www.cyclingnews.com/news/lofkvis ... e-in-doubt

    Awful story?! Surely Lofkvist has about as much chance of riding the TdF as I do - good knee or bad knee?! Alright, a little bit more, but surely not as a first choice pick - and I'd be surprised if he's in the reserve squad too....
    http://www.georgesfoundation.org
    http://100hillsforgeorge.blogspot.com/
    http://www.12on12in12.blogspot.co.uk/
  • LeicesterLad
    LeicesterLad Posts: 3,908
    mroli wrote:
    http://www.cyclingnews.com/news/lofkvists-tour-de-france-in-doubt

    Awful story?! Surely Lofkvist has about as much chance of riding the TdF as I do - good knee or bad knee?! Alright, a little bit more, but surely not as a first choice pick - and I'd be surprised if he's in the reserve squad too....

    Haha, yes I did have a surprised giggle at this first thing this morning. :lol:

    Worrying if he has been told he's in the TdF team though :shock:

    (I doubt he has)
    http://www.twitter.com/InTheGC http://www.InTheGC.com http://www.facebook.com/intheGC
  • inkyfingers
    inkyfingers Posts: 4,400
    mroli wrote:
    http://www.cyclingnews.com/news/lofkvists-tour-de-france-in-doubt

    Awful story?! Surely Lofkvist has about as much chance of riding the TdF as I do - good knee or bad knee?! Alright, a little bit more, but surely not as a first choice pick - and I'd be surprised if he's in the reserve squad too....

    Bit of a weird one is Lofkvist, from being an up and coming talent in short stage races and hilly classics he seems to have gone backwards since moving to Sky. Hasn't won a race since 2009, and even when he's given a shot at a leadership role he seems to always go missing. His career is moving more towards being a good domestique rather than the team leader that Sky signed him up as I believe.
    "I have a lovely photo of a Camargue horse but will not post it now" (Frenchfighter - July 2013)
  • fastandfurry
    fastandfurry Posts: 138
    cycling5280 wrote:
    RichN95 wrote:
    The withdrawal of Schleck helps Sky in terms of resources. He's the only one who has the potential to gain minutes in the mountains and do long range attacks. The likes of Sanchez, Rolland, Gesink and Frank S can pose problems, but not in the same way.

    Andy Schlecks days of long range attacks are over. The peloton will never allow him that much of a cushion that far out.

    Did you not see that stage? They weren't allowing him a cushion, they were riding as hard as they could to limit the damage, and shelling out riders constantly. Cadel ended up riding on the front for pretty much the whole of the Galibier - it isn't the sign of a peleton taking it easy when the favourites are forced to ride at the front that far out from the finish. Although I think in all likelihood that team sky would have been able to control it given the ridiculously strong team they have this year.

    It seems to me that Cav has changed the emphasis of his training away from sprinting towards being able to climb and survive tough stages for the olympics, hence being beaten by Greipel, but winning a yellow jersey! I rather suspect he isn't going to be on his usual sprinting form this TDF. With that in mind, I wouldn't give him any riders specifically but get a few of the guys to run a short lead out for him to go for a few stages (Stannard, who you'd need for pulling back breaks for Wiggins anyway, and maybe EBH).

    Personally, I think Wiggo would be favourite even with last years team...but with this years team? I can't see past him winning barring a catastrophic loss of form or a crash. Even if he has a bad day out, he has enough strong riders with him to limit the damage. Unreal to be saying that about a (semi) British rider.
  • specialgueststar
    specialgueststar Posts: 3,418
    Wot no Columbian s?

    After the showing at the Giro I'd take Uran just as a psychological bonus (if he's recovered!). Just wondering if Wiggins is a bit vulnerable with climbing attacks - control at the Dauphine was very good but Evans still looked threatening. A high mountain specialist would be a definite bonus??

    Although its difficult to see how anyone will jump the Sky mountain train if it all goes to plan
  • Turfle
    Turfle Posts: 3,762
    Lofkvist was on the Tour long list, but as Porte, Sivtsov, Froome, Rogers have all ridden there probably was little chance of him making the final 9. The knee injury likely ended any chance.

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