Love them or hate them, team time trials are back in vogue. There will be one at this year’s Vuelta Femenina, one at next year’s Tour de France, and Paris-Nice continued its tradition on Tuesday of hosting one each spring.

With more team races against the clock scheduled – particularly at the calendar’s biggest races – cycling’s great innovators are coming up with ways to draw marginal gains out of them. The latest came from XDS Astana, who wore multi-coloured gloves and overshoes when they lined up for Paris-Nice’s third stage.

The eagle-eyed among you may have already spotted it. Perhaps you thought it was just a fun gimmick, a nod to the disco trends of the 80s. According to XDS Astana's performance engineer Alex Dowsett, there’s good reason behind the rainbow.

“When you do a turn in a team time trial, you do obviously a massive pull on the front, with really high power, and then you have to come off the power,” he said in a team post on X. “When you get to seventh position or sixth position, you then have to do another big effort to get back into the line. If you miss the back of that line by centimetres, it then becomes a third monumental effort to close the gap.”

Riders typically count their way to the back of the line when they swap turns, rejoining the end, if they can hold on. At Paris-Nice, XDS Astana judged it quicker to respond to colours, rather than count back through teammates.

“You react to things in your periphery faster than you react to them if you look directly at them. The difficult thing about team time trials, from that respect, is everyone looks the same,” Dowsett said.

“It could be that split second where you’re like, ‘Is that [Harold] Tejada or is that [Mike] Teunissen?’ The first thing you see from each rider is their hands. I was like, ‘So what if we could make everyone’s gloves a different colour?’ So instead of looking for the person, or the riding style of that person, or counting one, two, three, four, five, six, you’re just looking for a colour.

“It’s a small advantage,” he continued. “Let’s not beat around the bush, we’re not saving on aero gains or anything.”

There are also advantages for the team directors in the follow car, Dowsett explained.

“They’re not having to memorise riders’ numbers,” he said. “I think it will just be easier for the directors to know if someone needs to miss a turn, if someone says they’re struggling, [or] if someone’s getting in on the back. It’ll hopefully be easier to relay that information to the riders as well.”

XDS Astana ultimately placed 13th of 22 teams in the Paris-Nice team time trial, which was won by Visma-Lease a Bike. Without the fluorescent gloves, though, who knows where they might have finished?

Colombian cyclist Miguel Ángel López is taking his former team Astana Qazaqstan to the Court of Arbitration for Sport (CAS) over what he claims is an “unlawful” breach of his contract. 

The Kazakh team terminated the 29-year-old’s contract in December last year, citing his “probable connection” to a doctor under investigation in the Operación Ilex anti-doping case. López was said to be linked to Dr Marcos Maynar, a university professor arrested earlier in the year for drug trafficking and money laundering. 

In a statement shared on social media on Wednesday night, López wrote that the links between him and Maynar are “faltering” and don’t seem to be under investigation in the ongoing judicial proceedings. “The person under investigation is Vicente Belda García, Astana’s team masseur and supposed recipient of the medicine from doctor Maynar.” 

López has now joined up with specialist lawyers to take his former team to CAS for unfair dismissal. 

The statement, originally written in Spanish and referring to the Colombian in the third person, said: “López has passed all biological passport anti-doping controls and has full authorisation to compete in any team following the renewal of his UCI licence for the year 2023.

“Pending the resolution of the dispute that he has taken up with the team at CAS, in which he considers the breach of his contract to be unlawful, the UCI has decided to block the bank warranty of the Kazakh team for the amount of €1.7m in the event of repaying the cyclist and guaranteeing, should the CAS rule in his favour, the payment of outstanding wages and damages for the possible unfulfilment of the contract by Astana.” 

The UCI has been approached for comment by Cycling Weekly, but is yet to reply. 

López, who now rides for Colombian Continental outfit Team Medellín-EPM, says that his current contract is open, and that he is able to sign with a WorldTour team at any moment. 

The statement continued: “In the meantime, Miguel Ángel López remains motivated and committed to the team and is preparing for his next races; the Pan American Games Time Trial, the Tour of Turkey and the Tour of Greece, showing that he has the best possible level and sporting mentality.” 

Contacted by Cycling Weekly, Astana Qazaqstan chose not to provide a response to López’s statement. 

On the day that the new WorldTour season began, Astana-Qazaqstan has confirmed the signing of British road champion and illustrious sprinter Mark Cavendish on a one year contract.

The team first posted a cryptic photo of the British champion on their Twitter in what is clearly a team jersey, before releasing a full statement half an hour later.

As a result, the 37-year-old will continue on the WorldTour in 2023, where his main objective is likely to be surpassing the all-time record for the number of Tour de France stage wins.

The tweet all but confirmed it, before a full statement was released. "Still waiting" the team said alongside a photo of Cavendish in a British national champion's Astana jersey.

His contract is for just 2023, according to the squad. No news on the status of leadout man Cees Bol has been released.

Cavendish said the "hunger to continue winning" was "as bright as ever".

"I am really excited for this adventure," he said in a press release. "I raced with Alexandr Vinokurov for many years, and now I’m racing with his 2 boys! I remember when they were children the same age as my own, dreaming to be bike racers. Astana Qazaqstan Team is going to be a great place to be successful, with a strong team led by Alexandr, a champion on the bike and a gentleman off the bike. 

"I’ve enjoyed a long career already, but the joy of riding my bike and the hunger to continue winning are as bright as ever. So I’m looking forward to being part of a successful team, whether working with the team for wins, crossing the line first myself, or cheering on my teammates. 

"As always, the objective will be for us to stand on the top podium."

The Kazakh team freed a space in their squad last month when they terminated the contract of Colombian climber Miguel Ángel López, citing his “probable connection” to a doctor under investigation in a doping case. 

Vinokourov, the team's general manager, said that they would support him with "all our forces".

"Well, Mark Cavendish doesn’t need any presentation," he said. "He is the best sprinter of all times, and I am happy to welcome Mark in Astana Qazaqstan Team. The arrival of a top sprinter in our team is kind of challenge for us, but we are ready for it. We see new ways and new possibilities. 

"The goals however are still the same – victories in any kind of race: Classics, stages in different stage races and, of course, in the Grand Tours. Mark still has a big desire to win and we are going to support this feeling with all our forces in all kind of races."

Cavendish, who knew as early as July that he would not have his contract renewed at Quick-Step Alpha Vinyl, has been heavily linked with a number of top-level teams in recent months. 

The strongest rumours were with French outfit B&B Hôtels-KTM, but following the team’s collapse in December, the sprinter looked to be without a contract for 2023. 

Though Astana-Qazaqstan have not historically built their squad around a sprinter, signing Cavendish gives the team a unique chance at making history. Currently, the Manxman is tied with Eddy Merckx on a record 34 Tour de France stage wins. Should he claim another victory next July, he’ll become the sole, all-time record holder. 

Speaking after winning his second British national title in June, Cavendish said: “Can you imagine winning a 35th Tour de France stage in the British champion's jersey? It'd be really beautiful."

Cavendish has raced on WorldTour teams since 2009, notably riding for HTC-Columbia, Team Sky, Quick Step and Dimension Data. Over the course of his career, the Brit has taken part in 21 Grand Tours, claiming over 160 career victories, including the Road World Championships in 2011. 

Astana-Qazaqstan will be Cavendish's sixth team at the sport’s highest professional level. 

The Kazakh team, managed by former pro Vinokourov, have been involved in a number of doping scandals since their inception in 2007. Vinokourov himself tested positive for blood doping at the 2007 Tour de France and was dealt a one-year ban. 

Former team leader Alberto Contador was also stripped of the 2010 Tour de France title he won in the team’s colours, after he returned a positive result for the banned substance clenbuterol. 

Last week, Cavendish was photographed by a fan at Alicante airport as he loaded luggage into an Astana team car, and in December, Vinokorouv told Cyclingnews  that he phoned Cavendish when he heard the B&B team was in trouble.

Mark Cavendish could be racing in the blue of Astana-Qazaqstan next season, if preliminary reports are to be believed. 

The legendary Tour de France sprinter has been linked heavily with Astana since they terminated their contract with Miguel Ángel López on Tuesday, freeing up space on the team and funding to sign him.

Late last night, Italian journalist Ciro Scognamiglio wrote “After a talk with a cyclist agent, we understand that Mark Cavendish and Astana seem close to find an agreement for 2023" for Gazzetta dello Sport.

This is the latest twist in the Cavendish saga that saw frontrunners B&B Hotels go under, tanking an almost done-deal to sign the sprint ace.

Astana boss Alexander Vinokourov has been speaking to Cavendish. When B&B folded, “I thought about Mark right away,” he told Cycling News.

“I gave him a phone call saying if he was free then we could talk. It’s true he’s what, 35 or 36, but what really matters is if he’s motivated. I won the Olympic Games when I was nearing 40," said Vinokourov. 

Over the last two seasons, Cavendish proved his desire to win was still burning brightly, winning four stages of the Tour de France, one of Giro d'Italia, the Italian classic Milan-Torino and a handful of other victories.

But he'd be the first to admit that those four Tour de France victories in 2021 were in part due to an excellent lead out train, headed by Michael Mørkøv. 

Astana have no such expertise. Indeed, Vinokourov himself said "Astana have never had a really big sprinter. We've always focused on the stage races, not so much at that."

But what Astana do have is guaranteed participation in the Tour de France, and, presuming Cavendish is fit and firing, they could give him a chance at beating the Merckx all time stage record, something Vinokourov has acknowledged. 

And what team would want to miss out on any possible association with that fairy tale ending.

Ag2r-Citroën and TotalEnergies are the only other teams who could offer Cavendish this. 

Should Astana sign Cav, they could of course sign more riders without a contract like Cees Bol, but it is getting late in the transfer window to do so.

No doubt there will be more twists to come in the Cavendish story, but for now it is Astana who look most likely to write the ending.

Astana Qazaqstan have terminated the contract of Miguel Ángel López, citing his “probable connection” to a doctor under investigation in a doping case. 

The Colombian has reportedly been linked to Dr Marcos Maynar, a university professor who was arrested in May for alleged crimes of drug trafficking and money laundering. Maynar is believed to be at the centre of Operación Ilex, an ongoing doping investigation in Spain. 

In a brief statement published on Monday night, the team said: “Astana Qazaqstan Team discovered new elements showing Miguel Angel Lopez’ probable connection with Dr Marcos Maynar. 

“Accordingly, the team had no other solution than to end the contract between team and rider, based on breaches of said contract and internal team rules, with immediate effect.

“To preserve the rights of the team and the rider no further comments will be made.”

López responded to the allegations on Twitter, saying that the decision to cancel his contract is “absolutely unjustified”. 

In a statement signed by López that read as if it had been written by his lawyers he added: “The rider hereby informs that he considers such decision as with no cause, and that there are no new facts which could justify such decision, not known or reported before November 2022 by Astana Team. 

“The rider rejects any allegation that could damage his name and honor as professional rider, and reminds that he has never tested positive for any drugs or doping, nor has he been investigated by any authority.

“Mr Miguel Ángel López hereby informs that he will defend his rights before the corresponding Courts, in a case, which he understands as a clear abusive termination without just cause.”

López had recently renewed his contract with Astana Qazaqstan, extending last month for the 2023 season. 

In an article published today, Spanish outlet ABC claims that the Colombian reportedly took the growth hormone menotropin ahead the Giro d'Italia. ABC adds that it has seen documentation indicating that Maynar sent the substance to Hungary, where the race began. 

The article goes on to suggest López's withdrawal from the Giro on stage four might have been due to an adverse reaction to the substance. 

In July, the Kazakh team suspended López after he was questioned by Spanish police in relation to the investigation surrounding Maynar. 

In an interview with Spanish news agency EFE, the Colombian's lawyers denied any wrongdoing, saying: “[López] flatly denies having any relationship or participation in any criminal act related to the distribution of unauthorized medicines or any other product referred to in the news published yesterday.”

The team ended the suspension the following month. 

The Italian neo-pro Michele Gazzoli has received a one year ban from the UCI for a "non-intentional" anti-doping rule violation. The young rider has also had his contract terminated with Astana-Qazaqstan as a result.

Cycling's governing body announced the news on Thursday afternoon. In a statement, they said that Tuaminoheptane, a WADA prohibited substance, was detected in an in-competition test at the Volta ao Algarve em Bicicleta in February.

In their own statement, Astana said that "the above-named substance entered the body unintentionally from the ingestion of a medication named Rhinofluimucil (a nasal spray for the treatment of rhinitis), purchased at a pharmacy independently without any implication of the medical staff of Astana Qazaqstan Team".

As a result of the "non-intentional" anti-doping rule breaking, Gazzoli was not sanctioned beyond just a one-year ban. Astana said this being a mistake "is why the disciplinary penalty was limited to one year of ineligibility and disqualification of the results of one race Volta ao Algarve em Bicicleta only".

However, "adhering to the zero tolerance policy" of Astana, Gazzoli's contract has been terminated. The 23-year-old had raced 44 times for the team this year, his best result being a fourth place at the Volta ao Algarve, which will now be stripped from his record. He had a contract with the team into 2023, but will now be looking for new opportunities.

"Astana Qazaqstan Team categorically emphasizes that the team has nothing to do with this unfortunate violation of anti-doping rule by the rider Michele Gazzoli," the team said.

Last month Miguel Ángel López was suspended by the team last month after being questioned by Spanish police in connection to a controversial doctor currently under investigation. However, after nothing was found, he was allowed to continue riding.

The UCI statement on Gazzoli read: "The matter arises as a result of an Adverse Analytical Finding (AAF) for Tuaminoheptane* in a sample collected in-competition on 17 February 2022 by the International Testing Agency (ITA) on behalf of the UCI.

"In accordance with the World Anti-Doping Code (the Code) and the UCI Anti-Doping Rules (UCI ADR), the period of ineligibility started on 10 August 2022 and is effective until 9 August 2023 (included).

"Michele Gazzoli has also been disqualified from all competitive results obtained at the 2022 Volta ao Algarve em Bicicleta.

"The case has been resolved by way of an acceptance of consequences as provided for by the Code and the UCI ADR."

Astana's statement said: "Astana Qazaqstan Team received an official notification from the UCI regarding a 1-year period of ineligibility imposed on the rider Michele Gazzoli as the consequences of the presence of a Prohibited Substance Tuaminoheptane in the rider’s A Sample collected during an in-competition doping control on February 17th at the Volta ao Algarve em Bicicleta.

"As part of this case, Astana Qazaqstan Team received from Michele Gazzoli a full explanation on how the above-named substance entered his body. These explanations have also been presented and thoroughly reviewed by the UCI.

"The UCI considered the explanations provided by Michele Gazzoli, namely the fact that the above-named substance entered the body unintentionally from the ingestion of a medication named Rhinofluimucil (a nasal spray for the treatment of rhinitis), purchased at a pharmacy independently without any implication of the medical staff of Astana Qazaqstan Team. The UCI decided this case was classified as an unintentional violation of anti-doping rule, which is why the disciplinary penalty was limited to one year of ineligibility and disqualification of the results of one race Volta ao Algarve em Bicicleta only.

"Astana Qazaqstan Team categorically emphasizes that the team has nothing to do with this unfortunate violation of anti-doping rule by the rider Michele Gazzoli.

"Astana Qazaqstan Team, adhering to the zero tolerance policy, decided to immediately terminate the contract with Michele Gazzoli."

Astana-Qazaqstan has announced this morning that their Colombian climber, Miguel Ángel López has been suspended due to reports in Spanish media of his links to a controversial doctor currently under police investigation. 

According to reports from Spanish media source Ciclo 21, López was intercepted by agents from the Central Operation Unit (UCO), part of the Guardia Civil at Madrid-Barajas airport after arriving on a flight from Colombia earlier this week.

Allegedly the rider has been previously implicated in the case of Marcos Maynar Mariño, although it is now believed that police are considering changing his status in the case from being a witness to someone who is under investigation.

The 28-year-old rider nicknamed ‘Superman’ is now suspended by his team over the reports whilst they investigate the circumstances further. 

Astana-Qazaqstan released a short statement via social media which read: 

“The news that was spread in the media yesterday evening caught us by surprise, and at the moment we do not have any details. In this regard, the team decided to suspend Miguel Angel Lopez from any activity within the team until all the circumstances of the case are clarified.”

Marcos Maynar Mariño, a Professor at the University of Extremadura has been under investigation in Spain for alleged drug trafficking and money laundering for some time, and Lopez being linked to the doctor is alarming.

Furthermore, Mariño has a murky past within the world of sport after being caught up in multiple doping cases. According to Ciclo 21, the doctor has been linked with cases of alleged doping in basketball, volleyball and football as well as having links to cycling and the doping of riders at the past Italian team, Fassa Bortolo. 

Ciclo 21 also claim that the Colombian rider has been previously linked with the ‘Maynar’ case.

News of the rider being intercepted by Spanish authorities led to Astana-Qazaqstan suspending the Colombian whilst they investigate matters further. 

This is far from the first time that controversy has surrounded ‘Superman’ López. Due to a falling out with Movistar team management, he abandoned the Vuelta a Espana last year despite sitting third overall. At the time López had missed an important split in one of the final stages, but was instructed by team management not to chase down the group as another Movistar rider, Enric Mas, had managed to get ahead. López abandoned the race in protest, refusing to continue. 

One of the top riders on the Astana-Qazaqstan team, and a past winner of the Tour de Suisse and Volta a Catalunya. He has also taken stage victories in the Tour de France and Vuelta a Espana and finished on the podium at the Giro d’Italia. López recently moved back to the team after a difficult spell at Movistar. 

According to reports, López will appear in court in Cáceres next Monday in relation to investigations. 

Mariño was arrested by police earlier in the year on 11 May, at the same time that ‘Superman’ had abandoned the Giro d’Italia, and was ordered to report to court every two weeks. In 2004, the Spanish doctor was investigated by the Guardia Civil over the online sale of steroids and they then found doping substances in his home. The Professor was able to avoid repercussions at the time by claiming they were for ‘research purposes’ associated with his University work.

The last time Vincenzo Nibali rode the Giro d'Italia for Astana, in 2016, the world was very different. The UK was yet to have its Brexit referendum, the idea of President Donald Trump was ridiculous, and the concept of having a novel coronavirus pandemic was a mystery but all but the nerdiest epidemiologists.

Six years on, and the world might have changed, but Nibali is back at the Kazakh team where he had his greatest successes, and is still racing hard at his home Grand Tour.

The Italian won the 2016 Giro, after an astonishing comeback saw him pip Esteban Chaves and Steven Kruijswijk at the very end. In 2022, it looks unlikely that he will pull on his third maglia rosa on Sunday, but he is certainly still trying, still lighting the race up, doing his shark things.

On stage 16, his Astana-Qazaqstan team took up position at the front of the peloton on the Mortirolo, setting the pace, clearly trying to launch Nibali at the opportune moment. This is exactly what happened, with the 37-year-old clipping off the front on the descent in an attempt to force a split.

Sadly for him, the attack did not last, and there was no chance of the Italian heading up the road for the stage win, but there was one casualty of his move. Domenico Pozzovio (Intermarché-Wanty-Gobert) crashed under the pressure of chasing on, and shipped time over the rest of the stage, allowing Nibali to leapfrog him into fifth place.

He might have ended up losing time to the leading GC riders, but he is now comfortably in the top ten in his final Giro, which is achievement enough.

“Well, it was a tough challenge for everyone," he said post-stage. "We tried to do a strong and active race and the guys were working really well, so I want to thank my teammates for that. Then, it was Bahrain who went in front to set the pace and it was a fast one. 

"The last climb… I did all I could, but in the final it was just too much for me, so I tried to continue on my own rhythm until the end. I think we did maximum today and let’s see how the next stages will turn out."

Nibali's attack showed his intent for the last week, and it is certainly not beyond him to target a stage win on the three remaining mountain stages. The shark is not done yet.

Astana came into this race looking to target the maglia rosa with Miguel Angel López, who was forced out of the race on stage four with a hip injury. To have a four-time Grand Tour winner as your backup option is not bad, and Nibali has proved that he can roll back the years over the two and a half weeks so far.

In 2016, his last Giro win, his last Grand Tour win, Nibali was 4-43 behind then race leader Kruijswijk after stage 16. In 2022, he is just 3-40. It seems fantastic, but he couldn't, could he? A shark tale might be written after this week.

Break is put into a world of Hirt

Not many Czechs have won stages of Grand Tours. Eight in total, actually. Jan Hirt became the eighth, and the fifth at the Giro d'Italia, with his victory in Aprica on Tuesday.

It was an inspired ride from the Intermarché-Wanty-Gobert rider, who did not take being dropped to mean he was out of the race, and patiently worked his way back to the front. Last time the Giro tackled the Mortirolo, Hirt finished second, so this time around, he knew he had to go one better. His ride meant, in fact, that he returned to the top 10, and now sits in ninth.

He was a member of the huge 22-man break which was eventually established ahead of some terrifying climbs, but he was one of the less heralded climbers in there. For company, there was Thymen Arensman (Team DSM), Simon Yates (Team BikeExchange-Jayco), Lennard Kämna (Bora-Hansgrohe) and Alejandro Valverde (Movistar) among others.

Hirt was initially dropped on the Mortirolo, but worked his way back to the leading seven, with the help of Hugh Carthy (EF Education-EasyPost). When Kämna attacked on the Valico di Santa Cristina, lesser riders would have wilted, but Hirt, with Arensman, worked his way back, before dropping his Dutch and German rivals as the road got tough.

He marshalled the break expertly, and was able to continue Intermarché's wonderful Giro with his nous and climbing prowess. It all could have come unstuck on the final descent - the Czech revealed he had cramp and couldn't shift his bike properly - but it didn't, so a fairytale race continues for the Walloon team.

But, Domenico Pozzovivo ended his challenge for pink

It was an unfortunate day for Domenico Pozzovivo (Intermarché-Wanty-Gobert), who crashed while under pressure over the top of the Mortirolo, managed to catch the group of GC favourites, but then could not hang onto the pace on the final climb of the Valico di Santa Cristina.

The 39-year-old has fought valiantly at this Giro to date, the 22nd Grand Tour of his career, surprising the doctors who said he would never race again. He has been one of the many success stories of an Intermarché team that has been punching above its weight all season.

The crash appeared to take it out of him, further injuring his dodgy elbow, and he ended up losing just under three minutes to his GC rivals. He still sits in sixth, however, and will hope to bounce back in the coming days. Sixth place is still an incredible result, but there is no doubt that the Italian will be frustrated that he could not keep up his challenge on for the pink jersey. 

Vincenzo Nibali and Astana-Qazaqstan roll back the years

Heading up the Mortirolo, there was an unexpected team at the front of the peloton. It wasn't Ineos Grenadiers setting the tempo, it was the men in light blue, Astana-Qazaqstan. They were doing this to set up their leader Vincenzo Nibali up for an attack on the descent of the famous climb.

The move did happen, with Nibali clipping off the front over the top and stretching the maglia rosa group, however, it didn't stick, and the group of favourites was soon back together again. What did it show was the intent of the 37-year-old, keen to still make an impact at his last Giro d'Italia.

He might still be far behind Richard Carapaz (Ineos Grenadiers), trailing by 3-40, but he is now the top Italian on general classification, leapfrogging Pozzovivo, and will hope to attack some more in the coming days.

With Astana clearly working together for Nibali, perhaps we will see some more clever teamwork in the three mountain stages left to try and set Lo Squalo up for a stage win, or to better his fifth place.

Almeida limits losses, despite being dropped

It could have been race over for João Almeida (UAE-Team Emirates). The Portugese rider looked like he was out of it multiple times while following the wheels up the Valico di Santa Cristina. He slipped out the back, with the general classification looking like it might be decided by Mikel Landa (Bahrain-Victorious), Jai Hindley (Bora-Hansgrohe) and Carapaz, but managed to stay in touch.

At the finish, Almeida was just 14 seconds behind the trio, and is still within touching distance - 44 seconds - of the maglia rosa. With his time trial abilities well known, and a final stage against the clock in Verona beckoning on Sunday, those around him will want to have more of an advantage heading into the last weekend of the Giro.

It does not help for the viewer that the UAE rider often looks uncomfortable climbing, even when he is in perfect control of the situation; there are flashbacks to his spell in the pink jersey in 2020 here. Fortunately for him, this has no real impact on his ability to ride a bike.

Almeida was wise beyond his years in being able to limit his losses and not blow up on the final climb, and as a result is still very much in contention across the next five stages. 

Jai Hindley makes the GC race even tighter

We did not expect to see a sprint among the GC favourites in Aprica, just as the sprint atop Blockhaus a week and a half ago among the pink jersey contenders was strange. Both times, Jai Hindley came out on top, and both times, the Australian gained time by doing so.

The Bora-Hansgrohe rider is obviously in good form, and spoke confidently of his chances on the final rest day on Monday, and backed this up again on stage 16. He never looked in trouble, despite the massive amount of climbing across Tuesday's race. While he did not manage to distance his rivals, he did manage to gain a crucial bonus at the end, finishing fourth, and thus grabbing four seconds on Carapaz.

This means the gap between first and second is now just three seconds, which could be whittled away in an instant. Obviously, as the pink jersey wearer, Carapaz is still in the box seat, but Hindley is incredibly close, looks in good form, and is ready to pounce.

His Bora team have proved that they can work together and to a plan to help his chances, and now Emmanuel Buchmann is out of contention, he should have another excellent domestique. It might just be a battle between the squads of Bora, Ineos Grenadiers, and Bahrain-Victorious in the coming days, and there really is not much between them all.

Miguel Ángel López has abandoned the Giro d'Italia on stage four due to a left hip injury.

The Astana-Qazaqstan rider was first reported to have left the race with the reasons unclear, before his team confirmed that the Colombian was suffering from a problem with his leg.

In a statement, Astana said: "Unfortunately, López had to abandon shortly after Stage 4 started. During the last few days he was suffering from left hip injury. We will communicate about more info about rider statement as soon as we get more from team doctor."

The Colombian left the race on just the fourth day, under 45 minutes into Tuesday's stage, which is set to head up Mount Etna at the end of the day.

The Giro was López's first grand tour back with Astana, after he spent 2021 at Movistar. During his time there he abandoned the Vuelta a España in controversial circumstances, leaving the race despite being high up on the general classification, and being injury free.

If, as reported, he has been suffering from the injury for a number of days, it poses the question whether he started the Giro with the condition, or suffered it during the opening stages.

The Colombian finished 59th on Saturday's time trial, 42 seconds behind the winner, Simon Yates, showing that he was not at his best at this Giro.

It now creates problems for his Astana team, who were thought to be throwing their weight behind López for the Grand Tour. Also on the team is Vincenzo Nibali, who currently sits 12th on general classification. While the two-time Giro winner has obviously performed exceptionally well at his home race in the past, at 37, his ability to keep up with the other general classification contenders is unknown. 

López has shown his form in recent weeks, winning a stage of the Tour of the Alps, so his withdrawal is a blow for his squad. Other riders, like Joe Dombrowski and David de la Cruz, will now be expected to step up in their leader's absence. It might free them up to go for stage wins over the three weeks.

The last time the Giro visited Sicily, in 2020, the Colombian was also forced to abandon the race due to a crash on the first stage.

Astana are the second team down to seven men, after Bahrain-Victorious lost Jan Tratnik on Sunday's stage. 

Simon Yates of Team BikeExchange-Jayco, who currently sits second on general classification, was involved in a crash early in stage four, and suffered a right knee injury, although he is continuing in the race at present, with his condition unknown.

Joe Dombrowski loves the Giro d'Italia. The American has ridden every edition since 2016, six in total, and will be on the startline in Budapest on Friday for his seventh attempt at the Corsa Rosa.

Speaking to Cycling Weekly and Cyclingnews at the Tour of the Alps, the Astana-Qazaqstan rider said he was "on track" for the Giro, where he will be looking to support his team leaders Vincenzo Nibali and Miguel Ángel López. 

However, after winning his first stage at the race last year at Sestola, racing in the colours of UAE-Team Emirates, Dombrowski said he would be looking for opportunities as well.

"We will go there with Miguel and Vincenzo, obviously they will be our leaders," he said. "My role will be to work for them, but you know, sometimes opportunities can surface, like last year, and if there's a chance to win a stage that would be great. Doors sometimes close but sometimes open, and you just need to find the open ones.

"Vincenzo has a lot of experience, he has won all the grand tours and he is a big name in cycling.  I think he will be motivated to do something nice in his last year, and Miguel you can see that he's already going very well."

It was a mixed Tour of the Alps for Dombrowski, as he looked set to finish high up on general classification before he was penalised for littering outside the green zone on a couple of stages; he eventually finished 17th overall.

However, despite that setback, he looked in good form before his first Grand Tour for his new team.

"I seem like I'm going in a good way, and I've been in the front group every day here," he explained. "I was hoping to do a top ten GC, but we had a squabble over losing a minute over throwing some bottles. But, in the end we couldn't change the decision, but OK, we will try and make the most of today and let's see.

"I've done a big block. I was at Catalunya, then I stayed at altitude in Tenerife all the way until here. So I'll go home to Nice and I'll be there for around 10 days and then go to the Giro...

"I know my condition is good. Realistically the GC is so tight here that now to be in the top ten, I don't think it's gonna happen. I've kinda come away from the race without a result. Also being only a minute behind it's hard to go in the breakaway, you're stuck. It is what it is."

He was reasonably positive about his form, however, something that he hoped he would carry through to Friday and the Grande Partenza in Budapest.

"Overall, it has been a good week," he said. "I can go home and relax a bit and be mentally and physically ready for the Giro."

While his highest finish overall at the Giro is 12th, and he has only won one stage at the Italian race, it is an environment that he has consistently impressed in, although he said he had other objectives too.

"I've never done the Tour, I want to do it because it's something you want to do in your career," Dombrowski explained. "But the Giro, on the calendar, it's my favourite race. It suits me, I enjoy racing in Italy."

The odd American

Astana-Qazaqstan has not been traditionally a welcoming place for English speakers or Americans; Dombrowski is the first rider from the US since Evan Huffman to pull on the blue jersey.

This season there are largely three camps within the team, the Spanish speakers, the Italians, and the Kazakhs. Dombrowski admittted to Cycling Weekly that he is the "odd American". It must be a strange environment to suddenly find oneself in, but he said the team environment is "good".

"I'm the odd American. It's quite ok," he explained. "The team environment is good, and I understand Italian well enough. I don't really speak so much [Italian], I speak with some of the management in French, and also English, because I'm quite comfortable in French, and my English is OK. 

"So far, it has been pretty good, nothing I can complain about, it has been a good experience."

There have been issues with riders' wages being paid this season, but Dombrowski has faith that the issue will be resolved, and said that they have been partly paid for this year.

"They have communicated that it's on the way and I'm confident it will be," he said. "I think it will be fine.

"It's maybe not how I've had it in the past, but it's not something I've thought about a lot. I've just been getting on with my races and training. It's not something I've spent a lot of time thinking about to be honest."

The public prosecutor's office in Luxembourg has opened a judicial investigation into Astana Qazaqstan's license holder and paying agent, Abacanto SA, 

Kazakhstan newspaper Komsomolskaya Pravda is reporting that Abacanto SA is being charged with violations under article 140 of the Luxembourg criminal code, which includes: "the forgery of documents, misuse of corporate assets, breach of trust, money laundering, and fraud". The charge relates to "unidentified persons" at the company. 

Abacanto SA has held the license of Astana Qazaqstan since 2010, but a civil case against the paying agent opened in January 2021, with the company's Luxembourg office raided and documents seized as part of the investigation process. 

A statement issued by the Luxembourg Judicial Administration spokesperson Henri Eippers to VeloNewsand WielerFlits confirmed the judicial investigation into Abacanto SA. 

Eippers said: "The public prosecutor's office in Luxembourg confirms that a judicial investigation has been opened following a complaint with civil action lodged for facts that were allegedly committed within the framework of the Luxembourg company Abacanto SA and are likely to constitute offences.

"In view of the ongoing investigation, the public prosecutor's office does not intend to provide any further information on this case."

Several witnesses involved in the case are currently being heard by the Luxembourg district court, which will try to ascertain the offences and involvement of certain individuals. 

Komsomolskaya Pravda is reporting that Astana Qazaqstan's general manager Alexander Vinokourov is a suspect in the trial, with VeloNews also reporting that a letter sent from the Service de Police Judiciare on July 8 2021 states that: “For reasons of secrecy of investigation we cannot tell you all of the steps that we will be taking but some of these steps include the hearing of persons likely to be involved in the said infringement, including among others Mr Vinokourov Alexander.”

However, Vinokourov told VeloNewson Wednesday that he the team wasn't aware of the investigation, and has distanced himself from the situation.

He said: “Apparently, we are talking about some kind of legal procedure that was initiated a year ago, when another person was the managing director of Abacanto S.A., while I performed purely sports functions until the summer of 2021. Officially, after a break, I returned to work with the team in January 2022, so it’s difficult for me to comment something on this issue.”

Vincenzo Nibali will not ride Paris-Roubaix after all, as his plans to race all five monuments in 2022 were scrapped.

In an interview with Cyclingnews the Italian explained that it "wasn't possible if I also want to ride the Giro and Tour".

Nibali has returned to Astana Qazaqstan after five years away with Bahrain-Merida and Trek-Segafredo, and hopes to ride the Giro d'Italia and the Tour de France this year. Previous reports had suggested that he would ride both Roubaix and the Tour of Flanders in 2022.

The 37-year old said: "We talked about my race calendar for a long time with the Astana Qazaqstan management and the idea of riding all five monuments was really cool. However, after a detailed evaluation, we realised it wasn't possible if I also want to ride the Giro and Tour.

"I'd have to interrupt or even miss an altitude camp with the other riders, and maybe even miss Liège-Bastogne-Liège. It would have turned my training for the Giro upside down and so was just not worth it. We decided to focus on my strengths and to do the Giro and probably the Tour too. We agreed on that together and I've committed to it and what it entails."

Nibali has won Il Lombardia twice, won Milan-San Remo and has finished second at Liège-Bastogne-Liège. These are the three monuments that he would be traditionally suited for.

He will not be riding for general classification, with Miguel Ángel López Astana's main leader for the year.

It was thought that the Italian might retire at the end of this season, with this being his 18th year. However, in the interview, Nibali suggested that he might continue for longer.

"I've signed for a year with Astana Qazaqstan but I don't want to say I'm going to quit this year. It could be the case but perhaps not," he said.

"I'll be honest, I haven't even thought about what I'll do after my racing career. I'm focused on the present, on my racing and training and enjoying it all. I can't say I definitely won't race next year, so it's possible I'll ride Paris-Roubaix and the other monuments in 2023.

"If I tell my wife that I want to race on, she'd perhaps kill me but I want to take the next few months to decide and perhaps convince her too."

"We are rolling pedals; for the gold medals" is just one of the standout lines from the latest rap released by Astana-Qazaqstan.

Yes, the WorldTour cycling team have published a rap video featuring stars including Vincenzo Nibali, Alexey Lutsenko and Joe Dombromowski.

The squad get their 2022 season underway tomorrow at the Volta a la Comunitat Valenciana, but have already made waves with their social media post on Tuesday.

Astana have form in the bizarre on social media - anything for some engagement - and have created raps before, including in 2019.

Their previous effort can even be listened to on music streaming services after it was released as a single. 

The opening line establishes the team's new name for the season, after former sponsor Premier Tech pulled out: "This is Astana-Qazaqstan team."

The rap features a repeated verse which states some obvious things as well as setting goals for the year.

"Looking fresh, we are ready to win. We are rolling pedals, for the gold medals. Our job is to win, Astana is my team. We are riding to win, and it will be done, Astana is my team, from Kazkahstan."

Opinions were split on the video, with some on Twitter labelling it "sublime" and a "banger" while others called it "cringe".

Among those rapping verses was new signing Joe Dombrowski, with the American climber appearing to direct it at his bike. Transcribing rap is not my forté, so I hope this is what the riders said.

"My bike you're my passion, I love you so much. You look so high fashion, I'm out of your touch. I spend all my time with my bike just to feel that all is too fine with my racing skills."

Lutsenko meanwhile, kept his verse simple: "This my change, this my vibe, my passion my message my power my game. My bike on the road, my heart is my team. My goals moving forward I follow my dream."

Italian rider Samuele Battistella told everyone he shaves his legs while scrolling Twitter, and that "nothing can stop us because Vino is back".

That Vino is Alexandre Vinokourov, who briefly stepped back from his role in charge of Astana before returning to the Kazakh team.

He raps, well, speaks: "We built this empire with López come back, Lutsenko can fire and Shark can attack."

López in Miguel Ángel López, who returns to Astana this season after one year away with Movistar. Shark, meanwhile, is a riff on Vincenzo Nibali's nickname, the Shark of Messina.

The Italian, who is set to ride Paris-Roubaix for the first time, rapped a verse in Italian, which I'm not even going to try and translate. I'm sure it was brilliant.

We will have to wait and see if Astana's form on the road will be anything as boundary-pushing as their music.

As of Tuesday, all men's WorldTour teams have released their jerseys for this season, which is good news for those among us who like to be prepared ahead of the season, and who get giddily excited over news about kits.

Some teams have departed wildly from previous offerings, with a whole host of name changes going on as well, so it is important to cast an eye over these strps.

While many teams and riders have maintained a relatively consistent aesthetic, it is worth brushing up on the colours they will be wearing this season before it all kicks off. It also gives us a chance to put on our fashion critic hat - a fetching beret, of course - and rate the kits.

You might not agree with all of these ratings, out of five, and of course appearance is a subjective decision. However, since I'm in charge of the narrative here, this is how I feel about the respective strips right now. When further women's WorldTour kits emerge, we will update this list further.

AG2R-Citroën - 4/5

AG2R-Citroën go for the same look as last year, with the sponsor plastered diagonally across the largely white jersey. The French team have a habit of keeping the same kit for a few years at a time; they had the same horizontal blue, white and brown striped kit for three years between 2018 and 2020.

Let's tackle the brown shorts. Yes, they are a bit much, but they are a staple of the AG2R wardrobe, and mark the team out. Are they really that bad? I certainly don't mind them, and it would a shame to see them out of the peloton, they're something a bit different from all the blacks and blues, certainly. 

The introduction of Citroën as a co-sponsor last year saw the light blue of AG2R La Mondiale disappear, and that's no bad thing, with the largely white jersey giving a cleaner look.

Astana-Qazaqstan - 2/5

I think my immediate reaction to this kit is to shrug. It is almost exactly the same as their 2021 kit, so reasonably boring. The big difference is the absence of Canadian sponsor Premier Tech, who have now moved onto the jersey of the team formerly known as Israel Start-Up Nation instead.

There are too many blue tones in the peloton, and the fade into the diamond patterns on this kit does not save it. It could really do with an update, but props to the lack of confusion through using pretty much the same kit again.

Vincenzo Nibali and Miguel Ángel López will return to the Kazakstani team and pull on the familiar colours, which have largely stayed the same since they entered the pro cycling scene over a decade ago.

Bahrain-Victorious - 4/5

Right, this is getting silly now. The third team in a row to keep the same kit as 2021, Bahrain-Victorious will use the same strip that saw them achieve great success across the season.

It is similar, but not exactly the same, as the kit they revealed at the beginning of last year - that one was made Italian brand Nalini before they switched to Alé mid-season. It was in this kit that the team impressed at the Tour de France and the Vuelta a España, before Sonny Colbrelli went on his winning streak which concluded at Paris-Roubaix in October.

The block pattern is appealing, and I like the light blue sleeves, which add a little bit of excitement to the kit. It is very smart, just a shame that we do not get to seem something a bit different for the new year.

Bora-Hansgrohe - 5/5

Here we go, something different and radical. Bora-Hansgrohe were bound to see their kit change at least a bit once they swapped outfitters from Sportful to Le Col.

The eye-catching blocks of colour really mark this one out for me, with two different shades of green and a splash of red lower down the jersey. The differing colours of the sleeves look smart, too.

It is a fitting change as Bora-Hansgrohe head into a new era without Peter Sagan on the team, and look to the future with Jai Hindley, Aleksandr Vlasov and Sergio Higuita joining.

Canyon-SRAM 5/5

I will not hold back, I love this kit. It's another one in the Women's WorldTour that is pinky/purple, yes, but it is distinctly different. It will certainly stand out in the peloton, with the green triangles on the shoulders.

I even like the strange meteorological symbols, even if I don't really understand what they mean, and I would happily wear this kit out and about myself. Canyon have outdone themselves in their first in-house made offering for the team.

Canyon-SRAM will be looking to Sarah Roy to deliver this season as a new signing, and hoping that Kasia Niewiadoma continues to perform at the highest levels.

Cofidis - 4/5

This is a refreshing look from Cofidis, a change from their quite staid and dated looking recent offerings. This will be worn by their men's team and their new women's team as well.

The iconic red and white remain but with a stylish update, sectioned off into block colours. The shoulders are white, torso red, and the jersey is joined by accompanying black shorts.

It is made by Decathlon's cycling brand Van Rysel, which is an interesting entrant into WorldTour kit-making, and one that features heavily in our guide to the best cheap cycling clothing, based on reviews under the previous name of B'Twin. Ion Izagirre and Bryan Coquard are among the riders appearing in the colours for the first time.

EF Education-EasyPost and EF Education-Tibco-SVB 4/5

Rapha have made two similar kits for the EF Education sponsored teams: EF Education-EasyPost (men's) and EF Education-Tibco-SVB (women's). Both are good, but I think I prefer the women's with the lighter blue, rather than the darker blue/green on the men's kit.

The men's team has competed in a kit featuring pink since 2018, when EF came on board, but this season features more dark blue in blotches across the jersey, and it is combined with navy shorts. The women's team, previously known as Tibco-SVB, is joining the EF Education stable this season.

A press release from Rapha read: "The new design, executed through creative coding and image/pattern manipulation, is a modern interpretation of the Argyle pattern that has been a staple part of EF’s visual language for years."

FDJ Nouvelle-Aquitaine Futuroscope - 4/5

FDJ Nouvelle-Aquitaine Futuroscope's is a great kit, stylish but different from a lot of the Women's WorldTour peloton.

The jersey is designed by Gobik, and is very different from the similarly sponsored men's WorldTour team Groupama-FDJ. It is mostly vibrant blue, with a hint of red around one shoulder and white sleeves. The dark navy shorts are nice and complement it as well.

Grace Brown is the team's biggest signing, joining from BikeExchange, and they will have high hopes of her and Cecilie Uttrup Ludwig firing together.

Groupama-FDJ - 3/5

No discernible changes for another French team, with Groupama-FDJ following AG2R in going down the sustainable route. It is a very smart kit, deliberately redolent of the French tricolor.

It will look fitting on riders including Michael Storer and Quentin Pacher, who have joined the outfit from Team DSM and B&B Hotels p/b KTM respectively. Groupama-FDJ always do a great job with national champion's jerseys, with Ignatas Konovalovas and Kevin Geniets sporting their country's colours. 

Again, while there is nothing wrong with the kit as it is, perhaps it is due a refresh. We can but hope that before 2023 Marc Madiot has a word with kit suppliers Alé.

Human Powered Health - 4/5

Human Powered Health, formerly Rally Cycling, are stepping up to the Women's WorldTour and have added a bit of flair to their previously block orange jersey with some reds and purples.

The jersey alone is great, it is just a shame that they are not the only women's team to feature orange merging into purple and red, with SD-Worx and UAE Team ADQ opting for similar designs.

The men's ProTeam will wear the same kit, and it is very smart, paired with black shorts. We will have to hope that the orange-purple kits all look very different from a birds-eye view once racing begins.

Ineos Grenadiers - 4/5

After a few years with Castelli, Ineos Grenadiers have moved to a brand beloved by cycling clubs looking to print custom cycling kit, BioRacer. The kit has new-look red shoulders, a slight upgrade to the mostly navy jersey that the British team wore last year.

It is pretty smart and will make sure they stand-out amid the other blues of the WorldTour, although it does remind me of Bristol Bears rugby union team. Belgian brand BioRacer probably didn't think of them in their design.

The British squad has looked towards youth this year, signing Luke Plapp, Ben Turner, Ben Tulett and Magnus Sheffield among others. Elia Viviani also returns to the team he last raced for while it was still Team Sky. Not a bad kit.

Intermarché-Wanty-Gobert 2/5

It is fine, I guess? Intermarché-Wanty-Gobert have kept their, um, interesting colour scheme of fluorescent greeen and dark blue, but there is more white space on the centre of the jersey.

This space has been filled with sponsors, a lot of them, which seems a little unbecoming of a WorldTour team, but then everyone has to survive somehow. Other teams seem to do it more tactfully, however.

The Belgian squad will hope they can get Alexander Kristoff firing this season in order to deliver some needed victories. Taco van der Hoorn, stage winner at last year's Giro d'Italia, is also one to watch out for.

Israel-Premier Tech - 2/5

There is nothing wrong with the newly-named Israel-Premier Tech's kit, it is just a bit underwhelming. It has changed from 2021, with the introduction of a bit more white on the jersey and a patterned blue lower half, rather than plain navy.

I should say at this point I am biased against sports teams in the colour blue thanks to my dislike of Portsmouth Football Club. This might be why blue kits are spoiled in my eyes, sorry to much of the WorldTour.

We have not seen the kit on a rider yet, so it may look much better in person. Jakob Fuglsang and Hugo Houle are among the riders that are going to pull on the Israel-Premier Tech kit for the first time this season, after both moved from Astana.

Liv Racing Xstra

This Liv Racing Xstra kit is bold, with its flower motif, and that should be noted. However, it is the same jersey as last year, just with the new Xstra headline sponsor added.

Also, it is reasonably dark and I think I prefer a brighter kit, but it definitely is different from the rest of the Women's WorldTour peloton. Furthermore, thanks to other teams changing their colours, this Liv kit should not clash with others anymore.

With the departure of Lotte Kopecky to SD Worx, the Dutch squad will be forced to look elsewhere for wins. They still have Canadian Alison Jackson and signed
Eva Buurman in the off-season.

Lotto-Soudal - 4/5

Just as I mostly dislike blue kits, I mostly like red kits. So cheers to Lotto-Soudal for what is the reddest kit in the peloton this season. It's smart, it doesn't try too hard, and it will certainly stand out in the peloton.

Apart from a white band around the middle for the main sponsors, and black around the cuffs, the kit is all in the vibrant hue which just promises to be fast. The team will be hoping for a much improved 2022 after a disappointing season last year.

Lotto-Soudal have signed Victor Campernaerts back from Qhubekha NextHash, and will be hoping Caleb Ewan delivers in sprint finishes throughout the year and avoids injury.

Movistar - 3.5/5

Movistar's new look comes from the production lines of Italian kit brand, La Passione, which replaces Alé as the team's new clothing brand. It's simple and smart, but a little bit boring.

It reminds me of Team Sky's kit from 2017, and seeing as Sky won the Tour de France and Vuelta a España that year, Movistar will be hoping some of the magic rubs off on them.

The same jersey will be worn by their women's team, led by the effervescent Annemiek van Vleuten, with a Tour de France-Giro Donne double possibly on the cards. This could be a historic kit. 

Quick-Step Alpha Vinyl - 4.5/5

Rules are there to be broken, aren't they? After telling you all how much I disliked blue, I'm now saying that Quick-Step Alpha Vinyl's jersey is one of my favourites of the year. Castelli have moved to the Belgian team from Ineos Grenadiers, and their first offering is a belter.

The new jersey has less blue than last season's effort, and is reminiscent of what the team wore in 2017. There is white across the shoulders and a band of pink around the chest.

Might we see a record-breaking Tour de France stage win for Mark Cavendish in this kit? More definitely, we will see more feats from Julian Alaphilippe and Remco Evenepoel. 

SD Worx - 3/5

The second of the purple-pink-orange kits on this year's list, SD Worx's jersey is fine, and I like the fact it is with black shorts, but that is about it. A few too many colours on the jersey for me, but there is nothing bad about it either.

I prefer the team's efforts with its national champion's jerseys, which is good because they have two more to sort now Lotte Kopecky and Marlen Reusser have joined the squad.

The team are in transition after Anna van der Breggen retired, but still have lots of firepower with Demi Vollering, Chantal van den Broek-Blaak and Ashleigh Moolman Pasio.

Team BikeExchange Jayco - 1/5 for the men's, 2/5 for the women's

My aversion to blue is rearing its ugly head again here, but I am not convinced there's too much to like about BikeExchange's kit. The women's one is better thanks to the strength of the "aubergine" colour on its jersey, but the weak blue on the men's does not work for me.

It is the third kit on this list from Alé, with the Italian manufacturer joining the squad along with bike manufacturers Giant and Liv. This is the reason for the change in colour from the old BikeExchange kit, apparently.

The shorts are far too light a shade of blue for my liking, and might not leave much to the imagination mid-race. Dylan Groenewegen, Kristen Faulkner and Lawson Craddock are among the new signings that will be wearing this kit soon. 

Team DSM - 3/5

DSM have not changed their kit for this season, like so many other teams. This is a good thing, however, as it is pretty smart. Unlike a few years ago, there aren't that many teams in black either, so they do stand out in the bunch.

The men's and women's teams wear exactly the same kit, with 'Keep Challenging' stripes down the middle of the jersey. It also manages to have a few little sponsors and yet not look cluttered.

John Degenkolb is heading back to the team he left when it was still Sunweb, and they also have quite a few graduates from their development team making the step up. Meanwhile, the women's team will surely focus around Lorena Wiebes as before.

Team Jumbo-Visma - 4/5

Not a lot has changed, but this is a solid effort from Jumbo-Visma, who manage to have multiple sponsors across the jersey without it looking like too much. The big Cervélo logos on the shoulders do not even really get in the way.

As long as they alter it for the Tour de France, it should work throughout the season. The women's team will likely wear the same kit, with Marianne Vos leading the line.

Tiesj Benoot, Rohan Dennis and Christophe Laporte have joined the Dutch super team, where they will hope to link up well with Primož Roglič, Tom Dumoulin and Wout van Aert.

Trek-Segafredo - 3/5

Both kits are broadly fine, minimalist efforts, with Trek-Segafredo's men wearing white with a red hilight, and its women wearing white with a band of light blue.

They are reasonably prosaic, however, which is not a massively bad thing but does not thrill me. There are also quite a few teams with largely white kits in the men's peloton, which means it might be a little hard to distinguish between them.

Joining the women's team this season is world champion Elisa Balsamo, of whom much is expected. On the men's side, riders brought in include Tony Gallopin and Dario Cataldo.

UAE Team ADQ - 2/5

The third and final Women's WorldTour kit to feature orange and purple, the inaugural UAE Team ADQ kit is not really my cup of tea, with a bit too much colour blending going on, and it lacks a solid identity.

It is interesting that the women's team did not copy the UAE flag-based colour scheme of it's men's counterparty. The flag does feature lower down on the front and back of the jersey, but there is more colour across the whole thing.

Riders who have switched across from Alé BTC Ljubljana include Mavi García and Marta Bastianelli.

UAE-Team Emirates - 3/5

I am hard-pushed to find a difference between this one and last year's UAE-Team Emirates' kit. The jersey of Tour de France champion Tadej Pogačar is still quite smart and classy, however, with the little red and gold accents doing a lot.

It is made by Gobik, the same people who make FDJ Nouvelle-Aquitaine Futuroscope's kit, and is simple. However, it is yet another largely-white jersey in the peloton, which might blend together a bit next season.

João Almeida, Marc Soler and George Bennett have all joined the super-team, bolstering its climbing ranks.

Vincenzo Nibali will ride Paris-Roubaix for the first time in 2022, as part of an attempt to tackle all five monuments this season.

According to reports in Vélofuté and L'Equipe, the 37-year old is to race the 'Hell of the North' as part of a busy schedule that sees the Italian also return to the Tour of Flanders for the second time, as well as riding the Tour de France and the Giro d'Italia.

It will not be the first time Nibali has raced on the cobbles of Northern France, as he has tackled them as part of the Tour route before, most famously in 2014 when he finished third on the stage to Arenberg, cementing his position in the yellow jersey.

He put over two minutes into Alberto Contador that day, and Chris Froome, the defending champion, crashed out before the peloton had even reached the cobbles. Nibali is known as a good bike handler.

Back in October he told La Gazzetta dello Sport: "I’ve never done Paris-Roubaix, this could be the right time. Sure, it’s a risk, it’s a race that has to be prepared in fine detail, but you need to do it at least once in your life."

It is expected Nibali will ride Roubaix for Astana-Qazaqstan alongside Gianni Moscon, who also moved to the Kazakh team this winter. Moscon finished fourth in October's edition of the race after puncturing and then crashing while in the lead.

He is not the only unlikely figure to be racing a cobbled classic this season, with Tadej Pogačar also down to ride the Tour of Flanders.

The Italian has form in the monuments, winning Il Lombardia twice, in 2015 and 2017, and Milan-San Remo in 2018. He has also finished on the podium of Liège-Bastogne-Liège, a race which suits his characteristics. He finished 24th on his one attempt at the Tour of Flanders in 2018, which he is also expected to be racing this year.

The 37-year old will race the Giro and then the Tour following his classics campaign but is unlikely to race for general classification at either of them.

Paris-Roubaix has been moved back a week in the calendar this season due to it clashing with France's presidential elections. This means it falls a fortnight after Flanders and just a week before Liège, which might be why Nibali is keen to ride it.

On Monday, race organisers ASO announced the teams that would be invited to both the men's and women's editions of Paris-Roubaix.

The 25 teams for the men's race include all WorldTeams, and the top three ranked ProTeams: Alpecin-Fenix, Arkéa-Samsic and TotalEnergies. 

Four further teams have been given invites: French team B&B Hotels-KTM, Belgian teams Bingoal Pauwels Sauces WB and Sport Vlaanderen-Baloise, and Norweigian team Uno-X Pro Cycling.

For the women's race, all WorldTeams have been invited, with the addition of high-ranked Continental teams Ceratizit-WNT, Parkhotel Valkenburg and Valcar-Travel & Service. 

The other invited teams are the French squads Arkéa Pro Cycling Team, Cofidis Women Team, Stade Rochelais Charente-Maritime and St Michel-Auber 93, along with British team Le Col Wahoo, and Dutch team NXTG by Experza and Belgian team Plantur-Pura.

Alexey Lutsenko has said he will aim for a podium at the Tour de France.

The Kazakh riding for the Kazakhstani team of Astana has been very consistent on all terrain in various types of races, but has struggled to go that one step further and to win or compete for the biggest races.

Lutsenko managed a very impressive seventh place at the 2021 Tour, after taking second at the Critérium du Dauphiné behind Ineos Grenadiers' Richie Porte.

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Speaking at Astana's training camp in Spain, Lutsenko said: "It’s not going to be easy but top three in the Tour de France is a goal for me and the team.

"This year with my seventh in the Tour I proved that I can be in the mix with the best riders. Thanks to the team and staff I did an amazing job this year, so I think that we’ll try and do everything possible in the next years to reach this goal. Nothing is impossible and it’s a really big goal for the next years."

However, this may be even more challenging than in previous years, with the return of Egan Bernal (Ineos Grenadiers) to the fold as well as defending champion Tadej Pogačar (UAE Team Emirates) who will be looking for a third title in a row.

Additional competition will come from the likes of Primož Roglič (Jumbo-Visma), Geraint Thomas, Richard Carapaz (both Ineos Grenadiers), Enric Mas (Movistar), Jonas Vingegaard (Jumbo-Visma) among others.

But the rider who has spent his entire 10-year career with Astana says that he and his team are fully invested in working towards Grand Tours.

"I had to change a lot to be Grand Tour GC rider. I took it step-by-step, first by being competitive in the week-long races. Then we decided to work towards Grand Tours. 

"We changed a lot in our preparation, it’s completely different for a lot of things, like eating. There are a lot of things to change if you want to be a Grand Tour rider.

"I had some good results in other races, like the cobbled Classics but I think that I have good room to improve in the mountains and the longer races. I can be competitive there and year by year I feel like I’m getting better at climbing, and on the longer climbs too."

The 29-year-old said that after the team's second training camp on the island of Tenerife he would go to the Tour de la Provence before heading to the Vuelta a Andalucía, otherwise known as the Ruta del Sol.

After that it's the Ardennes with a potential ride at the Tour of Flanders then a break before the Dauphiné and the Tour.

Gianni Moscon has said he has "been portrayed as a person that [he is] not" over the last few years, but adds that he has "matured", ahead of a fresh start with Astana in 2022.

Moscon is leaving Ineos Grenadiers after six years with the British team, as he heads off to join the Kazakhstani squad with an Italian core along with the likes of Vincenzo Nibali.

Referencing controversial incidents which have seen him suspended from his former team, or disqualified from races, he said: "often wrong conclusions have been drawn about me," adding "anyone who knows me knows how I am".

The Italian all-rounder has set himself some pretty big goals for the upcoming seasons with Astana involving some of the biggest one-day races in the calendar with all five Monument Classics potentially on the cards.

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In an interview with Tuttobici Moscon said: "I haven't decided on the calendar yet, I'll do it in the next few days with the team. The Classics I must say that I like them all a bit, the important thing is to get there with the right legs as happened this year at Roubaix.

"My goal will be that. As I always say, the Classic I like best is the one I win. I am a cross-country athlete, so the longer the race is, the more I feel at ease and manage to emerge. Of course, I do very well in a race with a lot of altitude difference like Il Lombardia and in a grueling race with no climb[s] like the Paris-Roubaix. 

"I think I adapt to both types of racing. In 2022 I hope to be in good shape for both events."

Moscon has made the headlines repeatedly for, arguably, the wrong reasons.  He was suspended by his now former team in 2017 over "racists comments" made towards the now retired Kevin Reza, and was also disqualified from Kuurne-Brussels-Kuurne in 2020 for throwing a bike onto another rider following a crash.

"Anyone who knows me knows how I am. Certainly, I have matured, but over the years, due to some episodes and the context in which they occurred, I have been portrayed as a person that I am not. 

"And I can also understand [people] who, like journalists, find themselves judging from the outside and have to rely on the words of one person or another. But often wrong conclusions have been drawn about me."

Miguel Ángel López has said his return to Astana is "like coming back home" after his contract termination with Movistar.

López left Astana at the end of 2019 as the team struggled with financial issues, the Colombian joined Spanish WorldTour team Movistar, but that all came crumbling down on the penultimate stage of the Vuelta a España. 

The 27-year-old from Pesca was lying in third place overall just 13 seconds behind team-mate Enric Mas. But after a split in the group of leaders López lost touch and, due to an infernal pace by Bahrain Victorious, never made - he later abandoned amid frustration.

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Speaking on the Movistar situation López was reserved saying: "Sometimes you have to makes changes. It might work out well, it might not. Things happened like they did and, in the end, it all serves as experience, something to hold onto."

López preferred to look forward as he comes back to his old team, already wearing the 2021 team tracksuit while not officially riding for them yet. 

The target for the year is once again a Grand Tour, specifically the Giro d'Italia, but López has made it clear that he anticipates being much more comfortable amid his new team. 

"It's like coming back home, I’m seeing the same directors as before, riders I’ve ridden with before, like Vincenzo [Nibali] and [Alexey] Lutsenko. I’m practically re-taking the path I was on a year previously.

"The route for both the Giro and the Tour de France caught my eye but I’m going to focus solely on the Giro and then we’ll see. At this point I don’t know if I’ll be doing the Tour or not. I’m going to put everything into being good at the Giro."

López's best Grand Tour results have come at the Giro and the Vuelta where he got third overall, both in 2018. His best placing at the Tour was 6th in the 2020 race. López abandoned the 2021 Tour to look at the Olympic Games after underperforming in France. 

But he feels it's time that he won a big race: "I’ve very been close in the past, including in the Vuelta this year when I was on the podium [before abandoning]. I’m going in with high hopes, a lot of motivation, especially being in a ’new’ team. 

"We can dream about being able to achieve something big. I’ve been very close before and can think about going for a stage and, as a minimum, finishing in the top positions, like the podium."

López is also being joined by a staggering 13 other new signings including the returning Nibali as well as talented riders such as Gianni Moscon from Ineos Grenadiers and Giro stage winner Joe Dombrowski.

On the flip side, Astana will have a very different feel to it with 11 riders leaving the team, including Aleksandr Vlasov, Luis León Sánchez, Omar Fraile and the Izagirre brothers Ion and Gorka.

Miguel Ángel López will re-join Astana in 2022 after his contract was terminated by Movistar, the Kazakh team has confirmed.

López's contract was halted by the Spanish outfit after the Colombian decided he wanted to abandon the Vuelta a España due to missing a group that ultimately decided the general classification on the final road stage of the race.

This came after López had already put pen to paper on a two-year contract extension before the Vuelta, but the reaction to missing the vital split went down poorly within the ranks of the Spanish team.

Movistar rider, Imanol Erviti, revealed that he tried and tried to get López back riding saying: "I tried to convince him that he should do it for the commitment to the team, for his team-mates who were there, and because he had also quit the Tour de France, he would regret it later."

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But it was to no avail and López left the race and with it, Movistar too.

López said in the Astana transfer announcement: "Coming back to the Astana team is a return home. In the world of professional cycling, a rider who wants to keep on moving forward sometimes has to change something in his career, to gain new experience. Sometimes it is a good one, sometimes not. 

"The main thing is that I am coming home to my team, the team that gave me so much and with which, I am sure, we will be able to live many more wonderful moments. There is a lot of work ahead for the new season to be successful for me and for Astana Qazaqstan Team."

López spent six seasons at Astana before moving to Movistar, now signing a two-year contract to return to the team from Kazakhstan.

Astana general manager, Alexandr Vinokourov, said: "Miguel Ángel López is a rider who grew up and achieved his greatest successes in our team, and therefore I am happy that after a short break he is making his return to Astana Team. 

"Over the past year, Miguel Ángel has gained serious experience, which, perhaps, he lacked in our team. I think that this experience, both good and not so good, will help him to continue his development. 

"López proved that he is still one of the strongest riders in the world, continuing to win at the highest level, so it is great that Miguel Ángel will continue his career in Astana Qazaqstan Team."

Astana-Premier Tech have revealed their new name for the 2022 season, as their headline sponsor Premier Tech pulls out of the team

The Kazakhstani WorldTour team have been through a turbulent few years, defined by financial trouble and leadership changes. 

From next year the team, run by former pro Alexander Vinokourov, will be known as Astana Qazaqstan, as the Kazakhstan Cycling Federation will become a major stakeholder in the team. 

The name change coincides with the return of Vinokourov to the helm, after some slightly bizarre power struggles at the top of the organisation in recent years. 

Earlier this year, reports emerged that Vinokourov was fired in 2020 as part of the Premier Tech shake-up, as the Canadian packaging machine manufacturing company joined the team as part owner. Vinokourov was then reinstated just one day later, according to the reports. 

Vinokourov was fired once again by the team on the eve of the 2021 Tour de France, but then in August the team announced he would be returning to run the team heading into 2022.  

Recent reports have suggested that Vinokourov was reinstated after an intervention by the Kazakhstani government. 

The Astana team, named after the capital of Kazakhstan (which has since been re-named Nur-Sultan), is currently co-owned by a group of state-owned Kazhakstani  companies and Premier Tech, giving the national government considerable influence over the squad. 

Premier Tech will now be leaving Astana after just one season, reportedly due to the conflicts within the team, and is believed to be in negotiations with another WorldTour team about a potential partnership. 

The leadership struggles follows financial difficulty for the team in 2020, as riders and staff weren’t paid at the start of the year due to a delay in receiving the budget from the sovereign wealth fund.  

On the new approach for 2022, Vinokourov said: “It is an honour for me to return to the leadership of this team as a general manager. For the past 16 years the Astana Cycling Project has been the hallmark of our country in the world of sports, and I would like to thank the leadership of Kazakhstan for many years of support and trust. 

“Astana Qazaqstan Team is not just a new team name, it is an updated project philosophy emphasising closer integration of our sports brand and promotion of the Republic of Kazakhstan as a major international partner. In the current period, preparations for the new season and the registration of the team in the top division are in full swing. Beside this we are working on an additional project, which we will announce soon.” 

Astana said that Qazaqstan is “the most accurate and correct name of Kazakhstan in its English transcription,” as the team refocuses on its commitment to promote the nation through cycling. 

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Nurlan Smagulov, the president of the Kazakhstan Cycling Federation said: “The name of our state will appear on the cyclists’ jerseys and in the new team logo, and it will become a kind of sign of the continuation of traditions and, at the same time, a moment of change and renewal for the sake of two important goals: promotion of the image of our country all around the world and development of domestic cycling. 

“The project is getting a second wind and is preparing for a new turn in its development. I would like to express my special gratitude to the Government of the Republic of Kazakhstan as well as to the Professional Sports Club Astana, which actively support the team. I am happy with the fact that Kazakhstan Cycling Federation is going to play an important role in the development of the renewed team and the implementation of ambitious plans, which will be announced in the nearest future. 

“Also, I am happy that our federation will be presented both in the Board of Directors and in the management of Astana Qazaqstan Team. We envisage strengthening the team’s work with the federation in the transfer of professional skills to domestic athletes and specialists as well as deeper participation of Astana Qazaqstan Team in the life of Kazakhstan cycling.”  

Vincenzo Nibali is set to return to Kazakhstani team Astana for the 2022 season after five seasons of racing elsewhere.

The team posted a teaser tweet out suggesting that Nibali, otherwise known as 'The Shark of Messina', is returning to the squad, then confirming the news on Instagram. 

The Italian star is now 36-years-old and has spoken multiple times about thoughts on retirement, but first he will return to the team he raced at for four seasons, after he left the folding Liquigas-Cannondale team in 2013.

Nibali said: "I am very happy to come back to team Astana, because for me it is a real family that has given me a lot and together with which I have achieved my greatest successes. I know most of the management and staff of the team, so I will return to the team I know really well."

He added that he doesn't have any specific goals as of yet but he is hoping he can achieve some good results and help the younger riders in the team to achieve great things.

Nibali took three of his four Grand Tour overall victories while racing for Astana with two Giro d'Italia titles as well as his dominant display to win the 2014 Tour de France.

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His last Grand Tour victory was in 2016 at the Giro where he turned around a gap of 4-43 to leader Steven Krujswijk (Jumbo-Visma) on stage 19 of the race after Kruijswijk crashed following the Italian on a descent.

He then took the 44 seconds needed out of Esteban Chaves (BikeExchange) to win the race by 52 seconds. He has not shown that same form in stage races after that, winning just six times since. Albeit, the most recent five were stage wins in all three Grand Tours as well as the Monuments of Il Lombardia and Milan-San Remo.

Nibali left Astana to join the newly formed team of Bahrain-Merida, now Bahrain Victorious. He stayed there for three seasons before moving on again to the American registered Trek-Segafredo as it had an Italian core to the team.

But now he is set to re-join Astana with the return of Alexander Vinokourov as general manager of the team and the co-sponsor of Premier Tech pulling out to join another WorldTour team at the end of the season. Nibali re-signing gives the team a bit of a nostalgic look. 

Vinokourov said: "We are happy that this return is coming true - He probably spent the best years of his career in our team, and I think it is symbolic that he will finish such a great cycling career in Team Astana."

Astana are losing their main GC focus in the shape of Aleksandr Vlasov to the German team of Bora-Hansgrohe in 2022 and with Jakob Fuglsang also rumoured to be leaving, the leaders role could be vacant. 

Miguel Ángel López, who's contract at Movistar is being terminated on October 1, is also rumoured to be returning to the team after a season away.

"For us, the arrival of Nibali is an opportunity to get and to use all the rich experience a rider of his calibre can offer, to transform and improve the team, which will undergo some great changes in the new season," Vinokourov continued.

"However, I believe that Vincenzo has not said yet his last word in cycling, so in some races we can still rely on him as the leader of the team to achieve new successes together again."

Nibali has signed a one-year deal but it is not yet clear if he will continue racing beyond 2022.  

Alexandre Vinokourov is returning to Astana ahead of the 2022 season only two months after he was ousted from his position as team principal.

The 47-year-old was fired from his position on the eve of the Tour de France, having already survived an earlier coup in 2020 when he was relieved of his duties before being re-instated a few days later due to staff unrest with the decision.

Vinokourov's return follows co-title sponsor Premier Tech announcing two weeks ago it would be ending its partnership with the team, returning total control of the outfit to the Kazakh shareholders.

Astana have since confirmed the team will be able to continue into the 2022 season, with Vinokourov overseeing recruitment and the sporting side of the squad, with new riders expected to be signed soon.

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"The Astana team’s future in the WorldTour peloton is secured for 2022 with the team’s Kazakh shareholders confirming they will continue as team owner and title sponsor for the upcoming season," a statement from the team read.

"Alexandre Vinokurov has been reappointed as Sports Team Principal for the 2022 season and will oversee the rider and staff recruitment and sporting operations.

"With preparations underway for the team’s 17th year in the peloton, announcements regarding rider contract extension and new rider signings will be made in the near future.

"Astana had envisaged Premier Tech being a new long-term partner for the WorldTour team, but it appears the Kazakh shareholders will now return to being responsible for the majority of the financial backing for the team."

"We were proud to have them with us for some of the team’s most important moments including multiple Tour de France stage wins and Monument victories," 

Yana Seel, Astana's managing director, said at the time of the announcement that Premier Tech would be stepping down as a partner.

"Although we envisaged a long-term collaboration between Premier Tech and our Kazakh shareholders as co-owners, unfortunately, it has not been possible to align the respective visions for the team’s future. As such, Premier Tech will conclude their investment at the end of this season."

Aleksandr Vinokourov has been fired as team principal of Astana-Premier Tech on the eve of the Tour de France, his team have confirmed.

The Kazakhstani former pro has been involved with the WorldTour squad since it was founded in 2006. 

But on Thursday (June 24), reports emerged that Vinokourov had been ousted just days before the start of the Tour due to “personal reasons.”

French newspaper L’Equipe said that the 47-year-old had been let go with immediate effect, with staff and riders informed via email at midnight on Thursday. 

Astana have confirmed that Vinokourov has stepped down as team principal and will relinquish his management responsibilities, but that he will move into another role, which has not yet been revealed. 

According to the report from L’Equipe, Vinokourov refutes the “personal reasons” and is believed to be taking legal action to be reinstated in his role as team boss. 

Yana Seel, managing director of the team, said: “We can confirm that Alexandr Vinokurov will not be present at the Tour de France this year as he will step down as sports team principal. Alexandr still remains part of the team but he will not be in charge of the team’s sporting operations at the moment and will move into another role. I hope that during this period Giuseppe Martinelli and Steve Bauer will work well together to lead the team from a performance standpoint and guide our riders to success, starting here at the Tour de France where Steve will work alongside Dmitry Fofonov and Stefano Zanini”

Sports director Guiseppe Martinelli has taken over in Vinokourov’s role, assisted by Canadian former pro Steve Bauer, who joined the team with new sponsor Premier Tech at the start of the season. 

Past reports suggested that Vinokourov had previously been fired by Astana before being re-instated just one day later, according to eye-opening revelations from a former sports director on the team. 

Dmitry Sedun, who worked for the team for 15 years, was let go in 2020 in an ongoing shake-up that has seen Canadian investment and management extend their control over the traditionally Kazakh team. 

Sedun argued that although the new people in charge are successful in their own fields, they don't know a lot about bike racing, and likens it to if he was "appointed to lead the ballet troupe of the Mariinsky Theatre". 

Vinokourov is believed to have had his responsibilities within the team reduced, according to Sedun, before the news that had had been let go emerged. 

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Vinokourov, Olympic gold medalist in 2012, retired from the peloton after the games and took up management duties with Astana in 2013, building the team into a Grand Tour-winning outfit with Vincenzo Nibali and Fabio Aru. 

The team recently lost star rider Miguel Ángel López to Movistar, and now rely on the Aleksandr Vlasov and Jakob Fuglsang as their headline names. 

Aleksandr Vlasov has said it was hard to breathe through the dust on the gravel sections of stage 11 in the Giro d'Italia 2021, where he moved up to second overall.

Vlasov (Astana-Premier Tech) has been putting in a very solid Giro so far with an impressive time trial on stage one and some very strong rides on the climbs. 

This form continued on the gravel of stage 11 with his team working hard for the former Russian champion, as he even tried to attack the likes of Egan Bernal (Ineos Grenadiers) before being distanced by the Colombian and Emanuel Buchmann (Bora-Hansgrohe) in the closing kilometres.

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Speaking after the stage, he told cycling website Wielerflits: "First of all, I want to thank my team-mates. They gave me the best possible support. The boys did a great job and we had a good day in this really tough stage. 

"I did everything I could today and the legs worked very well all day long. It was not easy to breathe because of the dust on the gravel strips, but luckily I got through."

Vlasov did lose touch along with several other GC riders after the first gravel section, but Astana worked hard with Deceuninck - Quick-Step to pull him back up. 

"The team did everything they could to close the gap quickly. After that, I was always at the front of the other favourites. On the last climb, I tried to follow Bernal's attack, but it was not easy. All in all, I am satisfied with my performance, because I know that the team and I have done our best. I am happy that I got through this stage without any problems.

"Now I want to concentrate on the next tough stages because the big mountains have yet to come."

Jakob Fuglsang has said he wasted eight years of career by not eating enough. 

The Astana rider has compared his own career to that of cycling’s rising stars like Tadej Pogačar and Remco Evenepoel, who are winning at the highest level after just a few short years in the peloton.

Fuglsang, 36, said he feels he would have performed better sooner if he was starting out his career now, but raised questions about how long these young superstars can sustain their current levels of success. 

In an extensive interview with Belgian newspaper Het Nieuwsblad, Fuglsang said: “Young riders are better guided than when I was a neo pro.

“When I debuted, you had to earn a wind tunnel test. Only the best riders of the team were given a chance to do so. Every team also employs an army of dieticians. I had to learn that myself, through trial and error. ” 

He added: “I wasted eight years of my career eating too little. Nobody pointed this out to me, because that was something you as a rider had to discover for yourself. When a young rider eats too little for one day, that is corrected immediately. ” 

Fuglsang’s career has blossomed in the last three years, with the Dane winning two Monuments (Liège-Bastogne-Liège in 2019 and Il Lombardia in 2020), and his first Grand Tour stage in the 2019 Vuelta a España.

When asked if he would preferred to have started his career 15 years later, putting him in the same generation as the likes of Tour de France winner Pogačar (UAE Team Emirates), Fuglsang said no: “I am convinced that with today's guidance I would have performed better much earlier. Although I sometimes have my doubts about the current approach. Training hardcore in December to be there immediately on the first day of racing ... I'm curious where those young guys will be in ten years' time. ” 

This season, Fuglsang is focussed fully on the Olympic Games in Tokyo later this summer, saying he will be riding the 2021 Tour de France purely as preparation for a run at the Olympic Gold. 

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On plans for his retirement, Fuglsang said he would like to race until at least the next Olympic Games, Paris in 2024.   

Ion Izagirre took stage four of the Tour of the Basque Country 2021 in a photo finish ahead of fellow Basque rider Pello Bilbao from a select group that went away on the descent of the final climb.

Izagirre (Astana - Premier Tech) went away with three other riders including third overall, Brandon McNulty (UAE Team Emirates), to bridge to Esteban Chaves (BikeExchange), and Pello Bilbao (Bahrain Victorious) before powering to the line and narrowly beating Bilbao in the sprint.

Behind, the peloton was very disorganised with only Hugh Carthy (EF Education-Nippo) willing to do work on the front of the bunch until around 4km to go when help eventually arrived.

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Because of the poor chase, McNulty turned his 30-second deficit on overall leader Primož Roglič (Jumbo-Visma) to a lead of 23 seconds as he goes into the yellow jersey of the overall leader going into stage five tomorrow.

How it happened

The day started in Vitoria-Gasteiz with yet another undulating profile to get over before finishing in Hondarribia after 189.2km.

Just four men managed to get in the break in the end after a big battle to get up there, but didn’t manage to get a gap bigger than four minutes. The riders who made it up there were Jefferson Cepeda (Caja Rural), Guillaume Martin (Cofidis), Juan Pedro López (Trek-Segafredo), and Ben O’Connor (Ag2r-Citroën).

The gap was being dragged back very quickly as they hit the penultimate climb of the day, the famous Jaiskibel. Various teams took on the pacing bringing the gap down to under a minute with 43km to go.

The break broke down with O’Connor and López going away from the other two riders who were swallowed up by the peloton, holding 44 seconds over the top.

Team BikeExchange were the team that decided they would be the ones to have full control of the pack just before the top of the Jaiskibel with Adam Yates’ Ineos Grenadiers squad sitting just behind.

UAE Team Emirates chose to lead the peloton down the descent with Marc Hirschi ahead of McNulty and Tadej Pogačar who was being closely followed by Roglič and Yates.

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The break made it to the foot of the final climb of the Erlaitz as Lopez went clear solo to try and take the combativity prize for the day but he was brought back very swiftly by the UAE Team Emirates led peloton.

Jakob Fuglsang (Astana - Premier Tech) was the first rider to hit out with Richard Carapaz (Ineos Grenadiers) on the wheel. Pogačar jumped onto it which then brought it all back again.

Mikel Landa (Bahrain-Victorious) kicked on soon after but the big names were not keen on letting the Basque star get away with 24km to go. Esteban Chaves (BikeExchange) and McNulty pushed out of the group across to Landa.

Jumbo-Visma just kept the pace relatively high for Roglič with 24km to go, but McNulty continued to pull out the gap with Landa and Chaves following the young American. Chaves lost touch about 300 metres later.

Jonas Vingegaard (Jumbo-Visma) upped the pace in the peloton for Roglič to pull McNulty, Landa and Chaves back just before the peak of the Erlaitz climb with 22km to go.

Chaves tried again on the descent with Bilbao and managed to pull out a decent gap. A counter-attack of defending champion Izagirre, Emanuel Buchmann (Bora-Hansgrohe), Vingegaard and McNulty pushed across to the leading trio, making contact with 18km to go.

Back in the peloton it was Hugh Carthy working for his EF Education-Nippo leader and Colombian champion Sergio Higuita but nobody else was happy to work as the gap rocketed up to 22 seconds in very short order.

Carthy was not shutting the gap which then brought an attack from Alejandro Valverde (Movistar). Carthy quickly got Higuita to follow but Roglič’s team-mate, Antwan Tolhoek was not allowing him to stay away.

No one was chasing in the peloton going into the final 10km which saw the gap go out to 53 seconds. James Knox (Deceuninck - Quick-Step) went solo to try and bridge the gap.

Buchmann attacked with 1.6km to go but Bilbao pulled it all back together again, Buchmann tried once more with 900 metres to go followed by a counter by Chaves with 700 metres. Back at the peloton, some helpers had got back in to help their leaders.

It was far too late though for the main pack. Chaves was caught with 200 metres to go when the sprint opened up, Bilbao and Izagirre battled to the line with the latter taking the stage. McNulty took an important four-second bonus in third place as he took over the overall standings from Roglič.

Stage five is seen as the Basque Country's version of a sprint stage, but it could be yet another exciting day of racing or even a long-range breakaway. The day starts in today's finish town of Hondarribia before heading over yet more hilly terrain to Ondarra after 160.2km.

Results

Tour of the Basque Country 2021, stage four: Vitoria-Gasteiz to Hondarribia (189.2km)

1. Ion Izagirre (Esp) Astana-Premier Tech, in 4-17-07

2. Pello Bilbao (Esp) Bahrain Victorious

3. Brandon McNulty (USA) UAE Team Emirates

4. Jonas Vingegaard (Den) Team Jumbo-Visma

5. Emanuel Buchmann (Ger) Bora-Hansgrohe, all at same time

6. Esteban Chaves (Col) Team BikeExchange, at 2s

7. Patrick Bevin (NZl) Israel Start-Up Nation, at 49s

8. James Knox (GBr) Deceuninck - Quick-Step

9. Quinten Hermans (Bel) Intermarché-Wanty-Gobert Matériaux

10. Alejandro Valverde (Esp) Movistar Team, all at same time

General classification after stage four

1. Brandon McNulty (USA) UAE Team Emirates, in 12-25-21

2. Primož Roglič (Slo) Team Jumbo-Visma, at 23 seconds

3. Jonas Vingegaard (Den) Team Jumbo-Visma, at 28s

4. Pello Bilbao (Esp) Bahrain Victorious, at 36s

5. Tadej Pogačar (Slo) UAE Team Emirates, at 43s

6. Adam Yates (GBr) Ineos Grenadiers, at 1-02

7. Emanuel Buchmann (Ger) Bora-Hansgrohe, at 1-07

8. Alejandro Valverde (Esp) Movistar Team, at 1-13

9. Ion Izagirre (Esp) Astana-Premier Tech, at 1-15

10. Mikel Landa (Esp) Bahrain Victorious, at 1-23

Alex Aranburu took victory on stage two of the Tour of the Basque Country 2021 after he attacked in the closing 10km of the day, holding off the fast-finishing group of favourites behind.

Aranburu (Astana Premier Tech) took advantage of a lull in the pace after the race favourites had been busy attacking each other on the climb and the following descent.

Omar Fraile (Astana Premier Tech) led in the main bunch to give the Kazakhstani team a one-two on the day. Tour de France champion Tadej Pogačar (UAE Team Emirates) managed to sprint to third on the day taking the four-second bonus with it.

The day's final major climb was peppered with attacks by some of the biggest names. Pogačar went clear a couple of times before a group including race leader Primož Roglič (Jumbo-Visma) went away on the last part of the climb.

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Roglič managed to hold onto his overall by just five seconds over Aranburu as the race continues with yet more climbing on Wednesday for stage three.

How it happened

The day started in the town of Zalla before taking on the 154.8km route that got progressively hillier before finishing on a sharp kick to the line in Sestao.

A break of seven riders went away early on in the day and managed to pull out a maximum gap of just over four minutes.

The breakaway was made up of Quinten Hermans (Intermarché-Wanty-Gobert), Mikel Iturria (Euskaltel-Euskadi), Óscar Cabedo (Burgos-BH), Jon Irisarri (Caja Rural), Ben Gastauer (Ag2r Citroën), Kevin Vermaerke (DSM) and Martijn Tusveld (DSM).

Two teams controlled the pace back in the peloton with Movistar having the most riders up there joined by just the one rider from Jumbo-Visma. This brought the gap down very quickly with the time dipping inside two minutes with 54km to go.

Wilco Kelderman (Bora-Hansgrohe) crashed with 30km to go as Ineos Grenadiers took over the pacing on the front. Kelderman managed to get back on five kilometres later but the pace had shot up at the front with Astana Premier Tech and Bahrain-Victorious both joining the push.

The dramatic change of pace meant the break’s gap dropped inside a minute with 25km to go. They hit the climb of Arbeltzaga with just 23 seconds left to the peloton at 20km to go, so Cabedo decided to go solo.

All of the break, except for Cabedo were caught with 19.5km to go as Movistar retook over the pacing but it wasn’t super fast. Jefferson Cepeda (Caja Rural) attacked moments after most of the break was caught to try and bridge to Cabedo.

David Gaudu (Groupama-FDJ) then attacked with Tadej Pogačar (UAE Team Emirates) following. All the other favourites were managing to follow until Richard Carapaz (Ineos Grenadiers) hit the deck on a sharp bend.

The fall by the Ecuadorian meant that Gaudu and Pogačar went clear, catching and dropping both Cabedo and Cepeda. The next big name to come across was Michael Woods (Israel Start-Up Nation) who dragged Roglič and the rest of the big GC favourites at the 17km to go mark.

Max Schachmann (Bora-Hangrohe) went away with Roglič quickly followed by Brandon McNulty (UAE Team Emirates) and Colombian champion Sergio Higuita (EF Education-Nippo).

The descent was a mix of slippery tight asphalt as well as rutted concrete through very sharp turns as the leading group was brought back at the bottom of the first part of the descent with 10km to go. Aranburu tried a move on almost straight after the catch pulling out 20 seconds.

The Spaniard managed to hold off the chasing pack all the way to the line with Aranburu's team-mate, Fraile, leading the chasing group in just 15 seconds behind.

Roglič managed to extend his overall lead by an extra three seconds with Aranburu moving up to second place at five seconds down.

Results

Tour of the Basque Country 2021, stage two: Zalla to Sestao (154.8km)

1. Alex Aranburu (Esp) Astana-Premier Tech, in 3-45-32

2. Omar Fraile (Esp) Astana-Premier Tech, at 15 seconds

3. Tadej Pogačar (Slo) UAE Team Emirates

4. David Gaudu (Fra) Groupama-FDJ

5. Michael Woods (Can) Israel Start-Up Nation

6. Primož Roglič (Slo) Team Jumbo-Visma

7. Max Schachmann (Ger) Bora-Hansgrohe

8. Mikel Landa (Esp) Bahrain Victorious

9. Sergio Higuita (Col) EF Education-Nippo

10. Alejandro Valverde (Esp) Movistar Team, all at the same time.

General classification after stage two

1. Primož Roglič (Slo) Jumbo-Visma, in 4-03-04

2. Alex Aranburu (Esp) Astana-Premier Tech, at 5s

3. Brandon McNulty (USA) UAE Team Emirates, at 6s

4. Tadej Pogačar (Slo) UAE Team Emirates, at 24s

5. Adam Yates (GBr) Ineos Grenadiers, at 28s

6. Max Schachmann (Ger) Bora-Hansgrohe, at 31s

7. Jonas Vingegaard (Den) Team Jumbo-Visma, at 32s

8. Omar Fraile (Esp) Astana-Premier Tech, at 34s

9. Wilco Kelderman (Ned) Bora-Hansgrohe, at 40s

10. Pello Bilbao (Esp) Bahrain Victorious, at 42s.

A sports director at Astana-Premier Tech has said that he wants Vincenzo Nibali to return to his team for the last season of his career.

Giuseppe Martinelli has made it very clear that he wants Nibali (Trek-Segafredo) to come back to his team for the last season of his career, five years after he left the squad to join Bahrain-Merida in 2017.

The 36-year-old Sicilian has previously said he wanted to retire at the end of the 2021 season, after the Olympic Games in Tokyo, but rumours suggest he may continue into 2022.

His contract with Trek-Segafredo comes to an end at the close of the 2021 season.

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Speaking in Gazzetta dello Sport, Martinelli said: "If I get the chance to sign him, I will not fail to do so,

"I would therefore also like him to end his career with the team. I still love him. In the four years that he was at Astana, we've never had a disagreement. He came when he was already a champion, but we still had common ground.

"He will not come to win the Giro d'Italia, but to end his career with pleasure."

Nibali had his most successful seasons when he was at Astana-Premier Tech where he won the Giro d'Italia twice in 2013 and 2016. He also took his only Tour de France title in 2014 as well as several other top level wins including Tirreno-Adriatico and Il Lombardia.

Back in 2018, Nibali told Cycling Weekly that he had been considered by then Team Sky, now Ineos Grenadiers, but nothing materialised.

"I’m happy that in the past Team Sky have considered me.

“In the past we haven’t found the deal, but for sure Team Sky is one of the best teams in the word, they have won a lot of Tours de France and big tours – Giro d’Italia and Vuelta.

"We can open talks with all teams seriously and for sure Sky is one of the teams. We’ll take the decision about my future next year." He then went onto join Trek-Segafredo.

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This rumour came up yet again last year as reports suggested he will be joining Ineos for 2022 in his last season, to bring some experience and guidance for the young leaders with an offer via Italian bike brand Pinarello. Nibali's agent, Alex Carera, was quick to deny this.

"We haven’t had any talks with Ineos. Vincenzo has a contract with Trek-Segafredo for 2021 and he’s very happy there," Carera told Cyclingnews.

"Vincenzo has still to decide on his future but we always said we’d meet up with the Trek-Segafredo team management in the new year to talk about that. We’d only consider other options and other offers if we didn’t reach an agreement with them."

Aleksandr Vlasov has announced himself as of the best climbers in the pro peloton after an amazing first WorldTour season with Astana, which has attracted attention from super-team Ineos Grenadiers who looked to sign him before the end of his contract in 2022.

However, with renewed investment as the Kazakh team become Astana - Premier Tech for the 2021 season, the team will look to convince the Russian to stay, while aiming to place him on a Grand Tour podium this year.

"I personally think it is wise for Aleksandr to stay with us," Astana-Premier Tech CEO, Yana Seel, told Wielerflits.

"He is still very young and at the start of his career. He got married quite recently and his private life is also very important to him at the moment. Aleksandr is a very capable and smart rider.

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"He is doing very well, not just on the sports side. He also amazes us as a young rider on an organisational level. Aleksandr takes his responsibility strongly."

Astana-Premier Tech will be hoping to hang onto Vlasov, especially after losing Miguel Ángel López to Movistar due to financial issues before their new backing arrived.

The 24-year-old is contracted with the Kazakh team until the end of 2021 but, much like Ineos Grenadiers did with Andrey Amador from Movistar Team and Egan Bernal from Androni Giocattoli-Sidermec, the British team are said to have tried to get the Russian climber to move across early, with Vlasov having the same agent as both Amador and Bernal, Giuseppe Acquadro.

At Astana, Vlasov only has Jakob Fuglsang to compete with for top billing at the biggest races, whereas Ineos' stacked squad numbers four Grand Tour winners in Egan Bernal, Geraint Thomas, Richard Carapaz and Tao Geoghegan Hart, as well as talented newcomers in Daniel Martínez, Adam Yates and Richie Porte.

Vlasov will be looking to replicate his 2020 form, during which he won the Mont Ventoux Dénivéle Challenge, came third at Il Lombardia, fifth at Tirreno-Adriatico before taking 11th overall at the Vuelta a España.

Astana has announced a new headline sponsor for 2021 after the team from Kazakhstan struggled for funds this year.

The squad announced  on Monday (November 16) that current kit sponsor  Premier Tech will become a joint title sponsor of Astana-Premier Tech for the 2021 season.

News comes after a series of issues regarding money during the 2020 season, including the team struggling to pay staff earlier in the year.

Back in March team manager Alexandre Vinokourov, revealed that the riders and staff had not been paid since the start of the year, following similar issues in 2018.

Vinokourov also said that he had to cut wages by 30 per cent during the forced pandemic off-season as their budget was cut.

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On the new sponsorship Astana managing director, Yana Seel said: "The task was given of reducing the funding of a professional cycling team from Kazakhstan through the entry of a second partner co-sponsor who could share the financial burden with our country.

"The name of the team for the next year will be changed, but at the same time, the team will continue to exist under the auspices of Kazakhstan, despite the fact that funding from the general partner of Samruk-Kazyna JSC will be significantly reduced.

"We will continue to glorify the name of Kazakhstan as well as the name of our new Canadian partner Premier Tech in the global sports arena."

The team has been forced to part ways with their star climber Miguel Ángel López due to budget constraints.

Rumours also suggest that their young Russian star, Aleksandr Vlasov, is looking to break his contract and join Ineos Grenadiers.

Yana Seel continued: "Discussions are currently underway to create a children's and youth cycling team 'Astana – Premier Tech Team Kids', which will be funded within the existing budget and based in Kazakhstan and Canada.

"Thus, the two countries will be able to exchange with the experience and to grow a new generation to further maintain cycling at the highest level in both countries."

Miguel Ángel López is out of the Giro d’Italia after suffering a wound very close to an artery during a time trial crash. 

The Astana rider crashed a high-speed mid-way through the opening TT stage of the 2020 Giro, during a treacherous downhill time trial that caused some major upsets.

López fell around 10 minutes into his run when he hit a bump in the road as he switched from the aero bars of his TT bike to the base bar, losing his grip and swerving off the road into the barrier. 

After the stage, Astana confirmed the Colombian has escaped without any fractures but suffered a deep wound. 

Team doctor Serge Niamke said: “The X-ray has shown no fractures, he suffered a deep wound very close to the iliac artery, which he had a surgery to repair and which will heal in the upcoming weeks. Regarding this crash Miguel Angel hasn’t sustained any further serious injuries. He was able to leave the hospital on foot and returned back to the team`s hotel. We will see how he is feeling tomorrow about returning back home.”  

The rapid TT course split opinion among the pro peloton, with some feeling the course was too dangerous and posed unnecessary risks to the riders. 

López, who finished sixth in the Tour de France last month, is riding the Giro in support of Jakob Fuglsang, who said: “First of all, the most important thing, we all are glad that Miguel Ángel could leave the hospital on foot. 

“I wish Miguel Ángel a speedy recovery, I am pretty sure he will come back stronger. 

“The stage was tough with some tricky corners and a fast uphill section. The wind made it even harder but also very dangerous. What should I say, let´s hope from tomorrow on we will have more luck on our side.”

Miguel Ángel López will be leaving Astana at the end of the season because the team can’t afford him. 

Astana’s team boss Alexander Vinokourov has said he will have to let the Colombian go as the budget will not stretch to an extension for the Grand Tour star, according to ProSports.kz. 

López, 26, has become a promising three-week contender since turning pro with the Kazakhstani squad in 2015, but has been inconsistent in recent seasons. 

In the 2020 Tour, his debut in the race, López quietly gained places over the opening two weeks, before he made his decisive move on stage 18 to the Col de la Loze. 

Breaking away in the final kilometres, López took the stage win on the brutal climb and put himself on the podium in the process.

But his form failed him on the stage 20 time trial, as he finished six minutes down on winner Tadej Pogačar and slipped back to sixth place overall. 

He said: “ It was a hard day for me, I did all I could, but I admit that it was a bad day.

“Someone always has something to lose and today it was me who lost the race. 

“I did a good race. During all three weeks I was up there among the best riders, fighting for the podium and today I started aiming the podium, but it did not work out. 

“I just missed one day to reach my goal. However, I am happy to be here at the final of my first Tour de France.”

Astana, funded by the Kazakhstani government, has faced repeated financial difficult in recent years, including in March when Vinokourov confirmed that riders and staff had not been paid since the start of 2020.  The team faced similar problems in 2018 when their funding arrived late, with riders told to "continue as normal."

López has shown potential as a possible Grand Tour winner, particularly in 2018 when he finished on the podium of both the Vuelta a España and the Giro d’Italia.

But the question is now whether his next team will back him as an outright leader over three weeks.  

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López will be racing the World Championships in Italy this weekend as part of the Colombian squad before heading to the Giro d’Italia to support his team-mate Jakob Fuglsang.    

Miguel Ángel López was emotional at the finish of stage 17 of the Tour de France, after a huge stage victory on the Col de la Loze, 

The Astana rider was proved himself strongest against his general classification rivals after a brutal day of climbing, taking stage honours on his Tour debut. 

 Lopez rode away from Primož Roglič and Tadej Pogačar in the final 3km on the steepest gradients of the new climb, a move that also catapulted the Colombian into third place overall.

Speaking after the stage, Lopez said: “I’m really happy. Theres a lot of emotion involved. “We’ve been working really hard to achieve this and it wasn’t easy to get there so I feel a lot of emotion at the moment. 

“We’ve been working incredibly hard to try and get to this point. I’ve been working really hard throughout lockdown and I’ve been doing a lot of home parenting as well, so to get to this point is amazing.”

With two huge climbs to tackle on stage 17, including the Col de la Madeleine and the Loze, it was a day for the GC contenders to fight for the stage and try to find cracks in the armour of race leader Roglič. 

Holding strong against the pace set by Bahrain-McLaren on the final climb, Lopez found his opportunity when Roglič and Pogačar began to mark each other in final few kilometres.

Jumping away as the summit approached, 2300 metres up,  Lopez rode to the line 15 seconds ahead of Roglič.  

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Lopez said: “I’m thinking about my wife and my son. It’s really hard to be a long way away from them but it’s my job but I think about my family all the time.

“I would need at least a minute over Pogačar and Roglič in the time trial. For now, it would be better to enjoy what we already have." 

Alexey Lutsenko blasted clear of his rivals to take the first breakaway victory of the 2020 Tour de France.

The Kazakhstani rider made it into an elite eight-rider breakaway that got away from the peloton almost immediately after the flag dropped on stage six, with the group comfortably making onto the final climbs ahead of the bunch.

With the peloton still trailing by three minutes as the road ramped up, Lutsenko (Astana) was able to leave behind the likes of Greg Van Avermaet (CCC Team) and Nicolas Roche (Sunweb) to set up a dual with Neilson Powless (EF Pro Cycling).

Lutsenko powered clear of Powless on the Col de la Lusette, extending the distance to the peloton over the final 10km and held off a surge from Jesús Herrada (Cofidis) to score a solo victory.

The general classification battle came to nothing on the second summit finish of the race, despite a last-ditch sprint from Julian Alaphilippe to reclaim one second on race leader Adam Yates.

Mitchelton-Scott's Yates finishes safely in the bunch to defend his race lead for the first day.

How it happened 

After a bizarrely quiet day on stage four, the riders of Tour de France 2020 peloton were ready for a fight on day six with a 191km stage from Le Teil to Mont Aigoual. 

The stage was mostly flat with a few lumps along the way, until riders hit the 140km mark when the climbing started and the fireworks were expected. 

 Climbing started at 143km with the third category Cap de Coste, which is only 2km at 7.3 per cent, but then the road turned up even more. 

The final 35km was made up of three climbs separated by very brief downhill sections   – the Col de Mourèzes (5.8km at 5.1 per cent), Col de la Lusette (11.7km at 7.3 per cent), and then finally an uncategorised climb to the finish at Mont Aigoual, which is still a tough 8.3km-long at four per cent, with a finishing altitude of 1,560m. 

In contrast to the previous day, there was a huge battle to make the day’s breakaway with four riders making an escape almost immediately.

After a some frantic chasing and a few changes, eight riders eventually established themselves as the day’s powerful breakaway with some huge talent making it up the road. 

Greg Van Avermaet (CCC Team) was the best-placed rider on general classification to get into the move and he was joined by Nicolas Roche (Sunweb) Rémi Cavagna (Deceuninck - Quick-Step), Alexey Lutsenko (Astana), Jesús Herrada (Cofidis), Neilson Powless (EF Pro Cycling), Edvald Boasson Hagen (NTT Pro Cycling), and Daniel Oss (Bora-Hansgrohe)

The breakaway built a strong advantage that reached upwards of six minutes on the rolling terrain in the opening 100km of the stage, before the peloton began to close down the advantage with the finish in mind.  

Into the key stages of the race with around 40km left to race, Ineos Grenadiers took on the chasing duties at the front of the bunch and it was the first time we’d seen their familiar mountain train in action.

The break began to fall apart at the very foot of the Col de la Lusette with Oss and Boasson Hagen the first to lose contact as Cavagna attacked. 

With around 20km to race Powless launched a string of attacks which dropped Van Avermaet, Roche and Herrada, with Lutsenko the only rider strong enough to stick with the American, as the peloton knocked the gap down to three minutes. 

Powless’s attacks took their toll however and Lutsenko capitalised to escape solo and distance Powless by 20 seconds with 16km to the line.  

Lutsenko crested the Lusette with a 30-second gap over the chasers from the breakaway and an increased gap of 3-15 back to the peloton, with a short descent to tackle before the road ramped up again in the final 10km.

Herrada was resurgent in the closing stages of the race but Lutsenko was untouchable as he paced his effort perfectly to take victory, almost a minute ahead of the Spaniard, with Greg Van Avermaet outsprinting Powless for third.

Back in the peloton, Ineos held the front with an iron grip and with Michał Kwiatkowski putting on the power, none of their GC rivals were tempted into an attacked.

The favourites all came into the final locked to each other’s wheels, before Julian Alaphilippe (Deceuninck - Quick-Step) kicked clear of the peloton and took back just one second, having lost 20 seconds due to a time penalty the previous day.

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Adam Yates still holds the yellow jersey by three seconds over Jumbo-Visma’s Primož Roglič. 

The 2020 Tour de France route continues with another probable sprint stage, as the riders take on a 168km run from Millau to Lavaur with three lower category climbs early in the stage, before the flat run to the finish.  

Results

Tour de France 2020, stage six: Le Teil to Mont Aigoul (191km)

1. Alexey Lutsenko (Kaz) Astana, in 4-32-34

2. Jesús Herrada (Esp) Cofidis, at 55 seconds

3 Greg Van Avermaet (Bel) CCC Team, at 2-15

4. Neilson Powless (USA) EF Pro Cycling, at 2-17

5. Julian Alaphilippe (Fra) Deceuninck - Quick-Step, at 2-52

6. Bauke Mollema (Ned) Trek-Segafredo, at 2-53

7. Michał Kwiatkowski (Pol) Ineos Grenadiers

8. Egan Bernal (Col) Ineos Grenadiers

9. Richard Carapaz (Ecu) Ineos Grenadiers

10. Adam Yates (GBr) Mitchelton-Scott, all at same time

General classification after stage six

1. Adam Yates (GBr) Mitchelton-Scott, in 27-03-57

2. Primož Roglič (Slo) Jumbo-Visma, at 3s

3. Tadej Pogačar (Slo) UAE Team Emirates, at 7s

4. Guillaume Martin (Fra) Cofidis, at 9s

5. Egan Bernal (Col) Ineos Grenadiers, at 13s

6. Tom Dumoulin (Ned) Jumbo-Visma

7. Esteban Chaves (Col) Mitchelton-Scott

8. Nairo Quintana (Col) Arkéa-Samsic

9. Romain Bardet (Fra) Ag2r La Mondiale

10. Miguel Ángel López (Col) Astana , all at same time

Miguel Ángel López collided with a road sign after the peloton opted to temporarily neutralise the racing on stage one of the Tour de France 2020. 

Treacherous weather conditions around Nice for day one have resulted in countless crashes in the peloton, with riders unilaterally opting to temporarily call off the aggression as they descended the day's major climb.

As the peloton reached the crest of a climb at Aspremont with around 50km left to the line, Jumbo-Visma's Tony Martin gestured to the peloton to call for a neutralisation on the upcoming descent, to avoid further crashes.

While most teams were on board with the neutralisation, Astana appeared to disagree with the decision and they accelerated on the downhill section.

After stringing out on the road, the Kazakhstani team quickly regretted their decision when their general classification leader López lost the rear wheel on a gentle left-hand turn.

The Colombian was able to keep the bike upright by unclipping his inside foot, but he was still carrying too much speed and ran wide on the corner as his brakes didn't slow him in the wet conditions.

López ran off the road and went head-first into a road sign.

Fortunately he appeared to escape any serious injury, while his team-mate Ion Izagirre handed him his bike to continue the race.

Earlier in the stage, Lòpez' compatriot Nairo Quintana showed some rapid reflexes when he crashed on a wet right-hand turn.

The Arkéa-Samsic rider was taken out when a rider went down in front of him and slid along the floor.

But he was quickly back on his feet and was able to re-attached his chain and get pedalling once again before the remains of the peloton had even passed.

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Julian Alaphilippe (Deceuninck - Quick-Step) and Pavel Sivakov (Ineos Grenadiers) have also been caught in crashes.

Astana’s Hugo Houle had to sit out of Il Lombardia after being diagnosed with coronavirus. 

Houle was schedule to race the Italian Monument last weekend but was forced to miss the race after testing positive for Covid-19 in the UCI’s mandatory tests in the week before the race.

The Canadian said he has no symptoms, but will quarantine and will not race until he tests negative. 

In an interview with Quebec newspaper La Presse last week, he said: “We will see how it evolves, but until now, I feel completely normal and everything is fine on my side. If I'm not a professional cyclist today, I have no idea I have Covid-19 and I just go on with my life. 

“At the time, I was surprised to receive a result which turned out to be positive. I asked the doctor twice if he was sure.” 

Houle is the latest rider to have his season by coronavirus.

Last month, Israel Start-Up Nation rider Omer Goldstein contracted coronavirus and his diagnosis meant his team-mate Itamar Einhorn also had to be pulled from the Vuelta a Burgos as the pair had been in contact.

Then as a result, Britain’s Alex Dowsett also had to miss the racing in Burgos because of his contact with his team-mate Einhorn.

Later in the race, three UAE Team Emirates riders were sent home from the race after they had been in contact with an unnamed person diagnosed with coronavirus. 

But both Israel Start-Up Nation riders and all UAE Team Emirates rider withdrawn from the race tested negative for the illness.

When WorldTour racing returned with Strade Bianche on August 1, AG2R La Mondiale rider Silvan Dillier was pulled from the team ahead of the race because of a positive coronavirus test. 

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But the Swiss pro didn’t believe his diagnosis and criticised the UCI system in place for Covid-19. 

Jakob Fuglsang takes his second Monument victory of his career, winning his first Il Lombardia title after beating Jumbo-Visma's George Bennett.

It ended up looking like a story between two teams as three Trek-Segafredo riders and two Astana men, along with Bennett, went clear on the descent of the Colma di Sormano after a nasty crash for Remco Evenepoel (Deceunick - Quick-Step), who was conscious as he was transported to hospital.

Trek's trio of Vincenzo Nibali, Giulio Ciccone and defending champion Bauke Mollema were all dropped on the Civiglio climb as Bennett stayed with Fuglsang and Aleksandr Vlasov (Astana).

How it happened

The riders started the 114th Il Lombardia in Bergamo with a very challenging route of 231km to Como where the second Monument of the year finished.

An 11-man break went up the road early on, including Petre Vakoč (Alpecin-Fenix), James Piccoli (Israel Start-Up Nation) and Joey Rosskopf (CCC Team).

It was Piccoli who went solo, with around 70km to go, but behind the peloton was flying up the climbs, bringing the time gap down rapidly, with Astana and Deceuninck - Quick-Step doing the work.

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Piccoli was caught just a couple of kilometres later as Evenepoel asked for more pace before they hit the steep slopes of the Colma di Sormano.

On the Sormano, Vlasov and Fuglsang shared duties with Mathieu van der Poel (Alpecin-Fenix), Richard Carapaz (Ineos) and Diego Ulissi (UAE Team Emirates) all dropped out of the back.

As the lead group went over the top Nibali went to the front and tried to create a gap on a very tricky, tight and twisty descent.

All the riders were keeping up well with Evenepoel at the back. It was only on one bend, where the road tightened on the exit of a corner to go across a bridge, that the 20-year-old Belgian went into the wall and over the other side.

As the lead group got to the bottom there were only six riders left: Bennett, Vlasov, Fuglsang, Nibali, Ciccone and Mollema.

They all worked well together as riders such as Van der Poel were chasing behind. But as they hit the penultimate climb of Civiglio Fuglsang attacked with Bennett on the wheel. Soon after, Vlasov attacked across to Bennett and his team-mate, Fuglsang.

All three Trek riders were in trouble, Nibali especially, as he had put in a big effort to work for his team.

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The three leaders then started to work together over the top and on the way to the last climb of San Fermo della Battaglia.

Bennett attacked at the base of the climb, immediately distancing the Russian champion, Vlasov.

Bennett tried another three times to drop Fuglsang before the two-time Critérium du Dauphiné winner hit the New Zealander hard with a vicious attack.

The winner of Gran Piemonte, just three days previous, Bennett was not able to get back on terms with the great Dane who took the win by over 30 seconds.

Results

Il Lombardia 2020 - Bergamo to Como (231km)

1. Jakob Fuglsang (Den) Astana, in 5-32-54

2. George Bennett (NZl) Jumbo-Visma, at 31s

3. Aleksandr Vlasov (Rus) Astana, at 51s

4. Bauke Mollema (Ned) Trek-Segafredo, at 1-19

5. Giulio Ciccone (Ita) Trek-Segafredo, at 1-40

6. Vincenzo Nibali (Ita) Trek-Segafredo, at 3-31

7. Max Schachmann (Ger) Bora-Hansgrohe, at 4-31

8. Diego Ulissi (Ita) UAE Team Emirates, at 5-20

9. Ben Hermans (Bel) Israel Start-Up Nation, at 6-00

10. Mathieu van der Poel (Ned) Alpecin-Fenix, at 6-28

Aleksandr Vlasov (Astana) took victory in dominant fashion up on the lunar landscape of Mont Ventoux with a very impressive ride from Richie Porte (Trek-Segafredo) in second place and Guillaume Martin (Cofidis) in third, at the 2020 edition of the Mont Ventoux Dénivelé Challenge 2020.

After an excellent display in the Route d'Occitanie a week before this race, where he finished only behind two Ineos riders of Egan Bernal and Pavel Sivakov, he was one of the big favourites to take the day and he did just that.

The peloton caught the last of the break just as they started the final ascent which saw multiple attacks from riders, with some sticking for a long period, but it was the Russian champion, Vlasov, who set off on a stinging move to bridge the gap and then kick on to victory.

Behind, big names who were out of form battled for the minor places, with Nairo Quintana (Arkéa-Samsic), Miguel Ángel López (Astana) and Fabio Aru (UAE Team Emirates) battling it out.

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How it happened

The riders started in Vaison-la-Romaine and after 179km they finish at the top of Mont Ventoux, but it is not the usual ascent, they ride up a different side that takes us up to Chalet Reynard but from another angle.

The original break was made up of eight riders including Lewis Askey (Groupama-FDJ), Carmelo Urbano (Caja Rural), Jose Gonçalves (Nippo Delko One Provence), Juan Felipe Osorio (Burgos-BH), Alessandro Monaco (Bardiani-CSF-Faizane), Garikoitz Bravo (Fundacion Ciclista Euskadi), Marlon Gaillard (Total Direct Energie) and Robert Scott (Canyon DHB p/b Soreen).

The break broke down over the first passage up to Chalet Reynard with Bravo going solo, but his time gap was being edged away as the kilometres ticked down thanks to Astana, Arkéa-Samsic and Cofidis as they got closer to the mountain.

Bravo had just 30 seconds at the base of the final climb as the race was very nicely set up for possible early attacks, with the lone leader caught with 17km to go.

Julen Amezqueta (Caja Rural) and Simone Petilli (Circus-Wanty Gobert) set off on the attack with 15km to go and pulled out a decent gap early on but was controlled by the peloton. The Caja Rural rider then went pop and dropped back to the group with Petilli still out in front, but it wasn't long before he was also brought back and dropped.

Edward Ravasi (UAE Team Emirates) was the next man to kick out with Pierre Latour (AG2R La Mondiale) trying to follow and he slowly bridged over with 10km to go. Ravasi was there to support Fabio Aru (UAE Team Emirates) but the Italian was dropped by Latour.

One of the biggest surprises was that López was dropped out of the back, he did make it back but Astana were fully focused on Russian champion, Vlasov instead as Trek took over pacing with 8km to go.

At 7km to go, Guillaume Martin (Cofidis) took off with a vicious acceleration, looking very impressive as he looked to bridge the now 12-second gap to Latour, which he did with ease.

Behind, Aru tried a move with Harold Tejada (Astana) going with him but Trek continued setting the pace for Richie Porte and they were brought back with 6.5km to go.

Martin hit Latour with attack after attack which pushed the AG2R rider to his limit and was dropped by his compatriot. He pulled out gap of 20 seconds and looked very cool and collected as he continued on up the mountain.

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With 4.5km to go, Astana's main man, Vlasov attacked and sailed straight across to a struggling Latour. Behind, Porte and Nairo Quintana (Arkéa-Samsic) pushed across as Vlasov dropped Latour who was now going backwards.

But then, Porte dropped the pre-race favourite, Quintana, who is still recovering from being hit by a car in Colombia.

Vlasov breezed up to Martin and went straight past the Frenchman but then they started looking at each other, which almost allowed Porte back up to them before Vlasov attacked again. Martin managed to hold on for a few more moments but then lost touch with 3km to go.

It was the young Russian who eventually took victory on Ventoux as he held off Porte in the final kilometres. It was a very impressive ride with Porte finishing 18-seconds down in second and Martin making it to third.

Results

Mont Ventoux Dénivelé Challenge 2020: Vaison-la-Romaine to Mont Ventoux (179km)

1. Aleksandr Vlasov (Rus) Astana, in 4-56-39

2. Richie Porte (Aus) Trek-Segafredo, at 18s

3. Guillaume Martin (Fra) Cofidis, at 59s

4. Pierre Latour (Fra) AG2R La Mondiale, at 1-29

5. Fabio Aru (Ita) UAE Team Emirates, at 1-38

6. Harold Alfonso Tejada (Col) Astana, at 1-43

7. Kenny Elissonde (Fra) Trek-Segafredo, at 1-51

8. Nairo Quintana (Col) Arkéa-Samsic, at 1-57

9. Jesús Herrada (Esp) Cofidis, at 2-15

10. Valentin Madouas (Fra) Groupama-FDJ, at 2-32

Astana dominated the finish of the Gran Trittico Lombardo with a fantastic first and second on the day in the soaking wet northern part of Italy.

It was Gorka Izagirre who took victory solo ahead of his teammate, Aranburu, who lead home a small group of riders that included Greg Van Avermaet (CCC Team), Vincenzo Nibali (Trek-Segafredo) and Michał Kwiatkowski (Team Ineos).

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How it happened

This race is an amalgamation of the races of Tre Valli Varesine, Coppa Agostini and the Coppa Bernocchi and may be a one off.

The riders started in Legnano and finished in Varese, Italy on a 199.7km hilly course with four finishing laps. Some top riders took to the start in the shape of Greg Van Avermaet, Vincenzo Nibali and Michał Kwiatkowski.

A five man breakaway went up the road in horrendous conditions, with Oscar Riesebeek (Alpecin-Fenix), Quinten Hermans (Circus-Wanty Gobert), Anton Kuzmin (Gazprom-Rusvelo), Raffaele Radice (Sangemini-Trevigiani), Davide Baldaccini (Team Colpack-Ballan).

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The rain was so heavy that it knocked nearly all of the TV images out, which is strange for the start of August in Italy, so seeing any live images were very hard to come by, but Trek-Segafredo dominated the peloton, working for Nibali up until about 25km to go where the attacks started to come.

It was Trek rider, Gianluca Brambilla who kicked off first and that is where Team Ineos came to the front to work hard for Kwiatkowski and Gianni Moscon.

Several moves then peppered the peloton and ripped it to bits. The next time we saw the riders it showed a small group had caught the break.

Van Avermaet, Aranburu, Izagirre, Nibali and Kwiatkowski were all there and involved with a chance to win.

Izagirre then attacked with around 10km to go and pulled out an advantage of over 30 seconds. Van Avermaet had a teammate in Alessandro De Marchi but he was not able to pull back the Basque climber.

Astana's Spanish climber put in a huge effort and took victory ahead of his teammate, Aranburu who beat Van Avermaet in the reduce sprint behind Izagirre.

Results

Gran Trittico Lombardo 2020: Legnano - Varese (199.7km)

1. Gorka Izagirre (Esp) Astana, in 4-41-02

2. Alex Aranburu (Esp) Astana, at 27s

3. Greg Van Avermaet (Bel) CCC Team

4. Michał Kwiatkowski (Pol) Team Ineos

5. Vincenzo Nibali (Ita) Trek-Segafredo

6. Jan Polanc (Slo) UAE Team Emirates

7. Nicola Bagioli (Ita) Androni Giocattoli-Sidermec, all at same time

8. Louis Vervaeke (Bel) Alpecin-Fenix, at 28s

9. Alessandro De Marchi (Ita) CCC Team), at 30s

10. Jhonatan Narváez (Ecu) Team Ineos, at 1-01m

What’s your longest ride on Zwift?

Earlier this month I managed a 75km tempo ride, around two hours and 30 minutes in the saddle, but to be honest that was a struggle.

Astana’s Laurens de Vreese is clearly made of tougher stuff.

The Belgian pro hopped onto the turbo trainer at 6.30am on Friday morning (March 20) and wouldn’t get off the bike for another 11 hours.

De Vreese racked up 368km on virtual training platform Zwift during his epic indoor adventure, inspired by his compatriot Oliver Naesen (Ag2r La Mondiale), who rode a 365km day around East Flanders earlier this month.

While spinning around the online recreation of the Yorkshire 2019 World Championships finishing circuit, De Vreese held an average power of 202 watts, burning an enormous 8,000 calories.

He even used the hashtag #OliverNaesenChallenge as he one-upped the Classics specialist by keeping his epic ride indoors.

De Vreese wasn’t the only pro to put up some mind-blowing virtual numbers over the weekend.

Dutch pro Robert Gesink (Jumbo-Visma) also put in a long shift as he spent seven hours in the saddle on Zwift to put in 250km on Sunday (March 22).

He averaged 252w for the effort, while riding around the Zwift world of Watopia.

Impressively, Gesink rode the entire virtual ride on the Tacx Magnum – effectively a treadmill for the bike, which mean he had to keep focus and avoid falling over for the entire ride.

The pros have been forced to improve their training regimes over the last few weeks, after the UCI cancelled all racing for the foreseeable future.

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With no racing on the schedule some riders have taken a break from training, including Wout van Aert (Jumbo-Visma) while others have keep the legs moving despite not knowing when the next race will be.

Currently, the next WorldTour race still scheduled to run for the men is the Critérium du Dauphiné in June, however with the rapidly changing landscape that could well change.

WorldTour outfit Astana have not paid riders or staff for the past two months because the arrival of the team's budget for 2020 has been delayed.

The Kazakh team is backed by the country's sovereign wealth fund Samruk Kazyna and team boss Alexandre Vinokourov has released a statement reassuring that the situation will be resolved soon.

"We confirm that Astana has not been able to pay everyone's wages in 2020 yet. The payment was done partially. We also want to confirm that the total budget of the main sponsor Samruk Kazyna has been successfully approved," Vinokourov said.

Spanish newspaper AS originally reported the WorldTour team's financial issues, with Vinokourov quick to point out the fact the team is funded by an official government organisation, bureaucracy can sometimes slow down the transfer of funds.

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"It is also worth mentioning the fact that Astana has already started its 15th season and during all these years our main sponsor Samruk Kazyna has duly provided us with the necessary funds. As we are being sponsored by official government organisation, sometimes there is a delay of payment due to slow administrative processing of the fund's approval," Vinokourov said.

The team faced a similar problem in 2018 when their funding arrived late and riders were encouraged to "continue as normal" until their salaries were paid.

Astana have had a successful start to 2020, with their rider Jakob Fuglsang taking two stages and the overall victory at the Ruta del Sol. This win came after an explosive leaked report linked the Danish rider to banned Italian doctor Michele Ferrari.

Both Ferrari and Fuglsang deny the claims, with Fuglsang saying: “I contest that I have met with Dr Ferrari. I am not aware of any report and I can confirm no procedure has even been opened by competent anti-doping authorities against me. Accordingly, I have no case to answer. I am extremely concerned that such rumours could be spread out in the press."

Alexey Lutsenko said he “did not make any mistake in the final” after he was beaten by Tadej Pogačar on stage five of the UAE Tour 2020.

Pogačar (UAE Team Emirates) triumphed after a tense battle on the slopes of Jebel Hafeet, during the second ascent of the climb in this year’s edition of the WorldTour race.

Astana rider Lutsenko sprinted from the final turn at the summit and looked to have the race sewn up, but he slowed at the line as he raised an arm in celebration, allowing his Slovenian rival to sneak past and take the stage.

Speaking after the stage, Lutsenko said: “Of course, I feel disappointed because I was really close to a stage win today.

“But at the same time I know that I didn’t make any mistake in the final and I gave my all in that sprint, so I have no regrets.

“I’ve never experienced that before, but today after crossing the finish line I fell down completely exhausted. I did my maximum today, I did not win but I can be proud with my performance on this climb.”

The final of stage five came down to a fight between five riders – Lutsenko, Pogačar, Adam Yates (Mitchelton-Scott), David Gaudu (Groupama-FDJ) and Ilnur Zakarin (CCC Team.

But it was Lutsenko, Yates and Pogačar who proved themselves the strongest as the trio sprinted for the line.

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Yates found himself boxed in, while Lutsenko look to have taken the stage with a strong sprint, but Pogačar’s determination saw him steal the win in the closing moments.

Sports manager at Astana, Dmitriy Fofonov, said: “Alexey did a phenomenal stage and his performance on the last climb was impressive. He is still looking for his first stage win of the season, but I am sure that with the form he has now and the with the way he is improving, he will get it soon.”

Alexandre Vinokourov has called for CADF to conduct an investigation into how their report detailing allegations that two of their riders had met with banned doctor Michele Ferrari was leaked to the Danish press, adding leaks of this nature are damaging for riders, teams, and cycling as a whole.

The 24-page report, compiled by the Cycling Anti-Doping Federation (CADF), claimed that Danish rider Jakob Fuglsang had been training with the disgraced doping doctor.

CADF released a statement in the aftermath saying they regretted the report had leaked and that they wouldn't be pursuing disciplinary charges against anyone in the report, as well as investigating the leak. This was welcomed by Vinokourov, who said: "We are pleased, that today the CADF issued a statement explaining the situation with the confidential report published recently in the media.

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"As it was noted, the organization has not found any confirmed anti-doping rule violations and as a result no disciplinary action has been initiated against either the riders or the team. We respect the activities carried out by the UCI and the CADF in the fight against doping in cycling and consider as absolutely normal to check all, even the most insignificant facts that could put a shadow on our sport. This activity is designed to make cycling cleaner."

Vinokourov's call for an investigation echoes CADF's response that said the organisation would look into how the report came to be seen by journalists.

"At the same time, we hope that the CADF will conduct a careful investigation of the way such information was made public in order to avoid repeating these situations in relation to any team or rider.

"The publication of unverified or incomplete information in the media has a detrimental effect on the image of not only professional athletes and their teams, but also of cycling as a whole.

"On behalf of the team I would like to thank our sponsors and fans for their trust and support in the moment when incorrect and largely unreliable information was spread in the media in the last few days."

After the report was made public, the Kazakhstani team denied having any association with any “suspicious doctors” including Ferrari and stated that their riders are forbidden from consulting with outside doctors about their performance.

The reports also prompted a response from Ferrari himself, who called the reports a “media hoax” and denied any involvement with any athletes or the team.

Jakob Fuglsang and Alexey Lutsenko also responded to the allegations with matching statements shared on Instagram, with both riders saying they had not met with the doctor, no disciplinary action had been brought against them and that they were concerned about the spread of the stories in the media.

The anti-doping investigators behind a leaked report have released a statement over allegations that two Astana riders had met with Dr Michele Ferrari.

A document compiled by the Cycling Anti-Doping Federation (CADF) claimed that Danish rider Jakob Fuglsang had been training with the disgraced doping doctor.

The leaked report, obtained by Danish media, also alleged that Ferrari had been present at the 2019 Volta a Catalunya with Astana, and that Fuglsang and his team-mate Alexey Lutsenko had met with the Italian physician in Monaco.

In a statement responding to the leak, the CADF says it will not be pursuing disciplinary charges against any of the figures involved and will be investigating how the document was made public.

The anti-doping organisation said: “The CADF deeply regrets that the report was leaked, and an inquiry is being conducted to understand how the file was made public and prevent this from happening again.

“Finally, the CADF confirms that after careful review of the elements available, it has not submitted the report to the UCI for the initiation of disciplinary proceedings against the individuals or team in question.

“The CADF will not be making any further comment on the matter.”

Ferrari is famed for working with high profile cycling figures, including Lance Armstrong and Alexandre Vinokourov, before he was banned from sport for life for doping athletes in 2012.

Vinokourov, the former pro who served a two-year ban for blood doping in 2007, is now general manager of Astana.

According to the CADF, the investigation into Fuglsang was sparked after the organisation received information of an alleged anti-doping rule violation.

The CADF, an independent non-profit organisation that runs the UCI's anti-doping programme, then hired data company Sportradar to investigate the allegations in order to complete CADF files.

Sportradar compiled a report which was then shared in "strict confidentiality" with select anti-doping and law enforcement agencies.

The CADF said it treated the document with “extreme care” and that it did not share the report with any third party, including the media.

News of the leaked report emerged on Sunday night (February 2), with Astana releasing a statement the following day.

The Kazakhstani team denied having any association with any “suspicious doctors” including Ferrari and stated that their riders are forbidden from consulting with outside doctors about their performance.

The reports also prompted a response from Ferrari himself, who called the reports a “media hoax” and denied any involvement with any athletes or the team.

Jakob Fuglsang and Alexey Lutsenko also responded to the allegations with matching statements shared on Instagram, with both riders saying they had not met with the doctor, no disciplinary action had been brought against them and that they were concerned about the spread of the stories in the media.

Jakob Fuglsang and Alexey Lutsenko have both responded to the claims they have met with disgraced doping doctor Michele Ferrari.

The Astana leaders have both shared the same statement denying allegations in Danish media that they had met with Ferrari in Monaco.

A leaked report from the Cycling Anti-Doping Foundation (CADF), seen by Danish newspaper Politiken, claims that Fuglsang, the winner of the Critérium du Dauphiné and Liège-Bastogne-Liège in 2019, has been training with the Italian physician.

The report also alleges that Ferrari was present at the 2019 Vuelta a Catalunya with Astana, which both the team and the doctor deny.

Ferrari is famed for working with high profile cycling figures, including Lance Armstrong and Alexandre Vinokourov, before he was banned from sport for life for doping athletes in 2012.

Vinokourov, the former pro who served a two-year ban for blood doping in 2007, is now general manager of Astana.

In their matching statements shared on Instagram, Lustenko and Fuglsang said: “I contest that I have met with Dr Ferrari.

“I am not aware of any report and I can confirm no procedure has even been opened by competent anti-doping authorities against me.

“Accordingly, I have no case to answer.

“I am extremely concerned that such rumours could be spread out in the press.”

News of the leaked report emerged on Sunday night (February 2), with Astana releasing a statement the following day.

The Kazakhstani team denied having any association with any “suspicious doctors” including Ferrari and stated that their riders are forbidden from consulting with outside doctors about their performance.

In their statement, Astana said: “[The team] is committed to the fight against doping in sport. The team requires from all its affiliated riders that they comply all time with all obligations under anti-doping regulations, including the prohibition to be associated with banned individuals or doctors. The team does not collaborate with any suspicious doctor, such as Dr Michele Ferrari.”

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The reports also prompted a response from Ferrari himself, who called the reports a “media hoax” and denied any involvement with any athletes or the team.

He said: “I have not had any relationship with athletes from team Astana for over 10 years. I haven’t been to Monaco/Nice for at least 12 years. I have never been on a scooter/motorbike in my entire life, let alone motor-pacing a cyclist. I haven’t been to the Vuelta Catalunya in 2019. I haven’t physically been present at a single race since 1994. The ‘report’ is based on false reports from probable interested parties.”

Fuglsang and Lutsenko then finally broke their silence on Monday evening (February 3).

Michele Ferrari has responded to claims in a leaked anti-doping report that he had been seen with Jakob Fuglsang and his Astana team.

The Italian doctor was banned in 2012 from working in any kind of sport but was allegedly spotted with Astana at the 2019 Vuelta a Catalunya. Further allegations link him to Jakob Fuglsang specifically, and that he has been spotted motor-pacing the Danish climber on a training ride.

"Once again I unfortunately find myself compelled to deny the latest media hoax that concerns me," Ferrari wrote on his website, before following up with a series of statements that contradict what has been written by Politiken.

"I have not had any relationship with athletes from team Astana for over 10 years. I haven't been to Monaco/Nice for at least 12 years. I have never been on a scooter/motorbike in my entire life, let alone motor-pacing a cyclist. I haven't been to the Vuelta Catalunya in 2019. I haven't physically been present at a single race since 1994," Ferrari writes.

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The 66-year-old then accuses the sources behind Politiken's article as having "probable interest" in their accusations against him, before ending with: "I have never been convicted of doping."

Ferrari's life-ban from sport came after he failed to contest a 2012 charge from USADA accusing him of administering and trafficking prohibited substances.

One of Ferrari's most high-profile clients was Alexandre Vinokourov, the Kazakhstani former pro who is now the general manager of Astana and who was banned for two years in 2007 for blood doping.

In a statement released a few hours ago, Astana said they do not collaborate with any “suspicious doctor,” including Michele Ferrari, and that riders are not allowed to consult with outside doctors about their performance.

Their statement read:  "Astana Pro team has taken note of the press article by Danish and Norwegian media relating to the existence of an alleged confidential report by CADF suspecting some riders of the team to have been in contact with banned Dr Michele Ferrari.

“Astana Pro Team is committed to the fight against doping in sport. The team requires from all its affiliated riders that they comply all time with all obligations under anti-doping regulations, including the prohibition to be associated with banned individuals or doctors. The team does not collaborate with any suspicious doctor, such as Dr Michele Ferrari."

According to the report, the CADF report says Fuglsang’s team-mate Alexey Lutsenko was present at a meeting between Fuglsang and Ferrari in Monaco. However, there is no evidence to suggest Lutsenko was working with the doctor.

Neither Fuglsang or Lutsenko raced the 2019 Volta a Catalunya.

Politiken also say 12 people confirmed to them that Fuglsang was allegedly spotted training with Ferrari, with one specific top cyclist telling them they saw Fuglsang and Ferrari together, but that this rider is refusing to come forward despite repeated attempts to get them to speak.

Danish broadcaster DR has quoted a passage from Fuglsang's book ‘Jakob Fuglsang – The dream of the rainbow stripes and the yellow jersey’, which reads: “I will be able to guarantee what I did. I want to be able to see myself in the mirror, and I can now. I’ve never been baptised, and I’m never going to get baptised. It is important for me to say that this is my attitude towards doping.”

Jakob Fuglsang and Alexey Lutsenko have decided not to comment on the case, according to Danish media.

Astana have released a statement responding to allegations centred around their Danish star Jakob Fuglsang.

Fuglsang, winner of the Critérium du Dauphiné and Liège-Bastogne-Liège last season, has been accused of training with the banned doping doctor Michele Ferrari in a leaked report.

According to the Cycling Anti-Doping Foundation (CADF) report, seen by Danish media, Fuglsang has been seen with the controversial figure and that Ferrari was present at the 2019 Vuelta a Catalunya with Fuglsang’s Astana team.

Astana said they do not collaborate with any "suspicious doctor," including Michele Ferrari, and that riders are not allowed to consult with outside doctors about their performance.

A statement from the Kazakhstani squad, released on Monday (February 3), said: “Astana Pro team has taken note of the press article by Danish and Norwegian media relating to the existence of an alleged confidential report by CADF suspecting some riders of the team to have been in contact with banned Dr Michele Ferrari.

“Astana Pro Team is committed to the fight against doping in sport. The team requires from all its affiliated riders that they comply all time with all obligations under anti-doping regulations, including the prohibition to be associated with banned individuals or doctors. The team does not collaborate with any suspicious doctor, such as Dr Michele Ferrari. The riders are not authorised to consult any doctors external to the team in order to perform any activity, or to be prescribed any diet or treatment, related to their performance."

According to the reports by Danish newspaper Politiken, the CADF report says that Ferrari was present at the 2019 Vuelta a Catalunya with Astana and that Fuglsang's team-mate Alexey Lutsenko was present at a meeting between Fuglsang and Ferrari in Monaco. However, there is no evidence to suggest Lutsenko was working with the doctor.

Ferrari has been banned from working in any kind of sport since 2012 after he failed to contest a charge from USADA accusing him of administering and trafficking prohibited substances.

As well as the leak, Politiken says they have spoken to 12 people within the cycling world who confirm that Fuglsang was allegedly spotted training with Ferrari close to Monaco. They claim the Dane was “interval training behind a scooter” with the Italian doctor.

A number of these people say one specific top cyclist told them they saw Fuglsang and Ferrari together, but that this rider is refusing to come forward despite repeated attempts to get them to speak.

The report says its task was to identify any potential links between Ferrari, his son, Stefano, and the Astana team, in particular, Jakob Fuglsang. Stefano has not been found guilty of any doping offences in the past.

Astana said: “The licence of Astana Pro Team has been renewed for the year 2020, confirming the full compliance by the team with all its obligations, including in terms of fight against doping in cycling.

“The team is in contact with the UCI and CADF in order to know more; it will collaborate with any inquiry that could be opened by CADF or the UCI.

“However, for the time being, no procedure has been initiated against any rider affiliated to the team. The Astana Pro Team trusts that if the CADF had any evidence of wrongdoing by any rider of the team, disciplinary proceedings would have been immediately initiated in accordance with anti-doping regulations and the World Anti-Doping Code.”

Fuglsang and Lutsenko have yet to comment on the case.

Update: On the afternoon after the allegations were first published, Michele Ferrari released the following statement denying the claims made in Politiken.

Ferrari said: "Once again I unfortunately find myself compelled to deny the latest media hoax that concerns me.

"I have not had any relationship with athletes from Team Astana for over 10 years. I haven't been to Monaco/Nice for at least 12 years. I have never been on a scooter/motorbike in my entire life, let alone motor-pacing a cyclist. I haven't been to the Vuelta Catalunya in 2019. I haven't physically been present at a single race since 1994. The 'report' is based on false reports from probable interested parties. I have no base in Lugano, a place where I have never been. I have never been convicted of doping."

Jakob Fuglsang has been accused of training with banned doping doctor Michele Ferrari, according to an anti-doping report leaked to Danish journalists.

The report, written by Cycling Anti-Doping Foundation (CADF), is 24 pages long and details intelligence linking the Danish rider to the doctor who helped Lance Armstrong to a number of his now-scrubbed Tour de France victories.

The evidence, presented to CADF and subsequently obtained by Danish newspaper Politiken, indicates Ferrari was at the 2019 Vuelta a Catalunya with Fuglsang's Astana team and also that his team-mate Alexey Lutsenko was present at a meeting between Fuglsang and Ferrari in Monaco, where Fuglsang lives. However, there is currently no evidence to suggest Lutsenko was working with the doctor.

Ferrari has been banned from working in any kind of sport since 2012 after he failed to contest a charge from USADA accusing him of administering and trafficking prohibited substances.

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"CADF has provided intelligence suggesting that Michele Ferrari continues to be involved in the doping of athletes at the Astana Pro Team and is believed to have travelled to Monaco and other locations to meet with the cyclists," reads the report.

Fuglsang had a successful 2019 season winning Liège-Bastogne-Liège, the Critérium du Dauphiné and a stage of the Vuelta a España in 2019, while also finishing runner-up at Strade Bianche and Flèche Wallonne. In an interview with Danish broadcaster DR in 2018, Fuglsang said "you can win big bike races without doping".

The DR article goes on to quote a passage from his book 'Jakob Fuglsang - The dream of the rainbow stripes and the yellow jersey', which reads: "I will be able to guarantee what I did. I want to be able to see myself in the mirror, and I can now. I've never been baptized, and I'm never going to get baptized. It is important for me to say that this is my attitude towards doping."

Since news of the Ferrari allegations broke, Fuglsang's former coach Rune Larsen has said: "I hope he hasn't made the wrong choice".

"In the many years I have worked with Jakob, it has just been with the mindset that we should reach as far as possible with legal tools, even if it meant that there was something we could not achieve," Larsen told DR.

As well as the leak, Politiken says they have spoken to 12 people within the cycling world who confirm that Fuglsang was allegedly spotted training with Ferrari close to Monaco. They claim the Dane was "interval training behind a scooter" with the Italian doctor.

A number of these people say one specific top cyclist told them they saw Fuglsang and Ferrari together, but that this rider is refusing to come forward despite repeated attempts to get them to speak.

The report says its task was to identify any potential links between Ferrari, his son, Stefano, and the Astana team, in particular, Jakob Fuglsang.

It accuses the father and son keep a low profile both in real life and online in order to conceal their "current doping activities". Although Stefano has been implicated in this report, he has not personally been found guilty of any doping offences in the past.

"Both Michele and Stefano Ferrari appear to deliberately keep a low profile and minimal online presence," the report reads. "Given their past legal issues and surveillance by Italian authorities, the two highly likely take extreme precaution in their current doping activities, making efforts to conceal their connections to the cyclists."

Fuglsang, Lutsenko and Astana have apparently decided not to comment on the case, while Ferrari has not responded to phone calls and texts sent by Politiken.

Politiken says they have been in contact with Fuglsang, Lutsenko and the Astana team, and following discussions all three decided not to comment on the matter, saying they "don’t want to comment on a report based on indications and rumors as there is no official message from the UCI or CADF."

The director of Anti Doping Denmark, Michael Ask, has also refused to comment on the Fuglsang investigation but has said of Ferrari: "If Ferrari really is active it is a severe breach of the regulations. Also for the people who in that potential case have helped him back into the environment and work with him. They ought to stay far away from him."

The UCI said: "As of today, the UCI has not received a report from the CADF in order to initiate proceedings against the individuals and the team mentioned. Our Federation is following this case closely and will take the appropriate measures in the interests of cycling."

Update: On the afternoon after the allegations were first published, Michele Ferrari released the following statement denying the claims made in Politiken.

"Once again I unfortunately find myself compelled to deny the latest media hoax that concerns me.

"I have not had any relationship with athletes from Team Astana for over 10 years. I haven't been to Monaco/Nice for at least 12 years. I have never been on a scooter/motorbike in my entire life, let alone motor-pacing a cyclist. I haven't been to the Vuelta Catalunya in 2019. I haven't physically been present at a single race since 1994. The "Report" is based on false reports from probable interested parties. I have no base in Lugano, a place where I have never been. I have never been convicted of doping."