In today's feel-good news, four-time world champion Tony Martin announced that his Olympic silver medal was returned to him after he auctioned it off to raise money for children in the Ukraine conflict.

In March, the now-retired time trial specialist announced that he would be auctioning off what he described as  “the biggest trophy” of his career in an effort to raise money for a German organization called RTL - Wir helfen Kindern and their relief efforts in the Ukraine. 

Said trophy is the silver medal he won in the time trial at the 2012 Summer Olympic Games in London. 

“Every day I see the terrible pictures from Ukraine on TV and it feels so wrong to sit on the couch and accept this situation...I also want to do my small part and help," he wrote on Instagram at the time. 

"It's not easy to separate me from the biggest trophy I could win in my career but considering the fact that millions of people lost almost everything, it is something I really want to do."

Two weeks later, the auction was won by German dietary supplement company, FitLine, who also rounded up the final fundraising sum to an even €35,000. 

In a wonderful gesture of kindness, the company's General Manager of Sports, Torsten Weber, then returned the medal back to Tony Martin because "that's where it belongs."

"We have the greatest respect for Tony’s selfless commitment. Also, we at FitLine are passionate about sports. We know how much heart and soul went into Tony’s medal from London 2012," the company stated on social media.

"Can you imagine his face when we told him we're rounding our contribution to 35,000 Euros and also give the medal back to him? Because that's where it belongs. Thank you again Tony, for making a difference for the children!" 

Martin was both pleasantly surprised and beyond grateful, stating:

"Even though I was absolutely fine with donating it, this massive generously gesture makes me speechless. I really want to thank FitLine for the big support of my charity project and also for giving me back the chance to show my Olympic silver medal to my grandchildren one day," he said. 

Retired pro rider Tony Martin has once again raised concerns on the lack of work done by the UCI and race organisers on rider safety, despite numerous riders voicing concerns. 

Martin, who retired after being part of the winning German team at the mixed relay team time trial at the UCI Road World Championships in Belgium, said that he will continue watching cycling but is worried about the lack of action regarding rider safety by those at the top of the sport.

There have been some horrific crashes in the last couple of years including Fabio Jakobsen's crash at the Tour of Poland and Remco Evenepoel's fall at Il Lombardia just two extreme examples.

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Speaking to the Cycling Show on Eurosport GCN, Martin said: "Nothing changed really, so we all still have the old standards. We still have the bad crashes. My feeling is we have more crashes. We see more big crashes, more riders are forced to abandon races because of the crashes."

Martin crashed multiple times at this year's Tour de France, the first time on the opening day when a fan stepped out into a narrow road holding a cardboard banner reading "Allez Opi-Omi", Martin crashed into the back of her with a much of the peloton then hitting the deck.

He crashed at least three times with the last coming on stage 11 when he fell into a ditch, cutting his leg, arm, and face.

"You have to react as the organiser,” Martin said. “As the UCI, you have to react to the circumstances. Do you have to find ways to make this more safe? I think in my opinion, nothing really changed.

“If [UCI and race organisers] don't understand how dangerous this is, I have to say then they're stupid because they can see the crashes, they can see the riders taken away in emergency cars. So you have to know as a federation that is responsible for the riders, you have to see the situation as it is actually, you should see that you have to react and that you have to do things better. 

"And when I see then that they come with some stupid rules, like forbidden the super tuck, or the arrow position (time trial position on a road bike). Okay, you can do that. But for me, it sounds more like okay, we can say we did something."

Martin wasn't the only rider to retire for similar reasons this season, with another Martin, Dan Martin hanging up the bike saying he wasn't willing to take so many risks anymore.

The Irishman dropped out of GC contention at the Giro d'Italia this year on the gravel stage in Tuscany as he said it was "not worth the risk" with a young family at home. He went on to win a stage on Sega di Ala, completing his Grand Tour stage wins set.

The full interview is available on GCN+, Eurosport.com and Discovery+.

Tony Martin has announced he will retire from professional cycling after the Road World Championships in Flanders.

The German is set to compete in the men's elite individual time trial on the opening day of competition as well as the mixed team relay, which will be his final competitive road race.

"Today I want to announce that the upcoming time trial and mixed relay World Championships will be the last races in my career," Martin said in a statement.

"Such a far-reaching decision is of course not easy to make. Cycling has been a large part of life for a long time – with highs and lows, big successes and losses, crashes and comebacks. What many young riders dream of, I have achieved. In the last few months I have been thinking more of what is to come after cycling."

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The 36-year-old says concerns over safety have also played a part, his opinion being that it has not improved despite repeated discussions over parcours and barriers.

"The bad crashes this year have also caused me to question whether I am ready to continue to face the risks that our sport involves. I have decided that I do not want to, especially since race safety has not improved despite the many discussions about courses and barriers. I hope the cycling world will listen to the plans presented by my and other teams," he said.

"Therefore I want to be fair to myself, my family and all my colleagues and end my career as a pro cyclist. I want to say farewell in a fitting manner at the Worlds time trial, which I won four times. I have trained hard for it."

Martin has been a pro since signing for Team High Road in 2008, going on to race for Deceuninck - Quick-Step and Katusha before spending the final three years of his career at Jumbo-Visma, where he did have the option of riding the final year of his current contract in 2022, but has made the decision to hang it up a year early.

"I thank my team Jumbo-Visma for their support the last three years and the opportunity to end my career in this way, as I have wished.

"I also want to express my deepest thanks to my family, my friends, my fans and all colleagues. Without you I could not have lived my dream and I will never forget that!"

Tony Martin remains uncertain about his retirement because of the coronavirus crisis.

The German star and former time trial champion says he planned to make a decision on his future this spring, but with racing suspended for the foreseeable future he has been unable to reach a conclusion.

Martin, now 34, comes to the end of his contract with Jumbo-Visma this season and has considered the possibility of calling time on his career, especially after he was forced to abandon the 2019 Vuelta a España when he suffered a deep gash above his eye.

In an interview with German newspaper Frankfurter Allgemeine, Martin said: “Originally I had set myself the goal of waiting for spring to find answers – how did I cope with the severe fall at the Vuelta, how do I move in the peloton, how do I cope with the absence from my family? The decision is currently postponed.”

He added: “At the moment the whole of cycling is up in the air. The teams do not know how they will get out of the situation economically. It’s not the time to make hasty decisions.”

Martin has an outstanding palmarès as a time triallist, with four world championship titles to his name between 2011 and 2016, five Tour stage wins and an overall victory in Paris-Nice.

As younger riders have taken the TT titles, including Tom Dumoulin and Rohan Dennis, Martin has made a name for himself as a respected road captain and workhorse, assisting Steven Kruijswijk and Primož Roglič in the 2019 Grand Tours.

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But Martin had a turbulent season last year, after he was disqualified from the Tour de France on stage 17 after an altercation with Luke Rowe, then crashing out of the Vuelta and suffering a huge cut above his right eye.

He opened 2020 at the UAE Tour, but has not race again as all events have been cancelled or postponed due to coronavirus.

Tony Martin has decided not to go for gold in the time trial at Tokyo 2020, in what will likely be his last chance at Olympic glory.

Instead, the German will target the 2020 Road World Championships in Switzerland in September, where he will attempt to win a record fifth title.

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Martin says the reason behind his decision is that the course doesn't suit him, with the 22.1km circuit, which competitors will complete twice, containing 423m of climbing.

"My manager has been there," Martin told German television network MDR. "He looked at the course and described it as extremely heavy. It hurts because I've always thought that the Olympics are very special."

To make up for this disappointment, Martin will instead aim to win another time trial rainbow jersey, which would see him pull clear of Fabian Cancellara, the pair currently tied on four titles apiece.

"I will skip the Olympics and am going to prepare myself 100% for the World Championships," he added. "I see more opportunities for me there."

The Swiss time trial course is 46km in length, featuring a more manageable 278m of climbing.

Martin finished runner-up to Bradley Wiggins in the time trial event at London 2012, then finishing 12th in Rio in 2016 as Cancellara took gold.

At the 2019 Yorkshire Worlds, Martin managed only ninth in the time trial, having recently crashed out of the Vuelta a España on stage 19. At Innsbruck 2018 he finished seventh, ninth again at Bergen 2017, while his most recent victory came in Doha in 2016.

Martin is going into the second year of his two-year deal with Jumbo-Visma, who boast a strong line-up for 2020, including Tom Dumoulin, Steven Kruijswijk and Vuelta winner Primož Roglič. The 34-year-old will undoubtedly provide essential domestique duties once more as the Dutch squad target further Grand Tour victories.

The Vuelta a España offered up more drama on stage 19, as Tony Martin was forced out of the race after a crash that also brought down some of the overall favourites.

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With around 65km of the stage to race, riders in the peloton crashed on a narrow downhill stretch of road with race leader Primož Roglič (Jumbo-Visma) and Miguel Ángel López (Astana) both going down.

A large number of Jumbo-Visma riders were involved in the fall, with Tony Martin coming of worst and abandoning the race.

Jumo-Visma said on Twitter: "Due to the heavy crash, Tony Martin has unfortunately abandoned the race."

The departure of Martin is another blow to Roglič, who has now lost his valued road captain and workhorse with one key stage still remaining on day 20.

Roglič has already lost his key mountain domestique and potential GC rider Steven Kruijswijk who left the race in the first week after he was unable to recover from a crash in the stage one team time trial.

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The crash on stage 18, from Ávila to Toledo, split the bunch with Movistar making it through unscathed and hitting the front to set a high pace.

Roglič was able to remount and was part of a large chasing group, as López also jumped back on and was paced back up to the Roglič group by his team-mates.

Controversially, Movistar continued driving at the front of the peloton and pulled out a minute advantage as Roglič was left isolated and forced to help try and close the gap between the two halves of the bunch.

Alejandro Valverde and his Spanish team than set up in the front group and allowed the Roglič group to re-join, with riders admonishing with the world champion for allowing his team to take advantage of the crash.

From one of the least successful teams in the race, to winning for fun. Jumbo Visma have turned their team around in the last two years, and done it off the back of the humble time trial. James Shrubsall found out how.

The yellow team became the team in yellow. When Mike Teunissen gurned and wrestled his way to the first victory of this year’s Tour de France, there can’t be many who failed to notice the happy synchronicity between Jumbo-Visma’s in-house colour scheme and the Tour’s maillot jaune. How fortuitous that everything from the riders’ helmets to the team bus matched the most sought after garment in cycling.

>>>> Subscribe to Cycling Weekly magazine, save on the cover price and never miss an issue

Perhaps it was fate. More likely it was the result of a lot of hard work.

Or as the team’s cheerful Kiwi climber George Bennett put it: “It was only a matter of time really.” Four-and-a-half seasons ago in 2014, when Dutch supermarket Jumbo — pronounced ‘yoombo’ to the uninitiated — first dipped a toe into WorldTour cycling sponsorship, the team racked up the rather ignominious total of six wins. It was the smallest figure across all 17 WorldTour teams that year, by some way, nearly 50 per cent less than next-least-winningest Cannondale.

Jumbo was the team’s second sponsor, next to the Dutch national lottery, LottoNL, and it boasted a 90 per cent Dutch roster which featured talent and experience in equal measure. Riders like Robert Gesink, Steven Kruijswijk and Sep Vanmarcke all suggested a great deal of potential, but the Jumbo supermarket bacon simply wasn’t brought home.

Pertinently, the Dutch team’s 2014 iteration, Belkin, had enjoyed 23 victories: the new sponsors were witnessing a significant dip in numbers of riders crossing finishing lines while pointing ecstatically at the branding on their jerseys.

However, in the four years since, the Jumbo team has increased its win tally year on year to the point where now, halfway through the season, it has already scored 37 wins. That’s already more than the record 33 the team amassed in the whole of last season.

The opening days of the Tour exemplified this. In last year’s team time trial at Cholet on stage three, LottoNL-Jumbo as they were then still called, registered a relatively lowly 13th. This year — not to use the word lightly — they smashed the entire field, retaining yellow in the process.

>>>> Read the full feature in this week’s Cycling Weekly magazine, available in newsagents and supermarkets, priced £3.25

How did this transition happen?

“If you look at the TTT, it’s a project for many years,” explains Jumbo directeur sportif Merijn Zeeman. “Our performance manager Mathieu Heijboer, he’s put so much effort into time trialling, into team time trialling — that’s so big, it’s Formula One.

“We lost one minute and 10 seconds or something [it was in fact 1.15] in the Tour last year, so of course it was a very important point to improve. It’s a part of the GC strategy,” he added.

The team this year are riding in support of Dutchman Steven Kruijswijk, who was fifth overall last year. Kruijswijk was part of the team back in 2015, but by and large this is a very different team in terms of personnel. Comparing the 2015 Tour squad to this year’s, only one man remains the same, and that’s Kruijswijk.

You can read the full feature in this week's Cycling Weekly magazine. Available in newsagents and supermarkets, priced £3.25

Tony Martin will leave Katusha-Alpecin at the end of 2018 to join LottoNL-Jumbo, the Dutch team have confirmed.

The 33-year-old German leaves Katusha after two years in which he struggled to replicate the form he showed earlier in his career, particularly with Omega-Pharma/Etixx-Quick-Step and HTC-Highroad.

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A four-time world time trial champion, Martin left Quick-Step at the end of 2016 but enjoyed the most prolific years of his career their, taking four of his five Tour de France stage wins with the Belgian team.

He will now join LottoNL-Jumbo where he says he hopes to work with the team to find success again in time trials. LottoNL have had success in time trials in recent years through the likes of Jos van Emden and their general classification leader Primož Roglič, but are aiming to step up again by helping Martin back to form.

“I’m looking forward to join Team LottoNL-Jumbo. I share their philosophy”, Martin said on the announcement.

“The riders are a unity and the staff work on every detail to support them. Especially their approach of time trials is appealing to me. It’s known that the team put a lot of efforts in that direction. My ambition is to become a prominent team player by supporting the leaders and being successful in the time trials.”

“Tony was the missing link," added team manager Richard Plugge.

"He brings in a boatload of experience and he’s a professional in every way. He can be of great value in the support of our leaders. His signing is a confirmation of the development we’ve been through in recent years”

Martin began his professional career in 2006 and has taken 65 professional victories in that time, including five Tour stages and the overall classification at Paris-Nice.

Tony Martin (Katusha-Alpecin) has chosen to delay his comeback to competition after medical advice that he could do severe damage to his neck injury if he crashed again.

The German crashed in an incident involving Dan Martin (UAE Team Emirates) on stage eight of the Tour de France in the final 17km, being thrown over his handlebars and landing on his head. It initially looked as though he had just suffered a badly gashed lip, but scans later revealed a cervical vertebra fracture.

Martin then spent several weeks off the bike while he rested and had rehabilitation, and was recently given the go ahead to begin training on the road again. The 33-year-old said on his Facebook page in a statement that he has been warned against returning to competition too soon, with his next appearance scheduled for the four-day Deutschland Tour from August 23 to 26.

The four-time world time trial champion said it "would be fatal if I crashed on my back again and did even worse damage" after returning too soon, and has accepted doctor advice to continue to sit out of racing for now.

"I have some good and some not-so-good news for you today," Martin said in a statement on Monday night.

"First the good news: I am back on the bike and the doctors gave me the green light to train on the road again. The healing process is going well. And I have let myself be tortured by our team osteopath in Munich for the last four days. I also have some exercises to do at home, to continue working on my stability. I am feeling good about my comeback.

"Now the not-so-good news: My comeback will unfortunately be delayed. The doctors have advised me against a start at the Deutschland Tour. It really hurts me, that I can’t be there.

"But I didn’t argue about and accepted their advice. It would be fatal if I crashed on my back again and did even worse damage. We professional athletes are aware that we have to accept a lot of risks. That’s just the way it is. But we must not overdo it. I am responsible not only for myself and my body, but also for my family."

Tony Martin has found himself on the receiving end of accusations that he caused a major pile-up at the Tour of Flanders after "squeezing" a Groupama-FDJ rider into a ditch.

The crash in question occurred with a little more than 100km remaining as riders fought for position on the approach to the Muur van Geraardsbergen with Veranda's Willems-Crelan working hard to keep the pace high on the front.

Footage of the crash appears to show Tony Martin, on the left of the picture, moving right across the road and Groupama-FDJ rider Antoine Duchesne crashing at high-speed into a ditch. That set off a chain reaction that brought down a number of other riders including Oliver Naesen, Michael Valgren, and Ian Stannard.

With no overhead footage of the crash, it is unclear exactly who was to blame for causing the pile-up, but there was little doubt in the minds of Duchesne and his Groupama-FDJ team-mates who took to Twitter to accuse Martin of causing the crash.

Duchesne kicked off the accusations by tweeting a link to the video of the crash, with the caption "What happened when @tonymartin85 doesn’t want to get passed. Squeezed me right into the ditch #classy."

Duchesne's Groupama-FDJ team-mate Jacopo Guarnieri also weighed in on the issue, saying "I would like to congratulate @tonymartin85 for the extremely intelligent move that caused the crash of @tonythetiger_1 !! Well done!!", to which Davide Cimolai replied "He should just do the individual time trial. 90% of riders don’t like him."

Neither Martin nor his Katusha-Alpecin team have had anything to say about the crash or the allegations of the Groupama-FDJ riders.

However, there might be a few awkward conversations at the Katusha-Alpecin dinner table in the run-up to Paris-Roubaix after it was noticed that Rick Zabel, the Katusha rider who was brought down in the crash and suffered cuts to both legs, had "liked" Guarnieri's tweet.

Chris Froome may have said that he was grateful for riders' support as he returned to action at the Ruta del Sol with the investigation into his adverse analytical finding at the Vuelta a España still ongoing, but not all members of the peloton were happy to see Froome back competing.

Speaking ahead of the opening stage of the Ruta del Sol, Tony Martin, who criticised the actions of the UCI after news of Froome's anti-doping investigation broke in December, said that he did not think Froome should be back racing.

>>> Everything you need to know about Chris Froome's salbutamol case

"It’s super bad for cycling," Martin told CyclingPro.net. "I absolutely do not understand why Team Sky came back with Froome when the case remains unclear…it’s a shame."

Martin's view was shared by Philippe Gilbert, who said that Froome should respect his fellow riders and not race while the investigation was ongoing.

"It’s hard to give a view on it,” the Quick-Step Floors rider said on the steps of his team bus. "Personally I think it’s a big mistake [for him to be racing] because there is still doubt hanging over him. And out of respect for the other riders, he should refrain from racing."

However not all riders were so keen to condemn Froome's return to action, with Wanty-Groupe Gobert rider Yoann Offredo saying that the investigation must be allowed to run its course, with Froome being given a chance to explain himself to the authorities.

"I think if he’s broken the rules, the appropriate authorities need to manage the situation," Offredo said. "He can present his defence and he needs to explain himself but it’s up to the authorities to enforce, or not enforce, any sanctions. And if they do, the sanctions need to be consistent with relation to what he has done wrong and other cases in the past."

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Froome has denied any wrongdoing in relation to an adverse analytical finding at the 2017 Vuelta a España, and is now working with Team Sky, defence lawyers, and medical experts to prove that the high concentration of salbutamol in his urine after stage 18 of the race was not as a result of exceeding the maximum permitted dosage of the asthma drug.

Froome also spoke ahead of the start of the Ruta del Sol on Wednesday, saying that people will see things from his point of view "when the facts are out", while Team Sky boss Dave Brailsford urged critics to "get a bit of perspective" as he again vouched for Froome's innocence in the case.

Tony Martin has revealed that he received a phone call from the UCI to "clarify how the process has been handled" after he accused cycling's governing body of "double standards" in its handling of Chris Froome's salbutamol case.

Writing on Facebook on Wednesday, Martin said that he was "totally angry" at the "unprofessional and unfair" handling of the case, saying that he had the impression that there was "wheeling and dealing going on behind the scenes."

He continued: "Other athletes are suspended immediately after a positive test. He [Froome] and his team are given time by the UCI to explain it all. I do not know of any similar case in the recent past. That is a scandal, and he should at least not have been allowed to appear in the World Championships."

>>> Everything you need to know about Chris Froome's salbutamol case

In accordance with UCI anti-doping rules, Froome has not been provisionally suspended after double the permitted concentration of the asthma drug salbutamol was found in his urine after stage 18 of the Vuelta a España due to the fact that salbutamol is classified as a specified substance by the World Anti-Doping Agency.

Instead, the case has now been referred to the Legal Anti-Doping Services, to which Froome and Team Sky will have to prove that the high concentration of salbutamol in Froome's urine was not as a result of exceeding the maximum permitted dosage of 800 micrograms over 12 hours.

In a new post on Facebook, Martin said that he had received lots of "feedback" about his comments, including from a UCI representative, and was now convinced that the case was being dealt with in accordance with the rules.

"I received a lot of feedback about my comment of yesterday. I even got a phone call from a UCI’s representative who took the time to clarify how the process had been handled," Martin wrote.

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"I now understand that the UCI is managing this case in accordance with the rules and that Chris Froome did not get any special treatment. According to the rules, in a case involving a specified substance, every athlete shall have the chance to explain whether the numbers can be due to natural causes."

However the four-time time trial world champion said that he was still angry about hearing another anti-doping case in cycling, and would continue to be outspoken on the issue.

"I am always very angry when another case in relation to anti-doping happened in our sport." Martin continued.

"I will, as I always did, continue to take a strong position regarding the fight against doping and I will always remain an outspoken advocate for a 100% clean sport."

Tony Martin has said that he is 'totally angry' that Chris Froome and Team Sky appear to have been given favourable treatment over Froome's adverse analytical finding for salbutamol at the 2017 Vuelta a España.

Publishing a strongly-worded statement on his personal Facebook account, German Katusha-Alpecin rider Martin said that a 'double standard' has been applied to Froome and that he should not have been allowed to ride at the 2017 World Championships.

>>> Chris Froome could face ban after abnormal drugs test result during Vuelta a España

"I am totally angry," wrote Martin. "There is definitely a double standard being applied in the Christopher Froome case.

"Other athletes are suspended immediately after a positive test. He and his team are given time by the UCI to explain it all. I do not know of any similar case in the recent past. That is a scandal, and he should at least not have been allowed to appear in the World Championships.

"Not only the public but also I have immediately the impression that there is wheeling and dealing going on behind the scenes, agreements are being made and ways are being sought as to how to get out of this case. Do he and his team enjoy a special status?

"These actions are major blow to the difficult anti-doping fight, which I am leading with riders like Marcel Kittel. We need a consequent and transparent approach by the UCI. What is going on here is inconsequent, not transparent, unprofessional and unfair."

>>> Everything you need to know about Chris Froome’s salbutamol case

An anti-doping urine sample taken from Froome after stage 18 of the Vuelta a España on September 7 was found to contain double the allowed concentration of asthma drug salbutamol. Froome went on to win the Vuelta overall after also winning his fourth Tour de France in July.

Froome and Team Sky were reportedly notified of the test result on September 20 – the day of the men's elite time trial at the 2017 World Championships in Bergen, Norway, in which Froome placed third.

In accordance with UCI anti-doping rules, Froome has not been provisionally suspended from competition while the salbutamol case is being investigated.

Froome and Sky are currently gathering evidence to support their assertion that they followed rules on how much of the drug Froome took, and that his salbutamol urine level was raised due to dehydration and other factors.

Sky said in a statement: "A wide range of factors can affect the concentrations, including the interaction of salbutamol with food or other medications, dehydration and the timing of salbutamol usage before the test."

World time trial champion Tony Martin was spotted using prototype Continental tyres and a single front chain ring during the stage four individual time trial at the Critérium du Dauphiné.

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As a time triallist, Martin is well aware of how marginal gains can add up and be significant at high speed and his most recent set up conforms to this.

A Continental representative at the race confirmed that the tyres were indeed prototypes.

The front and rear tyres are different, with the front 23mm tyre featuring the designation '111' and a tread pattern very similar to Continental GP4000s II tyre.

We speculate that the reason for this is because extensive wind tunnel testing has shown the GP4000 tread pattern to be aerodynamically beneficial, particularly at yaw angles over 6º. Swissside engineer Jean-Paul Ballard demonstrated this in the Immenstadt wind tunnel.

The aerodynamic importance and implications of front tyres is currently being investigated by leading engineers and you can read more about it here.

Ballard believes that “The Continental GP4000S II has a sidewall profile which works very well for switching the boundary layer to a turbulent state at the right position on the tyre."

Adding: "The tyre is very important for an aero wheel. Without the right tyre, the aero wheel will not work aerodynamically because the airflow will stall at very low sidewind angles.”

Rolling resistance is also an important consideration and the Continental GP4000 has been shown in independent tests, not to be as fast in this respect compared with other commercially available tyres such as Continental's GP TT.

It is therefore logical to suggest that the prototype could be a tyre that incorporates the aero profile of the GP4000 with the low rolling resistance compound of tyres like the GP TT.

Aerodynamics of tyres is less important on the rear and this is consistent with what Martin was seen to be using.

A wider 25mm tyre with a smooth tread, similar in profile to the existing Continental GP TT with the prototype designation '33.'

A Continental representative was seen consulting Martin after the time trial. It should also be pointed out that both these tyres are clinchers and not the tubulars favoured by the majority of pro riders.

Clinchers are believed to have lower rolling resistance than tubulars, something backed up by our own experiments.

Martin's bike was also fitted with only a single front chainring and no front derailleur.

This kind of set up is currently used by several high level time trialists on the UK domestic circuit and has a number of advantages.

Firstly, there is a slight weight saving, but more importantly, frontal area is reduced, resulting in a slight aerodynamic saving, typically in the region of a couple of watts.

It may not be much and may come with added risk of dropping chains, but when winning margins are small, two watts can be the difference. The downsides to this kind of set up can be reduced gear options and a higher risk of dropping the chain.

After a nasty crash at Kuurne-Brussels-Kuurne, Tony Martin has said that he hopes to be in action again at Paris-Nice, despite needing eight stitches in his face.

>>> Peter Sagan takes his first win of the season at Kuurne-Brussels-Kuurne; Luke Rowe third

The German time trial specialist crashed from an elite group with around 55km to go in the race after appearing to either hit a parked car or clip the kerb while riding at the back of an echelon.

It was a bad crash with Martin going over the top of his handlebars, landing on his face and holding his head in his hands as he sat on the road.

Despite having blood flowing down his face, and apparently not receiving any immediate medical attention, the Katusha-Alpecin rider got back on his bike and continued to ride for a number of kilometres before eventually abandoning and being taken to hospital.

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Martin had been due to take part in Paris-Nice, which starts on March 5, before possibly returning to Belgium to compete in the rest of the cobbled season.

With Fabian Cancellara retired and Tom Boonen riding his last few professional races, there's a definitely feeling of the changing of the guard at this year's Classics.

That said Peter Sagan has stepped into the position of overwhelming favourite for both the Tour of Flanders and Paris-Roubaix, with the likes of Greg Van Avermaet, Ian Stannard, Sep Vanmarcke, and John Degenkolb also among the main contenders for the two major cobbled Classics.

But away from the big names, which riders can we look to for an upset? We've picked out four young riders looking to seize their chance, and four older riders looking for new opportunities who could provide a shock.

Young guns

Tiesj Benoot (Lotto-Soudal)

Having finished fifth in the Tour of Flanders at the tender age of 21 in 2015, Tiesj Benoot looks set to become a regular face in the Classics for years to come, and even though conventional wisdom would dictate that it is too soon to see the young Belgian become the youngest Tour of Flanders winner in the post-war era, we'd all love to see a surprise.

Flanders certainly seems to be Benoot's best chance of Classics glory, as although at 6'3" he stands as tall as many over cobbles specialists, he concedes more than 10kg to the likes of Boonen and Stannard, putting him more in the territory of Peter Sagan, even if he doesn't have quite the same killer sprint.

Jasper Stuyven (Trek-Segafredo)

Another great young Belgian hope, Jasper Stuyven really started to step up in 2015, winning Kuurne-Brussels-Kuurne in spectacular style and following that up with fifth place in E3 Harelebeke.

The Trek-Segafredo rider didn't have quite the same luck at Flanders where he had a series of mechanicals that forced meant he ended up riding five different bikes over a hectic 30 kilometres in the middle of the race. A bit more luck, and with his new position as team leader in the absence of Cancellara, and Stuyven could hit the jackpot.

Gianni Moscon (Team Sky)

No Italian has won the Tour of Flanders or Paris-Roubaix since Alessandro Ballan won the latter in 2007,  but Team Sky have not one but two young Italians hoping to end that drought. Salvatore Puccio is the first, with an U23 Tour of Flanders victory on his palmarès from 2011, but Gianni Moscon, who finished second in the same event in 2015, is perhaps more promising.

Riding in his first season as a professional, the prodigiously talented Moscon instantly secured a place at the centre of Team Sky's 2016 Classics squad, performing well through all races and being unfortunate to crash while leading the front group at the sharp end of Paris-Roubaix. For the time being the 22-year-old will continue to be used as a domestique for the likes of Luke Rowe and Ian Stannard, but if the opportunity arises to go for personal glory, Moscon is the sort of rider who can take it.

David Per (Bahrain-Merida)

The outsider in this list of outsiders, David Per coming into the Classics in his first year as a professional rider, and with very limited experience over the cobbles. The good thing is that this experience includes victory in last year's U23 Tour of Flanders, where he out-sprinted new Team Sky recruit Jon Dibben, which came on the back of fourth place in the U23 Ghent-Wevelgem.

Of course a look over previous U23 Tour of Flanders winners reveals plenty of riders who haven't quite made the grade (whatever happened to Gatis Smukulis?), with Nick Nuyens the only rider in recent times to convert his U23 win into a senior Tour of Flanders victory. Per really is an outside shout then, although the fact that he is in relatively weak Bahrain-Merida team should mean he is given some opportunity to ride for himself and get stuck in.

Seasoned campaigners

Mark Cavendish (Dimension Data)

Mark Cavendish rode Paris-Roubaix for only the second time in his career in 2016 just "to see what's possible", and wound up producing an excellent performance, finishing as the third highest-placed British rider in the race, and only missing out on the winning move going clear after having to break for a crash with 115km remaining.

That performance showed what the Manxman is capable of, and he certainly seems open to looking at new races and new opportunities as he enters the autumn of his career. Cavendish might find himself again called into team duties as Edvald Boasson Hagen goes in search of a major Classics win, but if Cavendish can hold on and make it to the famous Roubaix velodrome in the front group, then it would be hard to bet against him.

André Greipel (Lotto-Soudal)

Like his long-time rival Cavendish, André Greipel is also looking to broaden his horizons in the final years of his career, and has even gone as far as saying that he is looking to specifically focus on the Tour of Flanders and Paris-Roubaix in 2017.

A powerful sprinter, you would have thought that Greipel would be suited to the flat terrain of Paris-Roubaix, but he's actually been most active in Flanders in recent years, making his way into a couple of long-range attacks in the last few editions of the race and managing to finish 15th of the race in 2015. His power files also show that he's got the numbers to challenge, even if he could be held up by the abundance of other options in the Lotto-Soudal team.

Tony Martin (Katusha-Alpecin)

Another man who certainly has the legs to compete over the cobbles, Tony Martin may have only competed in one edition each of the Tour of Flanders and Paris-Roubaix, but he was still able to put in a hell of a shift in last year's Roubaix as he pulled along the powerful Etixx-Quick Step team for kilometre after kilometre.

Now at Katusha-Alpecin, Martin is still likely to find himself on domestique duties for Alexander Kristoff, but should be a second option for leader - much higher up the pecking order than he was at Quick Step. That could provide an opportunity for the four-time time trial world champion to deliver on the potential he showed by winning the cobbled stage of the 2015 Tour de France.

Imanol Erviti (Movistar)

Before last year's Tour of Flanders, you could be forgiven for not knowing much about Imanol Erviti, but the Movistar rider then produced one of the rides of the season to make the early break then hang on to the leaders to finish seventh, making him only the second Spanish rider in history to finish in the race's top-10. Then seven days later he followed that up with ninth place in Paris-Roubaix, making him the first Spaniard to take top-10 placings in both races in the same year.

Before that, Erviti's best placing at either race had been 40th at the 2009 Paris-Roubaix, so he certainly found something extra last year that he will hope to repeat in 2017. Expect to see the Spaniard once again make his way into the early breaks in both races, and if he is able to latch on to the passing leaders as he did in 2016, then there's always a chance for this 300/1 outside.

Tony Martin showed exactly why he is time trial world champion by making a winning solo move at the end of stage two of the Volta a la Comunitat Valenciana in Spain.

Martin powered away from his rivals to take his first victory for his new team, Katusha-Alpecin.

A high-quality group of six chasers that included Nairo Quintana (Movistar) worked together to try and bring back Martin but even their combined power could not ensure the catch.

Martin took the victory with Pim Ligthart (Roompot-Nederlandse Loterij) bringing home the chasers for second at 11 seconds, with Primoz Roglic (LottoNL-Jumbo) in third. Quintana finished seventh at 12 seconds, putting him in a good position for the days to come.

>>> BMC beat Team Sky in opening team time trial at Volta a la Comunitat Valenciana

Soon after the start in Alicante, Johan Van Zyl (Dimension Data), Héctor Sáez (Caja Rural) and Cyril Gautier (Ag2r La Mondiale) formed an escape, and spent most of the hilly stage out front.

Sáez was dropped after first of two passes of Alto de Montgó on the finishing circuit, leaving  Van Zyl – celebrating his birthday – and Gautier. The peloton made the catch with around 15km to go.

The final climb of Alto de Montgó proved to be the flashpoint of the race. David De La Cruz (Quick-Step Floors) was the first to attack, followed closely by Martin.

Martin was evidently the stronger, and led the way over the top of the climb and with 6km to go on the twisting descent and subsequent roundabout-strewn run-in to the finish.

He eased into his time trial position, keeping low over the bars and gave a masterclass in bike handling and time trialling to take the win.

After placing eighth, Greg Van Avermaet relieves BMC team-mate Manuel Senni of the overall race lead.

The 2017 edition of the UCI 2.1-ranked Volta a la Comunitat Valenciana continues on Friday with stage three, running from Canals to Riba-Roja de Túria over a hilly 161km route. The race concludes on Sunday, February 5.

Result

Volta a la Comunitat Valenciana 2017, stage two: Alicante to Denia, 180.6km

1. Tony Martin (Ger) Katusha-Alpecin

2. Pic Ligthart (Ned) Roompot-Nederlandse Loterij, at 11 secs

3. Primoz Roglic (Slo) LottoNL-Jumbo

4. Davide De La Cruz (Esp) Quick-Step Floors, at same time

5. Michele Scarponi (Ita) Astana, at 12 secs

6. Amaro Antunes (Por) W52-FC Porto

7. Nairo Quintana (Col) Movistar, at same time

8. Greg Van Avermaet (Bel) BMC Racing, at 19 secs

9. Philippe Gilbert (Bel) Quick-Step Floors, at same time

10. Kristian Sbaragli (Ita) Dimension Data at 20 secs

General classification after stage two

1. Greg Van Avermaet (Bel) BMC Racing, in 5-28-11

2. Manuel Senni (Ita) BMC Racing, at same time

3. Ben Hermans (Bel) BMC Racing, at same time

4. David Lopez (Esp) Team Sky, at 21 secs

5. Nicolas Roche (Irl) BMC Racing, at 37 secs

6. David De La Cruz (Esp) Quick-Step Floors, at 41 secs

7. Philippe Gilbert (Bel) Quick-Step Floors, at 49 secs

8. Zdenek Stybar (Cze) Quick-Step Floors, at 49 secs

9. Daniel Martin (Irl) Quick-Step Floors, at 49 secs

10. Nairo Quintana (Col) Movistar, at 54 secs

Tony Martin says that people called him crazy for training in his bathroom, but that is what he did to win his fourth World Championship title on Wednesday in Doha, Qatar.

The German blasted his rivals through Qatar's desert-cum-skyscraper paradise. In 40 kilometres, with temperatures near 40°C, he put 45 seconds into second placed Vasil Kiryienka (Belarus).

After his win, Martin donned his rainbow jersey and remembered those turbo sessions in the bathroom at home in Germany with a space heater turned on high to mimic Doha.

"Some people called me crazy for doing this," Martin explained, "but that was harder than what we did today."

>>> Twitter reacts to Tony Martin’s World Championships time trial victory

Great Britain's race coach, Rod Ellingworth told Cycling Weekly this week that he had the team in heated room with strong light intensity to prepare for the Middle East. Never before has the UCI hosted its world title race in the region and with the expected temperatures, it scheduled the latest ever date on the calendar.

Steve Cummings (Great Britain), 25th at 2-48 behind Martin, said that the power he could normally produce at 20 or 25°C, was not possible at 40°C.

Martin's gold medal helped him forget about the heat. He added to his three titles from 2011 to 2013 and ended a two-year slump. After the Rio Olympics, where he lost 3-18 minutes to gold medallist Fabian Cancellara (Switzerland), he changed back to his former time trial position. He said it was not as aerodynamic, but he that he could crank out more watts.

>>> Eight ways to make your commute more like the Doha World Championships

"For sure it is most important that I returned to my previous position," Martin added. "We made changes to go back to my old position after the Olympics. After three hard seasons, I am once against able to show my best.

"It was a good course for me, flat with some wind. I didn't care about my power or the split times. The most important thing was to go at a good rhythm, and keep a strong steady pace."

Winning four titles, he matches Cancellara's record. Martin said, "I do not care about records. The most important thing for me is that I will be able to wear the rainbow jersey again for one season."

Tony Martin dominated in the UCI World Championships time trial to take his fourth career victory in the event, and it went down pretty well on Twitter.

1. Tony Martin: Made in Germany

2. No, not that Tony Martin

3. Etixx-Quick Step teammate David de la Cruz sent his congratulations and reminded us that Martin will be showing off the rainbow stripes in Katusha kit next year.

4. An incredible statistic

5. Daniel Friebe gets his alternative thesaurus out again

6. Marcel Kittel, who Martin will ride in support of on Sunday, also sent his congratulations

7. And Dr Hutch was a little annoyed that Martin defied the laws of aerodynamics

8. Ryan Mullen was on the hotseat for most of the day and gave this succinct summary

9. In the space of about two minutes, Mullen went from the hotseat to being completely off the podium

10. He's probably on Three, Ned...

Tony Martin has equalled Fabian Cancellara's record of four UCI World Championships time trial titles by dominating the 40km course in Doha to win by 45 seconds over reigning champion Vasil Kiryienka.

The German powerhouse led through both of the intermediate timing checks and bettered Jonathan Castroviejo's leading time just seconds after the Spanish rider took to top spot.

Kiryienka, who took the rainbow stripes in Richmond last year, rode a solid race but could only just get within 45 seconds, with Castroviejo taking third place, over a minute down on Martin.

Irish youngster Ryan Mullen sat in the leader's hotseat for much of the day having set a barnstorming time early on in the event, only being knocked off the top step by Poland's Maciej Bodnar in the final tranche of riders.

Martin's winning time knocked Mullen off the podium altogether and the German watched as pre-race rivals Rohan Dennis and Tom Dumoulin could only manage sixth and 11th respectively.

With the win, Martin also matches Cancellara's record of seven World Championships time trial medals, with a silver and two bronzes to his name from previous years.

World Championships men's individual time trial, Lusail - Pearl Qatar (40km)

1. Tony Martin (Germany) in 44-42.99

2. Vasil Kiryienka (Belarus) at 45 secs

3. Jonathan Castroviejo (Spain) at 1-11

4. Maciej Bodnar (Poland) at 1-17

5. Ryan Mullen (Ireland) at 1-22

6. Rohan Dennis (Australia) at 1-27

7. Yves Lampaert (Belgium) at 1-45

8. Jos van Emden (Netherlands) at 1-45

9. Reto Hollenstein (Switzerland) at 1-52

10. Bob Jungels (Luxembourg) at 1-57

Other

12. Alex Dowsett (Great Britain) at 2-11

25. Steve Cummings (Great Britain) at 2-49

Rohan Dennis

He's got two top-10s to his name in the past two World Championships, but this could be the year when Rohan Dennis stands on the top step of the podium.

His form against the clock has been great all year - starting with the win in the Australian National Championships in January, winning the Tour of California TT, fifth in the Tour de France stage 13, fifth in the Olympics TT and second in the test at the Tour of Britain.

His track pedigree holds him in good stead for this type of flat time trial and he will be itching to avenge BMC's defeat to Etixx-Quick Step in the team time trial on Sunday.

Anna van der Breggen

There aren't many standout names on the provisional start list for the women's time trial, but Anna van der Breggen will probably go into Tuesday's race as the favourite.

The Dutch rider claimed bronze in the time trial at Rio 2016, days after winning the gold medal in the road race. The Olympic TT course was very different to the one the riders will face in Doha, given there was an actual hill in it, but Van der Breggen shouldn't be fazed.

She finished second in the European Championships and the Giro d'Italia time trials as part of another standout season for Rabo-Liv.

Vasil Kiryienka

Vasil Kiryienka has been one of the more anonymous world champions of recent years, having won just one time trial during his time in the rainbow jersey, and that came right at the end of last season.

To be fair to Kiry, his role in Team Sky has been to protect the team leaders, so whenever a time trial does come around he usually has to save energy for the rest of the race.

That probably explains why he only finished 120th in the rolling Tour de France TT - he was saving his legs to keep Chris Froome in yellow over the following eight stages.

But now it's all on him again, so expect to see Kiryienka giving a good account of himself over the 40km circuit on Wednesday. If he relinquishes his stripes, hopefully he'll go down fighting,

Tom Dumoulin

It's been a mixed season for Tom Dumoulin as far as meeting his high expectations goes. The Olympic Games time trial was by far and away his biggest priority of the season and just weeks after breaking his arm at the Tour de France the Dutch rider won silver behind an inspired Fabian Cancellara.

You could see the disappointment on his face in the press conference after the event, even though he put on a smile and answered positively.

His form has been indifferent since then, finishing third in the Tour of Britain TT and 14th in the one at the Eneco Tour, but before the Games he showed by he was one of the favourites for Rio by dominating the stage 13 TT at the Tour de France.

Dumoulin is a well-built rider still, despite slimming down a little in recent years, which should see him deal well with the winds in the first half of the route and he has he power to put in a good time.

Olga Zabelinskaya

A controversial figure due to her previous doping ban, but Olga Zabelinskaya can't be overlooked for a medal in the Worlds TT.

The Russian bettered her bronze medal in the TT at London 2012 with a silver at Rio 2016 and has been in solid time trial form ever since.

Second in the Chrono Champenois was followed by third in the European Championships TT and she then helped her relatively unfancied Bepink squad to fourth in the Worlds team time trial on Sunday.

Tony Martin

Tony Martin has made a drastic change to his time trial position in an attempt to win back his World Championships time trial title, but it shouldn't take him long to get used to it as it is the position he used to win those titles.

Martin had changed his position in an attempt to chase aerodynamic gains but admits he didn't feel as comfortable with his hands higher on the aero bars. So, he's dropped the bars down once more and is back to what he knows best.

Taylor Phinney

Taylor Phinney's story has been well documented, but what an addition to the story winning the World Championships would be. From being in a position where he may never ride again to being a contender for the World Champs is pretty phenomenal, but he'll have to be at his best to take the gold on Wednesday.

Phinney became USA time trial champion for the third time in June, just two years after a crash at the same Championships almost destroyed his leg for good. He also has good major event experience, having recorded fourth place in the TT at London 2012 and second place in the Worlds TT later that year.

Ellen van Dijk

The Netherlands has two great chances of winning the time trial on Tuesday, with Ellen van Dijk looking to challenge Van der Breggen for the gold medal.

Van Dijk is coming off taking the win in the European Championships TT and forming part of the victorious Boels-Dolmans team time trial squad at the Worlds on Sunday.

She just missed out on the podium at the Olympics so will be keen to avenge that disappointment with a medal in Doha.

German Tony Martin returned to his former time trial position for the UCI 2016 Road World Championships  in Doha, Qatar, after struggling with a new aerodynamic setup. He says, it he is partly gaining a mental edge riding as he did when he won his three time trial titles.

Martin lost 3-18 minutes to Swiss gold medallist Fabian Cancellara (Trek-Segafredo) in the Rio de Janeiro Olympics time trial. Something had to change.

"I know that I am three times already become world champion in this position, it's also a mental factor for me," Martin told Radsport News. "So, it can not be that bad. Next year, we can see if we take smaller steps for better aerodynamics."

>>> Tony Martin to join Katusha for 2017

Martin won the Worlds time trial in 2011, 2012 and 2013. He placed second to Bradley Wiggins in 2014. Last year, he struggled and placed seventh, his worst performance since he finished in the same spot in the 2008 worlds.

The Olympic beating in August, where he finished 12th at 3-18, forced him to make some changes. Already, the "comfort factor" of his former position made difference with the Tour of Britain time trial win.

"The changes have been serious. I had my hands very high up and my elbows low down, but that wasn't for me," he added. "Now, I feel much more comfortable again. One has to accept that the aerodynamics are not everything, but the comfort factor plays a very, very important role. If your body does not work well, then whole aerodynamics thing means nothing."

Martin believes he lost around five to 10 per cent of his power in the aero position that he adopted in 2015. He added, "The position was not bad, but I just could not get used to it."

He is one of the most successful time trial cyclists of this generation with Cancellara and Wiggins. If he wins again this year in Doha he will match Cancellara's record of four titles.

>>> Preview: UCI Road World Championships 2016 time trials

In the latest Cycling Weekly magazine issue out now (October 6), he said, "I'm 100 per cent sure that I will come back. Every sportsman knows how it is to have one or two bad years. I'm still really confident that sooner or later I will be on top again."

Steve Cummings (Dimension Data) placed fourth in the Tour of Britain's time trial stage in Bristol on Saturday morning, safely retaining his overall lead in the race.

Cummings had started the day occupying the top spot of the general classification 49 seconds ahead of Tom Dumoulin (Giant-Alpecin) and 51 seconds ahead of Rohan Dennis (BMC Racing) – both noted time triallists.

As Dennis can home with 18-09 and Dumoulin just behind with 18-11, Cummings needed to set a time of 19 minutes or quicker to retain the yellow jersey.

The Wirral man put in a strong ride, coming over the line with 18-22 to easily keep hold of his overall race lead with two stages remaining.

Tony Martin (Etixx-QuickStep) took the stage win on the short and fast 15-kilometre course, clocking 18-06. Dennis was second, Dumoulin third and Cummings fourth. Britain's Alex Dowsett (Movistar) finished seventh.

>>> Tour of Britain 2016: Latest news, reports and info

Sir Bradley Wiggins (Team Wiggins) took to the start house on his road bike, waving to the crowds on what is touted as his final appearance in his 'home' tour.

Taylor Phinney (BMC Racing) had started quickly and set the fastest time at the mid-way point, but suffered a crash to scupper his chances of a high finish. To his credit, he still came home in 11th.

The 2016 Tour of Britain continues on Saturday afternoon with stage 7B in Bristol, a brisk 76.5km circuit race. It's then on to London on Sunday for the race finale. It is likely that Cummings will now take the overall victory – barring disaster – given his 38 second GC advantage over Dumoulin and Dennis.

The Tour of Britain's split stage on Saturday, with a time trial in the morning and circuit race in the afternoon, is something of a miniature dry-run for the World Championships in October. Many of the leading contenders in the Worlds are using the race as a warm-up and form guide.

The presence of Martin, Dumoulin and Dennis in the top order of the TT results shows that they will be the riders to watch at the Worlds in Doha, Qatar over October 9-16. Cummings has also put his name forward very convincingly to British selectors to represent GB in the Worlds TT.

Results

Tour of Britain 2016, stage 7A: Bristol to Bristol, 15km ITT

1. Tony Martin (Ger) Etixx-QuickStep in 18-06

2. Rohan Dennis (Aus) BMC Racing at 3 secs

3. Tom Dumoulin (Ned) Giant-Alpecin at 5 secs

4. Steve Cummings (GBr) Dimension Data at 16 secs

5. Tony Gallopin (Fra) Lotto-Soudal at 25 secs

6. Gorka Izaguirre (Esp) Movistar at 25 secs

7. Alex Dowsett (GBr) Movistar at 35 secs

8. Nicolas Roche (Irl) Team Sky at 36 secs

9. Ryan Mullen (Irl) Cannondale-Drapac at 39 secs

10. Dylan Van Baarle (Ned) Cannondale-Drapac at 40 secs

Other

11. Taylor Phinney (USA) BMC Racing at 40 secs

12. Tao Geoghegan Hart (GBr) Great Britain at 44 secs

General classification after stage 7A

1. Steve Cummings (GBr) Dimension Data

2. Tom Dumoulin (Ned) Giant-Alpecin at 38 secs

3. Rohan Dennis (Aus) BMC Racing at 38 secs

4. Tony Gallopin (Fra) Lotto-Soudal at 1-02

5. Dylan Van Baarle (Ned) Cannondale-Drapac at 1-21

6. Nicolas Roche (Irl) Team Sky at 1-26

7. Xandro Meurisse (Bel) Wany-Groupe Gobert at 1-48

8. Ben Swift (GBr) Team Sky at 1-52

9. Julien Vermote (Bel) Etixx-QuickStep at 2-08

10. Jacopo Mosca (Ita) Trek-Segafredo at 2-32

Daniel Martin and Tony Martin have been confirmed for Etixx-Quick Step's roster for the 2016 Tour of Britain, which starts in Glasgow on Sunday.

Irishman Dan Martin will lead the Belgian WorldTour squad in the eight-day race, with an eye on the general classification. In particular, Martin will focus on stage six to Haytor with its uphill finale. It's the first time that the 30-year-old had taken part in the race since 2013, when he finished 13th overall.

Ninth place overall at the Tour de France in July, third place in the Critérium du Dauphiné and stage wins at the Volta a la Comunitat Valenciana and Volta a Catalunya show that Martin has been in good form this season so far, though he says he felt the affects of the season at the Rio Olympics.

>>> Tour of Britain 2016: Latest news, reports and info

"Doing the Tour de France and the Olympic Games was very tiring, physically and mentally," said Martin. "After the road race, I stayed in Rio to recover and follow my girlfriend, who was competing at the Olympics.

"It was nice, I cleaned up my mind and once I returned home I started building up for the last part of the season. Even though I don't know what to expect from this race, I am keen on honouring it with a win, especially as in the past I came close to a victory, but missed out on one. The team is strong, so let's see what we're going to do."

Martin will face strong opposition in the race, with prospective overall contenders including Wout Poels (Team Sky), Steve Cummings (Dimension Data), Alex Dowsett (Movistar), Rohan Dennis (BMC) and Tom Dumoulin (Giant-Alpecin).

German time trial specialist Tony Martin will provide firepower in support of Dan Martin, as well as being one of the leading contenders for the stage 7a individual time trial in Bristol.

Accompanying the two (unrelated) Martins will be American stagiaire Adrien Costa, who has been putting in impressive performances throughout the season for development team Axeon–Hagens Berman. The 19-year-old makes his race debut with the team in the event.

"I am super excited to do the Tour of Britain with Etixx-QuickStep; it's been a dream since I was a kid to race in the pro peloton beside all these legends of the sport. I'm looking forward to a fun, hard week of racing, and I hope to learn as much as I can and give maximum contribution to the team's efforts throughout the race."

Frenchman Julien Vermote, Argentinian Maximiliano Richeze and Pole Lukasz Wisniowski complete the strong line-up, which will be seeking to add to the team's historic tally of 18 Tour of Britain stage wins.

As well as a prestigious event in its own right, the Tour of Britain has become a key form tester ahead of the annual UCI Road Cycling World Championships, which this year takes place in Doha, Qatar, over October 9-16.

The 2016 Tour of Britain starts in Glasgow on Sunday, September 4, and concludes in London on Sunday, September 11.

Tony Martin has signed for Katusha for the 2017 and 2018 seasons, after five seasons with Quick Step.

The 31-year-old was known to be leaving Etixx-Quick Step at the end of the 2016 season but he'd been expected to form part of the German Bora-Hansgrohe squad, which will be WorldTour from the start of 2017.

The announcement from Katusha praises Martin's versatility in a range of races. He's best known for his time trialling, in which he is a three time world champion.

His new team also highlights the German's abilities in the Classics in the statement confirming his signing, as demonstrated by his stage win in the 2015 Tour de France's cobbled stage.

Riding for Etixx, Martin's chances of leading a Classic were always going to be sparse but pairing up with Alexander Kristoff at his new team could open up a raft of new possibilities.

"I am excited to come to this strong team," Martin said. "Team Katusha showed last year that it was a winning team and, honestly, I really like the Katusha jersey.

"Moreover, I also really like their Canyon bikes, and this is important for me as a TT rider."

Pointing to the possibility of being able to go for his own results in road races as well as time trials, Martin added: "What convinced me the most to make the move was the fact that the team directors and the team manager really believe in me. I will be able to obtain more results than I have had so far. They have convinced me that I can still improve."

However, he won't be relinquishing his team duties entirely. "On the other hand, and like in previous years, if I can help a teammate win, I will be just as happy."

Tony Martin has revealed that an unexplained knee pain forced him to quite the Tour de France so close to the finish on stage 21.

The Etixx-Quick Step man had made it all the way to the circuits on the Champs Élysées before pulling off the course and heading straight to his team bus.

>>> Six things to do now the Tour de France has ended

Martin said the pain, which began on Saturday's 146km stage 20 through the mountains from Megève to Morzine, was just too much to able to keep up with the fast pace of the peloton on final Paris circuits.

The German then headed straight home to try and discover exactly why the pain had started, with no obvious explanation for it, as he prepares for the Olympic time trial in Rio at the start of August.

"Due to severe knee pain yesterday unfortunately I had to prematurely end the Tour." Martin explained on Monday on his Facebook page. "I'm really disappointed. It's never nice in a race to have to get off.

>>> Cycling knee pain: everything you need to know

"Yesterday I absolutely wanted to start, so that I could help Marcel as much as possible in the finale.

"But after only 20 kilometres I knew that I couldn't do it, the pain was simply too much. The relaxed ride up to the Champs Élysées was good for me, but then I turned off directly to the bus.

"The pain started on Saturday and came out of the blue. So far we still have no explanation for it. Maybe an overload, maybe a reaction to the slightly cooler temperatures through the rain.

"I will use the next few days to try and figure out the cause and see that I can fully use the knee again."

The 31-year-old, who is aiming for gold in the time trial at the Olympics in Rio after taking silver in 2012 behind Bradley Wiggins, says that it was always the plan for him to leave the final stage of the Tour straight away anyway in preparation for the Games, and he did not miss out on the celebrations with his team because of the injury.

"Meanwhile I am home again," he added. "I left directly after the stage. That was not because of my exit from the race, but had been planned all along with an eye to Rio and my further preparation.”

A five-time stage winner in the Tour, Martin wasn't able to take a stage this year despite two time trials along the course. He was able to help Marcel Kittel to a single stage win on stage four of the race, as well as helping Irishman Daniel Martin to a ninth place finish overall.

Wout Poels

It’s fair to say that if Wout Poels rode for another team and gone into the Tour de France as a GC rider, he’d probably one of Chris Froome’s most feared rivals.

Instead, however, he’s been his most valuable ally. After a slow start, Poels have emerged as Sky’s strongest domestique in the mountains, providing a wheel for Froome to follow up the race’s most difficult climbs, and setting such a relentless tempo that has effectively neutralised the race.

>>> Dave Brailsford: Other teams haven’t brought their ‘A game’ to the Tour de France

Whenever there has been an attack in the mountains, the Dutchman has either maintained his pace to gradually reel it back in, or latched onto the attacker’s wheel with seemingly little extra effort,

On some occasions it’s even looked as though Sky have underestimated his strength. On stage fifteen’s final ascent of the Grand Colombier he took to the front early on with Mikel Nieve next in line, but ended up riding at the front all the way to its peak without needing to swing aside and let Nieve take his turn.

His victory at Liège-Bastogne-Liège in the spring made him a star it his own right, but it’s extremely impressive just how willing Poels still is to ride in the service of another.

Geraint Thomas

In truth a list of the best domestiques could be made up exclusively of Sky riders, who have all ridden outstandingly to defend Chris Froome’s yellow jersey.

Aside from the aforementioned Poels, there’s been Ian Stannard and Luke Rowe’s shepherding in the hazardous early flat stages, Vasil Kiryienka and Mikel Landa’s less-widely seen efforts setting the pace in the early kilometres of mountain stages, and Sergio Henao and Mikel Nieve’s support on the key climbs.

But it’s Geraint Thomas who has aided Froome across all terrain, using his all-round skill to guide his leader up mountains, down descents and through the peloton whenever the race has gotten nervy.

>>> Why didn’t the Mavic neutral service car help Geraint Thomas on Tour de France stage 15?

His best moment came towards the end of stage eleven when, seeing Froome respond to an attack from Peter Sagan in a crosswind, he put in an almighty effort to bridge up to his leader, and subsequently helped him put distance into the peloton and gain crucial seconds.

He may not quite be in as good a form as last year, where he spent almost the entire race riding beside Froome and in the top ten on GC, but Thomas remain everything anyone could want from a domestique.

Tony Martin

The sight of Tony Martin stringing out the bunch with his diesel-engine turns at the front is a familiar one, and, though he has yet to claim his usual stage win, this year he’s been as useful a domestique as ever.

His Etixx-Quick Step team leader Marcel Kittel may only have claimed one win so far this Tour, but Martin has continued to fill his role in the lead-up to bunch sprints with aplomb playing a key part in controlling the lead-out.

The day that really summarised Martin’s exemplary team spirit was stage 16 however. That day he got into a two-man break with teammate Julian Alaphilippe, and did the vast majority of the work as the pair held off the bunch.

Ultimately the move was unsuccessful and both riders were first swallowed and then spat out of the bunch, but his effort was recognised as the two crossed the line side-by-side and were jointly awarded the day’s combativity award.

Daryl Impey

Orica-BikeExchange pulled off the best team orchestrated move to set-up Michael Matthews to win stage 10, and Daryl Impey played the most significant role.

Impey was one of three Orica-BikeExchange riders (along with Matthews and Luke Durbridge) to first get into the day’s break, and subsequently make it into the front group of six riders when the group fragmented.

>>> Michael Matthews’s first Tour win was three years in the making

From that position Impey played a blinder, first softening up the rest of the group and with attacks that forced them (mostly Peter Sagan) to chase him down, then, when it became clear that things were going to boil down to a sprint, still had the energy to give the perfect lead-out for Matthews.

Add to that the service he’s provided for white jersey leader Adam Yates and the way he climbed so impressively to finish second behind Steve Cummings on stage seven, and it’s clearly been a very impressive Tour for the South African domestique.

Fabio Santini

It’s been a Tour of disorganised bunch finishes, with no one team managing to regularly take control with a dependable lead-out each day.

Mark Cavendish may have dominated the sprints but in each of his four stage wins he has had to improvise and follow his rivals’ wheels rather than rely on his teammates to put him into the best position.

>>> ‘Class and experience set Mark Cavendish apart’

Perhaps the stand-out lead out man, however, has been Etixx-Quick Step’s Fabio Sabatini. It was he who helped pace Marcel Kittel to his sole win on stage four, and again provided impressive lead-outs on stages six and fourteen that the German couldn’t quite capitalise.

On both those latter occasions it was the superiority of Cavendish rather than any mistakes on behalf of Sabatini that prevented Kittel from winning. If the German was in slightly better form, we might have been celebrating Sabatini’s three race-winning lead-out ‘assists’.

Title sponsor for the Bora team in 2017, Hansgrohe, must be bringing some serious cash to the table, with the team linked with a move for Tony Martin on Monday.

Martin's proposed move, as reported by French newspaper L'Equipe, follows the linking of world champion and Tour de France stage two winner Peter Sagan to the German squad last week.

L'Equipe reports that Martin will leave Etixx-Quick Step at the end of the season to join up with his homeland team, who are aiming to be awarded a WorldTour licence in 2017.

Highlights of stage two of the Tour de France

Hansgrohe, which makes bathroom fixtures and fittings, was announced as the new title sponsor for the Bora team last week, replacing Argon 18, which will also reportedly cease supplying the bikes, with Specialized poised to step in.

The American bike company is reportedly behind the deal to bring Sagan to the team, with Martin also riding Specialized bikes for most of his career with Quick-Step and previously the HTC team.

Martin, 31, is a triple world champion in the time trial and has played an instrumental role in Etixx-Quick Step's success in recent years. Before that he was a key part of the formidable HTC sprint train, which delivered Mark Cavendish to 16 wins between 2009 and 2011.

Three-time world time trial champion Tony Martin (Etixx-Quick Step) claims he will settle for the silver medal in the Olympic Games time trial in Rio, stating that Chris Froome is favourite to take gold.

Martin has visited Brazil to check out the parcours of the time trial and says the amount of climbing on the route doesn't play to his strengths.

Although a rider like Froome, the German says, could excel on the route. Martin beat the Team Sky rider to the silver medal in London by 26 seconds.

"I think the really big favourite will be Froome. They say it's a really tough time trial, and you have to be good at climbing as well. He has both skills so he is surely the favourite," Martin told Cycling Weekly at the Etixx-Quick Step training camp in Calpe.

"[Tom] Dumoulin is another man you have to mention [among the favourites], but you never know. First of all everyone has to survive the Tour de France!"

Froome could be in line for double gold at the Rio Games, with the Brit also among the favourites for a mountainous road race just days before the time trial.

Cycling Weekly's Dr Hutch gives us his tips for beating long time trials

Should he pull off the feat, the Sky man would become the the first male rider to win both Olympic races. In 2000 Jan Ullrich came second in the time trial after winning the road race, while in 2008 Fabian Cancellara won the time trial after taking silver in the road race.

Froome will also be looking to retain his Tour de France title in July and could emulate his former colleague Bradley Wiggins by winning the Tour and Olympic Gold in the same year.

Playing to Froome's advantage in the Tour is the inclusion of two individual time trials, but while Martin may be content with second place in Rio, he is very much targeting the win on stage 13's 37km route.

"Of course the main objective at the Tour de France is the time trial - maybe it will compare a little bit to the time trial in Rio, but I hope it's not that hard," Martin added.

"I have a goal to win a stage again and it's one of the most important races for me next year. It's the biggest race in cycling, so I'm not just there for preparation [for the Olympics]."

Tony Martin is aiming to tackle the Belgian cobbled classics for the first time in his career, as he seeks a fresh challenge for the 2016 racing season.

The 30-year-old German is perhaps most well known for his prowess against the clock, where he has taken innumerable victories during his career, including three time trial world titles.

The Etixx-QuickStep rider is also known for launching attacks during road races, and then effectively time trialling solo to victory - which is how he won stage four of the 2015 Tour de France, which featured cobbled sectors. It's a tactical ploy that rival and fellow former time trial world champion Fabian Cancellara has used to win a host of Classics.

>>> Could Tony Martin succeed in the cobbled Classics?

The modest Martin is downplaying his chances of winning, though, and says that he will ride a couple of semi-Classics and see how it goes before tackling anything bigger. Martin has only ever taken part on one cobbled classic, Dwars door Vlaanderen in 2008 - his first year as a professional - where he placed 42nd.

"I wanted to try some new things, so that's why I talked with the team at the end of last season and agreed to go for the Belgian classics and semi-classics," said Martin.

"I will mix the regular races I usually do with the one-day races, which means I'll line-up for Omloop Het Nieuwsblad and Dwars door Vlaanderen, and if everything will work well I will try to be part of the team that will go in Ghent-Wevelgem, Ronde van Vlaanderen and Paris-Roubaix in the following months.

Watch: The top 10 best riders right now

"Obviously, I can't say that I want to win there, but to test myself, to see how I do in this kind of races."

Martin had a variable 2015 season. Just two days after he won stage four of the Tour de France and put himself into the yellow jersey for the first time in his career, he crashed out of the race with a broken collarbone.

After a period of recovery, Martin then took on the time trial world championship in Richmond, USA, but he finished a disappointing seventh behind Vasil Kiryienka.

Martin told Cycling Weekly back in February 2015 that he was considering riding the cobbled classics, but had doubts about selection in a team full of classics specialists. Now, it seems he has his chance.

Modern day sportsmen have pretty rubbish nicknames, especially British ones. The formula seems to be to simply add the letter Y to the end of someone's name and be done with it: Froomey, Swifty, Kennaugh-y, just to name a few.

Non-British riders throughout history, though, have been handed some slightly more adventurous names, many of which sound beautiful in their native tongues, but slightly ridiculous when translated into English.

Some of them involve the name of the town where the rider is from, combining it with an impressive animal, some of them are a bit less inventive.

We've had to use some creative licence when guessing why some of the nicknames were bestowed upon some of the riders, but some of them are pretty obvious.

Tom Dumoulin - The Butterfly of Maastricht

When you think of Tom Dumoulin doing a time trial the image of a butterfly gracefully floating through the air may come to mind - that's how easy the Dutchman makes it.

And he comes from Maastricht, so that bit makes sense. Given his brutal climbing in the Vuelta a España this nickname may have to be modified to something more terrifying, but for now Dumoulin will be fluttering into 2016 on a high.

Tony Martin - Der Panzerwagen

'The Tank' is the kind of nickname you'd expect of a 20-stone rugby player, not an 11-stone cyclist, but Tony Martin's Panzerwagen nickname is surprisingly apt.

This particular tank was used by the Germans in World War Two and was known for blowing things away - much like Martin in the time trials in recent years.

Chris Horner - The Second Best Climber in the World

Some of the worst nicknames are the ones that people make up for themselves, but when Chris Horner described himself as the second best climber behind Alberto Contador, the handle kind of stuck.

You've got to be pretty decent in the mountains to win a Vuelta a España, but whether or not Horner has ever been the second best climber in the peloton is up for discussion.

Johan Museeuw - The Seagull

For cycling great Johan Museeuw, it was simply the case that his surname was, unfortunately, very similar in sound to that of a bird (seagull = de Zeemeeuw in Dutch).

Anyone who's spent any time at a British seaside resort will know how terrifying seagulls can be, but I don't remember Museeuw swooping on any unsuspecting rider and stealing his musette away from him or leaving a general mess on the road...

Davis Phinney - Cash Register

Why is Davis Phinney called the Cash Register? Because he took everyone's money. Not literally though, I guess, but in terms of winning the prize money at races.

His son, Davis, has a catchy nickname of his own: Mini Phinney.

Jan Ullrich - The Yoyo

The German's weight issues were clear for everyone to see, so as his mass went up and down throughout his career, the nickname Yoyo was coined.

Following his post-career doping confession, he's now a yoyo that's lost its bounce and refuses to ravel back up again.

Ferdy Kubler - Mr 100,000 Volts

Ferdinand Kubler, to give him his full name, won over 400 races in his career, including a Tour de France, a World Championship and four Ardennes Classics.

Such proficiency earned him the nickname Mr 100,000 Volts - presumably because of his electric nature on the bike - along with a host of other names.

Not to be confused with Mr 1,000 Volts, which was the nickname of FDJ boss Marc Madiot. Up your game, Marc!

Julio Jimenez - The Watchmaker of Avila

'The Cannibal', 'The Assassin', 'The Machine' - all nicknames that strike fear into the hearts of their rivals. The Watchmaker, not so much.

But Julio Jimenez, who won 10 Grand Tour stages between 1964 and 1968, was actually a watchmaker before turning to cycling.

He couldn't quite make up the time to win the 1967 Tour de France, though, where he finished 3-40 behind Roger Pingeon.

David Moncoutie - Moncoucou (My Cuckoo)

It sounds like his name, geddit?

Heinrich Haussler - Barbie

I don't really know why Australian sprinter Haussler is called Barbie, but it's probably down to the dyed blonde hair he sported while at Cervelo Test Team.

It even sporned its own website - The Adventures of Barbie Barbie, where some rogues would dress Barbie up in a Cervelo kit. It's definitely worth a look.

Robert Gesink - The Condor of Varsseveld

The Condor is a pretty decent bird, but Robert Gesink hasn't really lived up to its fearsome reputation thus far in his career.

According to Wikipedia, Condors can live upwards of 50 years and mate for life, so I guess that's a good sign for the Gesink family.

Carlo Galetti - The Squirrel of the Canals/The Human Stopwatch

Winner of the 1910 Giro d'Italia, Carlo Galetti had two of the strangest nicknames in cycling. 'Il Scoiattolo dei Navigli' sounds delightful, but translated to The Squirrel of the Canals sounds a bit odd.

Apparently it's the canals that criss-cross Milan that Galetti is named after, but the squirrel reference is still a bit baffling.

As for the Human Stopwatch, I guess that he was just really good at time trials...

Phil Anderson - Dr Teeth

Australian great Phil Anderson reportedly had 'the biggest set of ivories to ever grace the peloton' and was thusly awarded the nickname Dr Teeth.

He also went by the name Skippy - a reference to the kangaroo in the iconic Australian television series of the same name.

Any weird ones we've missed? Let us know in the comments below!

When a cycling team announces a new sponsor one of the first things they do is send out a press release with some exceptionally bland quotes from riders and staff about how excited they are to be partnered with a steel manufacturer/concrete producer/carpet fitter.

Their positive, but slightly hollow, words will probably net them a free sun blind for their house or a year's supply of olive oil, depending on the firm that's ploughing money into their sport.

When budget supermarket brand Lidl joined forces with Etixx-Quick Step this week, though, Tony Martin seemed genuinely excited by the prospect of having an official fresh food supplier from his home nation.

"As a German rider I am proud of this partnership with a German company," Martin said. "It will be a pleasant, new experience for me. I have a lot of personal experience with Lidl. I shopped there a lot as a child with my parents, and I shop there currently.

"Having them as a partner is special. The last years have not been so easy in cycling. A world brand like Lidl as a partner in cycling is a really good sign for the sport, and also for German cycling that a German brand has entered the fold."

Such genuine words are hard to find in such formulaic announcements, but Martin dispensed with the usual hyperbole about being "super excited" and "looking forward to working with [insert sponsor here]" and used his personal experiences of buying groceries and growing up as a cyclist in Germany.

Tom Boonen, on the other hand, stuck to the tried and tested quotes book: "Tony and I are both excited about this announcement today, that Lidl is now one of the partners of Etixx-Quick Step.

"It's great news for the team and I am thrilled about it. It's a big company joining the cycling world, so it's not just important for our team, but also the sport in general."

Job done, Tom. Sit back and wait for that shipment of cucumbers to arrive.

If finishing a disappointing seventh in the time trial at the World Championships wasn't bad enough for Tony Martin, the former champion also suffered the ignominy of having the grip tape on his saddle rip all the way through his skinsuit, rubbing against his bare skin by the end of the race.

Martin has used grip tape on the saddle of his Specialized Shiv TT bike, with the idea being that the extra grip will keep his backside firmly in place, stopping him from sliding forward in the saddle like many of his rivals.

>>> World Championships 2015 road races preview

However in this instance it appears to have backfired, with the grip tape managing to rub against the lycra and padding of his custom-made BioRacer skinsuit so much that it made its way all the way through the fabric, and starting rubbing against Martin's buttocks instead.

Whether or not the pain from his saddle contributed to Martin's disappointing seventh place in yesterday's race, we wouldn't like to say, but it could well have hindered the three-time World Champion's improvement in form since crashing out of the Tour de France while wearing the yellow jersey in July.

The German won the Tour du Poitou Charentes last month, where he was also third in the time trial just four seconds down on Adriano Malori, and was one of the favourites going into the World Championships. However Martin was off the pace from the start, eventually finishing one minute 16 seconds behind race winner Vasil Kiryienka.

Bradley Wiggins's Hour Record appears safe for now as cycling's top time trialists are planning otherwise for the 2016 season. An attempt, however, may not be far on the horizon.

Wiggins covered 54.526 kilometres on June 7 after closing out his road career with Team Sky. He is now taking aim at another team pursuit gold medal at the 2016 Olympics.

At the World Championships in Richmond, Virginia, journalists quizzed some of the top riders after the team time trial. German Tony Martin said that he would "for sure" attempt the Hour Record, and maybe as soon as 2017.

>>> Hour Record interactive timeline

"For sure I will go for it, but probably not next year with the Olympics, another big target," Martin explained.

"In '17, '18 maybe, sometime then. I'll try it for sure one time."

Martin's Etixx-QuickStep team placed second last night in the time trial behind BMC Racing with former Hour Record holder, Australian Rohan Dennis. Englishman Alex Dowsett, who held the record at 52.937 before Wiggins, placed third with team Movistar.

Dennis, who won the opening time trial and wore the yellow jersey for one day in the Tour de France this July, said that he will not try again.

>>> Not impossible to beat Wiggins’s Hour Record, says Tony Martin

Dowsett could do so, but as he wants to give his road career greater focus, Martin may come first.

"Wiggo's distance is big, it would require a hell of a lot of work from the team and the sponsors," the 26-year-old Dowsett said.

"You don't just rock up and ride around the track for an hour, it takes months of preparation and huge amount of effort. With it being 54.5km now, it's a huge ask for anyone."

Not anyone could attempt the record as it requires a big motor and track time.

Watch: How much faster is an aero bike?

Swiss Fabian Cancellara (Trek Factory Racing), four-time world champion, does not have it on his radar after initially considering it in 2014. Italian Adriano Malori (Movistar) is not planning an attempt, either.

Dutchman Tom Dumoulin (Giant-Alpecin), third behind Wiggins and Martin in last year's World Champs time trial, and surprise classification rider at the Vuelta a España, will try to improve in grand tours and aim for the Olympic time trial title.

"Physically, it might suit him, but at the moment, it's not something that is on his mind," Giant sports director, Addy Engels said.

"Maybe in the far future."

Rider of the week - Peter Sagan

Peter Sagan loves the first week of the Tour de France. In the four editions that he's raced since 2012, the Slovakian has finished in the top ten 23 times before the first rest day, claiming an incredible 16 podium finishes.

This year is no different, with six top-10s (seven if you include Tinkoff-Saxo's fourth place in the team time trial) and five podium places.

It's Sagan's remarkable consistency over all terrains that sets him apart from any other rider in the peloton. On stage two he punctured when in the leading group - the peloton split by high winds - and made it back into the pack to finish second without any help from his team.

Two days later he helped Alberto Contador over the cobbles and then had enough energy to sprint for third place. A second-place finish on the flat stage to Amiens (won by Andre Greipel) was followed by another one on the hilly finish in Le Havre, when Zdenek Stybar broke clear for the win.

Another podium was gained on stage seven when he motored past Alexander Kristoff and Arnaud Demare in the final stages, but it was stage eight where his versatility was epitomised.

The Mur de Bretagne, where the stage finished, is no walk in the park. Overall contenders Chris Froome, Alberto Contador and Tejay van Garderen all finished in the top 15, but it was Sagan who clung to their wheels all the way up the two kilometre climb.

Not only did he have the power to get to the top of the climb in one piece, he then had enough to sprint for fourth place, ahead of some experts on that terrain.

And he also found time for plenty of banter...

>>> Peter Sagan photobombs Vincenzo Nibali’s TV interview at the Tour de France

There's not much for him in the mountains, but expect to see him competing for the win in the transition stages at the end of the second week.

Surprise of the week - Alexis Vuillermoz

Everyone in cycling already knows how strong Sagan is, but few will have even heard of Ag2r-La Mondiale's Alexis Vuillermoz, let alone backed him to win a stage.

It shouldn't have come as such a shock to see him doing well, given his sixth-place finish at this year's Flèche Wallonne and top-10 finishes in several WorldTour races.

But still, as he powered up the Mur de Huy on stage three, a host of non-French fans cried "who?" when he finished third.

Having given the fans a few days to research his palmares (he finished 11th overall in the Giro last year) he went on to smash the Mur de Bretagne and beat Dan Martin by a full five seconds.

He's 27 and has been with Ag2r for the past two seasons, joining from the now defuct Sojasun, and he's tied down for a good few years to come, so watch out for him on the remaining hilly stages of the Tour.

If the Tour de France was a television programme...

...it'd be Game of Thrones. Just as a popular rider starts doing well the cycling gods smite them and knock them out of the race with injury.

First the affable Fabian Cancellara, whose place in Tour de France history was sealed with his 29th day in the yellow jersey on stage three, and then Tony Martin, the ever-happy German who broke his collarbone while in yellow on stage six.

Picture of the week

It's one of the most endearing cycling shots in recent years - perfectly epitomising the concepts of teamwork and camaraderie. Martin (in yellow) broke his collarbone in a crash 800m from the finish line and was chaperoned by his teammates to the end.

Video of the Week

The mechanics were busy on week one, what with all the crashes, but none moreso than the Orica GreenEdge mechanic. Here he straps a GoPro to his chest and sprints into the aftermath of the huge crash on stage three which left Simon Gerrans and Daryl Impey out of the race.

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=NICDhi5I8Lw#t=27

Quote of the week

“Did we clear it all up? Yeah! We are not footballers, we are cyclists!”

Vincenzo Nibali discusses what happened when Chris Froome visited the Astana team bus after the crash near the end of stage six. Nibali initially thought the Team Sky rider had caused the spill, but Froome was keen to insist that he didn't.

Stats of the week

Race stats

Stages completed: 9

Stages to go: 12

Distance ridden: 1343.8km

Distance to go: 2014.5km

Days in race lead

Chris Froome (Team Sky): 4

Tony Martin (Etixx-QuickStep): 3

Fabian Cancellara (Trek Factory Racing): 1

Rohan Dennis (BMC Racing): 1

Stage wins by nation (not including TTT)

Germany: 3

Australia: 1

Czech Republic: 1

France: 1

Great Britain: 1

Spain: 1

Stage wins by team

Etixx-QuickStep: 3

BMC Racing: 2

Lotto-Soudal: 2

Ag2r La Mondiale: 1

Katusha: 1

Cycling Weekly looks ahead to the Pyrenean stages of the Tour de France

Tony Martin has undergone surgery on his broken collarbone in Hamburg, Germany, an injury which will keep him out of training for two weeks.

Yellow jersey holder Martin suffered the injury in a crash just 800 metres from the finish line on stage six of the Tour de France but continued to the line to defend his race lead.

But a short while after the podium presentation it was confirmed that Martin had suffered a compound fracture of his left collarbone and flew to Hamburg for surgery.

"I will follow the race on TV today from the hospital," Martin said in a press release. "It will be strange but that’s life and cycling. I have to try to see the glass half full and keep the good memories.

"I had a great first part of the Tour with a great team around me. I won a stage and wore the yellow jersey for the first time in my career.

"A dream came true during this Tour and now I’m already looking forward to coming back one day again and living the great emotions of this race.”

Martin's Etixx-Quick-Step teammate Zdenek Stybar won stage six, having broken away from the lead group in the last 200 metres.

Stybar said after the stage: "For Tony it must be crazy because he lost the TT, which was what he was focusing on, by a few seconds. Then he had two stages where he was just seconds short of the yellow jersey.

"Then he took it on a stage where he probably didn't expect to take it, and he won solo. Then today, he crashed. So for him, personally, it must be crazy."

Watch highlights from stage six of the Tour de France

The yellow jersey will be absent on stage seven of the Tour de France after Chris Froome confirmed that he would not wear it, despite technically holding the race lead.

Tony Martin crashed in the maillot jaune in the late stages of stage six, but continued to the finish line and was awarded the same time as his original group, thus kept the jersey overnight.

The German, however, sustained a broken collarbone in the crash and announced he will not take to the start of Friday's stage seven, meaning Froome takes over the race lead.

It became unclear if Froome would be obliged to wear the jersey under race rules, but chief commissaire Guy Dobbelaere clarified that there is currently no leader of the race.

"Tony Martin was the leader of the Tour on Thursday night after the sixth stage. Now he is on longer in the race, then there is no leader. I have communicated the decision to race director Thierry Gouvenou, who also agrees," Dobbelaere told Het Laatste Nieuws

Froome took to Twitter on Friday morning to confirm that he would not wear yellow, wishing Martin good luck with the operation on his collarbone due to take place in Hamburg.

It is the first time since 2007 that the yellow jersey holder will not be present at the start of the stage. That time Dane Michael Rasmussen was sent home from the race after lying about his whereabouts when he missed drugs tests earlier in the year.

That day Alberto Contador was offered the chance to wear the jersey, but refused.

 Watch highlights from stage six of the Tour de France

Tony Martin retained the yellow jersey at the Tour de France on stage six, but a nasty crash one kilometre from the finish line ended his participation in the race.

The Etixx-Quick-Step rider went down hard when he clipped the wheel of a Europcar rider on his inside - a crash which brought down 2014 Tour champion Vincenzo Nibali and held up dozens of others.

While Nibali seemed unscathed as he got back on his bike, Martin looked in a lot more trouble, cradling his left arm and was later diagnosed with a broken collarbone.

Later, Etixx took to Twitter to confirm that Martin had pulled out of the race as his injuries require surgery. It is the second time this week that the yellow jersey holder has sustained injuries that have forced him out of a race, after Fabian Cancellara broke two vertebrae on stage three.

With the crash coming inside the final 3km, the German was free to take his time before getting back on the bike - knowing he'd be given the same time as the group he was in when the incident occurred.

>>> Chris Froome heads to Astana bus to talk with Vincenzo Nibali after stage six crash

But as he rode up the final climb of the day he was flanked by teammates, keeping him steady as he continued to cradle his arm. World champion Michal Kwiatkowski and Etixx teammate Julien Vermote were either side of Martin to help him stay upright.

>>> Five talking points from stage six of the Tour de France

Martin's colleague Zdenek Stybar broke free of the small remaining bunch at the front of the race and soloed to the stage win, but there will be mixed emotions in the Etixx camp tonight.

There was a distinctly Classics feel to the Tour de France this year, and yesterday's stage from Seraing to Cambrai was the main attraction. With the main challenge being the seven sectors of cobbles along the way, it was an afternoon that saw much of the peloton out of their comfort zone as flyweight climbers battled against classics specialists over the rough roads of northern France.

Once the day's racing was over, the peloton took to Twitter to share their experiences and air their views. We've sifted through the noise to bring you the best rider reactions.

Giant-Alpecin's Simon Geschke won the prize for the most straightforward statement of the day.

Geschke's fellow countryman, Bora-Argon 18's Paul Voss, had a humourous take of the stage.

Last year's runner-up Jean-Christophe Péraud posted before and after shots, noting that he was "less fresh at the arrival in Cambrai".

Cobbled specialist Sep Vanmarcke has found himself on the wrong side of Lady Luck this season, and yesterday was no different as the LottoNL-Jumbo man saw his chances fade thanks to two punctures.

Lotto-Soudal's Adam Hansen, riding his twelfth Grand Tour in a row, didn't enjoy his day either.

Over at Cannondale-Garmin, Ryder Hesjedal's frames were gleaming. The rest of him, not so much.

Movistar's Alex Dowsett was in the wars, injuring his elbow in a crash before soldiering on to last on the day.

The GC men didn't have a lot of fun either. Here's Rigoberto Uran showing off a painful reminder of his day in the saddle.

While Sky's Chris Froome looked back and realised how lucky he was to stay upright this time around.

The final word goes to the day's winner, Etixx-QuickStep's Tony Martin, who finally got the yellow jersey after a series of near-misses during the opening stages of the race.

Tony Martin's rollercoaster ride in this year's Tour de France ended when he motored away from the peloton and won the cobbled fourth stage to Cambrai, France. Making it even sweeter, the German took over the race lead from Chris Froome (Sky) and pulled on the yellow jersey for the first time in his career.

Martin had aimed to win the opening time trial in Utrecht on Sunday, but fell short. The next day he had his chance to take the yellow jersey after helping to push an escape with Etixx-Quick-Step team-mate Mark Cavendish.

If Cavendish had finished in the top three places then Martin would have finished the day on top of the general classification. Instead, Fabian Cancellara (Trek Factory Racing) slipped by the fading Manxman and took enough bonus seconds to earn the yellow top for himself.

"An emotional rollercoaster? Yes it was," said Martin after today's stage.

"To miss the yellow by a few seconds, I was upset. I came close but I never had it, so the pressure was getting more and more.

"I knew the chance was there, but it was obviously not my stage yesterday. Today, I was really motivated. I knew that I am one of the best here. Today's stage suited me much better to play with my power. I'm more of a classics rider than a climber."

Martin has won the world championship time trial three times, Tour stages, the Paris-Nice overall, but he has never before wore the famous yellow jersey.

He earned it in style. He powered over the 13.3 kilometres of cobbles, split over seven secteurs, and remained with the overall favourites and stage rivals like Paris-Roubaix winner John Degenkolb. When the moment was right, three kilometres out, he pushed out of the pack and held three seconds at the line over Degenkolb. With the time bonus, he now leads the overall by 12 seconds over Froome.

“After having to change bikes, everyone must have thought I was on my limit – which I was. When I attacked, everyone was on their hands and knees,” Martin said. “It was just the right moment.”

Froome said, "Congratulations to Tony Martin for his late attack – he had been so close to the yellow jersey for a few days that nobody could say he didn't deserve it this time.

"Losing the yellow jersey at this stage is no big deal – there is still a long way to go, and as a time trial specialist Tony is not going to be there in the mountains."

With flat stages, a small hilltop finish Saturday and a time trial on Sunday, Martin should be able to hold the jersey for five more days and into the rest day on Monday.

"The goal is to keep the jersey until Monday," Martin added. "We have a few hard finals, but normally, I should be able to do those, to stay in front. Then we have the team time trial, where we are also one of the favourite teams. I'm pretty sure we have a fair chance to hold on to it through Monday."

Tony Martin (Etixx-QuickStep) finally took the overall lead at the Tour de France on Tuesday, launching a solo attack in the final three kilometres to win stage four in Cambrai.

It's the first time that Martin has ever worn the yellow jersey of Tour race leader - something that he had been tantalisingly denied on the preceding three stages, missing out on Monday by just one second. Canny riding over the cobbled sectors and a well-timed attack saw the German former world time trial champion finally realise his dream.

John Degenkolb (Giant-Alpecin) brought the chasers home for second place, with Peter Sagan (Tinkoff-Saxo) in third.

Martin takes the yellow jersey from overnight leader Chris Froome (Team Sky), who finished safely in the pack along with fellow contenders Vincenzo Nibali (Astana), Nairo Quintana (Movistar), Alberto Contador (Tinkoff-Saxo) and Tejay van Garderen (BMC).

The much-anticipated stage of the 2015 race did not disappoint, with seven cobbled sectors in the second half of the stage provided plenty of opportunity for attacks and mishaps - although the main contenders neither gained or lost time on each other.

The day started calmly in Belgium, with escape group regular Thomas De Gendt (Lotto-Soudal) part of the day's break along with Lieuwe Westra (Astana), Perrig Quémeneur (Europcar) and Frédéric Brun (Bretagne-Séché Environnement). The four riders managed to stretch out an eight minute gap quite quickly as the peloton was content to let them go over the first half of the day's action.

Mark Cavendish (Etixx-QuickStep) led Martin at the head of the peloton through first of seven sectors of pavé, Pont-à-Celles à Gouy-lez-Piéton - at which point the break's advantage had been pegged back to just 1-10.

Just after the first pavé sector, Contador swapped his bike for his cobbles-ready Specialized machine - a tactic that several other teams also employed to deal with the 13km of rough roads.

There was a brief lull in pace at the half-way point of the long 233.5km route, and the break's gap stretched out to over three minutes again as there was a lull in the action as the 2015 race entered France for the first time.

With 40km to go, the break was caught and the pace picked up as teams jostled for position at the front of the bunch after the third of the seven sectors of cobbles. Just as he did last year, Nibali looked very strong on the rough roads - riding right at the front of the bunch and setting the pace.

Relatively dry conditions helped to keep the lead group together, and a sizeable peloton hit the final cobbled sector together. Thibaut Pinot (FDJ) suffered a badly-timed puncture and lost contact with the leaders - and appeared to lose his cool, too.

By the end of the final pavé sector and with 10km to go there were eight riders in a lead group, including Froome, Nibali, van Garderen, Degenkolb and Alejandro Valverde (Movistar). With no one wishing to do more than their share of work, that group was caught by the chasing pack.

Martin then attacked with 3km to go, slipping into time trial position and opening up a large gap, which he managed to retain until the line in Cambrai.

Martin now leads Froome by 12 seconds overall, with van Garderen in third at 25 seconds. Despiet losing the overall lead, there will be an element of relief for Froome and Team Sky as the burden of race leadership and media attention turns to another rider and another team.

British time trial champion Alex Dowsett (Movistar) was brought down in a crash, but managed to finish the stage alone and as last man despite a deep laceration to his right arm that subsequently required stitches.

The race should calm down slightly on Wednesday for stage five, which on paper looks like a day for the bunch sprinters. Starting in Arras, the route takes a relatively flat path over 189.5km to Amiens.

>>> Tour de France 2015 stage five full preview

Results

Tour de France 2015, stage four: Seraing to Cambrai, 223.5km

1. Tony Martin (Ger) Etixx-QuickStep in 5-28-58

2. John Degenkolb (Ger) Giant-Alpecin at 3 secs

3. Peter Sagan (Svk) Tinkoff-Saxo

4. Greg Van Avermaet (Bel) BMC Racing

5. Edvald Boasson Hagen (Nor) MTN-Qhubeka

6. Nacer Bouhanni (Fra) Cofidis

7. Jacopo Guarnieri (Ita) Katusha

8. Tony Gallopin (Fra) Lotto-Soudal

9. Zdenek Stybar (Cze) Etixx-QuickStep

10. Bryan Coquard (Fra) Europcar all same time

Other

12. Mark Cavendish (GBr) Etixx-QuickStep at 3 secs

13. Rigoberto Uran (Col) Etixx-QuickStep at 3 secs

15. Vincenzo Nibali (Ita) Astana at 3 secs

17. Chris Froome (GBr) Team Sky at 3 secs

19. Alberto Contador (Spa) Tinkoff-Saxo at 3 secs

22. Geraint Thomas (GBr) Team Sky at 3 secs

23. Nairo Quintana (Col) Movistar at 3 secs

24. Tejay van Garderen (USA) BMC Racing at 3 secs

Overall classification after stage four

1. Tony Martin (Ger) Etixx-QuickStep in 12-40-26

2. Chris Froome (GBr) Team Sky at 12 secs

3. Tejay van Garderen (USA) BMC Racing at 25 secs

4. Tony Gallopin (Fra) Lotto-Soudal at 38 secs

5. Peter Sagan (Svk) Tinkoff-Saxo at 39 secs

6. Greg Van Avermaet (Bel) BMC Racing at 40 secs

7. Rigoberto Uran (Col) Etixx-QuickStep at 46 secs

8. Alberto Contador (Spa) Tinkoff-Saxo at 48 secs

9. Geraint Thomas (GBr) Team Sky at 1-15

10. Zdenek Stybar (Cze) Etixx-QuickStep at 1-16

Mark Cavendish (Etixx-Quickstep) says he was left with too much work to do by his leadout man Mark Renshaw at the end of the second stage of the 2015 Tour de France, won by Andre Greipel (Lotto-Soudal).

Cavendish opened his sprint with around 300m to the line on the Neeltje Jans flood barrier but a head/crosswind saw his effort fade and his rivals Greipel, Peter Sagan and Fabian Cancellara pass him on the finish.

"I think Mark [Renshaw] went too early and left me hanging, and I died," Cavendish said at the finish. "I could have waited, let them [Greipel and Sagan] jump and then jump on but that’s a risky move.

"With a headwind finish ideally I’d want to go with less than 200m to go, but I had to wind up off his [Renshaw's] wheel with more than 300m."

Renshaw admitted his fault on a day where, as expected, wind played havoc with the peloton. Nairo Quintana (Movistar) and Vincenzo Nibali (Astana) both lost time on a lead group of 24 including Chris Froome (Team Sky) and Alberto Contador (Tinkoff-Saxo).

"I started the leadout a bit early. It was a slow finish, not at high speed," said Renshaw. "Definitely he had to go a bit early, especially with Greipel and Sagan in the wheel like that.

"It’s a mistake. We’ve won a lot together but it’s a bitter pill to swallow when we messed up like that."

Cavendish finished fourth on the stage with the four bonus second going to Fabian Cancellara, enough for the Swiss rider to take over the race lead ahead of Cavendish's teammate Tony Martin.

The German was visibly upset to have missed out the chance to wear the maillot jaune for the first time in his career, and to sit second overall for a second day in a row after he finished second in the opening stage time trial behind Rohan Dennis.

Cavendish was pipped to fourth by a Cancellara bike throw as he ended his sprint a split second before the finish line. He expressed his disappointment for his teammate but insisted he couldn't have done any more against a fast finishing Cancellara.

"The day Cancellara beats me in a sprint, it means I’ve gone too long, I’ve gassed it and he’s ridden it good," Cavendish added. "It’s disappointing, Tony is disappointed, but that’s our way, to put it all in and put all our eggs in one basket."

Etixx-Quickstep boss Patrick Lefevere also cut a dejected figure outside the team bus after a series of near misses so far in this year's Tour.

"I’m not happy with our Tour, we lost yesterday, we lost today, and probably that was our last chance to take the yellow jersey," he said.

"It was too early [for Cavendish to sprint] but it’s a hard stage, everybody is riding. Unfortunately Greipel and Sagan were more fresh than Mark. I think he should be disappointed."

Cavendish has a chance to redeem himself on Wednesday's stage five, a 189.5km journey from Arras to Amiens that should culminate in a bunch sprint.

Tour de France 2015 preview: the sprint contenders

Fabian Cancellara, Tony Martin, or Alex Dowsett? Ahead of the opening time trial of the 2015 Tour de France, Cycling Weekly asked a selection of riders who they would put their money on for victory and the first yellow jersey of the 2015 Tour.

>>> Who are the bookies backing for stage one of the Tour de France?

Adam Yates (Orica-GreenEdge)

"Tom Dumoulin. He was going good in the Tour de Suisse. He’s been going good all year. It’s a good distance for him and he’s Dutch."

Michal Kwiatkowski (Etixx-Quickstep)

"I’ve looked at it on the video, it’s flat and not too technical. For sure it suits Tony Martin, he can do well. There are some turns but you can go into each corner with 100% of your speed so I don’t think it’s too technical."

Dan Martin (Cannondale-Garmin)

"Absolutely no idea. I don’t think about it, I just concentrate on my own race."

Rohan Dennis (BMC)

"I want to win on Saturday. Obviously there’s Dumoulin, Martin and Cancellara. Peter Sagan is a danger. He seems to be able to do pretty good prologues and he’s beaten me before in a 9km time trial. Matthias Brändle is an outside chance too."

>>> Peter Sagan narrowly avoids crash in Tirreno-Adriatico time trial

Jérôme Coppel (IAM Cycling)

"For me there are three favourites. Tony Martin, Tom Dumolin and Cancellara. If I had to say one, I’ll go with Tony Martin."

Mark Renshaw (Etixx-Quickstep)

"Tony Martin. I'm not just saying that because he’s my teammate. He will win. For sure."

>>> Start times for the Tour de France stage one time trial

Steve Cummings (MTN-Qhubeka)

"Everyone is saying Dumoulin is favourite – so I’d say probably him. Over the years, over that distance, he’s been good. I remember last year at the Eneco Tour, he did a storming ride. Otherwise there’s the usual suspects: Tony Martin, Rohan Dennis. Maybe someone British will be up there. Maybe G [Geraint Thomas]. Maybe me."

Cycling Weekly's experts discuss the Tour de France opening time trial

Tony Martin says that "it is not impossible" to overturn Bradley Wiggins's UCI Hour Record, but says he is not currently focusing on chasing the record.

The three-time world time trial champion is currently racing with his Etixx - Quick-Step team at the Critérium du Dauphiné, where he is preparing for a Tour de France campaign which begins with a Prologue time trial and an opportunity for Martin to take the maillot jaune.

Martin has previously stated his desire to have a go at the prestigious record, but has yet to reveal a formalised plan for making an attempt.

"I'm not really working on that,"the German told Sporza.

"The bar is very high, but it is not impossible. I would like to test myself and see how far I get. But before you have to make time in your programme. I am now working on my preparation for the Tour de France."

Wiggins smashed the previous record held by Britain's Alex Dowsett (Movistar) by over 1.5km last Sunday at the Lee Valley Velodrome, setting a benchmark of 54.526km for any potential contenders to chase.

Both Dowsett and Wiggins have significant track experience, as did previous holder Rohan Dennis (BMC), which seemingly made it easier for them to adapt to the demands of the Hour. Martin, who has never had a focused campaign on the track, may have to spend longer getting used to riding as efficiently as possible on the boards.

"I have no experience with that kind of [track] work," he continued. "I am not familiar with the discipline."

Martin told Cycling Weekly in January 2015 that he and his team were still working on plans for the attempt, with an announcement due sometime this year.

“We are still planning and there are a lot of things to do, so I’m not 100 per cent sure what the timeline will be," Martin said. "But we’ll speak about it and I think we will announce in 2015 what the plan is.”

 On board at the Critérium du Dauphiné stage two

Ilnur Zakarin (Katusha) won the overall of the 2015 Tour de Romandie, finishing third in a drizzly time-trial stage won by Tony Martin (Etixx-Quick-Step).

Chris Froome (Sky) again seemed to be somewhat off his best form, and could only manage the 13th fastest time to consolidate his third place overall behind Zakarin and his Katusha teammate Simon Spilak.

Despite wearing a determined expression on the start ramp, the defending champion failed to mount a serious challenge to Zakarin’s leadership, finding himself 26 seconds off Martin’s pace at the intermediate sprint and 34 seconds at the finish.

Zakarin’s victory is one the most surprising of the season. Having been relatively anonymous for years, the Russian rose to prominence with some eye-catching rides at the Tour of the Basque Country, but no-one would have predicted the all-round display of dominance he has displayed this week.

Zakarin even managed to win despite suffering a mechanical just moments after setting the second fastest time at the intermediate sprint. The incident will have cost him a few seconds, but he remained calm and rebuilt momentum, managing to secure a buffer of eleven over his teammate Spialk.

Spilak himself was second on the stage, and therefore leaps ahead of Froome and yesterday’s winner Thibaut Pinot (FDJ) who slips off the podium after only managing 20th on the stage. This makes it three runners up finishes in a row at the Tour de Romandie for Spilak.

Other notable performances were Simon Yates’ (Orica-GreenEdge) twelfth place finish, which sees him rise to sixth overall, climbing above Nairo Quintana who finished surprisingly low 22nd.

Given his impressive recent form in road stages, it seemed inevitable that Martin would win upon returning to his favourite discipline, time-trialing. Crossing the line he put a whopping twenty seconds into the then-leader Rohan Dennis (BMC), posting a time of 23-17 that no-one managed to get within even ten seconds of.

Among the riders to have held the fastest time earlier in the day were Anton Vorobyev (Katusha), Joss Van Emden (LottoNL-Jumbo) and stage four winner Stefan Kung (BMC).

Tour de Romandie, Stage 6 Lausanne-Lausanne ITT
1. Tony Martin (Ger) Etixx-Quick Step in 23:17

2. Simon Spilak (Slo) Katusha, at 11sec

3. Ilnur Zakarin (Rus) Katusha, at 13sec

4. Jurgen Van Den Broeck (Bel) Lotto-Soudal at 19sec

5. Rohan Dennis (Aus) BMC at 22sec

6. Romain Bardet (Fra) Ag2r at 24sec

7. Jonathan Castroviejo (Spa) Movistar at 25sec

8. Stef Clement (Ned) IAM Cycling at 26sec

9. Rafal Majka (Pol) Tinkoff-Saxo at 28sec

10. Steve Morabito (Swi) FDJ at 31sec

General Classification
1. Ilnur Zakarin (Rus) Katusha, in 18:36:30

2. Simon Spilak (Slo) Katusha, at 17sec

3. Chris Froome (GBr) Team Sky, at 35sec

4. Thibaut Pinot (Fra) FDJ, at 49sec

5. Rigoberto Uran (Col) Etixx-Quickstep, at 1m20

6. Simon Yates (GBR) Orica-GreenEdge, at 1min21

7. Rafal Majka (Pol) Tinkoff-Saxo at 1min24

8. Nairo Quintana (Col) Movistar, at 1min42

9. Romain Bardet (Fra) Ag2r at 1min43

10. Vincenzo Nibali (Ita) Astana, at 1m54

Three-time world time trial champion Tony Martin has said that he is pleased with the UCI and World Anti-Doping Agency's decision at the beginning of January to introduce tougher bans for riders who test positive, saying that he believes "the harder the penalty [for dopers], the better."

The German was speaking at the Etixx - Quick-Step pre-season training camp in Calpe, Spain, and having recently endorsed a draft bill in Germany that aims to make doping a criminal offence, was encouraged that a variety of stronger punishments existed for varying doping offences, and not only for riders.

"I'm really happy that it's been made the law now in Germany, it's a big sign for the anti-doping fight," he told Cycling Weekly.

"It's not just about the athletes who cheat, it's also about the people behind them.

"If people do it, they have to be aware of really hard penalties, so I think it's a good sign and most of the people will now really think about whether they cheat or not.

"The harder the penalty, the better. If the case is clear that's always the point. There are a lot of cases where you don't know if they did on purpose or if they really did something wrong, but if the case is really clear everybody deserves a hard penalty."

>>> Tony Martin: Cancellara wrong, there can’t be enough attention on the Hour Record

Despite Sir Craig Reedie, president of WADA, publicly condeming the criminalisation of athletes, high-profile riders including Marcel Kittel and John Degenkolb also endorsed the German anti-doping bill, which has already been passed as similar laws in other European companies including Italy, Spain and France.

But Martin believes there is still a long way in eliminating doping from cycling as individual and team cases, such as Astana, continue to crop-up.

"Sometimes you get the feeling you make two steps ahead and then three steps back," he said.

"But you can't do anything about it. You can see it and accept it, but I think it's not right. I hope there will be some changes in the Astana team, but I don't understand it. I don't understand the people who decide to do this."

Martin, who is aiming to reclaim his world championship title after narrowly losing to Sir Bradley Wiggins last year, still believes that those involved in doping practices that show remorse deserve a second chance in cycling.

Martin also gave credence to the comments of his compatriot Kittel, who suggested that cycling would always "be seen as suspicious" as long as people like Bjarne Riis and Alexander Vinokourov were involved in the sport.

"I think if you see people like David Millar, he tested positive and then he was one of the big guys in the anti-doping fight" said Martin, "so if people really change and show that they've changed by doing a lot for the anti-doping fight, I think it's okay."

"Everybody can make a mistake and it was different times before 2008. If people really learnt from this time and changed then they deserve a second chance.

"But sure, there are some people from the old times that don't show any change and for sure they don't belong to the new cycling."

Tony Martin says that Fabian Cancellara is wrong to say the Hour Record is 'low level', as the three time World Time Trial Champion plots his own attempt on the prestigious record.

Cancellara said in an interview in November last year that he believed the Hour was losing its worth after the UCI changed the rules to allow the use of modern aerodynamic bikes and clothing, adding that the record was devalued because "everyone can do it who wants and there’s no limit."

But Martin thinks that the having the likes of Britain's Alex Dowsett and Australians Rohan Dennis and Jack Bobridge announce their attempts at the record, currently held at 51.852 by Austrian Matthias Brändle, is good for the sport.

"I definitely don’t agree [with Cancellara]," he told Cycling Weekly. "There can’t be enough attention on the Hour Record. I think Cancellara should try it when Wiggins and I have done it and we’ll see then how it goes."

The German time trial specialist says his his own attempt is in the pipeline, after compatriot Jens Voigt became the first rider to set the new 'unified record' when he rode just prior to he retirement in September last year.

However, Martin's record will almost certainly come after Bradley Wiggins' attempt, which is confirmed to be happening in London in June.

"[The Hour Record] is a certainly a goal…it’s on the agenda for 2015 or 16," Martin said.

"We are still planning and there are a lot of things to do, so I’m not 100 per cent sure what the timeline will be. But we'll speak about it and I think we will announce in 2015 what the plan is."

Martin, who held the World Time Trial Championship title for three years between 2011 and 13, says he is more motivated than ever to claim back the rainbow bands, having missed out on the 2014 title to Wiggins by a margin of just over 26 seconds.

"It wouldn’t have been the same if I’d have won it it last year," he said.

"In the end you run out of goals because how often do you want to win it? I can accept that I lost it but the will to win it back now is even stronger."

Tony Martin (Omega Pharma-QuickStep) produced a widely-expected victory in the Vuelta a Espana's stage 10 individual time trial on Tuesday.

Martin cruised through the lumpy 36.7km test against the clock in 47 minutes and two seconds, 15 seconds ahead of second-placed Rigoberto Uran (Omega Pharma-QuickStep) and 18 seconds quicker than third-placed Fabian Cancellara (Trek Factory Racing).

Disaster struck for race leader Nairo Quintana (Movistar) on a descent, as he crashed into a barrier at the side of a sweeping corner. Obviously stunned, Quintana took several minutes to mount a new bike and finished 4-07 down on stage winner Martin and well over three minutes down on GC rival Alberto Contador (Tinkoff-Saxo).

Contador now rises to the top of the overall classification after putting in a strong ride to finish fourth on the stage, dispelling any lingering thought that he is still troubled by injury after crashing out of the Tour de France.

Other riders to benefit from strong rides were Uran and Winner Anacona (Lampre-Merida). Uran's performance pushes him up to third overall behind Contador and Alejandro Valverde (Movistar), whilst Anacona's surprise ride elevates him to fourth.

British hope Chris Froome (Sky) put in a below-expected ride to finish 10th on the stage, but still sits fifth in the overall classification, now 1-18 behind Contador. Froome said that he'd started too hard and faded towards the end of the stage.

"I definitely started out too fast," Froome said via the Sky team's website. "For the first 15 minutes I felt fantastic and I think I chased it a little much. By the time I hit the climb I started to really feel the effort of the fast start and I paid the price for the rest of the time trial.

"I think anyone who races and knows that feeling of starting out too fast, and how hard it is to come back from being in the red, will know what I’m talking about. It’s a horrible feeling and I had to just try to hold on to it and finish the best I could."

Results
Vuelta a Espana 2014, stage 10: Real Monasterio de Santa María de Veruela to Borja
1. Tony Martin (Ger) Omega Pharma-QuickStep

2. Rigoberto Uran (Col) Omega Pharma-QuickStep at 15 secs

3. Fabian Cancellara (Swi) Trek Factory Racing at 18 secs

4. Alberto Contador (Spa) Tinkoff-Saxo at 39 secs

5. Samuel Sanchez (Spa) BMC Racing at 48 secs

6. Cadel Evans (Aus) BMC Racing at 49 secs

7. Vasil Kiryienka (Blr) Sky at 57 secs

8. Alejandro Valverde (Spa) Movistar at 1-00

9. Jesse Sergent (NZl) Trek Factory Racing at 1-13

10. Chris Froome (GBr) Sky at 1-32

Overall classification after stage 10
1. Alberto Contador (Spa) Tinkoff-Saxo in 36-45-49

2. Alejandro Valverde (Spa) Movistar at 27 secs

3. Rigoberto Uran (Col) Omega Pharma-QuickStep at 59 secs

4. Winner Anacona (Col) Lampre-Merida at 1-12

5. Chris Froome (GBr) Sky at 1-18

6. Joaquim Rodriguez (Spa) Katusha at 1-37

7. Samuel Sanchez (Spa) BMC Racing at 1-41

8. Fabio Aru (Ita) Astana at 2-27

9. Robert Gesink (Ned) Belkin at 2-38

10. Damiano Caruso (Ita) Cannondale at 2-59

Winner Anacona wins Vuelta a Espana mountain test

Nairo Quintana takes overall lead as Chris Froome loses time to key rivals

Tony Martin (Omega Pharma-QuickStep) won the 20th stage of the 2014 Tour de France with an emphatic time trial, while Jean-Christophe Peraud (Ag2r) put 45 seconds into Thibaut Pinot (FDJ) to leapfrog him into second overall.

Vincenzo Nibali (Astana) finished fourth and completed the stage without the dramatic incidents necessary for him to lose his overall lead, and will wear the yellow jersey into Paris tomorrow.

Alejandro Valverde (Movistar) was unable to challenge the two French riders for their podium positions, and ultimately lost time to both of them.

The success of Peraud and Pinot make this the first Tour in 30 years to feature two French riders on the podium, and cap off what has been an excellent race for the home nation.

Less happy will be Romain Bardet (Ag2r), who lost his fifth place to Tejay van Garderen (BMC) by a mere two seconds. His frustration will be compounded by the fact that he suffered a puncture towards the end of the ride, without which he would almost certainly have held on.

His teammate Peraud also suffered a puncture early on in the course, but managed to regain his rhythm to finish an impressive seventh on the stage.

Ag2r may have suffered mechanicals, but Belkin endured the worst day of all, with their leaders Laurens Ten Dam and Bauke Mollema both posting poor times and slipping to ninth and 10th on the GC respectively, with Leopold Konig (NetApp) and Haimar Zubelidea (Trek) moving up to seventh and eighth.

Martin finished a huge 1-39 ahead of second place Tom Dumoulin (Giant) for the stage win - his second of the race - and his time never looked remotely under threat. Sky’s Danny Pate posted the early best time, leading for a while until Jan Barta (NetApp) bettered it.

But by the time Barta crossed the line, Martin was already posting best times at the intermediate checks and systematically catching his two-minute men. The German world time trial champion put 1-47 into Barta, and only Dumoulin managed to get any closer.

The only remaining British rider in the race, Geraint Thomas (Sky) finished 34th on the stage and sits in 22nd place overall.

Results
Tour de France 2014, stage 20: Bergerac to Perigueux, 54km (ITT)
1. Tony Martin (Ger) Omega Pharma-Quick Step in 1-06-21

2. Tom Dumoulin (Ned) Giant-Shimano at 1-39

3. Jan Barta (Cze) NetApp-Endura at 1-47

4. Vincenzo Nibali (Ita) Astana at 1-58

5. Leopold Konig (Cze) NetApp-Endura at 2-02

6. Tejay van Garderen (USA) BMC at 2-08

7. Jean-Christophe Peraud (Fra) Ag2r at 2-27

8. Sylvain Chavanel (Fra) IAM Cycling at 2-36

9. Markel Irizar (Spa) Trek at 2-39

10. Daniel Oss (Ita) BCM at 2-58

Other

34. Geraint Thomas (GBr) Sky at 5-01

Overall classification after stage 20
1. Vincenzo Nibali (Ita) Astana

2. Jean-Christophe Peraud (Fra) Ag2r at 7-52

3. Thibaut Pinot (Fra) FDJ at 8-24

4. Alejandro Valverde (Spa) Movistar at 9-55

5 Tejay van Garderen (USA) BMC Racing Team at 11-44

6. Romain Bardet (Fra) Ag2r at 11-46

7. Leopold Konig (Cze) NetApp-Endura at 14-41

8. Haimar Zubeldia (Spa) Trek at 18-12

9. Laurens Ten Dam (Ned) Belkin at 18-20

10. Bauke Mollema (Ned) Belkin at 21-24

Other

22. Geraint Thomas (GBr) Sky at 59-29