Top 10 news stories of 2020

This year has given us a lot to write about and we've been kept very busy, which is excellent, some stories will always do better than others thanks to you, the readers, reading them.

Here are the 10 stories that made the most people stop, click, and read during this crazy year that has been 2020.

Chris Froome ‘angry’ management didn’t respond to Bernal comments, says family member

The beginning of the saga that eventually ended with the announcement that the seven-time Grand Tour winner, Chris Froome, would be joining Israel Start-Up Nation for the 2021 season.

This came about when Egan Bernal said that he would not sacrifice himself for another leader if Froome was made the leaders at the Tour de France. Froome was also being linked to multiple teams as transfer rumours were starting to appear on social media.

Hackers reportedly demand $10 million ransom from Garmin

Back when everyone was unable to use their Garmin devices due to the US based company being targetted by hackers who demanded $10m in a RansomeWare attack.

Garmin shutdown every computer they could get their hands on as well as all their data centre meaning that all Garmin users worldwide were unable to upload any of their activities or use any Garmin service.

The issue was eventually sorted with Garmin not having to pay the ransom with all restored to full functionality.

UCI order investigation into item removed from Evenepoel’s pocket after crash

This was a controversial story where the UCI spotted Deceuninck - Quick-Step sports director, Davide Bramati, remove something from Remco Evenepoel's pocket after he crashed out of Il Lombardia.

The story has since been resolved as the investigation was concluded with no further action on the young Belgian or the team. It was reported that Evenepoel was left crying in his hospital bed over the whole situation.

Egan Bernal abandons the Tour de France 2020

One of the biggest shocks of this season was when Egan Bernal (Ineos Grenadiers) lost touch with the peloton on stage 15 of the Tour de France on the Grand Colombier, losing 7-20 alongside fellow Colombian Nairo Quintana (Arkéa-Samsic) on the main general classification riders.

It was later reported that the reason for him losing the time was because of back pains that he had been suffering with for most of the season and saw him abandon the Critérium du Dauphiné a couple of weeks before the Tour.

Fan videos show Geraint Thomas’s nasty crash at Giro d’Italia

The infamous bidon crash for Geraint Thomas (Ineos Grenadiers) on stage three of the Giro d'Italia was capured at multiple angles by fans at the roadside. The videos showed how the 2018 Tour winner's Giro ending in the neutral zone as the peloton headed towards Mount Etna.

Thomas was in third place just one second behind João Almeida (Deceuninck - Quick-Step) who went into pink and kept it all the way to stage 18 where he lost it to Wilco Kelderman (Team Sunweb).

It wasn't all doom and gloom for Ineos as Thomas' domestique, Tao Geoghegan Hart, went on to steal the overall title on the final stage time trial in Milan.

Victoria Pendleton: ‘If I overtake a man I will hear a rapid crunching of gears’

Two-time Olympic medalist, Victoria Pendleton pointed out in a humorous Instagram anecdote how every time she passes a man on the road she immediately hears the rider struggling to catch up and overtake her, highlighting the everyday sexism she and all women have to battle with.

The 39-year-old says that she doesn't get recognised as much as she once did and has pointed out that these things don't bother her and she even finds them amusing, saying one day she wants to be intimidating and not underestimated.

UK Government announce £2bn cycling investment including bike repair vouchers

The UK Government provided £2b to create pop-up bike lanes, safer junctions, wider pavements along with cycle and bus-only corridors as part of their new funding for safe transport during the pandemic.

The scheme was a resounding success but some places had more success than others with one London council, Chelsea and Kensington council where, after just seven weeks, they decided to rip-up the bollards after just over 300 complaints. 4000 people used the lanes daily.

The Government also promised £50 vouchers for bicycle repairs, though it would take months for details of how to claim the vouchers to finally emerge.

Former Team Sky rider banned for doping two years after he retired

Kanstantin Siutsou, formerly of Team Sky, was handed a four-year ban - despite being retired for two years - for use of banned drug EPO. The same drug that was famously used by Lance Armstrong and other dopers of the 90s and noughties.

The findings came in an out-of-competition test taken in his final season as a pro rider with Bahrain-Merida with the Belarusian retiring after the test results were made public.

Chris Froome leads protest delaying start of Vuelta a España stage 11

Chris Froome was one of the main leaders in a rider protest at the Vuelta a España that delayed the stage 11 start. The protest took place after the three-second rule wasn't used on stage 10 when Primož Roglič went back into the leaders red jersey after gapping the rest of the peloton.

The three-second rule was brought in a few years ago as the UCI tried to make sprint stages safer, with gaps of three-seconds at the finish line needed in order to implement time gaps between riders so that GC riders wouldn’t also fight for the line alongside sprint trains.

Puck Moonen: ‘Me, a cycling babe? I get more and more s**t about that’

Belgian cyclist, Puck Moonen spoke out about how she is sick and tired of being called a "cycling babe." A quick skim through the comments on any of her Instagram posts, which are seen by nearly half a million followers – more than Geraint Thomas - gives a real showing of how differently female riders are treated in comparison to male riders, from the dismissive to the outright sexist.

Moonen wants to be seen as a serious rider in the pro peloton and aims to be the world champion in the next four years as she looks to improve as a rider.