Tweets of the Week: Patrick Lefevere returns to Twitter, Mark Cavendish drawn badly, and Biniam Girmay has fans

The racing season is here, at last, and it is desperately needed

Patrick Lefevere
(Image credit: Getty Images)

Between 2003's Reality and 2013's The Next Day, David Bowie stayed out of the limelight, let his past do the talking, and produced no hint that he was going to produce another studio album. Fans didn't know whether there would ever be any new music, let alone whether it would be any good, some of his best work, as was the case with 2016's Blackstar.

Between September 2021 and January 2023, the world of cycling Twitter was similar devoid of its biggest star, and people were left wondering whether it could ever be the same again. That's right, I'm comparing Patrick Lefevere's absence from Twitter to David Bowie's absence from music making.

Comebacks are a risky business, success is not guaranteed, so we will have to wait and see whether the Quick-Step boss will be back to his pugnacious, bewildering self on social media, or whether he has had some media training in the 18 months he was away.

Racing has also made a return for 2023, so there is some actual proper social media content for us all to enjoy, rather than dreaming of things to come. Sure, the Tour Down Under might not be the most exciting thing, and the timings might be weird, but people actually have things to post about.

Alongside Lefevere, we have Biniam Girmay being fanboyed over by a famous man, Mark Cavendish being made to look like not Mark Cavendish, and cyclists playing AFL. It's all happening.

1. Patrick Lefevere is back on Twitter. His last tweet was "this is my last tweet thanks to followers and to the haters", and now he has returned. Already, he is tweeting about Belgian politics, so little has changed. We will see if he returns to his old ways - in 2021 the Belgian faced criticism over his comments during a one-sided war of words with Sam Bennett, and his rejection of investing in a women's team, something which he has now rectified

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2. Clara Copponi wants to show off her tats to anyone who is interested

3. Poor Chris Hoy, he should try having a less common name

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4. Remco Evenepoel, Vuelta a España winner, world champion, and now Boca Juniors player?

5. Biniam Girmay, loved by fans and fellow pros alike, apparently

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6. Including Johan Museeuw, he of Tour of Flanders and Paris-Roubaix fame

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7. Amanda Spratt has every right to be annoyed at Grace Brown, but it's nice that they can still be friends after a tumultuous Tour Down Under

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8. If the Mark Cavendish from this court sketch turns up for Astana, it might be a weird year. He actually looks more like a young Bob Mortimer than the British champion

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9. Poor Mathieu van der Poel, he's one of the best cyclists in the world and isn't allowed sugar (but what about energy gels? bakes? come on)

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10. Gladys Verhult looking adorable with a koala, that's it. Apparently koalas are riddled with chlamydia, so don't get too close to the marsupial

11. Now he's no longer a cyclist, Alejandro Valverde has diversified big time

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12. The scythe is remorseless. I hope the scythe's remorseless swing can bring some comfort to you all

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13. And finally, while Jai Hindley isn't too bad at what Australians insist on calling football, Luke Plapp should stick to cycling. Imagine either of these people on an AFL field, they'd snap

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