Chain Links; National Cyclocross Championships, a broken leg & more, January 11, 2021

TÊTE DE LA COURSE

Welcome to Chain Links here at The Podium Cafe, a selection of cycling news links from across the internet. I do the work so that you don’t have to.

Looks like cyclists can still win national championships while getting no sleep from a newborn, and it seems that skiing is dangerous even for elite athletes. We also are reminded that sometimes riders think their team directors are jerks, and that riders who crash their opponents into barricades are not the most well-respected members of the peloton.

A note about this Chain Links: The descriptions of the links are pulled directly from the meta information provided by the sources. In non-nerd speak, what this means is that I’m using the sources description (where possible) to explain what the link is about. I do not necessarily agree or disagree with that description, If I have something to add, you will see me tack on a “Ken’s Note” on the end.

WHAT’S ON THE VIDEO SCREENS AT THE PODIUM CAFE?

GRUPPO COMPATTO

Homework, punishments and limited massages: Did the strict rules at Team DSM contribute to Hirschi’s departure? - Cycling Weekly - Claims of a strict regime at Team DSM are said to have contributed to a number of star riders moving on to pastures new

Tour de Pologne named Sports Event of 2020 in Poland, despite Jakobsen incident - Cyclingnews - Race praised for setting an example in holding elite sport during a pandemic

Peter Sagan to decide on 2021 Tour de France and Olympics participation after Classics - Cyclingnews - Slovakian will begin season at Opening Weekend, has not yet committed to Giro d’Italia

Hirschi’s shock move and season predictions - Podcast - Cyclingnews - Dissecting the first major news story of 2021

Madiot: I don’t want football super-agents in cycling - Cyclingnews - Groupama-FDJ boss says it would be ‘catastrophic’ if cycling’s transfer market was taken over by profiteers

Wout Van Aert cruises to fourth Belgian cyclo-cross title - Cyclingnews - Aerts second, Vanthourenhout third as Jumbo-Visma rider goes solo from lap 3

Tom Dumoulin set to take on Tour of Flanders - Cyclingnews - Cobbles added to Dutchman’s programme at expense of Ardennes

Sanne Cant, Wout van Aert win Belgian national cyclocross championships – VeloNews.com - Van Aert dedicates victory to wife and six-day old son as he takes fourth national title.

Caleb Ewan on Dylan Groenewegen: ‘He knows he made a big mistake’ – VeloNews.com - Aussie star says sprinters accept dangers of sport, and decries plans for sprinting lanes.

Caleb Ewan eyes grand tour stage sweep in 2021 – VeloNews.com - Aussie star says talent boom is making Milan-Sanremo too hard for pure sprinters.

Challenge Mallorca postpones due to COVID – VeloNews.com - Series of one-day races postponed to May due to banning of large public gatherings on Balearic island.

If I was Dylan Groenewegen it would be hard to rejoin the peloton, says Caleb Ewan - Cycling Weekly - The Australian sprinter also says he will target stage wins at all three Grand Tours this year, as well as the Tour de France green jersey

Patrick Lefevere: Athletes have to queue up for coronavirus vaccine just like everyone else - Cycling Weekly - The Deceuninck - Quick-Step boss doesn’t believe sportspeople should be prioritised

Operation Aderlass doctor faces five and a half year prison sentence as case draws to a close - Cycling Weekly - There have also been developments in Operacion Puerto

HORS CATÉGORIE

Wout van Aert will drive in Mol on Saturday, then a week to Spain | Cyclocross - Sporza - Wout van Aert will only insert a short internship in Spain this time with a view to the World Cup cyclocross. This weekend the 4-time Belgian champion will participate in the Zilvermeercross in Mol.

Breaking down cyclocross national championship title winners this weekend - Sporza - Not only in Belgium has today competed for the national cyclocross title, champion jerseys have also been awarded abroad. In Spain Felipe Orts extended his title, Kata Blanka Vas won in Hungary, Arzuffi broke through the Lechner hegemony in Italy and in Switzerland we actually got a champion pair.

‘Dumoulin will start in Tour of Flanders, not in Amstel Gold Race’ - Telegraaf.nl - Tom Dumoulin wants to start his season in Italy with the triptych Strade Bianche on March 6, Tirreno-Adriatico from March 10 to 16 and Milan - Sanremo on March 20. The E3 Classic with finish in Harelbeke will take place on March 26 and the Tour of Flanders on April 4.

Tour de France winner Tadej Pogacar has already received a vaccination - Telegraaf.nl - According to the Italian Gazzetta dello Sport, it was already the turn of some riders and staff of UAE Emirates in home base Abu Dhabi on Thursday. The World Tour team is currently at training camp there. The vaccine that is injected is that of the Chinese Sinopharm Group. All 28 riders voluntarily agreed to be vaccinated.

Cross, Bertolini wins the Tricolore: Aru finishes 10th. Women, Arzuffi triumph - La Gazzetta dello Sport - In Lecce the Valtellinese won the ninth jersey of the Italian champion (including youth), according to Dorigoni. Third Cominelli

Felipe Orts, unbeatable: third consecutive national title - AS.com - He beat Kevin Suárez and Ismael Esteban with superiority. In the female category, Lucía González triumphed. In the Belgian National Van Aert won.

Superman, in Spain to start his adventure with Movistar Team - AS Colombia - Miguel Ángel López already in Spain to join the Movistar Team concentration in Cabo de Gata de Almería, Andalusia. The Colombian, who signed for a season with the Spanish team, arrived in Madrid in the last hours and between Monday and Tuesday he would be training with his new teammates.

Edu Prades breaks his femur skiing: three months out - AS.com - The former Movistar, who signed with Delko for this season, suffered a mishap on a ski trip and will not be able to debut for a while.

Grégory Baugé retires after 9 world titles on the track - L’Équipe - Grégory Baugé, nine-time world track cycling champion, announced on Sunday that he was putting an end to his career. He will not compete in the Tokyo Olympics.

WielfFlits breaks down the various cyclocross national championships for 2021 - WielerFlits - In the Netherlands there was no battle for the national titles in the field this weekend, but in other European countries it was time for the national championships cyclocross. WielerFlits combines all winners in this overview, including those from Belgium, France and Spain.

Report Eli Iserbyt doesn’t like sports director: “You don’t do that at a championship” - BK cyclocross | sporza - Eli Iserbyt has not enjoyed his job in recent weeks. At the Belgian Championship the European champion even threw in the towel. Sports director Gianni Meersman was not amused. Sven Vanthourenhout and Klaas Vantornout are resting in our studio.