The Coffee Ride #78, with Reece Homfray
AUSTRALIAN cyclist Tiffany Cromwell’s Olympic preparations have hit a hurdle, with the 27-year-old searching for a new team less than 12 months out from Rio.
AUSSIE CYCLING FRESHLY BREWED EVERY WEDNESDAY MORNING, EXCLUSIVE TO ADVERTISER.COM.AU
TIFF HITS A HURDLE ON ROAD TO RIO
AUSTRALIAN cyclist Tiffany Cromwell’s Olympic preparations have hit a hurdle, with the 27-year-old searching for a new team less than 12 months out from Rio.
Expected to be a contender for the women’s road race at the Games, Cromwell’s immediate focus is on finding a new home, with news last week that her current team Velocio-SRAM would fold at season’s end.
The announcement didn’t come as a shock to riders, who learned of the team’s decision earlier this month, and Cromwell says she already has options for 2016, though the situation is not ideal.
“Obviously the plan wasn’t to have to change (teams) again going into 2016,” Cromwell said.
“It’s disappointing for the sport but I have opportunities, I have two contract negotiations and it’s looking pretty promising.
“I know I’ll have a ride, it just depends on where and what direction I take.”
That could mean returning to Australian outfit Orica-AIS, which Cromwell rode for from 2012-2013, and would tailor her race program around preparations for Rio.
But there is also interest from a start-up team wanting as many of its riders taking aim at the Olympics as well.
“That’s the biggest thing (race plan) and certainly there is one option where it is very much derived around the Olympic program and you can probably put two and two together to guess where that might be,” Cromwell said.
“So it’s what’s going to best fit me to not only be a potential to make the team but be a medal potential because I don’t just want to go to the Olympics to ride around, I want to go there and be competitive and chasing medals and be part of a team capable of that.”
As frustrating as it is for Cromwell, she is determined to make the best of an unfortunate situation.
“Struggling to find a naming rights sponsor has been the biggest issue for this team which is a surprise because if you look at the success we’ve had in races like Tour of Britain, Tour of California, they’re races with a great amount of exposure,” she told The Coffee Ride.
“So many (outside) people were pretty shocked by the news of our current team because no one saw it coming ... but that’s the frustrating thing ‘why it can’t be a sustainable sport when you’re looking at the best teams in the world?’
“That’s the question we’re always trying to answer.
“I’m just lucky that I have people who believe in my abilities and opportunities to achieve the goals I’m trying to in the sport.”
Cromwell narrowly missed selection for the 2012 London Olympics but last year finished fourth at the Commonwealth Games and fifth at the world championships.
She spent last week in Rio as part of a Cycling Australia delegation scouting the time trial and road race course ahead of the Olympics.
“I’ll ride it early morning and again just before sunset to make the most of the time we have there and to really look at the courses and get a lot of information,” she said before the trip.
“I’m very much just (focusing on) the road race, I know where I stand in terms of time trialling, unless I suddenly make miraculous improvements I don’t see myself with a shot.
“I see my chances in the road race and having this opportunity to go over (to Rio) is fantastic and to see exactly what I need.
“Until you physically ride it (the course) you can’t make your own opinion and then I’ll know what type of rider I need to be to try to get selection.”
Cromwell describes her 2015 season as “consistent but nothing outstanding” ahead of her major goal at next month’s world championships in the United States.
“I’ve been strong and thereabouts but haven’t taken that next step that I’ve wanted to,” she said.
“A podium in the Giro was quite nice and in one of the classics, it’s always searching for that little bit more.
“But my biggest goal does come at the end of the season the world championships, it’s a course that really suits me.
“That’s what I’ve been striving towards and I’ve seen improvement in my sprint but with that comes losing a bit of my climbing which after the worlds that’s where I’ll be looking to bring that back up towards the Olympics.
“From what I hear and what I’m sure I will see, you’ll need to be a strong climber but with power (for Rio).”
ROWNEY SALUTES IN LA ROUTE DE FRANCE
STILL on Velocio-SRAM, fellow Australian Loren Rowney won a stage of La Route de France while racing for the national women’s team last week.
Rowney, 26, won Stage 4 from Autun to Louhans and backed that up with second place on Stage 6.
Other Aussies including Kimberley Wells and Annette Edmondson also had podium placings throughout the tour, Carlee Taylor was fourth overall and Jenelle Crooks seventh and the best young rider.
RIVALRY IS BORN WITH BEVIN AND SUNDERLAND
A NEW rivalry has emerged on the National Road Series with Patrick Bevin going head-to-head with Scott Sunderland in an enthralling week of racing at the Tour of the Great South Coast.
Avanti Racing Team’s Bevin claimed two stages on his way to winning the tour overall and Sunderland was equally as impressive with four stage wins for Budget-Forklifts.
A snapshot of just how close their battle was:
Stage 8 Bevin 1st, Sunderland 2nd
Stage 7 Bevin 1st, Sunderland 2nd
Stage 6 Sunderland 1st, Bevin 2nd
Stage 5 Sunderland 1st, Bevin 2nd
Stage 4 Brad Evans 1st
Stage 3 Sunderland 1st, Bevin 2nd
Stage 2 Sunderland 1st, Bevin 4th
Stage 1 Bevin 2nd, Sunderland 73rd
Sunderland has missed significant parts of the NRS season while overseas with the national track endurance program and in-between recovering from collarbone surgery.
New Zealander Bevin continues his stellar season which included finishing second overall at the recent Tour of Korea, second at the Herald Sun Tour - where he won the stage to Arthurs Seat - and fourth at the Tour de Taiwan.
“I am sure that Patty will make an impression on the world scene,” Avanti team manager Andrew Christie-Johnston said.
“He can sprint and he can climb. This tour really suited him. We love this tour and its diverse conditions and terrain. We always bring our best team.”
The NRS continues with the Tour of the King Valley from August 21-23.
AUSTRALIA’S NEWEST BMX WORLD CHAMP
SHANE Rosa is a young man in a hurry.
The 17-year-old last month became a junior BMX world champion but he already has one eye on competing in the elite category against Australia’s top rider Sam Willoughby.
Like Willoughby, Rosa comes from Adelaide’s southern suburbs, and carved his pathway in the sport at Cove and Happy Valley.
And after winning the junior time trial at the BMX world championships in Belgium in July he looks set to follow in Willoughby’s footsteps.
Asked whether Willoughby was a role model for him, Rosa said:
“Kind of, but I look at him and that’s what I want to achieve,” Rosa said.
“I want to be racing and competing against him.”
Rosa went 1-2 with fellow Australian Brandon Te Hiko in the time trial which was only the second time Australia had won the event following Darryn Goodwin’s 2011 triumph.
It was Rosa’s first medal from four outings in a world championships and tempered the disappointment of crashing out of the finals of the race format.
“I was more focused on the race and the time trial was a bonus,” Rosa said.
“But it meant all my hard work has been paying off.”
QUOTES OF THE WEEK ...
“When you are training at the level I have been able to, recovery is as important if not more important than the training itself. Because without recovery I cannot back up day in and day out.”
- Anna Meares on the national sprint team’s training camp in Colorado.
“It took me a while after the hour record to realise I wanted to do it again so it’s good to be back, it’s a good laugh, that’s what it’s all about.”
- Bradley Wiggins after his team pursuit rode a 3:54.9 at the Revolution Series in the UK last week.
“We’ve seen the progress of the younger riders that we expected and the more experienced guys have obviously worked in a committed and keen way to meet our ambitions.”
- Tinkoff-Saxo director Steven de Jongh on the team re-signing six riders for 2016, including 22-year-old Australian Jay McCarthy.
TWEET, TWEET
- No time to rest for Tour de France champion Chis Froome who will start the Vuelta a Espana this weekend.
Olympic legend’s horrifying revelations
One of the greatest Olympians of all time has details disturbing details of his private life, going public with childhood abuse and a drug addiction.
Athletes or the boardroom? Which women really wield power in sport
Women hold some of the most powerful positions in Australian sport - and boast some of the country’s most recognisable athletes. But who really holds the power?