Bakelants fractures clavicle, Hammer leads US team for track Worlds, Lawless leads in Triptyque des Monts et Châteaux, Mirza wins UAE time trial title
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US champion Greg Daniel leads the Trek-Segafredo chase(Image credit: Tim de Waele/TDWSport.com)
Jan Bakelants (AG2R La Mondiale)(Image credit: Tim de Waele/TDWSport.com)
Sarah Hammer (USA) with coach and husband Andy Sparks in Cali
Yousif Mirza (UAE - UAE Abu Dhabi) at the Dubai Tour press conference(Image credit: Courtesy of Polartec-Kometa)
Chris Lawless of Great Britain signed with Axeon Hagens Berman after ONE Pro Cycling opted to drop its program a level, from pro continental to continental status(Image credit: Davey Wilson)
US champion Greg Daniel (Trek-Segafredo) discovered that he had been riding with a broken collarbone for eight months when he crashed out of the Three Days of De Panne on stage 2.
The American had originally broken his collarbone at the Tour of Utah last summer while riding for Axeon Hagens Berman. After being taken to hospital for an X-ray following his De Panne crash, it was revealed that his original break had not completely healed.
"Crashed today and went to the hospital, revealing a collarbone that has been broken for almost 8 months. Thankfully it's held together by a titanium plate that is still stable, so recovery time should be just a few days!" Daniel wrote in a post on Instagram.
Daniel added that he is likely to undergo surgery to mend the broken collarbone in June, but is set to race at the Tour of California in the intervening period. "For now I am heading back to Girona to get ready for the next few races," he wrote.
Bakelants fractures clavicle
AG2R La Mondiale's Jan Bakelants crashed during a training ride Friday and sustained a broken clavicle, the team announced in a press release.
The 31-year-old Belgian, now in his third season with the French outfit, has already been operated on but will miss his scheduled start at next week's Vuelta Ciclista al País Vasco.
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The timeline for Bakelants' return to racing is unclear. Julien Bérard will replace him on AG2R's roster for País Vasco.
Hammer leads US team for track Worlds
USA Cycling this week announced the seven riders who will represent the US at the UCI Track World Championships April 12-16 in Hong Kong.
Sarah Hammer will lead the six-rider women's contingent while competing in the team pursuit, omnium, scratch race and points race. Chloe Dygert will join Hammer, Jenn Valente, Kim Geist and Kelly Catlin on the team pursuit squad. Dygert will also compete in the individual pursuit for just the second time in world-class competition, although she won the event during her first attempt at the LA track World Cup earlier this year. Catlin will also compete in the individual pursuit, while Geist will feature in the Madison along with Kim Zubris.
Zac Kovalcik will be the lone US man at Worlds, competing in the points race and scratch race,
Women’s Team: Kelly Catlin - team pursuit, individual pursuit Chloe Dygert - team pursuit, individual pursuit Kim Geist - team pursuit, Madison Sarah Hammer - team pursuit, omnium, scratch, points Jenn Valente - team pursuit Kim Zubris - Madison
Axeon Hagens Berman's Chris Lawless maintained his lead at Triptyque des Monts et Châteaux in Belgium through stage 2 Saturday after finishing second on Friday's opening stage and taking the overall lead with time bonuses.
Lawless, the British criterium champion, finished 16th on stage 2 in the same time as Belgian stage winner Jasper Philipsen (BMC Development Team). Lawless claimed six seconds worth of time bonuses at intermediate sprints during the day, however, while Philipsen gained 16. The difference boosted Philipsen to second overall, just two seconds behind Lawless heading into Sunday's double-stage day.
"There was a crash and a bit of confusion with the motor bikes," Lawless said of Saturday's stage 2 finish. "I had to pretty much come come to a stop. So that was a shame. Then, with about 500 or 700 meters to go, I got flicked a bit and had to brake. I can't really complain about that, though. It is part of the sprint. You can have the legs, but you might not necessarily do well because that is just the way sprinting is. It is something I have learned."
Lawless now carries his two-second lead over Phlipsen into Sunday morning's 10.3km individual time trial, with the top 20 overall separated by just 29 seconds.
The race ends Sunday afternoon with a road stage from Ath to Chièvres.
Mirza wins United Arab Emirates time trial title
Yousif Mirza (UAE Team Emirates) took the United Arab Emirates time trial title Saturday in the Middle Eastern country.
The 28-year-old covered the 30km test in 39:37, 35 seconds faster than runner-up Mohamed Almurawi and 36 seconds better than third-placed Badr Mirza. The title is the fourth in Mirza's career and the second consecutive.
"I'm really happy, first of all because I succeeded in defending the title I had won in the past season, then because the course was demanding and it was not simple to realize good performances," he said in a statement realised by the team.
"I managed my energies in a great way, my legs pushed well for the whole course and my speed was constant. I'd like to be competitive also in the road national championship, which is scheduled on April the 7; I'm the national champion and I'd like to continue to wear the UAE champion kit all over the world."
