Tinkoff-Saxo have unveiled a modified kit for the Tour de France in order to avoid a clash with the hallowed maillot jaune. Twelve months ago, the yellow on the team’s kit was given a fluorescent hue for the Tour. This time out, Alberto Contador and company will wear a pale yellow jersey that incorporates the camouflage design the team wore on its kit during pre-season training.
"I really like the Tour de France kit. It's a nice combination of this season's racing kit and the one we started using in our training camp in Gran Canaria last December. I like its colours and, hopefully, so will our fans,” Contador said in a press release issued by Tinkoff-Saxo on Tuesday.
The concept of changed strips for the Tour is by no means a new departure. In the 1990s, the ONCE squad used to swap its yellow jerseys for pink at the Tour (they also wore black and then grey around the turn of the century), while Marco Pantani’s Mercatone Uno squad also changed its colours for the Tour. In the 1980s, Sean Kelly’s KAS squad also added more blue to its traditional yellow jersey for the Tour.
Tony Martin: Hour Record isn’t impossible
Following his successful attempt at breaking the UCI Hour Record, Bradley Wiggins called on fellow time triallists Fabian Cancellara and Tony Martin to put their hats in the ring. Cancellara had been due to make an attempt last year but pulled out of it when the regulations were amended to allow time trial bikes, and he said earlier this season that his interest in the test had waned. Martin, however, admitted that he is still drawn to the challenge but said that his current season goals take precedence.
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"I'm not really working on that," Martin said, according to Sporza, when asked if he would be the next to make the attempt. "The bar is very high, but it is not impossible. I would like to test myself and see how far I get. But before you have to make time in your program. I am now working on my preparation for the Tour de France."
Martin also knows that adapting to the track will be harder for him than it was for Wiggins, who began his cycling career on the boards. “I have no experience with that kind of work," he said. "I am not familiar with the discipline."
Ewan doubles up at Tour de Korea
Caleb Ewan has moved into the overall lead at the Tour de Korea after claiming his second successive stage win of the race. The Orica-GreenEdge fast man saw off the challenges of Patrick Bevin (Avanti Racing Team) and Bernard Sulzberger (Drapac) in the bunch finish in Muju at the end of stage 3.
At 99 kilometres, Tuesday’s stage was the shortest of the race to date, but the hills on the circuit were tough enough to see overall leader Wouter Wippert (Drapac) dropped from the main peloton.
“Today’s stage was pretty tough. Though short, the circuit was pretty tough. There were a lot of guys attacking, but the team did well to keep them from going too far off. They did really well to defend and control the race,” said Ewan, whose running tally of wins in his neo-professional season has now reached seven.
The Australian was a faller on the opening stage in Korea, but has made light of his injuries over the past two days. “I’m feeling quite alright. I’m still a bit sore from the fall in the first stage, but once I’ve warmed up, about a half hour into the race, my legs are feeling good and I kind of just forget about it,” he said. “I’m eager to defend my leader’s jersey, and go for more stage wins.”
