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Monday, May 5, 2025
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2024 Tour de France | 2024 Giro d'Italia
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Bill McGann’s book Why Your Bike Is Made in Asia: My career in bicycles as I watched two continents squander an industry is available in print, Kindle eBook & Audiobook versions. To get your copy, just click on the Amazon link on the right.
Upcoming racing:
- May 9 - June 1: Giro d'Italia
- May 11: Tro-Bro Léon
Latest completed racing:
- April 27 - May 4: Tour of Turkey
- April 29 - May 4: Tour de Romandie
- May 1: Rund um den Finanzplaz Eschborn-Frankfurt
- April 27: Liège-Bastogne-Liège
- April 24 - 27: Vuelta Asturias
- April 21 - 25: Tour of the Alps
- April 23: La Flèche Wallonne
- April 20: Amstel Gold Race
- April 20: Tour du Doubs
- April 15 - 18: Giro d'Abruzzo
- April 18: De Brabantse Pijl
We posted the report from stage winner Remco Evenepoel's Team Soudal Quick-Step with the results.
Here's the report from GC winner Joao Almeida's UAE Team Emirates-XRG:
UAE Team Emirates-XRG closed out a stellar week of racing by capturing the overall title at the 2025 Tour de Romandie, with Portuguese climber João Almeida claiming the general classification victory following a confident final stage in the individual time trial in Geneva. The team’s performance was further underlined by Jay Vine’s third-place overall finish to compliment his victory on Stage 3, the mountains classification win, and UAE Team Emirates-XRG securing the team classification.
Joao Almeida enjoys his victory. Sirotti photo
Almeida: “Of course, I feel very happy. The goal was to win the race. Unfortunately, I didn’t win a stage, but we were always in the front, and that’s what matters. I’m super happy for the overall win. I need to thank the whole team; they did a really good job, and we can be proud of it.
"What counts is the last day, right? So I think it was the right day. To be honest, I was struggling the whole week; I was never feeling 100 per cent, but I gave my best, and I never gave up. Sometimes it’s all about your mindset.”
The sixth and final stage of the Tour — a 17.1 km individual time trial in Geneva — was won by Belgian time trial specialist Remco Evenepoel (Soudal–QuickStep), who delivered a near-flawless ride to claim the stage win. However, all eyes were on the general classification, where João Almeida produced a measured, powerful effort to finish second on the stage, just 12” down.
Australian Jay Vine contributed mightily to the team success this week. He claimed victory on Stage 3 to Cossonay after launching a decisive solo attack in the final kilometer. His aggressive riding throughout the mountainous stages earned him the King of the Mountains jersey and propelled him to third place overall by the race’s conclusion.
This Tour de Romandie campaign adds to the Emirati squad’s outstanding 2025 season, bringing their total number of wins to 37. The team continues to build momentum ahead of the Giro d’Italia which will get underway in Albania next weekend.
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Here's the Tour de Romandie report from Rémi Cavagna's Team Groupama-FDJ:
The riders began the Tour de Romandie with a solo effort, and they concluded the Swiss race in the same way on Sunday. Over a seventeen-kilometre course in Geneva, Rémi Cavagna and Stefan Küng tried to seize this last opportunity, but the Frenchman and the Swiss man had to settle for ninth and tenth places respectively in the stage, won by Remco Evenepoel.
Exactly 17.1 kilometres remained to be covered to complete the 2025 Tour de Romandie. The day after the summit finish in Thyon 2000, the closing time trial was to determine the overall standings, but also provided a chance for victory for some riders. “It was a very varied course, but the specialists could still have their word to say,” explained Anthony Bouillod. “There were 3.6 very technical kilometres at the start, then five very flat and fast kilometers along the lake, an uphill/downhill section, then the round trip along the lake to finish with another technical section.”
Groupama-FDJ rider Stefan Küng at the first stage of the Tour de Romandie. Sirotti photo
After their teammates Clément Davy and Enzo Paleni covered the route, Rémi Cavagna and Stefan Küng, both ambitious for the day’s stage, set off seven minutes apart shortly after 2 p.m. The former two-time French champion came at the first intermediate checkpoint, located after eleven kilometers, ten seconds behind the best time. He ultimately crossed the line just one second behind the provisional leader. “Rémi probably lost a bit of time on the technical section, which explains this gap at the intermediate point, but he made up for it in the second part,” said Anthony. “I think I managed it pretty well since I finished quite strong,” explained the TGV de Clermont-Ferrand. “It’s quite satisfying from that point of view, even if I’m not yet quite close to the best”.
A few minutes later, his Swiss teammate Stefan Küng crossed the finish line with the same time, despite having set the provisional best time six kilometers earlier. “Stefan crossed the checkpoint with the same time as Price-Pejtersen, but he wasn’t able to increase his lead after that,” summarized Anthony. “I think he didn’t quite have the legs to win, which was clearly the goal today. You can sometimes have regrets about technical errors, but today there was also about the legs. He might have paid a bit for his day in the breakaway on Friday and he wasn’t able to give his best today. He was frustrated at the finish as it was still a close call, but the gap grew after that, so that frustration quickly disappeared.”
World time trial champion Remco Evenepoel ultimately won the day’s event, while Joao Almeida took the overall classification. “Given that we weren’t in the mix for the overall, the goal for the other riders was to take advantage of the day to have a good session on the time trial bike in preparation for the Giro, to get their bearings, but without taking any risks,” Anthony added. “Because you really had to commit and be aggressive in the first part if you wanted to set a good time today.” The Corsa Rosa is now lying ahead.
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Here's the Tour de Romandie report from Carlos Rodriguez's Team INEOS Grenadiers:
Carlos Rodriguez put in a competitive time trial performance to wrap up sixth place overall at the Tour de Romandie.
The Spaniard executed a strong finish to the race as he continues his return from injury, setting the 18th fastest time on the day in Geneva.
Only a flying stage victor Remco Evenepoel (Soudal - Quick-Step) could prevent Rodriguez from claiming a top-five overall, with the Belgian jumping up four places on the final GC.
Carlos Rodriguez finishes stage four. Sirotti photo
24 hours earlier Rodriguez had finished fifth on the queen stage, laying the foundations for an encouraging GC result. In the end it would be Joao Almeida (UAE Team Emirates - XRG) who elevated himself into the yellow jersey, taking the GC win by 26 seconds.
Elsewhere Michael Leonard again impressed with a creditable 24th place in a WorldTour TT - coming home just 14 seconds back on his senior teammate.
And here's the Tour de Romandie final report from GC second-place Lenny Martinez's Team Bahrain Victorious:
Lenny Martinez capped off another stellar WorldTour performance by claiming the Best Young Rider jersey and finishing second overall at the Tour de Romandie, following a decisive 17km individual time trial in Geneva.
The 21-year-old French climber entered the final stage in yellow, facing stiff competition from time trial specialist João Almeida. While Almeida posted a strong ride to take the overall GC, Martinez delivered a composed performance on the flat course to secure second place in GC—marking his first general classification podium at a WorldTour stage race.
His defining moment came on Stage 4, the queen stage and key summit finish of the race, where he outsprinted Almeida atop Thyon 2000 to take a stunning victory. That result, combined with a runner-up finish on Stage 3 in Cossonay, showcased his consistency and climbing strength.
Lenny Martinez wins stage four.
Though the yellow jersey slipped away on the final day, Martinez remains proud of his achievement and focused on what’s to come:
“It was a super hard day. I wanted a spot on the GC podium and I think I can be proud of this 2nd place behind Joao Almeida. I went full gas in the TT but couldn’t make up 30 seconds.
Ending the week with a stage win and 2nd overall feels really nice. Big thanks to the staff and my teammates—I’m super proud of this team! Now, we look ahead to the Critérium du Dauphiné and keep building.”
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Here's the team's news:
With just a few days remaining before the Giro d’Italia kicks off in Albania, Tudor Pro Cycling has officially announced its eight-man squad for its second particpation in the race. Australian rider Michael Storer will lead the team’s General Classification ambitions, following his impressive victory at the Tour of the Alps.
The Giro d’Italia marks the first of two Grand Tours for Tudor Pro Cycling this season. “After making our debut last year, we’re ready for another three weeks of aggressive racing,” said Fabian Cancellara, Owner of Tudor Pro Cycling. “Competing in the Giro d’Italia is a true honour, and we’re deeply grateful to RCS for their trust. This second participation is an important step in the continued development of the Team. We’re coming with our Born To Dare spirit, ready to leave our mark.”
Coming off a top-10 finish in 2024, Storer returns to the Giro aiming to improve on that performance. “I’m in great shape and high spirits,” he said. “The hard work we put in during altitude training with the team, combined with our win at the Tour of the Alps, gives me a lot of confidence heading into this year’s Giro d’Italia. I’ve always loved this race, and I’m approaching it with a balanced mix of calm and excitement.”
Michael Storer winning stage two of this year's Tour of the Alps.
Storer will be backed by a strong support team, including experienced riders Alexander Krieger, Florian Stork, and Larry Warbasse — the latter two having recently trained with him in Sierra Nevada and competed alongside him at the Tour of the Alps.
Beyond the General Classification, Tudor Pro Cycling is also targeting a stage win, with several riders capable of making their mark.
German national champion Marco Brenner returns to Grand Tour racing three years after his appearance in the 2022 Vuelta a España. Three riders — Dutchmen Rick Pluimers and Maikel Zijlaard, along with Swiss climber Yannis Voisard — will be making their Grand Tour and Giro d’Italia debuts.
Notably absent from the final lineup is Marc Hirschi, who was originally slated to participate. Both he and the team had high hopes for his Giro debut, but recent performances at the Ardennes Classics showed he isn’t currently in shape to contend for the Maglia Rosa in the opening week. “I’m really disappointed not to be racing the Giro,” Hirschi said. “It’s a beautiful race, one that makes me dream and that I was excited to debut in. It’s frustrating not to be at the level we had planned for.”
The 108th edition of the Giro d’Italia kicks off on Friday 9 May in Durrës, Albania and will end three weeks later in Roma, Italy, after 21 stages, 3’410 kilometers and 52’500m of elevation gain. It is set to be one of the most demanding in recent years.
2025 Giro d’Italia Line Up:
- Marco Brenner (GER)
- Alexander Krieger (GER)
- Rick Pluimers (NED)
- Michael Storer (AUS)
- Florian Stork (GER)
- Yannis Voisard (SUI)
- Larry Warbasse (USA)
- Maikel Zijlaard (NED)
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