Movistar 2012 Season in review

In 2011 the team which first entered the peloton under the name of Reynolds begun the next chapter in its long existence with a new title sponsor. Movistar replaced the Spanish bank Caisse d'Epargne which had sponsored the team since 2005. One of the team’s stars under the Caisse name and most successful Spanish riders of his generation was Alejandro Valverde. Valverde was implicated in Operación Puerto and after a protected legal battle with various courts and cycling bodies he received a two year doping ban backdated from January 1st 2010. Due to the successes of the Spaniard his team had promised a place on the team once his suspension had been served. With the ban ending in 2012 Valverde rejoined the team and rode the first World Tour race of the year as the team leader. Although the team name is different, with El Bala back in the fold in 2012 the changes in structure where to a degree made redundant by the return of the prodigal son. 

2012: Another Tumultuous & Exciting Edition

The 2012 season will be defined by pictures of cyclists on the road as much as cyclists off the road. Bradley Wiggins became the first British rider to win the Tour de France, Alberto Contador made a winning return after his doping suspension, Philippe Gilbert won his maiden worlds rainbow jersey and Tom Boonen owned the cobbles. Yet for all the excitement and dominance of Team Sky plus individual and collective feats of the peloton, it was the USADA investigation into US Postal which lifted the lid on Lance Armstrong and Johan Bruyneel as the masterminds behind the most organised doping practise the sport has ever seen. As the season comes to a close there are trails that seem only destined to be endlessly consumed with chasing the murky past down rabbit hole after rabbit hole. There has been no admission by Armstrong and the 1990s culture of Omerta has lessened but still exists among the peloton and with two major Italian investigations now looking like handing down their findings in 2013, this is certainly a tumultuous time for the sport. However there were brilliant rides full of bravery, panache and courage across the season. Looking back to the seasoning races in January of this year, it becomes apparent several of those rides will become timeless images of the sport, as well as part of cycling’s folklore for the years to come. 

Lotto-Belisol 2012 Season in Review

With one of the most prolific sprinter on its books over the last few seasons, Lotto-Belisol weren’t going to struggle for wins in 2012. André Greipel has been one the most consistent sprinters in the peloton since 2008 and since leaving the Highroad team to join Lotto has continued his winning ways as the number one sprinter on the team. At Highroad there was a two way tussle between Mark Cavendish and Greipel with the Isle of Man rider the star sprinter. In his debut Tour de France last year Greipel took one stage win on Stage 10 showcasing his talent and skill as a sprinter as if it wasn’t known already due to his prolific winning ways. Knowing Greipel was a known quantity on the world’s biggest stage, the expectations upon the German would be even higher in 2012. Besides the German gorilla, Jürgen Roelandts chipped in with several wins as did Lars Bak in a season where the Tour was the highlight. Besides Greipel winning three stages, Jurgen Van Den Broeck finished fourth overall.

Liquigas-Cannondale 2012 Season in Review

The 2012 Liquigas-Cannondale season saw Peter Sagan, the terminator, come to the fore as superstar of the sport while Vincenzo Nibali finished third in the Tour with Moreno Moser and Elia Viviani highlighted the depth of the Italian squad in a year of great success. Nibali moves onto Astana in 2013 and his loss will be felt but with Sagan remaining on the team’s books, there will be no lack of wins in 2013. Nibali has moved on as wanted a team which could guarantee total support in a tilt for Grand Tour success. Although Nibali finished third at the Tour this season the team had split loyalties with Sagan taking three stages and the points classification as well as team resources away from Nibali. Ivan Basso’s season objective was another Giro d’Italia win and would ride in support of Nibali at the Tour where he finished 25th riding as a super domestique but his season was largely disappointing with only one win. Besides the Nibali and Sagan show, Liquigas notched up wins with Viviani and Moser impressively winning stage races overall for the first time. 

World Tour Licenses Awarded

The final World Tour licenses have been awarded with one shock decision. Team Katusha who have the UCI number one rider Joaquim Rodriguez on their books have been denied a license for next season. For a team which had a rider on two Grand Tour podiums along with several big wins across the season and finished third on the UCI World Tour team rankings will now be riding at a Pro Continental. The team had initially been listed along with 15 other teams which had met the sporting criteria for a license but now are unsure why they have missed out. The UCI have said that indeed Katusha do not know why they have missed out but will be formally informed in the coming days.

Katusha 2012 Season in Review

Grand Tour classification jerseys and stage wins, one day classics and the UCI World Tour win would be more than enough to suggest that Katusha had a standout 2012. However 2012 was close to Grand Tour dominance for the Russian team as Joaquim Rodriguez lost the Giro d’Italia on the final day and was in a commanding position until Stage 17 of the Vuelta de España when Alberto Contador pulled off an escape ride to snatch the win from his compatriot. Rodriguez was once again the UCI rider of the season as he repeated his 2010 antics as the highest ranked rider due to his best Grand Tour result and his first Ardennes classic win. For Katusha their suburb season may have been overshadowed by Sky’s dominance but 2012 will be a season the team can look back fondly upon. 

Orica-GreenEdge 2012 Season in Review

In 2012 the Australian dream of having a national team compete in the Grand Tours and One day classics of Europe was realised. Since Phil Anderson brought to attention the glory of the Tour de France by winning the white jersey in 1982, Australian cycling has growth as a cycling powerhouse has justified calls for a nation trade team. Until 2012 there was no national team, Australian’s instead were riding for the mostly European teams of the peloton besides a few exceptions, with clusters found of them across the peloton. For riders who had first made a name for themselves in the 1990s the opportunity to finish their career at an Australian team was too good an opportunity to turn down. One off the doyens of Australian cycling, Stuart O’Grady had ridden on Tour de France winning teams and enjoyed both personal and team success riding for Bjarne Riis’s CSC and Saxo Bank teams before a final year with the Leopard team. He has recently announced he has no plans for retirement and is a blessing for the younger riders to have a rider who has experienced Olympic Gold medal success and has 15 plus years of experience in the peloton to guide them and offer advice. Robbie McEwen rode the early season before pulling up stumps and relocating to the comfort of the car.