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Pro Log: EF axe Andrea Piccolo amid doping investigation, National Championships results, and Van der Breggen returns
Welcome back to Pro Log. There’s a lot to talk about this week, from the umpteen national titles awarded to the news that the legendary Anna van der Breggen will come out of retirement.
The Tour de France will also begin this week and you can catch up with all the information at our hub page, from the key climbs to the underdogs to the history of the Giro-Tour double.
Right, let’s get into the news.
EF Education-EasyPost terminate Andrea Piccolo’s contract
Team statement. pic.twitter.com/MSMGxi4TIU
— EF Pro Cycling (@EFprocycling) June 21, 2024
EF Education-EasyPost has terminated the contract of 23-year-old Andrea Piccolo after he was stopped by Italian authorities ‘on suspicion of transporting human growth hormone’ into the country.
EF revealed the news comes after Piccolo received an internal suspension for taking a legal sleeping aid that was not approved by the team. The team say they were ‘unable to terminate’ the Italian’s contract at the time and took him to the Giro d’Italia after his suspension ended.
Piccolo’s last race for the team was the Giro, which he abandoned on Stage 19 after crashing. EF Education-EasyPost said, ‘We encourage Andrea to be open and truthful with anti-doping authorities.’
National Championships galore
Last week saw a massive number of National Championships taking place across the world. For Great Britain, Ethan Hayter won the men’s road race ahead of Lewis Askey with Pfeiffer Georgi defending her women’s title, beating Anna Henderson and Lizzie Deignan. The elite time-trials were won by Josh Tarling and Anna Henderson.
Elsewhere, Lotte Kopecky’s 30km solo attack earned her the Belgian Road Race Championships while Arnaud De Lie sprinted to victory against a stacked sprinting field in the men’s race. Kopecky doubled up, victorious in the time-trial too as Tim Wellens won for the men. Olympic champion Anna Kiesenhofer won both the Austrian road race and time-trial. Italy’s road races saw Alberto Bettiol and Elisa Longo Borghini reign for a year in il tricolore. Longo Borghini initially won the time-trial too, but was relegated to second after it was deemed her team car was travelling too close and Vittoria Guazzini took her place on the top spot.
Juliette Labous beat Gladys Verhulst-Wild in a sprint finish for the French crown while Paul Lapeira won at home in the men’s race. Audrey Cordon-Ragot and Bruno Amirail topped the standings in the time-trial. In the Netherlands, Chantal van den Broek Blaak took her first victory after maternity leave and the men’s title went from one Dylan to another with Van Baarle passing the jersey onto Groenewegen.
For all results, check out First Cycling.
The return of Anna van der Breggen
After retiring in 2021 at the age of 30, Anna van der Breggen will return to the pro peloton in 2025 on a two-year contract with SD Worx-Protime. Van der Breggen had been working in a DS role for the squad, who she rode for before retiring, and said in the announcement, ‘I am excited to come back. To suffer on the bike again and to race with the team again. I realise now how much I love the game, the sport and the competition.’
The news comes with star rider – and Van der Breggen’s protégé – Demi Vollering set to depart the team at the end of the season. With the pair working in such a close proximity over the years, it will be interesting to see them compete against one another.
Van der Breggen is one of the most successful riders of all time, winning a plethora of races including La Flèche Wallonne seven consecutive times and earning the name ‘Queen of the Ardennes’ for being the first woman to complete the Ardennes Triple of Amstel Gold, Flèche and Liège-Bastogne-Liège. Her palmarès also includes four editions of the women’s Giro d’Italia as well as Olympic, World, European and national titles.
See you next week!
The post Pro Log: EF axe Andrea Piccolo amid doping investigation, National Championships results, and Van der Breggen returns appeared first on Cyclist.