Issue 127 - Italia!

What’s in the magazine?

Wout van Aert: The Same, But Different

The 2024 season is going to look a little different for Wout van Aert. He’s swapped the Giro d’Italia for the Tour de France, where he’s been on domestique duties for Jonas Vingegaard (and occasional stage-hunting forays) and is anticipating freedom to target a lot of stage wins in the Italian Grand Tour. He tells Rouleur that he’s not going for GC in Italy, why Paris-Roubaix would be his ultimate race win and why leaving the 2023 Tour de France to be present for the birth of his child was a no-brainer.

The World’s Greatest Cyclist, by Edward Pickering

Tadej Pogačar is the overwhelming favourite for the 2024 Giro d’Italia, a race which should suit him down to the ground. Rouleur’s editor Edward Pickering has a look at where the Slovenian is in his career, and examines the debate around whether his dominance in races makes them too predictable.

Storied Classics

Organising bike races is of course about designing sporting challenges and making the route safe for riders and spectators. However, this is cycling, and we at Rouleur understand that races have their own narratives and meaning. This is particularly true of the Flanders Classics events, which include Gent-Wevelgem, Omloop Het Nieuwsblad, Dwars door Vlaanderen, Scheldeprijs and of course the jewel in their crown, the Tour of Flanders. The Flanders Classics race director is former pro Scott Sunderland, who researched the history of each race along with their host towns and regions, and wove those stories into the race parcours. He takes Rouleur on a tour of his races, and explains why the Ronde is just like Led Zeppelin’s Stairway to Heaven.

Geraint Thomas is giving it one final push, by James Startt

Geraint Thomas is one of the peloton’s most experienced riders, having signed what he thinks is probably his last two-year contract with Ineos Grenadiers, the team he has represented since their inception in 2010. Thomas came a narrow second in the Giro last year, and is returning to the race he describes as one for the purists, before going on to tackle the Tour de France. He tells Rouleur that in spite of the fact he’s in his 18th year as a professional, his ambition is still burning as brightly as ever, and he insists that the fact of his career drawing to a close is only sharpening his focus.

Hard Route to the Top, by James Startt

Silvia Persico made her breakthrough at the 2022 Tour de France Femmes, where she finished fifth overall, and she has also forged a strong reputation in the Classics, with a win in the 2023 Brabantse Pijl, and top 10s in the Tour of Flanders, Trofeo Binda, Strade Bianche, Flèche Wallonne, Gent-Wevelgem and more. But there has been nothing inevitable about her rise. She tells Rouleur that she was on the verge of quitting a few years ago, but that now she has no fear of her rivals.

Anatomy of a Confession, by Jeremy Whittle

Cycling has got an ambivalent relationship with its past and with its secrets, especially with regard to doping. Some of the riders who took part in the widespread cheating of the 1990s and 2000s opted to or were pressured into confessing what they’d done; others have kept schtum; an unlucky few were destroyed by their secrets. Jeremy Whittle explores cycling’s institution of confession, highlighting 1997 Tour winner Jan Ullrich’s own admission that he cheated as an example of the liberating effect of telling the truth about one’s sins.

Rage Against the Machine, by Herbie Sykes

Alessandro De Marchi is one of the peloton’s most respected riders: a strong and experienced domestique and road captain, one of the very best at getting into breaks, and a very recent stage winner at the 2024 Tour of the Alps. But he’s equally notable for his usage of social media to make political points and to argue for a better world. He tells Herbie Sykes why, in an era of divisive and polarised political extremes, he is still standing up for the centre ground, and for a fairer, more equal world.

A Tale of Two Cities, by James Startt

The 2024 Giro d’Italia reaches its halfway point with a stage finish in Naples, then a start in Pompeii. One is a vibrant, anarchic, colourful, noisy city, which distils stereotypical Italian energy and passion into a melting pot of busy streets, animated conversations, sketchy traffic and heat; the other is one of the most important archeological sites in the world – the preserved streets of a Roman city buried in a volcanic eruption in 79AD. James Startt’s photo essay A Tale of Two Cities compares and contrasts the two places, which highlight both the diversity and unity of Italy.

The Giant of Buja, by Rachel Jary

Jonathan Milan is one of cycling’s most exciting up-and-coming sprinters, with a stage win and a maglia ciclamino at the Giro d’Italia already to his name. He’s also a successful track racer, with World and Olympic gold medals in the team pursuit. Following a transfer to Lidl-Trek for 2024, he is aiming high, with a dedicated leadout train for the first time in his career. He tells Rouleur about his path into the sport, his close links with his home region of Friuli-Venezia Giulia and why he also has ambitions in the Classics.

Gee Whizz! By Amy Jones and Jojo Harper

Geerike Schreurs is a living example of why we should never give up on our dreams. She was a roadie in the early 2010s, a team-mate and friend of Anna van der Breggen, but she quit the sport, disillusioned with the way things were going, vulnerable to perfectionist tendencies and feeling that she was living with too much pressure. She moved into being a soigneur, and worked for the Trek team; however, she started riding again, and found success as a gravel racer. In a full-circle moment, she is now coached by Van der Breggen and is racing for SD Worx as a gravel racer, finally having found happiness in the sport.

From Clubland to Quiet Roads, by Amy Sedghi

Pete Tong is one of the most famous and illustrious dance music DJs in the world. He is also a keen cyclist with a lifelong fascination and passion for bikes and riding. He tells Rouleur about his relationship with the sport, saying that it gives him equilibrium in a fast-paced and tiring lifestyle, and describing it as both a reason to go to sleep, and a reason to get up. And when he met Mark Cavendish at a LeBlanq event in Ibiza, it’s hard to tell who was the most starstruck.

The City at the Foot of the Alps, by Davide Mazzocco

It’s a huge year for cycling in the city of Turin and region of Piedmont. The Giro d’Italia’s opening stages take place there, and the Tour de France will pass through en route from its Grand Départ in Florence to France. Rouleur takes a ride through the historic industrial city of Turin, before hitting the hills of the beautiful countryside around.

The Giant of Buja, by Rachel Jary

Jonathan Milan is one of cycling’s most exciting up-and-coming sprinters, with a stage win and a maglia ciclamino at the Giro d’Italia already to his name. He’s also a successful track racer, with World and Olympic gold medals in the team pursuit. Following a transfer to Lidl-Trek for 2024, he is aiming high, with a dedicated leadout train for the first time in his career. He tells Rouleur about his path into the sport, his close links with his home region of Friuli-Venezia Giulia and why he also has ambitions in the Classics.