• Thursday April 18, 2024 at 8:00 AM
Analysis The chilling images of the completely hypothermic Mattias Skjelmose atop the Wall of Huy loosened more tongues about this Flèche Wallonne than the strong and surprising victory of the British Stephen Williams.
Wet snow and rain showers, strong gusts of wind and a temperature around five degrees Celsius lashed the peloton. For some, the chance of getting sick in this dogged weather was too great four days before Liège-Bastogne-Liège. They stepped down after the first blessings from heaven. Others braved the winter conditions and saw their chance to achieve a result in this Ardennes classic.
At the start in Charleroi the sun still regularly burned through the cloud cover, but everyone knew better. All teams had their weather apps turned on. Based on the radar images, it was realized that escape from the wet snow and rain showers was impossible. At these low temperatures you know it will be a battle against the cold. Once wet, you will never get warm on the bike again under these conditions.
Tadej Pogacar and Mathieu van der Poel could well be the big winners of this Flèche Wallonne, the non-start of the two five-star favorites for Liège-Bastogne-Liège was pointed out. Better to train under the Spanish sun in Granada and Calpe respectively than to pace between Charleroi and Huy.
photo: Cor Vos
The entire UAE Emirates team gave up en route to perhaps save themselves and avoid risks to assist Pogacar in La Doyenne on Sunday. On behalf of the Emirates team, Marc Hirschi also took a hot shower before the real final. The Swiss won the Mur de Huy four years ago and finished second in the Amstel Gold Race last Sunday.
Although it was noticeable that most of the top players from the Limburg classic were looking for a faster route to the hot showers in Huy. Winner Tom Pidcock, number two Marc Hirschi, number four Mauri Vansevenant, number five Paul Lapeira, number eight Quentin Pacher, number nine Pelle Bilbao and number ten Michael Matthews. They all got off before the race started.
If you get off earlier when you are soaked, the chance of getting sick is somewhat smaller, but the most important reason to turn off earlier is that it has been scientifically proven that you need more time to recover after such a ‘North Pole’ race than after a regular match. If you apply the brakes earlier and don’t have to go as far, you will have your energy tank full again sooner for next Sunday’s Monument.
The ‘soldiers’ Tiesj Benoot (third in the Amstel Gold Race and ninth in the Flèche Wallonne) and Bauke Mollema (seventh in the Amstel Gold Race and 35th in the Flèche Wallonne) braved the barbaric conditions. From the start, Mollema wore double overshoes and long leg warmers and also brought extra clothing. Yet in the final he noticed that it was so cold due to the rain and snow that he could hardly feel his hands anymore.
Stephen Williams to victory in the cold. Photo: Cor Vos
Mollema got extra gloves, but in the last rounds he was completely numb and the power had disappeared from his body. “You can’t go deep anymore. Don’t put any more effort,” said the Groninger.
Winner Stephen Williams emphasized that it is especially important under these circumstances that you continue to eat and drink well. That you continue to take good care of your body. “Mentally, I found the part before we hit the local course around the Wall of Huy the most difficult. Once on those final rounds, I concentrated completely on the race and tried to forget the cold. Although that only works if you have good legs.”
In total, only 44 riders reached the finish. It cannot be a coincidence that there were 12 Scandinavians among them. Although not every ‘viking’ was armed against this cold.
Just how extreme the weather conditions were in Wallonia was demonstrated by images taken by people along the route when the Danish champion Mattias Skjelmose dismounted. He almost fell off his bike and could barely stand on his legs, shaking from the cold. The Dane even had to be carried away.
His team Lidl-Trek later sent a message: “We can confirm that our riders, who had hypothermia symptoms (Skjelmose in particular) due to the bad weather, are feeling better thanks to a hot shower, hot drinks and the warm temperatures in the team bus . No major treatments are needed and everything is certainly under control.”
To add five minutes later: “We know there are impressive videos of the moment Skjelmose left the race, but fortunately we can reconfirm that he is okay.”
Liège-Bastogne-Liège is on the program on Sunday. The weather forecast? In Bastogne the temperature fluctuates around freezing point in the morning hours and rises to a maximum of six degrees during the day. 3 mm of precipitation is expected.
2024-04-18 06:00:00
#Winners #extreme #Flèche #Wallonne #losers #LiègeBastogneLiège
