On Sunday in Montreal, in the elite road race, the start list includes Remco Evenepoel, Wout van Aert, and Vladimir Kovacik. He’s 28 and works as a soigneur for the Slovak cycling federation. His three compatriots, Lukas Kubis, Matthias Schwarzbacher and Martin Svrcek, have all withdrawn.
The federation explained the decision on social media on Friday: a minimum elite representation for Slovakia matters for the rankings and for the allocation of places at the Worlds, the European Championships and the Olympics. “Given the UCI rules and the fact that the World Championships are being held in Canada, the only solution is to field a member of the Slovak delegation,” the federation wrote. In other words, the regulations needed a name on the start list, and the delegation had one.
National federations are required to take part in certain major events on the calendar. Belgium knows the situation well: in 2023, shot putter Jolien Boumkwo ran the 100m hurdles at the European Games in Chorzów, Poland.
It’s the same at the club. When someone’s missing for the group photo before the ride, they grab whoever’s on the square, and that’s often me, because I’m there at twenty past nine. He was in the delegation, the delegation needed a rider. Fair enough. I checked my diary for Sunday: free. I’m not saying I’m on the start line. I’m saying I’ve got a jersey, two bidons and the Kwaremont (climb) segment with the backpack. Take away the backpack, the café and the red light in Oudenaarde, and a soigneur and a cyclo have a lot in common: we both know exactly where the bidons are. If Slovakia need a second rider, we can talk about it. At the café, we’d already filled in the form on a napkin.
It’s true, we checked: RTBF Sport.
