Category VII Cycling

Alejandro Valverde took the his first Classics win today, with an impressive sprint at the top of the Mur de Huy to capture the Fleche Wallone. Oddly, most of the commentary has commented on the apparent ease with which he one, easily pulling away from Samuel Sanchez – the main protagonist at the Basque Country Tour – and CSC’s on-form Karsten Kroon. In the race I saw, though, Valverde’s sprint was anything but easy or undramatic. In fact, after making an initial move, he added a second, strong kick as it appeared that Kroon and Sanchez were actually coming up even with the Madrilleno.

The Fleche isn’t what it used to be – 250 kms and on the day before Liege – but it is still an impressive race (even if the organizers decided to include a detour through what appeared to be downtown Beirut before hitting the foot of the Mur) and an impressive win for the talented Valverde.

In a more general point in response to Cosmo’s criticism of Tom Boonen’s palmares, it’s worth pointing out that Valverde is another impressive representative of the emerging generation of cycling heroes. (It’s also worth pointing out that The Cyclocosm is one of the best cycling blogs out there and the points Cosmo raises aren’t petty, but deserving of a response.)

In the first instance, dismissing Boonen’s accomplishments so early in his career seems foolhardy at best. It is easy to forget that the amiable (that’s twice now I’ve called him that) Belgian is only 25 – after all, he rides the cobbles with the savvy of a much more grizzled veteran.

And each day that his contemporaries win another big race, it does improve Boonen’s stock, using Cosmo’s Thevenet Rule.

But in my view, the most impressive aspect of the Boonens and Valverdes is their challenge of the specialization of the pro peloton. Given that such specialization is in large part a by-product of the infusion of money into the sport – and hence the pressure for teams and riders to succeed – targeting more than a few weeks’ worth of races is dangerous. The jack-of-all trades is a master of none, and the master of no race finds himself without a contract, just as the team with no wins finds itself losing sponsorship.

Tour champions no longer contest Classics. (In fact, similarly viewed in the context of Merckx’s accomplishments outside of the Tour during his five victories, Lance’s seven wins still seem somewhat thin. But just as Lance cannot be criticized for competing at the top level of the sport in his day, neither should Boonen.)

Boonen has challenged specialization to a degree. In addition to the Classics, he’s one of the very few that can take on Alessandro Pettachi in a straight-up sprint. While he’s not likely to “make a run at the Giro,” at least not for the maglia rosa, he is a sure fire bet to win stages and take some points jerseys should he ride the grand tours to the end. Moreover, Boonen is a man for all seasons, if not yet for all road gradients. Known now for his dominance in the Spring, his World’s title came in September, following stage wins in France and Spain.

More impressive in this regard, however, is Alejandro Valverde. A true all-around talent – approaching the master of all – Valverde has shown he can sprint, climb, and now deliver that extra type of punch that the Classics demand. Courchevel, too, showed his promise for the general classification – and certainly a top placing in Paris figures largely in his planning for the season. (Thus, for the first time in an epoch, Liege on Sunday will see two hopefuls for Le Tour – Valverde and Basso – also hoping to emerge victorious at La Doyenne.)

Some riders in the course of their careers come to change their major focus. Zabel shifted from field sprints to the Classics. Basso was originally a man for one-day racing. Now he has in mind 23. Di Luca, too, may be thinking more about the general classification than stage wins after his flirtation with the pink jersey last season. And of course Lance made a major shift in his cycling goals.

But what distinguishes these riders from the likes of Boonen, Vlaverde, and – should he confirm his promise after a disappointing 2005 sophomore season – Damiano Cunego, is that the young guns from the beginning of their careers have no placed limitations on their ambitions.

We can continue to look at these riders with the pantheon of the past in the forefront of our mind, discounting their accomplishments in the modern era. Or instead, we can look at them recognizing that while their careers are only just dawning, they hold the promise not only of the modern peloton, but also of raising the bar for the riders that will come after them.