# 2012 *Women's* Olympic Road Race



## KenS (Jan 28, 2004)

A damn fine race.


And the women deserve their own thread


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## Salsa_Lover (Jul 6, 2008)

Happy for Marianne Vos, well deserved.


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## bballr4567 (Jul 17, 2012)

I wonder why the US team didnt pull back up to the front to get their sprinter back up to front. 

No doubt the weather had a huge impact on the race though.


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## OldEndicottHiway (Jul 16, 2007)

KenS you rock.  It's nice to not have to continue tacking on to the @ss end of the men's RR thread.

I'm thoroughly enjoying the race. Good speeds, lots of attacks and aggressive riding going on. The girls are lighting up the roads! I think this race is more interesting than the men's yesterday.

So very cool such huge crowds turned out. 

And I knew Poole was tiny but...holy smokes what is she? 90lbs???


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## Marc (Jan 23, 2005)

OldEndicottHiway said:


> KenS you rock.  It's nice to not have to continue tacking on to the @ss end of the men's RR thread.
> 
> I'm thoroughly enjoying the race. Good speeds, lots of attacks and aggressive riding going on. The girls are lighting up the roads! I think this race is more interesting than the men's yesterday.
> 
> ...


It is easy to miss how short/small cyclists are at the competitive level if you don;t look at how little head tube their bike has...Poole though stuck out even among cyclists as being tiny.


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## OldEndicottHiway (Jul 16, 2007)

Wondering if Bronzini ever caught back on after her oops.

I'm hoping Stevens finished well. She (and Voss) is kind of a freak of nature.


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## adimiro (Jun 28, 2007)

Epic race and conditions!!


Is there any doubt that Marianne Vos is the greatest women's cycling champion ever??!?!?!

Maybe if cyclocross is allowed into the winter Olympics, hmmm.

Though not from the Netherlands, couldn't help but root for this amazing deep talent...yep, she was born to ride a bike FAST!!!


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## KenS (Jan 28, 2004)

What happened to Shelley Olds? She was in the break. I went to get some OJ. I came back and she was out of the break.

The American team was strong and aggressive.


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## OldEndicottHiway (Jul 16, 2007)

adimiro said:


> Epic race and conditions!!
> 
> 
> Is there any doubt that Marianne Vos is the greatest women's cycling champion ever??!?!?!
> ...



They punched it and crested Box Hill at 24mph. Ow!


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## harlond (May 30, 2005)

adimiro said:


> Epic race and conditions!!
> 
> 
> Is there any doubt that Marianne Vos is the greatest women's cycling champion ever??!?!?!
> ...


There is no doubt that Jeannie Longo is the greatest womens cycling champion.

I believe Shelly Olds flatted out of the break.


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## evs (Feb 18, 2004)

*Those 3 punched it at the end...*

They laid the power down for sure in the last 6kms. It was a great race. Did you see that woman slip on the paint on a corner. She didn't go down but that looked heart pumping. Great finish and epic race in the rain. To bad for america as we crashed. Armstrong took a bad fall but what about that lady near the finishing area when speeds were quite high. She slipped and fell and did a few 360s sliding down the road. Yikes.


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## OldEndicottHiway (Jul 16, 2007)

KenS said:


> What happened to Shelley Olds? She was in the break. I went to get some OJ. I came back and she was out of the break.
> 
> The American team was strong and aggressive.



I just saw her in the break. 


In other news, the Dutch are killing it today as well. Great team. 

Does my Dutch ancestry proud. :thumbsup:


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## OldEndicottHiway (Jul 16, 2007)

evs said:


> They laid the power down for sure in the last 6kms. It was a great race. Did you see that woman slip on the paint on a corner. She didn't go down but that looked heart pumping. Great finish and epic race in the rain. To bad for america as we crashed. Armstrong took a bad fall but what about that lady near the finishing area when speeds were quite high. She slipped and fell and did a few 360s sliding down the road. Yikes.




I'm on the west coast so we're just getting to the last 20 miles here. Looking forward to seeing the finish. 

(dang that rain is_ brutal_)

Too bad for the crashes.


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## paredown (Oct 18, 2006)

harlond said:


> There is no doubt that Jeannie Longo is the greatest womens cycling champion.
> 
> I believe Shelly Olds flatted out of the break.


True dat. Incredible bad luck.

Four for three medal spots would have made for a more interesting finish, although I think that the Russian rider would have finished fourth.

I was surprised that there were not more Americans up at the front chasing the break once Olds flatted.


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## OldEndicottHiway (Jul 16, 2007)

paredown said:


> True dat. Incredible bad luck.
> 
> Four for three medal spots would have made for a more interesting finish, although I think that the Russian rider would have finished fourth.
> 
> I was surprised that there were not more Americans up at the front chasing the break once Olds flatted.




Ugh. Just saw the flat. Olds could've medaled. 

Racing is such a crap shoot. Everything has to go "just right."


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## evs (Feb 18, 2004)

oops sorry I didn't realize there was a delay on the west coast. Your in for a good treat.


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## OldEndicottHiway (Jul 16, 2007)

evs said:


> oops sorry I didn't realize there was a delay on the west coast. Your in for a good treat.




When referencing the breakaway group, what's his name announcing with Paul keeps saying Olds "was dropped off the back in that rainstorm" even though Sherwen keeps correcting him that she actually flatted. Big difference between "dropped" and "flatted."

It's starting to p*ss me off.


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## evs (Feb 18, 2004)

haha it is annoying. I've come to expect it and just shake my head. They should just let Phil go solo and do his thing. lol


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## OldEndicottHiway (Jul 16, 2007)

I lost count of how many times Paul Sherwen called Armitstead , "Armitage."

And he's British! 

He earns my wtf award of the day. First time watching women's racing there, Paul? 


My only disappointment in the ladies' performance today was that the peloton did not organize and catch the breakaway. Only a forty-five second gap and plenty of miles to reel them back. 

Interesting how someone took a header at the same barrier as Cancellara yesterday. 

Vos completely earned that win, but I would've liked to see how the sprinter Olds would have done had she not flatted out of the breakaway.


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## atpjunkie (Mar 23, 2002)

*Paul Sherwin*



OldEndicottHiway said:


> I lost count of how many times Paul Sherwen called Armistead , "Armitage."
> 
> And he's British!
> 
> ...


is South African
Vos is the shizzle. I had no doubt in her once the break was up 40 seconds
you do not beat Vos in a bunch sprint, ask Hanka, Daphny and Katie

besides a little rain never bothered a cx racer

what a great race


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## OldEndicottHiway (Jul 16, 2007)

atpjunkie said:


> is South African
> Vos is the shizzle. I had no doubt in her once the break was up 40 seconds
> you do not beat Vos in a bunch sprint, ask Anka, Daphny and Katie
> 
> ...



I know he lives there (Africa), but I thought his roots were in GB!

Edit to add:

Paul Sherwen - Wikipedia, the free encyclopedia

_...*Born in Widnes,* Cheshire, Sherwen was brought up in Kenya. He started his sporting life as a swimmer, finishing second in the under-14 Kenyan swimming championship. *Upon returning to Britain, he won the regional under-18 championship for Runcorn and District. However, at 16, he turned to cycling and rode for the Weaver Valley CC in Cheshire, receiving guidance from Manchester coach Harold Nelson and trained regularly with other local riders* destined for professional careers, notably Graham Jones, John Herety and Ian Binder...._



...Sherwen joined Raleigh in 1986 alongside Mark Bell, Paul Watson, Jon Clay and Jeff Williams. *He retired after two seasons winning the British road race championship in 1987 his final season.... *"


So yes, he wins my wtf award for bastardizing a fellow Brit's (Silver medalist) name in the Olympic women's road race. 



Yup, very great race!


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## OldEndicottHiway (Jul 16, 2007)

Last but not least, a link to a great photo slideshow of today's race:

PHOTOS: Women's Olympic Road Race Cycling | 9news.com


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## thechriswebb (Nov 21, 2008)

From the beginning I thought that the dead certainty that a lot of people had that Cavendish would win the men's race was not justified. Barring a crash though, I didn't doubt Vos for one second.


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## RoadBoy1 (Oct 1, 2011)

paredown said:


> True dat. Incredible bad luck.
> 
> Four for three medal spots would have made for a more interesting finish, although I think that the Russian rider would have finished fourth.
> 
> I was surprised that there were not more Americans up at the front chasing the break once Olds flatted.


Agree about Shelly Olds. When she flatted they should have sent the whole team back for her and kept charging once they made it back up to the field. Who is the coach of the US Women's Road Team? Whoever it is really screwed the pouch on that one.


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## Addict07 (Jun 23, 2011)

I also was surprised to see Armstrong and Neben still hanging off the back after Olds flatted out of the break...it appeared Stevens was still working up front, but that the other two had decided to shut it down and conserve for the TT.


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## biobanker (Jun 11, 2009)

I got up to watch the womens race and stayed glued to the TV until it was over.

What a great race - those girls brought it!

As awesome as their riding was, I kept wishing for some Liz Hatch action tho. Is that wrong?


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## davidka (Dec 12, 2001)

OldEndicottHiway said:


> My only disappointment in the ladies' performance today was that the peloton did not organize and catch the breakaway. Only a forty-five second gap and plenty of miles to reel them back.
> 
> Interesting how someone took a header at the same barrier as Cancellara yesterday.
> 
> Vos completely earned that win, but I would've liked to see how the sprinter Olds would have done had she not flatted out of the breakaway.


I think they tried an just couldn't do it. I thought they might but that they didn't only made it more entertaining for me. I watched many less entertaining men's races this year. These ladies picked the right day to race hard.

Also interesting was that the first girl (in the pack) through Cancellara's turn had 2 front wheel slips and stayed up. Impressive stuff.


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## vismitananda (Jan 16, 2011)

Marianne Voss really dominated this one. I was able to watched the live coverage but only the last part. The weather really did a great job IMO, to add more action in the women's race.  

Shall I say Voss is the "Cannibal" of Women's pro peloton?
She's a champion to every discipline aside from MTBiking.


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## OldEndicottHiway (Jul 16, 2007)

vismitananda said:


> *Marianne Voss really dominated this one.* I was able to watched the live coverage but only the last part. The weather really did a great job IMO, to add more action in the women's race.
> 
> *Shall I say Voss is the "Cannibal" of Women's pro peloton?*
> She's a champion to every discipline aside from MTBiking.



A FB friendo called this race "boring" in that it was predictable (Vos won). 

I'm thinking he didn't actually watch the race.


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## pedalruns (Dec 18, 2002)

OldEndicottHiway said:


> When referencing the breakaway group, what's his name announcing with Paul keeps saying Olds "was dropped off the back in that rainstorm" even though Sherwen keeps correcting him that she actually flatted. Big difference between "dropped" and "flatted."
> 
> It's starting to p*ss me off.



I noticed this too... Steve Schlanger is "what's his name".. It was p*ssing me off too.. And he said it over and over.. and Paul would correct him. The way they kept going back an forth made me think they weren't sure if she actually flatted or was dropped?? 

Great race though! I thought it was better than the men's.


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## vismitananda (Jan 16, 2011)

OldEndicottHiway said:


> A FB friendo called this race "boring" in that it was predictable (Vos won).
> 
> I'm thinking he didn't actually watch the race.


Sometimes even the favorites doesn't had the chance to win a particular stage, so the chances of every rider is below 50%. There are these surprise and predictable winners. Aside from that there are a lot of factors, that could happen in a single race. (e.g. flat tires, crashes, etc) So that 50% could be lessen more.


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## gordy748 (Feb 11, 2007)

OldEndicottHiway said:


> A FB friendo called this race "boring" in that it was predictable (Vos won).
> 
> I'm thinking he didn't actually watch the race.


Vos was the favorite but Armitstead is the GB's sprinter. It was never a certainty that she'd win... remember that Vos has come second in something like 5 consecutive world championships and finished out of the medals (according to Cyclingnews.com so I don't know the time span).

Great race though. You can see the women know how to race without radios.


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## il sogno (Jul 15, 2002)

KenS said:


> What happened to Shelley Olds? She was in the break. I went to get some OJ. I came back and she was out of the break.
> 
> The American team was strong and aggressive.


She got a flat.


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## il sogno (Jul 15, 2002)

thechriswebb said:


> From the beginning I thought that the dead certainty that a lot of people had that Cavendish would win the men's race was not justified. Barring a crash though, I didn't doubt Vos for one second.


Indeed. Vos worked for it. She covered the attack when it mattered. She made her own luck. Cavendish sat in the pack. 

Chapeau Marianne!


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## Ridin'Sorra (Sep 7, 2004)

What a race and the conditions they had to race on!

Armistead mentioned in an interview that it was OK as rain it's her favourite weather :thumbsup:

Congrats to Marianne Vos! Awesome win in epic conditions...


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## Creakyknees (Sep 21, 2003)

Great pic, you can see the emotion.


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## atpjunkie (Mar 23, 2002)

*never bet against*



Creakyknees said:


> Great pic, you can see the emotion.


a crosser in foul weather

+2 if they are dutch or belgian


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## Ridin'Sorra (Sep 7, 2004)

Creakyknees said:


> Great pic, you can see the emotion.


Total respect... In those conditions I would pull over and wuss out, let alone race.


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## Creakyknees (Sep 21, 2003)

... aaaand here we go again...

Armitstead Speaks Out Over Sexism In Professional Cycling | Cyclingnews.com


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## WAZCO (Sep 16, 2004)

KenS said:


> A damn fine race.
> 
> 
> And the women deserve their own thread


This cool victory salute, reminds me of Lemonds World Champ. Better then Sagan's


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## 32and3cross (Feb 28, 2005)

Creakyknees said:


> ... aaaand here we go again...
> 
> Armitstead Speaks Out Over Sexism In Professional Cycling | Cyclingnews.com


And when should they bring it up? In the off season where they get no press coverage?


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## WAZCO (Sep 16, 2004)

*Didn't see the post, Agree!!!!!*



Creakyknees said:


> Great pic, you can see the emotion.


love this shot!


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## qatarbhoy (Aug 17, 2009)

Ridin'Sorra said:


> Total respect... In those conditions I would pull over and wuss out, let alone race.


Same here, because of all the punctures let alone the crashes. The greasy roads were treacherous.


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