He reveals the crazy plan: Yellow jersey in 2028. - We probably need a few years. The first year will probably not be the Tour de France. 2025 will probably be more of a year of mapping, where we have to find out where we have to work. Not only with Kristian specifically, but also with the team. - In 2026, we aim to sit in the Tour de France. In 2027 we must be in a position to take some jerseys. If we are not in a position to take some stage wins or be at the very top in the overall, it is difficult to think that we will do something magical until 2028. So we think that then we will really test it in 2027, and then the goal of going all-in in 2028, Bu continues.
Kristian Blummenfelt's head is way too far up his own arse to seriously be switching full time from triathlon to pro cycling and thinks he can win the Tour de France by 2028. Not only does he not any any elite cycling experience, he is far too heavy compared to Tadej Pogacar, Vingegaard, or Evenepol
To be fair back before the Tokyo Olympics the critics were using the same “weight” issues about him as to why he would never come close to winning a medal in the triathlon. He won 🥇
I think he's got a good shot. There are definitely ways to drop weight (Especially easy with drugs, out of competition), and he already has the engine, it just needs to become more refined from the huge aerobic tri profile, to more top end punch power. That is super easy with specific training.
If only we knew of another example of a swimmer turned triathlete turned cycling that won 7 tour de france's (Doping irreleant).
Lance comparison is terrible. Lance was a professional cyclist at 21 and world champion in the road race at 22. And it took him 6 more years of scratching and clawing to win the Tdf. Blummenfelt is 30 and hasn’t even done a stage race before. Say what you want about Lance, but he respected the hell out of the tour’s difficulty. He never would’ve said “I can win it within three years of switching to cycling as my sport”
Cycling is WAY more competitive now than it was in Lance’s era. Look around in the pro peloton. Rodriguez, Almeida, Jorgensen, Ayuso, Skjelmose, Uijtdebroeks, Healy, Buitrago. These are just a few of the young super talents who haven’t even won a grand tour yet. And then there’s the big four, three of which will be around for the next 5-10 years at a minimum.
Blummenfelt is high on his own supply. He is an incredible triathlete, but this is a joke of a goal and he will get absolutely stomped if he tries this.
To be fair back before the Tokyo Olympics the critics were using the same “weight” issues about him as to why he would never come close to winning a medal in the triathlon. He won 🥇
Triathlons in the Olympics are flat as a pancake, weight doesn't matter much on the bike if you never even go up a hill. Blummenflet looks like he weighs more now that he did several years ago, no way he is only 75kg, he looks more like 80kg now. Way too heavy and he doesn't produce much power for that weight.
Blu is NOT winning: 1) Mountain top finishes, 2) A field sprints, 3) Reduced sprints, 4) hilly time trials, 5) technical time trials, 6) short flat time trial
Blu could win: 1) A long, flat time trial (this doesn't exist) 2) A monument, that doesn't end in a sprint and doesn't require massive surges, or technical skills, (again, this doesn't exist).
Blu could be a valuable domestique. If he learns to do lead-outs - he could rival Van Aert, MVDP or GANA as a tour de France domestique.
Blu won't win stages (or races) like those guys! But that might enhance his value as a domestique.
Except in ITU they barely race the bike. ITU is all about swimming hard. Getting into the bike with the lead pack, soft pedaling and then running hard. ITU is a terrible marker of cycling prowess.
He reveals the crazy plan: Yellow jersey in 2028. - We probably need a few years. The first year will probably not be the Tour de France. 2025 will probably be more of a year of mapping, where we have to find out where we have to work. Not only with Kristian specifically, but also with the team. - In 2026, we aim to sit in the Tour de France. In 2027 we must be in a position to take some jerseys. If we are not in a position to take some stage wins or be at the very top in the overall, it is difficult to think that we will do something magical until 2028. So we think that then we will really test it in 2027, and then the goal of going all-in in 2028, Bu continues.
Kristian Blummenfelt's head is way too far up his own arse to seriously be switching full time from triathlon to pro cycling and thinks he can win the Tour de France by 2028. Not only does he not any any elite cycling experience, he is far too heavy compared to Tadej Pogacar, Vingegaard, or Evenepol
Except in ITU they barely race the bike. ITU is all about swimming hard. Getting into the bike with the lead pack, soft pedaling and then running hard. ITU is a terrible marker of cycling prowess.
you can see during covid lock downs in zwift racing the itu guys doing 6w/kg in races. they are on youtube
blu does more than ITU triathlons. Does all different formats of TRI, so he can ride alone too. If the bike was easy in ITU, if you dont make the first pack after the swim you are out of the race. They dont soft pedal in ITU.
I’d say that overall as a people, Norwegians are built for endurance sports. Being athletic is also very cultural. Generally speaking, Norwegians are born with skis on their feet, and a love to be outdoors. Norwegians are also sports mad. Their athletes are revered. Recently in Oslo, Petter Northug (4 Olympic medals) was spotted outside the restaurant we were eating in; and you’d have thought Michael Jordan had appeared.
I'd say overall as a people, Norwegians are built for taking whole suitcases of asthma medicine
The South Korea Olympics are to start to morrow, the first winter games after Martin Johnsrud Sundby (NOR, xc-skiier) in the summer of 2016 was convicted of improper use of asthma medicine. It laun…
Big goals are always good. In this case, however, I can not imagine it. Riding in the peloton, making quick attacks, riding in the slipstream, the ability to control the bike on the rapid descents in the mountains or even to endure a three-week Grand Tour are things that all professionals have trained for many years. The individual pro teams choose their captain because they know that he is a complete rider in every respect, technically and physically and in terms of experience. I don't think that the pro teams are desperately waiting for Blummenfelt. A comparison: Cadel Evans, MTB World Cup winner in 1998 and 1999, switched to road racing after the 2000 Olympics (7th place in the MTB race). He rode a good Giro in 2002 (14th place), but he also crashed several times and broke his collarbone three times (Team T-Mobile, 2003). From 2005 onwards he got better and better in the Tour de France (7th place), 2006: 4th place, 2007 and 2008: 2nd place and finally in 2011 the Tour win at the age of 34, the oldest Tour winner to date. I think it is realistic to say that as an elite mountain biker Evans is a much better rider technically than Blummenfelt and that it is easier to switch from mountain biking to road cycling than from triathlon to road cycling. It took Evans six years to challenge for a Tour win.
Olympic Triathlon today and Blummenfelt got dropped big time on the swim and was midpack filler on the bike and hobbyjogger on the run. This is supposed to be a threat to Pogacar at the Tour de France?
He and any fan of his is absolutely, completely delusional.
I doubt the guy could make the time cut in any TdF mountain stage let alone finish. He can't even win the biggest race in his own sport as evident today!
He and any fan of his is absolutely, completely delusional.
I doubt the guy could make the time cut in any TdF mountain stage let alone finish. He can't even win the biggest race in his own sport as evident today!
Again, absolutely completely delusional
Nor has he won Kona
He does not have the bike leg record in Kona either. He was 7 minutes slower than Laidlow (who?) on the bike in that race.
