Simon Clarke rode into seventh place on Sunday night in arguably one of the toughest ever World Cycling Championships. A new generation of clean riders has arrived.
As Italy’s national team grappled with the pointy end of the bike race, they ratcheted up the tension on an increasingly elongated peloton.
The 100 kilometres to go mark saw a main group of no more than 70 well-moistened riders – with about 30 in permanent dangle mode: Pronto for a proverbial shelling out the back.
Without relent, the bunch galloped through an interestingly difficult course, leaving a small and eclectic mix of 50 riders to occupy the front bunch with an hour remaining.
The likes of Jakob Degenkolb and Fabian Cancellara were holding fort for the big men, proving the climbs too short for the skeleton-exposed mountain goats to properly capitalise.
The race was marred by crashes on the quintessentially twisty Tuscan roads; house-faces acting as curbs for many an out-of-control rider.
The grapes for wine struck a contrast on the uber-advanced technologies of cycling’s latest gizmos.
Simon Clarke, as much as I am sure his manager paid off the Eurosport commentators to advertise his skills to the world last night (he got mentioned a thousand and one times), rode an amazing race.
As a guy that has persevered through the junior ranks, U23 ranks, pro-continental ranks, and finally flourished at the World Tour level, he showed the world last night how clean the world of cycling is right now.
Clarke is professional in how he lives his life.
His training is tailored to his all-round abilities; every repetition sculpted with intent and no training day wasted.
His nutrition is that of routine and regiment, his core strengthening vigorous and persistent.
Clarke trains to his limit, then recovers as fast as possible, while having logged his training data – progress – every single day for nearly ten years so far.
He is the epitome of persistence paying off.
As Clarke sprinted home to seventh place last night in the biggest cycling race of the year, he showed the world how suffering and hard work will without a doubt, reap rewards down the line.
From his track camps with the Australian Junior National Team, to his ‘ONCE’ efforts with Brian Stephens at sa.com/AIS, his hours of motorpacing with Cadel Evans through the mountains around Lago Maggiore; Simon Clarke has build his engine to battle against the world.
This is a message to those who don’t believe in the good soul of our sport. In what can be done with perseverance. In a seventh place in the world, or in seven hour bike races through rain and hills against the best in the world.
Simon Clarke is undeniably, undoubtedly, 100 percent a clean bike rider, and he isn’t even at his prime yet.
He is still improving at a rapid rate, enough to hopefully allow his victory in coming years.
Regardless, cycling after all it has been through, may finally be the cleanest sport in the world. Cycling is clean, and Simon Clarke is not only proof but a text-book showing everyone how to do it within the rules.
Follw Adam on Twitter @adamsemple
Pinasmello
Guest
Wonder if this article sounds a bit too much like a certain someone's speech on the podium after his 7th Tour "win": "Finally, the last thing I’ll say to the people who don’t believe in cycling, the cynics and the sceptics: I'm sorry for you. I’m sorry that you can’t dream big. I'm sorry you don't believe in miracles. But this is one hell of a race. This is a great sporting event and you should stand around and believe it. You should believe in these athletes, and you should believe in these people. I'll be a fan of the Tour de France for as long as I live. And there are no secrets — this is a hard sporting event and hard work wins it. So Vive le Tour forever!"
Bobo
Guest
Adam, It's not 'permanent disbelief' that I expect, but to state with absolute and repeated certainty that someone is clean, when you have no idea whether that is true or not, is puzzling. In order to make that claim so fervently, you must have a basis for it. What is your basis? None is advanced in your article - just a declaration of faith as stone cold fact. If the basis is simply that Clarke is an Australian, then yes - it's journalistic jingoism, and ought to be condemned. It also takes away from analysis (or celebration) of a rider's preformance when it's used to prop up an edifice as shaky as cycling being the cleanest sport in the world. Far too many in the media have been involved in declaring (as a matter of faith) a rider to be clean, and refusing to see with one eye what the rest of us could see with two. The Roar should be above that. As far as Clarke's ride is concerned, it's proof that he can last the distance in a proper hilly classic. Lombardia, LBL or Amstel Gold would have to be on the radar for him now.
Tim Renowden
Expert
Clarke's ride at worlds was excellent, and his results for Orica-GreenEdge have been really good too. Adam, do you think he's ready to make a splash at the classics in 2014? Perhaps Liege-Bastogne-Liege?
Bones506
Roar Guru
My main issue is the sport has done little to prove it has cleaned itself up - especially in the wake of the last 12 months whereby it appears the UCI was complicit in much of the late 90s early 2000s. The confidence comes from the top down and Cookson into Presidency should assit this but it will take some time.
Adam Semple
Expert
Journalistic Jingoism? I'm the least patriotic person on the planet! Of course nothing is ever 100%, and I do apologise for such blind confidence in my fellow man (heaven forbid?). It's also a shame the scar of historical filth is seemingly permanent disbelief.
Bones506
Roar Guru
I am inclined to agree with Bobo here - how can you say anyone is 100% clean. I am not leaning either way on this but there are plenty of next gen EPO based drugs that are not able to be detected. Unsure how you can say it is the cleanest sport in the world after it has been one of the most dirty. Multiple Fantini riders busted at Giro. Everyone in 99 was saying that the TDF was the cleanest in a very long time - look how that one turned out.
Bobo
Guest
I hate articles like this. I have no idea whether Clarke is clean or not, and unless you are living with him [in which case you should have disclosed it], neither do you. All top riders, clean or not, train hard and rest well, pay attention to diet and have a determination and tenacity to match their ambition. His success is fantastic. His ride should be celebrated. He has proven himself worthy of being in the very top echelon of our sport. Instead of focusing on that, we get a unprovable (and laughable) assertion that cycling is the 'cleanest sport in the world' and that Clarke is "undeniably, undoubtedly, 100 percent a clean bike rider". As if you'd know. Every time a new generation comes up, they are heralded as the 'clean generation'. Yet every time we find out that a significant number of each generation are doping. We also know that people can and do dope without their own family knowing. Your bald and confident assertion seems to be based on nothing more than the fact that he works hard and is Australian. It's journalistic jingoism, and a dangerous thing to do in our sport. I hope Clarke is clean, and have no reason to think he is not. But to declare that he is proof that cycling is the cleanest sport in the world is frankly bizarre, and does you no credit.