Linus Gerdemann - Cycling's next superstar?
The Team Chef
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Well, it’s been awhile since my last post, as other things having taken priority (the usual stuff - work, kids, riding, watching the Tour). Anyway, I’ve got several articles that are already written, and will make their appearance in the near future - the completion of the “Missing Years…” series of articles, and the larger work to which it belongs, “The Top 25 Cyclists of the Modern Era.”
Since my last post, a lot has happened: Carlos Sastre won Le Tour; Alejandro Valverde claimed the Classica San Sebastian; Sammy Sanchez fought his way through the lung-choking smog of Beijing to capture Gold at the Olympics; Tyler Hamilton came back from the dead, and is now the reigning US National Champion; and Alberto Contador, with his recent victory in the Vuelta, became only the fifth cyclist to win all three Grand Tours (joining Jacques Anquetil, Eddy Merckx, Felice Gimondi, and Bernard Hinault). Of course, all this pales in comparison with the announcement of The Second Coming of Lance Armstrong. Get used to it folks, as Big Tex is going to suck the life out of every story, and every other cylist’s accomplishments, in the coming months. I guess you know where I stand on his return to the peloton. So, before it becomes all Lance, all the time, I felt it would be good to focus on the success of one of my favorite riders, Linus Gerdemman, before he gets forgotten in the long shadow soon to be cast by Armstrong.
Almost barely noticed in the cycling headlines this past month (due to an appalling lack of media coverage) was Linus Gerdemann’s return to the top level of the sport with his victory in the Deutschland Tour (Tour of Germany). He laid the foundations for this win by capturing the King Stage (oddly, the Germans prefer this nomenclature to the traditional Queen Stage). It was certainly confirmation that the young 4th year professional had fully recovered from his horrible crash in a time trial at the Tirreno-Adriatico back in March.
Gerdemann won the second stage mountaintop finish despite a mishap in the closing kilometers, which nearly cost him the victory – his radio earpiece came loose, landed on the chain, and from there worked its way into his rear derailleur. He considered changing bikes, but figured that would have cost him even more lost time. He could have easily panicked, as the group behind was in hot pursuit. In the end, he kept a level head, took care of his problem, and captured the stage ahead of his own Columbia teammate, Thomas Lovkist, by a mere 17 seconds. Astana’s young mountain goat, Janez Brajkovic, also finished in the same time as Lovkist, but was pipped at the line, finishing 3rd. Columbia protected Gerdemann’s slim lead for the remainder of the race, and Linus sealed his overall victory by finishing comfortably ahead of all his closest rivals in the final 34km TT. The young German had won his first professional stage race.
The Queen/King Stage was a monster – 178 km (108 miles) with the riders facing three rated climbs - a category 2, followed by a category 1, and then a finish at the top of another category 1. This stage profile says it all:
As testament to the difficulty of the stage, Dennis Menchov (winner of the ’07 Vuelta and 5th in this year’s Tour de France) abandoned the race, simply too exhausted to continue. Bernard Kohl, 3rd in the Tour, finished 9:18 in arrears. The winner of the D Tour’s two previous editions, Jens Voigt, finished 8:48 adrift. Also left in Gerdemann’s wake were the following noted climbers: Pietro Caucchioli, Jose Rujano, David De La Fuente, Haimar Zubeldia, and Vladimir Karpets.
This was no ordinary win, and Gerdemann’s victory had demonstrated he could challenge in the high mountains. His win in last in year’s Tour (stage 7) was impressive, but did not involve the amount of climbing encountered in Germany. Of course, a victory in the Tour is always considered more prestigious than those of other stage races, but as a comparison, the stage in France was over a profile which consisted of one category 3, followed by a category 4, then the category 1 Col de Columbiere, finally culminating in a downhill run to the finish (which was a hair-raiser, as Gerdemann had to bomb down the descent to hold off a chasing Inigo Landaluze).
So, does this victory serve as a harbinger of things to come in a Grand Tour? Gerdemann held up well during the first half of last year’s Tour de France in his first attempt at the race. He showed excellent form through the Alps, where he earned both the yellow and white jersey after his stage 7 win, although only holding both for just a day. Linus paid for his efforts by giving back some time on the following stages, but then showed strength in the stage 14 TT (54 km) by finishing 14th, coming within two minutes of eventual winner Cadel Evans (after the initial victor, Alexander Vinokourov, was later disqualified for blood doping violations). Entering the Pyrenees, Linus looked well on his way to a top 10 placing, but finally the length of the race caught up with him, and he lost huge chunks of time in the leg breaking high mountain passes during the third week. Despite his difficulties in the Pyrenees, Linus finished the race strong by once again placing very well ( 15th) in the final long TT (55.5 km), 3:17 behind stage winner Levi Leipheimer.
When the dust settled on the 2007 Tour de France, Linus Gerdemann had finished a very respectable 36th place. This year’s third place finisher, Bernard Kohl, was a DNF in his first appearance and finished 31st in ’07. Here’s some more food for thought: Bernard Thevenet, a two-time Tour winner, was 35th in his first Tour appearance; Louison Bobet, a three-times winner, did not finish in his first Tour attempt; Miguel Indurain was a DNF in his first two Tour appearances, only finishing in 97th place in his first completion; and finally, even Lance Armstrong failed to complete the Tour in his first two attempts.
For those who may be thinking I’m getting a little too excited about Gerdemann’s chances for Grand Tour fame, it should be noted that he did not start riding until he was 17. Given that he is now 26, and does not even have a full decade of riding in his legs, it is very possible that his endurance will take a giant leap in the next couple of years. That jump should allow him to stay strong throughout a three-week race. Earlier this year he finished 3rd behind Alessandro Ballan and Fabian Cancellara in the extremely difficult Monte Paschi Eroica, demonstrating that he is continuing to improve quite rapidly. He was on pace to actually beat Cancellara in the Tirreno-Adriatico time trial, a 26 km test over a twisting, technical course. Unfortunately, his crash after a nasty 12% pitch, just before the finish, ended his ambitions (photo, above). In spite of his obvious pain and the severity of the crash, Gerdemann changed bikes, remounted, and went on to finish the stage in 8th place, just 1:16 in arrears. After he crossed the finish line he was whisked away by ambulance, the full extent of his injuries revealed later – unbelievably, he had completed that final kilometer with torn knee ligaments, and a fracture to both his upper and lower leg. Yes, balls of steel.
I believe Linus Gerdemann possesses all the requisite skills to become a Grand Tour champion – he can climb, time trial, descend, hang tough with the one-day studs, and he can certainly ride through pain. All that remains is to develop his endurance, which will certainly come with time. It also is refreshing to know Linus has been an outspoken critic of drugs and cheats in the sport long before it was fashionable to do so. Surely, since Team Columbia has an internal testing program, we won’t have to guess whether or not any of his wins have been “assisted.” Let’s hope Gerdemann’s injuries are a thing of the past, because he’s just the kind of guy cycling needs right now. It will be interesting to see if he can become one of the dominant cyclists of his generation. I’m guessing he will.
Postscript: Gerdemann is not going to compete in the '08 World Championships in Varese due to a nagging stiff neck. The problem has persisted since the 3rd stage of the Tour of Germany, and he is in a great deal of pain after just a few hours in the saddle. I hope this is not a chronic condition related to his crash earlier in the year.
Photo credits: TDF stage 7 podium, Flickr gallery of guano; D-Tour 1st stage podium, Team Columbia; D-Tour stage 1 profile map, Tour of Germany; T-Mobile, Flickr gallery of incuboy; Tirreno crash, Roberto Bettini; High Road in Tirreno, Team Columbia.
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