Spanish selection, spot on the calendar and many cancellations: how desirable is the European cycling championship?

The end of the Vuelta a España is slowly approaching, and most of the WorldTour races are also behind us. The only real highlights left are the Italian autumn classics and the international races in the last part of the cycling season. One of them should be the European cycling championships. However, the continental battle for the blue and white jersey with yellow stars has an unpleasant aftertaste.

That event will occur on Sept. 14 and 15 weekends in Belgian Limburg. Whereas the World Cycling Championships will soon be held in Zurich at the end of September and will have virtually all of the world's top riders to show off, with basically the entire classics contingent from Wout van Aert and Mathieu van der Poel to Remco Evenepoel and Tadej Pogacar, that's a lot less so at the European Championships. The relatively young race is an example of the quite full calendar, and that is not without consequences.

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Spanish selection is a striking example: priorities of federations do not lie with the European Championships

It has to be said before this story continues: with Wout van Aert and Mathieu van der Poel, the two matadors of the classic spring are at the start of the European Championships. Fortunately. Because many countries are certainly not prioritizing continental cycling. Take Spain, which announced its selection on Monday. There, the selected eight are pretty striking. Because of the lack of familiar names, that is.

Spain is undoubtedly one of the most significant cycling countries, with a great history of great classic riders. With Raúl García Pierna, there is only one rider from the WorldTour at the start. The rest of the riders, of which Jon Aberasturi is the most famous name, are acting at the second level on behalf of Caja Rural, Euskaltel Euskadi, Equipo Kern Pharma, or Burgos BH. I have nothing against these men, but national coach Pascual Momparler must have hoped for more prominent names anyway.

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Numerous cancellations: Evenepoel, Ganna, and Tarling skip the European Championships

Plenty of riders decided or were forced to cross the European Championship off the list as the summer progressed. Take the exhausted Filippo Ganna, Joshua Tarling, who fell in the Vuelta, and the star of cycling, Remco Evenepoel. The Belgians had a superb summer but must admit that the European Championship was too much. The Dutch squad also has a lot of names, with Thymen Arensman, Olav Kooij, Daan Hoole, and Mick Van Dijke, who will pass or are unsure whether they will be ready.

Chances are that in two weekends it will be a Belgian party. How could it be any different in its own country? However, the line-up of all those sprinters shows the blue shirts' kamikaze tactics and doubt. Is going to battle with Van Aert, Tim Merlier, Jasper Philipsen, and Jordi Meeus a good idea, or are the Belgians also taking a risk this way? It is a valid argument that taking an event like the European Championships seriously would also have involved a complex, realistic selection. That hasn't happened now.

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Calendar reflections: what is the most logical place for the European Championship?

Finally, the congested calendar is a sore point about the European Championship. This year and last year, the event was moved by the Super WC and the Olympics. The result is a new spot on the calendar, described as a tight spot between all the other cycling violence. Consequence: big names may prefer the World Championship because of its stature or simply need to recover from previous big goals this season.

The success of the European Championship seems to be primarily related to the parcours. Is there a sprinters' race? Then around or right after the Vuelta a España is an excellent option. If we deal with more all-round parcours, the initial date, usually around mid-August, is a good place on the calendar, between the Tour and Vuelta a España. However, you might wonder if holding a European and a World Championship within a month and a half is a good idea. With all the overlap and the choices riders must make, a European Championship in the spring might still be the best option. At least the list of exhausted dropouts gets a lot shorter.

Huub Mol