Climbing specialist
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A climbing specialist or climber, also known as a grimpeur, is a
Role of climber in a race
In a sustained climb, the average speed declines, the aerodynamic advantage of
Another important role in climbing is that of attacker or counter-attacker. Climbing specialists use their superior abilities either to attack on climbs and thereby
In recent years, climbing specialists have been deployed as
Types of climbers
Climbers tend to have a lot of endurance and specifically developed muscles for long hard climbs. They also tend to have a slim, lightweight physique, but some can become good climbers through concerted training.
The most successful climbing specialists come in different shapes and specializations. Climbers with very small physique such as José Rujano (48 kg), Nairo Quintana (58 kg), Roberto Heras (60 kg), Alberto Contador (61 kg) and Gilberto Simoni (58 kg) thrive when the climbs reach dizzying heights and incredibly steep slopes where their low weight makes them more efficient and able to put in repeated acceleration runs. Their endurance also makes them good stage race specialists. Marco Pantani, champion of the 1998 Tour de France, was able to make attack after attack to quickly tire out his opponents.
Another type of rider or
The last type of climber is the breakaway specialist who can ride aggressively with many attacks and sustain their lead over ascents, descents, and flats. Famous examples include Laurent Jalabert and Richard Virenque both of whom earned their King of the Mountains jerseys in the Tour de France by day-long breakaways amassing points at every summit. Most notably, Laurent Jalabert started his career as a sprinter but later transformed himself into a different type of rider. Rafał Majka won the Polka Dot jersey at the 2014 Tour de France and 2016 Tour de France in a similar manner.
Many riders who are primarily time-trialists have also been able to compete in everything but the steepest climbs because of their good power-to-weight ratio. Tour de France winners Miguel Induráin, Jan Ullrich and Bradley Wiggins were primarily time-trialists but were also among the best in the mountain stages during the years in which they won the Tour de France. Also riders can build up a lead in the individual time trial's and defend the lead they have in the mountain stages, Tom Dumoulin won the 2017 Giro d'Italia and Primož Roglič won the 2021 Vuelta a España by doing this.
Climbing physics and physiology
Sports
Scaling factors also account for the relative disadvantage of the small cyclist in descending, although this is a result of
Although these factors might seem to cancel each other out, the climber still has an advantage on a course with long ascents and long descents: adding several miles per hour on a slow, time-consuming climb is much more valuable than the same increase on a fast and brief descent. Any rider, of course, can improve their climbing speed by increasing their aerobic power and reducing their body weight and can increase their descending speed through better bike handling and the willingness to accept an increased risk of crashing. One of the few elite riders to use descending skill as a competitive advantage is Paolo Savoldelli, nicknamed "the falcon."
For a more quantitative treatment of climbing physics and physiology, see Swain, DP, Cycling: Uphill and Downhill [1].
Bicycle technology
Recent advances in
King of the Mountains in stage races
Most stage races have a special category for the best climber, usually by awarding points at the important summits of the race. In the Tour de France for example, the best climber, or "King of the Mountains", is awarded a red polka dot jersey (French: maillot à pois rouges). In the Giro d'Italia the best climber is awarded a blue jersey (Italian: maglia azzurra). In the Vuelta a España the best climber is awarded a blue polka dot jersey.
Examples of climbers
Active riders
Former riders
- Lance Armstrong
- José Azevedo
- Federico Bahamontes
- Ivan Basso
- Gino Bartali
- Alberto Contador
- Fausto Coppi
- Charly Gaul
- Roberto Heras
- Luis Herrera
- Laurent Jalabert
- Julio Jiménez
- Vincenzo Nibali
- Marco Pantani
- Michael Rasmussen
- Joaquim Rodríguez
- Andy Schleck
- Gilberto Simoni
- Lucien Van Impe
- Richard Virenque
References
- ^ Swain, David P (1998). "CYCLING UPHILL AND DOWNHILL". Sportscience. Retrieved 26 August 2014.
- ^ "Uci News". Archived from the original on 2012-08-03. Retrieved 2009-06-08.
Further reading
- Owen Mulholland, John Wilcockson. Uphill Battle: Cycling's Great Climbers. VeloPress, 2003.