The foresight of recon

Wednesday’s Flèche Wallonne was a classic case of old-school cycling nations failing to learn from their progressive Anglophone counterparts, writes Anthony Tan.

"I thought with 500 metres to go he [Alberto Contador of Astana] had it but it's not the first time I've done this race and I used it to my advantage today.

"I think it's my sixth or seventh Flèche Wallonne, but I've never done a course reconnaissance.

"Yesterday, [team BMC] directeur-sportif John Lelangue took us out for a course reconnaissance and I looked at the climb from a different perspective – I thought I always raced here with the wrong tactic."

That this year's Flèche Wallonne champion Cadel Evans had never - never! - done a course reconnaissance before his emphatic, ecstatic, fantastic victory Wednesday atop Belgium's Mur de Huy says two, salient things.

The first is that it's a bloody disgrace that his former team (now called Omega Pharma-Lotto) and his team before that (Team Telekom) never offered – nor encouraged – a bona-fide contender of the Ardennes Classics the opportunity to scout the parcours of such a decisive race finale.

Said Evans of his winning move, "I waited till the last moment – I had a good position at the start – but waited till the final and took them [Contador and Joaquin Rodriguez of Katusha] in the last 100 metres… And that was the way to do it."

Had his former team sport directors done what John Lelangue believes to be a formality before any major race, Evans may well have become the first Australian to win an Ardennes Classic two years ago, when he finished second to Kim Kirchen in the 2008 edition of La Flèche.

"I wasn't enjoying the way things weren't being effectively planned and carried out [at Davitamon/Silence-Lotto]. That made life a bit difficult for me," said Evans at a team press conference before the race.

"I noticed that there was as bit of change in the team towards me after I lost the [2008] Tour de France to Carlos Sastre. I did what I could, and in my mind it was the best Tour I'd ever ridden. After that, I felt there wasn't a lot of confidence in me."

Good riddance to them, I say.

Second thing – which is both symptomatic and consequential of the first – is that old-school European teams still lag well behind the Avant-garde approach and mentality of their Anglophone peers – namely, HTC-Columbia, Garmin-Transitions, Team Sky, RadioShack; be it with regards to race preparation, anti-doping, technology… Everything.

That the majority of Belgian, Spanish, Italian and French teams still can't get their heads around the importance of modern technology (such as regular wind-tunnel testing to make improvements in the time trial or using super-cool clothing for extremely hot days) and modern coaching methods (such as reconnoitring decisive sections/finishes of one-day races and key stages in major tours) astounds me.

As Cycling Central's editor Phil Gomes reminded me, think back to last year's Tour de France team time trial in Montpellier.

Despite the behest of Evans, Silence-Lotto's omission to adequately reconnoitre the technical parcours ('it's only 39 kilometres, what are you worried about?' they probably said) cost them over two-and-a-half minutes to winners Astana – then directed by Tour mastermind Johan Bruyneel.

And that was only the fourth stage.

If Contador's team had done what Lelangue did for Evans before Wednesday's race, the two-time Tour de France champ may have got the better of his Australian counterpart.

He was just as strong – but not as smart, or at least well-informed.

However, I don't think we can say from this that Contador will be at Evans' – or anyone else's – mercy come the Tour. He's a quick learner, so far has never made the same mistake twice, and come July, will be much better prepared.

As for that misguided myth about the curse of the rainbow jersey… We can throw that one out the window.

Bring on Liège. Bring on the Giro. And bring on the Tour!