In no other country has cycling has such a hard time as it has had in Germany and most of the races in the country have disappeared. However, a few one-day races have survived and one of them is even one of the oldest on the calendar. Rund um Köln may nowadays be overshadowed by races like Vattenfall Cyclassics and Rund um den Finanzplatz but it remains an important part of the German calendar and is a race that most riders would love to add to their palmares.

 

The doping issue has marred cycling everywhere but in most countries, the sport has been able to maintain its excitement and a solid fan base. However, things have been completely different in Germany where the discussion about doping has almost erased a sport that was once very popular in the times when Jan Ullrich and Erik Zabel impressed at the Tour de France. The public and the media have largely turned their back to the sport and while the country once had three WorldTour teams, it suddenly had none just a few years ago.

 

Germany once had a very rich cycling calendar with numerous week-long stage races and a couple of high-level one-day races. Bayern Rundfahrt, Hessen Rundfahrt, Sachsen Tour, Niedersachsen Rundfahrt and Rheinland-Pfalz Rundfahrt were just some of the races that joined up with the national Deutschland Tour and one-day races like HEW Cyclassics (now Vattenfall Cyclassics), Rund um den Henninger Turm (now Rund um den Finanzplatz), Rund um Köln, Münsterland Giro and Rund um die Braunkohle to form a rich and diverse cycling scene.

 

No other country has been more affected by the massive doping suspicion than Germany which is now left with very few events to showcase its many fine cycling talents. As the race in Bayern has been cancelled in 2016, there are no longer any top level stage races in the country while the Frankfurt and Köln one-day races are in a constant survival battle. A new race was established in Berlin but it has also been cancelled for 2016.

 

The emergence of riders like Tony Martin, André Greipel, Marcel Kittel and John Degenkolb has slowly improved things. Giant-Alpecin is now a German WorldTour team, Bora-Argon 18 and Stölting are solid pro continental teams and there is again live coverage of the Tour de France on national television. The country has even attracted the Grand Depart for the 2017 edition and to make up for the loss of Bayern Rundfahrt, there are now plans to revive the Deutschland Tour together with ASO.

 

One of the only races to have survived is Rund um Köln which is one of the oldest races in the world. First held in 1908, it was once only the third-oldest race in Germany but after Rund um di Hainleite and the Rund um Berlin have both disappeared, the race is now the longest-running race in the big country. In the early years, it was a national race for amateurs but it enjoyed international recognition in the 1920s, most notably in 1928 when Giro d’Italia winner Alfredo Binda came out on top in Köln. Between the 1930s and the 1980s, it was mostly held as a race for amateurs, with just a few editions being open for professionals. However, since 1990 it has been an important race on the UCI calendar and is now the third most important German race after the Vattenfall Cyclassics and Rum um den Finanzplatz. It probably enjoyed its biggest attention in 2003 when Jan Ullrich kicked off his comeback from suspension by claiming a solo win here.

 

In 2007, the race was registered as a 1.HC race on the UCI calendar but the constant battle for survival has taken its toll. The 100th anniversary edition in 2008 was almost cancelled due to a lack of funding and race director Artur Tabat only saved the race very late. Unfortunately, the race was never held due to snowfall. One year later, the doping debate forced the organizers to have a race for national teams which meant that they were forced to downgrade it to a 1.1 race. It has had that status since that year but it is now again a race for trade teams. From 2000 to 2014, it was always held on Easter Monday but since 2015, it has been held on the second Sunday in June. This year’s edition is a special one as it is the 100th anniversary.

 

The race is held in a relatively flat part of Germany and so it has always been suited to sprinters. However, difficult weather has occasionally made the race harder and allowed riders to claim solo victories. Last year Etixx-QuickStep managed to split the race in the hilly zone and a 5-rider group kept the peloton at bay. Tom Boonen beat Edward Theuns, Andreas Schillinger and Linus Gerdemann in the sprint following great work from his teammate Nikolas Maes. Marcel Kittel had a frustrating near-miss in a very bad year as he won the sprint for sixth.

 

The course

The 100th edition of the race will be held on a relatively classic 205.8km course which both starts and finishes in the centre of Köln. After a flat start, they will head into the hillier terrain on the northeastern outskirts of the city where the will tackle two categorized climbs during the first 90km. However, there are several uncategorized ascents too in an area that hasn’t many flat roads.

 

After a long descent, the riders will get to a 55.8km circuit that they will cover twice. It includes two short, steep categorized climbs in addition to some longer, gradual uphill sections. They will reach the top of the final climb with 36.6km to go and then it is time to return to Köln. A short descent leads to flat roads that will bring the peloton to the city centre where they will end the race by doing two laps of a flat 6.2km circuit. It’s a relatively straightforward affair with two U-turns and several sweeping bends. The final right-hand turn comes between the flamme rouge and the 500m to go mark.

 

Compared to last year’s race, the course has been significantly changed. The start has been moved to the city centre and the hilly part of the race is completely new. The finishing circuit has been shortened by 400m and the number of laps has been reduced from four to two.

 

 

 

 

The favourites

Rund um Köln has traditionally been a race for sprinters and it usually requires quite a big performance to prevent a bunch sprint in the end. Last year Tom Boonen showed that it’s possible but it really takes a dedicated effort from some very strong riders and representation of the key teams for a break to stick.

 

This year the course has changed and this may favour the attackers. It is hard to say whether the change to the climbing section has made the race harder but the reduction of the number of laps in the end gives less time for regrouping to take place. Furthermore, Sunday is forecasted to be a rainy day. Luckily they will start early which means that they may actually take off in sunshine but rain is expected to hit the race in the finale. That will make the race harder and it is another advantage for the attackers. On the other hand, there won’t be much wind so the race won’t be split up. Furthermore, it will be a headwind during the flat run back to the finish in Köln and this will make it harder to stay away.

 

Much depends on the approach of the key teams. This year it seems that all the big teams want to sprint. Lotto Soudal are here with André Greipel, Dimension Data have Mark Cavendish, LottoNL-Jumbo are working for an in-form Dylan Groenewegen and Giant-Alpecin will be going for Nikias Arndt. Only BMC really want to blow the race to pieces but it won’t be easy. LottoNL-Jumbo could join some of the attacks and BMC need to team up with the Dutchmen to create a surprise. However, it will be a surprise if the 100th edition of the race doesn’t come down to a sprint.

 

With wet roads in the finale, many riders will prefer to stay safe in a relatively small race so close to the start of the Tour de France so no one will take any big risks. Luckily the circuit is not very technical. There’s a sharp turn less than one kilometre from the finish and it will be very important to be in a good positioni at this point. Hence, lead-outs will play an important role. However, it’s still a pretty long finishing straight so it’s not a bad sprint for the power sprinters.

 

On paper, Cavendish and Greipel are the fastest riders here and it will be very interesting to finally get a big duel between the two archrivals. Both have shown great form recently as Cavendish crushed the opposition in the final stage of the Tour of California and Greipel dominated the Giro d’Italia sprints when the race arrived in Italy. Furthermore, history shows that they are very equally matched when it comes to pure speed.

 

However, Greipel is here without most of his train. From his preferred support team, only Marcel Sieberg and Adam Hansen are here. He can also rely on Sean De Bie and Pim Ligthart who did well at the Giro, and Jasper De Buyst who is fast but doesn’t have much experience in working with Greipel. As opposed to this, Cavendish is here with Mark Renshaw, Bernhard Eisel and Kristian Sbaragli. Sbaragli is a new addition since California but we never really got the chance to see what the Eisel-Renshaw-Cavendish train could do in California where they had to blow up their lead-out too early to catch the break in the final stage.

 

On paper, however, Dimension Data should be slightly stronger than Lotto Soudal. The Belgian team probably have the most firepower and may control the finale but Dimension Data have more speed in the end. Sieberg is not as fast as Renshaw so if the Dimension Data guys can latch onto the Lotto train, Renshaw is very likely to deliver Cavendish on the front. This year the Brit has proved that he still has fantastic speed. He was so close to beating Kittel at Scheldeprijs and he made Kristoff and Sagan look like juniors in the final stage in California. With Renshaw for support, he could very well boost his confidence by winning this race and he is our favourite to come out on top.

 

Greipel will be his big rival. As said, Lotto Soudal have more firepower than Dimension Data and Greipel’s form is excellent. Recently, he won a stage at the Tour de Luxembourg and he is brimming with confidence. The days when Cavendish is faster than Greipel are over and it will be a very close battle. The wet roads are not an advantage for the German who is famously known for not taking too many risks but if his team can do a lead-out like they did in the Giro, it could be a very popular home win.

 

The third big sprinter in the race is Dylan Groenewegen. The Dutchman has been on fire all year and showed that he is back on form after a disappointing race in California when he won Heistse Pijl. In that race, he did not only rely on his impressive speed, he also showed great climbing form to make it across to a late break on a cobbled climb in the finale.

 

Groenewegen is not as fast as Greipel and Cavendish but h has one big advantage: his train. LottoNLJumbo have done really well, most recently on the first stage in California where only the headwind prevented the Dutchman from winning. With the likes of Tom Leezer, Sep Vanmarcke and final lead-out man Robert Wagner at his side, Groenewegen has one of the strongest team and as he is in the running for a Tour de France spot, he would love to win this race.

 

Nikias Arndt has had a bad start to the year when it comes to sprinting but he finally got things going towards the end of the Giro where he was one of the most consistent riders in the sprints. In fact, he was second behind Nizzolo in the final two sprints and was even awarded the victory on the final stage after the Italian was relegated. He will love to win his home race and he has some fast riders to support him as Bert De Backer, Søren Kragh and Max Wahlscheid will be at his side. However, they don’t have much experience in working together and Arndt is not as fast as the biggest names so it will be difficult to win.

 

BMC have Jempy Drucker for the sprint. The Luxembourger is not a pure sprinter but he is very consistent as he is great at positioning. At the Tour de Luxembourg, he proved that his form is outstanding and he should find a hard race like this to his liking. Unfortunately, he crashed out of that race so it remains to be seen how he has recovered. If he is not feeling well, Rick Zabel will be given his chance in his home race but he is not fast enough to be on the podium.

 

ONE Pro Cycling wil be supporting Steele Von Hoff who showed excellent form by winning the first stage of the Tour of Norway. The Australian is pretty fast but he is very inconsistent as his positioning is pretty bad. ONE haven’t done the best lead-outs but if he is in a good position, he can do well.

 

Bora-Argon 18 are very motivated for their home race and it will be up to Phil Bauhaus to deliver the goods. They have a pretty strong train here and Bauhaus has been showing some good form recently, most notably in Azerbaijan. The Bora-Argon 18 lead-out does not always work perfectly but Bauhaus has the speed to be up there.

 

Topsport Vlaanderen have Bert Van Lerberghe who is a very consistent top 10 sprinter. Stölting are here with Gerald Ciolek but the German rarely mixes it up with the best as he both misses the speed and the positioning skills. It will also be a good idea to keep an eye on Marcel Meisen.

 

The list of sprinters also includes Alexander Krieger, Leonardo Duque, Benjamin Giraud,Willi Willwohl and Sebastian Baldauf.

 

If a small group makes it to the finish, keep an eye on riders like Sep Vamarcke, Stefan Küng, Loic Vliegen, Taylor Phinney, Søren Kragh, Kristian Sbaragli, Alex Kirsch, Fabian Wegmann, Pieter Vanspeybrouck, Dion Smith, Clement Koretzky and and Martijn Tusveld.

 

UPDATE: BMC have informed that they will do the sprint for Rick Zabel, not Jempy Drucker.

 

UPDATE: Mark Cavendish won't do the race.

 

***** André Greipel

****  Dylan Groenewegen, Nikias Arndt

*** Kristian Sbaragli, Steele Von Hoff, Phil Bauhaus

** Bert Van Lerberghe, Marcel Meisen, Rick Zabel, Jempy Drucker, Sep Vanmarcke, Stefan Küng, Dion Smith, Pieter Vanspeybrouck

* Gerald Ciolek, Leonardo Duque, Loic Vliegen, Taylor Phinney, Søren Kragh, Kristian Sbaragli, Alex Kirsch, Fabian Wegmann, Clement Koretzky, Martijn Tusveld