Classic snooze during the race. Who does not know her? With the soft voices and good stories of Renate and José in the background, cycling fans sometimes dare to sleep. Especially during sprint stages like today. “The rules, of course, are bound to be modified for television,” says TV maker Tim Van Aelst.
Don’t ask Jan Baklants what happened in today’s stage opening stage.
The analyst fell asleep, just like many viewers at home. That raised the question at the Vive le Vélo table whether the sprint stages were still up to date.
The course of the third stage of this Tour was as predictable as possible.
Karl Vannieuwkerke opened the discussion by saying, “It was interesting yesterday and yesterday, but not today.” “You get a ride with two riders and you already know they’re going to get caught and there’s going to be a sprint.”
“At the same time you have a changing TV landscape. Do you still attract young people?” he asks.
In baseball, for example, they changed the rules to make everything more attractive.
“I think your comment is fully justified,” says TV creator and guest Tim Van Aelst. “Racing stages are actually a problem for television.”
“My sons don’t watch racing, for example,” he continues. “How do you still attract young people today?”
“I heard recently that in America they changed the rules of baseball to shorten games. I don’t know enough about the course to suggest a solution, but something like that is coming. It’s inevitable,” said the television announcer. maker. .
Vannieuwkerke compares with another sport. “My kids are just on the edge of their seats at darts because every dart counts.”
These stages are simply part of cycling.
Didn’t they really try to make racing more attractive with shorter stages? Enumeration Analyst Roxanne Knitman. These stages are also part of cycling. “
“You just have to accept that and if need be you can just watch the last 10km,” she says. “Sorry for the commenters.”
Jan Bakelantis finds it a difficult case. “I’m afraid there is no one-size-fits-all answer,” he says.
“Tiring from that long effort is only necessary to get that kind of sprint. Otherwise, you might as well start running on a track and no cat would even look at it.”
Will young people stop seeing Philipsen win in future sprint stages?
The golden kilometer
A golden kilometer with extra seconds, as in the case of the Tour of Belgium, may provide consolation, according to Karl Vanjorkke.
“But I don’t know if you always have to reinvent the concept,” Bakelants is crucial. “This is the whole charm of the sport.”
And the extra sporty things that are photographed, like the nature around the riders, are also an asset to the long rides, according to guests.
Tim Van Aelst laughs: “If we could get feedback from Tom Weiss once in a while, everything would be fine.”
Then continue with the sprint stages.
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