Wednesday sees the time trial specialists head out on the road to race against the clock.And it is going to be a good one.
Unfortunately for the Aussie's we will only be represented by Michael Rogers due to Cadel Evans' withdrawal due to fatigue.
Many have said Luke Durbridge should be given a chance and I totally agree. I actually think he should have been selected in the squad. He is young, talented and capable, however many a selection in recent years has left me scratching my head.
The problem is that Olympic rules state that participants in the Time Trial must also be included in the Road Race squad, therefore leaving Durbridge, this time ineligible. With Goss, O'Grady and Gerrans certainly not time trialists unfortunately the fate of Australia's Gold medal hopes lies with Rogers.
The other topic of conversation is Fabian Cancellara. After crashing out of the road race with a suspected broken collarbone, Fabian has since been in doubt. Thankfully, it was not broken as poor Fabian tweeted:
"Looks like a hard night with a lots of pain.happy is not broken but the
pain will be on!For the timetrial nothing is shure yet 50/50change"
As Spartacus is one of my favourite riders I surely hope that he is right to ride.
Along with Cancellara, the other top contenders each bring their own 'baggage' to the time trial. Tony Martin hasn't had the best preparation after a few untimely crashes and Bradley Wiggins comes off a tough Tour de France and also Sunday's Road Race.
I think that there are a few riders who can well and truly challenge the major favourites. Names like Taylor Phinney, Christopher Froome, Silvain Chavanel and Luis Leon Sanchez all come to mind.
All in all the 44km circuit will prove challenging and offer some great racing. I'm looking forward to it.
Who do you think will take the Gold?
