Tour '26, Stage 1: Two Champions, One Team

It was the last two guys from Netcompany-Ineos, that hit the bottom of the final climb.  Both are their nations' time trial champions, Tobias Foss for Norway and Filippo Ganna for Italy.  The two worked together until Foss could no longer hang with the three-time Italian champion.  Ganna went to the line on his own claiming the hot seat of stage leader in the process.  With eight more teams to finish it was not a sure thing that he would win the day in the end, but he laid down a tough challenge for those yet to make the final climb.  He didn't quite hold first, but finished second by a deficit of a mere eight seconds.

This is a small 4x6 inch original watercolor painting that is available through my website at greigleach.com or you can simply follow the direct link at the end of the post to purchase the painting above. Since it is an original work of art, it is a first come first served reality. The work sells for $99 USD including shipping, but, yes, international shipping is both available and extra.

Purchase this painting here: "Two Champions, One Team TdF26-4" (Original art by Greig Leach)

Learn more about Greig Leach at The Art of Cycling: About the Artist: Greig Leach

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Tour '25, Stage 15: Looking for Opportunities

As the peloton tried to re-sort itself as it went under the 92 kilometers to go, it was Tobias Foss (Ineos-Grenadiers), Matteo Jorgenson (Visma-Lease a Bike), Danny Van Poppel (Red Bull-Bora-Hansgrohe) and Jonathan Navarez (UAE Team Emirates) pushing their way off the front.  The image of Navarez is what happens when you paint from live images without knowing what happens next.  Because this was a shot from a helicopter flying high above, I thought Navarez's kit was that of Alpecin-Deceuninck so I painted it that way.  Once I restarted the stream of the race, I figured out it was the UAE Team Emirates' Ecuadorian National Champion's jersey.  I tried my best to adjust the painting, but there isn't much one can do with watercolors.  Nothing came of this move, they were seen back in the peloton not long after I painted this.  This particular banner is sponsored by the Department Hauts en Siene the 92nd department (think of it as the 92nd state of France).  

This is a small 4x6 inch original watercolor painting that is available through my website at greigleach.com or you can simply follow the direct link at the end of the post to purchase the painting above. Since it is an original work of art, it is a first come first served reality. The work sells for $99 USD including shipping, but, yes, international shipping is both available and extra.

"Looking for Opportunities TdF25-96" (Original art by Greig Leach)

Tour '25, Stage 5 ITT: Swoosh!

One of the things I try to do is make sure I paint a least one guy from every team participating in the Tour.  Today, I was looking to paint the remaining four out of the twenty-three teams (and increase from previous years).  I only managed to add one to that total.  This is Tobais Foss (Ineos-Grenadiers) the current Norwegian Time Trial Champion.  Ineos as added TotalEnergies as another sponsor and has done a terrible job of integrating the company's logo into their regular race kit.  That may be why I choose the Norwegian champion's kit to paint.  I will miss that long stripe down the back of the jersey that has been part of their kit since they were known as Team Sky.  He finished his day fourteenth in the stage. He moved himself up thirteen places, but still sits way back in the general classification.

This is a small 4x6 inch original watercolor painting that is available through my website at greigleach.com or you can simply follow the direct link at the end of the post to purchase the painting above. Since it is an original work of art, it is a first come first served reality. The work sells for $99 USD including shipping, but, yes, international shipping is both available and extra. 

"Swoosh! TdF25-26" (Original art by Greig Leach)

Criterium du Dauphine '25, Stage 5: Poursuivants

As the Lidl-Trek led peloton slowed on the climb of the Col de Boubon in hopes of keeping their sprinter in the bunch, this trio saw the chance to slip away.  Started by Alex Baudin (EF Education-EasyPost), he was quickly joined by Gregor Muhlberger (Movistar) and Tobias Foss (Ineos-Grenadiers).  To translate the title, this trio was pursuing the five men that were another twenty-eight seconds up the road.  While they did build up a half of a minute on the peloton, they never got any closer to the early breakaway.  It wasn't too much longer before they found the peloton sucking them back into the fold.

This is a small 4x6 inch original watercolor painting that is available through my website at greigleach.com or you can simply follow the direct link at the end of the post to purchase the painting above. Since it is an original work of art, it is a first come first served reality. The work sells for $95 USD including shipping, but, yes, international shipping is both available and extra.

"Poursuivants CdD25-24" (Original art by Greig Leach)

Paris Nice '25, Stage 5: Alone, Again

As I mentioned in my previous post, Tobias Foss (Ineos-Grenadiers) jumped free of the peloton to join his teammate Ben Swift and Swift's breakaway companion.  When the trio hit the base of the penultimate climb of the day, Foss went off on a long solo run to the finish.  So, for the second day in a row, this former Norwegian champion was making a brave effort to win on his own ahead of a chasing peloton.  Alas, just like yesterday, he was caught (and dropped) on the final climb up to a summit finish.  He ended up finishing around 35th on the stage, a minute and three-quarters behind the stage winner.  Still, nothing ventured, nothing gained.

This is a small 4x6 inch original watercolor painting that is available through my website at greigleach.com or you can simply follow the direct link at the end of the post to purchase the painting above. Since it is an original work of art, it is a first come first served reality. The work sells for $95 USD including shipping, but, yes, international shipping is both available and extra.

"Alone, Again PN25-19" (Original art by Greig Leach)

Paris Nice '25, Stage 4: Preparing to Start Again

Once the race had reached the valley, the weather had improved enough to restart the race.  The difficulty was gathering everyone back together. Many had ridden the descent very slowly, so that needed to get everyone massed together in order to restart the race.  The other issue was recreating the gaps that had existed between the three main groups when the race was neutralized.  Now, the break had restarted, with the next to go being the two guys in red, Tobias Foss and Josh Tarling (Ineos-Grenadiers) about a minute and a half minutes later.  Standing with them were two riders from EF Education-EasyPost who would have to wait another minute or so to restart with the rest of the peloton.  It was a mess, but no one was hurt in the icy conditions.

This is a small 4x6 inch original watercolor painting that is available through my website at greigleach.com or you can simply follow the direct link at the end of the post to purchase the painting above. Since it is an original work of art, it is a first come first served reality. The work sells for $95 USD including shipping, but, yes, international shipping is both available and extra.

"Preparing to Start Again PN25-14" (Original art by Greig Leach)

Paris Nice '25, Stage 4: Up to Something

With another fifty-four kilometers to race, it was a bit odd to see the Ineos-Grenadiers duo of Tobias Foss and Josh Tarling go on the attack out of the peloton.  The two were chasing a group of eight riders still up the road from the early breakaway.  The race still had three more climbs including the mountain top finish to race.  I have to assume that the team had some grand plan they wanted to enact for their race leader in hopes of pulling back time lost in yesterday's team time trial.

This is a small 4x6 inch original watercolor painting that is available through my website at greigleach.com or you can simply follow the direct link at the end of the post to purchase the painting above. Since it is an original work of art, it is a first come first served reality. The work sells for $95 USD including shipping, but, yes, international shipping is both available and extra.

"Up to Something PN25-12" (Original art by Greig Leach)

Paris Nice '25, Stage 3: Finishing Alone

New rules and timing methods mean that the time for the team in the Team Time Trial is taken when the first rider crosses the line.  However, each individual rider is given his actual time on the day, not the time of the first of his team.  That may be why Tobias Foss (Ineos-Grenadiers) went off alone leaving his last two teammates, Magnus Sheffield and Thymen Arensman being in the closing meters.  Sheffield had started the day confident that he could regain the Maillot Blanc of best young rider and even hoped to become the next Maillot Jaune.  Instead, the team's performance saw him dropping a place in the young riders' competition and dropping to tenth in the general classification thirty-eight seconds off of the pace of the new race leader.  His team leader, Thymen Arensman is another two seconds behind that.

This is a small 4x6 inch original watercolor painting that is available through my website at greigleach.com or you can simply follow the direct link at the end of the post to purchase the painting above. Since it is an original work of art, it is a first come first served reality. The work sells for $95 USD including shipping, but, yes, international shipping is both available and extra.

"Finishing Alone PN25-9" (Original art by Greig Leach)

UCI Worlds, Zurich 2024, Elite Men's Road Race: Checking Everyone Out

As the home team rider, Silvan Dillier (Switzerland) swings off the front of the breakaway, he looks at each of his five companions in turn.  He had been chatting quite a bit with the second guy in line, Rui Oliveira (Portugal) for a number of kilometers.  I do think he was trying to judge if Oliviera, along with Luc Wirtgen (Luxembourg), Tobias Foss (Norway), Simon Geschke (Germany) and Piotr Pekala (Poland) have the legs to take this break deep into the race.  At this point they do have three minutes on the peloton, but they have 213 kilometers left to race.  They haven't gotten to the start of the seven-lap circuit in and around Zurich yet.  But as Dillier and Geschke both know, you have got to roll the dice and go in the break to have any chance of winning the day against the favorites of the men's peloton.

This is a small 4x6 inch original watercolor painting that is available through my website at greigleach.com or you can simply follow the direct link at the end of the post to purchase the painting above. Since it is an original work of art, it is a first come first served reality. The work sells for $95 USD including shipping, but, yes, international shipping is both available and extra.

"Checking Everyone Out Z24-7" (Original art by Greig Leach)

Paris Nice 23, Stage 3: Getting It Done with Four

While they were expected to do very well in today’s team time trial, it was still a treat to watch Jumbo-Visma out on course.  They seemed to even have a plan on when they would jettison each rider after they had given their all.  As this foursome came to the line, it was clear they would win the stage, the only question was by how much.  The answer, not by as much as they had hoped, nor by enough to put one of the team into the Maillot Jaune (even though technically they are already in yellow jerseys).  With Tobias Foss (the reigning TT World Champion) on the front for one last pull, the foursome would soon be three.  Jan Tratnik took up the pace with Nathan Van Hooydonck the man designated to take Jonas Vingegaard across the line.  By so doing the three are now close to the lead, but not in it to start the stage four.  Vingegaard now has between a three and fourteen second buffer over the rest of the field of contenders.

This is a small 4x6 inch original watercolor painting that is available through my website at greigleach.com or you can simply follow the direct link at the end of the post to purchase the painting above. Since it is an original work of art, it is a first come first served reality. The painting was created using Yarka St. Petersburg watercolors and Steve Quiller brushes from www.Richesonart.com. The work sells for $90 USD including shipping, but yes international shipping is both available and extra.

https://www.greigleach.com/large-multi-view/Paris-Nice/3938709-92-272742/Painting/getting-it-done-with-four.-pn23-10.html

Wollongong 2022, Men's ITT: Coming Home, Fast!

Tobias Foss (Norway) proved today that there is a reason that you race the race.  No one had mention Foss as a potential winner of the Elite Men's Individual Time Trial.  He was posting new best times at every check point on the road, including at the finish.  But as his bib number shows, he had eleven other men racing their hearts out behind him, many of whom are renowned specialists against the clock.  Most notably were; the two time winner of the Tour de France, the current winner of the Veulta d'Espania, and the two time Rainbow Jersey in this very discipline.  Yet in the end he was able to but in an amazing final ten kilometers to win the gold medal (and the right to wear the Rainbow Jersey everytime he races a time trial for the next 12 months).  Kung came close, but came up just a mere three seconds short of Foss' time.  Chapeau!

This is a small 4x6 inch original watercolor painting that is available through my website at greigleach.com or you can simply follow the direct link at the end of the post to purchase the painting above. Since it is an original work of art, it is a first come first served reality. The painting was created using Yarka St. Petersburg watercolors and Steve Quiller brushes from www.Richesonart.com. The work sells for $90 USD including shipping, and yes, international shipping is available. 

If you can't afford to purchase a piece you could always help keep me going by buying me a cup of coffee at buymeacoffee.com/greigsartc.  And check out my vlogs at my YouTube channel https://www.youtube.com/channel/UCLGX-TnjXDSkkOidUE6pN1g

https://www.greigleach.com/large-multi-view/Wollongong-2022-UCI-Road-World-Championships/3906195-12-295031/Painting/coming-home-fast-uci22-12.html

Yorkshire 2019 - U23 Road Race: One of These Five

As they started the final lap through the outskirts of Harrogate, it looked as though the new Rainbow Jersey was going to come from these five off the front.  The hometown fans had to be thrilled to see their man, Thomas Pidcock (Great Britain) in the right move.  Remember, he had to chase back on after the crash earlier in the race.  Along with the Yorkshire man, were Tobias Foss (Norway) and gesticulating Samuele Battistella (Italy), Szymon Sajnok (Poland) and Stefan Bissegger (Switzerland).  All they had to do is keep pushing and not let those behind catch back on.

This is a small 4x6 inch original watercolor painting that is available though my website at www.greigleach.com, or you can simply follow the direct link at the end of this post.  Since it is an original it is first come first served.  The painting was created using Yarka St Petersburg watercolors from Richesonart.com. The work sells for $75 plus shipping. And yes, international shipping is available.

Please be sure to visit my YouTube Channel and subscribe if you like what you see.

https://www.greigleach.com/large-multi-view/Yorkshire%202019/3397252-33-266225/One%20of%20These%20Five%20%20UCI19-33.html