It's always the same with Tweets of the Week. You wait for ages for one, and then two come along at once. We are back to our usual schedule now, fear not.
This World Championships has been taken over by cow fever. No, not BSE or foot and mouth disease, but sheer excitement over the supplementary prizes handed out to podium finishers at the super Worlds. They are fluffy Highland cattle, with rainbow stripe horns. While surely a rainbow jersey brings more cachet, the bovine toys are tremendously exciting.
Tangential fun fact: The fun hot beef drink Bovril (it is very much not veggie, tastes like beef stock tea) takes it name from the Latin name for cow, Bovinae, and the name of the magical life-giving force in Edward Bulwer-Lytton's 1871 utopian novel The Coming Race, Vril. Told you it was tangential.
Apparently Highland cattle date from the mid-nineteenth century, and have shaggy coats to be able to withstand the cold climes of Scotland. Among those hit by "coo" fever are Josh Tarling, who said he wants to get his hands on one after the elite time trial, Stefan Küng, who already has one, and Annemiek van Vleuten, who met a real life cow!
Professional cyclists, just like ordinary people, are easily impressed, so it's no surprise that an adorable little cow is all that the Worlds needed to get truly exciting.
In other social media news this week, both Mathieu van der Poel and Michael Matthews have been spotted trying out Scottish special drinks - not Bovril, don't worry - and Alison Jackson does some excellent product placement for Tim Hortons.
1. Dan Bigham's bike looks great, but was sadly not quite fast enough to beat Filippo Ganna in the individual pursuit last weekend. Maybe it needs to be pinker?
It just needs 0.055s more pink 💕 https://t.co/Zdb3l6rwlWAugust 7, 2023
2. Thrills at the mixed relay TTT as the six medallists on each team each got a cow, much to the excitement of the official World Championships account
🚨THE COO TRAY WE HAVE ALL BEEN WAITING FOR! 🐮 6 COOS ON A TRAY 🐮YES YES YES YES YES YES #GlasgowScotland2023 🏴 pic.twitter.com/B3Z3NLPyV5August 8, 2023
3. Stefan Küng was especially pleased with his cow
Hey @CyclingWorlds, could we get a coo too? 🐮#GlasgowScotland2023 pic.twitter.com/rvpR0RVX16August 8, 2023
4. Küng is just flaunting his Highland cow here, which he insisted on calling a beef. LEARN THE WORD FOR COW STEFAN COME ON. The reason in English we have two words for farm animals and their produce - cow/beef, pig/pork, sheep/mutton etc - is thanks to the bloody Normans introducing French into the nobility I believe. Maybe we will let the native French speaker off here.
5. What's better than signing Jonathan Milan? A funky t-shirt with Jonathan Milan's face on, which may or may not ever be available
A new rock star will join Lidl-Trek from 2024!We're thrilled to welcome @MilanJonathan_ to the band 🤟Read more 👉 https://t.co/94Np4FbzTZ pic.twitter.com/F1wLlmGo6rAugust 8, 2023
6. Lidl-Trek did the same for Clara Copponi, which I really like
More good news to end the week 🥳 @ClaraCopponi will join Lidl-Trek on a two-year contract!🗞️👉 https://t.co/gQjne0jsMz pic.twitter.com/lXtkuA7ObmAugust 11, 2023
7. And Tao Geoghegan Hart, although the team announced the Londoner's arrival with this slightly threatening video
⭕️🔜Welcome to Lidl-Trek, @taogeoghegan ! pic.twitter.com/6eUwxkn4XMAugust 10, 2023
8. Don't racers just keep getting younger these days! Hahahahahahahahahahahahahahaha
My 3 year old racing Alaphilippe #GlasgowScotland2023 pic.twitter.com/EgUu8zTxrRAugust 8, 2023
9. If you're going to be cycling, I wouldn't necessarily advise a kilt
10. Michael Matthews here, with his first ever sip of Tennents lager, one assumes. He would go on to DNF in the road race, but it probably wasn't the beer's fault
11. Lampaert and Lamperti in the same team is going to get very confusing
Welcome @luke_lamperti 🤣😎👊🏼 https://t.co/RCCnj6Y5B6 pic.twitter.com/TtHv00IG7LAugust 9, 2023
12. I remain unconvinced that road stars can just turn up at the MTB Worlds and perform, and the hype seems undeserved, but still, cool to have Van der Poel and Pidcock aiming for another kind of world title
“When does cx season start?” @mathieuvdpoel pic.twitter.com/2DrAohdrosAugust 9, 2023
13. Alison Jackson is back making her funky videos, and here she seems to be working alongside Tim Hortons, although it's unclear whether she's being paid for the blatant product placement. I've never been to a Tim Hortons. Should I? Probably not
14. Mathieu van der Poel went for Irn Bru over Tennents, which is probably wise, but I really wonder what he thought of it. It's a confusing taste, look and smell, that's for sure
15. Back to the cows, and BC's performance director is trying to make his Highland cow extra special
Almost exactly the same. @CyclingWorlds pic.twitter.com/fJEl8OzvEXAugust 9, 2023
16. Away from pro cycling, what the hell is going on here and how has he managed that in cleats?
17. Tadej Pogačar has shunned Tennets or Irn Bru and is instead looking for Scottish delicacies. I don't think a battered mars bar would ever be on a pro cyclist's menu, but haggis could be, I guess? Just don't tell him what it really is
18. What you want after an extremely long and taxing time trial is a cobbled climb, right? I'm not sure the cobbles are quite Roubaix worthy, more like Flanders. Incidentally, Mary, Queen of Scots was crowned at Stirling Castle, where the cobbles lead
.@ParisRoubaix🤝🏼@CyclingWorlds 🧱 Cobbles 🧱#GlasgowScotland2023 | #PowerOfTheBike | @StirlingCouncil pic.twitter.com/oUrccoDk3UAugust 10, 2023
19. Annemiek van Vleuten actually met a Highland cow!!!! What a treat. Will she get a miniature one on Sunday?
20. And finally, David Millar has bought an Ineos Grenadier. Proof that cyclists aren't always right. SUVs are killing the planet. Do better.
The @INEOSGrenadier has landed 💪🏻 There’s a fine line between madness / genius and this car is owning it 🫶🏻 pic.twitter.com/lJ4YC1F3JmAugust 9, 2023
