SADHBH O'SHEA AN EXCITING AMSTEL, FOR A CHANGE

It’s human nature to be resistant to change. In his book Thinking

Fast and Slow, Daniel Kahneman noted that the reward must be significantly higher than the risk for us to consider change. So, it is no surprise that when the organisers of the Amstel Gold Race announced that they would be cutting the final ascent of the Cauberg out of the race the reception was lukewarm. Some were for, while others worried that the focal point had been taken away.

The organisers had already tried tweaking the finish in 2013. While the first edition on the new route saw Roman Kreuziger win with a break, subsequent races would still end up being decided by the Cauberg.

By removing that final ascent, the organisers hoped for a more open race, but there were valid concerns that it would be another sprinters’ race. However, if previous Classics had taught us anything, there was a wide enough gap in the window to throw the form book out of it.

Often it is less about the route and more about the way the riders choose to race it. A new course meant that anything was possible. Quick-Step Floors were once again the main protagonists, accompanied by Sky’s Micha¯ Kwiatkowski and it proved to be the best race, in my opinion, among the hilly Classics.

This change certainly worked out and a few other races could learn from Amstel Gold’s tinkering – I’m looking at you Liège-Bastogne-Liège – but organisers must be careful not to make changes just for the sake of it. And let us hope that, unlike the last time it was changed, future editions of the Amstel Gold Race will be just as exciting as 2017.