Yaroslav Popovych, Name Recognition

If the name Yaroslav Popovych is not real familiar to you, do yourself a favor right now and memorize it.  Remember the stats (below) that go with the name, and work on the pronunciation.  No, I don’t mean the nickname ‘Popo,’ anyone can do that.  The whole name.  It’s fun.  It kind of rolls off the tongue when you say it a couple of times.  Go ahead, try it.   Yar-O-Slav — Pop-O-Vych.  See? Come on, admit it.  I’m right. After you’ve said it, you wonder why the name could have intimidated you.  Now if you’d ever competed against him the exact opposite would be true.

He’s a rock solid talent on this new Team RadioShack and I think this year every cycling fan will be talking about him in the U.S. – so get out ahead of things – he sure does.  In fact, I predict you’re going to be watching him ‘get out ahead of things’ on television a lot this season.  TV cameras love to home in on the rider who makes the gutsy breakaways and those few who have the legs to pull the peloton up the final climbs when things get steep and decisive. Listen to the announcers.  Like all sportscasters they’ll start speaking louder, talking in a higher voice, and interrupting each other.  Must be the universal announcer-formula to inform the audience something special is happening – we evidently need prompting.  Thinking back, that’s how I’ve heard Yar-O-Slav’s name mentioned every single time.  An excited announcer, high-pitched voice, very loud, shouting Pop-O-Vych! He’s always ‘in it.’  

You’ve heard the saying; ‘when the going gets tough, the tough get…’ they were talking about Yar-O-Slav. He has an impressive record in the toughest of races, the grand tours.  He’s ridden in 5 Giros, 5 Tours, and 1 Vuelta so far. That’s 11 since turning pro in 2002. He stood on the podium in 3rd place at the 2003 Giro.  He finished 5th the following year having worn the Maglia Rosa for several stages.  He’s placed as high as 8th in the Tour.  In 2005 he finished the Tour In the Maillot Blanc – best young rider that year while supporting Lance’s 7th win.  In fact he has been in the top 25, eight of his eleven big tour appearances.  Easily one of the most consistent riders out there in the long stage races. And he’ll be there for many years to come. 

During many of these races Pop-O-Vych was riding support, sacrificing his chances for an even better finish.  Remember support riders typically finish 50th, 70th, 150th frying their own legs so their leaders don’t burn up their reserves too early.  An elite cyclist with podium ability who willingly forfeits his standings for a team member has got to be one of the most difficult, brutal and amazing things in modern professional athletics.  Difficult?  Yeah, no coach likes telling a Babe Ruth to bunt.  A stretch?  Maybe a bit, but that’s the gist.  Brutal, amazing?  Yeah, in spades.  It’s the stuff we don’t see.  Worked out before the stage – often before the race – often before the season.  Fun to watch in real time though.  Trust, camaraderie, teamwork – here’s where it pays off or implodes.  The poisonous thought has to creep into the riders’ brains; “I can do my job – can you do yours?” And it cuts 3 ways.  The super domestique, the designated leader, and the coach all have to contend with the decision. There are no mulligans on a 16% grade after pedaling all day.  Either you can lead.  Or you can’t.  Brain synapses and muscle fiber better be firing on all cylinders.  Lots of pressure on everyone to get it right – the coach who calls it, the team leader who better make something of it, the sacrificial workhorse who knows that riding for a different team, he might be challenging for this win. These guys have to prove themselves every year, every race, every stage.

Yaroslav Popovych was born on 4 January 1980 in Drohobych, Ukrainian SSR, Soviet Union. I think the actual spelling of the city is  Okay, you don’t have to know how to say that, but just like Pop-O-Vych, I bet it’s not that hard once you try.  Some of my ancestors came from this region.  Depending on who was in power at a given point in history, they were tagged as Polish, Austrian, Ukrainian, Hungarian, Galician, or Russian, even though they stayed in the same place and did the same job, year in-year out.  Sounds a lot like some rider’s careers.  Put on a new uniform, get on a different brand of bike, do the same basic job, meet some new sponsors and get known by their logos, their coat-of-arms.  

Since turning pro, Yar-O-Slav has worn the coats-of-arms of Landbouwkrediet-Colnago, Discovery Channel, Silence-Lotto, Astana, and now Team RadioShack.  Odd thing for someone only 29 years old, Yar-O-Slav seems to have been around forever. I guess you could say it’s cause he doesn’t ride quietly.  He’s a loud factor in the outcome of every race that he’s in.  The aggressive rider, the rock solid performer, capable of stage wins, capable of overall wins – when there’s just a handful of the world’s elite still ‘in it,’ Pop-O-Vych is usually right there.  Watch this play out in January.  Johan Bruyneel has already named him to the squad for the Santos Tour Down Under, 17-24 January. A good coach places his sure bets in the season openers.  Pop-O-Vych is about as sure a bet as it gets in a stage race. This all-around road warrior is quite a weapon in Team RadioShack’s arsenal and you can bet he’ll be altering the outcome once again in South Australia.  You’ll want to tune in.

And then you can help everyone pronounce his name when they all start talking about him this season.  Yar-O-Slav — Pop-O-Vych.  Rolls off the tongue.

For The Record – A brief snapshot of just a few of Yaroslav Popvych’s results:

2000 – 2nd U23 World Road Race Championship

2001 – 1st U23 World Road Race Championship

2002 – 1st Porec Trophy 2, 1st GP de Geneve, 12th de Giro

2003 – 3rd  de Giro

2004 – 1st Trofeo Androni Giocattoli, 5th de Giro

2005 – 1st Tour of Catalunya, 2nd Stage 7 Dauphiné Libéré, 12th Tour, 1st White Jersey

2006 – 1st Stage 12 Tour, 1st Stage 2 Tour de Georgia (3rd Overall), 1st Stage 2 Vuelta a Castilla y León

2007 – 1st Stage 5 Paris-Nice, 8th Tour (Combative Award Stage 9)

2008 – 3rd Paris-Nice, 24th Tour

2009 – 1st Stage 4 (TTT) Tour, 15th Giro

By George Hurst, staff writer