Tour de France thread.

noel · Post by **noel** » July 3, 2003, 5:33 pm

On July 5th at about 3 o'clock in the afternoon Paris time, Lance Armstrong will begin his bid to become the second man in history to win the Tour de France 5 times in a row (previously only Miguel Indurain accomplished this), and one of only 5 men to win the Tour 5 times in their lifetime. He is already the only American to win the Tour more than 3 times (Greg Lemond).

He is the favorite to win again this year, and if you get a chance to check it out, it will be on the Outdoor Life Network 2-3 times a day all throughout July.

When you consider that 8-9 years ago, Armstrong was given a less than 3% chance to live, this remarkable accomplishment becomes even more spectacular.

Go Lance!

Kudo · Post by **Kudo** » July 3, 2003, 5:35 pm

Hell yea ! Kick them frenchies ass' !

Sabek · Post by **Sabek** » July 3, 2003, 5:41 pm

Shouldn't it be renamed to Tour de Freedom?

kyoukan · Post by **kyoukan** » July 3, 2003, 5:42 pm

I thought congress officially changed the name of the race to Tour of Freedom.

Sabek · Post by **Sabek** » July 3, 2003, 5:43 pm

HAR beat Kyoukan by a minute.

noel · Post by **noel** » July 3, 2003, 5:45 pm

Hehe. You guys are too much.

Fallanthas · Post by **Fallanthas** » July 3, 2003, 5:46 pm

Gotta be depressing to spend the year training and wondering...

"How close can I cut Lance's lead this year?"

Kick ass Lance.

Karae · Post by **Karae** » July 3, 2003, 6:01 pm

Three cheers for one-nut!

Cartalas · Post by **Cartalas** » July 3, 2003, 6:02 pm

kyoukan wrote:I thought congress officially changed the name of the race to Tour of Freedom.

Geee you were real fucking " Johnny on the spot" on that one. What a fuckstain.

noel · Post by **noel** » July 3, 2003, 6:44 pm

Cartalas wrote:
kyoukan wrote:I thought congress officially changed the name of the race to Tour of Freedom.
Geee you were real fucking " Johnny on the spot" on that one. What a fuckstain.

Don't flame on this thread.

Fizzlewhip · Post by **Fizzlewhip** » July 3, 2003, 6:49 pm

Aranuil wrote: and one of only 6 men to win the Tour 5 times in their lifetime.

am confused Aranuil.
If a rider died, (one of the previous 5) wouldn't that preclude them from wining the tour de France?

I must be doped up today on too much cold medicine to make sense of that part of the paragraph. Sorry

On a lighter note. Go Lance

noel · Post by **noel** » July 3, 2003, 7:00 pm

Sorry if that was unclear.

To date, 4 individuals have won the Tour de France 5 times total: Jacques Anquetil, Bernard Hinault, Eddie Merckx and Miguel Indurain. Only one of those individuals, Indurain, has won it 5 times consectutively.

The reason I worded it the way I did is because I'm not certain that Anquetil and Hinault are both still alive.

Truant · Post by **Truant** » July 3, 2003, 7:01 pm

Fizz,
There are 4 men in the history of the universe (lance will be the fifth if he wins this year) who were able to win the tour de france 5 times in their own lifetimes.

Cart,
Go fuck yourself with a cactus.

edit - damn you for changing your numbers! ><

noel · Post by **noel** » July 3, 2003, 7:03 pm

Truant wrote:Fizz,
There are 5 men in the history of the universe (lance will be the sixth if he wins this year) who were able to win the tour de france 5 times in their own lifetimes.

Cart,
Go fuck yourself with a cactus.

Edit: NM!

Fizzlewhip · Post by **Fizzlewhip** » July 3, 2003, 7:08 pm

so what you meant was

He is one of the only 4 people alive who have one the Tour de France 5 times.

(the other way implies that others (not the 4) have won it posthumously.

win the tour de france 5 times in their own lifetimes

Look carefully at the above sentence. The words in their own are redundant, and make the sentence confusing. If you didn't win a race that you are running in YOUR OWN Lifetime, then who's lifetime did you win the race in?

See what I am asking?

Am seriously not trying to flame. This started out as a question for clarification.

noel · Post by **noel** » July 3, 2003, 7:12 pm

Yeah the wording was bad. Sorry.

What I'm trying to say is that if Lance wins this year he'll join the elite list of professional cyclists that have won the Tour de France 5 times. Additionally, if he wins this year he'll be one of only two cyclists that will have won it 5 times in a row (that would be himself and Indurain).

Now you're confusing me you bastard.

Edit: Anquetil is dead.

Truant · Post by **Truant** » July 3, 2003, 7:23 pm

God fucking dammit.

OK LET'S FIX THIS NOW.

Four different people have won the tour de france five times. Lance would be the fifth.

Fizzlewhip wrote:If a rider died, (one of the previous 5) wouldn't that preclude them from wining the tour de France?

Yeah, if a guy died while he was in the race, he wouldn't win.

Fizzlewhip wrote:He is one of the only 4 people alive who have one the Tour de France 5 times.

(the other way implies that others (not the 4) have won it posthumously

Your first statement here is correct. The second is just ludicrous. You obviously can't win a race posthumously, because you're fucking dead. You can't very well pedal a bicycle when you're fucking dead!

Fizzlewhip wrote:Look carefully at the above sentence. The words in their own are redundant, and make the sentence confusing. If you didn't win a race that you are running in YOUR OWN Lifetime, then who's lifetime did you win the race in?

No, the words "in their own" are NOT redundant. I put them there purposely, because you seem to have this notion that people can win the race after they are already dead.

DIS-FUCKING-CLAIMER - Do not think that my directness and my blatant use of vuglarities is meant to insult. Just trying to be extra clear on my point. This is the most I've seen semantics dissected in like, a year.

Xzion · Post by **Xzion** » July 3, 2003, 7:24 pm

i dont like french people anymore, Im flying home today, and these dumbass french teen kids are on the plane, in stuck in coatch with a stupid kid sitting by me so i say, ok il go sit on that seat in the back of the plane, and then these stupid smelly annoying 15ish yr old french kids crowd around me and start smelling and get annoying so i move, and the dumbass french kid takes my seat, then i wait 10 minutes, and he stands up for a second and i sit down, he gets pissed off, i smile and say "i dont know what the hell you are saying, since your speaking godamn french"

isnt that awesome?

Drolgin Steingrinder · Post by **Drolgin Steingrinder** » July 4, 2003, 6:27 am

Hinault is very much alive - he can't be much older than his mid-late 40s I think.

And Le Tour is getting progressively more and more boring these years. I miss the old Indurain / Capucci / Riis / Escartin days.

Kelshara · Post by **Kelshara** » July 5, 2003, 7:17 am

Hopefully the Tour will have some excitement this time, at last Ulrich showed some signs of former glory today on the prologue. Personally I am of course cheering for Hushovd and hoping he can win a stage again this year

Drolgin Steingrinder · Post by **Drolgin Steingrinder** » July 5, 2003, 7:54 pm

Personally, I'm hoping to see Tyler Hamilton challenge Armstrong a bit; he won't be able to take him in the single-start stages, but maybe he can grab a bit of time in the mountains.

I have a hard time seeing anyone who can consistently challenge Armstrong though, so I am expecting a boring Tour this year.

Canelek · Post by **Canelek** » July 5, 2003, 7:57 pm

GO GO TEAM SPANDEX!

Seriously, I hope Armstrong wins again, that is a seriously hard fucking race!

noel · Post by **noel** » July 5, 2003, 8:46 pm

Prologue was fucking sweet. Hamilton, Ulrich, Millar and Cooke have to be very happy with their result.

I felt REALLY bad for David Millar. He would have won by quite a bit had he not popped his chain. That has to suck.

Also, WTF happened to Botero?

Fizzlewhip · Post by **Fizzlewhip** » July 5, 2003, 11:23 pm

no insult taken, i took them as emphasis, as you intended

However, the words, in thier own, are redundant

Either you win the race, or you don't. A person cannot win the race in someone elses lifetime, because it is implied that the winner of the race is heretofore dead. (bored, so making up words).

I missed any sports this weekend, How is he doing now?

*edit shameless post count increase*

noel · Post by **noel** » July 5, 2003, 11:31 pm

He's in 7th overall, but but nothing really matters yet.

It has been said, "You can lose the Tour in the first week, but you can't win it in the First week."

Where he is during and after the second week will be the most critical.

Mplor · Post by **Mplor** » July 5, 2003, 11:38 pm

This just in: Grammar Gestapo > Spelling Nazi.

Go Lance!

Kelshara · Post by **Kelshara** » July 6, 2003, 5:25 pm

Nobody can really compete with Armstrong, US Postal has bought up the best support riders heh. A good rider is nothing without good suport, and when you got possible top 3 riders as support riders.. well..

Boogahz · Post by **Boogahz** » July 6, 2003, 10:51 pm

Sabek wrote:Shouldn't it be renamed to Tour de Freedom?

Here is Austin it's referred to as the Tour de Lance

Skogen · Post by **Skogen** » July 6, 2003, 10:59 pm

kyoukan wrote:I thought congress officially changed the name of the race to Tour of Freedom.

"The Tour of Freedom"? Why the fuck would they do that!?

Syndaen Crystalthorn · Post by **Syndaen Crystalthorn** » July 6, 2003, 11:11 pm

Armstrong and Hamilton went down in a crash with about a kilometer to go as the pelaton was catching up on a left hand turn. Lance bruised his thigh, Hamilton may be out of the race.

Results from the first day.
1 Alessandro Petacchi (Ita) Fassa Bortolo 3.44.33 (44.89 km/h)
2 Robbie McEwen (Aus) Lotto Domo
3 Erik Zabel (Ger) Team Telekom
4 Paolo Bettini (Ita) Quick.Step-Davitamon
5 Baden Cooke (Aus) FDJeux.com
6 Thor Hushovd (Nor) Credit Agricole
7 Oscar Freire (Spa) Rabobank
8 Luca Paolini (Ita) Quick.Step-Davitamon
9 Romans Vainsteins (Lat) Vini Caldirola-So.Di
10 Jaan Kirsipuu (Est) Ag2R Prevoyance
11 Rene Haselbacher (Aut) Gerolsteiner
12 Damien Nazon (Fra) Brioches La Boulangere
13 Stuart O'grady (Aus) Credit Agricole
14 Jean-Patrick Nazon (Fra) Jean Delatour
15 Gerrit Glomser (Aut) Saeco
16 Fabrizio Guidi (Ita) Team Bianchi
17 Carlos Da Cruz (Fra) FDJeux.com
18 Médéric Clain (Fra) Cofidis, Credit Par Telephone
19 Alexandre Botcharov (Rus) Ag2R Prevoyance
20 Angel Vicioso (Spa) ONCE-Eroski
21 Angelo Furlan (Ita) Alessio
22 Robert Hunter (RSA) Rabobank
23 Marco Velo (Ita) Fassa Bortolo
24 Samuel Sanchez (Spa) Euskaltel-Euskadi
25 Anthony Geslin (Fra) Brioches La Boulangere
26 Jérôme Pineau (Fra) Brioches La Boulangere
27 Jan Ullrich (Ger) Team Bianchi
28 Laurent Brochard (Fra) Ag2R Prevoyance
29 Leon Van Bon (Ned) Lotto Domo
30 Sébastien Hinault (Fra) Credit Agricole
31 Michael Rogers (Aus) Quick.Step-Davitamon
32 Stefano Garzelli (Ita) Vini Caldirola-So.Di
33 Christophe Moreau (Fra) Credit Agricole
34 Ludovic Turpin (Fra) Ag2R Prevoyance
35 Marc Wauters (Bel) Rabobank
36 Philippe Gaumont (Fra) Cofidis, Credit Par Telephone
37 Pablo Lastras (Spa) iBanesto.com
38 Francisco Mancebo (Spa) iBanesto.com
39 Iban Mayo (Spa) Euskaltel-Euskadi
40 Alexandre Vinokourov (Kaz) Team Telekom
41 Haimar Zubeldia (Spa) Euskaltel-Euskadi
42 Jorg Jaksche (Ger) ONCE-Eroski
43 Mikel Pradera (Spa) ONCE-Eroski
44 Joseba Beloki (Spa) ONCE-Eroski
45 Isidro Nozal (Spa) ONCE-Eroski
46 Inigo Landaluze (Spa) Euskaltel-Euskadi
47 Aitor Gonzalez (Spa) Fassa Bortolo
48 Santiago Botero (Col) Team Telekom
49 Cédric Vasseur (Fra) Cofidis, Credit Par Telephone
50 José Azevedo (Por) ONCE-Eroski
51 Vladimir Miholjevic (Cro) Alessio
52 Mikel Artetxe (Spa) Euskaltel-Euskadi
53 David Canada (Spa) Quick.Step-Davitamon
54 Axel Merckx (Bel) Lotto Domo
55 Marcos Serrano (Spa) ONCE-Eroski
56 Nicolas Portal (Fra) Ag2R Prevoyance
57 Giuseppe Guerini (Ita) Team Telekom
58 Didier Rous (Fra) Brioches La Boulangere
59 Tobias Steinhauser (Ger) Team Bianchi
60 Paolo Bossoni (Ita) Vini Caldirola-So.Di
61 Lilian Jegou (Fra) Credit Agricole
62 Rolf Aldag (Ger) Team Telekom
63 Servais Knaven (Ned) Quick.Step-Davitamon
64 Sylvain Chavanel (Fra) Brioches La Boulangere
65 David Millar (GBr) Cofidis, Credit Par Telephone
66 René Andrle (Cze) ONCE-Eroski
67 David Plaza (Spa) Team Bianchi
68 Andy Flickinger (Fra) Ag2R Prevoyance
69 Bradley Mc Gee (Aus) FDJeux.com
70 Sandy Casar (Fra) FDJeux.com
71 Andrea Noe (Ita) Alessio
72 Jens Voigt (Ger) Credit Agricole
73 Massimiliano Lelli (Ita) Cofidis, Credit Par Telephone
74 Steve Zampieri (Swi) Vini Caldirola-So.Di
75 Eddy Mazzoleni (Ita) Vini Caldirola-So.Di
76 Félix Garcia Casas (Spa) Team Bianchi
77 Javier Pascual Llorente (Spa) Kelme-Costa Blanca
78 Patrice Halgand (Fra) Jean Delatour
79 Dario Andriotto (Ita) Vini Caldirola-So.Di
80 Mikel Astarloza (Spa) Ag2R Prevoyance
81 Laszlo Bodrogi (Hun) Quick.Step-Davitamon
82 Peter Lüttenberger (Aut) Team CSC
83 Tyler Hamilton (USA) Team CSC
84 Andrea Peron (Ita) Team CSC
85 Michaël Blaudzun (Den) Team CSC
86 Hans De Clercq (Bel) Lotto Domo
87 Dario Cioni (Ita) Fassa Bortolo
88 Ivan Basso (Ita) Fassa Bortolo
89 Gilberto Simoni (Ita) Saeco
90 Salvatore Commesso (Ita) Saeco
91 Fabio Sacchi (Ita) Saeco
92 Leonardo Bertagnolli (Ita) Saeco
93 Paolo Fornaciari (Ita) Saeco
94 Jorg Ludewig (Ger) Saeco
95 Kurt Van De Wouwer (Bel) Quick.Step-Davitamon
96 Fred Rodriguez (USA) Vini Caldirola-So.Di
97 Raffaele Ferrara (Ita) Alessio
98 Alberto Lopez Munain (Spa) Euskaltel-Euskadi
99 Denis Menchov (Rus) iBanesto.com
100 Daniele Nardello (Ita) Team Telekom
101 Christophe Brandt (Bel) Lotto Domo
102 Yuriy Krivtsov (Ukr) Jean Delatour
103 Christophe Mengin (Fra) FDJeux.com
104 David Etxebarria (Spa) Euskaltel-Euskadi
105 Angel Casero (Spa) Team Bianchi
106 Samuel Dumoulin (Fra) Jean Delatour
107 Lance Armstrong (USA) US Postal-Berry Floor
108 Carlos Sastre (Spa) Team CSC
109 Roberto Heras (Spa) US Postal-Berry Floor
110 Victor Hugo Pena (Col) US Postal-Berry Floor
111 Pavel Padrnos (Cze) US Postal-Berry Floor
112 Manuel Beltran (Spa) US Postal-Berry Floor
113 Unai Etxebarria (Ven) Euskaltel-Euskadi
114 Vjatceslav Ekimov (Rus) US Postal-Berry Floor
115 Walter Beneteau (Fra) Brioches La Boulangere
116 Bram De Groot (Ned) Rabobank
117 Udo Bölts (Ger) Gerolsteiner
118 Mario Aerts (Bel) Team Telekom
119 Stephane Goubert (Fra) Jean Delatour
120 Inigo Chaurreau (Spa) Ag2R Prevoyance
121 Jesus Manzano (Spa) Kelme-Costa Blanca
122 Ignacio Gutierrez (Spa) Kelme-Costa Blanca
123 Ivan Parra (Col) Kelme-Costa Blanca
124 Frédéric Finot (Fra) Jean Delatour
125 Torsten Schmidt (Ger) Gerolsteiner
126 Marcus Zberg (Swi) Gerolsteiner
127 Nicki Sorensen (Den) Team CSC
128 Matthew Wilson (Aus) FDJeux.com
129 David Munoz (Spa) Kelme-Costa Blanca
130 Nicola Loda (Ita) Fassa Bortolo
131 Franck Renier (Fra) Brioches La Boulangere
132 Vladimir Karpets (Rus) iBanesto.com
133 Guido Trentin (Ita) Cofidis, Credit Par Telephone
134 Rik Verbrugghe (Bel) Lotto Domo
135 Nick Gates (Aus) Lotto Domo
136 Marco Milesi (Ita) Vini Caldirola-So.Di
137 Juan Miguel Mercado (Spa) iBanesto.com
138 Laurent Dufaux (Swi) Alessio
139 David Latasa (Spa) Kelme-Costa Blanca
140 Pietro Caucchioli (Ita) Alessio
141 Georg Totschnig (Aut) Gerolsteiner
142 Thomas Voeckler (Fra) Brioches La Boulangere
143 Alvaro Gonzalez Galdeano (Spa) ONCE-Eroski
144 George Hincapie (USA) US Postal-Berry Floor
145 Juan Antonio Flecha (Spa) iBanesto.com
146 Pierre Bourquenoud (Swi) Jean Delatour
147 Vicente Garcia Acosta (Spa) iBanesto.com
148 Evgeni Petrov (Rus) iBanesto.com
149 Julian Usano (Spa) Kelme-Costa Blanca
150 Roberto Laiseka (Spa) Euskaltel-Euskadi
151 Christophe Edaleine (Fra) Jean Delatour
152 Stéphane Auge (Fra) Credit Agricole
153 Alessandro Bertolini (Ita) Alessio
154 Serge Baguet (Bel) Lotto Domo
155 Thomas Liese (Ger) Team Bianchi
156 Marzio Bruseghin (Ita) Fassa Bortolo
157 Michael Rich (Ger) Gerolsteiner
158 Uwe Peschel (Ger) Gerolsteiner
159 Christophe Oriol (Fra) Ag2R Prevoyance
160 Xabier Zandio (Spa) iBanesto.com
161 Antonio Tauler (Spa) Kelme-Costa Blanca
162 Benoit Poilvet (Fra) Credit Agricole
163 Pierrick Fedrigo (Fra) Credit Agricole
164 Aitor Garmendia (Spa) Team Bianchi
165 Sven Montgomery (Swi) Fassa Bortolo
166 Nicolas Fritsch (Fra) FDJeux.com
167 Bekim Christensen (Den) Team CSC
168 Inigo Cuesta (Spa) Cofidis, Credit Par Telephone
169 Luis Perez (Spa) Cofidis, Credit Par Telephone
170 Jakob Piil (Den) Team CSC
171 Volodymir Gustov (Ukr) Fassa Bortolo
172 Maryan Hary (Fra) Brioches La Boulangere
173 Laurent Lefevre (Fra) Jean Delatour
174 Nicolas Vogondy (Fra) FDJeux.com
175 David Moncoutie (Fra) Cofidis, Credit Par Telephone
176 Daniel Becke (Ger) Team Bianchi
177 Franco Pellizotti (Ita) Alessio
178 Davide Bramati (Ita) Quick.Step-Davitamon
179 Fabio Baldato (Ita) Alessio
180 Andrej Hauptman (Slo) Vini Caldirola-So.Di
181 Grischa Niermann (Ger) Rabobank
182 Michael Boogerd (Ned) Rabobank
183 Levi Leipheimer (USA) Rabobank
184 Stefano Zanini (Ita) Saeco
185 Remmert Wielinga (Ned) Rabobank
186 Davide Rebellin (Ita) Gerolsteiner
187 Nicolas Jalabert (Fra) Team CSC
188 Danilo Di Luca (Ita) Saeco
189 Floyd Landis (USA) US Postal-Berry Floor
190 José Luis Rubiera (Spa) US Postal-Berry Floor
191 Matthias Kessler (Ger) Team Telekom
192 Richard Virenque (Fra) Quick.Step-Davitamon
193 Koos Moerenhout (Ned) Lotto Domo 3.48
194 Olaf Pollack (Ger) Gerolsteiner
195 Andréas Klöden (Ger) Team Telekom
196 José Enrique Gutierrez (Spa) Kelme-Costa Blanca
197 Marc Lotz (Ned) Rabobank
198 Jimmy Casper (Fra) FDJeux.com

Points

1 Alessandro Petacchi (Ita) Fassa Bortolo 35 pts
2 Robbie Mc Ewen (Aus) Lotto Domo 30
3 Erik Zabel (Ger) Team Telekom 26
4 Paolo Bettini (Ita) Quick.Step-Davitamon 24
5 Baden Cooke (Aus) FDJeux.com 22
6 Thor Hushovd (Nor) Credit Agricole 20
7 Oscar Freire (Spa) Rabobank 19
8 Luca Paolini (Ita) Quick.Step-Davitamon 18
9 Romans Vainsteins (Lat) Vini Caldirola-So.Di 17
10 Jaan Kirsipuu (Est) Ag2R Prevoyance 16
11 Rene Haselbacher (Aut) Gerolsteiner 15
12 Damien Nazon (Fra) Brioches La Boulangere 14
13 Stuart O'grady (Aus) Credit Agricole 13
14 Jean-Patrick Nazon (Fra) Jean Delatour 12
15 Gerrit Glomser (Aut) Saeco 11
16 Fabrizio Guidi (Ita) Team Bianchi 10
17 Carlos Da Cruz (Fra) FDJeux.com 9
18 Médéric Clain (Fra) Cofidis, Credit Par Telephone 8
19 Alexandre Botcharov (Rus) Ag2R Prevoyance 7
20 Angel Vicioso (Spa) ONCE-Eroski 6
21 Angelo Furlan (Ita) Alessio 5
22 Robert Hunter (RSA) Rabobank 4
23 Marco Velo (Ita) Fassa Bortolo 3
24 Samuel Sanchez (Spa) Euskaltel-Euskadi 2
25 Anthony Geslin (Fra) Brioches La Boulangere 1

Mountains

Côte De Champcueil - Cat. 4, 31.00 km
1 Christophe Mengin (Fra) FDJeux.com 5 pts
2 Andy Flickinger (Fra) Ag2R Prevoyance 3
3 Walter Beneteau (Fra) Brioches La Boulangere 1
Côte De Boutigny-Sur-Essonne - Cat. 4, 45.00 km
1 Walter Beneteau (Fra) Brioches La Boulangere 5 pts
2 Christophe Mengin (Fra) FDJeux.com 3
3 Andy Flickinger (Fra) Ag2R Prevoyance 1
Côte De Barbeau - Cat. 4, 85.00 km
1 Christophe Mengin (Fra) FDJeux.com 5 pts
2 Walter Beneteau (Fra) Brioches La Boulangere 3
3 Andy Flickinger (Fra) Ag2R Prevoyance 1

Sprints

Corbeil-Essonnes, 19.00 km
1 Robbie Mc Ewen (Aus) Lotto Domo 6 pts
2 Bradley Mc Gee (Aus) FDJeux.com 4
3 Jean-Patrick Nazon (Fra) Jean Delatour 2
Avon, 72.00 km
1 Andy Flickinger (Fra) Ag2R Prevoyance 6 pts
2 Walter Beneteau (Fra) Brioches La Boulangere 4
3 Christophe Mengin (Fra) FDJeux.com 2
Mauperthuis, 132.50 km
1 Andy Flickinger (Fra) Ag2R Prevoyance 6 pts
2 Christophe Mengin (Fra) FDJeux.com 4
3 Walter Beneteau (Fra) Brioches La Boulangere 2

Young rider

1 Baden Cooke (Aus) FDJeux.com 3.44.33
2 Thor Hushovd (Nor) Credit Agricole
3 Samuel Sanchez (Spa) Euskaltel-Euskadi
4 Anthony Geslin (Fra) Brioches La Boulangere
5 Jérôme Pineau (Fra) Brioches La Boulangere
6 Michael Rogers (Aus) Quick.Step-Davitamon
7 Nicolas Portal (Fra) Ag2R Prevoyance
8 Sylvain Chavanel (Fra) Brioches La Boulangere
9 Andy Flickinger (Fra) Ag2R Prevoyance
10 Sandy Casar (Fra) FDJeux.com
11 Mikel Astarloza (Spa) Ag2R Prevoyance
12 Leonardo Bertagnolli (Ita) Saeco
13 Denis Menchov (Rus) iBanesto.com
14 Yuriy Krivtsov (Ukr) Jean Delatour
15 Samuel Dumoulin (Fra) Jean Delatour
16 Jesus Manzano (Spa) Kelme-Costa Blanca
17 David Munoz (Spa) Kelme-Costa Blanca
18 Vladimir Karpets (Rus) iBanesto.com
19 Juan Miguel Mercado (Spa) iBanesto.com
20 Thomas Voeckler (Fra) Brioches La Boulangere
21 Evgeni Petrov (Rus) iBanesto.com
22 Christophe Edaleine (Fra) Jean Delatour
23 Pierrick Fedrigo (Fra) Credit Agricole
24 Nicolas Fritsch (Fra) FDJeux.com
25 Maryan Hary (Fra) Brioches La Boulangere
26 Daniel Becke (Ger) Team Bianchi
27 Franco Pellizotti (Ita) Alessio
28 Remmert Wielinga (Ned) Rabobank
29 Matthias Kessler (Ger) Team Telekom
30 Jimmy Casper (Fra) FDJeux.com

Most combative

1 Andy Flickinger (Fra) Ag2r-Prevoyance

Teams

1 Quick Step - Davitamon 11.13.39
2 Credit Agricole
3 Ag2R Prevoyance
4 Brioches La Boulangere
5 Rabobank
6 Fassa Bortolo
7 Lotto - Domo
8 Team Telekom
9 FDJeux.com
10 Vini Caldirola - So.Di
11 Team Bianchi
12 Cofidis Credit Par Telephone
13 Euskaltel - Euskadi
14 ONCE - Eroski
15 Alessio
16 iBanesto.com
17 Jean Delatour
18 Saeco - Macchine Per Caffe
19 Team CSC
20 Gerolsteiner
21 Kelme - Costa Blanca
22 US Postal - Berry Floor

General classification after stage 1

1 Bradley Mc Gee (Aus) FDJeux.com 3.51.55
2 David Millar (GBr) Cofidis, Credit Par Telephone 0.04
3 Haimar Zubeldia (Spa) Euskaltel-Euskadi 0.06
4 Jan Ullrich (Ger) Team Bianchi
5 Victor Hugo Pena (Col) US Postal-Berry Floor 0.10
6 Tyler Hamilton (USA) Team CSC
7 Andy Flickinger (Fra) Ag2R Prevoyance
8 Lance Armstrong (USA) US Postal-Berry Floor 0.11
9 Joseba Beloki (Spa) ONCE-Eroski 0.13
10 Santiago Botero (Col) Team Telekom
11 Vjatceslav Ekimov (Rus) US Postal-Berry Floor 0.15
12 Michael Rich (Ger) Gerolsteiner
13 Levi Leipheimer (USA) Rabobank
14 George Hincapie (USA) US Postal-Berry Floor
15 Vladimir Karpets (Rus) iBanesto.com 0.16
16 Mikel Astarloza (Spa) Ag2R Prevoyance
17 José Enrique Gutierrez (Spa) Kelme-Costa Blanca
18 Laszlo Bodrogi (Hun) Quick.Step-Davitamon 0.17
19 Thor Hushovd (Nor) Credit Agricole
20 Michael Rogers (Aus) Quick.Step-Davitamon
21 Laurent Brochard (Fra) Ag2R Prevoyance
22 Gilberto Simoni (Ita) Saeco
23 Robbie Mc Ewen (Aus) Lotto Domo 0.18
24 Jorg Jaksche (Ger) ONCE-Eroski
25 Tobias Steinhauser (Ger) Team Bianchi
26 Christophe Mengin (Fra) FDJeux.com 0.19
27 Alessandro Petacchi (Ita) Fassa Bortolo
28 Marc Wauters (Bel) Rabobank 0.20
29 Daniel Becke (Ger) Team Bianchi
30 Jean-Patrick Nazon (Fra) Jean Delatour
31 Olaf Pollack (Ger) Gerolsteiner 0.21
32 Torsten Schmidt (Ger) Gerolsteiner
33 Antonio Tauler (Spa) Kelme-Costa Blanca
34 Uwe Peschel (Ger) Gerolsteiner 0.22
35 Philippe Gaumont (Fra) Cofidis, Credit Par Telephone
36 Rene Haselbacher (Aut) Gerolsteiner
37 Oscar Freire (Spa) Rabobank
38 Didier Rous (Fra) Brioches La Boulangere 0.23
39 Jaan Kirsipuu (Est) Ag2R Prevoyance
40 Rik Verbrugghe (Bel) Lotto Domo
41 Andrea Peron (Ita) Team CSC
42 Eddy Mazzoleni (Ita) Vini Caldirola-So.Di
43 Jens Voigt (Ger) Credit Agricole
44 Iban Mayo (Spa) Euskaltel-Euskadi
45 David Plaza (Spa) Team Bianchi 0.24
46 David Canada (Spa) Quick.Step-Davitamon
47 Thomas Liese (Ger) Team Bianchi
48 Baden Cooke (Aus) FDJeux.com
49 Jesus Manzano (Spa) Kelme-Costa Blanca
50 Isidro Nozal (Spa) ONCE-Eroski
51 Grischa Niermann (Ger) Rabobank
52 Denis Menchov (Rus) iBanesto.com
53 Sandy Casar (Fra) FDJeux.com 0.25
54 Nicolas Jalabert (Fra) Team CSC
55 Unai Etxebarria (Ven) Euskaltel-Euskadi
56 Angel Casero (Spa) Team Bianchi
57 Paolo Bettini (Ita) Quick.Step-Davitamon 0.26
58 Nicki Sorensen (Den) Team CSC
59 Evgeni Petrov (Rus) iBanesto.com
60 Laurent Dufaux (Swi) Alessio
61 Stuart O'grady (Aus) Credit Agricole
62 Servais Knaven (Ned) Quick.Step-Davitamon 0.27
63 Inigo Chaurreau (Spa) Ag2R Prevoyance
64 Javier Pascual Llorente (Spa) Kelme-Costa Blanca
65 Laurent Lefevre (Fra) Jean Delatour
66 Aitor Gonzalez (Spa) Fassa Bortolo 0.28
67 Andréas Klöden (Ger) Team Telekom
68 Marco Velo (Ita) Fassa Bortolo
69 Michael Boogerd (Ned) Rabobank
70 Romans Vainsteins (Lat) Vini Caldirola-So.Di
71 Nicolas Vogondy (Fra) FDJeux.com 0.29
72 Fred Rodriguez (USA) Vini Caldirola-So.Di
73 Alexandre Vinokourov (Kaz) Team Telekom
74 Pablo Lastras (Spa) iBanesto.com
75 Erik Zabel (Ger) Team Telekom 0.30
76 Juan Antonio Flecha (Spa) iBanesto.com
77 Christophe Oriol (Fra) Ag2R Prevoyance
78 Angel Vicioso (Spa) ONCE-Eroski 0.31
79 Robert Hunter (RSA) Rabobank
80 Leonardo Bertagnolli (Ita) Saeco
81 Davide Rebellin (Ita) Gerolsteiner
82 Kurt Van De Wouwer (Bel) Quick.Step-Davitamon 0.32
83 Alvaro Gonzalez Galdeano (Spa) ONCE-Eroski
84 Volodymir Gustov (Ukr) Fassa Bortolo
85 Massimiliano Lelli (Ita) Cofidis, Credit Par Telephone
86 Frédéric Finot (Fra) Jean Delatour 0.33
87 Juan Miguel Mercado (Spa) iBanesto.com
88 Samuel Sanchez (Spa) Euskaltel-Euskadi
89 José Luis Rubiera (Spa) US Postal-Berry Floor
90 René Andrle (Cze) ONCE-Eroski
91 Carlos Sastre (Spa) Team CSC
92 Bram De Groot (Ned) Rabobank
93 Patrice Halgand (Fra) Jean Delatour 0.34
94 Christophe Edaleine (Fra) Jean Delatour
95 Marzio Bruseghin (Ita) Fassa Bortolo
96 Walter Beneteau (Fra) Brioches La Boulangere
97 Leon Van Bon (Ned) Lotto Domo
98 Dario Cioni (Ita) Fassa Bortolo
99 Bekim Christensen (Den) Team CSC
100 Yuriy Krivtsov (Ukr) Jean Delatour
101 Ivan Basso (Ita) Fassa Bortolo 0.35
102 Vladimir Miholjevic (Cro) Alessio
103 Francisco Mancebo (Spa) iBanesto.com
104 Pierrick Fedrigo (Fra) Credit Agricole
105 Nicolas Fritsch (Fra) FDJeux.com 0.36
106 Marcus Zberg (Swi) Gerolsteiner
107 Remmert Wielinga (Ned) Rabobank
108 Sylvain Chavanel (Fra) Brioches La Boulangere
109 Xabier Zandio (Spa) iBanesto.com 0.37
110 Guido Trentin (Ita) Cofidis, Credit Par Telephone
111 Roberto Heras (Spa) US Postal-Berry Floor
112 Giuseppe Guerini (Ita) Team Telekom
113 Pavel Padrnos (Cze) US Postal-Berry Floor
114 Aitor Garmendia (Spa) Team Bianchi
115 Carlos Da Cruz (Fra) FDJeux.com 0.38
116 Mikel Pradera (Spa) ONCE-Eroski
117 Vicente Garcia Acosta (Spa) iBanesto.com
118 Floyd Landis (USA) US Postal-Berry Floor
119 Georg Totschnig (Aut) Gerolsteiner
120 Jimmy Casper (Fra) FDJeux.com
121 Fabrizio Guidi (Ita) Team Bianchi
122 Daniele Nardello (Ita) Team Telekom 0.39
123 Dario Andriotto (Ita) Vini Caldirola-So.Di
124 Salvatore Commesso (Ita) Saeco
125 Richard Virenque (Fra) Quick.Step-Davitamon
126 Jérôme Pineau (Fra) Brioches La Boulangere
127 Alexandre Botcharov (Rus) Ag2R Prevoyance 0.40
128 Pietro Caucchioli (Ita) Alessio
129 Fabio Sacchi (Ita) Saeco
130 Marco Milesi (Ita) Vini Caldirola-So.Di
131 Maryan Hary (Fra) Brioches La Boulangere
132 Luca Paolini (Ita) Quick.Step-Davitamon
133 David Moncoutie (Fra) Cofidis, Credit Par Telephone 0.41
134 José Azevedo (Por) ONCE-Eroski
135 Christophe Moreau (Fra) Credit Agricole
136 Paolo Bossoni (Ita) Vini Caldirola-So.Di
137 Stefano Garzelli (Ita) Vini Caldirola-So.Di
138 Nicolas Portal (Fra) Ag2R Prevoyance
139 Franck Renier (Fra) Brioches La Boulangere 0.42
140 David Latasa (Spa) Kelme-Costa Blanca
141 Félix Garcia Casas (Spa) Team Bianchi
142 Fabio Baldato (Ita) Alessio
143 Matthew Wilson (Aus) FDJeux.com
144 Ivan Parra (Col) Kelme-Costa Blanca
145 Ignacio Gutierrez (Spa) Kelme-Costa Blanca
146 Franco Pellizotti (Ita) Alessio
147 Ludovic Turpin (Fra) Ag2R Prevoyance 0.43
148 Michaël Blaudzun (Den) Team CSC
149 David Etxebarria (Spa) Euskaltel-Euskadi
150 Inigo Landaluze (Spa) Euskaltel-Euskadi
151 Alberto Lopez Munain (Spa) Euskaltel-Euskadi
152 Udo Bölts (Ger) Gerolsteiner
153 Matthias Kessler (Ger) Team Telekom
154 Danilo Di Luca (Ita) Saeco
155 Davide Bramati (Ita) Quick.Step-Davitamon 0.44
156 Sven Montgomery (Swi) Fassa Bortolo
157 Marcos Serrano (Spa) ONCE-Eroski
158 David Munoz (Spa) Kelme-Costa Blanca
159 Nicola Loda (Ita) Fassa Bortolo
160 Roberto Laiseka (Spa) Euskaltel-Euskadi
161 Rolf Aldag (Ger) Team Telekom 0.45
162 Andrej Hauptman (Slo) Vini Caldirola-So.Di
163 Benoit Poilvet (Fra) Credit Agricole
164 Jorg Ludewig (Ger) Saeco
165 Serge Baguet (Bel) Lotto Domo
166 Steve Zampieri (Swi) Vini Caldirola-So.Di
167 Mario Aerts (Bel) Team Telekom 0.46
168 Marc Lotz (Ned) Rabobank
169 Angelo Furlan (Ita) Alessio
170 Jakob Piil (Den) Team CSC
171 Axel Merckx (Bel) Lotto Domo 0.47
172 Peter Lüttenberger (Aut) Team CSC
173 Stefano Zanini (Ita) Saeco
174 Manuel Beltran (Spa) US Postal-Berry Floor 0.49
175 Pierre Bourquenoud (Swi) Jean Delatour
176 Andrea Noe (Ita) Alessio
177 Julian Usano (Spa) Kelme-Costa Blanca 0.50
178 Sébastien Hinault (Fra) Credit Agricole
179 Damien Nazon (Fra) Brioches La Boulangere
180 Stephane Goubert (Fra) Jean Delatour
181 Mikel Artetxe (Spa) Euskaltel-Euskadi 0.51
182 Cédric Vasseur (Fra) Cofidis, Credit Par Telephone
183 Inigo Cuesta (Spa) Cofidis, Credit Par Telephone 0.52
184 Christophe Brandt (Bel) Lotto Domo
185 Samuel Dumoulin (Fra) Jean Delatour 0.53
186 Anthony Geslin (Fra) Brioches La Boulangere
187 Paolo Fornaciari (Ita) Saeco 0.54
188 Gerrit Glomser (Aut) Saeco
189 Raffaele Ferrara (Ita) Alessio 0.55
190 Lilian Jegou (Fra) Credit Agricole
191 Thomas Voeckler (Fra) Brioches La Boulangere 0.56
192 Hans De Clercq (Bel) Lotto Domo 0.59
193 Médéric Clain (Fra) Cofidis, Credit Par Telephone 1.01
194 Luis Perez (Spa) Cofidis, Credit Par Telephone
195 Stéphane Auge (Fra) Credit Agricole 1.07
196 Nick Gates (Aus) Lotto Domo 1.08
197 Alessandro Bertolini (Ita) Alessio 1.10
198 Koos Moerenhout (Ned) Lotto Domo 4.30

Points classification

1 Robbie Mc Ewen (Aus) Lotto Domo 36 pts
2 Alessandro Petacchi (Ita) Fassa Bortolo 35
3 Erik Zabel (Ger) Team Telekom 26
4 Paolo Bettini (Ita) Quick.Step-Davitamon 24
5 Baden Cooke (Aus) FDJeux.com 22
6 Thor Hushovd (Nor) Credit Agricole 20
7 Bradley Mc Gee (Aus) FDJeux.com 19
8 Oscar Freire (Spa) Rabobank 19
9 Luca Paolini (Ita) Quick.Step-Davitamon 18
10 Romans Vainsteins (Lat) Vini Caldirola-So.Di 17
11 Jaan Kirsipuu (Est) Ag2R Prevoyance 16
12 Rene Haselbacher (Aut) Gerolsteiner 15
13 Jean-Patrick Nazon (Fra) Jean Delatour 14
14 Damien Nazon (Fra) Brioches La Boulangere 14
15 Stuart O'grady (Aus) Credit Agricole 13
16 Andy Flickinger (Fra) Ag2R Prevoyance 12
17 David Millar (GBr) Cofidis, Credit Par Telephone 12
18 Gerrit Glomser (Aut) Saeco 11
19 Haimar Zubeldia (Spa) Euskaltel-Euskadi 10
20 Fabrizio Guidi (Ita) Team Bianchi 10
21 Carlos Da Cruz (Fra) FDJeux.com 9
22 Jan Ullrich (Ger) Team Bianchi 8
23 Médéric Clain (Fra) Cofidis, Credit Par Telephone 8
24 Alexandre Botcharov (Rus) Ag2R Prevoyance 7
25 Victor Hugo Pena (Col) US Postal-Berry Floor 6
26 Christophe Mengin (Fra) FDJeux.com 6
27 Angel Vicioso (Spa) ONCE-Eroski 6
28 Walter Beneteau (Fra) Brioches La Boulangere 6
29 Tyler Hamilton (USA) Team CSC 5
30 Angelo Furlan (Ita) Alessio 5
31 Lance Armstrong (USA) US Postal-Berry Floor 4
32 Robert Hunter (RSA) Rabobank 4
33 Joseba Beloki (Spa) ONCE-Eroski 3
34 Marco Velo (Ita) Fassa Bortolo 3
35 Santiago Botero (Col) Team Telekom 2
36 Samuel Sanchez (Spa) Euskaltel-Euskadi 2
37 Vjatceslav Ekimov (Rus) US Postal-Berry Floor 1
38 Anthony Geslin (Fra) Brioches La Boulangere 1

Mountains classification

1 Christophe Mengin (Fra) FDJeux.com 13 pts
2 Walter Beneteau (Fra) Brioches La Boulangere 9
3 Andy Flickinger (Fra) Ag2R Prevoyance 5

Young rider classification

1 Andy Flickinger (Fra) Ag2R Prevoyance 3.52.05
2 Vladimir Karpets (Rus) iBanesto.com 0.06
3 Mikel Astarloza (Spa) Ag2R Prevoyance
4 Thor Hushovd (Nor) Credit Agricole 0.07
5 Michael Rogers (Aus) Quick.Step-Davitamon
6 Daniel Becke (Ger) Team Bianchi 0.10
7 Baden Cooke (Aus) FDJeux.com 0.14
8 Jesus Manzano (Spa) Kelme-Costa Blanca
9 Denis Menchov (Rus) iBanesto.com
10 Sandy Casar (Fra) FDJeux.com 0.15
11 Evgeni Petrov (Rus) iBanesto.com 0.16
12 Leonardo Bertagnolli (Ita) Saeco 0.21
13 Juan Miguel Mercado (Spa) iBanesto.com 0.23
14 Samuel Sanchez (Spa) Euskaltel-Euskadi
15 Christophe Edaleine (Fra) Jean Delatour 0.24
16 Yuriy Krivtsov (Ukr) Jean Delatour
17 Pierrick Fedrigo (Fra) Credit Agricole 0.25
18 Nicolas Fritsch (Fra) FDJeux.com 0.26
19 Remmert Wielinga (Ned) Rabobank
20 Sylvain Chavanel (Fra) Brioches La Boulangere
21 Jimmy Casper (Fra) FDJeux.com 0.28
22 Jérôme Pineau (Fra) Brioches La Boulangere 0.29
23 Maryan Hary (Fra) Brioches La Boulangere 0.30
24 Nicolas Portal (Fra) Ag2R Prevoyance 0.31
25 Franco Pellizotti (Ita) Alessio 0.32
26 Matthias Kessler (Ger) Team Telekom 0.33
27 David Munoz (Spa) Kelme-Costa Blanca 0.34
28 Samuel Dumoulin (Fra) Jean Delatour 0.43
29 Anthony Geslin (Fra) Brioches La Boulangere
30 Thomas Voeckler (Fra) Brioches La Boulangere 0.46

Teams classification

1 US Postal - Berry Floor 11.36.21
2 Team Bianchi 0.08
3 FDJeux.com 0.17
4 Euskaltel - Euskadi 0.18
5 Ag2R Prevoyance 0.19
6 ONCE - Eroski
7 Rabobank 0.21
8 Gerolsteiner
9 Quick Step - Davitamon 0.22
10 Team CSC
11 Cofidis Credit Par Telephone
12 Kelme - Costa Blanca 0.25
13 Credit Agricole 0.30
14 iBanesto.com
15 Team Telekom 0.34
16 Vini Caldirola - So.Di 0.44
17 Jean Delatour 0.46
18 Saeco - Macchine Per Caffe 0.51
19 Fassa Bortolo 0.52
20 Lotto - Domo 0.57
21 Brioches La Boulangere 1.02
22 Alessio 1.05

noel · Post by **noel** » July 7, 2003, 3:15 pm

Holy Shit!

Tyler Hamilton (American on the Danish CSC Team) fractured his collarbone in the crash yesterday, but he's not going to abandon!

Unless his collarbone heals incredibly fast, the pain when pulling on his bars during the mountain stages will probably kill him. I can't fathom how badly that would hurt. ><

noel · Post by **noel** » July 8, 2003, 5:20 pm

Update: Tomorrow is the team time-trial. Barring a crash or some other unexpected event, look for the USPS team to be holding most of the top spots, and probably Victor Hugo Pena, Lance's teammate to take the Maillot Jaune (Yellow Jersey).

Boogahz · Post by **Boogahz** » July 8, 2003, 11:34 pm

If I remember right, Lance Armstrong never was strong in the opening portions, but when they got into the hills/mountains was when he started making up for the lost time.

noel · Post by **noel** » July 9, 2003, 12:11 am

It doesn't really work like that.

Lance isn't a pure sprinter, but he could if he chose to, kick complete ass in the opening stages. The opening stages are nothing compared to wearing the maillot juane when the Tour returns to Paris after 21 days of riding.

It's all about tactics and goals. Lances' goal is the overall so in the opening stages, his job is to not waste energy, get into trouble, or lose time on his chief rivals (of which there are many this year). At this early stage of the tour, it's not important for him to either be in the yellow jersey of have to defend it (which takes a lot of work and effort from his team). All he needs to do is stay close to the leaders.

As an example, the leader of the Tour in '01 when entering the mountain stages was Francois Simone who had a 30 minute lead over Lance. Francois was a decent sprinter, decent rider, but no threat in the mountains and consequently, Lance took the Yellow Jersey after only two days of climbing.

This year things aren't quite as simple because attacks will come from all different directions. Chief among them Jan Ulrich, and Gilberto Simoni. Gilberto is coming off a win at the Giro D'Italia (Tour of Italy) and claims he'll be giving Lance a very hard time in the mountains this year. Ulrich has been out for the last year, so it's not certain what kind of shape he's in this year, but I expect him to really challenge Lance, and Lance himself has stated that he's the most talented cyclist today.

Here's a fantastic article about Lance Armstrong that was in the New Yorker last year during the Tour: http://www.newyorker.com/fact/content/?020715fa_fact1

For anyone who's really interested (all two of you), I wrote this like a year ago. It's a decent explanation of the basics of the Tour, for the uninitiated:

Introduction:
The Tour de France is the most difficult and prestigious 'Grand Tour' in the world of cycling. This year's Tour consists of a prologue time trial, and 20 stages beginning in Luxemburg, briefly jaunting into Germany, then returning to France where the riders will head for the Pyrenees, then through the Alps, and finally ending in traditional fashion as it always does, on the Champs Elysées in Paris.

21 teams each consisting of 9 riders will take part in this years tour, a total of 189 riders. Top teams include US Postal Service, ONCE, Deutsche Telekom, Mapei, Credit Agricole, Lotto, Kelme, Rabobank, iBanesto.com and CSC Tiscali to name a few.

Teams will generally consist of one to two General Classification (GC) riders, who are also generally the leaders of their teams. Lance Armstrong (USA) is the GC rider for the US Postal Service team, Tyler Hamilton (USA) is the GC rider for CSC Tiscali a Danish team, and Levi Lepheimer is the GC rider for Rabobank a Belgian team. This represents the largest contingent of American cyclists as GC riders that has ever come to a Tour de France.

There are many competitions in the Tour de France. Just to win a single stage is a tremendous acccomplishment. A rider can win nothing all year, and win a single stage in the Tour de France and be thought to have had a good season. Stage winners also get time bonuses. There is a 20 second time bonus for crossing the finish line in a stage first. The 20 seconds are deducted from a riders cumulative time.

Classifications/Jerseys:
Maillot Jaune (Yellow Jersey) - The person wearing the Maillot Jaune is the overall general classification leader of the Tour. The person wearing this jersey has the lowest cumulative time for the completed stages. This jersey will generally change hands several times prior to the completion of the Tour. While winning a stage in the tour can make a riders season, wearing the yellow jersey, even for a single day can make a riders career. Favorites in this competition include: Lance Armstrong (USPS), Joseba Beloki (Team ONCE), Santiago Botero (Kelme Costa Blanca), to name a few. Lance is highly favored to win this year and barring injury or illness should win.

Maillot Verd (Green Jersey) - This jersey is the jersey for the points leader. During stages of the tour, there are specific points that are marked out on the course which are worth points for the order in which they are crossed. There are also points available for the first 20 riders across the finish line of a stage. This jersey is sometimes referred to as the 'Sprinters Jersey' because the contest favours their skills and raw top-end power. Favourites in this competition are Erik Zabel (Team Deutsche Telekom), Robbie McEwen (Lotto-Adecco), and Stuart O'Grady (Credit Agricole). Erik Zabel has won this competition the last 6 years in a row, but he is by no means a lock to win it this year. Erik's 6 years in a row is the most consecutive points competition wins of any rider in history.

Maillot Pois (King of the Mountains/Polka-Dotted Jersey) - The King of the Mountains or Polka-dotted jersey is the jersey of the Tour's climbers. As with the Green Jersey competition, there are points marked during the stages for points in the climbing competition. These are typically the peaks of large hills or large mountains. The climbs in the Tour are categorized in terms of difficulty. In order from easiest to hardest, you have Categorie 4, Categorie 3, Categorie 2, Categorie 1, and Hors Categorie. The Hors Categorie climbs are so difficult that there is no classification for them, so they are given the Hors Categorie designation. In general, the more difficult the climb, the more points it's worth in the climbing competition. This years journey through the Alps includes Le Mont Ventoux - finish of Stage 14 (linkage is to a great article on the history of the climb), one of the most feared climbs in the Tour. Favourites in the climbing competition are harder to pick, but I'll stick my neck out and say that Laurent Jalabert (TSC Tiscali), Santiago Botera (Kelme), Oscar Sevilla (Kelme), and Andrei Kivilev (Confidis) are the favourites. (I'll probably be way off on that).

There are several other less prestigious competitions including, the 'Best Young Rider' given a white Jersey, most aggressive rider noted with a red number on his jersey, and the team competition (not positive how this works, but I THINK it's...) for the team with three riders having the lowest overall general classification time.

Certain stages will be referred to as time-trials. Time-trials are typically shorter than normal stages that the riders must ride on their own. They start from a starting gate, and are staggered anywhere from 5-15 minutes apart. They use the most aerodynamic bikes available for these stages, and there are penalties for drafting other riders should you catch a rider in front of you. Time trials always start in reverse order of the general classification (overall lead), so if you are in last place, you will start first and if you are in first place you will start last. There is also a team time-trial where a team goes out together, and are allowed to draft each other, but they compete as a team. In this case, the team must have 5 (of 9) riders cross the finish line to stop the clock. Time trials have often been called the "race of truth". In '89, Greg Lemond went into the final which was a time trial with a time defecit, and won the time trial, winning the Tour de France by 8 seconds, the smallest margin of victory ever.

Quite often you will hear the word 'peloton' when watching the Tour. The literal meaning of the word 'peloton' is, "the group of riders". This is the large group of riders that generally ride together. Because the individuals on the front of the peloton are constantly rotating into the peloton, as a rider you are able to draft and rest somewhat when in the peloton. Only the riders on the front are having to break through the wind. Because of this, the peloton can move extremely fast through roads of the tour, sometimes having an average speed at the end of the day approaching 50kmh or 28mph.

Many people think that the Tour de France is an individual competition. This couldn't be further from the truth. Each team will have it's GC rider(s), and the rest of the team are called 'domestiques'. The job of a domestique is to protect their GC rider, to go back to the team car and get food and drinks then to ride all the way back through the peloton to deliver them to the GC rider and the rest of the team, to give a GC rider their bike should the GC rider have a mechanical failure, and to pull (allow the GC rider to draft them) the GC rider through the group should he need to get back to the front.

Links:
http://www.olntv.com
http://www.cyclingnews.com
http://www.velonews.com
http://www.letour.com

Some of the Team specific information has changed since last year FYI.

noel · Post by **noel** » July 9, 2003, 12:18 pm

US Postal won the Team Time Trial!

Just happened live, so I don't have the top 10 or anything, but this puts Lance's teammate, Victor Hugo Pena in the Yellow Jersey. He is the first Colombian to ever wear the Yellow Jersey. Lance is 1 second behind him in second place, and US Postal should be holding the majority of the top ten.

I don't think they'll defend the Jersey at this point. They'll more likely continue to play it safe until they get to the mountains.

Edit: Grats USPS top 8 positions!

1 Victor Hugo Pena (Col) US Postal-Berry Floor
2 Lance Armstrong (USA) US Postal-Berry Floor 0.02
3 Viatcheslav Ekimov (Rus) US Postal-Berry Floor 0.05
4 George Hincapie (USA) US Postal-Berry Floor
5 Jose Luis Rubiera (Spa) US Postal-Berry Floor 0.23
6 Roberto Heras (Spa) US Postal-Berry Floor 0.27
7 Pavel Padrnos (Cze) US Postal-Berry Floor
8 Floyd Landis (USA) US Postal-Berry Floor 0.28
9 Joseba Beloki (Spa) ONCE 0.33
10 Jorg Jaksche (Ger) ONCE 0.38

Not sure how Lance goes from 1 to 2 seconds behind Pena, but who cares, that's just awesome. What an incredible team effort.

Kelshara · Post by **Kelshara** » July 9, 2003, 4:06 pm

Duh?

See my post above, there is really no competition when you got money enough to buy people who can end up top 3 as support riders. In this sport, like in so many others, it is mostly about the money.

Also, personally I wont call Armstrong the best rider in the Tour. Among the best yes, the best no.

noel · Post by **noel** » July 9, 2003, 4:19 pm

Out of curiosity, who do you think is the best rider in the Tour?

The tour really has so many aspects to it that saying someone is the best rider in the Tour is difficult unless you qualify it with whichever aspect of the Tour you're referring to. I don't know how you can say there's no competition. Just looking at the top 50, there are quite a few riders that could seriously hurt Lance if he has a crash or a bad day. Just looking at the top 50, I came up with the following names. All of these people are less than 2 minutes behind Lance at this point, so they're still within striking distance:

9 Joseba Beloki (Spa) ONCE-Eroski
12 Jan Ullrich (Ger) Team Bianchi
22 Denis Menchov (Rus) iBanesto.com
28 Francisco Mancebo (Spa) iBanesto.com
29 Santiago Botero (Col) Team Telekom
34 Paolo Bettini (Ita) Quick.Step-Davitamon
39 Tyler Hamilton (USA) Team CSC
44 Alexandre Vinokourov (Kaz) Team Telekom
47 Richard Virenque (Fra) Quick.Step-Davitamon

Admittedly, Tyler's probably not a threat anymore since his collarbone is fractured in two places, but then again, I saw him out of the saddle hammering on the Team Time Trial today, so I suppose anything's possible. If Levi hadn't gone down as well, I believe he could have also challenged Lance. I don't understand how you can say there's no competition. If anything, there's more competition than there's been in 2-3 years.

For my money, Lance is the best rider in the tour for winning the overall. Not only that, he trains harder, and prepares better than any other rider in the tour.

I've never really looked at the salary aspect. Are you sure USPS has the highest total salary?

Kelshara · Post by **Kelshara** » July 10, 2003, 10:31 am

To me, the best rider would be the person who would do it the best without his support team (the support riders). I admittedly haven't had as much time to watch yet this year due to huge work loads, but I remember Heras impressed me quite a bit last year. I believe he could give Lance a run for his money if he was the main rider in a similar good support team. Ulrich, Beloki and Botero are all good riders as well.

The comment on the money etc was made due to reading an article on how US Postal bought up a rider not too long ago.

Personally, I have always liked ONCE and Telekom, although Quick.Step have impressed me this year. They did some damn hard work to catch some of the breakout riders on the early stages.

The best rider does not necesarily win. A GOOD rider wins, but the best TEAM wins, no doubt about that.

noel · Post by **noel** » July 10, 2003, 2:13 pm

I don't think Heras could because of his Time Trialing ability.

I think Botero could, but he's been largely inconsistent over the last few tours. He's probably my second favorite rider. I definitely think Hamilton could if he could avoid crashing for one Grand Tour. Ulrich for my money is the best bet this year. He's on form, and his skills are largely an unknown since he hasn't ridden as much lately.

Perhaps I misunderstand your wording but first you say, "the best rider wold be do it best without his support team", but then you go on to say that whomever would be the best would require a similar good support team.

Lance has consistently come out to win, or at least place extremely high in the time trials in each of his tour victories which in my mind, combined with his other spectactular mountaintop finishes (last year being a notable exception), point to him being the best rider, not just a good rider.

Crav · Post by **Crav** » July 10, 2003, 4:18 pm

I think it's the old, Barry Sanders would have had better number than Emmitt Smith if he had the old Cowboys offensive line, argument. Personally I think Lance is the best rider because he was able to have a team like he has built around him, that is part of the sport after all. Oh out of curiousity, has Lance had the best team throughout the last 5 years? I don't really follow cycling too closely so don't really know.

noel · Post by **noel** » July 10, 2003, 4:27 pm

I'd say that '99-'01, Lance didn't have the best team, but last year, and this year, he clearly has the best team.

Having said that, time trials are called the 'race of truth' for a reason. Lance has consistently shown that he can obliterate his competition in time trials. I'd have to check, but I believe he's won all but maybe two, including a mountain time trial in the last 4 years (not including prologues). Given that a time trial requires a rider to go out on his own, draft no one, and beat the clock, I don't see how you can argue that there's been a better rider in the tour in the last 4 years.

Zamtuk · Post by **Zamtuk** » July 10, 2003, 9:37 pm

Lance is in 2nd place now.

Truant · Post by **Truant** » July 11, 2003, 5:09 pm

stage 6 was intense! Pettachi tore ass again at the end and won. Pena and Armstrong are still in the same positions. Not sure what the changes were below that, I missed the standings.

noel · Post by **noel** » July 11, 2003, 5:20 pm

Pettachi is the most exciting sprinter I've seen since 'Super' Mario Cipollini. He finally secured the maillot verd (sprinters jersey) today, but rumor has it that like Cipo, he's going to pull out now that the mountains are starting. It's a shame really because with the performances he's been turning in, he could easily hold on to the sprinters jersey all the way to Paris. Two of the favorites for the green jersey, Robbie McEwen and Eric Zabel had a small crash within 2k of the finish line today. I'm sure you'll see McEwen (who's a little fucking whiny bitch) blaming someone else for his crash.

As far as the rest of the tour, US postal and all of Lance's chief rivals finished with the same time as Pettachi today, so there's really no change to the overall picture.

Tomorrow begins the Tour's ascent into the Alps. Lance traditionally likes to attack on the first day, so look for US postal to work hard to control the race tomorrow, and look for Lance to be in Yellow tomorrow night. We're still at the, 'anything could happen' stage of the race, and there's nothing certain. I expect to see huge attacks tomorrow from Ulrich, Botero, and Beloki. Tomorrow is definitely the day to watch.

Funny quote I found @ cyclingnews.com:

The likeable Victor Hugo, a former champion butterfly swimmer and Giro d'Italia stage winner, certainly realizes that he is only keeping the Maillot Jaune warm for Armstrong who wants both the stage win and the Maillot Jaune on Sunday's stage to l'Alpe d'Huez. In an amusing moment today during Stage 6, Peña explained post race that "Today I saw that Lance didn't have a bottle so I wanted to go back to the car to get one - Johan (USPS Team Director) told me the Maillot Jaune doesn't get bottles." Peña did so anyway, but only once during the stage.

Kelshara · Post by **Kelshara** » July 13, 2003, 5:54 pm

Well what can you say? Mayo owned hardcore today, that is some of the most exciting cycling I have ever seen. Shame his team sucks major ass (ended up second to last on the team trial) or he could have been a contender. Down to Armstrong and Beloki now really, Ulrich showed signs of weakness today. Although Hamilton keeps amazing me, if there was a "Tough Guy" award he would get it hands down.

Oh, personally I thought today's stage showed some weaknesses in US Postal. They left Armstrong very early in the last hill (even Heras) and even Lance didn't seem to have as good legs as we've seen him before.

I must admit my view might be partly colored by not liking Armstrong all that much. He has not come across as the most charming and open guy when I have watched some interviews with him, while some of the other riders have been way more inviting. I like that when it comes to athletes. Also, I do not like when one person or one team dominates a sport for too long. I think competition and variety is needed to keep a sport healthy and interesting.

noel · Post by **noel** » July 13, 2003, 8:13 pm

Today is a really good example of why it pisses me off when people say Lance has it easy, or he's a lock for the maillot juane. I think he has more competitors to watch this year than ever before. Additionally, so far he's not really shown the explosive power to just ride away from his competitors that he's shown in years past.

With the top 8 looking like this:
1 Lance Armstrong (USA) US Postal-Berry Floor 35.12.50
2 Joseba Beloki (Spa) ONCE-Eroski 0.40
3 Iban Mayo (Spa) Euskaltel-Euskadi 1.10
4 Alexandre Vinokourov (Kaz) Team Telekom 1.17
5 Francisco Mancebo (Spa) iBanesto.com 1.37
6 Tyler Hamilton (USA) Team CSC 1.52
7 Roberto Heras (Spa) US Postal-Berry Floor 1.58
8 Jan Ullrich(Ger) Team Bianchi 2.10

Lance has his work cut out for him to hold onto the maillot juane. He admitted to not having a good day today, hopefully he has one soon. I don't think Beloki can win unless he can launch an attack the LAnce can't counter, but Vinokourov is not someone I'd want to see only a minute behind me. Hamilton's performance is nothing short of amazing.

I know exactly what you mean about Armstrong's attitude. He plays his cards close to his chest, and he comes off as arrogant most of the time when he talks. But if you look at his work ethic, the amount of time he puts into his sport, and the Lance Armstrong Foundation, and then you look at his performance on the bike, I think you have to ask yourself... Is it arrogance, or self-confidence? I don't think he's ever 'talked shit' prior to the Tour like Simoni, Beloki (or his director), or Pantani. He's normally just responded to it.

I think this year is going to be Lance's hardest. Last year really was the year of the team, where they did an incredible amount of work for him. The years prior to that his team was good, but there were better teams. The first year, '99, Lance was nearly inhuman the way he pulled away from his competition. This year will be the hardest. I look forward to the upcoming stages. Defending the Jersey is no longer a foregone conclusion, and I think it's obvious now why winning 5 tours in a row is such an incredible accompishment.

kyoukan · Post by **kyoukan** » July 13, 2003, 9:11 pm

I think people would actually care about professional cycling if you could punch and kick the other guy off his bike, and use chains to whip into the other dude's spokes and shit.

I would totally watch it then.

noel · Post by **noel** » July 13, 2003, 10:06 pm

Fortunately, people already do care about it.

Truant · Post by **Truant** » July 14, 2003, 2:31 am

Kelshara wrote:Also, I do not like when one person or one team dominates a sport for too long. I think competition and variety is needed to keep a sport healthy and interesting.

Sorry, your line here really caught my attention. What do we do then...force incredible talents in to retirment after 2 years so that the rest of the sport can have fair competition?

kyoukan · Post by **kyoukan** » July 14, 2003, 3:25 am

Truant wrote:Sorry, your line here really caught my attention. What do we do then...force incredible talents in to retirment after 2 years so that the rest of the sport can have fair competition?

I think he was just making observation.

Relax, Donald!

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