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 Thursday 3 November 2005 |
| stage 8Fada N’Gourma > - 77.5 km |
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| Ouedraogo tightens his grip |
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Jeremie Ouedraogo made the best of the short 77-km 8th stage, aware that it would be impossible to make big gaps at the finish. The yellow jersey holder, who outsprinted five breakaway companions to win his third stage on the Tour, was able to increase his slim lead over his nearest rival but above all over Belgium’s Pattyn and Cameroon’s Toga, third and fourth overall respectively, 20 and 21 seconds behind the overall leader.
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Everyone on the move
With such a short ride on the menu, it was clear that everyone in the bunch would be up for grabs. The first attempt was a Japanese and Senegalese joint venture after only two kilometres, quickly reined in by the bunch, led by Burkina’s riders. A nine-man move soon followed suit, with a strong Senegalese contingent but also involving the tireless Gunter Cuylits of Belgium. The break took a 15 seconds lead at kilometre 12. Six kilometres later, only six men were left in the front, and their lead was decreasing so fast they were caught one kilometre further down.
Burkina scatters the peloton
That is when the Burkina armada decided to blow the race up. By raising the tempo, they first dropped some 20 riders (km 47). The move was at first aimed at paving the way for the day’s first sprint and for Jeremie Ouedraogo, but the three seconds bonus finally went to Marien, ahead of Roumba and Keita. In the wake of the sprint, a small group parted company with the rest, involving not only the race’s top four riders but also Senegal’s Olivier Keita and Burkina’s Gueswende Sawdogo.
A Ouedraogo-Rouamba clash
The move was efficient and cooperative enough to lift the gap to half a minute and the escapees reach the second sprint with a similar lead. Ouedraogo took the laurels ahead of Rouamba and Keita. Twelve kilometres from the finish, the six realised how important it was to keep going, as they were heading towards a sprint between the most serious protagonists of the Tour. The clash between veteran Rouamba and reigning national champion Ouedraogo was highly promising. But youth once again prevailed over experience.
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The six samurais
Japanese were known as world leaders in sumo and judo. Since the 2002 World Cup, their inclination for the universal soccer fever was no longer a secret. It was also common knowledge that their interest in cycling was strictly limited to the track and especially keirin. Yet the Tour du Faso provides a chance to find out that road racing also has its say in Japan and that gradually, riders from the rising sun have also seen their level rise to the point of shining in some French clubs. Nobuhito Kubo, himself a former rider, settled in Elbeuf, in Normandy, after retiring from the sport and decided to devote most of his time to developing road cycling in Japan by organising training schemes for his compatriots eager to discover European cycling. The idea finally appealed to a number of local clubs who, at first reluctant, soon realised they could strengthen their squads with Japanese riders often braver and more reliable then many of their French counterparts.
Japanese trainees are generally welcome in teams of regional or lower national level, but the level is improving fast: “Rriders I bring from Japan are top flight riders at home and when they join, a few days of training are enough to determine on what type of race they can be most useful.”
Some Japanese riders sometimes make it to a higher level, like the Fukushima brothers, who both won races for their pro teams, Bridgestone and Nippo: “The older, Shinichi, won the Tour of Siam this year while his younger brother Koji, who held the yellow jersey for four days on the Tour of Langkawi, finished fourth in the Trophee des Grimpeurs,” said “Nobu” sorry that Brigdestone did not release his two star riders for the Tour du Faso. ”At the same time, they had to ride the Japan Cup and two stages of the national championship considered more important by their team.”
But Kobu said he was still satisfied to have been able to enter a full team in the Tour. In 2004, for his Burkina debut, he had to be content with fielding three riders in a mixed Franco-Japanese squad. The three samurais bravely finished but it was a painful experience: They were all sick from day two and I still don’t know how they managed to finish. Still it was a good experience because we did not repeat the same mistakes, especially in terms of diet and recuperation. For instance, this year, they drink ten to fifteen bottles by person and by stage. It’s essential not to falter.”
Uncle Nobu’s recipes seem effective as the team are 12th overall with one rider, Yosuke Suga, in 14th place individually. And his boys are featuring prominently in the race, attacking at every opportunity. Shigenori Ishida and Suga are often spotted in the front of the peloton, probably secretly hoping to grab a surprise stage win on this Tour.
For Nobu it is far from impossible: “It’s hard because the race conditions favour mass sprints and we don’t have a real sprinter. But by sending the right man in the right break and by finding the right time to try out, something might happen.”
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