|
|
|
|
Autun
182.5 km
Thursday 12 July
The top 10 of the fifth stage is:
1. Filippo Pozzato (LIQ) 182.5km in 4h39’01" (39.244km/h)
2. Oscar Freire (RAB)
3. Daniel Bennati (LAM)
4. Kim Kirchen (TMO)
5. Erik Zabel (MRM)
6. George Hincapie (DSC)
7. Cristian Moreni (COF)
8. Stefan Schumacher (GST)
9. Bram Tankink (QSI)
10. Jerome Pineau (BTL)
Fabian Cancellara has finished 12 in the stage at the same time as Pozzato. The CSC rider will keep his yellow jersey.
Alexandre Vinokourov wrestled his bike to the line 1’21" behind the stage winner.
Freire led to the line but he was pipped on the line by ’Pippo’ Pozatto who has just won his second stage of the Tour de France.
Millar is not playing any games with his escape companion: they are now in the final kilometer and are about to be swallowed up by the peloton.
Lefevre has attacked the lead group again. He is being pursued by Millar and the two are about to go under the 1km to go banner together.
The race has been split to pieces today but with 2.5km to go, there are four Lampre riders in the lead group. Tucked in with this selection is the American champion George Hincapie who began the day in fifth overall.
The Lampre team are in charge of the peloton but Hincapie is tucked in behind them with 3km to go.
Both the Discovery Channel rider AND Cancellara ran off the road on the descent. They almost crashed but rescued it at the last minute... but did lose the lead of the stage.
The Discovery rider at the front of the stage is either Martinez, Noval or Popovych but he’s being pursued by... Cancellara. The yellow jersey just will not surrender.
There are five Lampre riders now at the head of the peloton. Lefevre is still on the attack he has been joined in the lead of the stage by a Discovery Channel rider... we await confirmation of who it is.
1. Laurent Lefevre (BTL) 4pts
2. Kim Kirchen (TMO) 3pts
3. Rasmussen (RAB) 2pts
4. Fred Rodriguez (PRL) 1pt
Laurent Lefevre has attacked in the final 500m of the climb. He has crested the top of the final ascent on his own with a lead of about 10" on the Rabobank-led peloton.
There is just 1km to go to the top of the Cross Of Liberation climb. Then it’s a relative technical descent - that includes several hairpin turns - to the finish in Autun. Vinokourov is 55" behind the peloton with 10km to go.
The attack by De La Fuente amounted to nothing the Rabobank team is in control of the peloton now. They are less than 10km from the finish.
After his attack, Wegmann has been dropped by the peloton on the final ascent of the day.
There is just one rider with remaining with Vinokourov who has still not rejoined the peloton.
The Rabobank boys have caught up with Chavanel. The capture was the catalyst for De La Fuente to attack the peloton.
Four Rabobank riders have chased down Wegmann. Next in their sights is Gilbert. Chavanel is not conceding but his advantage isn’t huge; he just wants to lead over every climb of the 5th stage...
Fabian Wegmann (GST) has attacked the peloton. He has built a lead of about 100m and is about to catch up with Chavanel and Gilbert.
The last ascent of the day is a category-three rise that is 3.4km long with an average gradient of 5.4 percent.
There are six Astana riders with Vinokourov. The two other protected Astana riders - Kashechkin and Kloden - are still in the peloton that’s now just 30" behind the two stage leaders
The urgency of the peloton is more in an attempt to gain time on Vinokourov’s group than catch the two escapees (who are now 15km from the finish). Chavanel and Gilbert are now 42" ahead of the peloton.
Vinokourov is 1’00" behind the main bunch.
Vinokourov has torn his knicks and is bleeding on the right side of his buttock. He appepars to be pedalling efficiently behind the Astana train that’s trying to get him back to the peloton but he’ll be sore tonight.
Vinokourov is paying dearly for his crash. The CSC team is being aggressive at the front of the peloton which is now 54" ahead of the Astana team leader.
At the 20km to go mark the peloton was 1’15" behind Gilbert and Chavanel.
There are seven Astana riders - including Vinokourov - still in pursuit of the peloton. As they chase, the CSC team has come to the front of the bunch. Vande Velde and O’Grady are now swapping off and increasing the pace significantly. The last check has the peloton 1’30" behind the two escapees.
With the help of six Astana team-mates Vinokourov has rejoined the peloton.
We are waiting for an update on the Vinokourov accident but France Television reports that all riders from the Astana team are waiting for the leader who crashed.
Alexandre Vinokourov has crashed in the peloton. Another Astana rider was involved but both are back on their bikes...
The escapees are less than 25km from the finish of the stage. The last challenge is the Croix de la Liberation climb.
With the peloton at the 156km mark, it is 1’45" behind Chavanel and Gilbert.
There are two riders ahead of a handful of CSC recruits at the front of the peloton that is now 1’45" behind Chavanel and Gilbert.
Both Erik Zabel and Carlos Sastre punctured early on the descent from the Haut-Folin. They have been helped back to the peloton by their Milram and CSC team-mates.
At the 145km mark, the points for the sprint were won by:
1. Philippe Gilbert (FDJ) 6pts/6"
2. Sylvain Chavanel (COF) 4pts/4"
3. Robert Hunter (BAR) 2pts/2"
Robbie Hunter has led the peloton to the line of the 3rd intermediate sprint. He has added two points to his tally in the green jersey category. The bunch was 1’57" behind at the 145km mark.
Despite the rapid chase, Gilbert and Chavanel are still 2’05" ahead of the peloton. First-place points at the Bibracte sprint were taken by Gilbert.
The peloton is setting a rapid pace as it pursues the two escapees who are now 1km from the 3rd intermediate sprint. Carlos Sastre has just had some mechanical trouble but he’s racing to rejoin the peloton.
Cheula and Bonnet have been swallowed up by the peloton at the 140km mark. There are now just two men ahead of the main field.
Chavanel and Gilbert are now at the 141km mark. The Frenchman is still the virtual leader of the Tour de France. Even if he is caught, he’ll attend the podium protocol this evening to collect the polka-dot jersey. He has earned 30 points in the climbing classification after seven of the eight climbs today.
1. Chavanel (COF) 10pts
2. Gilbert (FDJ) 9pts
3. Cheula (BAR) 8pts
4. Bonnet (C.A0 7pts
5. Rasmussen (RAB) 6pts
6. Paulinho (DSC) 5pts
France Television has just reported that the peloton rode the 12.9km Haut-Folin climb in 24’40" and the leaders did it in 26’22".
At the top of the seventh climb peloton is 2’10" behind Chavanel and Gilbert. It could be that Michael Rasmussen wanted fifth place at the top because a Rabobank rider did race around Paulinho at the summit.
At the top of the Haut-Folin Bonnet and Cheula are 1’10" behind the stage leaders.
Sylvain Chavanel will wear the polka-dot jersey after today’s stage. He has led Gilbert over each of the seven climbs contested so far. We await the arrival of the peloton before we can post the results of the first category-two ascent of the 2007 Tour.
Gilbert and Chavanel are 1km away from the summit of the Haut Folin ascent. They are 2’04" ahead of the peloton and 53" ahead of the two former escape companions, Cheula and Bonnet.
The Discovery Channel team has had a rider in the lead group since the chase began at the 80km mark. The squad’s sole representative in the pace-setting line is Sergio Paulinho. He has been up front for much of the Haut-Folin climb and his speed has been responsible for a number of riders dropping from the lead group. The latest casualty is the French sprinting revelation, Romain Feillu.
Chavanel has upped the pace at the front of the stage. He has pushed his leading margin back up to 2’00".
With the peloton at the 132km mark, it is 1’45" behind Chavanel and Gilbert.
After the acceleration by Chavanel, both he and Gilbert have a lead of 30" on Cheula and Bonnet.
Chavanel is setting the pace the front of the escape group. His efforts have split the group with 5km to climb on the Haut-Folin. Only Gilbert has been able to follow the Cofidis rider. Bonnet is at the back of the escape about 25m behind Cheula.
Since his crash around the 107km mark, Andreas Kloden has been hovering around the rear of the peloton which is now 7km from the top of the seventh climb with a deficit to the stage leaders of 2’15".
There are four riders from the Barloworld squad near the front of the peloton. It’s the first time the’ve move up but they could be trying to delay the chase as they have a representative in the lead group, Gianpaolo Cheula.
The peloton is at the 125km mark. It is 2’30" behind the escapees.
The escapees are near the seventh climb of the stage. It’s the first category-two ascent of the 94th Tour. The Haut-Folin climb is 12.9km long but has a mild average gradient of 3.7 percent. Points are awarded to the first six riders across the line.
The latest time check has the leaders 3’30" ahead of the peloton. At the finish today is an Astana recruit who is as special guest of NOS Dutch television. He’s offered his thoughts on a possible winner of the day.
"I was thinking about Maxim Iglinksi because he’s already shown some good form in the Dauphine and this is a stage that should suit him very well," said the 24-year-old Dutchman.
"I don’t know Maxim too well but I spoke with him a bit at the training camp. He’s a bit of the silent time but he has a lot of talent. Normally he’ll work for the others and if it’s attacks everywhere it could bit easier for him to get a result than when it’s really being controlled as it is now."
The points for the climb at Chateau-Chinon climb were won by:
1. Sylvain Chavanel (COF) 3pts
2. Philippe Gilbert (FDJ) 2pts
3. William Bonnet (C.A) 1pt
After his crash, Lequartre is yet to remount. It looks dire for the Cofidis rider who is still being treated by the race’s medical staff.
There has been another crash in the peloton. This time it’s Geoffroy Lequatre of the Cofidis squad. He is being tended to by Dr Rivat.
The chase has lost of a little of its urgency. The maximum gain of Chavanel, Cheula, Bonnet and Gilbert was 14’45", that dropped rapidly once the pursuit began at the 80km mark. The latest check has the quartet 3’50" ahead of the peloton.
The average speed for the third hour is 38.7km/h. The average for the first three hours is 36.3km/h.
Kloden has dropped back to the medical car to consult Dr Pascal Rivat.
It didn’t take long for Andreas Kloden to rejoin the peloton. He doesn’t seem to have any abraisons as he effectively crashed into a grassy section on the left of the road. He did hold his hip immediately after the fall but he appears to be okay.
Andreas Kloden is about to rejoin the peloton. He has been helped back to the bunch by both Paolo Savoldelli and Daniel Navarro.
Kloden is back on his bike and racing to rejoin the peloton. He has one team-mate with him to help. It’s David Navarro helping the man in third overall back to the bunch.
It seems that Kloden is in bad shape. He is lying to the left of the road and is yet to stand up after a recent crash.
Kloden has gone down in a crash.
The Portugese rider who finished second in the Athens Olympics, Sergio Paulinho, is the Discovery Channel rider mixing it up at the head of the peloton. His team director Dirk Demol said at the start of the day that the profile suited riders like Yaroslav Popovych, George Hincapie and Vladimir Gusev.
The peloton continues to be led by riders from Gerolsteiner, CSC, Rabobank, Discovery Channel and Caisse d’Epargne. At the 104km mark, the main pack was 4’30" behind Chavanel’s quartet.
Between 1970 and 1972 four stages of Paris-Nice were decided in Autun. The second stage of the so-called ‘Race To The Sun’ in 1971 began, like today’s stage, in Chablis but it was a much shorter course of 128km. The winner back then was Eric Leman of Belgium who beat Italy’s Franco Bitossi.
The same day as Leman’s victory there was a 4.7km time trial in Autun: Eddy Merckx won in 6’30” and beat Luis Ocana by 11”.
At the top of the fifth climb the peloton was 5’05" behind Chavanel, Cheula, Gilbert and Bonnet.
The bunch is now less than 1km from the top of the Cote de Saint-Maurice which peaks at the 98.5km mark.
Sylvain Chavanel is destined to wear the polka-dot jersey after the fifth stage. At the top of the second cat-3 climb of the day, the points were won by:
1. Sylvain Chavanel (COF) 4pts
2. Philippe Gilbert (FDJ) 3pts
3. William Bonnet (C.A) 2pts
4. Gianpaolo Cheula (BAR) 1pt
The most recent time that a major bike race was contested in the town that hosts today’s finish was in 1999 when the prologue of the Criterium du Dauphine was contested on the 6th of June. Lance Armstrong (USA) won, beating Laurent Brochard (FRA) by less than two seconds. In third place was one of the favorites for the title of this year’s Tour, Alexandre Vinokourov (KAZ) who was seven seconds behind the American.
The peloton continues to be led by riders from Gerolsteiner, Discovery, Milram and Liquigas. It is 6’05" as it passed the site of the second intermediate sprint (at the 94.5km mark).
Chavanel, Cheula, Bonnet and Gilbert are on the fifth climb of the stage. The Cote de Saint-Maurice is a cat-3 rise that peaks at the 98.5km mark. It is 3km long at an average gradient of 5.2 percent.
The only time that a stage of the Tour de France has previously concluded in Autun was in 1998 when Magnus Backstedt (SWE) won the stage as a member of the French Gan team. He was part of a 13-man escape group in stage 19 – from La Chaux de Fonds – and he beat Maarten den Bakker and Eddy Mazzoleni with clever tactics in the closing kilometers.
Robbie McEwen led the peloton to the line to claim 14th place 16’38” behind the stage winner. The next day, Marco Pantani sealed his victory by finishing third in the time trial on the penultimate day of that year’s Tour.
At the 2nd sprint (at the 94.5km mark) the points were won by:
1. William Bonnet (C.A) 6pts/6"
2. Philippe Gilbert (FDJ) 4pts/4"
3. Sylvain Chavanel (COF) 2pts/2"
Three AG2R riders eventually dropped back to help their team leader rejoin the peloton. Moreau is now moments away from catching up with the main bunch.
CSC has also sent some riders to the head of the peloton which has just crested the Cote de Coulon at the 86.5km mark. It is 7’00" behind Chavanel’s quartet.
The leader of the AG2R team, Moreau, has been forced to stop to fix a mechanical problem. He is back on the bike and racing to rejoin the peloton without the help of any colleagues.
The entire Saunier Duval team dropped back to help Iban Mayo rejoin the peloton after a crash. The yellow squad has just reached the rear of the bunch.
The four escapees are now at the 89km mark. They are approaching the site of the 2nd intermediate sprint which is in Montreuillon at the 94km mark.
There are six of the Saunier Duval team at the back of the peloton but another three are dropping back to help Mayo rejoin the bunch after the recent crash.
There has been a crash at the back of the peloton. Iban Mayo was caught up but he is being helped to rejoin the peloton by four Saunier Duval team-mates.
At the top of the fourth climb of the stage, the points were won by:
1. Sylvain Chavanel (COF) 3pts
2. Philippe Gilbert (FDJ) 2pts
3. William Bonnet (C.A) 1pt
Bonnet and Chavanel are doing the most work in the lead group but the turns of pace are relatively even. The foursome are about to contest the fourth climb of the stage, they are 7’50" ahead of the peloton. The next ascent is one kilometer long and has an average gradient of 6.2 percent.
The chase it having an impact: with the peloton at the 75km mark it is 8’15" behind the escapees who began their move at the 19km mark.
The 184 riders remaining in the 2007 Tour de France represent 26 countries.
The breakdown is:
39 – Spain. Eduardo Gonzalo Ramirez (AGR) abandoned during stage one after a crash; Xabier Zandio abandoned during stage four because of injuries sustained in a crash in stage one.
35 – France. Remy Di Gregorio (FDJ) didn’t start stage five after fracturing his elbow in a fall early in stage four.
19 – Germany
18 – Italy
13 – Belgium
7 – The Netherlands
6 – USA and Russia
5 – Great Britain, Switzerland and Australia. Brett Lancaster (MRM) abandoned during the fifth stage.
4 – Kazakhstan
3 – Austria and Colombia
2 – Belarus, Luxembourg, Norway and Ukraine
1 – South Africa, Brazil, Denmark, Finland, New Zealand, Portugal, Slovenia and Sweden
Lithuania had one reprentative but Toomas Vaitkus didn’t start stage three because of a broken thumb sustained in a crash at the end of stage two.
Brett Lancaster of the Milram team has just surrendered. He has been suffering from a stomach complaint during the first few days of racing and was also involved in a crash in the opening days. There are now 184 riders in the race.
The pace setting in the peloton is being done by Milram, Liquigas, Gerolsteiner, Discovery Channel, Rabobank and Astana. Could it be that Erik Zabel has decided that the profile suits his strengths? The German is currently ranked second in the points classification.
His team-mate Brett Lancaster has just abandoned his first Tour.
The average speed for the second hour in stage five is 34.5km/h. The average for the first two hours combined is 36.6km/h.
Of the four riders in the lead of stage five, none have previously won a stage of the Tour de France. Sylvain Chavanel has the most to gain today: he was seventh overall after four stages (44" behind Cancellara). The French Cofidis rider was part of The Escape of 2006 - in stage 13 when Jens Voigt won, Oscar Pereiro finished second... Chavanel was third and moved up the GC rankings from 64th to 20th thanks to his efforts en route to Montelimar a year ago.
There are a lot of black and red jerseys hovering near the head of the peloton but the actual work of the chase is being done by Liquigas, Discovery, Milram, Rabobank... and Caisse d’Epargne riders. Their effort is paying off too; the latest check has the four escapees just 10’10" ahead.
The peloton is now controlled by riders from the Caisse d’Epargne team. The latest check has Chavanel’s quartet 10’25" ahead.
The maximum gain of the escape was 14’45". That has been reduced to 11’10" at the top of the third climb (at 58.5km)...
The counter-attacker has caught up with the leading trio. The men in the lead of the fifth stage (by 12’55" at the last check) are:
Sylvain Chavanel (COF) - 7th at the start of the stage at 44"
William Bonnet (C.A) - 22nd overall at 56"
Philippe Gilbert (FDJ) - 45 overall at 1’06"
Gianpaolo Cheula (BAR) - 154th at 1’40"
The result for the 3rd climb of the day, at the 58.5km mark is:
1. Sylvain Chavanel (COF) 4pts
2. Philippe Gilbert (FDJ) 3pts
3. William Bonnet (C.A) 2pts
4. Gianpaolo Cheula (ITA) 1pt
The chase is almost over the counter-attacking rider, Gianpaolo Cheula who is now 15" behind the leading trio. At the top of the 2nd climb (at the 52km mark) the peloton was at 13’25".
At the second climb of the fifth stage, the points were won by:
1. Sylvain Chavanel (COF) 3pts
2. Philippe Gilbert (FDJ) 2pts
3. William Bonnet (C.A) 1pt.
This trio is now 30" ahead of Cheula.
The peloton allowed the escape to gain a lead that’s almost 15 minutes but now the chase has begun. There are riders from the Liquigas and Rabobank teams at the front of the peloton.
The peloton is now 14’45" behind Chavanel, Bonnet and Gilbert. Poor Cheula is still stuck in no-man’s land but he is determined to catch up with the leading trio: the Barloworld rider is just 1’25" behind the men who escaped the peloton at the 19km mark.
Carlos Da Cruz is a rider with the FDJ team but he’s at the Tour working for France Television this year rather than racing. The Frenchman recently visited LeTour.fr’s headquarters and offered his take on today’s stage. “When I saw Sylvain leading the race yesterday, I thought it’s a shame to waste his energy because the stage to Autun is better suited to his strengths. He might have spent something that he could have used today and that’s why I think that Philippe Gilbert is the strongest of the selection today," said Da Cruz.
“Now who will chase? The CSC team has decided not to defend so the other teams will have to do something or we might see something unfold like what happened for Oscar Pereiro last year.
“I think that the teams of the favorites, Astana, or maybe AG2R won’t want the escape to gain more than 10 minutes. Sylvain is in the Tour to chase a good position in GC and everyone knows that he’s a good rider.”
At the top of the Cote de Grandes-Chatelaines the peloton was 10’40" behind Chavanel, Bonnet and Gilbert. In between was Cheula at 2’30" from the leading trio.
Cheula is insisting with his chase. At the site of the first sprint (at 36km) he was 2’30" behind Chavanel’s trio. The peloton is content to allow the escape to succeed. CSC’s director Kim Anderson told LeTour.fr this morning that his squad wouldn’t defend Cancellara’s lead of general classification... and that may explain why the bunch is currently 8’40" behind the fugitives.
At the first climb of the day, Sylvain Chavanel led Philippe Gilbert and William Bonnet over the summit. The Cofidis rider claimed three points and is currently the virtual leader of the climbing classification with 11 points, two more than his team-mate Stephane Auge.
The stage leaders covered 38.7km in the first hour of racing today.
Andrey Kashechkin has just punctured his front tyre. He is being tended to by his Astana team’s mechanic.
At the site of the first intermediate sprint, the counter-attacker Gianpaolo Cheula was 2’05" behind Chavanel, Bonnet and Gilbert.
The points for the intermediate sprint in the fifth stage, in Avallon at the 36km mark, were won by:
1. William Bonnet (C.A) 6pts/6"
2. Philippe Gilbert (FDJ) 4pts/4"
3. Sylvain Chavanel (COF) 2pts/2"
The peloton is now 6’40" behind these three.
The peloton is now at the 31km mark with a deficit to Chavanel, Bonnet and Gilbert of 5’50".
Sylvain Chavanel is the virtual leader of the Tour de France again. He began the day in seventh overall (44" behind Cancellara) and he instigated the escape that’s now well clear of the peloton. Along with him in the lead is Philippe Gilbert (FDJ) and William Bonnet (C.A). They are 1’50" ahead of Gianpaolo Cheula (BAR) and 4’00" ahead of the peloton.
The town that hosts the first intermediate sprint of today’s stage, Avallon (at the 36km mark), was the site of the stage finish of the opening stage of Paris-Nice in 1961. The top three of that 217km stage from Montgeron were Armand Desmet (BEL), Joseph Groussard (FRA) and Jean Claude Lefebvre (FRA).
The peloton is currently at the 26km mark. It is 2’50" behind the trio at the front of the stage. In the middle of the two groups is the lone figure of Gianpaolo Cheula of the Barloworld team. He is 1’10" behind Chavanel’s group.
Chavanel (COF), Gilbert (FDJ) and Bonnet (C.A) are now 55" ahead of Cheula (BAR) and 1’45" ahead of the peloton which is at the 23.5km mark.
The three riders in the lead are, in fact, Chavanel (COF), Bonnet (C.A) and Gilbert (FDJ). They are 40" ahead of a counter-attack from Cheula (BAR) and 1’00" ahead of the peloton.
At the 19km mark, three riders launched an attack. The men involved are Chavanel (COF), Bonnet (C.A) and Cheula (BAR). They are now 30" ahead of the peloton.
LeTour.fr contacted Dirk Demol of the Discovery Channel team before the start of the fifth stage to get his thoughts on what he expects to happen today. “It’s certainly not a day for Contador to try anything because he’s going for the overall win and he doesn’t want to spend too much energy on a stage like this,” said the Belgian team director. “It is a good profile for aggressive and versatile riders like ‘Popo’ and George… and why not Gusev? Each of them has a chance to try something today.
“It’s my belief that the real general classification riders won’t try to attack. That’s what I expect anyway because they would prefer instead to wait for the key stages in the Alps before they step up and show themselves.”
“There have been escapes very early in the race for the last few days but the sprinters teams have been in control. It should be a different scene today and it could be that the escapees manage to stay away all the way to the finish.”
Hoste, Isasi and Chavanel have been chased down by the peloton.
At the 16km mark, Leif Hoste (PRL) and Inaki Isasi (EUS) have caught up with Chavanel (COF). These three riders are now in the lead of the fifth stage.
At the 13.5km mark, Sylvain Chavanel (COF) has taken a chance and launched an escape. We wait to see if he’s joined by anyone else but we can report that Chavanel’s advantage over the peloton is about 200m.
The peloton is at the 12.5km mark and travelling quickly. No escapes have succeeded thus far in the stage.
“I think there’ll be a nice race with a lot of attacks," said Kim Anderson about the stage to Autun. When asked what he expects to happen, the director of the CSC team said the format is going to different from the first four road stage. "It might take a bit longer before the escape is established.
"That could be very hard for us and we’ve decided to take a step back and not do everything to keep the jersey.
"We won’t be disappointed if we don’t keep the overall lead. We’ve had a good start to the Tour but now it’s time to consider our main objective. We want to focus on Frank (Schleck) and Carlos (Sastre) and keep them protected for Saturday and Sunday’s stages.
"It’s a good profile for Stuart (O’Grady) and Jens (Voigt) – we’ll try to put either of them in the group – or even Fabian but I don’t think he’ll be allowed."
“It’s a day that has an interesting profile with plenty of climbs without being a mountain stage,” said Fabrizio Bontempi, the director for the Lampre-Fondital team when contacted by LeTour.fr prior to the start today.
“On paper it’s a good stage for Bennati but he still has trouble with his right arm (because of a crash). Our plan is to work hard in the final forty kilometers but I can imagine that an escape of about six or seven riders will break free today. This could suit Ballan, Bossoni or Vila.”
The attempt for Auge didn’t last long. He has been reeled in and the peloton is all together again.
Stephane Auge has launched off the front of the peloton at the 8km mark. He was the first man to attack in stage five.
There have still not been any attacks early in the fifth stage. The peloton is at the 8km mark.
The winner of stage four, Thor Hushovd (CA) has worked his way up from 28th place in the prologue to second overall after five days of racing. He has acquired no less than 32 seconds worth of time bonuses in the last four days.
The intermediate sprints for the fifth stage are in Avallon (at 36km), Montreuillon (at 94.5km) and Bibracte-Mont-Beuvray (at 145km).
The itinerary for the stage from Chablis to Autun boast eight climbs including the first category-two ascent of the 2007 Tour. The mountains classification points will be contested at the following locations:
Grandes-Chatenaines (cat-4 at 39.5km)
Domecy-sur-Cure (cat-4 at 52.5km)
Champignolless-le-Bas (cat-3 at 58.5km)
Coulon (cat-4 at 86.5km)
Saint-Maurice (cat-3 at 98.5km)
Chateau-Chinon (cat-4 at 119km)
Haut-Folin (cat-2 at 135.5km)
Croix de la Liberation (cat-3 at 174km)
The white jersey presented to the best young rider in the race is still worn by Vladimir Gusev of the Discovery Channel team. He was fifth in the prologue and is currently ranked eighth overall. His advantage of Thomas Dekker (RAB) is six seconds and, if we take into account the thoughts of Gusev’s team manager at the start of the stage, is likely to hold onto the lead of the youth classification. “It’s a good stage for ‘Popo’, George and why not Gusev?” said Dirk Demol early today.
Third place is held by Frenchman, Benoit Vaugrenard who is seven seconds shy of Gusev’s time in the general classification.
The peloton is at the 2km mark and there have been no attacks so far today.
Stephane Auge is in the polka-dot jersey for the second day this year. The Cofidis rider has a tally of nine points, two more than his team-mate Sylvain Chavanel and the former mountains classification leader David Millar (SDV). The most aggressive rider yesterday, Christian Knees (MRM) is fourth with five points.
Christian Prudhomme has dropped the flag to signal the official start of the fifth stage. The official start time was 12.56pm. There are 185 riders still in the race: Remy Di Gregorio abandoned overnight because of a fractured elbow which he sustained early in the fourth stage. The Frenchman finished the day but it’s impossible for him to continue with his injuries.
Tom Boonen (QSI) continues to lead the points classification. The runner-up in the stage to Gent has a tally of 98 points, 12 more than the runner-up in Compiegne, Erik Zabel (MRM). The winner of stage one, Robbie McEwen (PRL) holds down third place in the green jersey classification with 84pts while yesterday’s runner-up, Robbie Hunter (BAR) is in fourth place with 81pts.
Today will be the first day that Fabian Cancellara wears the yellow jersey in the 2007 Tour de France. The winner of the prologue and stage three has a lead of 29” over Thor Hushovd who moved up from ninth to second overall thanks to the 20” time bonus that came with his victory in Joigny yesterday.
In third place in the general classification is Andreas Kloden (33” behind Cancellara).
The other change to the top 10 after stage four was the arrival of Sylvain Chavanel who moved up from 23rd to seventh thanks to the time bonuses he claimed at the intermediate sprints while he was in the escape en route to Joigny.
The 182.5km stage from Chablis to Autun is schedule to begin at 12.50pm. There is a short, 2.9km neutral zone before the riders arrive at the site of the official start. Live coverage of the fifth stage will commence shortly.
The sun is shining on the Tour de France today. The temperature in Autun early this morning was a chilly six degrees Celsius but it warmed up quickly and the temperature for the stage is expected to be about 22-23 degrees.
