|
|
|
|
Brignoles
187 km
Sunday 5 July
Cavendish seems unbeatable in the sprints. He held off all challengers and claimed stage win number five in his Tour career. The top five in stage two is:
1. Mark Cavendish (GBR) THR - 187km in 4h30’02" (41.55km/h)
2. Tyler Farrar (USA) GRM
3. Roman Feillu (FRA) AGR
4. Thor Hushovd (NOR) CTT
5. Yukiya Arashiro (JAP) BBO
Line him up, watch him go! Mark Cavendish is the king of the sprint. He had to sprint from about 400m out but he held off all other contenders to claim his fifth stage win in the Tour de France.
While Cavendish looks destined to win the stage, we can report that there’s been a fall on the final turn...
Time to pick your favorite sprinter. They’re all lining up: Cavendish, Bennati, Hushovd, Haussler, van Hummel, Napolitano, Dean... but Columbia is in charge under the 1km to go sign.
The Milram team now has four riders at the head of the peloton which is less than 3km from the line. Tucked in behind are riders from Columbia, Cervelo, Liquigas...
The peloton has reeled in the move by Mikhail Ignatiev 4km from the finish.
The winner of the junior time trial world championship in 2002 was Mikhail Ignatiev (who also won three rainbow jerseys in track events that year). He is now making a bid for a Tour de France stage win in his debut in much the same style as another famous Russian pursuiter - Viatcheslav Ekimov - used to win a stage early in his career.
Stef Clement will ride tomorrow’s stage with a red ’dossard’... as he has just been voted the most aggressive rider today.
The four escapees were caught by the bunch 10km from the finish of the stage.
With 10km to go, Ignatiev’s advantage is up to 12". The Russian is no stranger to suffering; he took three laps out of most of the field on his way to winning the gold medal in the points race at the Athens Olympics.
The attack by Igniatev has yielded immediate rewards he has opened up a good lead on the peloton after flying past the four other escapees. There are now less than 10km to go.
The peloton now has Clement’s quartet in its sights. The teams of the sprinters are lining up at the head of the bunch but it’s Columbia that appears to be in control. With the advantage of the escapees down to 15" we have seen an attack from Ignatiev from the Katusha team. The Russian points race gold medalist from the Athens Olympics is making his Tour debut this year.
Clement, Auge, Dessel and Veikkanen have been at the front of affairs since the 14km mark. They are now 14km from the finish and their lead has dropped to 35". On such a hot day, it’s unlikely we’ll see any of the escapees attack each other with a last-minute bid to keep their move alive all the way to Brignoles.
The Belorussian champion Yauheni Hutarovich of the FDJ team was also involved in the crash that caught Klier (CTT). The FDJ rider was last in the time trial yesterday and now he’s got a fair chase ahead of him if he is to avoid being last again today.
Andreas Klier of the Cervelo team has crashed with 17km to go. He is standing again but needs attention from his team mechanic.
At the peloton arrives at the 20km to go banner, Carlos Barredo has punctured his rear tire.
In the last 10 minutes, riders from the Columbia team have been at the front of the peloton for 71 percent of the time. The other team that’s contributing to the chase is Cervelo.
Serguei Ivanov has just arrived at the front of the peloton along with reinforcements from his Katusha team. They appear interested in trying to assist with the chasing duties but at the current rate it’s almost destiny that the four escapees will be cause before the finish. Clement’s quartet is now just 1’10" ahead of the peloton.
The peloton is now less than 23km from the finish. It is 1’20" behind Clement, Dessel, Auge and Veikkanen. Clement is no longer the virtual leader of the Tour de France. If the stage was to finish now, Cancellara would still be in the yellow jersey.
There are now also a few riders from the Cervelo TestTeam moving to the head of the bunch to assist with the chasing duties. They have options should the stage conclude with a sprint: either Thor Hushovd or Heinrich Haussler could challenge the other favorite for the day, Mark Cavendish of the Columbia team which has been working at the front since the 40km to go mark.
With the leaders inside the final 30km, their advantage has dropped to just two minutes. The maximum gain was 5’25" at the site of the second intermediate sprint in Fayence (95km from the finish).
One thing that has been achieved by the escape today is that Jussi Veikkanen has taken the lead in the climbing classification. He has amassed nine points by leading over the second, third and fourth climbs... making him the first Finnish rider to wear the polka-dot jersey in the Tour de France. All he has to do is reach the finish which is now less than 30km away.
Bernhard Eisel and another Columbia rider are now on the front of the peloton. The advantage of Clement and co has dropped quickly since Cavendish’s colleagues arrived at the head of the pack. At the 148km mark, it’s already down to 3’15"...!
Now is the time for the sprint teams to start collaborating with the chasing duties. With a Columbia rider now helping Saxo Bank out, the advantage of the four escapees has dropped to four minutes.
The Saxobank boys have been on the front of the peloton since the escape formed today. But now they can expect to start receiving some support from the teams of the sprint specialists. There is a Columbia rider now hovering near the head of the pack as the deficit to the leaders is still relatively high: 4’45" as they reached the site of the third intermediate sprint (at the 138km mark).
The points for the third intermediate sprint were won by:
1. Stef Clement (RAB) 6pts
2. Cyril Dessel (ALM) 4pts
3. Stephane Auge (COF) 2pts
Clement and co are about to contest the third intermediate sprint of the stage. This is in Logues at the 138km mark.
David Moncoutie (COF) was also involved in the recent crash but they are all back on their bikes and racing again.
The riders in the recent crash include Angelo Furlan (LAM), Gerald Ciolek (MRM), Hayden Roulston (CTT)... it seems that there are no serious injuries as most riders are now back on their bikes and racing again.
There is a crash in the peloton claiming a number of casualties.
The polka-dot jersey will be awarded to the only Finnish rider in the race at the end of the stage. He has won the final three climbs today, giving him a total tally of nine points. The results of the climb col de l’Ange (at the 129km mark) were:
1. Jussi Veikkanen (FDJ) 3pts
2. Cyril Dessel (ALM) 2pts
3. Stef Clement (RAB) 1pt
The peloton is at the 123km mark and it is slowly, but surely closing in on the leading four. The maximum gain for Clement, Auge, Dessel and Veikkanen was 5’25", that was at the site of the intermediate sprint in Fayance (91.5km). The advantage has dwindled to 4’35".
The average speed for the third hour is 39.5km/h. The average for the first three hours combined is 40.3km/h.
Of the four riders who have been in the lead since the 14km mark - Clement, Dessel, Auge and Veikkanen - the one who is doing the most work is the current virtual leader: Stef Clement of the Rabobank team. He has been on the front of the leading quartet 30 per cent of the time.
The rider who currently shares the lead in the climbing classification is Jussi Veikkanen. He is a former mountain bike rider who is making his Tour debut this year with the FDJ team. He is the only rider from Finland in the race this year... but technically there is another one. Veikkanen was the Finnish champion last year but there’s another rider who was born in Finland in the peloton: Charlie Wegelius, registered as a Brit, was actually born in Espoo, Finland.
The bunch has arrived in Garron and the riders are now collecting their feedbags.
The leaders are near the site of the feedzone in Garron (at the 109km mark). They are 4’55" ahead of the peloton. This is not far from Draguignan which hosted the 13th stage of the Tour de France back in 2000 when Jose Vicente Garcia Acosta earned a stage win for the Banesto team. He beat Nicolas Jalabert to the line by 25" in that stage nine years ago.
The maximum gain of the escape so far was 5’25". This has been reduced to 5’05" recently. It’s still Saxobank at the head of the bunch and still Clement, the virtual leader, who is doing the lion’s share of the work in the leading quartet.
LeTour.fr recently contacted the directeur sportif of the Columbia-Highroad team, Allan Peiper, to ask his opinion on the stage. "Oh, there’s still 100km to go, so we’re not going to start chasing these guys yet," said the man calling the shots for Mark Cavendish’s team. "It’s a long way yet and Saxobank is the team with the responsibility at the moment. I don’t think they’ll let the escape get much more than five minutes; they can realistically keep the yellow jersey all the way to the Pyrenees so they’ve got a reason to work."
But what about the chances of ’Cav’ today? "Oh, he’s ready. It’s his first chance to add another win to his Tour de France record. It’s a stage that suits his strengths and I’m confident he’ll be right up there."
The reason Cancellara returned to the team car is to have his seat height adjusted by the mechanic. He is now riding back to the peloton and we can expect to see the yellow jersey up front with his colleagues again soon...
At the intermediate sprint in Fayence (91.5km) the points were won by:
1. Stef Clement (RAB) 6pt
2. Stephane Auge (COF) 4pts
3. Cyril Dessel (ALM) 2pts
The Saxobank team continues to lead the peloton but the man in the yellow jersey who has been hovering around fifth or sixth place all day has retreated to the middle of the peloton. Exactly why, we cannot be sure but his team-mates don’t appear too stressed.
Cancellara is now calling for his team car and is about to have a discussion with Bjarne Riis...
The bunch is now 5’15" behind the four escapees. This is the maximum gain of Clement’s group so far today. The Dutchman is the virtual leader of the Tour after starting the stage 1’28" behind Cancellara.
The average speed for the second hour is 36.4km/h. The average for the first two hours combined is 40.6km/h.
Veikkanen is now equal with Tony Martin with his tally of points in the climbing classification after having won both the second and third climbs of the day. The result of the climb at the 81.5km mark is:
1. Jussi Veikkanen (FDJ) 3pts
2. Stephane Auge (COF) 2pts
3. Cyril Dessel (ALM) 1pt
Frank Schleck had rejoined the peloton after his crash but he’s just stopped to retrieve his bike after having ridden a spare one since the accident at the 67km mark.
Clement, Dessel, Veikkanen and Auge are near the third climb of the stage. The cat-4 ascent at Tournon is 4.2km long with an average gradient of 3.6 per cent. The top is at the 81.5km mark.
This quartet has a lead of over four and a half minutes on the peloton after escaping at the 14km mark.
The second intermediate sprint of stage two is in Fayence at the 91.5km
mark. This is where Alberto Contador ran out of energy while in the
lead of Paris-Nice in March this year. He had been aggressive
throughout the seventh stage that concluded in Fayence, following attacks by
compatriot and friend Luis Leon Sanchez but in the final four
kilometers Contador suffered a spectacular collapse and lost the yellow jersey to the Caisse d’Epargne rider who won the stage.
As one of its leaders (Frank Schleck) chases to rejoin the bunch after crashing, there are still a number of Saxo Bank riders at the head of the peloton. None of Schleck’s team-mates dropped back to help him with his pursuit after the accident at the 67km mark.
The crash involving Anton (EUS) and Schleck (SAX) was at the 68km mark. They are both back on their bikes and about to rejoin the peloton.
Frank Schleck is back on his bike and is racing to rejoin the peloton.
There has been a crash involving Igor Anton (EUS) and Frank Schleck (SAX), amongst others. They are all standing again but they are losing time to the peloton.
The official site of the Tour de France is conducting a survey during each stage of the race this year. Today’s question relates to the escape. Be sure to visit LeTour.fr to offer your thoughts on the following query:
Will the escape today be caught...
- More than 20km from the finish?
- Between 20km and 10km to go?
- Between 10km and 1km to go?
- In the final kilometer?
- Never!
"It’s always good to have a rider in an escape group," said the directeur sportif of the AG2R team when contacted by LeTour.fr recently. His representative in the move today is Cyril Dessel. "Even if there’s only four riders, it could still prove worthwhile. Remember what happened in Nantes last year at the end of stage three? There were only four riders that day and Dumoulin got a stage win (and Roman Feillu the yellow jersey).
"But we have to be realistic," said Lavenu, "if the advantage doesn’t grow to over seven or eight minutes I don’t believe it’s worth dreaming of success... with only three or four minutes even one of the sprinters teams can take back that time."
Jussi Veikkanen is the rider who instigated the escape today. He has had a good season so far, his fifth with the FDJ team, but is still shy of a win. He was third in a stage of the Tour Mediterranean and finished second overall (behind Luis Leon Sanchez).
He was second in a stage of the Tour du Haut Var (behind Luis Leon Sanchez) and finish third overall (behind Thomas Voeckler and David Moncoutie).
As the peloton reaches the 50km mark, it is 4’00" behind Clement, Veikkanen, Auge and Dessel.
Stef Clement, who is the virtual leader of the Tour de France (after starting the stage in 46th place, 1’28" behind Cancellara) was the winner of the final stage of the Dauphine Libere stage race in June. He beat Garmin-Slipstream rider Tim Duggan in a two-man sprint in Grenoble.
Numerous riders in the peloton have recently answered the call of nature. This has enabled the four escapees to build their advantage. The bunch is now 3’35" behind Clement’s group.
The points for the cote de Roquefort-les-Pins (a category-three rise at the 49.5km mark) were won by:
1. Jussi Veikkanen (FDJ) - 3pts
2. Cyril Dessel (ALM) - 2pts
3. Stephane Auge (COF) 1pt
The leading four are about to contest the sprint for points on the second climb. The Dutchman, Clement began the attack but now Veikkanen has taken the three points for first place.
Of the four riders in the lead, the one who is spending the most time at the front is Stef Clement. France Television has calculated that he has been in the wind 30 per cent of the time, then Dessel 23 per cent; Veikkanen 22 per cent and Auge 20 per cent.
After his crash, van de Waelle has been given a new bike from his Quickstep team and he’s now back racing again.
There has been a fall in the peloton. The rider involved is from the Quickstep team. It’s Jurgen van de Waelle who is being treated by the race’s medical staff.
Clement has quickly caught back up with his escape companions and there are four men in the lead of the stage again. Their advantage over the peloton is 3’00".
Stef Clement has dropped his chain at the front of the stage. One of his escape companions, Auge (COF), tried to pull him along as he fixed the problem but the Dutchman eventually had to step off his bike to resolve the situation.
The average speed for the first hour of racing today is 43.9km/h.
At the 41km mark, the peloton’s deficit to the four leaders is 3’10".
Of the four men in the lead of the second stage, the only rider to have previously won a stage of the Tour de France is Cyril Dessel. The AG2R rider won the 15 stage of the 2008 edition in Jausiers.
The first truly successful escape of the day was instigated by Jussi Veikkanen (FDJ) at the 13.5km mark. He was joined by Stef Clement (RAB), Stephane Auge (COF) and Cyril Dessel (ALM) shortly afterwards. They swapped off consistently and built their lead. Wegmann tried to chase them down but conceded at the 20km mark.
Auge took first place at the sprint at the 27km mark in Nice when the peloton was 1’25” behind. The advantage grew quickly: 2’05” at 30km, 3’00” at 37km... and it’s likely to grow a lot more before the teams of the sprinters decide to start chasing.
The Saxo Bank team is in control of the peloton that is now behind the four escapees by three minutes.
At the 29.5km mark, the peloton is 2’05" behind Clement (RAB), Veikkanen (FDJ), Dessel (ALM) and Auge (COF).
Fabian Cancellara is near the head of the peloton and mixing drinks from one bidon to the next in what looked like a gesture to suggest: ’Okay fellas, let’s allow the escapees to go... it’s time to cool off the pace a little.’ At the 27km mark, the bunch was 1’25" behind and by 28km it was at 1’45". The opportunists are now being given the chance to build their advantage.
At the site of the intermediate sprint (in Nice at the 27km mark), the peloton’s deficit to the leading four is 1’25".
The points for the first intermediate sprint were won by:
1. Stephane Auge (COF) 6pt
2. Cyril Dessel (ALM) 4pts
3. Stef Clements (RAB) 2pts
It’s common to see the name Stephane Auge in the list of escapees in the first week of the Tour. He was part of the eight-man move that attacked at the 4km mark of the opening stage of last year’s race. He is racing along with compatriot (and former stage winner) Dessel, Clement and Veikkanen in the escape that began at the 13.5km mark.
Clement (RAB), Veikkanen (FDJ), Dessel (ALM) and Auge (COF) are now on the streets of Nice. They are 40" ahead of the peloton and are about to contest the sprint for points at the first intermediate prime.
The rider who wore the white jersey for several days during his Tour debut in 2006, Markus Fothen has just punctured a front tire. He has had a quick change from his Milram team’s mechanic and is now in pursuit of the fast-moving peloton.
There are now just four riders ahead of the peloton. Wegmann has conceded and has just been caught by the bunch which is being led by the Saxo Bank team.
The four leaders have a 25" advantage over Wegmann and 35" over the peloton.
Contrary to the previous newsflash, the best placed rider in the escape group is Stef Clement of the Rabobank team. He was 46th in the first stage and began the day 1’28" behind Cancellara. (Apologies for this error.)
Of the five riders on the attack, the best placed overall after the time trial is Jussi Veikkanen (FDJ). He was 51st in stage one, 1’30" behind Cancellara.
Wegmann (MRM) is now trying to bridge the gap to the leading four.
Clement (RAB), Dessel (ALM), Veeikkanen (FDJ) and Auge (COF) are now 30" ahead of the peloton.
There are four riders ahead of the peloton. Jussi Veikkanen (FDJ) is one of them but we await confirmation of the others involved in the move at the 13.5km mark.
Barredo has been reeled in by four chasers and then the peloton is just behind. There is plenty of aggression early today and so far 10km have been raced.
Carlos Barredo (QSI) has attacked the peloton and is now on his own after the flurry of action near the top of La Turbie.
Tony Martin now has six points in the climbing classification. He was the first at the top of La Turbie. The points went to:
Tony Martin (THR) 4pts
Fothen (MRM) 3pts
Lefevre (BBO) 2pt
Duque (COF) 1pt
At the sprint for the mountains points hotted up, Martin pulled his foot out of the pedal but still had the strength to reach the summit first.
The efforts by Nocentini and Anton amounted to nothing but now Txurruka (EUS) and Dumoulin (COF) are insisting with their escape. They have been caught by Tony Martin (THR) and are less than 1km from the summit of La Turbie.
Anton (EUS) and Nocentini (ALM) are the two riders at the head of the escape group at the 6.5km mark. They are being chased down by the peloton and all the escapees look likely to be caught before the summit which is at the 8.5km mark.
The Saxo Bank team is at the head of the peloton and setting a solid pace. The latest time check for the escapees had them only 20" ahead.
Dumoulin’s quartet has been caught by Eduardo Gonzalo Ramirez of the Agritubel team and Igor Anton of Euskaltel.
At the 4km mark, Dumoulin was caught by Txurruka, Wegmann and Nocentini.
Dumoulin (COF) is still on his own at the front of the stage. He is 5km from the top of La Turbie. He is 10" ahead of Wegmann (MRM), Txurruka (EUS) and Nocentini (ALM).
The action has sparked up now and there are a number of riders attempting to bridge the gap to Dumoulin who is 15" ahead of Wegmann and Txurruka and 20" ahead of Nocentini and 25" ahead of the peloton.
Milram’s Fabian Wegmann is now in pursuit of Dumoulin who is 30" ahead of the peloton at the 2.5km mark. The next to try and chase the initial attacker is Amets Txurruka.
The first attack of the 2009 Tour de France has come from Samuel Dumoulin, the winner of stage three last year. He is on his own and there doesn’t appear to be any interest from other riders in trying to join him with his sortie.
The peloton is on the first ascent of the day, the 8.6km long La Turbie (which has an average gradient of 4.3 per cent). The pace is steady but the riders are still bunched together with no one yet being prepared to try and launch an attack.
The official start time was at 12.42pm. There are 180 riders in the race. There have been no early attacks in the second stage.
The peloton is near the site of the official start. Currently there are riders from Milram, Saxo Bank, Garmin, Katusha and Bbox at the head of the bunch.
The teams classification is judged on the times in each stage of the three best riders from each squad. Astana finished with four riders in the top 10 in the first stage and it leads the Saxo Bank by a total of 31” thanks to the efforts of Contador, Kloden and Leipheimer. Third in this collective test is Garmin-Slipstream.
Roman Kreuziger was ranked second overall in the youth classification in his Tour debut last year. After his seven place in the opening time trial, he has earned the right to wear white for the second stage. He is the best rider in the race who was born after 1 January 1984. The Czech from Liquigas has a one-second advantage over Tony Martin (THR) and five-seconds over his Italian team-mate Vicenzo Nibali.
The former cross-country skier Jerome Coppel (FDJ) is ranked fourth while last year’s youth classification winner, Andy Schleck (SAX) is fifth, 28” behind Kreuziger.
Bradley Wiggins has a consolation prize for his efforts in the time trial yesterday; he will get to wear the green jersey. He is actually ranked third in the points classification but because the two men ahead of him – Fabian Cancellara and Alberto Contador – are wearing other jerseys, the British Garmin-Slipstream rider will be in green for the second stage.
The points allocation for time trials is: 15 for first, 12 for second, 10 for third, then 8, 6, 5, 4, 3, 2 and 1 for the rest of the top 10 in the stage.
Fabian Cancellara has a specially painted yellow Specialized frame for the second stage. The hoods of his SRAM levers are also colored the same as his jersey for this, his 10th day (in total) in the yellow jersey of the Tour de France.
There was a climb in the Tour’s opening time trial for the first time since 2000 and this means that points were awarded for the first riders at the top of the cote de Beausoleil. The fastest man up the ascent in the time trial was Alberto Contador (AST). He has worn the white jersey before and won the yellow jersey but this will be the Spaniard’s first day in the polka-dot top. He has three points in the climbing classification, one more than German Columbia rider Tony Martin, while Bradley Wiggins is ranked third.
The official protocols are over and the riders are now pedaling along in the neutral zone. The start of racing is expected to be at around 12.45pm.
The winner of the first stage of the 2009 Tour de France, Fabian Cancellara (SAX) leads both the general and points classifications thanks to his stunning ride in the 15.5km time trial around Monaco. He will wear the yellow jersey for the second stage from Monaco to Brignoles. This is the Swiss rider’s 10th day in the color of the Tour leader. He has worn the ‘maillot jaune’ twice before – for two days in the year of his debut in the race (2004) when he won the prologue in Liege and for seven days after his prologue victory in London in 2007.
Cancellara has a lead of 18” over the 2007 Tour champion Alberto Contador (AST) and is 19” ahead of Bradley Wiggins of the Garmin-Slipstream team.
His Royal Highness Prince Albert and Christian Prudhomme have cut ribbon at the head of the peloton and a few gifts have been exchanged after the playing of the national anthems. The official protocols are almost over and the race will commence shortly.
The French national anthem is being played by a band as the peloton takes part in an official ceremony. The race director Mr Christian Prudhomme is standing beside His Royal Highness Prince Albert of Monaco for the ceremony.
The second stage also features four categorized climbs, they are in: La Turbie (cat-3 at 8.5km), Roquefort-les-Pins (cat-4 at 49.5km), Tournon (cat-4 at 81.5km) and L’Ange (cat-4 at 129km). The points allocation for the category-three ascent is: 4, 3, 2 and 1 points for the first four riders; while the category-four rises carry 3, 2 and 1 point for the first three riders.
There are three intermediate sprints in the second stage, each offering six, four and two points for the first riders across the line. They are in Nice (at 27km), then Fayence (91.5km) and Lorgues (138km).
The bunch has left the site of the start and is now riding at a tranquil pace towards the Place du Casino in Monaco where an official ceremony is schedule to take place. The riders in two of the prize jerseys - Cancellara and Kreuziger - are currently at the front of the bunch.
The temperature is rising as the peloton prepares to leave Monaco. The sun is shining brightly and there’s hardly even a breeze to provide some relief from the hot and humid conditions. It’s expected to be dry today for the race to Brignoles.
The second stage of the 2009 Tour de France – a 187km race from Monaco to Brignoles – is due to get underway shortly. The riders are schedule to begin rolling away from the site of the ‘depart fictif’ at 12.15pm and ride towards the Place du Casino in Monaco where there will be an official ceremony to mark the first road race stage of the 96th edition. There is a long neutral zone before a flag will be waved by race director Christian Prudhomme to signal the start of racing. This is expected to be at around 12.45pm.
