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Discovery Channel - TdF 2011
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| Squire |
Posted on 25-05-2011 22:12
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 12.07.2011: Tour de France
Stage 9
Sallanches - Alpe d'Huez: 214.0km
Tactics meeting
L'Alpe d'Huez is perhaps the most renown of all Tour summits. The 14 kilometers to the top are tough enough, but the last climb is preceded by the lethal Telegraphe/Galibier combo. This is the first real mountain test of the Tour, and we hope that Levi will react well to it. Andy Schleck will probably be looking to gain time here, and maybe the win, inspired by the wins of his teammates the last two times the Tour visited the Alpe: His brother Fränk in 2006 and Carlos Sastre in 2008.
The early breakaway was a weak effort today. LPR's Cattaneo was the best placed overall, 93rd, 16 minutes down. I would be surprised if they lasted until the Galibier.
Speaking of the Galibier, this is where Denis Menchov showed himself for the first time since that horrible crash in Paris - Nice. Andy Schleck's super domestique was absolutely drilling it on the HC climb. The silent assassin was back in business, assassinating the lesser climbers of the pack.
With no breakaway out front, a very reduced peloton descended the Galibier, heading towards Bourg-d'Oisans and the famous climb to Alpe d'Huez.
Heading into the Alpe, Andreas Klöden was sent to the front of the peloton to keep Levi where he wanted to be: Near the front.
Alberto Contador wanted to be off the front, and attacked! The Spaniard lost time yesterday, but was determined to redeem himself on the Alpe.
Contador didn't get anywhere, so his form is obviously lacking. Andy Schleck and Levi Leipheimer brought the Astana rider back, dragging with them a rather large group of climbers. Cadel Evans was once again missing, but his teammate Kai Reus was in there. The young Dutchman is riding superbly in the early stages of the Tour.
Andy Schleck didn't stick around for long! He launched a strong attack 1km from the summit!
And the attack worked wonders for the Luxembourger. Andy Schleck is the winner on Alpe d'Huez in 2011! This is the fifth Tour stage win of his career. Contador recovered to finish 2nd, just a few seconds behind. Levi wasn't far back either. The big surprise of the day was Kai Reus in 3rd! Dutch climbers seem to like this mountain.
Today's winner
Results
| 1. | Andy Schleck | Saxo Bank | 6h01'19 | | 2. | Alberto Contador | Astana | + 8 | | 3. | Kai Reus | Rabobank | s.t. | | 4. | Robert Gesink  | Quick-Step | s.t. | | 5. | Levi Leipheimer  | Discovery Channel | + 25 | | 6. | Juanjo Cobo | Saunier Duval | + 43 | | 7. | Damiano Cunego | Katusha | + 1'05 | | 8. | Alejandro Valverde | Caisse d'Epargne | s.t. | | 9. | Gerhard Trampusch | Vorarlberg - Corratec | s.t. | | 10. | Alexandre Vinokourov | Astana | + 1'17 |
GC
| 1. | Levi Leipheimer | Discovery Channel | 35h14'10 | | 2. | Andy Schleck | Saxo Bank | + 50 | | 3. | Robert Gesink | Quick-Step | + 1'13 | | 4. | Roman Kreuziger | Discovery Channel | + 2'18 | | 5. | Juanjo Cobo | Saunier Duval | + 3'11 | | 6. | Tony Martin | T-Mobile | + 3'12 | | 7. | Kai Reus | Rabobank | + 3'23 | | 8. | Alberto Contador | Astana | + 3'45 | | 9. | Michael Rogers | T-Mobile | + 4'51 | | 10. | Christophe Le Mével | Française des Jeux | + 5'41 |
Points ranking
| 1. | Anthony Geslin  | Vorarlberg - Corratec | 108 | | 2. | Heinrich Haussler | Saxo Bank | 100 | | 3. | Romain Feillu | Agritubel | 98 |
Mountain ranking
| 1. | Alessandro Vanotti  | Liquigas | 50 | | 2. | Andy Schleck | Saxo Bank | 43 | | 3. | Rémy Di Gregorio | Discovery Channel | 34 |
Youth ranking
| 1. | Robert Gesink | Quick-Step | 35h15'23 | | 2. | Roman Kreuziger | Discovery Channel | + 1'05 | | 3. | Bauke Mollema | Rabobank | + 7'09 |
Team classification
| 1. | Discovery Channel | 102h43'34 | | 2. | Rabobank | + 2'04 | | 3. | T-Mobile | + 3'06 |
Andy Schleck is really stamping his authority on the race in the Alps. Today, he followed in the CSC/Saxobank tradition of winning on Alpe d'Huez. He didn't get much time on Levi, but he's edging closer to the yellow jersey. Contador found some climbing legs as well today, but he's not his usual self.
The revelation of these first two mountain stages is Rabobank's Kai Reus. Team leader Cadel Evans has been nowhere, but Reus has stepped it up and sits 7th overall after today's brilliant performance on the Alpe. One jersey switched owner today, as Gesink, who is consistently outclimbing Kreuziger, moved past our man in the Best Young Rider classification.
Tomorrow brings more mountains, but not of the same calibre as today's brutes. The stage finishes in Gap and favours attackers. It could be an interesting day, especially since the peloton contains some tired legs after today. |
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| cunego59 |
Posted on 25-05-2011 22:35
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Nice stage. For such a hard one, the time loss is really acceptable. Levi seems to have the legs of a Tour winner 
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| FreitasPCM |
Posted on 25-05-2011 22:59
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Andy seems to be fresher in the first stages. Hope Levi can keep the lead at least for a while. Getting in the podium would be nice too. |
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| lluuiiggii |
Posted on 26-05-2011 00:13
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Schleck is close, but Levi should get enough time back in the TTs to keep yellow safe. And Contador is definitely not in good form. Brutal stage, Levi in 5th is very good.
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| Squire |
Posted on 26-05-2011 00:50
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@cunego59: Yeah, 25 seconds is nothing compared to what Levi will get over Schleck in the time trials.
@FreitasPCM: I think it's just the fact that Andy is a better climber. I'm aiming to win the Tour!
@lluuiiggii: The next stage where you can expect big gaps is the TT, so hopefully Schleck will be a bit further behind in a few days.
Nice to see so many people following the story |
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| Squire |
Posted on 26-05-2011 02:12
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13.07.2011: Tour de France
Stage 10
Les Bourg d'Oisans - Gap: 179.0km
Tactics meeting
With the Lautaret and Izoard climbs coming in the first half, this stage may favour early attackers. The stage is not very selective for GC men. We are going on the attack today to get a stage win, as Levi won't need the whole team for protection. He has to watch himself on the famous descent from the Cote de la Rochette down to Gap though.
As planned, we were present in the breakaway. Yaroslav Popovych and Rémy Di Gregorio were flying our colours. Paul Martens was also there. Martens is probably the rider with the most breakaway kilometers in this Tour so far.
Di Gregorio collected some mountain points, and we will see him in the KoM jersey tomorrow! On the penultimate climb, with 28km remaining, the gap was 2'30. Our two attackers had a chance.
But the pack showed no mercy. The brave escapees were caught on the Cote de la Rochette. What was remaining of the main field would probably fight it out in Gap.
25 riders raced down the decent towards the finishing line. 3rd overall, Robert Gesink, had been caught out and was missing from the front group. As was Valverde, but we're getting used to that by now. Maybe they could utilize the famous field for a shortcut on the descent?
Popovych wasn't broken after his breakaway efforts, and started to sprint early. He hoped to take the others by surprise!
His legs didn't take him all the way though, as the Astana duo of Vinokourov and Contador came surging by.
They made it an Astana 1-2! Kazakh champion Alexandre Vinokourov won the stage. He definitely likes this finish in Gap. He also won here in 2003.
Gesink crossed the line 1 minute behind the first group, accompanied by his Quick-Step teammates. He had lost out due to bad positioning on the Cote de la Rochette. He still keeps 3rd though, and also the white jersey.
Today's winner
Results
| 1. | Alexandre Vinokourov | Astana | 4h39'05 | | 2. | Alberto Contador | Astana | s.t. | | 3. | Yaroslav Popovych | Discovery Channel | s.t. | | 4. | Damiano Cunego | Katusha | s.t. | | 5. | Christophe Le Mével | Française des Jeux | s.t. | | 6. | Kai Reus | Rabobank | s.t. | | 7. | Andy Schleck | Saxo Bank | s.t. | | 8. | Fabian Cancellara | Liquigas | s.t. | | 9. | Tony Martin | T-Mobile | s.t. | | 10. | Roman Kreuziger | Discovery Channel | s.t. |
GC
| 1. | Levi Leipheimer | Discovery Channel | 39h53'15 | | 2. | Andy Schleck | Saxo Bank | + 50 | | 3. | Robert Gesink | Quick-Step | + 2'11 | | 4. | Roman Kreuziger | Discovery Channel | + 2'18 | | 5. | Juanjo Cobo | Saunier Duval | + 3'11 | | 6. | Tony Martin | T-Mobile | + 3'12 | | 7. | Kai Reus | Rabobank | + 3'23 | | 8. | Alberto Contador | Astana | + 3'45 | | 9. | Christophe Le Mével | Française des Jeux | + 5'41 | | 10. | Vladimir Karpets | Katusha | + 5'46 |
Points ranking
| 1. | Fabian Cancellara | Liquigas | 112 | | 2. | Anthony Geslin | Vorarlberg - Corratec | 108 | | 3. | Andy Schleck | Saxo Bank | 100 |
Mountain ranking
| 1. | Rémy Di Gregorio | Discovery Channel | 90 | | 2. | Alessandro Vanotti | Liquigas | 50 | | 3. | Yaroslav Popovych | Discovery Channel | 46 |
Youth ranking
| 1. | Robert Gesink | Quick-Step | 39h55'26 | | 2. | Roman Kreuziger | Discovery Channel | + 7 | | 3. | Bauke Mollema | Rabobank | + 7'09 |
Team classification
| 1. | Discovery Channel | 116h40'49 | | 2. | Rabobank | + 2'04 | | 3. | T-Mobile | + 5'02 |
Popovych was passed by an angry Kazakh in the sprint for the line today. Vinokourov wins in Gap for the second time, while teammate Contador finished 2nd. The stage was pretty unspectacular, and only led to time losses for Gesink and Rogers. The latter drops out of the top 10. Kreuziger is now only 7 seconds behind the white jersey, and his form should start to improve soon.
Our breakaway attempt didn't succeed as we had hoped, but Di Gregorio is rewarded with the polkadot jersey. As this was the last Alpine stage, he might keep it for a while. The next stage is a much flatter process. |
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| valverde321 |
Posted on 26-05-2011 02:31
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Nice job with the KoM, Di Gregorio seems like a very good candidate to win that classification, although I always find the KoM to be really easy to win if you really try for it in PCM.
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| lluuiiggii |
Posted on 26-05-2011 03:01
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Agree with valverde on the polkadots. You should also mark Rabo riders on the break, that could pretty much ruin the teams classement. And yes, Gesink losing time on an easy stage, great!
Btw, not very interesting to descend like the Astana rider (2nd in the peloton) on the 4th pic - at least not on this descent 
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| chrica04 |
Posted on 26-05-2011 04:53
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Just started reading this! Awesome job, really enjoy the presentation |
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| olabj |
Posted on 26-05-2011 06:45
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This is still a great story. Keep it up. 
Now after your praising of Reus can we please see his stats
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| Batista15 |
Posted on 26-05-2011 08:06
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Great job there! Keep it up |
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Posted on 24-11-2024 12:00
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| miggi133 |
Posted on 26-05-2011 09:11
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Good Job in getting the polka dots...
Seems like Digregorio is following in Martinez' footsteps
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| Squire |
Posted on 26-05-2011 17:02
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@valverde321: It wasn't that easy with Martinez in the Giro And I'm not planning on being unrealistic with breakaways every day. But a KoM jersey would be nice.
@lluuiiggii: I think the team classification comes automatically. We have a strong enough team to win it without targeting it.
@chrica04, Batista15, miggi133: Thank you!
@olabj: I knew that was going to come 
Here is Reus:
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| Squire |
Posted on 27-05-2011 19:45
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14.07.2011: Tour de France
Stage 11
Gap - Marseille: 178.0km
Tactics meeting
It's Bastile day, but any French opportunists who wants a win on their national day have a couple of sprinter teams to fight off. This is the last flat stage before the Pyrenées, so the sprinters should be up for it. We will do nothing, as we are saving the team for the struggles to come.
No zealous Frenchmen in the break today. The two escapees, Paul Martens and Kevin De Weert, were caught according to plan. Martens is the most aggressive rider in the Tour, but hasn't been rewarded with a stage win so far.
Today's most dramatic incident took place 8 kilometers from the line. A crash happened in the peloton, and yesterday's stage winner and Kazakh champion Alexandre Vinokourov went down! He hurt himself quite severely and had to abandon. A big blow for Alberto Contador, who seem to need all the help he can get at the moment.
The sprinters weren't affected by the crash, and Danish champion Michael Mørkøv put his teammate Heinrich Haussler in a perfect position. All Haussler had to do was ignite the turbo over the last few hundred meters.
The dominant sprinter in the race turns on the style! Haussler won by a big margin, which could be because of the lack of other sprinters in the finale. It's his third of this Tour, and fifth career total.
Today's winner
Results
| 1. | Heinrich Haussler | Saxo Bank | 5h14'28 | | 2. | Damiano Cunego | Katusha | s.t. | | 3. | Michele Scarponi | Quick-Step | s.t. | | 4. | Daniele Pietropolli | Ceramica Flaminia | s.t. | | 5. | Yann Huguet | Agritubel | s.t. | | 6. | Michael Mørkøv | Saxo Bank | s.t. | | 7. | Andy Schleck | Saxo Bank | s.t. | | 8. | Gustav Larsson | Silence - Lotto | s.t. | | 9. | Steve Houanard | Agritubel | s.t. | | 10. | Giovanni Visconti | Liquigas | s.t. |
GC
| 1. | Levi Leipheimer | Discovery Channel | 45h07'43 | | 2. | Andy Schleck | Saxo Bank | + 50 | | 3. | Robert Gesink | Quick-Step | + 2'11 | | 4. | Roman Kreuziger | Discovery Channel | + 2'18 | | 5. | Juanjo Cobo | Saunier Duval | + 3'11 | | 6. | Tony Martin | T-Mobile | + 3'12 | | 7. | Kai Reus | Rabobank | + 3'23 | | 8. | Alberto Contador | Astana | + 3'45 | | 9. | Christophe Le Mével | Française des Jeux | + 5'41 | | 10. | Vladimir Karpets | Katusha | + 5'46 |
Points ranking
| 1. | Heinrich Haussler | Saxo Bank | 135 | | 2. | Andy Schleck | Saxo Bank | 119 | | 3. | Anthony Geslin | Vorarlberg - Corratec | 114 |
Mountain ranking
| 1. | Rémy Di Gregorio | Discovery Channel | 90 | | 2. | Alessandro Vanotti | Liquigas | 50 | | 3. | Yaroslav Popovych | Discovery Channel | 46 |
Youth ranking
| 1. | Robert Gesink | Quick-Step | 45h09'54 | | 2. | Roman Kreuziger | Discovery Channel | + 7 | | 3. | Bauke Mollema | Rabobank | + 7'09 |
Team classification
| 1. | Discovery Channel | 132h24'13 | | 2. | Rabobank | + 2'04 | | 3. | T-Mobile | + 5'02 |
Haussler wins again and takes back the green jersey after Cancellara borrowed it for a day. However, with Andy Schleck on such good form and so close in the rankings, Haussler may in fact struggle to win the green jersey in Paris. For the first time in years, a non-sprinter is in with a serious chance. Haussler hasn't been helped by the two breakaways who have made it to the finish on stages 6 & 7.
Speaking of breakaways, the next stage is a perfect opportunity for another breakaway success. The first rest day is first on the programme though.
Edited by Squire on 27-05-2011 19:49
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| lluuiiggii |
Posted on 27-05-2011 20:59
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Wow, Vino off the Tour, that is indeed a big hit on Alberto. *trying not to show happiness but really happy inside lol*
Yeah, Schleck looks like a serious contender for green jersey, but also because there are only 1 or 2 good sprinters on the TdF after the first season. First is always nice, then we see nobody on the next years. Really a pity that happens on PCM 09 =(
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| Squire |
Posted on 27-05-2011 21:27
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16.07.2011: Tour de France
Stage 12
Narbonne - Toulouse: 157.0km
Tactics meeting
The Tour continues after the rest day with a stage from Narbonne to Toulouse. It's fairly flat, but it includes the Cote de Saissac, which might put the teams of the fast men off. The second half of the stage is also quite lumpy. I wouldn't be surprised to see a breakaway go away. We are protecting Levi in front of tomorrow's time trial.
The break of the day was lacking in strength. The only notable riders were two-time stage winner Juan Antonio Flecha (Caisse d'Epargne) and Alexandre Pliuschin (AG2R), who won a stage earlier in this Tour.
The two strong classics riders couldn't drag the break along on their own. The last remnants of the group were caught inside the 20km mark.
Nobody really took control over the race, so with 15km remaining, Vorarlberg's Gerhard Trampusch and Jurgen Van den Broeck (Lotto) attacked out of the peloton! Van den Broeck was only 7'06 back in the general classification, sitting in 15th spot.
The two attackers held on all the way to the finishing line. Who would win the sprint for the stage win?
Van den Broeck got it! What a moment this is for him. It's his first ever pro win, and it comes in the Tour de France! The peloton rolled across the line just behind, getting the same time.
Today's winner
Results
| 1. | Jurgen Van den Broeck | Silence - Lotto | 3h34'58 | | 2. | Gerhard Trampusch | Vorarlberg - Corratec | s.t. | | 3. | Brice Feillu | Cofidis | s.t. | | 4. | Carlos Barredo | Quick-Step | s.t. | | 5. | Michael Mørkøv | Saxo Bank | s.t. | | 6. | Fabian Cancellara | Liquigas | s.t. | | 7. | Pierre Rolland | Silence - Lotto | s.t. | | 8. | Romain Feillu | Agritubel | s.t. | | 9. | Michele Scarponi | Quick-Step | s.t. | | 10. | Kevyn Ista | Silence - Lotto | s.t. |
GC
| 1. | Levi Leipheimer | Discovery Channel | 48h42'41 | | 2. | Andy Schleck | Saxo Bank | + 50 | | 3. | Robert Gesink | Quick-Step | + 2'11 | | 4. | Roman Kreuziger | Discovery Channel | + 2'18 | | 5. | Juanjo Cobo | Saunier Duval | + 3'11 | | 6. | Tony Martin | T-Mobile | + 3'12 | | 7. | Kai Reus | Rabobank | + 3'23 | | 8. | Alberto Contador | Astana | + 3'45 | | 9. | Christophe Le Mével | Française des Jeux | + 5'41 | | 10. | Vladimir Karpets | Katusha | + 5'46 |
Points ranking
| 1. | Heinrich Haussler | Saxo Bank | 135 | | 2. | Fabian Cancellara | Liquigas | 132 | | 3. | Andy Schleck | Saxo Bank | 127 |
Mountain ranking
| 1. | Rémy Di Gregorio | Discovery Channel | 90 | | 2. | Alessandro Vanotti | Liquigas | 50 | | 3. | Yaroslav Popovych | Discovery Channel | 46 |
Youth ranking
| 1. | Robert Gesink | Quick-Step | 48h44'52 | | 2. | Roman Kreuziger | Discovery Channel | + 7 | | 3. | Bauke Mollema | Rabobank | + 7'09 |
Team classification
| 1. | Rabobank | 143h11'11 | | 2. | Discovery Channel | + 1'59 | | 3. | T-Mobile | + 2'58 |
The Belgian stage race hope Jurgen Van den Broeck takes his first ever win, and what a place to do it! It's surprising that it would happen on a flattish stage. Van den Broeck doesn't move up in the GC though, as the rest of the bunch came in just behind him.
The stage took its toll on some riders. We only had two Discovery riders finishing in the front group (Leipheimer and Kreuziger), so we lose our lead in the team standings to Rabobank. It would be nice to take it back tomorrow. It's the first of the two long time trials! |
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| Squire |
Posted on 27-05-2011 21:59
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lluuiiggii wrote:
Wow, Vino off the Tour, that is indeed a big hit on Alberto. *trying not to show happiness but really happy inside lol*
Yeah, Schleck looks like a serious contender for green jersey, but also because there are only 1 or 2 good sprinters on the TdF after the first season. First is always nice, then we see nobody on the next years. Really a pity that happens on PCM 09 =(
Alberto has basically no mountain helpers left now.
I know, the sprinter thing annoys me. Certain riders don't seem to be riding very much after the first season. |
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| Squire |
Posted on 27-05-2011 23:12
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17.07.2011: Tour de France
Stage 13
ITT Gaillac - Cap'Decouverte: 53.0km
Tactics meeting
As opposed to the past two years, this edition of the Tour de France includes a second long time trial. It comes just before the Pyrenées. This is a good opportunity to distance Andy Schleck. Favourite for the stage win must be Fabian Cancellara, who won the prologue back in Paris. Spartacus also thrashed the opposition in the Tour de Suisse TT, where he won by 2 minutes to Leipheimer in 2nd place.
Andreas Klöden has not been riding too well so far this Tour, but he redeemed himself a little bit today. A good early best time set by our German.
Former Discovery rider Gustav Larsson had no plans of giving any gifts to Klöden though. The Swede's time indicated that we would see large time gaps today: 3'04 better than Klöden!
Then it was Spartacus. He delivered in regards to taking the lead, but he showed that Larsson had done well, as Cancellara only beat him by 24 seconds.
Former triple World TT champion Michael Rogers came even closer to Cancellara. The Aussie was only 17 seconds down on the Canc. Good ride!
Alberto Contador has been a shadow of himself so far in the Tour, despite his 2nd place on Alpe d'Huez. Unfortunately for us, his form looks like it's improving. 40 seconds down on Cancellara and a provisional 4th place for Bertie. Worrying.
Another rider who was on a mission today was Tony Martin. The German TT champion lost some time on the Alpe, but he brought back a big chunk of it today, passing climbing sensation Kai Reus in the process. Martin finished 6th so far, within a minute of Cancellara.
Is Kreuziger ever going to find back to his form? A rather mediocre TT from him today, provisional 11th spot, 3'42 behind the best time.
Gesink has been good so far, maintaining his Giro/Dauphiné form and finding himself 3rd overall. But can he time trial? He answered some critics today, with a good ride. He dropped out of the top 3 overall, but his provisional 8th on the stage was impressive.
Andy Schleck was not very impressive. He will never win a GT if he continues to time trial like this. 19th place for the Schlecklet, 4'44 behind Cancellara and 4'04 behind Contador.
With Contador doing well, it was imperative that Leipheimer put up a good ride. The yellow jersey didn't seem to give him wings though, and 7th place was below par compared to his normal standards. This was more than a minute lost to Contador.
Today's winner
Results
| 1. | Fabian Cancellara | Liquigas | 1h10'07 | | 2. | Michael Rogers | T-Mobile | + 17 | | 3. | Gustav Larsson | Silence - Lotto | + 24 | | 4. | Alberto Contador | Astana | + 40 | | 5. | Cadel Evans | Rabobank | + 59 | | 6. | Tony Martin | T-Mobile | + 1'19 | | 7. | Levi Leipheimer | Discovery Channel | + 1'57 | | 8. | Vladimir Karpets | Katusha | + 2'15 | | 9. | Robert Gesink | Quick-Step | + 3'17 | | 10. | Andreas Klöden | Discovery Channel | + 3'28 |
GC
| 1. | Levi Leipheimer | Discovery Channel | 49h54'45 | | 2. | Alberto Contador | Astana | + 2'28 | | 3. | Tony Martin | T-Mobile | + 2'34 | | 4. | Robert Gesink | Quick-Step | + 3'31 | | 5. | Andy Schleck | Saxo Bank | + 3'38 | | 6. | Roman Kreuziger | Discovery Channel | + 4'04 | | 7. | Michael Rogers | T-Mobile | + 4'09 | | 8. | Kai Reus | Rabobank | + 5'08 | | 9. | Cadel Evans | Rabobank | + 5'12 | | 10. | Juanjo Cobo | Saunier Duval | + 6'01 |
Points ranking
| 1. | Fabian Cancellara | Liquigas | 147 | | 2. | Heinrich Haussler | Saxo Bank | 135 | | 3. | Andy Schleck | Saxo Bank | 127 |
Mountain ranking
| 1. | Rémy Di Gregorio | Discovery Channel | 90 | | 2. | Alessandro Vanotti | Liquigas | 50 | | 3. | Yaroslav Popovych | Discovery Channel | 46 |
Youth ranking
| 1. | Robert Gesink | Quick-Step | 49h58'16 | | 2. | Roman Kreuziger | Discovery Channel | + 33 | | 3. | Bauke Mollema | Rabobank | + 9'46 |
Team classification
| 1. | T-Mobile | 146h50'26 | | 2. | Rabobank | + 1'44 | | 3. | Discovery Channel | + 2'16 |
Fabian Cancellara won the time trial, but I had almost expected a bigger winning margin. Maybe he feels the Alps in his legs. The most important effect of the time trial on the overall standings, is that it brings Alberto Contador back into contention with a bang. If he continues this form curve, he will be a serious threat. Andy Schleck suddenly became much less dangerous. The Luxembourger is now 3'38 down on Levi.
Cancellara's win gives him the green jersey again, while Gesink moves further ahead of Kreuziger in the battle for the white jersey. Gesink must surely lose some form soon? He's been good ever since the beginning of the Giro d'Italia.
Tomorrow it's back into the mountains, this time the Pyrenées. A mountain top finish in Ax 3 Domaines on the Plateau de Bonascre awaits. Let's hope this time trial was just an exceptionally good day for Contador, and not a sign of improving form... |
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| FreitasPCM |
Posted on 27-05-2011 23:22
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Grand Tour Champion
Posts: 8389
Joined: 08-09-2009
PCM$: 200.00
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Andy lost time, Levi still in front!  You have a decent lead from Contador, it's going to be interesting to see if you can keep Levi in the lead. |
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| lluuiiggii |
Posted on 28-05-2011 01:25
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Grand Tour Champion
Posts: 8542
Joined: 30-07-2010
PCM$: 200.00
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I've got to say I expected a bit more from Leipheimer, as well as Cancellara. Nevertheless, Levi has a comfortable gap in the others, but Alberto is really scary. It seems like he is getting into a good form: 2nd in Huez, then 2nd in Gap, now another good performance in the TT. And, taking out the flat stages, these are the last 3 (so the ones where he should do well).
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