In the first week of the Tour de France, you can’t win the race, but you can lose it. And the heartbreak of injury is even worse than a loss. Bradley Wiggins and Tom Boonen abandoned the race due to injuries, and the American fan favorite of American spectators, Chris Horner, finished but has suffered unknown injuries. Mark Cavendish won the stage at the site of his first of 17 Tour de France stage wins, but his achievement was overshadowed by all the bad news.
No cyclist wants to abandon the Tour de France. Indeed, George Hincapie concealed a broken collarbone from race doctors in 2009 so that he could finish the three-week race. Today, Belgium’s Tom Boonen first abandoned the race. He crashed on Stage 5 and decided not to continue at today’s stage from Le Mans to Chateauroux due to lingering problems. The power sprinter for Quick Step has won six Tour de France stages as well as the green jersey, on top of wins at spring classics such as Paris-Roubaix and the world championships, though his victories have slowed after his 2008 positive test for cocaine and as he has reached age 30.
Bradley Wiggins of Team Sky also abandoned, following a crash which likely broke his collarbone. Wiggins was the great hope of Team Sky, the British team launched last year. A former track cyclist, he began specializing in road racing in 2008 and finished fourth at the Tour de France in 2009 when he was on Garmin. He switched to Team Sky as it started last year and was billed as the team’s general classification contender, though he finished a disappointing 24th place. The 31-year-old’s greatest win to date was the 2011 Criterium du Dauphine. We wish him a swift recovery.
 |
| Leipheimer & Horner at Tour of California |
Radioshack teammate Yaroslav Popovych crashed again today, while Levi Leipheimer had another mechanical problem and lost over 3 minutes on his rivals. While Leipheimer had only a remote chance to win the race, it is nevertheless disappointing to accept that the time lost is likely too much to overcome. Leipheimer has lost his chance at the win. Among the RadioShack favorites, Brajkovic abandoned the race, and Horner and Leipheimer have suffered crashes. Only Andreas Kloden has stayed out of trouble. Garmin-Cervelo’s Ryder Hesjedal also lost over 3 minutes due to a crash and has damaged any chance he had at a podium finish. Contador, Schleck, and Evans remain in contention.
Mark Cavendish won the stage with former teammate Andre Greipel finishing second and last year’s green jersey winner Alessandro Petacchi in third. The win came at the same site where Cavendish won his first Tour de France stage. His 17th stage victory, the Brit is ranked fifth among number of Tour stage wins, behind Eddie Merckx, Bernard Hinault, Lance Armstrong, and Andre Darrigade. As this is the 26-year-old’s fifth Tour, we can expect more wins from Cavendish this year and in the future.
At tomorrow’s Stage 8, four categorized climbs may provide an opportunity for general classification contenders as well as riders suited for moderate climbs. Look out for moves from Thomas Voeckler and Alexandre Vinokourov, while favorites including Contador, Schleck, and Evans should remain quiet unless there is a surprising opportunity to gain time on rivals.
Stage 7 top winners:
1. Mark Cavendish (HTC-Highroad)
2. Alessandro Petacchi (Lampre)
3. Andre Greipel (Omega Pharma-Lotto)
4. Romain Feillu (Vacansoleil)
5. William Bonnet ( FDJ)
View Stage 7 complete results: http://www.letour.fr/2011/TDF/LIVE/us/700/classement/index.html
View Stage 8 map & profile: http://www.letour.fr/2011/TDF/LIVE/us/800/etape_par_etape.html
No comments:
Post a Comment