Tuesday, July 12, 2005
Stage 10: Alpine Attrition
THE "DISCO BOYS" ARE BACK. Well, the first major stage in the Alps--with two major Cat 1 climbs--literally blew up the peloton. Doubts about Discovery Channel's ability should be squelched; the team worked together to set a torid pace on the climb up to Courchevel's mountain-top finish. The "Disco Boys'" (is that a new Liggettism, i.e., a coined phrase or turn of words by OLN-TV announcer Phil Liggett?) pace left suffering and heart-broken contenders in their wake as they charged up the mountain.
LIKE A MACHINE. Each Discovery Channel team member took a turn at leading the peloton and, when spent, peeled off to let another team member take a turn at the lead. Finally, Yaroslav Popovych peeled off, launching his captain toward the peak. Lance Armstrong led three unshakable hangers-on into Corchevel--Mickael Rasmussen, Alejandro Valverde, and Francisco Mancebo. Valverde was the only one who could match Lance today; the Spaniard nosed ahead of the American at the line for the stage win.
KING OF THE HILL. Armstrong left no doubt today who is king of the hill. At times it seemed he was toying with his rivals. In the end, none were able to stay with him. The main contenders for the Tour de France championship could only try to limit their losses. Here's where the top 25 in the General Classification stood before Stage 10 and after the stage:
B = GC position before Stage 10
A = GC position after Stage 10 (with time behind Armstrong after Stage 10)
B A
1 72 Jens Voigt (Ger) CSC -29'23"
2 4 Christophe Moreau (Fra) Credit Agricole -2'42"
3 1 Lance Armstrong (USA) Discovery Channel
4 2 Michael Rasmussen (Den) Rabobank -38"
5 16 Alexandre Vinokourov (Kaz) T-Mobile -6'32"
6 17 Bobby Julich (USA) CSC -6'37"
7 3 Ivan Basso (Ita) Team CSC -2’40"
8 8 Jan Ullrich (Ger) T-Mobile -4’02"
9 18 Carlos Sastre (Spa) Team CSC -6'37"
10 32 George Hincapie (USA) Discovery Channel -12'15"
11 9 Andreas Klöden (Ger) T-Mobile -4’16"
12 10 Floyd Landis (USA) Phonak Hearing Systems -4’16"
13 23 Vladimir Karpets (Rus) Illes Balears -9'03"
14 14 Yaroslav Popovych (Ukr) Discovery Channel -6'25"
15 11 Santiago Botero (Col) Phonak -5'20"
16 6 Levi Leipheimer (USA) Gerolsteiner -3’58"
17 37 Jose Azevedo (Por) Discovery Channel -13'03"
18 21 Joseba Beloki (Spa) Liberty Seguros-Würth -8'31"
19 28 Oscar Pereiro Sio (Spa) Phonak -10'35"
20 51 Jose Enrique Gutierrez (Spa) Phonak -19'41"
21 36 Roberto Heras (Spa) Liberty Seguros-Würth -12'59
22 52 Dario Frigo (Ita) Fassa Bortolo -20'32"
23 12 Jörg Jaksche (Ger) Liberty Seguros-Würth -5'33"
24 5 Alejandro Valverde (Spa) Illes Balear -3’16"
25 13 Cadel Evans (Aus) Davitamon-Lotto -5'55"
27 7 Francisco Mancebo (Spain) Illes Balears -4’00"
A few notes in the wake of Stage 10:
LIKE A MACHINE. Each Discovery Channel team member took a turn at leading the peloton and, when spent, peeled off to let another team member take a turn at the lead. Finally, Yaroslav Popovych peeled off, launching his captain toward the peak. Lance Armstrong led three unshakable hangers-on into Corchevel--Mickael Rasmussen, Alejandro Valverde, and Francisco Mancebo. Valverde was the only one who could match Lance today; the Spaniard nosed ahead of the American at the line for the stage win.
KING OF THE HILL. Armstrong left no doubt today who is king of the hill. At times it seemed he was toying with his rivals. In the end, none were able to stay with him. The main contenders for the Tour de France championship could only try to limit their losses. Here's where the top 25 in the General Classification stood before Stage 10 and after the stage:
B = GC position before Stage 10
A = GC position after Stage 10 (with time behind Armstrong after Stage 10)
B A
1 72 Jens Voigt (Ger) CSC -29'23"
2 4 Christophe Moreau (Fra) Credit Agricole -2'42"
3 1 Lance Armstrong (USA) Discovery Channel
4 2 Michael Rasmussen (Den) Rabobank -38"
5 16 Alexandre Vinokourov (Kaz) T-Mobile -6'32"
6 17 Bobby Julich (USA) CSC -6'37"
7 3 Ivan Basso (Ita) Team CSC -2’40"
8 8 Jan Ullrich (Ger) T-Mobile -4’02"
9 18 Carlos Sastre (Spa) Team CSC -6'37"
10 32 George Hincapie (USA) Discovery Channel -12'15"
11 9 Andreas Klöden (Ger) T-Mobile -4’16"
12 10 Floyd Landis (USA) Phonak Hearing Systems -4’16"
13 23 Vladimir Karpets (Rus) Illes Balears -9'03"
14 14 Yaroslav Popovych (Ukr) Discovery Channel -6'25"
15 11 Santiago Botero (Col) Phonak -5'20"
16 6 Levi Leipheimer (USA) Gerolsteiner -3’58"
17 37 Jose Azevedo (Por) Discovery Channel -13'03"
18 21 Joseba Beloki (Spa) Liberty Seguros-Würth -8'31"
19 28 Oscar Pereiro Sio (Spa) Phonak -10'35"
20 51 Jose Enrique Gutierrez (Spa) Phonak -19'41"
21 36 Roberto Heras (Spa) Liberty Seguros-Würth -12'59
22 52 Dario Frigo (Ita) Fassa Bortolo -20'32"
23 12 Jörg Jaksche (Ger) Liberty Seguros-Würth -5'33"
24 5 Alejandro Valverde (Spa) Illes Balear -3’16"
25 13 Cadel Evans (Aus) Davitamon-Lotto -5'55"
27 7 Francisco Mancebo (Spain) Illes Balears -4’00"
A few notes in the wake of Stage 10:
- Alejandro Valverde moved from 24th to 5th with his winning performance in Stage 10. He is a highly-acclaimed Spanish rookie; he now wears the White Jersey of the best young competitor. His ability to match Armstrong pedal for pedal to the top today demonstrated his abilities. Can he match Lance again...and again? Teammate Francisco Mancebo also catapulted himself from 27th to 7th position with his effort.
- Mickael Rasmussen of Denmark finished in the lead group and consolidated his grip on the Polka-dot Jersey. Now, he might also be looking to finish at least third in the GC in Paris.
- Ivan Basso did the best at limiting his losses today; in fact, he moved into third place, 2'40" behind Armstrong. In the mountains, that's not much time to make up and Basso has proven to be the only who who can hang with Lance in the Pyrennes.
- Jan Ullrich and Andreas Kloden survived, distantly, but fell to over 4 minutes behind Armstrong. Their outspoken and once-hopeful teammate, Alexandre Vinokourov, faded from contention with his collapse on the drive up to Courchevel; he is now 6'32" behind Armstrong. The idea that this "trio" could isolate and assault Armstrong on the mountains has not yet worked. Operative word: "yet."
- Americans Levi Leipheimer and Floyd Landis kept their podium hopes alive. They are in the top 10 and remain within a 4'30" striking distance of the lead. It is relatively safe to say the competitors who are over 4'30" behind the leader at this point are not likely still in contention to win the Tour de France.
- There's a whole lot of mountain climbing to do. Tuesday's Stage 11 takes the contestants over two "HC"--"beyond categorization"--mountains, with the Galibier being the highest peak in the Tour. One mediocre day for Armstrong, one great day for any contender within striking distance, and the complexion of the 92nd Tour de France changes. Anything can happen. Stay tuned.
# posted by John Franklin Hay @ 10:07 AM 
