19 - June - 2012 - Daily News

Today's edition is coming out early because I have to work late tonight.

Let's begin with the teams that are announcing their Tour de France lineups:

Rabobank: Laurens Ten Dam, Robert Gesink, Steven Kruijswijk, Bauke Mollema, Mark Renshaw, Luis Leon Sanchez, Bram Tankink, Maarten Tjallingii and Maarten Wynants

Argos-Shimano: Marcel Kittel (Ger), Patrick Gretsch (Ger), Roy Curvers (Ned), Koen de Kort (Ned), Tom Veelers (Ned), Johannes Fröhlinger (Ger), Matthieu Sprick (Fra), Albert Timmer (Ned) and Yann Huguet (Fra)

With National Championships coming up right before the Tour de France, riders get to choose if they will participate. Is this beoming a race to fine-tune performance before the biggest race of the year? Or is it still about National pride?

Valverde and Sanchez to skip National Championships

(http://www.cyclingnews.com/news/valverde-and-sanchez-to-skip-national-championships)

Alejandro Valverde (Movistar) and Samuel Sanchez (Euskaltel-Euskadi) will not line up at the Spanish National Championships, which begin on Thursday in Salamanca. Valverde, who initially wanted to compete in both the time trial and the road race, finally decided to skip the event while Sanchez never planned to race it in the first place.

According to El Periódico, the Movistar leader "talked to Eusebio Unzué on Sunday evening. Considering that Valverde already rode 1,300 kilometres in the Tour de Suisse, and that his state of form was up to Tour de France level, the sports director thought that it was best to use this week to fine-tune his shape by training at home in Murcia."

The 32-year-old, who will be his team's top man at the Tour starting June 30 in Liège, was instrumental in Rui Costa's overall victory in Switzerland last week-end. By skipping the Nationals, Valverde will start the French Grand Tour with 36 days of competition in his legs.

Sanchez, who together with Valverde was named into the Spanish Olympic selection earlier this month, is sticking to his intital plan of not attending the National Championships. Euskaltel-Euskadi's sports director Gorka Gerrikagoitia confirmed to BiciCiclismo that "since the very beginning" of the season, Sanchez' race programme up to the Tour de France did not include the Salamancan event.

On Tuesday last week, after having completed the Critérium du Dauphiné, the Olympic champion retreated to a training camp in Sierra Nevada where he will stay until Saturday. His crash on the second day of the French stage race did not result in any serious injuries.

Sanchez, who won the mountains classification at the 2011 Tour, will thus have 31 days of competition in his legs at the start of this year's Tour.

This confused me. A few days ago we learned that Pozzato isn't being investigated, even though he had a conversation(s?) with Dr. Michele Ferrari. However, now he is being called to talk to the Italian Olympic Committee.

Pozzato to front CONI anti-doping prosecutor today

(http://www.cyclingnews.com/news/pozzato-to-front-coni-anti-doping-prosecutor-today)

Filippo Pozzato's participation in the London Olympic Games is under threat having been called to appear before the anti-doping prosecutor of the Italian Olympic Committee (CONI) on Tuesday. The meeting is scheduled for 1230pm local time.

The move follows a report in Saturday's La Repubblica which suggested that Pozzato was a client of the controversial Dr. Michele Ferrari, who last week was formally charged with doping by the United States Anti-Doping Agency (USADA), alongside Lance Armstrong and Johan Bruyneel.

The article quotes extracts from a telephone conversation intercepted in the summer of 2009, in which Pozzato allegedly speaks of working with Ferrari, something which the Italian Cycling Federation (FCI) outlawed in 2002. According to La Repubblica, Pozzato can be heard speaking in Vicenza dialect in the recording, saying "Listen: I went to Ferrari because I asked him myself."

Pozzato also allegedly discusses the Emanuele Sella doping case in the recording, and expresses his distaste at the manner in which the rider had negotiated a reduction on his ban after collaborating with the Italian Olympic Committee's (CONI) panel.

"If you go to see him in his own house, then you're responsible," Pozzato is alleged to have said. "You don't have a gun pointed to your head. I wanted to go to Ferrari. We're grown-ups aren't we?"

La Repubblica's report notes that the recorded conversation also reveals that it cost €40,000-50,000 per year to be "followed" by Ferrari.

Pozzato's lawyer, Pierfilippo Capello denied the Farnese Vini-Selle Italia rider denied the association.

"We've checked several times with magistrates in Padova and in other places where there are ongoing anti-doping inquiries, and my client is not listed in any register of those under investigation," Capello told Tuttobici and Gazzetta dello Sport.

Ferrari remains banned for life by the Italian Cycling Federation based on rider testimony and other evidence that he provided doping products to athletes, but was cleared of criminal charges in 2006. Riders found to have worked with Ferrari face a possible ban in Italy of between three and six months.

And of course, how can I miss a RadioShack Nissan Trek news update.

Fuglsang disappointed to miss Tour de France

(http://www.cyclingnews.com/news/fuglsang-disappointed-to-miss-tour-de-france)

After winning the Tour of Luxembourg and working diligently for RadioShack-Nissan teammate Fränk Schleck in the Tour de Suisse, Jakob Fuglsang was expected to be selected for the Tour de France. Although he was named to the team's long list for July, the Dane was surprisingly left off the final roster, announced today.

In his place was Chris Horner, a rider who was not listed in the long team, but who petitioned for his inclusion for the Tour, insisting his back injury that flared up after the Tour of California was all better.

Interviewed by sporten.dk, Fuglsang wouldn't speculate as to the reasons why he was not chosen for the Tour team. "I was told by Kim Andersen, but he could not say why," the 27-year-old Dane said.

"Of course I'm disappointed with it and I think I should have a place on the team. If you look at my form and my results, I can not see that there are nine riders who are better."

The flip-flop in selections could be related to Andy Schleck's broken sacrum, which was discovered last week, as stated by RadioShack press officer Philippe Maertens. The decision could also be related to Fuglsang's own admission that he is considering moving back to the Saxo Bank squad, or it could simply be that the team, sponsored by two US sponsors, wanted at least one of the team's three Americans in the race.

"[It] Was a difficult choice, but a choice of team management. Andy [dropping] out changed many things. And it was not a choice [of] Horner or Fuglsang," Maertens told Cyclingnews via e-mail.

Fuglsang said he respects the decisions of the team's sport directors, but when questioned about the drama currently surrounding his team, he hinted, "There is more than what appears in the press. We see only the tip of the iceberg. It does not take a genius to see that it is not running as it should."

What appears in the press are several indications that general manager Johan Bruyneel's authority is not what it once was: Bruyneel has engaged in a public debate with the Schleck brothers over their performances this season and the decision to leave director Kim Andersen at home in July, and as a result both riders are rumoured to be looking to leave the team next year.

More recently, it became public that Bruyneel is embroiled in the Lance Armstrong/USADA doping case, the Belgian is facing the end of his career in the sport if he is found guilty of anti-doping rule violations from the US Postal Service team days.

The case could lead the Tour de France organisers ASO to exclude the team from the race, although Christian Prudhomme refused to comment on the speculation.

Before I conclude today's post, let's have a look back at the Numbers of the Tour de France. However, I am surprised to see that George Hincapie isn't on the Most Tour Appearances. from my understanding, he tied the highest last year, and this year would be the record. I guess I have to look into it.

History of the Tour de France by numbers

(http://www.cyclingnews.com/features/history-of-the-tour-de-france-by-numbers)

The world’s most famous road race - the Tour de France - has a rich 109 year history and its fabled past is synonymous with the greatest names in the sport.

But who are the figures that have written themselves into the record books of this most emblematic of events? Who’s the fastest winner? The oldest winner? The youngest winner? Which country has basked in yellow more than any other? Who’s the climber that stands head and shoulders above all the other?

We’ve got all the answers and more right here in our history of the Tour de France by numbers, and alongside it is a gallery of some of the race's biggest names. With the start of the latest edition on June 30 rapidly approaching, will any of the current generation force their way into some of these categories?

Multiple winners
7: Lance Armstrong (USA) – 1999-2005
5: Jacques Anquetil (Fra) – 1957, 1961-64
5: Eddy Merckx (Bel) – 1969-72, 1974
5: Bernard Hinault (Fra) – 1978-79, 1981-82, 1985
5: Miguel Indurain (Spa) – 1991-95

Victories by nation
France: 36
Belgium: 18
Spain: 13
USA: 10
Italy: 9
Luxembourg: 4
Holland and Switzerland: 2
Ireland, Denmark, Germany, Australia: 1

Smallest winning margins (since 1947)
8 seconds: 1989 - Greg LeMond (USA) beats Laurent Fignon (Fra)
23 seconds: 2007 – Alberto Contador (Spa) beats Cadel Evans (Aus)
38 seconds: 1968 – Jan Janssen (Hol) beats Herman Van Springel (Bel)

Largest winning margins (since 1947)
28m 17s: 1952 – Fausto Coppi (Ita) beats Constant Ockers (Bel)
26m 16s: 1948 – Gino Bartali (Ita) beats Alberic Schotte (Bel)
22m 00s: 1951 – Hugo Koblet (Sui) beats Raphael Geminiani (Fra)

Yellow jersey wearers by nation
France: 82
Belgium: 53
Italy: 25
Holland: 17
Germany: 12
Spain: 12
Switzerland: 10
Luxembourg: 7
Denmark and USA: 5
Great Britain and Australia: 4
Ireland: 3
Canada: 2
Austria, Poland, Portugal, Russia, Estonia, Colombia, Norway and Ukraine: 1

Most days in the yellow jersey
Eddy Merckx (Bel): 111
Lance Armstrong (USA): 83
Bernard Hinault (Fra): 79
Miguel Indurain (Spa): 60
Jacques Anquetil (Fra): 52

Most green jersey victories
6: Erik Zabel (Ger) – 1996-2001
4: Sean Kelly (Ire) – 1982-83, 1985, 1989
3: Jan Janssen (Hol) – 1964-65, 1967
3: Eddy Merckx (Bel) – 1969, 1971-72
3: Freddy Maertens (Bel) – 1976, 1978, 1981
3: Djamolidine Abdoujaparov (Uzb) – 1991, 1993-94
3: Robbie McEwen (Aus) – 2002, 2004, 2006

Green jersey winners by nation
Belgium: 19
France: 9
Germany: 8
Holland, Ireland and Australia: 4
Uzbekistan: 3
Italy, Switzerland and Norway: 2
Spain, Great Britain: 1

Most polka-dot jersey victories
7: Richard Virenque (Fra) – 1994-97, 1999, 2003-04
6: Federico Bahamontes (Spa) – 1954, 1958-59, 1962-64
6: Lucien Van Impe (Bel) – 1971-72, 1975, 1977, 1981, 1983

Polka-dot jersey winners by nation
France: 18
Spain: 15
Italy: 13
Belgium: 11
Colombia: 4

Most white jersey victories
3: Andy Schleck (Lux) – 2008-2010
3: Jan Ullrich (Ger) – 1996-98
3: Marco Pantani (Ita) – 1994-95

White jersey winners by nation
France, Holland, Italy and Spain: 5
Germany: 4
Luxembourg: 3
Colombia, USA and Russia: 2
Australia, Mexico and Ukraine: 1

Highest average speed of Tour winner
41.654kph: Lance Armstrong (USA) – 2005
40.940kph: Lance Armstrong (USA) – 2003
40.553kph: Lance Armstrong (USA) – 2004

Biggest winning margin in a stage (since 1947)
22m 50s: 1976 (Montgenevre-Manosque) - Jose Luis Viego (Spa)
21m 48s: 1957 (Pau-Bordeaux) – Pierino Baffi (Ita)
20m 31s: 1955 (Millau-Albi) – Daan De Groot (Hol)

Most stage victories
34: Eddy Merckx (Bel)
28: Bernard Hinault (Fra)
25: Andre Leducq (Fra)
22: Andre Darrigade (Fra)
22: Lance Armstrong (USA)
20: Nicolas Frantz (Lux)
20: Mark Cavendish (GBr)

Most time trial victories
20: Bernard Hinault (Fra)
16: Eddy Merckx (Bel)
11: Jacques Anquetil (Fra)
11: Lance Armstrong (USA)

Most stage wins in one Tour
8: Charles Pelissier (Fra) – 1930
8: Eddy Merckx (Bel) – 1970, 1974
8: Freddy Maertens (Bel) – 1976

Oldest Tour winners (age at end of the race)
36: Firmin Lambot (Bel) – 1922
34: Henri Pelissier (Fra) – 1923
34: Gino Bartali (Ita) - 1948
34: Cadel Evans (Aus) – 2011

Youngest Tour winners (age at end of the race)
19: Henri Cornet (Fra) – 1904
21: Romain Maes (Bel) – 1935
22: Francois Faber (Lux) – 1909
22: Octave Lapize (Fra) – 1910
22: Philippe Thys (Bel) – 1913
22: Felice Gimondi (Ita) – 1965
22: Laurent Fignon (Fra) – 1983

Longest gap between victories
10 Years: Gino Bartali (Ita) – 1938 and 1948

Most Tour appearances
16: Joop Zoetemelk (Hol)
15: Lucien Van Impe (Bel)
15: Guy Nulens (Bel)
15: Viatcheslav Ekimov (Rus)

Happy 57th Birthday to Bernard Hinault

Bernard Hinault: The greatest of them all?

(http://www.cyclingnews.com/features/bernard-hinault-the-greatest-of-them-all)

There are two figures who transcend the sport of cycling - giants of the road whose names are known all over the world and whose fame isn’t limited to dedicated followers of the sport. Household names, if you will. But some will argue that the greatest cyclist of all time isn’t Eddy Merckx or Lance Armstrong. Instead they’ll tell you that it’s a man who celebrates his 57th birthday today; a man who dominated cycling in the late 1970s and early 1980s; a man who remains the last Frenchman to win the Tour de France - Bernard ‘The Badger’ Hinault.

Comparing the relative merits of sporting figures from differing eras is the most inexact of sciences. The big picture becomes blurred by personal sentiment, partisanship and, in most cases, a lack of objectivity. We all have our own heroes and we all have images indelibly burned into our psyche that have come about through following professional sport. Facts and statistics can never tell the full story. Numbers and figures are unable to stir emotions and quicken the pulse in the same way that a dramatic victory or an unlikely, glorious comeback can.

Hinault’s career had all of the ingredients required to make his case of being the greatest rider of all time a strong one. He was a history maker. His towering personality and brusque charisma bestrode the sport for almost a decade. And some of his victories are etched into the annals of sporting legend, stories that will be passed down through generations of cycling fans not simply confined to his native France. Richard Moore, author of Slaying The Badger - his account of Hinault’s epic battle with Greg LeMond at the 1986 Tour de France - found that endorsement of Hinault’s greatness was easy to find when he was researching his book.

"One of the things that [legendary directeur sportif] Cyrille Guimard told me when I was doing my research was that Hinault was the most talented rider ever," says Moore. "Even more so, he said, than Merckx. I think there’s some truth to that. He didn’t want to win everything like Merckx did. But when he did want to win something he usually did. And he usually did so in emphatic style."

Hinault turned professional aged 19 in 1974, which was, symbolically, the final year of domination by the man whose Hinault’s achievements are most often compared to. As Hinault’s career was just getting started, Merckx enjoyed one of the best years of his own career in that season - winning his fifth Tour de France, fifth Giro d’Italia and his third world championship. But he would never reach such heights again and cycling would soon be looking for a new superstar.

It didn’t have to wait long to find one. Four years later, in 1978, Hinault won the French national championships before clinching a Tour/Vuelta double later in the season, all before his 24th birthday. He would go on to win the Tour four more times (1979, 1981, 1982 and 1985), one more Vuelta (1983) and three Giri (1980, 1982 and 1985). His ten Grand Tour victories are second only to Merckx’s total of eleven, and his second-placed finishes in 1984 and 1986 mean that he is the only rider in history to finish in the top two at every Tour de France that he completed. There is every chance that Hinault could have surpassed Mercx’s achievements in the Grand Tours if large parts of his career hadn’t been disrupted by persistent knee trouble. His all round ability in the saddle was reflected by the fact that he won all classifications at the Tour. He could do everything - sprint, time trial and climb.

"It was a blend of things that made Hinault stand out," says Moore. "The thing that most people think of first when they think of him is his character and personality. He was a real leader of men and was so even very early on in his career. Back then, he was completely undaunted by the big names of the time. But because we think of his character it’s easy to overlook his talent. He wouldn’t have been able to be such a leader without it."

Hinault was as famed for his aggression and his single-mindedness as much as he was for his glittering palmares. While he was busy sweeping up titles and medals, his drive and his outspokenness often put him at odds with the authorities, the media and his rivals. As the last Frenchman to win the Tour de France, one might assume that his reputation in his homeland stands somewhere between that of Joan of Arc and Napoleon. But it’s not the case.

"One journalist I spoke to in France said that Hinault’s reputation is mixed over there," says Moore. "He was very popular at the beginning of his career and towards the end, but his public image suffered in the middle years. He had a difficult relationship with the press, and that relationship reached its nadir when he pulled out of the 1980 Tour while leading the race and didn’t tell them. This made them look foolish, and as a result their reporting on him became less sympathetic.

"His reputation has improved as the French Famine, in terms of Tour winners, has gone on, but his accessibility in recent years has possibly stripped back some of the aura and mystique surrounding him. You can’t imagine Merckx or Armstrong greeting stage winners and handing out medals on the podium at the Tour. It’s a role that some people say is beneath him and his achievements, and I am inclined to agree."

But it’s better to remember Hinault on the road, back in the prime of his career. There were so many highlights, but three really stand out: his imperious win in the snow at the 1980 Liege-Bastogne-Liege; his commanding wire-to-wire victory on one of the toughest courses ever devised at the 1980 World Championships in Sallanches, where hardly any riders finished; and his final Tour win in 1985, where victory was achieved despite a bad crash.

"For me that final Tour win in 1985 sums Hinault up, really," says Moore. "He got a lot of help from Greg LeMond but seeing him battling and fighting during that final week with two black eyes and a broken nose was heroic stuff. It was Hinault through and through - courage, talent and stubbornness."

A year later Hinault kept his promise by helping LeMond to win the Tour, though his exact role in delivering LeMond to the finish line, and his perceived reticence in fulfilling that promise, has been the subject of much scrutiny and controversy. Bernard Hinault retired shortly afterwards, at the very top of his profession and at the relatively young age of 32. Secure in his position as one of the best ever. Or maybe the best.