2012 Giro d'Italia Stage 14

Life has caught up with me, and I struggle to find time to update this blog. I can't promise that next week will be any better, but I can promise I will TRY. :)

May 19, Stage 14: Cherasco - Cervinia 205km

Amador climbs to Giro d'Italia stage 14 victory

(http://www.cyclingnews.com/giro-ditalia/stage-14/results)

Andrey Amador (Movistar) took the biggest win of his career by winning the first high mountain stage of the Giro d'Italia on Saturday as once again an escape group made it through to the end. Jan Barta (NetApp) continued the strong work of his small German wildcard team to claim second, with Androni Giacattoli's Alessandro De Marchi third.

The pink jersey changed shoulders again, passing back to Ryder Hesjedal (Garmin-Barracuda), who had jumped from the chasing field of favourites with about four kilometers to go. The Candian will go into the stage 15on Sunday with a nine-second lead over Katusha's Joaquim Rodriguez.

"I felt good. It felt easy when the guys were setting the tempo," Hesjedal said to TV cameras after finishing. "When some guys started to accelerate a bit, I knew it eased off after 3km, and I figured I'd give it a go and test myself. I wasn't really thinking of anything except putting in an effort and seeing how the other guys did."

The top favourites had hung together up the two very lengthy climbs, with the group getting continually smaller but holding on to most of the top names to the end. Things only fell apart near the end, with Hesjedal's successful attack. Rodriguez and Ivan Basso (Liquigas) both tried but failed, to follow.

Amador, 25, had previously finished third on the Giro's 12th stage. The Costa Rican, who is now in his fourth year with Movistar, has ridden the Giro once before, and was second-to-last overall in last year's Tour de France.

He was the victim of a brutal attack whilst training in Costa Rica in January of 2011. His bike was stolen and he was severely beaten and left for dead in a river bed. However, he recovered quickly enough to ride in the Mallorca Challenge the next month.

Another successful break

The stage got off to a blazing fast start, covering 50.8km in the first hour. Four riders decided to spare themselves the mountains and were not at the start: Mark Renshaw (Rabobank), Matt Goss (Orica-GreenEdge), Brett Lancaster (Orica-GreenEdge) and Juan Jose Haedo (Saxo Bank).

The high initial speed meant that it took a while for the day's break to establish itself. But finally, with 60km behind them, Olivier Kaisen (Lotto Belisol), Jan Barta (NetApp), Andrey Amador (Movistar), Nelson Oliveira (RadioShack-Nissan), Matteo Montaguti (AG2R-La Mondiale), Nikolas Maes (Omega Pharma-QuickStep), Alessandro De Marchi (Androni Giocattoli) and Pierpaolo De Negri (Farnese Vini-Selle Italia) took off.

The field let them go, and the gap was over 12km as they approached the first climb of the day. The category 1 Col de Joux has an average gradient of 7 percent, but the climb is over 22km long.

The group took a 13-minute lead into the start of the first climb. Barta jumped from the group on the ascent in the rain on the wet road. The weather deteriorated rapidly as everyone ground his way up the long climb. As Barta stretched his lead out to over 40 seconds, the group behind him fell apart.

As expected, Mark Cavendish fell back on the climb, but less expectedly, so did King of the Mountains Michel Golas (Omega Pharma-QuickStep).

Barta continued his lead, crossing the top of the climb alone. Behind them, Jose Rujano (Androni Giacattoli) and Damiano Cunego (Lampre) shot out of the group, with Cunego eventually going on alone as Rujano was swept back into the field.

Barta's efforts came to naught, as he was caught and passed on his cautious way down the mountain. Amador was the first to catch him and went on to build up a lead on his not-so-cautious descent.

The sun actually came out on the final ascent. Amador continued in the lead, about 30 seconds ahead of Barta, Montaguti, De Negri and De Marchi. Cunego also continued on his solo chase, slowly building up a one-minute lead over the field. But that fell to about 30 seconds, and he was joined by Amets Txurruka (Euskaltel) and Marzio Bruseghin (Movistar). Txurruka pulled away and soon Liquigas pulled the peloton past Cunego.

Amador took a 1:25 lead under the 15km banner, with De Marchi and behind him Barta giving chase. The peloton was over seven and a half minutes down.

De Marchi's efforts were successful, and he caught the Costa Rican with just over 11km to go. The field was about 40 riders strong at that point, with all the favourites still there and the gap dropping to the six-minute mark.

There seemed to be some disunity between the two leaders, as Amador didn't seem to want to co-operate with his rival. Five and a half minutes back, the peloton slowly shredded.

With less than seven kilometers to go, Barta caught up again with the two leaders. But the Czech was clearly paying for his efforts on the day, and left the lead work to the other two.

The field had shrunk again, and the gap kept coming down, as the fog and rain returned. The three leaders took a 3:26 lead into the final 5km.

Rujano attacked into the fog, but the field, now about 25 riders, caught him again quickly. Dozens of running fans accompanied the now much smaller field, led by Ivan Basso (Liquigas), as one Astana rider struck out at an interfering fan. Surprisingly, Rujano and Cunego dropped off the back.

That was the cue for attacks to start out of the field. Mikel Nieve (Euskaltel) and Ryder Hesjedal (Garmin-Barracuda) built up a small lead, and the Canadian then continued on alone.

That was too much for Rodriguez, who jumped in pursuit, quickly catching the Basque rider, with the rest of the field following as the gap to the leaders sunk to 45 seconds with 4km to go.

Hesjedal held on to his lead over a chasing group of eight, from which Astana's Roman Kreuziger had been dropped. Domenico Pozzovivo (Colnago - CSF Inox) tried to get away, and was caught as the three leaders turned up the speed on a flatter section in an attempt to retain their lead.

The trio crossed the one kilometre to go marker with Hesjedal not far behind. Barta opened the sprint, but Amador came from behind him to take it.

Hesjedal sailed away from his rivals, crossing the finish line only 20 seconds behind the top three. Paolo Tiralongo of Astana led the small group of favourites, including Rodriguez, in to the finish 46 seconds down, more than enough time to give Hesjedal the overall lead.

Results:

1	Andrey Amador Bakkazakova (CRc) Movistar Team	5:33:36
2	Jan Barta (Cze) Team NetApp
3	Alessandro De Marchi (Ita) Androni Giocattoli	0:00:02
4	Ryder Hesjedal (Can) Garmin - Barracuda	0:00:20
5	Paolo Tiralongo (Ita) Astana Pro Team	0:00:46
6	Rigoberto Uran Uran (Col) Sky Procycling
7	Joaquim Rodriguez Oliver (Spa) Katusha Team
8	Thomas De Gendt (Bel) Vacansoleil-DCM Pro Cycling Team
9	Michele Scarponi (Ita) Lampre - ISD
10	John Gadret (Fra) AG2R La Mondiale

2012 Giro d'Italia Stage 8 & Tour of California Stage 1

May 13, Stage 8: Sulmona - Lago Laceno 229km

Pozzovivo wins Giro d'Italia stage 8 in Lago Laceno

(http://www.cyclingnews.com/giro-ditalia/stage-8/results)

Diminutive Domenico Pozzovivo finally delivered on his huge climbing ability as he claimed the biggest victory of his career at Lago Laceno in the Giro d'Italia. Having attacked from the lead group on the Colle Molella climb 7km from the finish, the Colnago-CSF team leader quickly gained a 30-second advantage and held on to most of it coming into the finish despite a determined chase by Movistar’s Beñat Intxausti.

The maglia rosa group finished hard on Intxausti’s heels, Joaquim Rodríguez (Katusha) outsprinting Thomas De Gendt to take third place and a very handy eight-second bonus. That moved him into second place overall, just nine seconds down on Garmin-Barracuda’s Ryder Hesjedal, who finished in the same group despite some struggles on the final climb.

“This seems like a dream,” Pozzovivo told Rai TV. “It’s my first win in the Giro, which was a feat that seemed I was never likely to achieve! I couldn’t give any more in the final two kilometres. But I felt it was going to be my day and it was.”

Pozzovivo thanked the many fans who had come out to support him. “I knew that I would have a lot of fans on the climb and I attacked where a lot of them were gathered. This stage was very close to my heart, as it is not far from my home. Although it wasn’t the most suitable for me, given that the hard section of the climb was so short and also because there was a flatter section beyond the climb to the finish line.”

Hesjedal was also smiling at the finish despite his difficulties heading towards the line. “I made a really big effort on the final climb, but the team was perfect in the way it stayed close to me and together we have succeeded in our objective of keeping the jersey for another day. We did our best and this jersey is a reward for all of us,” said the Canadian.

Just like Saturday’s stage, this was another long day. Although there were only two categorised climbs, the course rolled up and down relentlessly. The break of the day formed with almost 200km remaining to the finish. Andrey Amador (Movistar), Julien Bérard (AG2R-La Mondiale), Tomasz Marczynski (Vacansoleil-DCM) and Miguel Mínguez (Euskaltel-Euskadi) were in it. As the bunch eased along they opened up a lead of more than 11 minutes.

With 160km covered, a sudden acceleration by Marczynski resulted in the clearly unhappy Bérard being dropped. Mínguez’s hopes soon disappeared as well, leaving just two men at the front.

Their advantage began to drop rapidly inside final 35km, as Katusha started to push the pace on the front of the bunch. This wasn’t the ideal time for best young rider Peter Stetina (Garmin-Barracuda) to puncture. Although he quickly got a new wheel from teammate Robbie Hunter and was paced back to the bunch by Jack Bauer, the effort he made then surely cost him on the Colle Molella, where his hold on the white jersey was loosened.

Amador and Marczynski were caught 17km from home. Soon after, a long line of Astana riders took up the pace-making as the riders approached the steepest section of the Colle Molella. As the road ramped up, Liquigas-Cannondale took control on the front in the shape of Sylvester Szymd, who kept an even pace going for team leader Ivan Basso, sitting just behind him.

It was always likely that the winning attack would come on these ramps, and it was not a great surprise when Pozzovivo delivered it. One of the smallest riders in the bunch, the Italian’s confidence was boosted by his victory in last month’s Giro di Trentino, which marked him out as a contender for the Giro. His triumph today pushed him right into contention, although we will probably have to wait until next weekend’s stages to see if the Colnago-CSF Inox leader can build on this success. 

Full Results

1	Domenico Pozzovivo (Ita) Colnago - CSF Inox	6:06:05
2	Benat Intxausti Elorriaga (Spa) Movistar Team	0:00:23
3	Joaquim Rodriguez Oliver (Spa) Katusha Team	0:00:27
4	Thomas De Gendt (Bel) Vacansoleil-DCM Pro Cycling Team
5	Dario Cataldo (Ita) Omega Pharma-Quickstep
6	Damiano Caruso (Ita) Liquigas-Cannondale
7	Gianluca Brambilla (Ita) Colnago - CSF Inox
8	Bartosz Huzarski (Pol) Team NetApp
9	José Rujano Guillen (Ven) Androni Giocattoli
10	John Gadret (Fra) AG2R La Mondiale

 

May 13, Stage 1: Santa Rosa 186.5km

Tour of California: Peter Sagan wins in Santa Rosa

(http://www.cyclingnews.com/tour-of-california/stage-1/results)

Peter Sagan (Liquigas-Cannondale) pulled out a thrilling performance to win the opening stage of the Amgen Tour of California. The 22-year-old had to recover from a puncture inside the final 10 kilometres as well as avoid a crash with 3 kilometres to go, before beating Heinrich Haussler and Freddie Rodriguez into second and third.

"Daniel Oss did a really great lead-out and I'm really happy to win the stage," Sagan said.

"It was a really confusing sprint because it was a small field. With 10km to go I flatted, but I knew there was time to get back in. Thanks to the work of my teammates I didn't panic, and we were able to get back on easiliy. With 3km to go one of my teammates Ted King crashed, and I hope he's okay, but thanks to Daniel Oss, he piloted me to the finish and I was able to win."

While seemingly in good form, today's stage winner admitted that it will be an uphill task to hold on to the overall lead.

"It is going to be very hard to hold onto the yellow jersey," Sagan admitted. "I'm okay on the smaller climbs, but it's only going to get harder and harder as the week goes on."

Results

1	Peter Sagan (Svk) Liquigas-Cannondale	4:42:35
2	Heinrich Haussler (Aus) Garmin - Barracuda
3	Fred Rodriguez (USA) Team Exergy
4	Leigh Howard (Aus) Orica GreenEdge Cycling Team
5	Greg Van Avermaet (Bel) BMC Racing Team
6	George Hincapie (USA) BMC Racing Team
7	Ryan Anderson (Can) Spidertech Powered By C10
8	Stijn Vandenbergh (Bel) Omega Pharma-Quickstep
9	Lawson Craddock (USA) Bontrager Livestrong Team
10	Luis Leon Sanchez Gil (Spa) Rabobank Cycling Team

2012 Giro: Who to Watch For

Giro d'Italia: Top ten contenders

(http://www.cyclingnews.com/features/giro-ditalia-top-ten-contenders)

This year's Giro d'Italia is one of the most open editions of the race in recent years with a host of GC contenders vying for the 2012 maglia rosa. Cyclingnews takes a look at the top contenders for the overall win...

Ivan Basso (Liquigas-Cannondale)
The 2010 Basso would have cantered to a third Giro this May but unfortunately for the Varese rider, this version is a pale shadow of the athlete who resurrected his career two years ago. It took until the Giro del Trentino in April for him to even finish a race and his subsequent performances in Romandie suggested little in the way of a return to form. In some ways, his Giro build-up mirrors that to last year’s Tour bid, when a crash derailed his preparations, leaving him exhausted and over-trained by the time the race started. At least Basso won’t be overworked before this year Giro, and while the heavy third week of racing will allow him some time to ride into form, this is still a demanding Giro. The opening skirmishes in Denmark are bound to skittle the GC contenders, while stages 7 and certainly stage 8 to Lago Laceno, could see Basso hit from all sides as fresh pocket-rocket climbers like Jose Rujano (Androni-Venezuela), Domenico Pozzovivo (Colnago-CSF) and Joaquim Rodriguez (Katusha) seek to expose any fraction of weakness. In Basso’s favour he has the race’s strongest team, and unlike all but Damiano Cunego (Lampre-ISD), he knows how to close out a three-week race.

Michele Scarponi (Lampre-ISD)
Strong on the climbs, stronger than he’s given credit for in time trials, Scarponi has every reason to feel confident as he approaches this year’s race. With Nibali Tour bound and Contador on a course that could see him win the Vuelta and perhaps the Worlds, the competition is weaker, but Il Presidente will still face stern examinations from riders vying for his 2011 crown. With Damiano Cunego as a teammate, and despite his patchy form, Scarponi will start as one of the major favourites, a strange scenario when you consider how low his GC aspirations stood on the eve of his Puerto ban. One word of caution: no rider has won back-to-back Giri since Miguel Indurain in 1993.

John Gadret (Ag2r-La Mondiale)
The Frenchman has a huge point to prove after finishing a surprise fourth in last year’s race (later bumped to third after Contador’s expulsion). But weak against the clock, Gadret will have to count on the natural talent and determination that carried him to a stage win in Castelfidardo, and fourth last year. A year of GC experience and a demanding final week all favour Gadret, who beat the likes of Rujano, Roman Kreuziger and Denis Menchov last year.

Jose Rujano (Androni-Venezuela)
The 30-year-old Venezuelan finally got his grand tour career back on track last year with 7th place in the Giro. Several barren years since his defining performance in 2005 were followed by poor team choices and a severe loss of form, but Rujano looks to have settled with Savio’s motley crew. In fact, this is the first time since 2005 he’s ridden for the same team for consecutive seasons. Can he win the Giro? Probably not, but his explosive speed on the climbs could determine who does.

Roman Kreuziger (Astana)
It would be unfair to say that Kreuziger has failed to deliver on the promise he showed when winning the junior world title in 2004 or the 13th place he raced to at the 2008 Tour de France, but there’s certainly an element of stagnation. While other riders of his generation such as Andy Schleck and Vincenzo Nibali have gone on to win grand tours, Kreuziger has languished in the chasing group, never one of the top three or four climbers or most accomplished time trialists. Still, he should better last year’s 6th place and on current for - he was one of the strongest Giro riders at Romandie - Astana will be looking for podium place.

Domenico Pozzovivo (Colnago-CSF Inox)
If you’re looking for omens in the battle for the maglia rosa then look no further than the diminutive Italian. 25 years ago, Stephen Roche stormed to overall glory in the Giro, becoming the first Irishman to win a grand tour. Forward to 2012, and although there’s no chance of a repeat win for the Irish, Pozzovivo’s Colnago team are registered in Ireland. 25 years since an Irish win, an Irish-registered team line-up this year. It all makes sense, doesn’t it?

Well okay, maybe not, but Pozzovivo deserves to be on this list for his riding credentials. His ride in Trentino was eye-catching to say the least and while it’s true that we’ve seen flashes of brilliance from him there before, this year was a genuine improvement. A three-day event is not a grand tour though and Pozzovivo’s time trialing and staying power are questionable, but if he’s within 4 minutes of the race lead heading into the final clutch of mountain stages he could pull off a surprise or two.

Ryder Hesjedal (Garmin-Barracuda)
Garmin’s previous attempts at Giro GC success have all ended poorly but in Hesjedal the Argyle Armada have a genuine top five threat. He may not have replicated the 2010 Tour de France result but if he can remain upright in Denmark, rely on a strong TTT performance and arrive at the start of the third week within the top ten overall, there’s a strong possibility of him holding out.

Frank Schleck (RadioShack-Nissan)
The team are fast turning into a soap opera. In January we had Johan Bruyneel unable to deny Frank Schleck would race the Giro. The will he,won't he story ran all the way up Liege, with the rider adamant that the Tour was his main goal. Then there was the Kim Andersen interlude which reached levels of absurdness when Andy Schleck and Bruyneel both came out with conflicting stories within 24 hours of each other. From the outside looking in, there certainly appear to be tensions between the new management and the Schlecks.

Either way Frank Schleck will start the Giro. On paper, he’s more than capable of beating Scarponi and Basso over three weeks, but this is the Giro, not the Tour, and you have to question Schleck’s motivation. Whether you rate him or not, he believes he can win the Tour de France, and his podium places are testament to that. But he must now refocus and attempt to challenge in a race he’s never shown interest in. The Giro is wide open, and Schleck, if motivated and on form, can win.

Joaquím Rodriguez (Katusha)
Rodriguez was one of the strongest riders in the Giro’s second half last year, rising from 22nd place after a drab showing on Etna to 5th by the time the race reached Milan. This year, Rodriguez can ill afford to start so poorly but he remains one of the most talented riders in the field. His time trialling remains a weakness but the GC contenders aren’t exactly stacked with chrono specialists, and his climbing talent, his explosive sprint and his underrated team, make him a decent tip for the podium.

Damiano Cunego (Lampre-ISD)
A 2005 edition of Procycling once featured Cunego, Lance Armstrong and Jan Ullrich on the cover, with the headline “three’s a crowd”. At the time Cunego was seen as the next star of grand tour racing having shot to fame with the 2004 Giro title. A lot has changed since and Cunego finds himself some way down the list of favourites. A consistent ride in last year’s Tour was a reminder of his talent and the Lampre rider heads into the Giro under the radar, talking about stage wins and supporting Scarponi. He started the 2004 Giro in similar circumstances but as we’ve alluded to, this is a different era. Should Cunego ride to his complete potential he’s unlikely to side step a top ten placing and who knows, even bag a couple of stages in the process.