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Maybe he'll get Danish citizenship as an honor after all
Another piece of evidence of how stupid Godefroot is - rejecting Klöden's contract extension is now likely to prove expensive for him. Serves him right.
I found the original article at Radsport-News.com.
Great success for CSC. But of course also impressive success from Gerolsteiner - to place both teams so far up front. Armstrong? Well, he just doesn't take anything really seriously except the Tour. A shame. But the organizer already put it quite rightly at the Night of Hannover. In essence: for what Armstrong demands as a starting fee, he doesn't deliver the corresponding performance.
I found the original article at Radsport-News.com.
The Frankfurter Rundschau is drizzling a bit of Bossdorf's independent position as a reporter on ...Zabel is still a class driver anyway. Take a look at the world best list if you write something about Zenit being exceeded, you Rundschau people. At das Netzbuch I found the original article.
Hmm. Couldn't one simply send Godefroot into retirement? Telekom is dealing with layoffs at the moment - maybe Godefroot would be a fit for Vivento too?
Now to be perfectly honest: sure, the cyclists have to deliver the cycling performance. Sure, everyone expected more from Ullrich - but he did achieve 4th place, that's definitely an accomplishment. And Klöden got 2nd place. And T-Mobile the team classification. So stop complaining, that's considerably more than most other teams will ever see.
The disputes, the chaotic mess, and the lack of direction, however, are entirely down to the team management. And that's Godefroot. He has to take that on his shoulders - and there's a good deal more professional failure involved there than in Ullrich's - perhaps somewhat careless - preparation. Ullrich only managed 4th place at the Tour for some expectations, but Godefroot finished dead last in the ranking of team managers ... I found the original article at Radsport-News.com.
And? Hmm. Armstrong is getting boring. Robotniks are never really that exciting - not the American ones either. Klöden is likeable and put in a great performance. Basso has improved significantly in the time trial and from the looks of it, Bjarne Riis could still get even more out of him. Ullrich must stay off the podium - serves him right.
Most annoying people in the Tour: McEwen and the commentators. Oh man, what kind of stupid stuff did those guys spout again. And all this hype around Jan Ullrich is really bothering me. Instead of focusing on the sport, the commentators dutifully mourned their inflated unfulfilled hopes. And McEwen is just a boor.
For next year? I'd like to see fewer crashes and more favorites who actually make it to Paris and fight their way through in between. With a Tyler Hamilton and an Alexander Vinokurov in the race, things could have looked different.
In the end, it's the old Jens Voigt again: I'll ask him if I can also assume Danish citizenship with the signature. - in response to the question of how he would react to the offer of an extension. I found the original article at Radsport-News.com.
Two crazy people found each other
I found the original article at Radsport-News.com.
Update: A response from the ARD Sports Department with a transcript of the commentators' comments is online
... because he sprinted for the victory even though he was taking over yellow. So I'm complaining too. No, not because he sprinted against Ullrich and Klöden, but because he also attacked Basso - after CSC had driven Ullrich back into him. Well. That's not the fine way to do it. Deduction in the B-note. Ok, the 20-second time bonus is of course a nice buffer against Basso, but still ...
Oh yes, Jan Ullrich: finally he fought. That's what people want to see. Regardless of whether he might not have the right legs for the time trial tomorrow. Fighting is always more interesting than following.
Evil. But funny.
At INSTANT NIRVANA there's the original article.
This raises several questions right away:
At Megawatt: The Last Latent Appliance Fetishist there's the original article.
Jens Voigt was simply superb in his breakaway action. It's a shame that things didn't quite work out at the end, but CSC can really be satisfied with such a rider. Just like with Basso, who showed an incredible performance today.
But the real top rider for me today was Thomas Voeckler, the way he defended his yellow jersey again. I'm keeping my fingers crossed that he keeps it through the rest day - with a flat stage tomorrow that's quite likely. And maybe he'll manage it in the Alps again, even if that's already less likely.
And otherwise? Andreas Klöden showed great form again. The same with Georg Totschnig - although people had expected that more from him than from Klöden. Tyler Hamilton has dropped out - a shame, but understandable. Zubeldia also out - still in 5th place last year. Heras and Mayo have shown that they probably won't have anything to say in the overall standings this year. Ullrich either - but he looked better today than yesterday.
... things also become clearer on this tour:
Has Armstrong already won the Tour? No, it would be too early for that. But this year he probably has different rivals than last year. And Ullrich too: he's not fighting for victory this year. He's just fighting for a podium place overall.
In any case, the results are impressive:
I'm already looking forward to the weekend, then I can watch the stages live again
Honestly. Somehow it would have been nicer if Hushovd had grabbed it one more time.
But damn tight that finish. Wow. But somehow already frustrating for the two breakaway riders to be caught just a few meters before the finish line.
Somehow sympathetic. Well, it has to be, after all it comes from Münster
I found the original article at Radsport-News.com.
Sure, the sprinters at the Tour, that's not a knitting circle. But McEwen's behavior is still inexcusable. Especially as a sprinter, he should have much better control over himself – after all, sprinters are more prone to crashes than any other professional cyclists due to the chaos in the sprint. Insulting an injured person on the ground and still not finding anything wrong with it the next day shows little sporting spirit.
I found the original article at Radsport-News.com.
And Menno, don't break Tyler for me, he's needed as competition for Armstrong!
And please leave Phonak intact too, they're bringing a new color to the sport. And they can ride well too!
I found the original article at Radsport-News.com.
Ouch. That's really brutal. It's pretty strange when it's considered lucky if only 3 ribs and the nose are broken... Hopefully he'll get through this without major problems. He really got hit hard - the images from the crash looked severe, like the entire field behind him ran/fell over him...
On Radsport-News.com I found the original article.
Two sprinters out. Ok, Petacchi was clear - his crash and the shoulder injury are bad preconditions. But whether Domina Vacanze gets another Tour nomination, I consider doubtful. In any case, not because of Cipollini ...
At VeloNews: The Journal of Competitive Cycling there's the original article.
... a Tour stage finally gets really exciting towards the end. O'Grady clearly just played his great experience (and his strength of course - Backstedt isn't exactly a young guy either).
Though I had the feeling that the three more active riders in the group of five let the other two (Backstedt and Casar had fallen back slightly) catch up on the final climb. Which would be okay after a breakaway group over almost the entire stage. Riding 190 kilometers alone at the front in that lousy weather is quite a performance.
The main field, meanwhile, was busy staging the most impressive mass crashes. Shortly before the breakaway arrived at the finish, they managed it and knocked over some 20-30 riders and sent another bunch into the dirt.
And otherwise? Voeckler gets the yellow jersey. Aldag the prize for the most impressive looping (hopefully everything is still intact!). And Haselbacher the golden lemon for the wildest action in a sprint.
Yes, I'm working from home today and happen to have the TV running in the background. So what?
Ouch. Very frustrating for Euskatel - hopefully they'll keep their fighting spirit and still put on a good show. After all, both (Mayo and Zubeldia) were really strong riders last year.
Being able to follow a Tour only via ticker and just watching the weekend stages is quite frustrating, by the way
I found the original article at Radsport-News.com.
Oh man. Training accidents seem to be piling up lately. And it's constantly car drivers and trucks that are running over cyclists.
I found the original article at Radsport-News.com.
And darn. I like Jaksche - a likeable driver, always seems pretty relaxed in interviews and not as intense or even arrogant as some others. And he's a damn good driver - he certainly would have brought a bit more excitement to the Tour.
I found the original article at Radsport-News.com.
It's already a bit mean to win with only a one-second lead
At tagesschau.de - Die Nachrichten der ARD you can find the original article.
That does offer some hope for the tour. However, T-Mobile should hold back a bit on the dropouts, otherwise they won't be able to put together 9 riders for the tour anymore.
I found the original article at Radsport-News.com.
Crap. Ok, was to be expected after the crash, but it's pretty rough.
I found the original article at Radsport-News.com.
He can use the forced break to ride his bike more and improve his fitness for the tour.
At Radsport-News.com I found the original article.
That certainly sounds quite interesting
At DIE ZEIT: Feuilleton I found the original article.
I don't know when I last saw such an exciting stage in a tour race. The leader and his 4 pursuers only 20 seconds apart. Several pursuers (especially Jens Voigt and Igor Gonzalez de Galdeano) attack in turns. And Patrick Sinkewitz keeps up with them. A fantastic performance - especially since he had no more helpers. Until the finish with a final sprint against Jens Voigt, he was fully involved and defended his yellow jersey brilliantly. If he keeps the yellow jersey until Leipzig, he owes it definitively to his great performance and not to the weaknesses of his opponents.
Francisco Mancebo drove out the last kilometer on the mountain sovereignly - he's simply a mountain expert.
Jan Ullrich has shown that he still needs to work on his mountain form at the Tour de Suisse to be ready for the Tour de France - on the mountain he's definitely losing far too much time.
In the time trial, he clearly showed that he really is back to full strength. The fact that Michael Rich took 24 seconds from him in the end is not a big deal - you can afford to lose in a time trial against someone like Michael Rich, the man is simply an exceptional rider. So a really great race overall. But absolutely top-notch was the performance of the Gerolsteiner team: getting 4 riders into the top 8 positions is quite something. Not many people can match that.
However, the ARD should learn to use their microphones properly. That was total chaos at the end.
Hmm. 13 seconds behind the leader is already a good sign. But let's wait and see how he does at the Deutschland Tour. The Hainleite circuit race may be a demanding race - but still, it's only a one-day race.
I found the original article at Radsport-News.com.
Very nice. Of course, I'm a bit biased: the winner of the mountain classification in the Giro (ok, he still has to finish within the time limit today, but he should manage that) comes from Münster.
With all the sponsors that have dropped out and are dropping out, it's nice when a sponsor clearly stands by the sport.
At Radsport-News.com I found the original article.
Ouch. I always find it amazing how they manage to get back up and then finish the race with some broken bones anyway. Somehow their pain threshold must be way outside the normal range ... I found the original article at Radsport-News.com.
Zabel overthought the tactics and Kummer started the chase race far too late. Annoying, because it was already visible earlier in the race. Well, nothing you can do about it - if they'd attacked earlier, they might have run out of breath and it wouldn't have worked anyway. One thing is clear: racing around the Henninger Tower is and remains an exciting event.
I'm keeping my fingers crossed that he makes it.
I found the original article at Radsport-News.com.
Bah.
At least Team T-Mobile still has a couple of other good riders, and maybe Vinokourov will have the right legs for the Tour again. And Gerolsteiner is also doing quite well with Hondo.
I found the original article at Radsport-News.com.
Oh man, this won't work like this ...
At Radsport-News.com I found the original article.
Rode out brilliantly, absolutely sovereign. A bit of bad luck for Danilo Hondo, who was on the wrong side of Zabel. But Zabel's performance was absolutely brilliant - and with that he gets his 186th victory and ties with Cippolini.
Jörg Jaksche wins Paris-Nice. And on the podium stands Bobby Julich, another CSC rider. Well that gives Bjarne Riis' team reason for hope!
At VeloNews: The Journal of Competitive Cycling you can find the original article.
Too bad. A colorful rider who was often good for surprises. :-(
At VeloNews: The Journal of Competitive Cycling you can find the original article.
A bit of my secret favorite for surprises in the next season. Sure, not the big names, but interesting riders in all areas with good motivation and often good performances. It could be that they'll make life difficult for one or another safe candidate. At RADSPORT-NEWS.COM - News Overview you'll find the original article.
T-Mobile Team - New homepage of Team T-Mobile (formerly Team Telekom)
Why are they surprised - it's not much different than the contract problems ordinary citizens have with Telekom
At RADSPORT-NEWS.COM - News Overview you can find the original article.
Well, US Postal, that's what happens when you focus only on a few highlights and otherwise show up less frequently in cycling. That can cause problems with license issuance...
You can find the original article at RADSPORT-NEWS.COM - News Overview.
As long as he makes way for another winner at the next tour, and as long as he doesn't start singing or acting, I don't care.
At RADSPORT-NEWS.COM - Nachrichten-Gesamtübersicht there's the original article.
