2006 Tour de France

[Dback Jon]

Boonen keeps overall Tour lead; McEwen wins another stage

SAINT-QUENTIN, France (AP) -- Tom Boonen kept his overall lead at the Tour de France on Wednesday -- wearing the yellow jersey as he entered his native Belgium -- but was upset with his showing on a day when Australia's Robbie McEwen won a stage for the second time in this race.

Boonen, the world champion, faded in the final sprint of the 129-mile fourth stage and dropped back to fifth place. He slammed his right hand on his handlebars in apparent anger as he crossed the line.

The top of the overall standings remained unchanged. Boonen is one second ahead of world time trial champion Michael Rogers of Australia, with George Hincapie of the United States third.

McEwen overpowered his rivals and dedicated his 10th stage victory in nine Tours to American teammate Fred Rodriguez, who rode into a pothole and crashed out of the race in an accident-strewn stage Tuesday.

Rodriguez's accident deprived McEwen of the rider assigned to lead him into the final stretches of sprint finishes, the Australian's strong point.

 

[Dback Jon]

Standings after 4th Stage

Overall Time Standings: Stage 04

Rank Dossard Name Country Team Time Gap
1 101 Tom BOONEN QSI 19h52'13.000'' 00.000''
2 026 Michael ROGERS TMO 19h52'14.000'' 01.000''
3 003 George HINCAPIE DSC 19h52'18.000'' 05.000''
4 118 Thor HUSHOVD C.A 19h52'20.000'' 07.000''
5 004 Egoi MARTINEZ DSC 19h52'23.000'' 10.000''
6 065 Robbie MC EWEN DVL 19h52'25.000'' 12.000''
7 009 Paolo SAVOLDELLI DSC 19h52'28.000'' 15.000''
8 083 Daniele BENNATI LAM 19h52'28.000'' 15.000''
9 071 Floyd LANDIS PHO 19h52'29.000'' 16.000''
10 096 Vladimir KARPETS CEI 19h52'30.000'' 17.000''
11 023 Serhiy HONCHAR TMO 19h52'30.000'' 17.000''
12 024 Matthias KESSLER TMO 19h52'30.000'' 17.000''
13 061 Cadel EVANS DVL 19h52'33.000'' 20.000''
14 031 Christophe MOREAU A2R 19h52'33.000'' 20.000''
15 146 David MILLAR SDV 19h52'34.000'' 21.000''
16 027 Patrik SINKEWITZ TMO 19h52'36.000'' 23.000''
17 018 David ZABRISKIE CSC 19h52'36.000'' 23.000''
18 021 Andréas KLÖDEN TMO 19h52'37.000'' 24.000''
19 042 Marcus FOTHEN GST 19h52'38.000'' 25.000''
20 056 Oscar FREIRE RAB 19h52'38.000'' 25.000''
21 035 Cyril DESSEL A2R 19h52'38.000'' 25.000''
22 011 Bobby JULICH CSC 19h52'38.000'' 25.000''
23 025 Eddy MAZZOLENI TMO 19h52'39.000'' 26.000''
24 007 Yaroslav POPOVYCH DSC 19h52'40.000'' 27.000''
25 016 Christian VANDEVELDE CSC 19h52'41.000'' 28.000''
26 159 Benoît VAUGRENARD FDJ 19h52'41.000'' 28.000''
27 041 Levi LEIPHEIMER GST 19h52'41.000'' 28.000''
28 172 Walter BENETEAU BTL 19h52'42.000'' 29.000''
29 084 Marzio BRUSEGHIN LAM 19h52'43.000'' 30.000''
30 001 José AZEVEDO DSC 19h52'44.000'' 31.000''

 

[Dback Jon]

Standings after 5th stage

Rank Dossard Name Country Team Time Gap
1 101 Tom BOONEN QSI 25h10'51.000'' 00.000''
2 026 Michael ROGERS TMO 25h11'04.000'' 13.000''
3 056 Oscar FREIRE RAB 25h11'08.000'' 17.000''
4 003 George HINCAPIE DSC 25h11'08.000'' 17.000''
5 118 Thor HUSHOVD C.A 25h11'10.000'' 19.000''
6 065 Robbie MC EWEN DVL 25h11'15.000'' 24.000''
7 009 Paolo SAVOLDELLI DSC 25h11'18.000'' 27.000''
8 071 Floyd LANDIS PHO 25h11'19.000'' 28.000''
9 096 Vladimir KARPETS CEI 25h11'20.000'' 29.000''
10 023 Serhiy HONCHAR TMO 25h11'20.000'' 29.000''
11 024 Matthias KESSLER TMO 25h11'20.000'' 29.000''
12 061 Cadel EVANS DVL 25h11'23.000'' 32.000''
13 031 Christophe MOREAU A2R 25h11'23.000'' 32.000''
14 146 David MILLAR SDV 25h11'24.000'' 33.000''
15 027 Patrik SINKEWITZ TMO 25h11'26.000'' 35.000''
16 018 David ZABRISKIE CSC 25h11'26.000'' 35.000''
17 021 Andréas KLÖDEN TMO 25h11'27.000'' 36.000''
18 042 Marcus FOTHEN GST 25h11'28.000'' 37.000''
19 035 Cyril DESSEL A2R 25h11'28.000'' 37.000''
20 011 Bobby JULICH CSC 25h11'28.000'' 37.000''
21 025 Eddy MAZZOLENI TMO 25h11'29.000'' 38.000''
22 007 Yaroslav POPOVYCH DSC 25h11'30.000'' 39.000''
23 016 Christian VANDEVELDE CSC 25h11'31.000'' 40.000''
24 159 Benoît VAUGRENARD FDJ 25h11'31.000'' 40.000''
25 041 Levi LEIPHEIMER GST 25h11'31.000'' 40.000''

 

[BACH]

Talked to one of my best friends, who is a journalist covering the Tour. Riis said off the record that Floyd Landis and his Phonak team looks incredible strong and clearly the best organized.

Another American Tour Winner?

 

[CaptTurbo]

How did they find people to participate in this. I thought they were all banned for illegal substances.

 

[Dback Jon]

Standings after 8th stage

Today is a rest day....

1 023 HONCHAR Serhiy TMO UKR
2 071 LANDIS Floyd PHO USA 01' 00"
3 026 ROGERS Michael TMO AUS 01' 08"
4 027 SINKEWITZ Patrik TMO GER 01' 45"
5 042 FOTHEN Marcus GST GER 01' 50"
6 021 KLÖDEN Andréas TMO GER 01' 50"
7 096 KARPETS Vladimir CEI RUS 01' 52"
8 061 EVANS Cadel DVL AUS 01' 52"
9 018 ZABRISKIE David CSC USA 01' 53"
10 051 MENCHOV Denis RAB RUS 02' 00"
11 024 KESSLER Matthias TMO GER 02' 03"
12 031 MOREAU Christophe A2R FRA 02' 07"
13 009 SAVOLDELLI Paolo DSC ITA 02' 10"
14 025 MAZZOLENI Eddy TMO ITA 02' 14"
15 044 LANG Sebastian GST GER 02' 22"
16 014 SASTRE Carlos CSC ESP 02' 27"
17 003 HINCAPIE George DSC USA 02' 30"
18 097 PEREIRO SIO Oscar CEI ESP 02' 57"
19 157 LÖVKVIST Thomas FDJ SWE 03' 01"
20 178 ROUS Didier BTL FRA 03' 15"

 

[Dback Jon]

Freire wins ninth stage of Tour de France

DAX, France, July 11 (Reuters) - Spain's Oskar Freire won the ninth stage of the Tour de France on Tuesday, 169.5 kms from Bordeaux to Dax.

This is the last flat stage of the race before heading into the mountains....

Top twenty did not change at all.

 

[CaptTurbo]

Freire wins ninth stage of Tour de France
.

Who?

 

[Dback Jon]

Landis retains Yellow Jersey

1 071 Floyd LANDIS PHO 53h57'30.000'' 00.000''
2 035 Cyril DESSEL A2R 53h57'38.000'' 08.000''
3 051 Denis MENCHOV RAB 53h58'31.000'' 1'01.000''
4 061 Cadel EVANS DVL 53h58'47.000'' 1'17.000''
5 014 Carlos SASTRE CSC 53h59'22.000'' 1'52.000''
6 021 Andréas KLÖDEN TMO 53h59'59.000'' 2'29.000''
7 026 Michael ROGERS TMO 54h00'52.000'' 3'22.000''
8 191 Juan Miguel MERCADO AGR 54h01'03.000'' 3'33.000''
9 031 Christophe MOREAU A2R 54h01'14.000'' 3'44.000''
10 007 Yaroslav POPOVYCH DSC 54h01'45.000'' 4'15.000''
11 042 Marcus FOTHEN GST 54h01'47.000'' 4'17.000''
12 129 Haimar ZUBELDIA EUS 54h01'56.000'' 4'26.000''
13 027 Patrik SINKEWITZ TMO 54h03'08.000'' 5'38.000''
14 041 Levi LEIPHEIMER GST 54h03'09.000'' 5'39.000''
15 052 Michael BOOGERD RAB 54h03'24.000'' 5'54.000''
16 046 Georg TOTSCHNIG GST 54h04'17.000'' 6'47.000''
17 126 Inigo LANDALUZE EUS 54h04'22.000'' 6'52.000''
18 096 Vladimir KARPETS CEI 54h04'37.000'' 7'07.000''
19 001 José AZEVEDO DSC 54h05'12.000'' 7'42.000''
20 137 Ivan Ramiro PARRA COF 54h06'00.000'' 8'30.000''

Popovych restores pride with Tour stage win

By Julien Pretot

CARCASSONNE (Reuters) - Ukrainian Yaroslav Popovych restored some pride for the Discovery Channel team when he led a 115-km breakaway to clinch the 12th stage of the Tour de France over 211.5 kms from Luchon to Carcassonne on Friday.

Popovych decisively attacked a group of four riders three kms from the finish to grab his first stage victory on the world's greatest cycling race one day after his team's failure in the Pyrenees.


Italy's Alessandro Ballan took second place 27 seconds behind Popovych with Oscar Freire of Spain finishing third 29 seconds off the pace.

Frenchman Christophe Le Mevel, looking to shine on Bastille Day, had to settle for fourth 35 seconds behind Popovych.

The Ukrainian, a former team mate of seven-times Tour de France winner Lance Armstrong jumped to 10th in the overall standings.

But he is 4:15 adrift of American Floyd Landis, the Phonak rider who retained his yellow jersey after crossing the line 4:25 behind Popovych safe in the bunch.

"I'm not worried. I don't think Popovych is a threat after what he showed in the Pyrenees," said Phonak team manager John Lelangue.

"It was very difficult after the stage I had yesterday," said Popovych, who ended Thursday's stage 6:25 off the pace.

"Today, I knew that with Freire I could not win a sprint finish so I attacked as much as I could.

"I know I have no more ambition in the overall standings so we have to win stages now."

Popovych, 26, won last year's white jersey for the best young rider.

The stage got off to a nervous start with American George Hincapie trying to make amends for his failure on Thursday. He broke away after 24 kms along with German Jens Voigt, Italian Giuseppe Guerini and Spaniard Oscar Pereiro.

The quartet opened a one-minute gap after being joined by 11 other riders, only for them to be caught by the main pack some 120 kms from the line.

It looked like the stage would be another bad day for the Discovery Channel team after their failure in the Pyrenees and they were reduced to seven men with Spaniard Benjamin Noval and double Giro d'Italia champion Paolo Savoldelli pulling out.

However, Popovych was brave enough to break away and beat his companions in a tactical finish to save the team's honor.

Saturday's 13th stage will take the peloton over 230 kms from Beziers to Montelimar.

 

[Red Dawn]

Congrats to Floyd Landis.

Questions for the tour faithful:

1. Why no Team Time Trials this year?

2. Why dont they race in the last stage into Paris?

 

[Dback Jon]

Congrats to Floyd Landis.

Questions for the tour faithful:

1. Why no Team Time Trials this year?

2. Why dont they race in the last stage into Paris?

Not sure on any of that.

 

[Dback Jon]

Landis regains yellow jersey on eve of Tour de France finish

MONTCEAU-LES-MINES, France (AP) -- American Floyd Landis is all but assured of winning the Tour de France after regaining the overall lead Saturday.

The individual time trial, won by Ukraine's Serhiy Honchar, shaped up as the decisive stage in one of the most topsy-turvy Tours in years.

"I could not be happier," Landis said, adding he had been nervous before the stage. "It's one of the best days of my life."

The Phonak team leader reclaimed the yellow jersey from Spain's Oscar Pereiro, who started Saturday's race against the clock with a thin 30-second lead over Landis. The 30-year-old Landis moved up from third to first, gaining 59 seconds on the now second-place Pereiro.

"I am very lucky," said Landis, who's riding with an arthritic right hip, an injury from a 2003 crash that he hopes to correct with surgery this fall. "I'm a person who works hard and never gives up. Otherwise, I'm just a human being."


With such a lead, Landis is in prime position to take home the maillot jaune -- barring disaster in Sunday's ride into Paris -- in the first Tour since fellow American Lance Armstrong's record seven straight victories.

Honchar, like he did in the seventh stage time trial, dominated the 35.4-mile course from Le Creusot to Montceau-les-Mines, finishing in 1 hour, 7 minutes, 46 seconds. German rider Andreas Kloeden was second, 41 seconds back. Landis placed third, 1:11 off the Honchar's pace. Pereiro was fourth, 2:40 behind.

Kloeden's strong ride Saturday moved him from fourth overall to third at 1:29 back, dropping Spain's Carlos Sastre to fourth. Sastre entered the stage second overall, but he crossed the line 4:41 back of Honchar, falling to 3:13 behind Landis.

Landis and Pereiro have traded the yellow jersey four times since the American first claimed it in Stage 11.

"Hopefully I won't give it away again," he said with a smile. "But I do think it's over now."

 

[sundevilscott]

This race should have its name changed to the Tour de Americans as this will be the 8th straight race won by an American. Awesome!!

 

[Dback Jon]

And Landis WINS!!

 

[Scott MS]

Congrats to Floyd Landis.

Questions for the tour faithful:

1. Why no Team Time Trials this year?

2. Why dont they race in the last stage into Paris?

They got rid of the Team time trial this year.

In addition, the last stage is raced into Paris, although it's tradition not to contest on the final stage as it's considered a celebration of the race -- kind of like an encore.

 

[Renz]

Why dont they race in the last stage into Paris?

Sometimes they do. Greg Lemond made up about a minute on Laurent Fignon to win the tour one year.

Normally though, the 20th stage just isn't difficult enough for elite riders to make up any significant time on the leader. The leader going into the last day usually only has to stay with the pack and not crash in order to win.

 

[Scott MS]

When Lemond made his famous comeback, the Tour ended with an individual time trial. They have since changed the format and moved the individual time trial to the second to last stage -- Stage 19.

Stage 20 is the ride to Paris.

 

[Ollie]

Who?

Some three times world champion...

And Landis WINS!!

But unfortunately Landis will be disqualified for doping...

 

[English on tour]

LANDIS = CHEAT

 

[arthurracoon]

http://sports.yahoo.com/sc/news;_yl...5nYcB?slug=ap-landis-doping&prov=ap&type=lgns

LONDON (AP) -- Tour de France champion Floyd Landis tested positive for high levels of testosterone during the race, his Phonak team said Thursday on its Web site, raising questions about his victory.

The team suspended Landis, pending results of the backup "B" sample of his drug test, just four days after Landis stood on the victory podium on the Champs-Elysees, succeeding seven-time winner Lance Armstrong as an American winner in Paris.

The Swiss-based Phonak team said it was notified by the UCI on Wednesday that Landis' sample showed "an unusual level of testosterone/epitestosterone" when he was tested after stage 17 of the race last Thursday.

"The team management and the rider were both totally surprised of this physiological result," the Phonak statement said.

Landis made a remarkable comeback in that Alpine stage, racing far ahead of the field for a solo win that moved him from 11th to third in the overall standings. He regained the leader's yellow jersey two days later.

Landis rode the Tour with a degenerative hip condition that he has said will require surgery in the coming weeks or months.

Arlene Landis, his mother, said Thursday that she wouldn't blame her son if he was taking medication to treat the pain in his injured hip, but "if it's something worse than that, then he doesn't deserve to win."

"I didn't talk to him since that hit the fan, but I'm keeping things even keel until I know what the facts are," she told The Associated Press in a phone interview from her home in Farmersville, Pennsylvania. "I know that this is a temptation to every rider but I'm not going to jump to conclusions ... It disappoints me."

The Phonak statement came a day after the UCI, cycling's world governing body, said an unidentified rider had failed a drug test during the Tour.

Phonak said Landis would ask for an analysis of his backup sample "to prove either that this result is coming from a natural process or that this is resulting from a mistake."

Landis has been suspended by his team pending the results. If the second sample confirms the initial finding, he will be fired, Phonak said.

USA Cycling spokesman Andy Lee said that organization could not comment on Landis.

"Because it's an anti-doping matter, it's USA Cycling's policy not to comment on that subject out of respect for the process and Floyd's rights," Lee said. "Right now, we have to let the process proceed and we can't comment on it."

Carla O'Connell, publications and communications director for the U.S. Anti-Doping Agency, said: "I'll make this very brief: No comment."

Under World Anti-Doping Agency regulations, a ratio of testosterone to epitestosterone greater than 4:1 is considered a positive result and subject to investigation. The threshold was recently lowered from 6:1. The most likely natural ratio of testosterone to epitestosterone in humans is 1:1.

Testosterone is included as an anabolic steroid on WADA's list of banned substances, and its use can be punished by a two-year ban.

Landis wrapped up his Tour de France win on Sunday, keeping the title in U.S. hands for the eighth straight year. Armstrong, long dogged by doping whispers and allegations, won the previous seven. Armstrong never has tested positive for drugs and vehemently has denied doping.

Speculation that Landis had tested positive spread earlier Thursday after he failed to show up for a one-day race in Denmark on Thursday. A day earlier, he missed a scheduled event in the Netherlands.

On the eve of the Tour's start, nine riders -- including pre-race favorites Jan Ullrich and Ivan Basso -- were ousted, implicated in a Spanish doping investigation.

The names of Ullrich and Basso turned up on a list of 56 cyclists who allegedly had contact with Spanish doctor Eufemiano Fuentes, who's at the center of the Spanish doping probe.

Associated Press writer Michael Rubinkam in Allentown, Pa., and AP Sports Writer Arnie Stapleton in Denver contributed to this report.

 

[Renz]

There are a lot of questions still to be answered in this case. It turns out that Landis's testosterone level is actually not high, but lower than normal. The test that he "failed" is a ratio test of testosterone to epitestosterone.

If Landis's "B" test comes back positive then there would be an appeal to the Court of Arbitration for Sport and in the case of these testosterone ratio tests, most, if not all, appeals have come down in favor of the athletes.

 

[Red Dawn]

Say it ain't so, Floyd!

 

[Russ Smith]

There are a lot of questions still to be answered in this case. It turns out that Landis's testosterone level is actually not high, but lower than normal. The test that he "failed" is a ratio test of testosterone to epitestosterone.

If Landis's "B" test comes back positive then there would be an appeal to the Court of Arbitration for Sport and in the case of these testosterone ratio tests, most, if not all, appeals have come down in favor of the athletes.

Landis is making the same argument a Belgian triathlete named Beke made when he tested positive for EPO. His argument was his body naturally produced substances which caused him to test positive(3 races in a row). He got a slew of doctors to testify that it was true, the Belgian doping committee heard his case, and ultimately overturned his suspension. And in over a year since that case, Beke has tested positive for EPO ZERO times since. Remember, his entire defense was his body produces this stuff naturally that fails him on the test, if true, why hasn't he failed since?

Same for Landis, if his testosterone levels are naturally unusual, how come it didn't come up earlier in the race? I heard something on TV while I was in Mexico, think it was CNN, that claimed that the suspicion is Landis was taking something to mask drug use and one of the ways it does that is by lowering your testosterone so that the steroids you're on don't cause you to fail because of HIGH levels. They suspect that Landis may have simply taken too much of the masking agent. Remember, the guy was racing with a fairly painful injury it's entirely possible he was taking steroids to help with recovery time due to the injury?

LeMond's thinly veiled reference at Lance Armstrong in his comments on Landis were pretty amusing, he essentially said if he is guilty he needs to admit it for the good of the sport, don't be like that other American who just does deny, deny, deny.

 

[Ryanwb]

The results are in, and he's a cheater..... they found synthetic testosterone in his urine from the second sample.

What a loser

 

[Scott MS]

The results are in, and he's a cheater..... they found synthetic testosterone in his urine from the second sample.

What a loser

The synthetic was found in the original sample, according to the New York Times. The second sample testing process is still going on.