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25 April 2005

26 April News ...

Vino in Liège

Alexandre Vinokourov gave T-Mobile a much needed win yesterday in the Liège-Bastogne-Liège. In a sprint of two, Vino defeated the German, Jens Voigt (Team CSC). Team T-Mobile have waited long for this first victory of 2005, but what a sweet victory it was.

After the race Vino commented on the importance for him and for the team. "Last year I finished third here and since then I have been dreaming about winning this race. It is also great to secure the first season win for T-Mobile."

It was on the Côte de La Vecquée that Voigt put in a power-surge. A sharp-eyed Vino reacted, and the two quickly gained time. The Voigt-Vino advantage hovered around one minute for their entire break, aided by a lack of cohesion in the rather large group behind. "When I saw Voigt jump clear, I said to myself I have to get on his wheel. It either works out or it doesn't," commented Vino.

The Voigt-Vino duo was magic to watch, both incredible riders, full of strength. Vino recognized Voigt's strength, especially after Wednesday's La Flèche Wallonne, "Voigt is an incredible rider. Sitting behind him when he gets going is like riding in the slipstream of a Boeing."

Voigt: Very Tough

Jens Voigt was a little bit upset after the race, but realized he had rode a solid race. "Of course I'm not happy about being that close and not winning the race. Liège-Bastogne-Liège is for me the biggest one day race in the world, and an opportunity like this doesn't come around very often in your career. I was so determined to make it all the way and I felt like riding in spite of being caught in Flèche Wallonne. It was not supposed to happen again. Vinokourov is a great rider and not easy to beat one-on-one, but when he couldn't drop me on the last two climbs, I started dreaming about the victory. My timing wasn't the best in the sprint, but there's no use in speculating about this now. After all I made it all the way without being caught." [quote from Team CSC's website]

Michael Boogerd was unreachable for comment after the race. Boogerd was truly upset after once again missing out on an important victory. Boogerd let the fans know his displeasure by not once smiling, and barely acknowledging Vino and Voigt on the podium.

Danielson Wins Georgia

Safely tucked into the pack, with a big smile on his face, was Tom Danielson. Danielson scored overall honors in the 2005 Dodge Tour of Georgia yesterday. A big win for Danielson and his Discovery Team, giving confidence to an upcoming Giro d'Italia battle.

"This one ranks quite a bit above that one [his win in Malaysia in 2003 with Saturn]. I'm very proud to get this result for the team. Everyone was incredible. I've found a home, and I'm looking forward to spending many years here with Discovery Channel," said Danielson after the final stage

Andrea Tafi, super-Italian from Prodir-Saunier Duval, was awarded the Most Aggressive Rider jersey on his last professional cycling race. Levi Leipheimer (Gerolsteiner) finished 2nd and Floyd Landis (Phonak) 3rd, nine seconds back.

Tour de Romandie Preview: A Swiss Affair

Immediately following Liège-Bastogne-Liège, the Tour de Romandie is a changing of the guard of sorts. The one day specialists that have dominated the headlines, now take a back seat to the grand tour riders. It doesn't have quite the stature of, say the Tour de France, but it nevertheless draws in the heavy hitter GC riders looking to hone their form for the imminent Giro d’Italia. Tyler Hamilton has owned this race the last two years, but with his absence this year look for local boys Fabian Jeker and Alexandre Moos to put in good rides. Full Tour de Romandie Preview and Stages.

24 April News ...