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5 July 2006

De La Fuente Day in Dots

David De La Fuente (Saunier Duval-Prodir) spent stage three in dots. The Spaniard rode all of Tour de France stage two in an escape that earned him enough points to take the Maillot Blanc à Pois Rouges. We spoke with the Spaniard before stage three...

David, you spent 200 plus kilometers in an escape on Monday. What kept you going during the stage? "I never thought I was going to stay away for the win but I knew I had a chance at gaining the mountains jersey," explained the 25 year-old. "It was hard but the effort paid off with this jersey."

You speak Italian well. When did you learn? "I rode my first year [2003] with Vini Caldirola. During the year I learned some Italian."

David had to go to the stage sign in. As he departed we noted his cool coordinating kit. The team had prepared white shorts to match his white and red jersey, and the Spaniard also had a polka-dot Met helmet. We were wondering where the Scott frame was, one to match his polka-dot jersey. We figured if the Spaniard held on to the jersey for a few more days then he would be granted a coordinating CR1 carbon frame.

Good luck to David De La Fuente!

Casper Isolated at Start

BiciRace.com walked by Frenchman Jimmy Casper (Cofidis) behind the back of the stage 3 sign-in podium. It was very strange to see the winner of stage one sitting by himself behind the podium.

"I am here to escape the heat," said Casper when we started to talk with him.

You won stage 1, beating out the best in the sprint game, how did stage 2 go for you? "Yesterday [stage 2] and today are not my type of stages. Yesterday I was spit out the back on that final climb before the finish. With about five kilometers to go I was gone. You know that I have a hard time on these little climbs. Today will be equally as hard, with the finish to Valkenburg."

The Frenchmen is looking forward to stage 4 for a special reason... "Tomorrow, stage 4, will be my type of stage. There is a small rise up to the finish line, plus it finishes in my zone, Montdidier"

Good luck to Casper in stage 4, 215 kilometers from Huy to Saint-Quentin.

Second Time Successful for Kessler

Matthias Kessler (T-Mobile) throttled away solo in the stage 2 finale of the Tour de France to Esch-sur-Alzette but was gobbled up with 50 meters to the line. This smashing defeat might have been enough for some riders to take it easy for a few days, but not for Kessler. The German put in another late attack one day later on the final climb in stage 3, the Cauberg, leaving two kilometers to the finish in Valkenburg.

"Yesterday [stage 2] I had really good feelings," said the 27 year-old German. "My legs were really good then and today they were exactly the same, so I knew I had to try again today. The parcours were slightly different today. Yesterday the final climb was five kilometers from the finish, making it easier for the bunch to catch me. Today, with only two kilometers after the top of the Cauberg, there was little time for them to come back."

Kessler is very close friends with Jan Ullrich, his teammate who was kicked out of the Tour before it even started. The team and Kessler were dealt a huge blow to their morale but are now forced to carry on with only eight riders.

"Of course it was not easy, but like they say the show must go on," Kessler said simply. The German appeared to be hiding his feelings and the stage win seemed to be his way of saying, 'this one is for Jan.'

"I wanted to continue and try to do something good. Sure I am contact in Ullrich, he is one of my very good friends, but it is something private so I won't tell you. ... Now we have Klöden as the team GC leader and the plans are very different. There are more chances for us to have a go in some stages. ... We came here very well prepared. I am 100% ready to ride this Tour, what happened happened. The team has to go on for the sponsors, and it is our job to ride."

One of the race favorites crashed out of stage 3, Alejandro Valverde. His Tour ended abruptly with a crash 10 kilometers from the finish, where he collided with another rider, causing a fractured collarbone. Caisse d'Epargne-Illes Balears now has to go forward without Valverde, something Kessler understands.

"Many riders are already tired because of the heat. I am sorry to hear that Valverde was victim of a crash," finished Kessler. "It is always difficult for a team to go on when they lose a leader. I know this, like our team, we lost our leader."

Maillot Jaune Added to Boonen's Palmarès

A flat tire could not stop World Champion Tom Boonen from taking his first Maillot Jaune. The Belgian finished fourth in stage 3 to Valkenburg, gaining enough time to take the race leader's jersey from Thor Hushovd.

"I was trying to win the stage and then the yellow jersey would follow immediately," said the Quick-Step rider. "I had a bit of bad luck in the last five kilometers with my front wheel. I could not push on my bike too hard or I would have had my tire smash. I could not stand up and sprint, so I pushed as hard as I could in the saddle. I finished high enough, taking the jersey, not too bad."

Boonen succeeded when Thor Hushovd and Robbie McEwen failed. The Belgian was able to make it over the final climb of Cauberg and save enough strength to contest the sprint behind stage winner Kessler.

"I was not surprised. The tempo was hard and both of them [Hushovd and McEwen] were near the front hammering. Then I saw McEwen explode and soon after, Hushovd exploded. I went to the front and told my teammate that today was the day for me. But again the third day in a row it was a very hectic final. When I had the problem with my tire I thought I was finished but I held on."

The crashes of Fred Rodriguez (Davitamon-Lotto) and Erik Dekker (Rabobank) were attributed to a very crowded finale. The Dutch are huge cycling fans and were out in droves to witness the Tour de France finish in their country.

"The atmosphere and the public was very fun but it was very, very dangerous for us riders," said Boonen on the roadside parties. "There were so many people on the road, where they should not have been. We need more attention on keeping the road clear. Sometimes we are at the side of the road and there is an old lady or a young child there; Very dangerous. I hope over the next couple of days the organizers keep the finale clear of these hazards for us."

Do you plan on keeping the jersey for the next few days? At least until the time trial to Rennes? "Maybe we can try to go all the way to Paris with the jersey! [Laughs.] No that is a long way for me to go. ... It is good that Michael Rogers is the one behind me, one second back; he won't tire himself to chase the jersey. If we work too hard to keep the yellow jersey it may mean we don't have enough energy for the green jersey by the finish of the Tour. It is a decision the team will talk about tonight."

When Boonen won the World Championships last 25 September in Madrid, he reckoned that taking the rainbow jersey was greater than his win in the Tour de Flanders or Paris-Roubaix. Now Boonen has taken another important jersey, the Maillot Jaune... "The World's jersey is the best and most beautiful of them all. The Maillot Jaune is the second after the rainbow jersey, so I think this is a good thing for my future."

Stage 4 will be special for the Belgian. The stage takes the riders over 215 kilometers, from Huy to Saint-Quentin, with the first half in Boonen's home country. "Tomorrow I can ride into Belgium in the yellow jersey; this only happens maybe once every ten years so I have to be satisfied."

93rd Tour de France - presented by , 1 - 23 July
Main, Startlist, Classifications, Tour Favorites, Team CSC versus T-Mobile
Stages and Maps, Key Stages, Overall Map
Photos, The Dust Devil's Daily Wrap
Simoni and Saunier Duval-Prodir Updates
2005 Results

4 July News ...