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6 July 2006

7 July News ...

Happy Birthday Patrick Calcagni

Happy Birthday to Patrick Calcagni of Liquigas. We spoke with the 29 year-old Swiss rider this Wednesday before the start of stage 4 and completely forgot to wish him happy birthday. So... Buon Compleanno Patrick!

The conversation was about the stage 3 finish in Valkenburg... "Yesterday was so beautiful," said the birthday boy. The finale of stage 3 used the same finishing parcours of the Amstel Gold race, a classic held in April. "Sure I have done the Amstel before; maybe because it is July, the sun is out and it is the Tour, but there were so many people on the side of the Cauberg, it was great."

Liquigas is one of those teams short of a rider early on in the Tour due to Danilo Di Luca abandoning. Calcagni has shifted his attention solely to Garzelli and Paolini, working in a domestique role.

"My role is to watch Stefano and Luca. You know that Luca Paolini has been up there already in the sprints, so the chances are good," continued the Swiss who just turned 29 years-old.

Will you have your chances? "I hope to have a few chances after the Pyrenees," cautiously said Calcagni. "I want to have a go in a break away. A stage where there are some hills. Like yesterday [stage 3], but not today, today is too flat."

Festina Sponsors Tour

Festina may not sponsor a professional team these days but they are still at the Tour de France. They are one of the Tour's "Official Partners". Walking around the start village it was our pleasure to meet two of Festina's representatives, Sophie and Laury. The duo not only promote the Swiss watch brand at the Tour, they are also fans of the sport. We caught them taking photos with Juan Manuel Gárate (Quick-Step) when we were introduced. They are just two of the many (beautiful) faces behind the Tour de France.

Gárate Not Spanish Champion

The Spanish Road Championships were canceled this year in Spain due to riders' protests and thus there is not a winner of the red and yellow Spanish jersey for 2006. Juan Manuel Gárate was the winner in 2005 but he will no longer wear the Jersey for the 2006 championship season, instead just the normal bands around his neck and arm to signify a past champion.

"We annulled the championships this year, so no one will wear the jersey," explained Gárate at the start of stage 4 in Huy. "It is too bad we had to do so because I wanted to try to win again. There was talk of me wearing the jersey for another year but we decided since there was no race there would be no jersey worn."

Are you here at the Tour de France for the classification or stages? "Oh, this year it is certainly for stages. I have been helping out Tom [Boonen] in the flat stages and then in the mountains I will try for a stage. After the end of this week I will look at the stages ahead to determine which one might work best for my abilities."

Garzelli Comments on Valverde Crash

"Yesterday it was great," commented Stefano Garzelli (Liquigas) Wednesday morning on the previous day's stage to Valkenburg. The Tour de France took the riders over the same Dutch côtes used in the closing kilometers of the Amstel Gold Classic. The Dutch tifosi came out in the thousands to cheer the stars of cycling as they completed stage 3 of the Tour de France.

"There were lots of people and it was great for cycling. It was only a little dangerous heading to the foot of the Cauberg but after that it was fine. The Belgians and Dutch are great fans and they always come out in large numbers. It was much more impressive than the crowds at Amstel."

Did you see the crash of Alejandro Valverde (Caisse d'Epargne-Illes Balears)? "Yes, I was right there and I barely missed it," said il Varesino. "I had to swerve to avoid him... It was close. It is too bad for the Tour to lose such a protagonist. It is like that with the Tour and racing in general, you train so hard and then it is all over by some silly crash. I am sad that he is out."

Have you decided if you will be riding for the classification or stages? "No, not yet. We will see after this weekend and the crono."

Ballan Working for Benna

You might have noticed the Lampre-Fondital duo of Benna and Ballan in the finale of stage 3 to Valkenburg. The two are always side by side in the race and it is usually Alessandro Ballan doing the final lead out for Daniele Bennati in the sprints. The work of Ballan has yet to produce a win for his mate but they are getting closer...

"Everyday I will work for Daniele," said Ballan in Huy, before the start of stage 4. "We did well on the the finish to Valkenburg [stage 3] and we will keep on trying."

Ballan is not worrying about his own opportunities, "We will see. Maybe I will have a chance after the Pyrenees."

What did you think of the crowds in Holland? "It was a lot of fun," Ballan continued. "It was not that bad or dangerous. It was a great day out for the Dutch. ... I raced the Amstel earlier this year and the crowds were so much bigger."

McJet Pulls Off Number 10

Neither the crash of Julian Dean (Crédit Agricole) nor the thrust of Quick-Step's train could stop Robbie McEwen (Davitamon-Lotto) from achieving his tenth Tour de France success; sprinting into Saint-Quentin to win stage 4 of the 2006 Tour.

"I knew that as soon as I saw this stage in the race book that the finish would suit me," said the 34 year-old Aussie, who now also leads the sprint classification. "Since last Wednesday I had a tactic in my head... There was a slight left at 200m to go... Perfect."

McEwen had to do without the lead out service of il Americano, Fred Rodriguez, who crashed out in stage 4, and instead relied on Gert Steegmans to apply the final turn of speed. "It was bad to lose Freddie because he was a huge asset to the team. Gert Steegmans had to step up and fill Fred's role. He did a great job and I could not ask for better. Steegmans was perfect. He almost went too early but I pulled back on his reins."

"He started hard at 450 meters, and it was perfect," McEwen continued on the lead out of his Belgian teammate. "I told him to imagine that his finish line was at 200 meters to go, and just to make his sprint to the 200 meter sign. The team is happy, and the win goes to Fred Rodriguez."

During the Giro d'Italia the Australian commented how at the end of the year he would set back and take tally of how successful his year was based upon the number of stage wins he obtained. He has taken three stages in the 2006 Giro d'Italia and has two so far in the Tour, making 10 career wins in the Tour.

"Now I am 8 and 10 and hope to have more. I want to go for the green jersey too. I think at the end of this week we will evaluate how I stand in regards for a green jersey attempt. Anything can go wrong, just look at Hushovd, who had a bad incident, it just shows how one wrong mistake can ruin all of your chances."

"Just the last couple of days I have thought about how I am now in the double figures in the Tour," said Robbie on his tenth Tour victory. "The wins are starting to add up. It is great but every year the count starts at zero. It does not matter the number of wins in your palmarès, the number of trophies or green jerseys in your closet, you have to come here to the Tour and win."

Part of the Aussie's victory was down to good accommodations, in a Liège castle. "The secret to winning was staying last night at the chateau in Liege. I had my wife and child there for the night. Everyone had their own rooms, with lots of family members visiting and staying the night. There were about 60 in the hotel! Maybe that is the secret to winning and we should do this for the whole Tour. [Laughs.] It was a great family atmosphere and a lot of fun for the whole team."

The doping scandal in Spain can not escape the news and McEwen added his thoughts regarding the latest non-cycling athletes named as being on the Fuentes list. "I am not so happy about the news. But I know that the cyclists here at the Tour are satisfied to know that other sports figures are named. When it first came out all the garbage was yet again thrown on cycling. It is not always right, so it is nice that the other sports are being talked about. They should have done that to begin with and not just concentrated on cycling."

Look for McEwen, in his Maillot Vert, to be winning again in the coming days.

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

*** July News ...