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10 July 2006

11 July News ...

Ballan and Bettini Update

Alessandro Ballan and Daniele Bennati are the two big guns for Lampre Fondital when it comes to the flat or semi-flat stages. BiciRace.com spoke with the Italians before the start of stage 8 in Saint-Mée-nle-Grand on Sunday morning.

"I like the weather today; it suits me well," said Ballan, who is a rider for the Northern Classics, as the clouds produced a light mist. "I hope to have an opportunity today in an escape. Today will suit a nice escape. Even if the escapes don't succeed the team works well in these types of conditions."

Benna, the team man for sprints, was a little nervous at the start and busy fiddling with his team kit. Il Toscano was kind enough to give his thoughts on the sprints while preparing to depart...

"The weather will be fine today and we will see what happens, if there is an escape or not," commented Bennati. "The finale is a little dangerous but the biggest problem for me is McEwen. For us to be successful we need to not have Robbie at this Tour! It is also Gert Steegmans. He is really making a big difference in Robbie's sprints. With Steegmans it is almost impossible to beat Robbie."

The Lampre boys will have their opportunity for another sprint when the Tour resumes after the rest day. There will be a dead-flat 170K run from Bordeaux to Dax, perfect for il Treno Lampre-Fondital to line up a win for Benna.

Vande Velde with Strong Crono

Christian Vande Velde put in the third best Team CSC time trial on Saturday's Tour de France stage to Rennes. The American, who recently won the Tour de Luxembourg, finished with a time of 3'13" back on Honchar and third fast CSC rider behind Zabriskie and Sastre.

"With Sastre's great time the team will now circle the wagons around him," said Vande Velde before the start of stage 8. "My predictions were all wrong for the time trial. I thought Hincapie would do better than he did and I did not even think about Honchar; I forgot he was even here."

Vande Velde started the time trial right after his compatriot and friend, Levi Leipheimer. "I was shocked when I saw and passed Levi," said Vande Velde on Leipheimer's poor TT performance. "We have been talking a lot in these past days. Last night I sent him a message to see how he was doing but I have not had a response. I know he is strong, remember he is my neighbor in Girona and we often train together. I think he will bounce back and do well."

"The Tour is far from over," added Vande Velde, who was about to rush off to the stage depart. "We have the big days ahead of us in the Alps and Pyrenees. Obviously the strong team is T-Mobile, they have so many of their guys high on the classification."

Millar's Reality

"Honestly I was a bit disappointed," said David Millar when we spoke with him about his time trial performance. The British rider was being hard on himself, 37th and 3'34" back on the stage winner after two years of racing absence is hardly a disappointment.

"It was a bit of a reality shock. After about 20 kilometers into the race I was like, 'what am I doing here?' And, 'Stupid, stupid, stupid.' I started counting down the kilometers and you know that was not good."

Your time was good considering your time away from cycling. "Thanks. It's true but it was a shock. ... The weather was perfect for a good time trial day. ... I realized there is still a lot of work for me to do to be ready. ... Let's talk later."

There is no doubting Millar's talents. We think he just needs some more time racing to get his motor up to full speed, after that we will expect the wins to follow.

Calzati Adds France in Tour

Sylvain Calzati (Ag2R Prévoyance) scored the second French win in nine days of racing of the 2006 Tour de France. After Casper, Calzati was the next Frenchman to put his name on the scoreboard when he soloed into Lorient. Calzati's move initiated at 48K with five other riders and then he threw down the death-blow, going solo 32K from the line.

"I was talking and planning the attack with my team manager," recalled the 27 year old Frenchman on his decision to attack when he did. "We knew there was a little climb in the next village after the final sprint, and I don't know why I attacked exactly where I did. I knew that if I made it to the top of that climb with a little time advantage then I would be able to stay clear to the finish. That is what I did and what a great win."

The fourth-year pro finished ahead of the shattered remnants of the escape, Carlström and Halgand finishing two minutes behind, and the peloton at 2'15". It marked only the second win in his career, following his 2004 success at the Tour de l'Avenir.

"In the finale I was thinking about my family and team," continued Calzati. "I was thinking about the rough start to the beginning of my season and also the really bad 2005 season. Things are certainly beginning to change with this beautiful Tour victory. I don't think I realize what is happening right now. To me it feels like I just won any normal race and I think tomorrow it will kick in that I won a stage of the Tour de France. It really all seems like a dream at this point. I am excited and will enjoy this win."

Your contract ends at the end of this season. How will this win change your negotiations? "Right now I really don't want to think about this," added Calzati. "It is true that my contract is up for renewal. Right now we are in discussions and I trust that my team manager will offer what is best for me. We have worked closely over the past two years and I know he has faith in me. But really, right now I don't want to think of this but focus on this beautiful moment in my career."

The World Cup football final between Italia and France was only hours after Calzati's win. With two wins by the French and zero by the Italians in this Tour de France maybe the tables could be turned in the football match. "I think many people here in France will be disappointed but tonight I am pulling for Italy," finished the Frenchman.

Danielson Takes Austria

While all eyes of the cycling world are firmly fixed on France, Tom Danielson (Team Discovery) quietly won the overall in his first European stage race, the Tour of Austria.

The race consisted of seven stages, with the final stage finishing in Vienna. Danielson managed a stage victory on the Kitzbüheler Horn and even wore the leader's jersey for a spell. Rounding out the podium were Ruslan Pidgornyy (Team Tenax) and Christian Pfannberger (Elk Haus-Simplon).

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

9 July News ...