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22 September 2006

23 September News ...

Cancellara: Two out of Three Isn't Bad

Remember the cobbles of April? The train crossing? The solo velodrome finish? Those are the memories of 25 year-old Fabian Cancellara. Yesterday, he used the same Swiss engine that powered him to a Paris-Roubaix victory to win the World Time Trial Championship.

Cancellara, born in Wholen but who has Italian origins thanks to his dad, who is from Atella (Basilicata), is in his sixth year as a professional. The Swiss started out with the famed Mapei squadra, followed by three years with Fassa Bortolo before passing to Team CSC at the start of this season.

The Swiss covered the Salzburg 50.83 kilometer parcours with an average speed of 50.664 K/hr. "Fabian is a superman," said second place David Zabriskie, Cancellara's CSC teammate. The American finished a whopping one and a half minutes back on the Swiss machine.

"This year I had three objectives," reflected the new world champion. "I wanted to win the Paris-Roubaix, the Tour prologue and the Worlds Time Trial. I have accomplished two out of those three, not bad. I could not ask for much more from my 2006 season, though I still feel bad about being excluded from the Tour de France team."

Italian Marco Pinotti added: "The time that Cancellara rode maybe I could have done on a Vespa." [Pino finished 20th, 3'52" back.]

Cancellara, recently married and expecting a baby in November, has every reason to be a happy man. Is he thinking of the road race on Sunday? "Now, just let me celebrate this win."

Italian Nibali Shows Class Amongst Elders

21 year-old Italian Vincenzo Nibali showed time trialing class amongst his elder coworkers by finishing 16th in the 2006 World Championships. The Siciliano started well, eighth in the first time check, but faltered towards the end of the 50.83K test, his longest ever crono competition.

"I started well at the beginning, and then near the lake I was tiring and having a hard time keeping my rhythm," said the Italian, who bases himself near Pistoia.

"It was a good lesson for me. Going up against Cancellara was hard. He was super today. But look at Zabriskie in second, I only lost 1'58" to him over 51 kilometers. This is not a whole lot and shows that I did well. The time trial is an important part of cycling, considering stage races, and something I want to improve on."

Attention Shifts to Sunday - Ballerini and Bettini

The 2006 World Road Race Championships are this Sunday in Salzburg, Austria. There will be 12 circuits of 22.2K, totaling 2400 meters of elevation gain and 265 kilometers of racing. At the end of the fist fight will emerge a champion, a World Champion, clad in a rainbow colored jersey.

The hardest section looks to be after the first climb of Zilling (545m) and the following rapid descent. The riders will pass through Tiefenbach (472m) at the 10.7K marker, starting a section where the gradients will hit 14% before the road turns left. The next section, 1700 meters of false flat, could be the killer.

The death-blow just might be landed on this section's slight rise, leading to the circuit's highest point, the Elixhausen (547m). Any advantage will can be nailed down on the final 9K run to the finish, 6K of which are flat.

"You might think that this course looks easy but it is very selective if you approach it in a certain manner," said Italian National DS, Franco Ballerini. "The climb before the hard section [Zilling] will be tough if you take it fast."

"The distance, 265 kilometers, will start to add up. We have a perfect squadra. Right now we are thinking of how the others will race; Belgium will want to keep the race somewhat controlled for Boonen."

Ballerini was hands-on yesterday, following his Squadra Azzurra on his bike. With cloth hat and chops the size of Texas, you could be forgiven to think that it was the 70s version of Roger De Vlaeminck. Instead it was Ballerini, twice winner of Paris-Roubaix, giving advice to team captain Paolo Bettini.

"We will have to control this race with courage," added Bettini. "Taking the hard section [after Tiefenbach] will earn you little, but then continuing on the false flat afterwards you can go free."

"... We are going to have to start the selection early on, with three laps to go, if we want to get rid of riders like Zabel, O'Grady and Boonen. Vinokourov will be very dangerous; I hope that from the Vuelta and the crono [yesterday] that he lost a little bit of strength. Then there is Boogerd for Holland and Valverde for Spain, but keep in mind that those teams don't have six men to play like us."

Paolini Stays Calm

24 hours after his home in Italy was ransacked, Luca Paolini is calm, ready to play his role in the World Championships this Sunday. The 29 year-old Italian had his home in Falloppio (Lombardia) searched as part of an ongoing doping investigation involving athletes in Italy. Il Milanese was not linked to any suspicious activities, and the house inspection seems more the case of Italian police just dotting their i's.

Paolini is calm and keeps balance in his life: "I am not a saint or monk, I like to have fun some times, to balance the hard life of being a cyclist," said the Liquigas rider, who started his season back in January, in the Tour Down Under. "But, like I often do, if you have to renounce an evening with friends, a fun drive in your car, or a dinner out, then you lose something. You have to find equilibrium in life, which I think I have, and for this reason the world does not fall down when one thing goes wrong."

Italian National DS, Franco Ballerini, will surely use Paolini as one of his final cards to play this Sunday. We should see the Italian in the finale, after the demanding climbs; he is now down to around 62 kilograms. In a small escape, Paolini has a turn of speed that can hardly be matched, much like his mentor, Paolo Bettini.

Read:
Paolini Leaves Italian Camp - House Searched, 21 September

Bjarne Riis in Salzburg without Basso

Yesterday Bjarne Riis had reason to celebrate; his CSC men dominated the top end of the 2006 World Time Trial Championship. Cancellara won the rainbow jersey, Zabriskie finished in second and Vandborg finished slightly off the podium, in fourth. Four months ago you might had thought another one of his riders, Ivan Basso, would have been in the top five, if not in the rainbow jersey.

The Italian is currently being investigated in Spain and Italy after sacks of blood and documents were found linking him to doping doctor Eufemiano Fuentes. Basso, with a summons in Roma on the 29th of September, is likely to barely escape this sticky mess due to some technicalities, but Riis would like to see more exams.

"I would prefer that Basso makes a DNA test," said the Team Manager of CSC. "The decision is his and I can't force it but it is something I would like to see."

"The events have little clarity. I have asked for more information, also from the UCI, but still I don't know a whole lot. There's a lot of confusion."

Referring to the relationship with Ivan Basso in the wake of his name being printed on doping related evidence from Spain, Riis said things have become less friendly and more professional.

"We are friends, but it is normal that now the relationship has become more businesslike. It is too early to say if he will race with CSC for 2007. We will see how this event finishes," concluded Riis, who will likely let his rider go free to a team like Discovery Channel.

Read:
Basso Rides Four Hours with Squadra Azzurra, 21 September
Basso Likely to Escape - New Squadra, 19 September
Riis Foresees Basso's End with CSC, 23 August

World Championships, Salzburg (Austria), 24 & 24 September
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Road Race, Profile, Overall Map, RR Startlist

21 September News ...