Gerdemann wins Stage 7, seizes yellow jersey
In the Tour de France's first foray into the mountains, it was race newcomer Linus Gerdemann stealing all the headlines. The baby-faced German wunderkind escaped a 15-rider breakaway late in stage 7, and then rolled solo to the finish in Le Grand Bornand, taking the stage win and possession of the yellow and white jerseys.
The hunt for the final overall saw all the top contenders hold serve in the 197.5km ride that started nearly five hours earlier in Bourg-en-Bresse, then concluded with the tough, 16km cat. 1 Col de la Colombière, before a furious descent to the finish. Gerdemann (T-Mobile) finished the stage in 4:53:13, 40 seconds ahead of Inigo Landaluze (Euskaltel-Euskadi), with fellow Spaniard David de la Fuente (Saunier Duval-Prodir) third at 1:39. The remnants of the main field, which was whittled to 36 riders, crossed the line 3:38 behind the stage winner.
"It was our tactic to try to get into a breakaway and I was lucky that our group stuck,” said Gerdemann. “My legs felt great on the final climb and I decided to try. Once I cleared the summit, I risked all to hold my lead."
Astana teammates Alexandre Vinokourov and Andréas Klöden were part of the main field, both appearing to have shaken off the ill effects of separate crashes on stage 5. Of the true GC contenders, Klöden is the highest placed in sixth, at 3:39. Vinokourov, who lost 1:20 as a result of his crash, is now 44th at 5:16.
Also finishing in the bunch were Americans Levi Leipheimer (Discovery Channel) and Chris Horner (Predictor-Lotto). "Today was about what we expected," said Leipheimer after the stage. "I felt good. The legs were good."
In the overall standings Gerdemann leads Landaluze by 1:24, with de la Fuente third at 2:45. As he predicted himself a day earlier, former GC leader Fabian Cancellara (CSC) was far off the back, finishing 148th, 22:47 off the pace.
Cancellara was gapped on the opening climb, caught back on, and then worked at the front before being dropped for good, his weeklong run in the yellow jersey punctuated by a knowing wave to the TV cameras.
Up front, Gerdemann's TV time was just beginning. After making his way into the day's decisive breakaway, the 24-year-old attacked with 21km to go. Initially, he was partnered with Crédit Agricole's Dimitriy Fofonov, who had done most of the work to shed the remnants of the break on the early slopes of the Colombière. But Gerdemann cranked up the pace 7km from the summit, and Fofonov could do nothing but watch the T-Mobile rider disappear in the distance.
"Today was the biggest day of my career," said Gerdemann. "There are a lot of great bike riders in Germany right now. My goal is to try to become a great bike rider."
While Fofonov drifted back, Landaluze charged ahead, taking over second place and passing over the summit just 18 seconds back of Gerdemann. De la Fuente was next to crest, but the Spaniards' efforts were in vain. Gerdemann never let up, soaring down the backside of the Colombière all the way to the finish.
"We brought Linus to get some experience for the future and he's taken full advantage of the opportunity," explained T-Mobile boss Bob Stapleton at the finish line. "We're still underdogs in this Tour. We will take it day to day. It's a dream come true. We wanted Linus to succeed, but we couldn't imagine the stage victory and the yellow jersey."
The opening day of three in the Alps began with a spate of attacks, and while nothing stuck right away, two-time KoM winner Michael Rasmussen (Rabobank) made his 2007 intentions clear when he charged out of the peloton to take points on the day's first climb, the category 3 Cote de Coriler at 35.5km. Rasmussen would later attack out of the field again to take seventh over the final climb, maximizing his KoM points as he attempts to chase down current climbers’ category leader Sylvain Chavanel (Cofidis).
At the other end of the field, the suffering had already begun, with green-jersey holder Tom Boonen (Quick Step-Innergetic) and Predictor-Lotto's Robbie McEwen among the dropped.
The day's big break came together on the other side of the opening climb, when a dozen riders peeled off the front of the field. The group included Ivan Gutierrez (Caisse d'Epargne), Gerdemann, Juan Antonio Flecha (Rabobank), Landaluze, Ruben Perez (Euskaltel-Euskadi), Fofonov, Egoi Martinez (Discovery Channel), Laurent Lefevre (Bouygues Telecom), Benoit Vaugrenard (Française des Jeux), Bram Tankink (Quick Step-Innergetic), Paolo Savoldelli (Astana) and de la Fuente. They had 8:50 on the peloton at 90km.
Dangling in the middle were Martin Elmiger (Ag2r), Fabian Wegmann (Gerolsteiner) and Jérôme Pineau (Bouygues Telecom), but it wasn't long before they bridged across, upping the breakaway to 15 riders.
Back in the field CSC was driving the chase. At 100km remaining, the peloton was 8:05 behind as it rolled toward the feedzone at Les Bonnets.
The gap was seven minutes as lunch commenced, the same time Cancellara caught back on to the main bunch. Soon afterward the soon-to-be-former race leader was lending a hand in the pace-making.
On the day's second rated climb, the category-3 Cote de Cruseilles, the gap was down to 5:30. Up in the breakaway Spaniard de la Fuente scampered off to take top KoM points.
After a quick descent, the leaders began the short trip up the Cat. 4 Cote Peguin at km 134. Again it was de la Fuente taking the first-place points. The bunch came through 6:30 later, leaving the descent and 20km of flat roads before the day's main hurdle, the Col de la Colombière, with its testing 9 percent grade.
The climb quickly took its toll on both the break and the bunch. Astana's Savoldelli was among the first to drop out of the lead group, while the GC leaders gapping the likes of George Hincapie (Discovery Channel), Christian Vande Velde (CSC) and David Millar (Saunier Duval-Prodir).
"It was hard today for the first test in the mountains," said CSC team leader Carlos Sastre, who finished with the bunch. "I had two riders with me. The legs had good sensations, but the Tour will be won in two weekends [in the Pyrenees], not today.
"This race is still very open. I don't see a big favorite like in previous years. We could see that Klöden and Vinokourov were able to stay with the leaders. You have to be realistic. Today wasn't a stage to try anything. Tomorrow will tell us more."
The first attack from the break came courtesy of de la Fuente, Gutierrez and Gerdemann. Then Fofonov came across. With 25km to go their advantage was five minutes over a field that was being driven by a trio of Rabobank riders.
Moments later the lead group was down to two, with the two Spaniards dropping off under pressure from Fofonov. Then Gerdemann went, setting the stage for his unexpected rise to the top of the standings. The youngster flirted with disaster on the descent, barely avoiding the roadside barrier after taking one left-hander far too fast. But he kept it upright, safely making his way to the finish.
"The point that I thought I could win was 300 meters before the finish," said Gerdemann, who had drool dripping from his mouth as he was led behind the awards podium. "I had such bad cramps that I was beyond my point. I was so tired on the final climb. I was waiting for the 500-meters sign - at the Tour there isn't a 500-meter climb sign, but I was looking for it. How long can 500 meters be? I was so happy to see the top. I really had to focus on the downhill. I was pedaling so hard. It was a dream. It's unbelievable."
Next up at the Tour de France is another big climbing day in the Alps, this time the 165km ride from Le Grand Bornand to Tignes. The second alpine stage ends with three long climbs - the 20km, two-part Cormet de Roselend, the 15km trip to Hauteville up Petit St. Bernard pass, and part of the ascent to Val d'Isère, which is followed by 10km of climbing out of the valley to Tignes. The last 2km are flat, and the final two climbs aren't particularly steep.
This is the first time a stage has finished at the alpine ski resort of Tignes, but the Tour has twice had finishes at nearby Val d'Isère. In 1963 Spain's Fernando Manzaneque won the stage in a solo break. In 1996, in an uphill 30.5km time trial from Bourg St. Maurice, Russia's Evgeni Berzin was fastest by 35 seconds over runner-up Bjarne Riis.
This time around expect the top GC contenders to all have to show themselves, but the stage winner is more likely to be the survivor of a long-distance break.
Race note
The attrition continued Saturday with Rabobank's Oscar Freire and Barloworld's Enrico Degano both pulling out. Freire has been suffering from a subcutaneous cyst all week and finally succumbed to the pain, failing to appear at the start line. Degano, who was initially reported as a DNF Friday after crashing in the feedzone, made Saturday's start but didn't last much longer.
Stage 7
1. Linus Gerdemann (G), T-Mobile, 4:53:13
2. Inigo Landaluze (Sp), Euskaltel-Euskadi, 0:40
3. David De La Fuente (Sp), Saunier Duval-Prodir, at 1:39
4. Juan Mauricio Hernandez Soler (Col), Barloworld, at 2:14
5. Laurent Lefevre (F), Bouygues Telecom, at 2:21
6. Fabian Wegmann (G), Gerolsteiner, at 3:32
7. Juan Manuel Garate (Sp), Quick Step-Innergetic, at 3:38
8. Xavier Florencio (Sp), Bouygues Telecom, same time
9. Christophe Moreau (F), Ag2r Prevoyance, s.t.
10. Alejandro Valverde (Sp) Caisse D’epargne, s.t.
1. Linus Gerdemann (G), T-Mobile, 10:43:40
2. Inigo Landaluze (Sp), Euskaltel-Euskadi, at 1:24
3. David De La Fuente (Sp), Saunier Duval-Prodir, at 2:45
4. Laurent Lefevre (F), Bouygues Telecom, at 2:55
5. Juan Hernandez Mauricio Soler (Col), Barloworld, at 3:05
6. Andréas Klöden (G), Astana, at 3:39
7. Vladimir Gusev (Rus), Discovery Channel, at 3:51
8. Vladimir Karpets (Rus), Caisse D’Epargne, at 3:52
9. Mikel Astarloza (Sp), Euskaltel-Euskadi, at 3:55
10. Thomas Dekker (Ned), Rabobank, at 3:57
Points
1. Tom Boonen (B) Quick Step-Innergetic, 147 pts
2. Erik Zabel (G), Milram, 134
3. Robert Hunter (RSA), Barloworld, 103
4. Thor Hushovd (Nor), Crédit Agricole, 101
5. Robbie McEwen (Aus), Predictor-Lotto, 97
6. Sebastien Chavanel (F), Française des Jeux, 94
7. Robert Förster (G), Gerolsteiner, 78
8. Romain Feillu (F), Agritubel, 74
9. Gert Steegmans (B), Quick Step-Innergetic, 68
10. Danilo Napolitano (I), Lampre-Fondital, 67
King of Mountains
1. Sylvain Chavanel (F), Cofidis, 42 pts
2. Linus Gerdemann (G), T-Mobile, 30
3. David De la Fuente (Sp), Saunier Duval-Prodir) 30
4. Laurent Lefevre (F), Bouygues Telecom, 27
5. Inigo Landaluze (Sp), Euskaltel-Euskadi, 26
6. Michael Rasmussen (Den), Rabobank, 24
7. Philippe Gilbert (B) Française des Jeux, 23
8. Dmitriy Fofonov (Kaz), Crédit Agricole, 17
9. William Bonnet (F), Crédit Agricole, 15
10. Martin Elmiger (Swi), Ag2r, 14
Team
1. T-Mobile, 10:19:43
2. Euskaltel, at 0:52
3. Saunier Duval, at 2:04
4. Discovery Channel, at 2:58
5. Caisse d'Epargne, at 3:11
6. Rabobank, at 3:40
7. Astana, at 4:13
8. Gerolsteiner, at 4:23
9. Bouygues Telecom, at 4:26
10. AG2R, at 5:24
Best young rider
1. Linus Gerdemann (G), T-Mobile, 34:43:40
2. Mauricio Soler (Col), Barloworld, at 3:05
3. Vladimir Gusev (Rus), Discovery Channel, 3:51
4. Thomas Dekker (Ned), Rabobank, at 3:57
5. Alberto Contador (Sp), Discovery Channel, at 4:01
6. Bernhard Kohl (A), Gerolsteiner, at 4:31
7. Kanstantsin Siutsou (Blr), Barloworld, at 4:53
8. Amets Txurruka (Sp), Euskaltel-Euskadi, at 9:20
9. Thomas Lovkvist (Swe), Français des Jeux, at 10:50
10. Igor Anton (Sp), Euskaltel-Euskadi), at 12:15
To see how the stage developed, simply click here to open our Live Update Window.
