Vino' wins ITT; Rasmussen holds lead
To no one's surprise the first individual time trial of the 2007 Tour de France proved a decisive affair. What was unexpected was the ride of yellow-jersey holder Michael Rasmussen. Instead of cracking under the weight of ongoing doping allegations and questionable time-trialing abilities, the beleaguered Rabobank leader had the ride of his life on Saturday, ceding only 2:55 to stage winner Alexander Vinokourov during the 54km race against the clock in and around Albi.
Rasmussen, the subject of suspicion due to revelations over four missed random doping tests in the past two years, finished a solid 11th in the time trial, extending his run atop the overall standings. He'll head into the Pyrénées with a one-minute advantage over new runner-up Cadel Evans (Predictor-Lotto). Discovery Channel's young Spaniard Alberto Contador was seventh on the stage, which moved him to third overall, 2:31 behind Rasmussen.
"I did my best time trial ever," said Rasmussen, admitting he had benefited from the course drying out after a spell of early rain. “When I saw [Alejandro] Valverde up ahead of me it gave me an even bigger boost, as well as starting with the yellow jersey. For the first time in my life I really gave it everything in the time trial."
Vinokourov was the day's other big winner. After crashing hard on stage 5 nine days ago, then struggling badly during three days in the Alps, the Astana team leader blitzed the 166-rider field, posting a 1:06:34 winning time to take his fourth career Tour stage win. The result launched the 33-year-old pre-race favorite from 19th to ninth overall, 5:10 behind Rasmussen with seven stages to go.
"I suffered through a hard week. I really suffered,” said Vinokourov. “But the Tour is long. Today was important to try to regain some ground in the GC. My legs have been back for the past two days. This win gives me great motivation. The Tour isn't over. I lost a lot of time in the Alps. We'll see what the tactics are [Sunday in the Pyrénées]. What I can say now is that I will attack.”
Evans was second in the TT, at 1:14, with Andréas Klöden (Astana) third at 1:39. Andrey Kaschechkin took fourth, giving the men in aqua three riders in the top four. Klöden might have taken the No. 2 spot were it not for a low-speed crash brought on by the rain-slicked roads.
"So far, so good," said Evans after emerging from a post-race doping control. "Everything is going as planned. It's a good sign, but the best is yet to come."
American Levi Leipheimer (Discovery Channel) had a modest ride, finishing ninth on the stage and moving up to fifth overall, at 3:37, one spot behind Klöden, who is 2:34 behind Rasmussen.
"It was still wet and raining, but it wasn't that much of a factor,” said Leipheimer. “On the downhill I took it pretty easy. It's better to lose 20 seconds than risk crashing. I'll keep doing my own race. Contador looks good. If I were the other guys, I'd be worried. I don't know if anyone can go with him in the climbs.
"There are still six, seven guys who can win this thing. There are still some guys who can pull a surprise. I felt good in the beginning of the TT. From the outset, I knew I didn’t have that spark. I pushed as hard as I could. In the end, coming back into town, I was really flying. I never took it out of the 11. I'm still in the game. We're still in the race."
While Contador was opening eyes, fellow Spaniards Carlos Sastre (CSC), Valverde (Caisse d'Epargne) and Iban Mayo (Saunier Duval-Prodir) had Iberian cycling fans covering their faces. All three riders lost four minutes or more to Vinokourov.
Valverde had arguably the most disappointing day, getting passed by three-minute man Rasmussen on the run back into Albi and ending up 47th at 6:08. That dropped the Caisse d'Epargne team leader from second to 11th overall, 5:48 behind Rasmussen. Mayo was 46th on the stage and is now 12th overall.
“I'm surprised by how well I performed today,” said Contador, who extended his lead in the white-jersey standings to 4:28 over T-Mobile's Linus Gerdemann. “I can't believe that I finished on top of many rivals. I'm not going to be happy with what I have right now. I'm going to keep fighting. I want to enjoy this moment. Levi is the sure bet for this team. He will be stronger than me in the final time trial.”
Racing kicked off Saturday with Wim Vansevenant (Predictor-Lotto) the first of 166 riders to roll out of the start house in downtown Albi. Ahead was a hilly ride that traced a rolling line around the edge of the Massif Central. After leaving the start riders headed east on long, straight roads that climbed gradually to the first time check at Villefranche d'Albigeois (18km). A sharp descent to the town of Ambialet followed, then came a left turn along the Tarn River valley before riders tackled the main climb, the cat. 4 Côte de la Bauzié (38.5km), which rises 560 feet in 3km. The final 15km was mainly downhill on a highway back into Albi.
The first 142 riders were separated by two minutes, with the final 25 riders given three-minute intervals. The roads were dry early on, but it wasn't long before the rain started to fall.
Bradley Wiggins (Cofidis) was the 19th rider to start, and quickly showed he was on a good day. The 2004 Olympic pursuit champion covered the first 18km in a best-yet 23:19. Up ahead fellow Cofidis rider Rik Verbrugghe was first across the finish line, posting a 1:12:25.
Wiggins proceeded to smash that time, posting the top mark at every checkpoint before crossing the line in 1:08:48, unseating then-leader Leif Hoste (Predictor-Lotto).
The next danger man was reigning world time-trial champion Fabian Cancellara (CSC), who was just 29 seconds behind Wiggins at the first time check. But it wasn't to be for the big Swiss, who already has two stage wins on his 2007 Tour résumé. Cancellara crashed after 25km on the treacherous descent and ended up 107th at 8:45. After crossing the line, he continued down the wet road, then jumped into the CSC camper van. Team director Kim Andersen said Cancellara's injuries were minimal, but warned the riders behind to be careful or risk a similar fate.
The impact of the rain became clear as the day wound on. Nearly all the early fast times came from riders who started before the clouds opened up. During the downpour the only man to push into the top five at the time checks was David Millar (Saunier Duval-Prodir), who was third when he finished, but dropped to 20th by the end of the day.
After his ride Millar said the roads were so slippery he almost stopped on the descents. "It was treacherous, absolutely treacherous," the Scotsman added.
Millar's assessment was borne out back at the start when one of the follow motos hit the deck. Even the ProTour's acknowledged top descender, Paolo Savoldelli, was having troubles, his back wheel sliding out from under him in the same area Cancellara hit the deck.
The rains abated for the top GC contenders, but the roads remained slick.
Just before 3 p.m. local time Russian TT champ Vladimir Gusev (Discovery Channel) rolled out of the start house and was less than a minute back of Wiggins at the first time check. But the young Russian crashed hard on a roundabout, nearly smashing his face into a curb. Gusev was quickly back on his bike, but the damage was done. Instead of challenging Wiggins for the top spot, Gusev ceded 42 seconds to the Brit, eventually finishing 12th.
Fellow Discovery rider Yaroslav Popovych also went down on the wet pavement. The Ukrainian was uninjured, but his mishap cost him a place in the top five. Instead he was sixth, 2:16 behind Vinokourov and just two seconds behind fifth-placed Wiggins.
Finally it was time for the big guns to take their shots, with Vinokourov first out of the gate. The Astana captain entered the day 8:05 behind Rasmussen, but it was clear Vino' was feeling far better than he did in the Alps. He'd shed one of the two knee bandages he'd been sporting since his crash, signaling his body is healing from the tumble that reportedly required 15 stitches in each knee.
The Kazakh was 10 seconds faster than Wiggins at the first time check, 52 up at check No. 2, and 1:19 at the third. At the finish he posted a 1:06:34, easily taking over the top spot.
Meanwhile, French hope Christophe Moreau (Ag2r) was going in the opposite direction, losing 2:55 to Vino' over the first 18km on his way to finishing 125th, 9:26 behind the stage winner.
While no other GC contender suffered as badly as the French national champion, no one could touch Vinokourov. At the 18km mark Klöden was 34 seconds behind; Sastre lost 1:41; Evans was at 0:57; Valverde lost 2:18; and Rasmussen was 1:42 back.
That final number was far smaller than expected, and by the time Evans crested the Côte de la Bauzie, it was clear he was the only rider with a chance to take the yellow jersey from Rasmussen. The Aussie was second at the 38.5km mark, 1:01 back of Vinokourov.
But when Rasmussen passed the final check, his deficit to Vinokourov was just 2:40 and it was apparent a lot had changed since his disastrous TT in 2005 when he crashed twice and changed bikes three times, blowing his chance at a final podium placing.
Saturday was a far different story - and so too may be the end result.
Next up at the Tour de France is the first of three demanding stages in the Pyrénées, stage 14's 197km run from Mazamet to Plateau de Beille. Start time is 11:40 a.m. local (5:40 a.m. U.S. EST).
The stage opens with a 9km climb over the Black Mountains, but the first real obstacle is three hours down the road - the hors catégorie Port de Pailhères climb (17km at 7.2 percent). That's followed by a tumbling descent to Ax-les-Thermes and 16km down the Ariège valley before riders reach the hors catégorie finishing climb to Plateau de Beille (16km at almost 8 percent).
Only two men have won Tour stages atop the Plateau de Beille, Lance Armstrong (2002 and 2004) and Marco Pantani (1998). Both riders went on to win the Tour after their stage triumphs. Don't be surprised if that pattern repeats itself this year.
Stage 13
1. Alexander Vinokourov (Kz), Astana, 54km in 1:06:35
2. Cadel Evans (Aus), Predictor-Lotto, at 1:14
3. Andréas Klöden (G), Astana, at 1:39
4. Andrey Kashechkin (Kz), Astana, at 1:44
5. Bradley Wiggins (GB), Cofidis, at 2:14
6. Yaroslav Popovych (Ukr), Discovery Channel, 2:16
7. Alberto Contador (Sp), Discovery Channel, 2:18
8. Sylvain Chavanel (F), Cofidis, 2:38
9. Levi Leipheimer (USA), Discovery Channel, 2:39
10. Mikel Astarloza (Sp), Euskaltel-Euskadi, 2:42
Overall
1. Michael Rasmussen (Dk), Rabobank, 58:46:39
2. Cadel Evans (Aus), Predictor-Lotto, at 1:00
3. Alberto Contador (Sp), Discovery, at 2:31
4. Andréas Klöden (G), Astana, at 2:34
5. Levi Leipheimer (USA), Discovery Channel, at 3:37
6. Andrey Kashechkin (Kz), Astana, at 4:23
7. Carlos Sastre (Sp), CSC, at 4:45
8. Mikel Astarloza (Sp), Euskaltel-Euskadi, at 5:07
9. Alexander Vinokourov (Kz), Astana, at 5:10
10. Kim Kirchen (Lux), T-Mobile, at 5:29
Complete results
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