First Edition Cycling News, Tuesday, September 1, 2009

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Date published:

September 1, 2009, 05:00

• Ciolek wants Vuelta leader's jersey after stage win

  

  Article published:

  August 31, 2009, 11:13

  By:

  Susan Westemeyer

  Germany's Gerald Ciolek wants Vuelta gold on top of 'fantastic' stage win

  Gerald Ciolek's won his first Grand Tour victory in yesterday's Vuelta a España stage two. It helped to crown a season that had been frustrating for the young German and his Milram team.

  It was his second win of the 2009 season, and the eighth for Germany's ProTour team, Milram.

  "My form has been good since the Tour de France, but I didn't have any wins," Ciolek told SID. "It is fantastic that it finally worked out."

  Ciolek, who turns 23 later this month, beat Fabio Sabatini (Liquigas) in a tight sprint in Emmen, Netherlands.

  The stage win gave him a 20-second time bonus, which was enough to catapult him from 53rd overall to second place. He is now one second ahead of Tom Boonen (Quick Step) and eight seconds behind race leader Fabian Cancellara (Saxo Bank).

  "Maybe I can take over the leader's jersey," he said. "I will certainly give 100 percent for that."

  The three-week Vuelta a España continues today with what should be a sprinters' stage. The 185-kilometre stage takes the riders from Zutphen to Venlo, Netherlands, with 17 kilometres in Germany mid-stage.

  Ciolek said there are "three pretty hard weeks" and the team wants to continue the good start it's had.

  He made his Grand Tour debut last season in the Tour de France with team Columbia-Highroad. He finished twice second during the race. But Mark Cavendish overshadowed him at the USA-based team and he was one of the reasons Ciolek left. He again rode the Tour this year, finishing in the top ten seven times.

  Ciolek got the year off to a good start this season, but in the spring came down with an infection. He only returned to top form at the Tour de France in July. He underlined his good form recently with his third-place finish in the Vattenfall Cyclassics.

  His only other win this season this season was Mallorca Challenge's Trofeo Calvia in February. "Spanish races are good for me!" he said after his Vuelta win yesterday.

• Cunego renews contract with Lampre-NGC

  

  Article published:

  August 31, 2009, 12:08

  By:

  Gregor Brown

  Damiano Cunego renews contracts, stays with Lampre-NGC through 2010

  Italian Damiano Cunego renewed his contract with Lampre-NGC yesterday for the 2010 season. Team Manager Giuseppe Saronni said Cunego will continue the contract he started with the team in 2005, according to RCD.

  Cunego finished second at the World Championships, won Amstel Gold and his third Giro di Lombardia last year. He won the 2004 Giro d'Italia and the young rider classification at the 2006 Tour de France.

  This season, he won two stages and the overall of Coppe & Bartali and finished in the top ten of all three Ardennes Classics. He is currently racing the Vuelta a España and preparing to lead the Italian team at the Worlds.

  Cunego, 27, turned professional in 2002 and joined Lampre in 2005.

  Lampre-NGC also signed Under 23 time trail World Champion, Adriano Malori, Alfredo Balloni, Enrico Magazzini and Diego Ulissi.

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• World Champ Ballan likely to join USA's BMC team

  

  Article published:

  August 31, 2009, 12:24

  By:

  Gregor Brown

  Ballan to leave Lampre, USA's BMC likely new home

  World Champion Alessandro Ballan will ride for USA's BMC Racing Team in 2010. He leaves top division Lampre after six years and, according to La Gazzetta dello Sport, will join second division BMC.

  "I want to go abroad to learn English and see a new world," Ballan told La Gazzetta dello Sport.

  Italy's Ballan, 29, became professional with Giuseppe Saronni's Italy-based Lampre team in 2004.

  "I will not stay with Saronni because I want to better myself. It has been good in this team, very good, and I still have some big goals: repeating Worlds and Lombardia. But to stay another two years would be too much."

  Ballan said he still has to decide where he will ride in 2010 and will wait for the right day to announce it. The UCI prohibits teams and riders negotiating prior to September 1, tomorrow.

  "Tomorrow I will know more about my future," Ballan told Cyclingnews. "At the moment I have not signed with anyone."

  BMC is a second division team, or Professional Continental, based in California, USA. The team came about in 2008 from the ashes of team Phonak, with John Lelangue continuing as director sportif.

  It has to rely on wild card invitations to the top races since it is not a top division, or ProTour team. This year the team raced the Dauphiné Libéré and one-day Classic Paris-Roubaix, one of Ballan's career goals.

  "It's true that BMC is not a ProTour team and has to have invites. But Cervélo showed how it is done this year," he told La Gazzetta dello Sport. "You need to have good riders and the invitations will arrive. BMC also has [George] Hincapie, [Marcus] Burghardt and [Karsten] Kroon, no?"

  BMC's signings are unconfirmed, but it is also interested in Steve Morabito and Michael Schär, according to a Cyclingnews source.

  Ballan established himself as a one-day rider with wins in the 2005 Trofeo Laigueglia and 2007 Ronde van Vlaanderen. Last year he finished fourth in Ronde, third in Paris-Roubaix and won the World Championships.

  A virus forced him to miss much of the early season this year. He won a stage and the overall at the Tour de Pologne earlier this month. It was his first race in the World Champion rainbow jersey.

  Ballan started the three-week Vuelta a España stage race on Saturday. He is using the race as preparation for the World title defence, September 27.

• Bodnar backs Basso in Vuelta, debut Grand Tour

  

  Article published:

  August 31, 2009, 15:59

  By:

  Gregor Brown

  Poland's Maciej Bodnar supports Basso in Vuelta a España gold quest

  Poland's Maciej Bodnar is supporting Ivan Basso towards the Vuelta a España overall victory. Bodnar and the Liquigas team are off to a good start, he and three of his teammate finished in the top ten of the opening time trial.

  "Body" placed tenth at 19 seconds back from winner Fabian Cancellara (Saxo Bank). Teammates Daniele Bennati, Roman Kreuziger and Ivan Basso finished fifth, sixth and eighth.

  "I did not think to finish in the top ten, maybe only a top 20. It was a great day for Liquigas," Bodnar told Cyclingnews.

  Bodnar, 24, became professional with Liquigas in the middle of the 2007 season. He has worked well within the team and now is racing in his first Grand Tour in support of 2006 Giro d'Italia winner, Basso.

  "I have my work cut out for me here in the Vuelta, working on the flat stages. I am not thinking of escapes, the first goal is getting Ivan the jersey. Here in Holland the roads are always left and right, tight, it is not easy."

  The 64th Vuelta a España, August 29 to September 20, starts with four stages in The Netherlands and Belgium before it transfers to Spain. The riders will start racing in Spain on Thursday. They will use Wednesday to rest and travel from the end of stage four in Liège, Belgium.

  Follow Cyclingnews on Twitter for the very latest coverage of events taking place in the cycling world - twitter.com/cyclingnewsfeed

  Bodnar prepared for the Vuelta starting with a training camp at altitude in St. Moritz, Switzerland. He raced Tour de Pologne, Vattenfall Cyclassics and the Eneco Tour prior to the Vuelta. He felt the benefits of the training with "great legs", he said.

  "I did well yesterday, helping Ivan stay protected from the wind on the nervous stage yesterday."

  Bodnar signed a new one-year contract with Italy-based Liquigas prior to the Eneco Tour. He hopes to continue developing while working in the services of the team leaders.

  "I hope to one day win a Spring Classic: Sanremo, Flanders or Roubaix. They are my races, my dream."

  The Vuelta a España continues today with what should be a sprinters' stage. The 185-kilometre stage takes the riders from Zutphen to Venlo, Netherlands.

• Boasson Hagen rockets up World Rankings

  

  Article published:

  August 31, 2009, 20:54

  By:

  Laura Weislo

  Norwegian climbs to third behind Contador, Schleck

  The UCI's latest World Rankings changed little after the Eneco Tour, with the notable exception of Norwegian Edvald Boasson Hagen's meteoric rise from 15th to 3rd overall after his victory in the race. He is just 12 points from second placed Andy Schleck (Saxo Bank), while Tour de France winner Alberto Contador (Astana) still enjoys a sizeable lead in the classification.

  Astana also holds a solid lead in the team rankings over Columbia-HTC and Saxo Bank, while Spain has a commanding lead in the nations rankings over Italy and Australia.

  Individual rankings as of August 31, 2009

  1	Alberto Contador (Spa) Astana	527	pts
  2	Andy Schleck (Lux) Team Saxo Bank	334
  3	Edvald Boasson Hagen (Nor) Team Columbia-HTC	322
  4	Roman Kreuziger (Cze) Liquigas	310
  5	Mark Cavendish (GBr) Team Columbia-HTC	304
  6	Alejandro Valverde (Spa) Caisse d'Epargne	295
  7	Allan Davis (Aus) Quick Step	249
  8	Andreas Klöden (Ger) Astana	232
  9	Cadel Evans (Aus) Silence-Lotto	219
  10	Denis Menchov (Rus) Rabobank	218
  11	Heinrich Haussler (Ger) Cervelo Test Team	217
  12	Thor Hushovd (Nor) Cervelo Test Team	216
  13	Frank Schleck (Lux) Team Saxo Bank	212
  14	Luis Leon Sanchez Gil (Spa) Caisse d'Epargne	211
  15	Damiano Cunego (Ita) Lampre - N.G.C.	202
  16	Davide Rebellin (Ita) Serramenti PVC Diquigiovanni-Androni Giocattoli	194
  17	Sylvain Chavanel (Fra) Quick Step	194
  18	Philippe Gilbert (Bel) Silence-Lotto	187
  19	Tyler Farrar (USA) Garmin - Slipstream	181
  20	Mikel Astarloza (Spa) Euskaltel - Euskadi	178
  21	Stefano Garzelli (Ita) Acqua & Sapone - Caffe Mokambo	170
  22	Serguei Ivanov (Rus) Team Katusha	164
  23	Simon Gerrans (Aus) Cervelo Test Team	160
  24	Vladimir Karpets (Rus) Team Katusha	157
  25	Franco Pellizotti (Ita) Liquigas	156
  26	Filippo Pozzato (Ita) Team Katusha	154
  27	Lance Armstrong (USA) Astana	150
  28	Fabian Cancellara (Swi) Team Saxo Bank	148
  30	Robert Gesink (Ned) Rabobank	145
  31	Michele Scarponi (Ita) Serramenti PVC Diquigiovanni-Androni Giocattoli	139
  32	Ivan Basso (Ita) Liquigas	138
  33	Vincenzo Nibali (Ita) Liquigas	135
  34	Carlos Sastre (Spa) Cervelo Test Team	134
  35	Samuel Sanchez (Spa) Euskaltel - Euskadi	133
  36	Bradley Wiggins (GBr) Garmin - Slipstream	131
  37	Tony Martin (Ger) Team Columbia-HTC	125
  38	Daniel Martin (Irl) Garmin - Slipstream	117
  39	Matti Breschel (Den) Team Saxo Bank	117
  40	Tom Boonen (Bel) Quick Step	116
  41	Michael Rogers (Aus) Team Columbia-HTC	115
  42	Alessandro Ballan (Ita) Lampre - N.G.C.	110
  43	Stijn Devolder (Bel) Quick Step	104
  44	Alessandro Petacchi (Ita) LPR Brakes - Farnese Vini	102
  45	Rein Taaramae (Est) Cofidis	98
  46	Haimar Zubeldia (Spa) Astana	94
  47	Pierrick Fedrigo (Fra) BBox Bouygues Telecom	92
  48	Jose Joaquin Rojas Gil (Spa) Caisse d'Epargne	90
  49	Thomas Lövkvist (Swe) Team Columbia-HTC	90
  50	Stuart O'Grady (Aus) Team Saxo Bank	87
  51	Joaquin Rodriguez (Spa) Caisse d'Epargne	87
  52	Lars Ytting Bak (Den) Team Saxo Bank	87
  53	Juan Antonio Flecha (Spa) Rabobank	85
  54	Daniel Moreno (Spa) Caisse d'Epargne	84
  55	Jurgen Van Den Broeck (Bel) Silence-Lotto	83
  56	Jakob Fuglsang (Den) Team Saxo Bank	82
  57	Carlos Barredo (Spa) Quick Step	80
  58	Levi Leipheimer (USA) Astana	79
  59	Christian Vande Velde (USA) Garmin - Slipstream	78
  60	Tadej Valjavec (Slo) AG2R La Mondiale	77
  61	Sebastian Langeveld (Ned) Rabobank	76
  62	Martin Elmiger (Swi) AG2R La Mondiale	74
  63	Gerald Ciolek (Ger) Team Milram	70
  64	Martijn Maaskant (Ned) Garmin - Slipstream	64
  65	Pieter Weening (Ned) Rabobank	62
  66	Aleksandr Kuschynski (Blr) Liquigas	61
  67	Daniele Bennati (Ita) Liquigas	61
  68	Karsten Kroon (Ned) Team Saxo Bank	60
  69	Leif Hoste (Bel) Silence-Lotto	60
  70	Matthew Goss (Aus) Team Saxo Bank	58
  71	Christophe Le Mevel (Fra) Française Des Jeux	58
  72	Koldo Fernandez (Spa) Euskaltel - Euskadi	56
  73	Maxime Monfort (Bel) Team Columbia-HTC	54
  74	Sandy Casar (Fra) Française Des Jeux	54
  75	Francesco Reda (Ita) Quick Step	52
  76	Peter Velits (Svk) Team Milram	51
  77	Paul Martens (Ger) Rabobank	50
  78	Mickael Delage (Fra) Silence-Lotto	50
  79	Ryder Hesjedal (Can) Garmin - Slipstream	50
  80	Johan Van Summeren (Bel) Silence-Lotto	50
  81	Wesley Sulzberger (Aus) Française Des Jeux	50
  82	Rigoberto Uran (Col) Caisse d'Epargne	50
  83	Angel Gomez (Spa) Fuji-Servetto	50
  84	Kevin Seeldraeyers (Bel) Quick Step	49
  85	Marcus Burghardt (Ger) Team Columbia-HTC	45
  86	Oscar Freire (Spa) Rabobank	44
  87	Jens Voigt (Ger) Team Saxo Bank	42
  88	Mathew Hayman (Aus) Rabobank	40
  89	Anthony Roux (Fra) Française Des Jeux	40
  90	Kanstantsin Siutsou (Blr) Team Columbia-HTC	40
  91	Marzio Bruseghin (Ita) Lampre - N.G.C.	39
  92	Sylvester Szmyd (Pol) Liquigas	36
  93	Alexandr Kolobnev (Rus) Team Saxo Bank	33
  94	David Arroyo (Spa) Caisse d'Epargne	33
  95	Thomas Voeckler (Fra) BBox Bouygues Telecom	32
  96	Andreas Klier (Ger) Cervelo Test Team	30
  97	Aitor Galdos (Spa) Euskaltel - Euskadi	30
  98	Alexsandr Dyachenko (Kaz) Astana	30
  99	Linus Gerdemann (Ger) Team Milram	30
  100	Francesco Gavazzi (Ita) Lampre - N.G.C.	29
  101	Rinaldo Nocentini (Ita) AG2R La Mondiale	26
  102	Brice Feillu (Fra) Agritubel	26
  103	Jonathan Hivert (Fra) Skil-Shimano	25
  104	Davide Vigano (Ita) Fuji-Servetto	24
  105	Maarten Tjallingii (Ned) Rabobank	22
  106	Marco Marcato (Ita) Vacansoleil Pro Cycling Team	22
  107	Enrico Rossi (Ita) Ceramica Flaminia - Bossini Docce	22
  108	Jose Serpa (Col) Serramenti PVC Diquigiovanni-Androni Giocattoli	22
  109	Xavier Tondo (Spa) Andalucia Cajasur	21
  110	Juan Manuel Garate (Spa) Rabobank	21
  111	Mauro Santambrogio (Ita) Lampre - N.G.C.	20
  112	Benoît Vaugrenard (Fra) Française Des Jeux	20
  113	Björn Leukemans (Bel) Vacansoleil Pro Cycling Team	20
  114	Nicki Sørensen (Den) Team Saxo Bank	20
  115	Michael Albasini (Swi) Team Columbia-HTC	19
  116	Graeme Brown (Aus) Rabobank	19
  117	Samuel Dumoulin (Fra) Cofidis, Le Credit En Ligne	18
  118	Fabio Sabatini (Ita) Liquigas	18
  119	Yury Trofimov (Rus) BBox Bouygues Telecom	18
  120	André Greipel (Ger) Team Columbia-HTC	18
  121	Kim Kirchen (Lux) Team Columbia-HTC	17
  122	Mikhail Ignatiev (Rus) Team Katusha	17
  123	Manuel Quinziato (Ita) Liquigas	16
  124	Yaroslav Popovych (Ukr) Astana	16
  125	Ignatas Konovalovas (Ltu) Cervelo Test Team	16
  126	Leonardo Bertagnolli (Ita) Amica Chips - Knauf	16
  127	David Millar (GBr) Garmin - Slipstream	15
  128	Mark Renshaw (Aus) Team Columbia-HTC	15
  129	Nicolas Roche (Irl) AG2R La Mondiale	15
  130	Christophe Riblon (Fra) AG2R La Mondiale	14
  131	Maxim Iglinsky (Kaz) Astana	14
  132	Stéphane Goubert (Fra) AG2R La Mondiale	14
  133	Yauheni Hutarovich (Blr) Française Des Jeux	13
  134	Marco Pinotti (Ita) Team Columbia-HTC	12
  135	Angelo Furlan (Ita) Lampre - N.G.C.	12
  136	Greg Henderson (NZl) Team Columbia-HTC	12
  137	Fredrik Kessiakoff (Swe) Fuji-Servetto	11
  138	Luca Paolini (Ita) Acqua & Sapone - Caffe Mokambo	11
  139	Frantisek Rabon (Cze) Team Columbia-HTC	11
  140	Ben Swift (GBr) Team Katusha	11
  141	Nick Nuyens (Bel) Rabobank	10
  142	Tom Leezer (Ned) Rabobank	10
  143	Jan Bakelandts (Bel) Topsport Vlaanderen - Mercator	10
  144	Pablo Lastras (Spa) Caisse d'Epargne	10
  145	Jussi Veikkanen (Fin) Française Des Jeux	10
  146	Jacopo Guarnieri (Ita) Liquigas	10
  147	Amets Txurruka (Spa) Euskaltel - Euskadi	10
  148	Jurgen Roelandts (Bel) Silence-Lotto	10
  149	Laurent Lefevre (Fra) BBox Bouygues Telecom	10
  150	Christophe Kern (Fra) Cofidis, Le Credit En Ligne	10
  151	Robert Hunter (RSA) Barloworld	10
  152	David De La Fuente (Spa) Fuji-Servetto	9
  153	George Hincapie (USA) Team Columbia-HTC	9
  154	Francesco Chicchi (Ita) Liquigas	9
  155	Francesco Masciarelli (Ita) Acqua & Sapone - Caffe Mokambo	8
  156	Alexandre Botcharov (Rus) Team Katusha	8
  157	Janez Brajkovic (Slo) Astana	8
  158	Jérôme Pineau (Fra) Quick Step	8
  159	Serge Pauwels (Bel) Cervelo Test Team	8
  160	Félix Cardenas Barloworld	8
  161	Rubens Bertogliati (Ita) Serramenti PVC Diquigiovanni-Androni Giocattoli	8
  162	Marco Bandiera (Ita) Lampre - N.G.C.	7
  163	Jérémy Roy (Fra) Française Des Jeux	7
  164	Johannes Fröhlinger (Ger) Team Milram	7
  165	David Moncoutie (Fra) Cofidis, Le Credit En Ligne	7
  166	Frédéric Guesdon (Fra) Française Des Jeux	6
  167	Ruben Perez (Spa) Euskaltel - Euskadi	6
  169	Greg Van Avermaet (Bel) Silence-Lotto	6
  170	Nikolay Trusov (Rus) Team Katusha	6
  171	Niki Terpstra (Ned) Team Milram	6
  172	Julien El Fares (Fra) Cofidis, Le Credit En Ligne	6
  173	Borut Bozic (Slo) Vacansoleil Pro Cycling Team	6
  174	Hayden Roulston (NZl) Cervelo Test Team	6
  175	Stef Clement (Ned) Rabobank	6
  176	Bert Grabsch (Ger) Team Columbia-HTC	6
  177	Cyril Lemoine (Fra) Skil-Shimano	6
  178	Bernhard Eisel (Aut) Team Columbia-HTC	6
  179	Julian Sanchez (Spa) Contentpolis-Ampo	6
  180	Robbie McEwen (Aus) Team Katusha	6
  181	Romain Feillu (Fra) Agritubel	6
  182	Leonardo Duque (Col) Cofidis, Le Credit En Ligne	5
  183	Mikael Cherel (Fra) Française Des Jeux	4
  184	Bert De Waele (Bel) Landbouwkrediet - Colnago	4
  185	Jurgen Van De Walle (Bel) Quick Step	4
  186	Christopher Sutton (Aus) Garmin - Slipstream	4
  187	Mirco Lorenzetto (Ita) Lampre - N.G.C.	4
  188	Gustav Larsson (Swe) Team Saxo Bank	4
  189	Pavel Brutt (Rus) Team Katusha	4
  190	Timothy Duggan (USA) Garmin - Slipstream	4
  191	Markus Fothen (Ger) Team Milram	4
  192	Egoi Martinez (Spa) Euskaltel - Euskadi	4
  193	Danny Pate (USA) Garmin - Slipstream	4
  194	Lloyd Mondory (Fra) AG2R La Mondiale	4
  195	Vladimir Efimkin (Rus) AG2R La Mondiale	4
  196	Ludovic Turpin (Fra) AG2R La Mondiale	4
  197	Markus Zberg (Swi) BMC Racing Team	4
  198	Vladimir Duma (Ukr) Ceramica Flaminia - Bossini Docce	4
  199	Danilo Napolitano (Ita) Team Katusha	3
  200	Wouter Weylandt (Bel) Quick Step	3
  201	Oliver Zaugg (Swi) Liquigas	3
  202	Jesus Del Nero (Spa) Fuji-Servetto	2
  203	Jeremy Hunt (GBr) Cervelo Test Team	2
  204	Murilo Fischer (Ita) Liquigas	2
  205	Yukiya Arashiro (Jpn) BBox Bouygues Telecom	2
  206	Tom Veelers (Ned) Skil-Shimano	2
  207	Pablo Urtasun (Spa) Euskaltel - Euskadi	2
  208	Sébastien Minard (Fra) Cofidis, Le Credit En Ligne	2
  209	Sébastien Hinault (Fra) AG2R La Mondiale	2
  210	Xavier Florencio (Spa) Cervelo Test Team	2
  211	Assan Bazayev (Kaz) Astana	2
  212	Christian Knees (Ger) Team Milram	2
  213	Dario Cataldo (Ita) Quick Step	2
  214	Evgeny Petrov (Rus) Team Katusha	2
  215	Grégory Rast (Swi) Astana	2
  216	Juan José Haedo (Arg) Team Saxo Bank	2
  217	Christophe Moreau (Fra) Agritubel	2
  218	Thomas Dekker (Ned) Silence-Lotto	2
  219	Sébastien Joly (Fra) Française Des Jeux	2
  220	Baden Cooke (Aus) Vacansoleil Pro Cycling Team	2
  221	Igor Abakoumov (Bel) ISD	2
  222	Mauricio Soler (Col) Barloworld	2
  223	Joost Posthuma (Ned) Rabobank	1
  224	Nico Sijmens (Bel) Cofidis, Le Credit En Ligne	1
  225	Alexandre Usov (Blr) Cofidis, Le Credit En Ligne	1
  226	Robert Forster (Ger) Team Milram	1
  227	Kristof Goddaert (Bel) Topsport Vlaanderen - Mercator	1
  228	Alexei Markov (Rus) Team Katusha	1
  229	Alessandro Bertolini (Ita) Serramenti PVC Diquigiovanni-Androni Giocattoli	1
  230	Dominique Rollin (Can) Cervelo Test Team	1
  231	Adam Hansen (Aus) Team Columbia-HTC	1
  232	Marcel Sieberg (Ger) Team Columbia-HTC	1
  233	Steve Chainel (Fra) BBox Bouygues Telecom	1
  234	Matthe Pronk (Ned) Vacansoleil	1
  235	Marco Marzano (Ita) Lampre - N.G.C.	1
  236	Rémi Pauriol (Fra) Cofidis, Le Credit En Ligne	1
  237	Sébastien Rosseler (Bel) Quick Step	1
  238	Stéphane Auge (Fra) Cofidis, Le Credit En Ligne	1
  239	Eros Capecchi (Ita) Fuji-Servetto	1
  241	Matthieu Ladagnous (Fra) Française Des Jeux	1
  242	Gilberto Simoni (Ita) Serramenti PVC Diquigiovanni-Androni Giocattoli	1
  243	Philip Deignan (Irl) Cervelo Test Team	1
  244	Dmytro Grabovskyy (Ukr) ISD	1

  Teams

  1	Astana	1082	pts
  2	Team Columbia - High Road	956
  3	Team Saxo Bank	898
  4	Liquigas	800
  5	Cervelo Test Team	777
  6	Caisse d'Epargne	767
  7	Quick Step	743
  8	Team Katusha	637
  9	Silence - Lotto	599
  10	Rabobank	586
  11	Garmin - Slipstream	571
  12	Euskaltel - Euskadi	407
  13	Lampre - N.G.C	400
  14	Serramenti PVC Diquigiovanni-Androni Giocattoli	379
  15	Française Des Jeux	222
  16	AG2R La Mondiale	206
  17	Acqua & Sapone - Caffe Mokambo	189
  18	Team Milram	164
  19	BBox Bouygues Telecom	154
  20	Cofidis, Le Credit en Ligne	139
  21	LPR Brakes Farnese Vini	102
  22	Vacansoleil Pro Cycling Team	51
  23	Fuji-Servetto	47
  24	Agritubel	34
  25	Skil-Shimano	33
  26	Ceramica Flaminia - Bossini Docce	26
  27	Andalucia Cajasur	21
  28	Barloworld	20
  29	Topsport Vlaanderen - Mercator	11
  30	Contentpolis-Ampo	6
  31	Landbouwkrediet - Colnago	4
  32	BMC Racing Team	4
  33	ISD	3

  Nations

  1	Spain	1356	pts
  2	Italy	876
  3	Australia	830
  4	Germany	694
  5	Russian Federation	590
  6	Luxembourg	563
  7	Belgium	550
  8	Norway	538
  9	United States of America	497
  10	Great Britain	463
  11	France	448
  12	Netherlands	407
  13	Czech Republic	321
  14	Denmark	306
  15	Switzerland	253
  16	Ireland	133
  17	Belarus	115
  18	Sweden	105
  19	Estonia	98
  20	Slovenia	91
  21	Colombia	87
  22	Slovakia	51
  23	Canada	51
  24	Kazakhstan	46
  25	Poland	36
  26	Ukraine	21
  27	New Zealand	18
  28	Lithuania	16
  29	Austria	12
  30	Finland	10
  31	South Africa	10
  32	Brazil	2
  33	Japan	2
  34	Argentina	2

• Vuelta contenders on alert for stage to Liège

  

  Article published:

  August 31, 2009, 21:16

  By:

  Laura Weislo

  Steep hills, narrow roads and nerves could cause damage

  The Vuelta a Espana heads out for its final stage across Northern Europe on Tuesday before it travels to its native land. Before leaving the Netherlands and Belgium, the race will take in some of the toughest climbs best known from the Ardennes Classics Liège - Bastogne - Liège and Amstel Gold Race.

  The stage contains two trips up the Cauberg, the painfully steep finishing climb from the Dutch race, and the Mont Theux, formerly used in the Belgian Classic, as the only classified climbs at category four.

  The frequency of several other, non-classified hills, and the close proximity of the short trip up the St. Niklaas climb in the final 15km may allow for some enterprising rider to foil the sprinters for the first time in this year's race.

  The stage could also spell disaster for any of the general classification contenders who would find the chasing difficult should they crash on any of the quite narrow, twisty roads, or get caught behind a split in the heavy crosswinds that frequently plague cyclists in this area. Concentration and plenty of luck will be the word of the day for anyone hoping to make it to the top step in Madrid.

  The worst of the climbs come mid-way through the fourth stage, with the Cauberg crested at kilometre 76.5 and 116.5. The Mont Theux tops out at kilometre 183.5 of the 225.5km stage, and could prove to be a stage winning springboard for the likes of Liège - Bastogne - Liège winner Andy Schleck, Giro d'Italia stage winner Philippe Gilbert. Yet Alejandro Valverde seemed to be focusing on conserving his energy than winning the stage.

  "After three days without climbing even a small hill, tomorrow's stage will be a little bit different," said Valverde, who said the race would be quite different from the April Classic.

  "Even if the stage finishes in Liège, the finale will have absolutely nothing to do with the Classics. It will just look a little bit like the Amstel, if we take into account the fact that the Cauberg is on the program. This means that we will again have to ride on narrow streets and that it will be important to remain careful until the end."

  The course on Monday featured broader boulevards and far less crashing than the opening road stage on Sunday, where quite a few riders hit the ground. But the cool weather and treacherous roads have been wearing on the Spaniards, who are eager to head home on Wednesday.

  "I can't wait to return to Spain, to the warm temperatures, but we have to get through the stage tomorrow, no doubt the most dangerous of all that we've had so far. A day that will be require us to be very attentive from beginning to end," said Ezequiel Mosquera, last year's fourth place finisher in the Vuelta.

  One rider who may miss out on the day is Saxo Bank's Fabian Cancellara, who could see the jersey pass on to someone else as the team focuses its efforts on working for its young phenom, Jakob Fuglsang.

  "We will focus on protecting Jakob," said Saxo Bank director Kim Andersen. "We won't do anything to hang on to the jersey just yet and tomorrow's stage will undoubtedly make things more difficult for us."

  Cervélo's Simon Gerrans, who finished in the top 10 in all three of the Ardennes spring classics earlier this year, thinks that, despite the many climbs, the stage will still come down to a bunch sprint.

  "The day into Liège is quite hard, but the last climb is still 20km from the finish, so I think it will still be a sprint," Gerrans said. "We're seeing guys like Tyler Farrar and Tom Boonen, those guys are going really well right now, so I think those guys will be there in the end to make the sprint."

  The climbs could be good news for the Milram team, which hopes to get Gerald Ciolek another eight seconds on Cancellara so he can don the race leader's jersey.

  "Tomorrow will be a long and difficult stage, which will be a good one for our riders. We will attack again. Through our stage win on Sunday the team has picked up enough self-confidence to bring in another success."

• Reaction from stage three

  

  Article published:

  September 1, 2009, 03:48

  By:

  Les Clarke

  Less stress and more sun on the road to Venlo

  Alejandro Valverde (Caisse d'Epargne) - 119th on stage, 12th overall @ 0:00:18

  "Except the fact that the sun kept on shining the entire day, the stage of today had nothing to do with the one of yesterday. We can indeed say that it was an easy day."

  "The roads were broader ones and not so risky. But I anyway preferred to stay during almost all the time between the first positions of the bunch to remain concentrated, exactly the way I did it yesterday."

  "I just dropped in the very last kilometres to give the sprinters space."

  "After three days without climbing not even a small hill, the stage of tomorrow will be a little bit different. Even if it is true that the stage will finish in Liège, the final of the stage will have absolutely nothing to do with the classics. It will just look a little bit like the Amstel, if we take into account the fact that the Cauberg is on the program. This means that we will again have to ride on narrow streets and that it will be important to remain careful till the end."

  Roger Hammond (Cervélo TestTeam) - seventh on stage, 26th overall @ 0:00:24

  "Until the roundabout with 1.5km to go, it was absolutely perfect, with Greipel on the wheel of the High Road train, Boonen, then me. On that last corner, Bozic and Marcato came through. Bozic made it, but Marcato was absolutely useless; he chopped, couldn't hold the wheel, then Boonen and I had to close the gap with 800 metres to go. We had already done our sprint with 500 metres, and then everyone else started.

  "I wasn't really thinking about today's stage, because yesterday's stage was quite hard in the final 40km and that strings it out a little bit more and it's selective before the final sprint. Today there was a lot of headwind, so everybody thinks they can be a winner. With a headwind like that, everyone keeps coming past, so you use so much energy in the final 20km just passing climbers who are trying not to lose GC time.

  "Today was no problem seeing the finish line. There were no bridges over the road today. I saw it far away, but it was coming too fast, that was the problem."

  Ezequiel Mosquera (Xacobeo Galicia) - 45th on stage, 62nd overall @ 0:00:33

  "I enjoyed the third stage of the Tour of Spain. Fortunately it was a calmer day than yesterday. It gave us more time to enjoy the road and the nice environment we were riding through after so much tension [the previous day].

  "Although this peace is going to be short because tomorrow, with the arrival in Liège, comes the nervousness. This day will be very dangerous with the addition of the bad weather that is expected.

  "Apart from a gentle wind that made us be attentive to possible cuts alarms, the second stage of the Vuelta was quiet until things started to get organised for the sprint. I ensured, like yesterday, that I was always well placed at the front of the pack until the teams have their fastest men ahead before the finish and, once the race was in the last metres I dropped from those top positions.

  "There was a period of tension because the sprint was a bit chaotic, while the large group was stretched out far and it seemed that there would be a split. This didn't happen and we finally finished another day, the kind that, even if it doesn't appear so, are very important for the nerves of the early days - much more so due to the narrow roads we are riding on during these days in Holland.

  "I cannot wait to return to Spain, to the warm temperatures, but first we have to pass the stage tomorrow; undoubtedly it's the most dangerous of all that we've had so far. A day where we will be very attentive from beginning to end."

  Simon Gerrans (Cervélo TestTeam) - 135th on stage, 113th overall @ 0:00:53

  "The day into Liège is quite hard, but the last climb is still 20km from the finish, so I think it will still be a sprint. We're seeing guys like Tyler Farrar and Tom Boonen, those guys are going really well right now, so I think those guys will be there in the end to make the sprint."

  David Garcia (Xacobeo Galicia) - 73rd on stage, 10th overall @ 0:00:18

  "I didn't expect at this point in race to be among the top 10 in the overall standings but it's a consequence of the bonuses I got in the second stage after getting in a breakaway. He saw the fact that I went out to attack, thinking it was going to before but started to open hole and, obviously, I did not stop, "he began.

  Marin rider has its priorities in the Spanish round: "The tenth it remains anecdotal, because my goal is to win a stage and if you ever need to lose twenty minutes, after doing work for Ezekiel, I will not hesitate losing. For general have to Ezekiel. I was the fourteenth year, but more must be now tenth or eleventh motivates me a triumph of stage, "he said then.

  "The atmosphere surrounding these stages strikes me. The people here really love cycling. I was surprised with what I saw in the Giro, but I think this even surpasses it. The day was calm, although, as always in this type of land, the final kilometres are tense

  "My feelings are good, but it's not like anything I've really done before. We've had three days without lifting our butts off the saddle for a moment and, while it may seem odd, it hurts. I'm not used to riding two hundred miles sitting, without changing position and while pedaling for a second. I'm looking forward to a hill to test myself out a little."
   

• Contador fans flames surrounding his future

  Article published:

  September 1, 2009, 03:58

  By:

  Les Clarke

  Tour tension abounded between Astana's star pairing

  Tour de France champion Alberto Contador has further fueled speculation about his future after Astana, explaining that only contractual obligations are keeping him at the Kazakh squad rather than a genuine desire to remain in the team.

  Contador was blunt in an interview with the 'El Círculo a primera hora' ['Early Circle'] program on Telemadrid. "If I was not currently contracted I wouldn't continue with Astana," he said. "Quite a few teams are interested in me, but I have a year on my contract and I'll see what comes up," he added.

  The reigning Vuelta a España champion, who isn't defending his title on home soil in 2009, spoke of the rumours surrounding the formation of a team created by Formula 1 driver Fernando Alonso.

  "I've been talking with Fernando Alonso about this possibility, but something must be done well in advance. God knows, it could be the year after next," he explained.

  Speaking of his Tour de France victory and the 'battle' between himself and Astana teammate Lance Armstrong, Contador was adamant that he would approach the situation differently if he was confronted with the scenario again. "I could stand another one [Tour] like that, but I would go with things more clearly defined and think only in sporting terms, making sure the whole team was thinking of that goal," he said.

  He added that during the Tour he had to ensure that he remained focused on the task at hand and "not enter into the talk and not lose my calm and composure." He also explained that some people who acted appropriately and were on his side in the cold war between himself and Armstrong while others were found wanting.

  He paid tribute to Armstrong however, saying the American was "a very great champion who won seven consecutive Tours. He knew he did not go there to 'stroll', and I saw him in December when we were focused - but it was clear to me what I wanted and I knew my goal was the same regardless of what came out in the press," he said.

  While the message during that first training camp together was one of solidarity, what has happened post-Tour has been anything but solid. Armstrong has formed the RadioShack outfit while the pair has exchanged views on each other in a very public display. Contador did admit that while there was never one defined leader of the team - adhering to the team line - he was given the support he needed during July.

  "He [Armstrong] knew that if I respected the people who were around me things would be in place, and it was," he said before explaining that his communication with Armstrong was "minimal".

  "He didn't talk with me, which was a big problem because when you see tension between the two main riders of the team, the rest are also in an uncomfortable situation. I tried to not have tension, but it was difficult," said Contador.

  On a slightly unrelated note, Contador explained, "In this Tour I had 17 doping controls - we were very controlled. Every day I had to report a time that I could be located because they can arrive at any time to take a sample. I am not opposed to anything like this because it is to gain credibility in cycling," he added.