First Edition Cycling News for June 30, 2004Edited by John Stevenson Jörg Jaksche out of CSC Tour team after crash
Team CSC has had to make a last-minute change to its Tour de France roster after German rider Jörg Jaksche crashed and broke his elbow during a training ride yesterday. The winner of this year's Paris-Nice back in March, Jaksche will be replaced in the Tour line-up by Italian Andrea Peron. While the loss of Jaksche is a blow for CSC, the Denmark-based team run by 1996 Tour winner Bjarne Riis still has plenty of strong riders. Ivan Basso is a potential top five place-getter if he continues to build on his 2002 performance as best young rider in the Tour, while Carlos Sastre, 2003 stage winner Jakob Piil, and the revitalised Bobby Julich are all expected to be in the thick of the action. "It's seriously bad luck for Jörg and for the team," said team manager Bjarne Riis in a statement announcing the change. "Luckily we have had Peron ready and on hold the whole time, in case an accident like this should occur. I really feel for Jörg, because I know how well prepared he was for this year's Tour de France. He had a very important role to play on the team, and obviously he will be sorely missed. You can never be sure to escape such bad luck, but it's of course a big shame to have to replace him. This was not part of the plan, but I still believe, we will do a great Tour de France." Nevertheless, Riis believes Peron is ready for the challenge. "He was close to getting selected in the first place, and this is why, I'm sure, we have the best possible replacement for Jörg," said Riis. "In Andrea we have a strong and very experienced all-round rider, who is also a good team player, which remains a top priority for us. Last year he was an extremely valuable rider on the Tour team, and undoubtedly he will be again this year." Jaksche is disappointed but philosophical. "It can't be helped," he said. "My elbow is broken, and I have a strong pain in my back. I crashed in a turn during training and landed precisely the same way as when I crashed the day before Amstel Gold Race. Only this time the fracture is more serious, and I'm unable to ride with it." Related story: March 2004 interview with Jörg Jaksche Ullrich: "I have been second often enough"Jan Ullrich is convinced that this year he can finally add another Tour de France victory to his palmares. "I have been second often enough; this year I have put everything on getting back to the top," he told Yahoo Sport Germany. "Everything else has been subordinate to this. I am convinced I can beat [Lance Armstrong.]" Ullrich is confident that not only is he ready, but so is the T-Mobile team that he returned to after a year on the team that started 2003 as Coast and ended as Bianchi. "If we have the yellow jersey, this team is capable of defending it," said Ullrich. But he knows the ultimate responsibility lies with the team leader. "Without strong helpers you cannot win, but in the end you have to prove yourself to be the strongest rider." Despite some pundits concerns about his weight in the first half of the season, Ullrich says he has never prepared so thoroughly as for this Tour, starting training last November. He thinks he nevertheless returned to racing too early with March's Tour of Murcia. "I should have waited two weeks for my first race," he said. His somewhat ignominious DNF at the Flèche Wallonne and non-start at Liège-Bastogne-Liège followed. "It would have been unreasonable to fully attack those races," he said, "I wasn't in the zone yet." But Ullrich surprised even himself with his return to form and victory for the Tour of Switzerland. "I knew I was on the right track, but I didn't think I was capable of winning," he said. And with the mountains coming late in this year's Tour Ullrich expects his climbing form to be honed by the time they arrive. "I know my body and believe that the final few percent for the mountains is still to come." With seven mountain stages in the second half of the race and a moderately hilly penultimate stage time trial, Ullrich believes the Alps is where the 2004 Tour will be won, and that's what he has been preparing for. He spent some of May with adviser Rudy Pevenage reconnoitering the Alpine stages and especially the time trial up l'Alpe d'Huez. "I've prepared myself well and last week went over the highlights of that stage again. It's very clear that is where victory will come," he said. Team effort required in mountains this yearGiro d'Italia Femminile previewBy Kristy Scrymgeour
The evening before the men's Tour de France kicks off in Liège, Belgium, the best women's teams in the world will line up in Pordenone, Italy for the prologue of the Giro d'Italia Femminile. This year the ten day race will be held entirely in the north of Italy, starting in the east in the Friuli region and heading west through Veneto and finally ending in Lombardia with the final stage finishing in Milan. Stage five even ventures into Switzerland for an uphill team time trial. The fact that it is in the north could be a blessing in terms of the temperature. Typically, the heat has played a big role in the race, and this week Italy is suffering some very hot days. With no Grande Boucle (women's Tour de France) on the calendar this year, the Giro will be a hotly contested race and a perfect last hit-out for many riders who will be heading to Athens for the Olympic Games in August. On the start list are six past winners of the race, including last year's winner Nicole Braendli (S.C. Michela Fanini - Record Box) with her teammate and former World Champion Edita Pucinskaite. Pucinskaite, in particular, is in good form this year. Although on separate teams in 2003, they took first and second place respectively in the race. On the same team this year, they will be a force to be reckoned with. Also ready to perform in her home country is Fabiana Luperini (Let's Go Finland), who won the Giro four times consecutively from 1995 to 1998. Her reign in the mountainous stages ended in 1999 when Joane Somarriba (Bizkaia-Panda Sofware-Durango) entered the scene and won in both 1999 and 2000. Somarriba is also on the start list this year and is considered a very definite favourite to win again. Also watch for World Champion Susanne Ljunskog (Team S.A.T.S.), Mirjam Melchers (Team Farm Frites Hartol), Valentina Polkanova (S.C. Nobili Rubinetterie-Guerciotti), Zinaida Stahurskaia (Mamma Fanini Team System Data) who won in 2001 and Svetlana Boubnenkova (P.M.B. Fenixs) who won in 2002. Whilst it is important to be a good individual climber this year with two mountain top finishes - one particularly difficult one in stage eight ending on the Magreglio Madonna del Ghisallo - it is also just as important to have a good climbing team behind you. Stage five is a team time trial in Switzerland, which starts with 14km of flat terrain before heading straight up the steep climb of Colle Brianza. Riders will likely need to use a 39/23 and the time will be taken of the fourth fastest rider in the team, giving teams with at least four good climbers an advantage. As well as the mountain stages, the Giro also has quite a few circuit style stages and flat sprinter stages. There is also the opportunity that a break let go on one of these circuit stages could have quite an effect on the GC. The Stages
Liberty Seguros completes its lineupWith Roberto Heras in the Tour de France leader's role for the first time since he left Kelme, Liberty Seguros' nine man Tour team looks to be very strong. With Igor Gonzalez de Galdeano, Marcos Serrano and Isidro Nozal as henchman for the hard mountain stages, the team also boasts sprinters Allan Davis and Angel Vicioso. Time triallists Jan Hruska, Dariusz Baranowski and Christian Vandevelde complete the lineup, which will be favoured for the team time trial. Kazakhstan Olympic teamThe Kazakhstan cycling federation has announced three of the team it will send to Athens for the 2004 Olympic Games. Spearheading the effort will be 2000 silver medallist Alexandre Vinokourov (T-Mobile), who will be joined by Dmitri Fofonov (Cofidis) and Andrey Kashechkin (Credit Agricole). Five candidates are in the running for Kazakhstan's remaining two places.
They are: : Hermann Moos diesHermann Moos, founder of Frankfurt, Germany's Rund um den Henninger Turm, died on Tuesday at the age of 79. Moos had been in a coma for a week following a lung embolism, according to German news agency dpa. Moos organized the first Rund um den Henninger Turm in 1962 along with his brother Erwin, and the race was popular for its inclusiveness, with amateur and professional categories running on the same day. That tradition continues with an under-23 race running alongside the professional event. Moos was also responsible for bringing the world championships to Frankfurt in 1966, and for the city hosting the start of the 1980 Tour de France. In recent years he had handed over the running of the races to his son Bernd. USCF Junior National Track Championships opens new ADT Event Center velodrome
This week's 2004 USCF Junior National Track Championships mark the eagerly anticipated grand opening of the ADT Event Center, the only indoor velodrome in the United States. The 250-meter wooden track is expected to introduce track racing to the next generation of cycling talent while providing a world-class training and competition venue. Constructed from the world's best track cycling wood - Siberian Pine - the ADT Event Center was completed earlier this month and is now set to host training and competition under the guidance of USA Cycling. In fact, following this month's Junior National Championships, the 2500-seat ADT Event Center is slated to host several marquee events over the next year including the UCI Junior World Championships July 28-Aug. 1, a round of the 2005 UCI World Cup Dec. 10-12 and the 2005 UCI Elite World Championships March 23-27. It therefore seems fitting that the future stars of American track cycling will initiate the facility which represents the next generation. Competition begins on Wednesday, June 30 and continues through the weekend. In junior women's competition, Kimberly Geist (Emmaus, Pa.) will undoubtedly be a marked rider after winning both the 2002 and 2003 overall national titles in the 15-16 age group. Her graduation into the 17-18 class this season means tougher competition, but the highly decorated rider who won the 2km scratch race and the points race in 2003 should fair well. Just consider the fact when she made the jump into the 15-16 ranks in 2002 she won all four events at nationals, the 2km scratch race, the 5km scratch race, the points race, and the 500m time trial, on her way to her first of two overall titles. Another rider to keep an eye on is Cindy Lakatosh (Trexlertwon, Pa.). Lakatosh won the 500m time trial and the 5km scratch race last year and finished second to Geist in the overall classification in the 15-16 category. With Geist stepping up to the next age group, Lakatosh looks to have a strong showing in her last season amongst the 15-16-year-olds. Other junior women to keep an eye on include 2004 Pan American Championship team members, Mary Geier (Scarlet Fire.) and Tela Crane (Rad Racing). Mary Costelloe (East Coast Velo) and Lauren Shirock (Coyote Cycling.) will also be looking to add to their 2003 titles. The men's competition has several riders who are keen to show their potential on the national stage as a number of key riders highlight the start list. Michael Schnabel (East Coast Velo), Chris Ruhl (East Coast Velo), and Daniel Holloway (G.S. Lombardi/Klein), the trio that ruled the 15-16 age group at last year's nationals, all move into the 17-18 age group this year. In 2003 Schnabel captured both the 2km and 5km scratch races while Holloway won the 500m time trial and Ruhl claimed the points race and overall omnium title. Returning to defend his two national titles from 2003 in the 17-18 age group is Christopher Remaly (South Bay Wheelman). Remaly won both the points race and the 10km scratch race last season. Last year's defending champion in the 17-18 1km time trial, Aaron Kacala (Cody Racing), has already had a strong season which included a gold medal performance in the kilo at the Pan American Championships. Additional sprinters to be on the look out for include Ryan Nelman (Cody Racing), Mike Blatchford (Veloworx.), and Ben Barczecwski (East Coast Velo.) who also posted impressive results in Ecuador. The 2004 USCF Junior National Track Championships is the qualifying event for the Junior World Championships in late July. For a gallery of young riders practicing for the Nationals, click here. Cyclingnews Tour de France fantasy game is go
All you need to do is pick a team of 15 riders to race and select 9 riders each day during the tour. It's a great way to follow the tour. To register go to fantasy.cyclingnews.com. Good luck! Ride with Davis PhinneyTwo of US cycling's living legends - two-time Tour de France stage winner Davis Phinney and Olympic gold medallist Connie Carpenter Phinney - will ride in the inaugural Sunflower Revolution ride in Warren County, Ohio on July 31. The ride is a fund-raiser for Parkinson's disease research at the Neuroscience Institute at the University of Cincinnati and University Hospital and features two routes 25 and 62 miles through rolling terrain in Warren County. Phinney is himself suffering from Parkinson's Disease and through the Davis Phinney Foundation is now working to raise funds for research into the condition. The ride costs $150 per person, covers lightly traveled country roads and features an historic covered bridge and a field of sunflowers. A gala dinner (also $150) will precede the ride on the evening of July 30 and will feature a live auction including a bike donated by actor Robin Williams. For more information, or to sign up for the ride, visit www.davisphinneyfoundation.com. IMBA's Tim Blumenthal to head Bikes BelongUS bicycle campaigning organization Bikes Belong has announced the appointment of Tim Blumenthal, currently CEO of mountain bike access body IMBA, as its new executive director. Blumenthal, who has headed IMBA since 1993 in which time the organization has grown from one full-time employee (Blumenthal himself) and 1,000 members to 22 employees and 22,000 members, succeeds Rich Olken, Bikes Belong's first executive director, who has served since 1999 and will retire later this year. Matt Hansen's book launchJet Fuel rider and novelist Matt Hansen will be having a book launch/signing on July 1 at Jet Fuel Coffee, 519 Parliament St., Toronto, following the Chin Picnic race, as part of Jet Fuel's Canada Day celebration. Matt will have copies of his latest novel, Therapy available. Just mosey on by after 5PM to pick up a signed book and meet the author. Several other Jet Fuel riders will be present as well, and Matt says everyone is welcome for "some great coffee, beer, and chit-chat!" (All rights reserved/Copyright Knapp Communications Pty Limited 2004) |
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