First Edition News for March 13, 2003

Edited by Jeff Jones & John Stevenson

Cycling community pays tribute to Kivilev

The news today has been dominated by the tragic death of Kazakh rider Andrei Kivilev (Cofidis), who died as a result of head injuries sustained during a crash in stage 2 of Paris-Nice. The crash occurred in the town of Saint-Chamond with approximately 36 km to go, just after the bunch had passed through the second bonus sprint of the day and were preparing for the Croix du Chaubouret climb.

Reports as to what actually caused the crash vary, although Cyclingnews sources believe that it happened when Kivilev and Marek Rutkiewicz tangled handlebars at high speed, with Kivilev going over the front and hitting the ground face first. He broke two ribs and fractured the base of his skull, immediately going into a coma. He was flown from Saint-Chamond to Saint-Etienne hospital, where doctors tried to stabilise his condition by reducing the pressure on his brain. They did not succeed, and he died in the Intensive Care Unit of Saint-Etienne hospital on Wednesday morning. The Cofidis team announced his death at 10 am.

Kivilev is survived by his wife Natalia and six month old son Leonardo.

Lance Armstrong: "Our kind of guy"

The cycling community worldwide has reacted with shock and sadness to the news of Kivilev's death. In a posting to his website, four time Tour de France winner Lance Armstrong bade a fond farewell to Kivilev.

When Cyclingnews contacted Armstrong yesterday afternoon he referred us to the tribute on his website, adding simply, "We lost a good one." Armstrong's tribute, reproduced here in full, reads:

"Dear readers of LA.com,

"I want to tell you a little about Andrei Kivilev... I came to know Andrei quite well over the years and really admired him and his style. Andrei was unique you see - he was smart, he was perfectly fluent in English (which I suspect is not normal for a young Kazakh), and man was he aggressive. I loved to race with him because you knew when he was in the race, and when the road went uphill, he would lay it all out. Man, was he an attacker! He helped me more then he (or anyone) will ever know - and now he's gone.

"After a crash yesterday that seemed to be quite serious, he took a turn for the worst in the night and passed away this morning. I just got off the phone with Johan who told me the bad news, and I'm devastated. The other side to this is that I know exactly what his teammates and friends are feeling. Images and memories of Fabio Casartelli came rushing back. And of course, Andrei rode for Cofidis, a team which I have enough of a history with. But I can tell you that no matter how ugly it's been between them and myself, I would never in my life wish this on anyone. No way.

"We (Johan and I) tried like hell to get Andrei to come to the team a few years back when he was with Festina. We lost out on the bidding to AG2R and he slipped away from us. We still talk about him and wish we could have had him. He was our kind of man. Consistent, tough, hard working, and a very cool dude. Andrei, I'm gonna miss you my friend. I will look for you at the base of every hard climb I do now, and I will wish with all my heart that you were there to "light it up" or "open it up" like you have done so many times in the past. Rest in peace..."

Hans-Michael Holczer: Not how Gerolsteiner wanted to defend jersey

Race leader Davide Rebellin's team manager, Hans-Michael Holczer, told Cyclingnews that, "Well I can confirm that our rider [Volker] Ordowski was behind Kivilev and in fact, he did a somersault over the crashed riders... and Rebellin just managed to avoid the crash as well. My riders told me that it was a real sprint for position in St. Chamond as the peloton hit the bottom of the hill."

"I can assure you that today [neutralised third stage] was not the way [Team Gerolsteiner] wanted to defend Rebellin's jersey. I understand this situation well, since last summer, my son had a bad crash like Kivilev's and had to have emergency surgery to relieve the swelling in his brain... luckily, now he's fine."

Laurent Biondi: "Cycling was his life"

Laurent Biondi, directeur sportif of Ag2r had Kivilev in his team for one year in 2000. He told Cyclingnews, "Andrei (Kivilev) was someone who was a real perfectionist with his equipment and his training. His way was to always try to be the best possible rider in whatever he did concerning the sport. Andrei was a guy who was always smiling and very nice... he was easy to work with and we were sorry to see him leave out team (for Cofidis). You know, cycling was his life... (Kivilev) will be missed in the peloton."

Jean-François Lamour: "brilliance"

French Minister for Sport Jean-François Lamour also paid tribute to Kivilev, extending his condolences to Kivilev's wife Natalia and the whole of the Cofidis team and praising, "the brilliance shown by this Kazakh cyclist who chose France for the course of his professional career."

Frank Vandenbroucke: "I'm thinking of his family"

Quick-Step Davitamon rider Frank Vandenbroucke was a training partner of Kivilev. "We rode the whole winter together on the Cote d'Azur. He was with his family in Saint Aygulf, and I was in Saint Raphaël, so we called each other often. He'd become a close friend," said Vandenbroucke.

"I was right next to [the crash]. I saw two Cofidis riders go down, but I didn't know it was Kivilev. It's a terrible thing that happened today, like what happened with Casartelli. I'm thinking of his family first of all, of his team, and of his friends."

Chris Peers: "a serious professional and a family man"

Belgian VRT commentator Michel Wuyts spoke to Kivilev's team mate Chris Peers during the broadcast of the neutralised third stage of Paris-Nice. Peers, himself out of action because of a serious injury sustained in Kuurne-Brussels-Kuurne, was very shaken:

"I have had a lot of bad luck in my career myself, but this is something that will mark all of us in the team, in the whole peloton," he explained. He said he knew Kivilev as a serious professional, a very responsible rider but also very much a family man who is leaving behind a lovely wife and a six month old baby son.

Chris Peers said that the whole team is in mourning because of the death of a dear teammate and friend. "We have had so much bad luck as a team this year, with accidents and illness. I only mentioned the other day that I hoped that it would stop and not escalate into something really bad... my words weren't cold yet," said a very emotional Peers.

Chris Peers, an experienced pro himself, also mentioned that the younger riders in the peloton, eager for success, are often very reckless, and because of that there are more serious crashes. "I don't want to point a finger at anyone, but a sort of a code of ethics in the peloton would not be a bad idea. Too many youngsters don't have enough experience of riding in the peloton and take too many risks. I myself am now injured again because of a similar situation."

Scott Sunderland calls for fewer "unnecessary risks"

Cyclingnews diarist Scott Sunderland and his wife Sabine were shocked by the death of one of their colleagues. "We could not put it out of our head since we saw the actual crash on Tuesday. We would like to express our deepest sympathy for his family and team mates," they said.

Echoing the comments of Chris Peers and Hein Verbruggen about rider safety, Scott Sunderland also voiced his concerns about this issue at the beginning of last year. He agrees that accidents are part of the job.

"In the peloton, we know that crashes are unavoidable sometimes, but the way the younger riders are taking unnecessary risks nowadays is crazy," he said. "I lost the whole of 2002 because of a crazy movement made by a younger rider in the Tour Down Under going for 25th place."

Scott has more to say on the issue of safety and the risks of the modern peloton in his latest diary entry.

Jean-Marie Leblanc thanks riders

The race organiser of Paris-Nice, Jean-Marie Leblanc, spoke on Eurosport TV about the death of Andrei Kivilev. "It was an emotional day, particularly before the start, when in arriving by car to the start the riders began to learn in a somewhat confused fashion, and then formally, about the death of Andrei Kivilev," he said.

"You can imagine that the ambience at the start in Le Puy-en-Velay became quite despondent. At that point, as is traditional in cycling, the riders began to reflect on how they could show their solidarity with Andrei Kivilev, and they did today what the peloton already did in 1995 for Fabio Casartelli, they decided to neutralize the stage. But they did this, and I thank them for this, in a very professional manner."

"There was first the human, spontaneous reaction; the heart always speaks. The solidarity between the riders always comes out after an accident."

Leblanc added that the riders were also considerate of the organisation, and rode at a relatively fast pace to arrive at the finish around the planned time.

On the inevitable helmet issue, Leblanc said that "I think it's necessary to put the issue back on the table, a problem which was put forth 12 years ago. At the time the UCI intervened and said they wanted to make helmets obligatory for riders' protection. However the idea was rejected at the time by the professionals, saying that helmets were heavy, annoying in the heat, etc. But, materials have evolved and now we have helmets that are lighter and better ventilated."

"In addition, there's a generation of riders who ten years ago were amateurs, and they were required to wear helmets. These young riders have turned professional, and they've all grown accustomed to wearing helmets, or almost all... 90 percent. And that's why the situation is better now to put the question back on the table to discuss the situation."

"It's a bit like highway safety and the imposition of a speed limit. There's a point at which personal liberties must take a back seat to the benefit of the public good. The situation now should be a bit more amenable to require professionals to wear helmets. Without doubt, Andrei might have been saved had he worn a helmet, that's what one could think today."

UCI extends condolences, calls for reconsideration of helmet issue

In a statement issued yesterday afternoon, the Union Cyclist International has offered its sympathy to Andrei Kivilev's family and team-mates, and suggested that the issue of mandatory helmet use in the pro peloton should be reopened.

The UCI's statement reads:

"Deeply shocked by the death of Kazakh rider Andrei Kivilev in the second stage of Paris-Nice, the International Cycling Union (UCI) would like to extend its sincere condolences to the family of the athlete, whose lives have been devastated by this tragic accident, and also its sympathy to his team and all the participants in the event, on such a sad day for the sport of cycling.

"The UCI would like to note that in 1991 a proposal to make the wearing of helmets obligatory was rejected by a large majority of professional riders [A protest was held during the 1991 Paris-Nice - Ed].

"This rule has in fact been applied in all other cycling disciplines, especially those involving young riders. The aim of this policy was to encourage those same riders to continue to wear their helmets once they became professional. Today, the great majority of professional cyclists do wear helmets.

"For the benefit of those who claim the right to make up their own minds when it comes to their own personal safety, the UCI has always maintained as a permanent reminder an explicit recommendation to wear a helmet, even during training.

"While wearing a helmet can never eliminate all the risks inherent in cycling, the UCI will be taking the initiative in the short term of asking all parties concerned to reconsider this issue."

38th Tirreno-Adriatico

The 38th edition of Tirreno-Adriatico, The Race of the Two Seas, will start today in Sabaudia with a 178 kilometre stage. The race finishes in San Benedetto del Tronto on March 19, three days before Milan-San Remo. The organisers RCS Sport issued a statement today to indicate that there will be a minute's silence before the start of the first stage in memory of Andrei Kivilev.

The start list is star-studded for this Hors Categorie race, with Paolo Bettini, Johan Museeuw (Quick-Step Davitamon), Rik Verbrugghe (Lotto-Domo), Danilo Di Luca (Saeco), Yaroslav Popovych (Landbouwkrediet-Colnago), Giuliano Figueras (Panaria), Ivan Basso (Fassa Bortolo), Mario Cipollini (Domina Vacanze), Erik Zabel (Telekom) and Oscar Freire (Rabobank) doing battle on the Italian roads.

The race is the traditional preparation for Milan-San Remo, which takes place on March 22 this year. It's no coincidence that the last seven winners of Milan-San Remo have all participated in Tirreno-Adriatico, with Erik Zabel and Mario Cipollini fine tuning their form there for La Primavera.

Tirreno-Adriatico will be run in seven stages, including two mountain top finishes (stage 4 and 5) but no time trials and no rest days. It will be the first time that the race will start in Sabaudia, with the first stage consisting of a picturesque circuit race. It leaves Sabaudia on day 2 and follows the coast in the direction of Tarquinia, then turns inland towards Foligno, Ortezzano, Monte San Giusto, Rapagnano, Teramo and Torricella Sicura, before the final stage on the seaside at San Benedetto del Tronto on March 19.

Teams

Alessio, Ceramiche Panaria-Fiordo, Cofidis, De Nardi-Colpack, Domina Vacanze-Elitron, Fassa Bortolo, Formaggi Pinzolo Fiave, Gerolsteiner, iBanesto.com, Lampre, Landbouwkrediet-Colnago, Lotto-Domo, ONCE-Eroski, Phonak, Quick.Step-Davitamon, Rabobank, Saeco, Sidermec, Team CSC, Team Telekom

Stages

Stage 1 - March 13: Sabaudia-Sabaudia, 178 km
Stage 2 - March 14: Sabaudia-Tarquinia, 215 km
Stage 3 - March 15: Tarquinia-Foligno, 168 km
Stage 4 - March 16: Foligno-Ortezzano, 154 km
Stage 5 - March 17: Monte San Giusto-Rapagnano, 181 km
Stage 6 - March 18: Teramo-Torricella Sicura, 179 km
Stage 7 - March 19: S. Benedetto del Tronto-S. Benedetto del Tronto, 162 km

Team McGuire Cycling

The Cycle Couriers of San Francisco announces the formation of their new road team, Team McGuire, managed by Terrence Curley. The team will contest all California races, MacLane Pacific, the Solano Stage Race, Sea Otter Classic, the Manhattan Beach GP as well as Super Week. The team is supported by McGuire Real Estate and Big Swingin Cycles of San Francisco.

Full roster

Correction: Kial Stewart

In our 'Latest News' bulletin for March 10 we reported that an attack in Adelaide on Australian cyclist Kial Stewart alledgedly involved members of the Under 22 English cricket team. Subsequent reports named two local men as being arrested in connection with the attack. We apologise for any confusion caused by this.

(All rights reserved/Copyright Knapp Communications Pty Limited 2003)