Sastre: Pereiro could have won the Tour

Fourth place getter in the Tour de France, Carlos Sastre (CSC), has said that Pereiro lost the Tour because he was more concerned with Sastre rather than the other riders in the race. Speaking to journalists in his hometown of El Barraco, in Spain, where he was being honoured by the general public, Sastre commented on the crucial 17th stage to Morzine, where Landis took back most of the time he had lost the previous day.

"There were several people who were more concerned with me, of what I had to do and what I could do, than with what they had to do, and they lost a very nice opportunity for their rider to win the Tour de France," said Sastre, referring to the Caisse d'Epargne team.

Sastre also admitted that nobody, including him, thought that Floyd Landis "could endure 130 km in front the way he did" on the way to Morzine. Sastre gave Landis a big "chapeau" after only managing to take back 55 seconds on the Phonak rider on the col de la Joux-Plane.

Although he came close to the Tour podium - the final time trial saw him drop from second to fourth - Sastre came away with a "positive balance" from the Tour. Apart from gaining experience in the race, "It helped me believe more in myself," he said.

After his press conference, Sastre was honoured in El Barraco's City Hall by a delegation of officials and riders from the cycling school directed by his father, Víctor.