Botman wins treacherous stage

Image 1 of 17

The Netherlands’ Wim Botman outsprinted Burkina Faso’s Oumarou Minougou at the end of a brutal dirt road course on the Tour du Faso's penultimate stage. Yellow jersey Julien Schick led the peloton just a few seconds behind to hold onto the race lead on the Tour's queen stage.

Although stage nine covered only 112km, stage 9 loomed ominously on the peloton’s mind. Finishing with 26km of dirt track, this stage presented a treacherous climax to Africa’s largest stage race.

Before the race, team mechanics prepared for the rough road by doubling their tires. Meanwhile, directors anxiously discussed strategies to keep their top riders out of trouble. The European teams hinted that the Burkina riders may hold an advantage on the rough roads, while African teams worried more about the state of their equipment than the European competition.

The peloton stayed mostly intact for the first 86km of pothole-ridden highway. Team Reine Blanche continued their control of the peloton, protecting Julien Schick’s yellow jersey as flat tires and small crashes thinned the pack.

Etienne Tarbagdo of the Burkina Faso Central Regional Team made the first significant move of the day, gaining nearly four minutes before the dirt track. Riding solo, Tarbagdo benefited from clear sight lines while dust caused confusion in the chasing peloton.

Unwilling to take chances, Team Reine Blanche set a furious pace to keep Julien Schick out of trouble. The peloton kicked up a cloud of dust, splitting into dozens of smaller groups as the sharp stones took their toll. Numerous riders were spotted riding on flat tires as the team cars struggled to service their racers who were scattered up and down the dirt road.

With 10k remaining the Reine Blanche paceline absorbed Tarbagdo. A counter-attack immediately followed, with the Netherland’s Wim Botman and Burkina Faso’s Oumarou Minougou launching together. The two rolled just a few hundred meters ahead of 15 riders who remained in the yellow jersey group.

Crowds lined the dusty path as Botman and Minougou entered Koudougou just seconds ahead of the chasers. In a hair-raising sprint, the two leaders jumped onto pavement and traversed railroad tracks with 50 meters remaining. The more experienced Botman bested his counterpart to claim victory five seconds ahead of the field sprint. Benefitting from his teammates' hard work, Julien Schick led the peloton home for third place, coming one stage closer to overall victory in the Tour du Faso.

Once again, Rasmané Ouedraogo retains the jersey of Best African Rider while Belgium’s Laurent Mars strengthened his lead on the green sprinters jersey.

Sunday’s final stage of the 2010 Tour du Faso will cover 115.9km, from Korsimoro to Ouagadougou, culminating in 10 laps of 5km through downtown Ouagadougou. Well over 100,000 spectators are expected to turn out in the capital of the most bicycle-loving country in Africa.