Fedrigo flies to victory on Col de l'Ospedale

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 After what many described as a strange stage, it was 31-year-old Pierrick Fedrigo (BBox Bouygues Telecom) who claimed victory on the first stage of Criterium International. The French rider was part of the 46-rider group that went clear on the L’Ospedale climb, before he attacked two kilometres from the finish.

Strong winds played a role in the day’s outcome; however the major factor was the expected showdown between the big Grand Tour general classification riders. That showdown played an important role in the stage’s outcome, if only because a few took advantage of the fact it never eventuated.

“I’ve had really bad sensations since Paris-Nice,” Fedrigo said. “It was very special because everybody was waiting for Alberto Contador’s attack and it never happened. When David Moncoutié accelerated, I saw Samuel Sanchez sitting back on his saddle and I went.

“That’s how I found myself at the front,” he added. “I thought a group would come across but with one kilometre to go, the gap was the same and I understood I was going to win.”

Tiago Machado (RadioShack) was second, 10 seconds behind, with Samuel Sanchez (Euskaltel-Euskadi) third, a further two seconds down. RadioShack team director Johan Bruyneel was pleased with Machado’s result and that the team landed three riders in the top 10.

“With the strength he has, he could have stayed all the way with Pierrick Fedrigo,” said Bruyneel. “Last year I saw good things from him, although he wasn’t really a professional. He still has a lot to learn.”

Lance Armstrong (RadioShack) lost ground on the of L’Ospedale climb, while his Tour de France rival Alberto Contador (Astana) also struggled in the final kilometres. Contador was dropped by the leaders to finish 1:12 minutes down while Armstrong fared even worse, crossing the line 4:51 minutes behind.

Illness has hurt Armstrong’s preparation in recent weeks however the Texan isn’t overly concerned about his lowly finish in Corsica. “My day was not very spectacular, I can tell you that, but I couldn’t expect it to be,” said Armstrong.

After finishing fourth on the stage Australia’s Cadel Evans (BMC Racing Team) feels he’s in a strong position to potentially win the event, thanks to Contador and Armstrong’s misfortune. However Evans isn’t sure of his time trial form, with tomorrow being his first time trial of the year, so he said he’ll treat the final stage as a test.

“I think it was a good day for me,” said Evans. “It was a strange race because of the wind, then the general classification riders marked each other, that’s how the stage win went to somebody else [Frenchman Pierrick Fedrigo].”

Fedrigo will wear the leader’s jersey during Sunday’ morning second, stage in Porto Vecchio. Following the relatively flat morning stage the Criterium International then ends with a time trial on Sunday afternoon.