2013 Cycling Thread

[Smallville22]

Victory for Battaglin as Wiggins loses time

Britain's Bradley Wiggins lost precious seconds to his main rivals in a sodden stage four of the Giro d'Italia, won by Italian youngster Enrico Battaglin.
Race favourite Wiggins of Team Sky crossed the line in a second group 17 seconds behind the winner, Battaglin of Italian wildcard team Bardiani Valvole, to drop from second to sixth on GC.
The 2012 Tour de France champion was held up after three riders hit the deck in Apocalyptic conditions towards the finish. Although the incident happened in the closing 3km, the race jury only awarded the three riders who crashed the same time as the stage winner.
Following the controversial decision, Wiggins is now level on time with defending champion Ryder Hesjedal of Garmin-Sharp and 34 seconds behind the pink jersey Luca Paolini (Katusha).
Twenty-three-year-old Battaglin produced the ride of his career to reel in escapee Danilo Di Luca (Vini Fantini) inside the closing 100 metres before taking the victory in Serra San Bruno by a couple of bike lengths ahead of fellow Italians Fabio Felline (Androni Giocattoli) and Giovanni Visconti (Movistar).
“I was good yesterday and I hoped to win," Battaglin said, "but in the end it felt more like a Moto GP than a bike race and I was dropped.
“Today the climb suited me, the rain might have stopped some riders, and the gradient wasn’t too hard, and even though I attacked a bit early, it went well.”
He continued: “In 2011, after I had won everything as an amateur, I started my pro career winning at the end of 2011 [he won the Coppa Sabatini in October 2011].
“Perhaps I thought it was easier than it really is. I may have paid for that last year [when he failed to win once in 2012].
“This year, I was determined to show that I’m a good rider. I worked hard in the winter and I’m starting to reap the rewards.”
Team Sky's Rigoberto Uran crossed the line in fourth place - but in heavy mist and lashing rain there was no sign of the Colombian's team leader Wiggins, who lost touch with the main group during the 6km run into the finish following the second of two categorised climbs towards the end of the long 246km stage.
Uran is now second on GC, 17 seconds behind Paolini, with Spaniard Benat Intxausti (Movistar) third at 26 seconds.
Italian favourite Vincenzo Nibali suffered a scare on the descent of the penultimate climb of the day, 35km from the finish, when picking up an untimely puncture.
But 2010 Vuelta champion Nibali was able to swap wheels with Astana team-mate Valerio Agnoli and finished safely in the main group. He rises to fourth on GC, 31 seconds down on the maglia rosa Paolini.
A break of seven riders - Julien Berard (Ag2R-La Mondiale), Emanuele Sella (Androni Giocattoli), Miguel Minguez and Ioannis Tamouridis (both Euskaltel), Johan Le Bon and Francis Mourey (both FDJ) and Pim Ligthart (Vacansoleil-DCM) - rode off the front of the peloton shortly after the start of the Giro's second longest stage at Policastro Bussentino.
The seven escapees forged a maximum lead of just over seven minutes on the coastal roads heading to the toe of Italy.
But the presence of Sella - just 2:39 down in the overnight standings - meant that the Katusha team of race leader Paolini were wary of the break building up too much of an advantage.
When Sella, Tamouridis and Mourey were dropped by the leading group it looked like the game was back on for the escapees. The lead grew from three minutes to just under the five-minute mark with around 70km remaining.
This gap, however, had been whittled down to just two minutes when the race reached the first real test of the day, the Cat.3 Vibo Valentia.
Minguez attacked with Berard but both riders were reeled in before the summit as Stefano Pirazzi (Bardiani Valvole) jumped clear to take the points over the top.
By this point, the sun and blue skies from the coastal road had been replaced with rain and mist - making for a nervous conclusion to the stage.
A new five-man break formed around Pirazzi and Marco Marcato of Vacansoleil-DCM. Frenchman Sylvain Georges (Ag2R-La Mondiale) then went for broke at the start of the Cat.2 Croce Ferrata 18km from the finish.
Georges held a one-minute advantage over the main pack, which was being controlled by Team Sky and Katusha, when Di Luca made his move.
The controversial Italian veteran - who won the Giro in 2007, two years before being ****** for testing positive to CERA (third generation EPO) - powered clear of the pack, taking Colombia's Robinson Chalapud in tow.
Georges was soon caught before the leaders crossed the summit with a slender advantage over the pack.
Rolling back the years, Di Luca looked like he would defy the onslaught of the peloton. The 37-year-old seemed to have given up as he ****** under the kite - but was stirred by a last-ditch blast by his Colombian colleague.
Neither rider quite had the strength to withstand the pack - and Di Luca was swept up agonisingly close to the finish.
Battling through the rain, Battaglin surged ahead of the rest of the field to take the win in his second appearance in the Giro d'Italia.
Felline and Visconti were left to fight for the scraps - although the latter managed to take back the blue mountains jersey after taking third place over both summit ahead of his third place at the finish.
Australian Cadel Evans of BMC finished strongly in sixth place to ride to 10th in the overall standings, 42 seconds behind Paolini.
The Giro continues on Wednesday with the 203km stage five from Cosenza to Matera, which concludes with another succession of punchy climbs.

Stage four result:

1 Enrico Battaglin (Ita) Bardiani Valvole-CSF Inox 6:14:19

2 Fabio Felline (Ita) Androni Giocattoli -

3 Giovanni Visconti (Ita) Movistar Team -

4 Rigoberto Uran Uran (Col) Sky Procycling -

5 Arnold Jeannesson (Fra) FDJ -

6 Cadel Evans (Aus) BMC Racing Team -

7 Benat Intxausti Elorriaga (Spa) Movistar Team -

8 Ryder Hesjedal (Can) Garmin-Sharp -

9 Robert Kiserlovski (Cro) RadioShack Leopard -

10 Luca Paolini (Ita) Katusha

Top 10 in General Classification:

1 Luca Paolini (Ita) Katusha 15:18:51 -

2 Rigoberto Uran Uran (Col) Sky Procycling 0:00:17 -

3 Benat Intxausti Elorriaga (Spa) Movistar Team 0:00:26 -

4 Vincenzo Nibali (Ita) Astana Pro Team 0:00:31 -

5 Ryder Hesjedal (Can) Garmin-Sharp 0:00:34 -

6 Bradley Wiggins (GBr) Sky Procycling -

7 Giampaolo Caruso (Ita) Katusha 0:00:36 -

8 Sergio Luis Henao Montoya (Col) Sky Procycling 0:00:37 -

9 Mauro Santambrogio (Ita) Vini Fantini-Selle Italia 0:00:39 -

10 Cadel Evans (Aus) BMC Racing Team 0:00:42

 

[Smallville22]

Question mark over Wiggins form, says Cobo

Tour de France champion Bradley Wiggins has yet to show the form of last season that would make him top favourite for the Giro d'Italia, according to Juan Jose Cobo, the last non-Team Sky rider to beat the Briton on a Grand Tour.
"He's not necessarily the strongest rider," Spaniard Cobo told Reuters before Tuesday's fourth stage where Wiggins lost 17 seconds as the peloton split in the final kilometres.
"Personally I think (Italian) Vincenzo Nibali is equally likely to win."
Wiggins dropped from second to sixth overall on Tuesday, 34 seconds adrift of Italian Luca Paolini. Nibali is in fourth and last year's winner Ryder Hesjedal of Canada fifth, 31 and 34 seconds off the pace respectively.
Cobo, who toppled Wiggins and his Sky team mate Chris Froome to win the 2011 Tour of Spain, believes Wiggins may not be at his best, while others have shown they are in great shape.
"If Bradley had the same level as in last year's Tour then he's probably unbeatable but that's not at all clear yet this season," he said.
"Nibali has been very strong in all the races he's done this year and Wiggins hasn't yet had a chance to show his hand.
"Hesjedal has been very active in a lot of races too, and yesterday (Monday) when he attacked on that last climb, he showed he's got really good form," he added.
"That was very impressive, and he's the most recent winner of the Giro. He's somebody who has to count."
Wiggins has not won a race this season, while Nibali has taken the Tirreno-Adriatico stage race ahead of Froome and the Giro del Trentino, Italy's key warm-up race for the Giro d'Italia, ahead of Wiggins.
"Bradley is a favourite, but one of several, not the top candidate," Cobo said. "He's not been up there yet, but we'll see what happens."
Cobo, who raced against Wiggins in last year's Tour de France but as part of his build-up for the Tour of Spain, his big target of the year, said Sky were the strongest team collectively in the Giro.
"When it comes to the third week, they'll be the ones who really matter, they'll make the running," he said.
Cobo said although he beat Wiggins in the 2011 Tour of Spain, wrenching the lead from him on the Angliru, Spain's toughest single climb, the Briton had not been in his top condition then.
"He was coming back from a lot of injuries and a bad crash in the Tour de France. It's nice to have done it, I won't forget that I beat him but you have to keep it in perspective," he said.
Racing injured after he crashed and hit his knee in the reconnaissance of Sunday's team time trial, Cobo was dropped on Tuesday's final climb of the Croce Ferrata early on.
"I was hoping to do well, perhaps even a top-10 result but with this injury, that's not going to happen," he said.
"My best option now is a stage win and to work for (Spanish Movistar overall contender) Benat Intxausti (who lies third behind Rigoberto Uran and Paolini). I'm not going to be beating Wiggins in this year's race, that's for sure."

 

[Smallville22]

Brambilla escapes wrist fracture in Giro crash

Omega Pharma Quick-Step’s Gianluca Brambilla crashed 185km into stage four of the Giro d'Italia on Tuesday.
The Italian rider fell onto his right wrist and arm. Brambilla underwent immediate X-rays to his wrist after the finish, and results seem to exclude any fracture.
He expects to be back in action for the fifth stage on Wednesday. "I was riding in the peloton when suddenly somebody in front of me hit their brakes," Brambilla said.
"I had to brake also, but somebody touched my bike from behind and I fell. Fortunately the speed wasn't so high.
“I had a few scratches and pain on my right wrist, but that's ok. It wouldn't be anything serious. Tomorrow I will be at the start."

 

[Smallville22]

Porte extends deal with Team Sky

Team Sky have announced that Richie Porte has extended his contract with the team.
The Tasmanian enjoyed his best-ever start to a season in 2013, carrying strong early-season form into the spring and capturing a landmark victory at Paris-Nice in March.
Two further second places at the Criterium International and Vuelta al Pais Vasco both included stage victories and signalled a rider growing in confidence and embracing the role of a team leader.
Porte joined Team Sky at the start of the 2012 season and played an integral part in the campaign that included sustained stage race success and victory at the Tour de France with Sir Bradley Wiggins.
The 28-year-old possesses the ability to climb and time trial, making him a prime candidate for leadership in future Grand Tours according to the team.
Porte said: “I'm really happy at Team Sky and this was always the best scenario for me. I've had a great two years with the team and I feel at home here.
“There was interest from other teams but Team Sky are the best in the world, with the best staff and riders. Guys like Tim Kerrison have helped me become a better rider and I know I can improve further working with the performance team we have here.
“With this new contract comes an added responsibility, and while I'm more than happy to help guys like Chris Froome and Sir Bradley Wiggins in the future, I'd love to lead the squad in a Grand Tour next season.”
Team Sky team principal Sir Dave Brailsford said: “Richie has been a key part this team’s stage race success since he arrived here and this new contract is a statement of intent for both him and the team.
“Every time he has taken on a leadership role he has excelled. We saw at Paris-Nice exactly what Richie is capable of and there is no doubt that there is a lot more to come from him.
“If he maintains his current trajectory there is no reason why he can’t go in to a Grand Tour and challenge for victory.”

 

[Smallville22]

Degenkolb avoids crash to win wet stage five

German youngster John Degenkolb proved the strongest in a splintered finish in Matera depite a crash by his last Argos-Shimano lead-out man.
Degenkolb's Argos-Shimano team-mate Luka Mezgec hit the tarmac on a newly painted zebra crossing coming out of the final bend of the 203km stage from Cosenza - leaving Italy's Marco Canola (Bardiani Valvole) alone on the front inside the final kilometre.
But Degenkolb avoided the ensuing melee and managed to reel back Canola inside the closing 200 metres to take the first Giro d'Italia stage victory of his career.
Spain's Angel Vicioso (Katusha) was second and Dutchman Paul Maertens (Blanco) took third as a splintered pack crossed the line in drips and drabs after another eventful day on the 96th edition of Italy's premiere stage race.
"My lead-out man crashed and there was just one guy in front," said the moustachioed Degenkolb after his first win of the season. "I looked back and saw just [Elia] Viviani behind and so I went full gas to catch the rider from Bardiani."
Despite the crash by his Slovenian team-mate Mezgec - which caused Degenkolb to swerve and clip out of the pedals - the 24-year-old sprinter was quick to thank his Argos-Shimano team for their hard work during another wet stage on the Giro.
"It was a great job by my team. We controlled the race and had the confidence to lead the chase. It was a great day for Argos-Shimano," he said, adding: "I had to suffer a lot to get to the finish."
Italian veteran Luca Paolini (Katusha) - the stage three winner - finished in the main pack to retain his pink jersey as race leader.
Race favourites Vincenzo Nibali (Astana), Ryder Hesjedal (Garmin-Sharp) and Bradley Wiggins (Team Sky) finished safely to stay in fourth, fifth and sixth place respectively. The Italian trails his compatriot Paolini by 31 seconds while last year's winners of the Giro and Tour are both a further three seconds in arrears.
Wiggins' Sky team-mate Rigoberto Uran retained his second place on GC despite puncturing 14km from the finish. The Colombian managed to fight back into the peloton in time for the dramatic finale - and stays 17 seconds down on Paolini. Spain's Benat Intxausti (Movistar) is fifth at 26 seconds.
Six riders broke clear of the peloton after just six sunny opening kilometres. Tomas Gil (Androni Giocattoli), Stefano Pirazzi (Bardiani Valvole), Alan Marangoni (Cannondale), Ricardo Mestre (Euskaltel), Brian Bulgac (Lotto Belisol) and Rafael Andriato (Vini Fantini) built up a maximum lead of nine minutes ahead of the first of two fourth category climbs.
Italy's Pirazzi took maximum points over the first climb before dropping back to the peloton to give the break a chance of survival: trailing Paolini by just 3:06 in the overall standings, Pirazzi was clearly marked out as a danger man by Katusha.
As the race edged along the Gulf of Tarento the weather took a turn for the worse, with the sun and blue sky replaced with grey clouds and *******ial rain. At the finish in Matera there was so much water that the closing straight had become a river and pieces of media equipment were being washed away.
The remaining five leaders were reeled in on the last climb of the day, the Cat.4 Montescaglioso, 22km from the finish.
Sprinters Mark Cavendish (Omega Pharma-Quick Step) and Matt Goss (Orica-GreenEdge) were both tailed off on the short and sharp ascent as numerous riders tried their luck off the front.
Frenchman Hubert Dupont (Ag2R-La Mondiale) had a dig 6km from the finish but was swallowed up by the peloton with 3km to go.
Although the Matera monsoon had long since stopped and the sun had returned, the roads into the town were still wet as the pack roared into the picturesque settlement best known for its ancient village of hilltop caves and stone houses - the Sassi.
With Canola entering the final bend in pole position to set things up for team-mates Sacha Modolo and Tuesday's winner, Enrico Battaglin, Argos-Shimano's Mezgec had similar intentions for Degenkolb.
But the Slovenian lost his front wheel and slipped into the barriers at top speed, bringing down numerous riders with him and causing a massive split in the peloton.
Degenkolb, winner of five stages on last year's Vuelta, showed remarkable bike-handling skills to avoid hitting the deck - and after one look back to survey the devastation in his ****, he set off in pursuit of the unlikely lone leader.
Canola gave it his best shot but was no match for the power of Degenkolb who roared across the line to open up his Giro account in style.
Degenkolb will be in the red points jersey when the race continues on Thursday with the flat 169km stage six along the Adriatic Coast from Mola di Bari to Margherita di Savoia in Puglia.

 

[Smallville22]

Cavendish the strongest in stage six

Britain's Mark Cavendish benefited from a superb lead-out to win a fast bunch sprint at the end of stage six of the Giro d'Italia in Margherita di Savoia.
The Omega Pharma-Quick Step sprinter was expertly launched by team-mate Gert Steegmans in the closing straight before winning by a bike length ahead of rivals Elia Viviani (Cannondale) and Matt Goss (Orica-GreenEdge).
It was Cavendish's twelfth individual Giro stage win of his career - and his second on the 2013 race following the opening day victory in Naples. The 27-year-old also moves back into the red jersey at the top of the points classification.
Overnight race leader Luca Paolini (Katusha) finished safely in the peloton to retain his maglia rosa. The Italian leads Rigoberto Uran (Team Sky) by 17 seconds and Benat Intxausti (Movistar) by 26 seconds.
After his ninth scalp of the season, Cavendish was quick to praise his team-mates for a near-flawless day in the saddle.
"It was unbelievable. I'm so happy," said Cavendish after exchanging a series of hugs with his OPQS colleagues. "We had no problems today. Everything went well. It was beautiful. Gert Steegmans at his best is one of the best lead-out men ever."
The former world champion showed his poetic side with a well-crafted simile: "Imagine a big car - the team are all the important bits and the engine. I'm just the last bit at the end - the exhaust - the bit that makes the most noise."
Cavendish also had a message for a former Quick Step rider sorely missed by friends, ****** and the world of cycling alike.
"I'd like to dedicate this win to Wouter Weylandt. It's two years ago today since his tragic death," he said, referring to the Belgian rider who suffered a fatal fall on the descent of the Passo del Bocco on stage three of the 2011 Giro.
If ever there was a stage with Cavendish's name on it - this was it. The short 169km ride along the Adriatic Coast and through the flat countryside of Puglia concluded with two laps of a 16km circuit and a pancake flat finale.
Two Australians - the attacking Cameron Wurf (Cannondale) and young track specialist Jack Bobridge (Blanco) - broke clear of the pack early on and built up a maximum lead of six and a half minutes.
With Wurf in the break, the Cannondale team of Italian sprinter Viviani were under no obligation to lead the chase - but they were nevertheless fairly active on the front of the peloton as their man nipped ahead of Cavendish on two occasions to take third place behind the escapees in the intermediate sprints.
With points from the finish taken into account, Viviani now trails Cavendish by six points in the standings in what is now looking to be a two-***** race.
Britain's Bradley Wiggins (Team Sky) had a scare after being caught up by a large pile-up which caused half the peloton to come to a complete standstill on the first of two laps 32 kilometres from the finish.
The Tour de France champion was returning to the back of the peloton after picking up a puncture when the incident occurred. With the crash barriers on the side of the road and the heap of mangled bikes and bodies forming a barricade on the road, Wiggins and four Sky team-mates could do nothing but wait until an opening emerged.
Luckily for Wiggins several other GC contenders were involved in the split - including Italian favourite Vincenzo Nibali of Astana and compatriot Michele Scarponi of Lampre-Merida.
As such, the pace slowed on the front of the main pack until order was restored with 22km left to ride.
Inside the final five kilometres two riders - Manuele Boaro (Saxo Bank-Tinkoff) and Pim Ligthart (Vacansoleil-DCM) - were both thwarted after audacious solo attempts.
The scene was set for a sprint battle royale - and the main protagonists did not disappoint.
The Argos Shimano team of Wednesday's winner John Degenkolb, however, made a hash of their tactics, launching their man too early and disappearing without a trace.
Instead, Belgian powerhouse Steegmans ushered Cavendish through with aplomb - although it wasn't a pretty affair. As much as OPQS got their tactics right on Thursday, they are no HTC. And they certainly benefited from the disarray among other teams.
French national champion Nacer Bouhanni (FDJ) found himself boxed in by the barriers on the left while Italian Mattia Gavazzi (Androni-Giocattoli) appeared to propel himself past South African Robbie Hunter (Garmin-Sharp) by using his arms to pull back his opponent.
Hunter and Gavazzi almost came to blows in the finish area - and the race commissaires will no doubt have a look at replays and discipline the Italian accordingly.
There was no doubt about the win, however. From the moment Steegmans pulled away there was no doubt that Cavendish was going to double his tally on the 96th edition of the Corsa Rosa.
Viviani and Goss both did their best to get in the mix - but in the end they were sprinting for second place. Bouhanni crossed the line in fourth and slammed the handlebars in disgust after what was an extremely edgy affair.
The Giro continues on Friday with the hilly 177km stage seven through the Abruzzo region. With four categorised climbs on the menu, the testing stage from Marina Di San Salvo to Pescara on the Adriatic Coast will be the first major rendez-vous for the big race favourites.

 

[Smallville22]

Wiggins loses time as Hansen wins in Pescara

Bradley Wiggins crashed in wet conditions in the hilly Abruzzo region as Australian Adam Hansen soloed to victory in stage seven of the Giro d'Italia.
Team Sky's Wiggins dropped out of the top twenty in the overall standings after crossing the line a disconsolate figure more than a minute behind his main rivals in the undulating 177km stage from San Salvo.
A dramatic day of multiple crashes and numerous attacks saw Lotto Belisol's Hansen take the biggest win of his career as Spaniard Benat Intxausti (Movistar) moved into the pink jersey.
With overnight leader Luca Paolini (Katusha) coming home in the same group as Wiggins, Intxausti now leads Italy's Vincenzo Nibali (Astana) by five seconds and the Canadian defending champion Ryder Hesjedal (Garmin-Sharp) by eight seconds.
To make matters worse for Team Sky, Colombian duo Rigoberto Uran and Sergio Henao both followed their leader's nosedive down the standings after easing up to pace Wiggins to the finish.
The decisive crash occurred just 5km from the finish as Wiggins was chasing back onto a select group of riders after losing touch on the last of four categorised climbs.
Escapee Emanuele Sella (Androni Giocattoli) had come a cropper on the same tight right-hand bend just moments before - and Wiggins fell on the inside of the hairpin as he fought to hang on as his rivals put him under pressure.
The group - which contained the likes of Nibali, Hesjedal, Intxausti, Cadel Evans (BMC) and Michele Scarponi (Lampre-Merida) - pressed on towards the line in pursuit of lone leader Hansen.
Uran and Henao dropped back once they noted Wiggins's absence - but the incident came too close to the finish for the trio to fight back into contention. 33-year-old Wiggins gingerly completed the descent taking no risks before joining his team-mates for the flat run into Pescara.
Wiggins is now 1:32 down on Intxausti in the overall standings ahead of Saturday's all-important 55km individual time trial - for which he is, on paper, the outright favourite.
The drama involving last year's Tour de France winner took the gloss off a quite brilliant ride by Hansen, the only rider in the professional peloton to complete all three Grand Tours last year.
The 31-year-old Australian was part of a six-man group that broke clear of the peloton 13km into the short but relentlessly up-and-down stage.
Teaming up with Ioannis Tamouridis (Euskaltel), Maarten Tjallingii (Blanco), Dominique Rollin (FDJ) and Pim Ligthart (Vacansoleil-DCM), Hansen and Sella combined well to build up a maximum lead of seven minutes.
Despite passing through numerous hilltop towns and tackling a succession of leg-sapping climbs, the riders did not reach the first of four categorised ascents until they had already clocked up 115km.
The Gods were not smiling down on the peloton - with the arrival of the steep climbs coinciding with heavy rainfall.
Chasing the king of the mountain points for the blue jersey competition, Sella jumped clear of his fellow escapees on the Cat.3 Chieti-Pietragrossa climb (7.8 per cent with a maximum gradient of 16 per cent) around 40km from the finish.
Hansen joined the controversial Italian on the front of the race as the other four fugitives started to falter. Italian wildcard team Vini Fantini sent Fabio Taborre up the road as a launchpad for either Danilo Di Luca or Matteo Rabottini - both Pescara natives.
But by now the weather was beginning to cause chaos on the road. Sella crashed on a tight bend with 30km remaining and struggled back onto the wheel of Hansen ahead of the penultimate climb.
With Sella tiring, Hansen rode clear to cross the summit three minutes ahead of the chasing pack. Knowing his team-mate Taborre was up the road, Di Luca attacked from this select group to spark a response by the race favourites.
On the final climb of the day, Astana sent Estonian national champion Tanel Kangert forward, with Di Luca busting a gut to ride in his wheels.
As the rain lashed down, Nibali attacked on the final descent only to slip onto his side on a left-hand bend. The 2010 Vuelta a Espana winner swiftly got back on his bike to continue heaping the pressure on Wiggins, who at this time was struggling to maintain contact with the other favourites.
Sella crashed a second time 5km from the finish as he made his last-gasp effort to reel in Hansen. Moments after he remounted, the chasing group returned - and Wiggins, toiling away on the tail, suffered the same fate as Sella.
By now, Hansen was well on his way to the biggest win of his career. The former HTC rider had time to smile at the cameras and salute the crowd as he came home, a mixture of disbelief and joy on his face.
"When we had a good advantage in the break I thought we had a good chance at staying out," Hansen said after his victory. "I don't usually climb badly when I'm in a breakaway. Lotto Belisol have won a stage here in the Giro for the last four years and this time I'm the lucky one."
Enrico Bataglin, winner of Wednesday's stage five, out-sprinted local boy Di Luca to take second place as the chasing group came home 1:07 down on Hansen.
Wiggins and Paolini crossed the line more than a minute later with the pink jersey dropping to 15th on GC and Wiggins disappearing out of the top 20.
Australia's Evans, the 2011 Tour champion, rose to sixth on GC just 16 seconds behind Intxausti and three seconds ahead of seventh-place Dutchman Robert Gesink (Blanco).
British Olympic time trial gold medallist Wiggins will hope to regain his lost time on Saturday's 55km time trial - although it remains to be seen what physical and psychological damage his crash has done.
Prior to the 96th edition of the Corsa Rosa everyone was talking about Wiggins using his time gain from the ITT as a cushion heading into the mountains.
A week into the Giro, Wiggins will need to take all the time he can get merely to move back on level terms as his rivals in what is proving to be an intriguing race.

 

[Smallville22]

Kittel wins opening stage of Tour de Picardie

Germany’s Marcel Kittel came through to win the opening stage of the Tour de Picardie from Guise to Flixecourt, outsprinting the French trio of Bryan Coquard, Erwann Corbel and Benjamin Giraud to the line.
Dutch cyclist Danny Van Poppel finished fourth ahead of British rider Andrew Fennwith with another Frenchman, Maxime Daniel, grabbing the final point in seventh.
Team Argos – Shimano rider Kittel won the 190k stage in a time of 4:57:46 to edge out the group in the bunch sprint to lead going into Saturday’s 170k stage from Oisemont to Bailleul-sur-Thérain.

RESULTS:

1 KITTEL Marcel Team Argos - Shimano

2 COQUARD Bryan Team Europcar

3 CORBEL Erwann Bretagne- Séché Environnement

4 GIRAUD Benjamin La Pomme Marseille

5 VAN POPPEL Danny Vacansoleil - DCM

6 FENN Andrew Omega Pharma - Quick-Step

7 VAN HUMMEL Kenny Vacansoleil - DCM
"
8 DANIEL Maxime Sojasun

 

[Smallville22]

Dowsett upsets Wiggins as Nibali takes pink

Britain's Alex Dowsett beat compatriot Bradley Wiggins in a 55km individual time trial as Italian Vincenzo Nibali moved into the maglia rosa after stage eight of the Giro d'Italia.
The cycling world expected one Briton to top the podium in Saltara but instead they were treated to the sight of another as youngster Dowsett of Movistar produced a pulsating ride to beat hot favourite Wiggins by 10 seconds over a demanding course.
The 39th of 200 riders to start the hilly race against the clock, Grand Tour debutant Dowsett completed what he described as "the hardest TT of my life" in a time of one hour, 16 minutes and 27 seconds.
Olympic time trial gold medallist Wiggins suffered an early puncture that required him to change his bike less than 20km into the test. But the Team Sky leader recovered well to post the second-best time to make it a British one-two on the podium.
Dowsett, the British national time trial champion and a former team-mate of Wiggins at Sky, left Sir Dave Brailsford's British team in the winter to join Movistar in a bid to improve his chances of riding a Grand Tour.
Victory in the time trial of his maiden Giro proves that the ****** has certainly paid off for the 24-year-old rider from Essex.
Italian favourite Nibali of Astana was quick out of the blocks and beat Dowsett's first intermediate split time by eight seconds at the 26km mark in Pesaro.
The hilly and winding course took its toll, however, and Nibali faded to post the fourth best time at the finish, 21 seconds behind Dowsett and seven seconds down on Estonian team-mate Tanel Kangert, who finished third.
Nibali's loss of just 11 seconds to Wiggins will feel like a victory for the new maglia rosa wearer, with many having predicted Wiggins would take at least two minutes from his main rivals.
A day after losing valuable time to his rivals after crashing on wet roads towards the finish of Friday's stage seven, Wiggins looked on course to blitz the field when he ****** Italian veteran Danilo Di Luca (Vini Fantini) just 10 minutes into his ITT.
But the puncture that ****** Wiggins to change bikes on the side of the road dented his chancs, and the 2012 Tour de France champion could only set the 13th best time at the first split, one minute behind Nibali.
Wiggins was still 59 seconds down on Dowsett - one of the rare haemophiliacs in the pro peloton - at the second check at Calcinelli, which came after 51km and just before a steep climb to the finish.
The 33-year-old kept his cool and showed he has climbing legs by powering up the slope - which peaked out at 13% - to reduce his deficit to just 10 seconds.
In the winner's enclosure, Dowsett let out a huge sigh of relief - although he still awaited the other top 20 riders on the overnight GC.
Australian veteran Cadel Evans (BMC) started well, faded in the middle, before pulling things together on the final climb to take the seventh best time, 39 seconds behind Dowsett.
Evans now rises to second on GC, 29 seconds behind race leader Nibali.
Robert Gesink is third on GC, at 1:15, after posting the 11th best time, 1:22 behind Dowsett.
Wiggins is fourth on GC, one second behind Gesink.
Michele Scarponi (Lampre) completes the top five after he rode to an impressive 10th place on Saturday, conceding just 43 seconds to time trial specialist Wiggins.
Defending champion Ryder Hesjedal (Garmin-Sharp) lost more than two minutes to Wiggins and Nibali after struggling to 18th place in the ITT. The Canadian is sixth on GC, 2:05 down on the summit.
Overnight race leader Benat Intxausti of Movistar started well but came home more than four minutes down on Dowsett to drop to 14th on GC.
The Giro d'Italia continues on Sunday with the mountainous 170km stage nine from Sansepolcro to Florence, which includes four categorised climbs before finishing on terrain that will be used in the 2013 World Championship Road Race in September.

 

[Smallville22]

Coquard wins in Picardie, Txurruka wins in Asturias

France's Bryan Coquard won the second stage of the Tour de Picardie and took over the leader's jersey.
Europcar star Coquard beat Germany's stage one winner Marcel Kittel (Argos-Shimano) and Britain's Andrew Fenn (Omega Pharma-Quick Step) in a sprint finish at the end of the 171km stage from Oisemont to Bailleul-sur-Therain.
Coquard has the time as Kittel in the GC but leads by virtue of his superior points tally.
Sébastien Minard (AG2R La Mondiale) is ten seconds down in third place.
In the day's other race, the Vuelta a Asturias, Amets Txurruka of Caja Rural-Seguros RGA won the opening stage between Oviedo and Pola de Lena.
It was Txurruka's first professional victory.

Tour de Picardie stage two results

1 Bryan Coquard (Fra) Team Europcar

2 Marcel Kittel (Ger) Team Argos-Shimano

3 Andrew Fenn (GBr) Omega Pharma-Quick Step

4 Yannick Martinez (Fra) La Pomme Marseille

5 Kenny Robert van Hummel (Ned) Vacansoleil-DCM Pro Cycling Team

6 Kristan Sbaragli (Ita) MTN-Qhubeka

7 Davide Vigano (Ita) Lampre-Merida

8 Erwann Corbel (Fra) Bretagne-Seche Environnement

9 Andrea Francesco Palini (Ita) Lampre-Merida

10 Benjamin Giraud (Fra) La Pomme Marseille

 

[Smallville22]

Wiggins's terrible luck continues in Giro

Bradley Wiggins had his time trial efforts hampered by having to change bikes in stage eight.
The incident less than 20km into the stage cost Wiggins far more time than the 10 seconds by which he finished second to compatriot Alex Dowsett, and robbed Wiggins of the momentum that he had built up.
Wiggins had set a storming pace, but was over a minute behind at the first intermediate split at 26km of the 55km stage.
It also emerged that the Tour de France winner and Olympic time trial champion had been suffering from illness, yet despite that he managed to haul himself back in the second half of the stage almost enough to claim victory - though predictions that he would beat race leader Vincenzo Nibali by a minute or more.
It was just the latest blow at the race for Wiggins, who was involved in a crash in wet conditions on Friday's seventh stage, and had been held up by another crash on Tuesday's fourth stage.
That series of frustrations clearly caught up with Wiggins on Saturday, and he fairly threw his bike into the undergrowth at the side of the road as he waited for one of the support team to come up with a new machine.
"I think there was some initial disappointment because I wanted to win the stage," Wiggins admitted.
"It’s been a challenging few days with the crash yesterday and then to come back up. It wasn’t an easy course. I’ve said all along that it wasn’t one of those ones where you could take three or four minutes out of people because it was so technical at the start.
"Then obviously to have a puncture and have to change bikes and disrupt the rhythm is never going to help.
"But then the second part of the course was really suited to me and I took back a lot of time on people there. It is what it is and it’s put us right back up there now. It’s going to be a hell of a race for the next two weeks."
Over the 55km distance the 33-year-old added that it was important to gauge the effort and to look to have something in reserve for the final kilometres.
“I think I rode it pretty well," he continued. "I was a bit ruffled after the bike change and didn’t get the best out of myself on that technical part of the course. It was a bit damp still as well so I was a bit cautious – especially after crashing yesterday.
"But from Pesaro onwards I really got into my stride and I think physically I was as good as I’ve ever been. But it is the way it is. We’ll deal with it now, but I’m pleased at the same for Alex Dowsett. It’s a brilliant start to his Grand Tour career."
The dynamic of the race is now set to change as Astana defend the jersey, but Wiggins is refusing to rule out a challenge for overall victory.
“There are two weeks to go. The last week’s going to be very difficult and the time gaps are relatively small still," he added.
"A minute and 16 to Nibali still with all the problems yesterday isn't that bad it’s all to play for. It’s not easy to defend a Grand Tour lead so it’s not a bad position to be in.
"We’re still here and we’ve got three guys in the top 10 now. We’ve got a few cards to play.”

 

[Smallville22]

Nibali takes Giro lead as puncture slows Wiggins

New Giro d'Italia race leader Vincenzo Nibali took an important step towards possible victory on Saturday by limiting his losses to favourite Bradley Wiggins in a time trial won by Wiggins's British compatriot Alex Dowsett.
Movistar rider Dowsett had a three-hour wait before all the favourites had finished and he could be sure of victory in the 54-kilometre technical time trial, with Wiggins second at 10 seconds, Estonian Tanel Kangert third at 14 seconds, and Italy's Nibali fourth at 21 seconds.
Following the Giro's first key battle for the overall classification, 2010 Vuelta a Espana winner Nibali captured his first lead in the Giro since 2010, with Australia's Cadel Evans second at 29 seconds, Dutchman Robert Gesink third at 1 minute and 15 seconds, and Wiggins fourth at 1 minute and 16 seconds.
"It's a surprise to take the pink jersey (of race leader) so early but I'm very pleased to have it," Nibali, who rides for the Kazakh Astana squad, told reporters.
"But I'm not taking anything for granted. I'm sure that Gesink, Evans, Wiggins and (Michele) Scarponi (of Italy, 2011 race winner) will fight until the end.
"We can't rule out (Ryder) Hesjedal (of Canada) either. There's a long way to go yet and I'm sure the third week will see a lot of battles in the high mountains."
A minute ahead of Wiggins at the first checkpoint after the Briton had a slow puncture and bike change, Nibali trailed the Sky rider by 11 seconds at the finish as Wiggins fought back on the second part of the course.
"The first part of the race has been difficult in general, not just the time trial," Nibali said, "and I know I will have to grab seconds wherever I can in the days to come."
2012 Tour de France winner Wiggins rose from 23rd to fourth overall, but fell 10 seconds short of taking a morale-boosting stage win after a first week plagued with crashes, delays and unexpected time losses.
"I think that puncture broke his rhythm," Sky's performance manager Rod Ellingworth told reporters.
"He hit something on the road and it was two or two and a half kilometres before he realised he' done something to the bike."
A frustrated Wiggins uttered one word to the press - "Yes" - when asked if he thought he had lost the time trial because of the puncture.
Last year's Giro d'Italia winner Hesjedal finished 18th on the stage and dropped to sixth overall.
Dowsett clinched his first stage win and said: "The wait was horrible. It went on for so long. When you're out on the bike at least you can get everything out, and I kept on overtaking riders. But it was a long time sitting there before I knew I'd won."
The Giro d'Italia finishes on May 26 in Brescia.

 

[Smallville22]

BMC hire Julich as consultant despite doping confession

Former rider Bobby Julich, who left a coaching position with Team Sky last year after admitting doping during his professional career, has joined BMC as a consultant, the Swiss-based cycling team said on Sunday.
"Bobby Julich has been hired to consult for the BMC Racing Team in the areas of training, individual coaching, equipment testing and overall performance strategies," CEO Jim Ochowicz said in a statement.
BMC is the team of 2011 Tour de France winner Cadel Evans of Australia and Belgian world champion Philippe Gilbert.
American Julich, who retired from cycling in 2008 and has admitted taking ****** substances from 1996 to 1998, left Britain's Sky last year in the **** of the Lance Armstrong doping scandal.
Sky had asked every member of the team to sign up to a written policy saying they had no past or present involvement with doping.
Armstrong was stripped of his seven Tour de France titles from 1999-2005 for doping.

 

[Smallville22]

Belkov soloes to win in rainy Florence as Hesjedal falters

Defending champion Ryder Hesjedal dropped out of the top 10 after losing more than a minute to his rivals on stage nine of the Giro, won by Maxim Belkov.
Canada's Hesjedal crossed the line in Florence after another rain-soaked stage one minute and six seconds behind a group of the race favourites to drop from sixth to eleventh place on GC.
The undulating 173km stage through the Apennine mountains from Sansepolcro to the Tuscan capital was won by Russian Belkov, who soloed to the biggest win of his career after attacking from a break on the descent of the second of four categorised climbs.
Riding his second Giro d'Italia, 28-year-old Belkov of Katusha came home 44 seconds ahead of Colombian Carlos Betancur (Ag2R-La Mondiale) with another Colombian, Jarlinson Pantano (Colombia), taking third place a further two seconds back.
"I'm so happy I won this stage, my first as a pro if we exclude the TTT," said Belkov.
"From this morning at the bus I took a look to the altimetry and I realized it was a perfect stage for my characteristics: moreover I live next to here, in Prato, so I know these roads.
"I'm thrilled I won this stage: Katusha is proving to be a really strong team here in the Giro. It's the second win, we kept the jersey for five days, and we want to continue like this in order to take some other great results.
"Yesterday I didn't do a great job, but I decided to save my legs for today, a stage dedicated to breakaways: better a first position today than a tenth place yesterday."
Sweden's Tobias Ludvigsson (Argos-Shimano) took fourth place before Australian veteran Cadel Evans (BMC) led the main pack of race favourites - including the maglia rosa Vincenzo Nibali (Astana) - over the line 1:03 in arrears.
But Hesjedal cracked on the final Cat.4 ascent of Fiesole to compound a miserable two days after his disappointing performance in Saturday's individual time trial. Last year's winner now trails Italy's Nibali by 3:11 on GC going into the race's first rest day.
It was yet another testing day for British hope Bradley Wiggins too - the 2012 Tour de France champion distanced on the wet descent of the Cat.1 Vallombrosa climb inside the final 60km.
With Astana driving a fierce pace as the rain pounded down, Wiggins dropped more than a minute off the pace and needed to be nursed back by five Sky team-mates.
Tellingly, Colombian duo Sergio Henao and Rigoberto Uran were not ordered back - perhaps a sign that Sky are prepared to consider a Plan B in the 96th edition of the Corsa Rosa as their designated leader's confidence in wet conditions continues to play into the hands of his rivals.
The seeds of Belkov's victory were sown with the formation of a 12-man break around 20km into the stage following an ****** by Stefano Pirazzi (Bardiani Valvole) and Robinson Chalapud (Colombia).
Belkov, Pirazzi, Chalapud and his Colombia team-mate Pantano, Ludvigsson, Alessandro Proni (Vini Fantini), Evgeni Petrov (Saxo-Tinkoff), Michal Golas (OPQS), Giovanni Visconti (Movistar), Ricardo Mestre (Euskaltel), Juan Manuel Garate (Blanco) and Fabio Fellini (Androni) built up a lead of four minutes ahead of the first test of the day, the Cat.2 Passo della Consuma.
Chalapud and Pirazzi rode off ahead in pursuit of the KOM points with the pair almost coming to blows as the Italian inadvertently cut into the line of his fellow escapee to take maximum points over the summit. With the two leaders still arguing, Belkov drew level on the descent after attacking from the chasing group.
On the Cat.1 Vallombrosa climb - the biggest so far of the Giro - Chalapud attacked and was soon joined by Pirazzi. The pair exchanged more words and even came to a near standstill on a sodden climb through the trees as Belkov slowly returned on to their wheels.
Belkov was then allowed to ride clear as Pirazzi and Chalapud continued their bizarre spat with a bit of gamesmanship. Pirazzi soon came to his senses and put in an ******. The pair soon ****** Belkov and it was the Italian who took the points going over the summit to secure the blue mountains jersey.
Although crossing the summit 47 seconds in arrears, Belkov showed his prowess on wet downhill riding by catching the leading duo with consummate ease before opening up a commanding lead off the front.
The peloton trailed at more than six minutes - and while the wet weather did not cause Wiggins to crash as he did in Friday's stage seven, the Briton quickly lost touch as Astana drove a fierce pace on the long downhill.
With Wiggins on the ropes, BMC, Garmin and Movistar all came to the front to help Astana ahead of the final two climbs of the day.
Wiggins managed to regain contact with the main pack for the Cat.3 Vetta le Croci with 25km remaining. Riding with gusto, Belkov crossed the summit two minutes ahead of Pantano and Pirazzi. The gap was reduced to just 1:20 by the time the Russian completed the final climb of the day.
But the 11% maximum gradient of the Cat.4 Fiesole - which will feature in reverse order for the 2013 World Championship Road Race in Tuscany - proved too much for Hesjedal who was quickly tailed off the back of the pursuing main pack.
With the remnants of the initial break being caught in drips and drabs, Betancur attacked from the pack in pursuit of compatriot Pantano and Ludvigsson.
Belkov held on to take his first win of the season - although this piece of information must not have reached Betancur, who outsprinted Pantano for second place before unleashing the kind of celebration reserved for maiden Grand Tour stage winners.
Once again, 2011 Tour de France champion Evans finished strongly to consolidate his second place on GC, 29 seconds behind Nibali. The Australian picked up enough points for his fifth place in Florence to move into the red jersey as leader of the points classification.
Robert Gesink (Blanco) finished in the main group to stay third, 1:15 down and one second ahead of fourth-place Wiggins, who will be praying for better weather during the all-important mountainous second phase of the race.
Michele Scarponi (Lampre-Merida) completes the top five 1:24 off the summit while, following Hesjedal's plummet down the standings, Henao rises to sixth at 2:11.
After Monday's rest day the Giro d'Italia continues on Tuesday with the first proper mountain stage of the race - a 168km ride from Cordenons to the summit of the Cat.1 Altopiano del Montasio.

 

[Smallville22]

Kittel wins Tour de Picardie, Txurruka wins in Asturias

Marcel Kittel won the Tour de Picardie in stunning style as he won the third and final stage of the race in Soissons.
rgos-Shimano rider Kittel, who also won the opening stage and came second on stage two, sprinted to victory ahead of Vacansoleil-DCM teammates Kenny van Hummel and Danny van Poppel.
That sprint finish gave Kittel victory over stage two winner Bryan Coquard of Europcar by seven seconds, with Coquard finishing 12th in the 171km final stage.

In the day's other action Amets Txurruka of Caja Rural won the Vuelta a Asturias, adding overall victory to his stage one win on Saturday after finishing in the leading pack on the second and final stage.
Movistar's Javier Moreno won the second stage in a sprint ahead of Mikel Landa and Andre Cardoso.
"It's one of the wins I will always remember," said Txurruka.

Finally, Sebastien Delfosse of Crelan-Euphony won the Rund um Koln in Germany, with Pieter Jacobs second and Georg Preidler third.

Tour de Picardie stage three results

1. Marcel Kittel (Ger) Team Argos-Shimano

2. Kenny Robert van Hummel (Ned) Vacansoleil-DCM Pro Cycling Team

3. Danny van Poppel (Ned) Vacansoleil-DCM Pro Cycling Team

4. Adrien Petit (Fra) Cofidis, Solutions Credits

5. Jens Debusschere (Bel) Lotto Belisol

Tour de Picardie final GC

1. Marcel Kittel (Ger) Team Argos-Shimano 13:08:44

2. Bryan Coquard (Fra) Team Europcar +7"

3. Kenny Robert van Hummel (Ned) Vacansoleil-DCM Pro Cycling Team +20"

4. Sébastien Minard (Fra) AG2R La Mondiale "

5. Sven Vandousselaere (Bel) Topsport Vlaanderen-Baloise +21"

 

[Smallville22]

Wiggins struggles as Hesjedal loses time on rainy Giro

Pre-race favourite Bradley Wiggins endured another difficult day on a rain-lashed ninth stage of the Giro d'Italia although defending champion Ryder Hesjedal suffered most, dropping to 11th overall.
Britain's Wiggins, who crashed on a descent on Friday, remained fourth overall, one minute and 16 seconds behind leader Vincenzo Nibali despite for a time losing contact with the Italian and the other contenders on a technical downhill section about 55 km from Sunday's stage finish in Firenze.
Following a 20-km chase by Wiggins' Sky team, the 2012 Tour de France winner managed to regain contact with the main group.
"I was racing right behind him," Italian rider Giovanni Visconti told reporters. "I could see he was handling the descents very badly. I think when it comes to descents he's now got some kind of mental block."
However, Team Sky principal Dave Brailsford said Wiggins's apparent caution on the downhill sections was never a concern.
"It was always going to come back," he told reporters.
"Bradley took it a bit cautiously on that descent and then obviously was confident his team mates would help him regain contact. There was never a problem."
Canadian Hesjedal had been sixth overall going into the stage through the hills around Firenze, which was taken with a solo victory by Russia's Maxim Belkov.
Hesjedal dropped back on the short climb of Fiesole close to the finish and lost 66 seconds on the other overall favourites.
HESJEDAL TRAILS
As the race reaches its first rest day on Monday, Nibali leads by 29 seconds from Cadel Evans of Australia, with the Netherlands' Robert Gesink third at 1:15, while Hesjedal trails the leader by 3:11.
"Riders might seem otherwise but they're not machines", Charly Wegelius, Hesjedal's team sports director at Garmin-Sharp told Reuters.
"He's not sick, but it could have been a combination of the rain and the cold today and the efforts of yesterday's time trial all coming together.
"He really went deep yesterday and this could be the consequences of that."
Ahead of the favourites, Belkov secured the first win of his career aged 28 when he completed a 140-km breakaway through hilly terrain 44 seconds ahead of Colombians Carlos Betancur and Jarlinson Pantano.
"I had no idea I was going to get this win, I was cramping so badly in the last few kilometres and the main group was coming back so fast," said Belkov, whose victory was the second for Russian squad Katusha in the Giro this year.
"I'm better known as a time triallist, but I decided to go easy yesterday because that way I would be a lot stronger for today.
"Better first today in a hilly stage than 20th in yesterday's time trial."
After Monday's rest day, the Giro hits the mountains with the race's first major summit finish on Tuesday at Altopiano di Montasio in north-east Italy.
The Giro finishes on May 26 in Brescia.

 

[Smallville22]

Unpredictable Giro testing team directors

As the Giro d'Italia enters its second week, cycling's top directors have been reminded just how different the race is from the Tour de France.
"It's so unpredictable," Rod Ellingworth, Team Sky's performance manager who is helping oversee Tour de France champion Bradley Wiggins' bid to become Britain's first Giro d'Italia winner, told Reuters.
"The Tour is much easier to define as a format. The first week, some mountains, flat again and then more mountains and a time trial at the end while the Giro has a very different structure.
"We've already been up some climbs here in the Giro that are really tricky, there have been some very technical stages too. The Tour doesn't usually do so much of that in the first week."
After Monday's rest day, Wiggins faces a tough challenge in the second mountainous week of racing after enduring his own trials and tribulations in the Giro's challenging first nine days.
The Briton lost 84 seconds after crashing on a tough downhill section on stage seven, slumping from sixth to 23rd overall, as well as losing 17 seconds on stage four.
He had to chase the rest of the field for 10kms after he was blocked by a crash on stage six and he is currently lying fourth overall behind race leader Vincenzo Nibali of Italy.
"The two races are becoming more similar, but they are still races you have to tackle in a very different way," said Jose Azevedo, now a director with the RadioShack team and a top 10 finisher overall in both the Giro and Tour de France.
"Back when I raced the Giro, on the flat stages a break would go early on, then we'd all ease back and ride very, very gently until about 50 kilometres to go," he said.
"A lot of days, the main bunch would even have cappuccino and cake or ice cream stops mid-race in some of the villages.
"Now it's much more tense throughout, so it's getting more like the Tour de France - really I think since the world tour (cycling's top league] started - in 2005.
"Almost all the teams were Italian before then, and that meant we raced like the Italians liked to do. When the world tour started, and there were more international teams here, it lost that local flavour."
Azevdo said the Tour carried far greater resonance than the Giro with media and fans.
"It's incredible, you can be 100 kilometres from the finish and there's already a huge level of tension in the bunch, the same you'd get when there was 10 kilometres to go in a normal race.
"That's why the Tour is the hardest in the world. The Giro can have a lot of mountains, and we've seen in this first week it's not at all easy, but the way it is raced, going fast all day, makes the Tour the hardest."
"The Tour is harder, but the Giro is different for sure," said Brian Holm, a former professional who rode both the Giro and the Tour and who is now directing top British sprinter Mark Cavendish at Omega Pharma-Quick Step in Italy.
"The Tour is more intense, it's bigger, one level higher and harder. So that makes the racing stranger here. Half the time unknown riders, rather than big names like in the Tour, will win stages. You never know what is going to happen."

 

[Smallville22]

Westra wins Tour of California stage one

Dutchman Lieuwe Westra won the opening stage of the 2013 Amgen Tour of California in searing heat, holding off Franciso Mancebo in a two-up sprint in Escondido.
The Vacansoleil-DCM rider made his move in 100 degree heat five kilometres from the finish, passing the fading early movers Carter Jones (Bissell), James Stemper (5-hour Energy-Kenda) as Mancebo took off in hot pursuit.
The duo soon found themselves with clear air ahead of the peleton and Mancebo took the lead with 300 metres to go. But Westra ducked out of Mancebo’s slipstream cruised in for a victory that marked the Vacansoleil-DCM team’s second win of the season and first for the team in California.
Peter Sagan (Cannondale) led home the chase bunch six seconds in arrears of Westra, having recovered from a rear derailleur issue with around five kilometers left to race.
"I was actually dropped on the last climb, the legs were not so good,” said Westra afterwards. “But I came back and saw a lot of teams with only one or two riders. I said why not, I'll ******. I was lucky to have Mancebo with me, he was really strong. In last kilometer, I played it hard, but you will win when you play it hard," said Westra following his win.
"It’s very good for me and also the team, Vacansoleil-DCM, that we won and we have the yellow jersey."

Results:

1 Lieuwe Westra (Ned) Vacansoleil-DCM Pro Cycling Team 4:31:33

2 Francisco Mancebo Perez (Spa) 5 Hour Energy p/b Kenda

3 Peter Sagan (Svk) Cannondale Pro Cycling 0:00:06

4 Gianni Meersman (Bel) Omega Pharma-Quick Step

5 Jasper Stuyven (Bel) Bontrager Cycling Team

6 Jacob Rathe (USA) Garmin-Sharp

7 Alexander Candelario (USA) Optum p/b Kelly Benefit Strategies

8 Mitchell Docker (Aus) Orica-GreenEdge

9 Jeremy Vennell (NZl) Bissell Pro Cycling

10 Tanner Putt (USA) Bontrager Cycling Team

 

[Smallville22]

Reade sets sights on golden 2013 after Argentina victory

Two-time Olympian Shanaze Reade has set her sights high this summer after continuing her fine early season form by winning round two of the UCI BMX Supercross in Santiago del Estero, Argentina.
Reade, a three-time senior world BMX champion, headed to South America having won the opening round in Manchester but was not about to leave it there.
The 24-year-old once again topped the podium, finishing ahead of London 2012 gold medallist Mariana Pajon and Dutch rider Laura Smulders in Saturday's elite women's final.
Reade, who finished sixth at the London 2012 Olympics, also triumphed in the time trial Superfinal 24 hours earlier, as she did in Manchester, and sits top of the overall standings with a perfect record.
And Reade insists she has no intention to relinquish top spot any time soon, while also keeping an eye on New Zealand and July's BMX World Championships.
"I'm so, so tired but at the same time so happy," Reade said.
"Obviously when someone's Olympic champion they have got a target on their back you want to beat them, it makes it all the more special.
"I want to become overall Supercross champion and world champion as well."
Fellow London Olympian Liam Phillips endured a tougher time of things in Argentina however as he suffered a crash with American Donny Robinson in the elite men's quarter-final.
The 24-year-old, who had finished fifth in Friday's time trial, was stretchered away and taken to hospital for precautionary scans which showed that no serious injuries were suffered.

 

[Smallville22]

Wiggins: I descended like a girl!

Pre-race favourite Bradley Wiggins reviews a nightmarish first week of the Giro d'Italia and says he "descended like a girl".
The Briton lies fourth overall, 1:16 adrift of leader Vincenzo Nibali of Italy who took the pink jersey after Saturday's individual time trial.
Team Sky rider Wiggins was expected to claw back the time on his rivals in the individual effort against the clock but finished second to compatriot Alex Dowsett with a display he labelled as "disappointing".
Wiggins, who crashed on Friday and looked vulnerable in the descents in rainy weather, said he had not expected the Giro to be a walk in the park.
"I never expected it to be as straightforward as the Tour last year," Wiggins as quoted as saying in British media on Monday, the race's first rest day.
"Let's be honest, I descended like bit of a girl really after the crash," he said.
"Not to disrespect girls, I have one at home. But that's life and we have to push on and deal with the disappointments."
Most worrying for Wiggins is that Nibali is highly unlikely to just sit back on his lead and wait until the Giro reaches the finish line in Brescia on May 26.
"He will continue to ride aggressively. I can't see him trying to defend 30 seconds from now until Brescia," Wiggins said.
Team Sky, who have been used to defending their lead in stage races, do not have room for conservative tactics anymore and Tuesday's mountainous 10th stage to the Altopiano del Montasio could be a turning point.
"It will be one of the toughest finishes of this Giro, that's for sure," Wiggins explained.
"The race could tip upside down again."
Even though he has been badly shaken since the race started from Naples on May 4, Wiggins believes he is in great form, as he showed in the final part of Saturday's time trial.
"I was physically better than I've ever been," he said.
Wiggins also believes Australian Cadel Evans, the 2011 Tour de France winner who lies second overall - 29 seconds behind Nibali - will have a major part to play in the rest of the race.
"Cadel is the best I've seen him since he won the Tour. He is the danger man in that position. He showed (in Saturday's time trial) he is in good shape."