Rasmussen takes it all

Denmark's Michael Rasmussen strode towards a third consecutive King of the Mountains title after claiming victory on the Tour de France's eighth stage to pull on the leader's yellow jersey.

The Rabobank rider finished the 165km run from Le Grand-Bornand to the first summit finish of the race Sunday with the same classic display of climbing that has won him the race's polka dot jersey for the past two years.

On the second of three days in the Alps the race sprang into life on the day's climb to the first summit finish, on which yellow jersey favourites Alexandre Vinokourov and Andreas Klöden lost more time to their rivals. The Astana team pair, riding with injuries picked up on Thursday's fifth stage, could do little when French champion Christophe Moreau launched the first of a series of attacks late on the 18km climb to the summit finish.

They eventually finished over four minutes behind Rasmussen, and pre-race favourite Vinokourov lost nearly a minute and a half to a handful of his more credible rivals.

Rasmussen took over what should be temporary possession of the yellow jersey from German race debutant Linus Gerdemann, who battled hard over the day's six climbs but missed out by less than a minute. Rasmussen now leads the 24-year-old T-Mobile rider by 43secs in the general classification going into Monday's first rest day, but the skinny Dane said he has no aims of keeping it all the way to Paris.

"There's still two weeks of racing left, and 110km of time trialling - and I think I've showed in the past it's not exactly my speciality," said Rasmussen, who now has three stage wins on the race. The Dane famously crashed a number of times in the race's second time trial in 2005.

Rasmussen started his attack on the Cormet de Roselend after 81km with a small group of riders, and he left his only remaining companion, Antonio Colom of Astana, 18km from the summit of the final climb.

In the end Rasmussen came over the finish with a lead of 2min 47sec on Spaniard Iban Mayo, of Saunier Duval, with Alejandro Valverde finishing 01sec ahead of a handful of fellow yellow jersey contenders, including Christophe Moreau, Cadel Evans and Andrey Kashechkin.

Rasmussen didn't celebrate at the finish, and later admitted: "I knew it would be pretty tight for the yellow jersey, that's why I didn't celebrate today. We can do that tonight. It was just a matter of taking as much time out of my competitors as possible."

Some of the more credible yellow jersey contenders meanwhile will be nursing their wounds.

Vinokourov, who struggled in the final kilometres of the day's sixth and last climb as Moreau launched attack after attack, finally came in 19th at 4:29 behind Rasmussen. More importantly, the Kazakh lost over a minute to Alejandro Valverde, Cadel Evans and Moreau and is now 5min 23sec behind the overall leader.

A defiant Vinokourov, riding his third consecutive day with over 30 stitches in deep cuts on his knees following a crash, says his Tour is far from over. "If I had lost five minutes today, it would have been over," he said.

Evans said it had been one of the most dramatic days of racing his career. "I've never seen the GC (general classification) riders attacking each other so much. When there's no one to ride (with), trust me, it's not easy."

Evans, who finished fifth overall last year, is one of the few remaining Australians on the race. Michael Rogers, of Gerdemann's T-Mobile team, was in the virtual race lead when he crashed out of the race while travelling in excess of 60km/h on the descent of the Cormet de Roselend. He later abandoned with injuries to his right hand, shoulder and knee.

Half an hour earlier compatriot Stuart O'Grady, of the CSC team, was taken to hospital after he also crashed on the descent of the Cormet de Roselend climb.

A third Australian, Robbie McEwen of Evans' Predictor-Lotto team, failed to finish within the time limits.

© AFP 2007

Also see: stage 8 live report.

Results

1 Michael Rasmussen (Den ¦ Rabobank) 04:49:40
2 Iban Mayo (Spa ¦ Saunier Duval - Prodir) 00:02:47
3 Alejandro Valverde (Spa ¦ Caisse D'Epargne) 00:03:12
4 Christophe Moreau (Fra ¦ Ag2R Prevoyance) 00:03:13
5 Frank Schleck (Lux ¦ Team CSC) 00:03:13
6 Cadel Evans (Aus ¦ Predictor - Lotto) 00:03:13
7 Andrey Kashechkin (Kaz ¦ Astana) 00:03:13
8 Alberto Contador (Spa ¦ Discovery Channel Team) 00:03:31
9 Denis Menchov (Rus ¦ Rabobank) 00:03:35
10 Carlos Sastre (Spa ¦ Team CSC) 00:03:35
11 Haimar Zubeldia (Spa ¦ Euskaltel - Euskadi) 00:03:59
12 Levi Leipheimer (USA ¦ Discovery Channel Team) 00:03:59
13 Juan Jose Cobo Acebo (Spa ¦ Saunier Duval - Prodir) 00:03:59
14 Manuel Beltran (Spa ¦ Liquigas) 00:04:13
15 Oscar Pereiro Sio (Spa ¦ Caisse D'Epargne) 00:04:13
16 Juan Manuel Garate (Spa ¦ Quick Step - Innergetic) 00:04:29
17 David Arroyo (Spa ¦ Caisse D'Epargne) 00:04:29
18 Andréas Klöden (Ger ¦ Astana) 00:04:29
19 Alexandre Vinokourov (Kaz ¦ Astana) 00:04:29
20 Linus Gerdemann (Ger ¦ T-Mobile Team) 00:05:05
21 Tadej Valjavec (Slo ¦ Lampre-Fondital) 00:05:05
22 Kim Kirchen (Lux ¦ T-Mobile Team) 00:05:10
23 Mikel Astarloza (Spa ¦ Euskaltel - Euskadi) 00:05:41
24 Jens Voigt (Ger ¦ Team CSC) 00:05:47
25 Kanstantsin Siutsou (Blr ¦ Barloworld) 00:05:47
26 Michael Boogerd (Ned ¦ Rabobank) 00:06:32
27 Christopher Horner (USA ¦ Predictor - Lotto) 00:06:32
28 Vladimir Karpets (Rus ¦ Caisse D'Epargne) 00:06:39
29 Yaroslav Popovych (Ukr ¦ Discovery Channel Team) 00:07:40
30 Amets Txurruka (Spa ¦ Euskaltel - Euskadi) 00:08:23
31 Sylvain Chavanel (Fra ¦ Cofidis Credit Par Telephone) 00:08:23
32 Alexandre Botcharov (Rus ¦ Credit Agricole) 00:08:23
33 Juan Mauricio Soler Hernandez (Col ¦ Barloworld 00:08:48
34 Christian Knees (Ger ¦ Team Milram) 00:09:44
35 Vladimir Gusev (Rus ¦ Discovery Channel Team) 00:09:44
36 Markus Fothen (Ger ¦ Gerolsteiner) 00:09:44
37 Bram Tankink (Ned ¦ Quick Step - Innergetic) 00:12:45
38 Christian Vandevelde (USA ¦ Team CSC) 00:12:45
39 José Ivan Gutierrez (Spa ¦ Caisse D'Epargne) 00:12:45
40 Ludovic Turpin (Fra ¦ Ag2R Prevoyance) 00:12:45
41 Simon Gerrans (Aus ¦ Ag2R Prevoyance) 00:13:12
42 Kjell Carlström (Fin ¦ Liquigas) 00:14:13
43 Fabian Wegmann (Ger ¦ Gerolsteiner) 00:14:13
44 Christophe Le Mevel (Fra ¦ Credit Agricole) 00:14:13
45 Patxi Vila Errandonea (Spa ¦ Lampre-Fondital) 00:15:16
46 Thomas Voeckler (Fra ¦ Bouygues Telecom) 00:15:33
47 Paolo Savoldelli (Ita ¦ Astana) 00:17:26
48 Antonio Colom (Spa ¦ Astana) 00:17:26
49 Axel Merckx (Bel ¦ T-Mobile Team) 00:17:26
50 George Hincapie (USA ¦ Discovery Channel Team) 00:17:26
51 Carlos Barredo (Spa ¦ Quick Step - Innergetic) 00:17:26
52 Cristian Moreni (Ita ¦ Cofidis Credit Par Telephone) 00:18:06
53 Serguei Ivanov (Rus ¦ Astana) 00:19:17
54 Mario Aerts (Bel ¦ Predictor - Lotto) 00:19:17
55 Thomas Dekker (Ned ¦ Rabobank) 00:19:17
56 Kurt-Asle Arvesen (Nor ¦ Team CSC) 00:19:17
57 Erik Zabel (Ger ¦ Team Milram) 00:19:17
58 Johan Van Summeren (Bel ¦ Predictor - Lotto) 00:19:17
59 Cédric Vasseur (Fra ¦ Quick Step - Innergetic) 00:19:17
60 Maxim Iglinskiy (Kaz ¦ Astana) 00:19:17
61 Sylvain Calzati (Fra ¦ Ag2R Prevoyance) 00:19:17
62 Stephane Goubert (Fra ¦ Ag2R Prevoyance) 00:19:17
63 Jérôme Pineau (Fra ¦ Bouygues Telecom) 00:19:17
64 Grischa Niermann (Ger ¦ Rabobank) 00:19:17
65 Gorka Verdugo (Spa ¦ Euskaltel - Euskadi) 00:19:17
66 Inigo Cuesta (Spa ¦ Team CSC) 00:19:17
67 Gregory Rast (Swi ¦ Astana) 00:19:17
68 Patrik Sinkewitz (Ger ¦ T-Mobile Team) 00:19:17
69 Inigo Landaluze (Spa ¦ Euskaltel - Euskadi) 00:19:17
70 Sergio Paulinho (Por ¦ Discovery Channel Team) 00:20:05
71 Francisco Ventoso (Spa ¦ Saunier Duval - Prodir) 00:20:05
72 Dmitriy Fofonov (Kaz ¦ Credit Agricole) 00:22:03
73 Dario Cioni (Ita ¦ Predictor - Lotto) 00:22:59
74 Bernhard Kohl (Aut ¦ Gerolsteiner) 00:24:18
75 Ronny Scholz (Ger ¦ Gerolsteiner) 00:24:18
76 Thomas Lövkvist (Swe ¦ Francaise Des Jeux) 00:29:11
77 Martin Elmiger (Swi ¦ Ag2R Prevoyance) 00:29:11
78 Matthieu Sprick (Fra ¦ Bouygues Telecom) 00:29:11
79 Juan Miguel Mercado (Spa ¦ Agritubel) 00:29:11
80 Ruben Perez (Spa ¦ Euskaltel - Euskadi) 00:29:11
81 Jose Luis Arrieta (Spa ¦ Ag2R Prevoyance) 00:29:11
82 Patrice Halgand (Fra ¦ Credit Agricole) 00:29:11
83 John Gadret (Fra ¦ Ag2R Prevoyance) 00:29:11
84 Iker Camano (Spa ¦ Saunier Duval - Prodir) 00:29:11
85 Michael Albasini (Swi ¦ Liquigas) 00:29:11
86 Daniele Bennati (Ita ¦ Lampre-Fondital) 00:29:11
87 Frederik Willems (Bel ¦ Liquigas) 00:29:11
88 Murilo Antonio Fischer (Bra ¦ Liquigas) 00:29:11
89 Freddy Bichot (Fra ¦ Agritubel) 00:29:11
90 Alessandro Ballan (Ita ¦ Lampre-Fondital) 00:33:45
91 Fabian Cancellara (Swi ¦ Team CSC) 00:33:45
92 Daniel Navarro (Spa ¦ Astana) 00:33:45
93 Philippe Gilbert (Bel ¦ Francaise Des Jeux) 00:33:45
94 Stefan Schumacher (Ger ¦ Gerolsteiner) 00:33:45
95 Egoi Martinez (Spa ¦ Discovery Channel Team) 00:33:45
96 Francisco Perez Sanchez (Spa ¦ Caisse D'Epargne) 00:33:45
97 Stef Clement (Ned ¦ Bouygues Telecom) 00:33:45
98 Jorge Azanza (Spa ¦ Euskaltel - Euskadi) 00:33:45
99 Pierrick Fedrigo (Fra ¦ Bouygues Telecom) 00:33:45
100 Laurent Lefevre (Fra ¦ Bouygues Telecom) 00:33:45
101 Benoît Vaugrenard (Fra ¦ Francaise Des Jeux) 00:33:45
102 Nicolas Vogondy (Fra ¦ Agritubel) 00:33:45
103 Gianpaolo Cheula (Ita ¦ Barloworld) 00:33:45
104 Daniele Righi (Ita ¦ Lampre-Fondital) 00:33:45
105 Félix Cardenas (Col ¦ Barloworld) 00:36:49
106 Filippo Pozzato (Ita ¦ Liquigas) 00:39:07
107 Aleksandr Kuschynski (Blr ¦ Liquigas) 00:39:07
108 Matteo Tosatto (Ita ¦ Quick Step - Innergetic) 00:39:07
109 Robert Hunter (RSA ¦ Barloworld) 00:39:07
110 Steven De Jongh (Ned ¦ Quick Step - Innergetic) 00:39:07
111 Manuel Quinziato (Ita ¦ Liquigas) 00:39:07
112 Matthieu Ladagnous (Fra ¦ Francaise Des Jeux) 00:39:07
113 Alessandro Cortinovis (Ita ¦ Team Milram) 00:39:07
114 Tom Boonen (Bel ¦ Quick Step - Innergetic) 00:39:07
115 Claudio Corioni (Ita ¦ Lampre-Fondital) 00:39:07
116 Cyril Dessel (Fra ¦ Ag2R Prevoyance) 00:39:07
117 Alberto Ongarato (Ita ¦ Team Milram) 00:39:07
118 Ralf Grabsch (Ger ¦ Team Milram) 00:39:07
119 Bert Grabsch (Ger ¦ T-Mobile Team) 00:39:07
120 Marzio Bruseghin (Ita ¦ Lampre-Fondital) 00:39:07
121 Andriy Grivko (Ukr ¦ Team Milram) 00:39:07
122 Marcel Sieberg (Ger ¦ Team Milram) 00:39:07
123 Wim Vansevenant (Bel ¦ Predictor - Lotto) 00:39:07
124 Staf Scheirlinckx (Bel ¦ Cofidis Credit Par Telephone) 00:39:07
125 Sébastien Rosseler (Bel ¦ Quick Step - Innergetic) 00:39:07
126 Anthony Geslin (Fra ¦ Bouygues Telecom) 00:39:07
127 Mickaël Delage (Fra ¦ Francaise Des Jeux) 00:39:07
128 Paolo Bossoni (Ita ¦ Lampre-Fondital) 00:39:07
129 Leif Hoste (Bel ¦ Predictor - Lotto) 00:39:07
130 David Millar (GBr ¦ Saunier Duval - Prodir) 00:39:07
131 David Canada (Spa ¦ Saunier Duval - Prodir) 00:39:07
132 Christophe Rinero (Fra ¦ Saunier Duval - Prodir) 00:39:07
133 Benjamin Noval Gonzalez (Spa ¦ Discovery Channel Team) 00:39:07
134 Nicolas Portal (Fra ¦ Caisse D'Epargne) 00:39:07
135 Benoit Salmon (Fra ¦ Agritubel) 00:39:07
136 Alexander Efimkin (Rus ¦ Barloworld) 00:39:07
137 Lilian Jegou (Fra ¦ Francaise Des Jeux) 00:39:07
138 Sébastien Hinault (Fra ¦ Credit Agricole) 00:39:07
139 Anthony Charteau (Fra ¦ Credit Agricole) 00:39:07
140 Robert Förster (Ger ¦ Gerolsteiner) 00:39:07
141 Gert Steegmans (Bel ¦ Quick Step - Innergetic) 00:39:07
142 Igor Anton (Spa ¦ Euskaltel - Euskadi) 00:39:07
143 Inaki Isasi (Spa ¦ Euskaltel - Euskadi) 00:39:07
144 Bradley Wiggins (GBr ¦ Cofidis Credit Par Telephone) 00:39:07
145 William Bonnet (Fra ¦ Credit Agricole) 00:39:07
146 Johann Tschopp (Swi ¦ Bouygues Telecom) 00:39:07
147 Enrico Poitschke (Ger ¦ Team Milram) 00:39:07
148 Paolo Longo Borghini (Ita ¦ Barloworld) 00:39:07
149 Nicolas Jalabert (Fra ¦ Agritubel) 00:39:07
150 Peter Wrolich (Aut ¦ Gerolsteiner) 00:39:07
151 Pieter Weening (Ned ¦ Rabobank) 00:39:07
152 Heinrich Haussler (Ger ¦ Gerolsteiner) 00:39:07
153 Sven Krauss (Ger ¦ Gerolsteiner) 00:39:07
154 Moises Duenas Nevado (Spa ¦ Agritubel) 00:39:07
155 David De La Fuente (Spa ¦ Saunier Duval - Prodir) 00:39:07
156 Stéphane Augé (Fra ¦ Cofidis Credit Par Telephone) 00:39:07
157 Xavier Florencio (Spa ¦ Bouygues Telecom) 00:39:07
158 Rik Verbrugghe (Bel ¦ Cofidis Credit Par Telephone) 00:39:07
159 Thomas Geraint (GBr ¦ Barloworld) 00:39:07
160 Sandy Casar (Fra ¦ Francaise Des Jeux) 00:39:07
161 Thor Hushovd (Nor ¦ Credit Agricole) 00:39:07
162 Bernhard Eisel (Aut ¦ T-Mobile Team) 00:39:07
163 Julian Dean (NZl ¦ Credit Agricole) 00:39:07
164 Bram De Groot (Ned ¦ Rabobank) 00:39:07
165 Nick Nuyens (Bel ¦ Cofidis Credit Par Telephone) 00:39:07
166 David Zabriskie (USA ¦ Team CSC) 00:39:07
167 Juan Antonio Flecha (Spa ¦ Rabobank) 00:39:07
168 Fred Rodriguez (USA ¦ Predictor - Lotto) 00:39:07
169 Marcus Burghardt (Ger ¦ T-Mobile Team) 00:39:07
170 Vicente Garcia Acosta (Spa ¦ Caisse D'Epargne) 00:39:07
171 Sébastien Chavanel (Fra ¦ Francaise Des Jeux) 00:39:07
172 Charles Wegelius (GBr ¦ Liquigas) 00:39:07

General classification after stage 8

1 Michael Rasmussen (Den ¦ Rabobank) 39:37:42
2 Linus Gerdemann (Ger ¦ T-Mobile Team) 00:00:43
3 Iban Mayo (Spa ¦ Saunier Duval - Prodir) 00:02:39
4 Alejandro Valverde (Spa ¦ Caisse D'Epargne) 00:02:51
5 Andrey Kashechkin (Kaz ¦ Astana) 00:02:52
6 Cadel Evans (Aus ¦ Predictor - Lotto) 00:02:53
7 Christophe Moreau (Fra ¦ Ag2R Prevoyance) 00:03:06
8 Alberto Contador (Spa ¦ Discovery Channel Team) 00:03:10
9 Frank Schleck (Lux ¦ Team CSC) 00:03:14
10 Denis Menchov (Rus ¦ Rabobank) 00:03:19
11 Carlos Sastre (Spa ¦ Team CSC) 00:03:35
12 Andréas Klöden (Ger ¦ Astana) 00:03:46
13 Levi Leipheimer (USA ¦ Discovery Channel Team) 00:03:53
14 Oscar Pereiro Sio (Spa ¦ Caisse D'Epargne) 00:03:54
15 Haimar Zubeldia (Spa ¦ Euskaltel - Euskadi) 00:04:00
16 Manuel Beltran (Spa ¦ Liquigas) 00:04:19
17 Juan Manuel Garate (Spa ¦ Quick Step - Innergetic) 00:04:22
18 David Arroyo (Spa ¦ Caisse D'Epargne) 00:04:51
19 Kim Kirchen (Lux ¦ T-Mobile Team) 00:05:02
20 Tadej Valjavec (Slo ¦ Lampre-Fondital) 00:05:03
21 Mikel Astarloza (Spa ¦ Euskaltel - Euskadi) 00:05:14
22 Alexandre Vinokourov (Kaz ¦ Astana) 00:05:23
23 Vladimir Karpets (Rus ¦ Caisse D'Epargne) 00:06:09
24 Kanstantsin Siutsou (Blr ¦ Barloworld) 00:06:18
25 Christopher Horner (USA ¦ Predictor - Lotto) 00:06:29
26 Michael Boogerd (Ned ¦ Rabobank) 00:06:38
27 Juan Mauricio Soler Hernandez (Col ¦ Barloworld 00:07:31
28 Yaroslav Popovych (Ukr ¦ Discovery Channel Team) 00:07:32
29 Alexandre Botcharov (Rus ¦ Credit Agricole) 00:08:33
30 Juan Jose Cobo Acebo (Spa ¦ Saunier Duval - Prodir) 00:08:51

It's the Moreau the merrier for French cycling veteran

French Christophe Moreau rides during the 7th and last stage of the 60th Dauphine Libere cycling race, between Valloire and Annecy, French Alps. Kazakh Alexandre Vinokourov (Astana/swi) won the stage. Moreau won the race. (AFP) France's Christophe Moreau won the Dauphine Libere here on Sunday after the final stage of this Tour de France warm-up went to Kazakh rider Alexandre Vinokourov. Moreau, who joined the AG2R team last year, was following up his win in this Pro Tour event in 2001. The key to the 36-year-old's success was his dominant display in the Alpine mountain stages, winning the second stage in Saint Etienne and the fourth up the fearsome Mount Ventoux. Moreau climbed to the top of the overall standings in Saturday's penultimate stage and did enough in the 129km seventh stage, holding off a challenge from his nearest title rival, Australia's Cadel Evans, to finish seventh and take the yellow jersey. Evans, who finished third on Sunday, finished second in the overall standings, 14sec behind, with Kazakh Andrey Kashechkin third, 1min 27sec off the pace. "It was tough," said Moreau, who was part of the Festina team kicked out of the 1998 Tour de France for systematic drug abuse. "Anything could have happened but thankfully I've got experience and maturity on my side and never panicked. "The descent down to the finish was tricky and I had to make double sure of myself." The last day honours went to Vinokourov, winner of Wednesday's time-trial who made his winning move in the rain seven kilometres from the finish in Annecy. Vinokorouv, who will start as one of the favourites to win next month's Tour de France, had a 37sec cushion over runner-up Oscar Pereiro of Spain, who finished second to Floyd Landis in last year's Tour de France and is still awaiting confirmation that he will be crowned the winner following the American's positive dope test in the race. "Favourite for the Tour? It's true, I'm in form and the team's shown to everyone that's it's in good shape," said the Astana rider. Third-placed Pereiro was more than satisfied with his week's work. "This was a really important result for me, it gives me a morale boost," the Spaniard said. "I'm leaving here happy, even if there's still work to do, I've got two kilos to lose. "But I'm on the right path to arrive in form at the start of the Tour de France."

AFP

An exciting finish by Davide Rebellin wins the final Belgium classic of April....

Results

1. Davide Rebellin (I), Gerolsteiner, 202.5 km in 4:48:06. (42.173kph)
2. Alejandro Valverde (Sp), Caisse d'Epargne, at 0:06.
3. Danilo Di Luca (I), Liquigas, at 0:06.
4. Matthias Kessler (G), Astana, at 0:08.
5. Riccardo Ricco (I), Saunier Duval, at 0:08.
6. Rinaldo Nocentini (I), Ag2r, at 0:13.
7. Frank Schleck (Lux), CSC, at 0:16.
8. John Gadret (F), Ag2r, at 0:19.
9. Robert Gesink (Nl), Rabobank, at 0:19.
10. Tadej Valjavec (Slo), Lampre, at 0:19.
11. Fabian Wegmann (G), Gerolsteiner, at 0:19.
12. Oscar Freire (Sp), Rabobank, at 0:19.
13. Jelle Vanendert (B), Chocolade Jacques, at 0:23.
14. Benoit Salmon (F), Agritubel, at 0:23.
15. Manuele Mori (I), Saunier Duval, at 0:25.
16. Xavier Florencio (Sp), Bouygues Télécom, at 0:27.
17. Jerome Pineau (F), Bouygues Télécom, at 0:27.
18. Eduardo Gonzalo (Sp), Agritubel, at 0:29.
19. Philippe Gilbert (B), Francaise des Jeux, at 0:31.
20. Gilberto Simoni (I), Saunier Duval, at 0:31.
21. Remi Pauriol (F), Credit Agricole, at 0:35.
22. Alexander Efimkin (Rus), Barloworld, 35.
23. Cedric Vasseur (F), Quick Step, at 0:38.
24. Patxi Vila (Sp), Lampre, at 0:40.
25. Bram Tankink (Nl), Quick Step, at 0:40.

Veteran German Jens Voigt won the Criterium International for the third time with a typically attacking display in Sunday's road stage.

 

Freire nails it.

photo: Graham Watson

This time there won't be an asterisk next to his victory.

Oscar Freire (Rabobank) unleashed a masterful sprint to win Saturday's centenary celebration of Milan-San Remo ahead of Allan Davis to claim victory in emphatic style to erase the memories of 2004 when he won by a whisker ahead of the celebrating Erik Zabel.

Freire, 31, came off Alessandro Petacchi's wheel with about 100 meters to go in the season's longest classic and swept up the left side of the Via Roma to surge across the line clear by a bike length ahead of Davis (Discovery Channel) and Tom Boonen (Quick Step-Innergetic).

"I felt good and I was on the wheel of Petacchi and I had good legs," the smiling Freire said at the line. "In the end it's only the victory that counts and I am very happy for myself and the team. What would make me happy now? To win the world's a fourth time."
Full Results

The traditional start in Milan...

photo: Graham Watson

A daring attack by Italian phenom Riccardo Riccò (Saunier Duval-Prodir) and Philippe Gilbert (FDJeux) over the Poggio was reeled in with under 2km to go to set up the mass sprint in the centenary edition of La Primavera.

Strong tailwinds along the final 50km helped the peloton keep a tight rein on any would-be escapees to assure a sprint finish.

... the usual celebration in San Remo...

photo: Graham Watson

The three-time world champion won Milan-San Remo three years ago when Zabel celebrated what he thought was his fifth victory too early and the cagey Freire stabbed his bike across the line to win.

This time around, Freire was sure he was safely across the line before throwing both arms up into the cloudy Italian sky in delight. Three Aussies finished in the top 5 with Davis second, Robbie McEwen (Predictor-Lotto) fourth and Stuart O'Grady (CSC) fifth.

... with a long and beautiful ride in between.

Milram had Zabel and another Milram rider to catapult 2005 winner Alessandro Petacchi, but "Ale-Jet" stalled with 100 meters to go and coasted across the line eighth without contesting the sprint.

"Everything was perfect, until the last 150 meters," Petacchi said. "I don't have any real excuse. The team was perfect and the only one who wasn't was me. I felt good on the final climbs and in the sprint, well, it shouldn't be forgotten that I broke my kneecap seven months and perhaps I'm still paying for that."

A good part of the day involves a pleasant ride along the coast

photo: Graham Watson

Just how good is Freire on the Via Roma? In seven consecutive starts, he's never finished worse than seventh (in 2003), won twice (2004, 2007) and finished third in 2000.

The oft-injured Spaniard has an uncanny nose for big-time results.

He hardly raced after winning the Vattenfall Cyclassics last July, suffering from headaches and dizziness from complications of a neck treatment. The Rabobank captain returned to racing in style this spring, winning his first race at the Challenge Mallorca and then two stages and the overall at the Ruta del Sol in Spain.

Ricco and Gilbert were caught with 2km to go

photo: Graham Watson

"My secret for overcoming all of these troubles is my head," Freire told reporters. "I always think positively. I know my body and I know when to listen to myself. This morning, before the race, I believed I could win even more. I knew I was ready."

On Saturday, he was among the five-star favorites and he read the race perfectly. After coming off the torturous Poggio descent, he snagged the ideal position of being on Petacchi's wheel, with Boonen, McEwen and O'Grady stacked up behind him in the final 300 meters.

"I decided to get behind Petacchi in the final kilometer because I knew his team would lead him out and that it was the best position," Freire told Eurosport. "I had the legs, the position and even had the space to get past Petacchi, so it was a perfect sprint."

Freire has one of the best finishing sprints in the business and made easy work of the dying Petacchi and easily stayed ahead of the surging Boonen. The surprising Davis came off the sixth wheel to power into second.

The victory marks the fourth win on the Via Roma by Spanish riders. Freire owns two and Miguel Poblet the other two with wins in 1957 and 1959, respectively. There was another Spaniard in the top-10 in the form of Vicente Reynes of Caisse d'Epargne with ninth.

"I was in good position with 400-300 meters to go when McEwen tried to pass me on the left and it closed me off," Reynes said. "I had to brake and as a result I couldn't make the sprint as I wanted. It's too bad because I felt really good and I believe I could have finished third or fourth on the Via Roma. Now I just have to forget it and think about the upcoming classics. I have big hopes for Flanders, Ghent-Wevelgem and Roubaix, where I hope to be at the front with all the favorites."

Early breaks
The race started in downtown Milan with a good-sized crowd of enthusiastic fans to cheer on Milan-San Remo's centenary celebration. José Joaquín Rojas (Caisse d'Epargne), Thor Hushovd and Francesco Belloti (both Crédit Agricole) didn't take the start, but some 197 riders did.

The day's escape was expected...

photo: Graham Watson

There were some early stabs at breakaways but finally six riders extracted themselves to mark the day's main action. In the group were: Andrei Kunitski (Acqua e Sapone), Koen De Kort (astana), Emanuele Sella (Panaria-Navigare), Aitor Hernandez (Euskaltel), Roberto Traficante (LPR) and Pavel Brutt (Tinkoff).

Following a script typical of Milan-San Remo, the peloton enjoyed a Saturday morning siesta while the sextet chugged away, building up a lead of nearly eight minutes at 120km. Frédéric Guesdon (FDJ) and José Enrique Gutierrez (LPR) both crashed in the feed zone, but continued in the race.

.. chased when things got worrisome...

photo: Graham Watson

The day's main obstacle came on the Cat. 1 Passo di Turchino over a sharp spine of mountains that separates the Mediterranean Coast from the interior valley of northern Italy.

Sella led the way up the climb as the peloton remained at about seven minutes back. Three riders - Guennadi Mikhailov (Astana), Daniele Contrini (Tinkoff) and Marco Fertonani (Caisse d'Epargne) - crashed on the descent with the last two abandoning.

... and eventually reeled in.

photo: Graham Watson

There was another crash involving Iban Mayoz (Euskaltel) and Paolo Longo Borghini (Barloworld) without serious consequence as the leaders - down to five after Traficante became unglued over the Tirchino - still held a considerable lead of more than seven minutes as it hit the Med coast. Rabobank, Liquigas and Milram led the peloton.

Lampre and Milram upped the pace and trimmed the lead to 3:24 at Alassio. Several riders crashed, including Davide Rebellin (Gerolsteiner) and Axel Merckx (T-Mobile), as the peloton zeroed in on the breakaway.

Kopp suffered a broken nose and a concussion.

photo: Graham Watson

At Capo Mele - one of the spectacular headlands that juts into the Mediterranean Sea - saw De Kort lose contact with the berakaway. Brutt and Sella were caught after sweeping down the Capo Cervo at 247km while Gerolsteiner suffered more crashes with, Heinrich Haussler, Fabian Wegmann and David Kopp all going down hard, with Kopp being transported away in an ambulance with a neck brace.

Marco Zanotti (Unibet.com) crashed coming through Imperia. The final three - Kunitski, Hernandez and Brutt - are swept up with about 30km to go.

Cipressa and Poggio
The Cipressa and Poggio presented the last chance for the head-bangers to spoil the chances for the sprinters.

Voeckler on the attack.

photo: Graham Watson

First to try their luck were Manuel Quinziato (Liquigas) and Thomas Voeckler (Bouygues Telecom), but that move was quickly reeled in. About midway up the Cipressa, Franco Pellizotti (Liquigas), fresh off a stage-win at Paris-Nice, darted away, quickly marked by Andrea Moletta (Gerolsteiner). Chasing too was Yaroslov Popovych (Discovery Channel), another stage-winner at Paris-Nice.

The trio held a slender lead over the summit and went snaking down the descent when Moletta misjudged a corner and skidded off the road, slamming his bike into a cement wall and light post. Moletta twisted and flipped into light post and was KO'd for the race.

Popovych quickly countered that move, leaving Voeckler behind, but Pellizotti stayed with him for a while.

Mirko Celestino (Milram) and Patxi Vila (Lampre) chased out of the main pack at 10 seconds with the main bunch at 18 seconds back on the flats heading toward the Poggio.

Quick Step-Innergetic with some help from Team CSC helped neutralize the Celestino/Vila move on the flats between the two climbs while Pellizotti and Popovych held a 28-second gap.

Popovych was caught at the base of the Poggio.

With 10km to go, Popovych was taking his last sip of water as CSC and Quick Step revved up the chase heading toward the base of the Poggio to snuff the move just as the peloton turned onto the final climb.

CSC's Karsten Kroon and Quick Step's Carlos Barredo led the way to reel in Popovych and Pellizotti when Gilbert, Riccò and Matthias Kessler (Astana) attacked. Popovych tried to hang on, but Riccò punched the accelerator once more to drop everyone except Gilbert.

Gilbert leads on the Poggio

photo: Graham Watson

Gilbert was following Ricco's wheel with 3km to go with 10 seconds while world champion Paolo Bettini (Quick Step-Innergetic) was leading the chase in the main pack on the serpentine descent.

The leading pair hit the flats coming into San Remo with a slender gap of seven seconds, but they were swarmed by the lead pack with just under two kilometers to go to set up the sprint.

Lampre and Milram were in good position, but it was Freire without the help of teammates who sprang away for the win.

The 98th Milan-San Remo
1. Oscar Freire (Rabobank)
2. Allan Davis (Discovery Channel)
3. Tom Boonen (Quick Step-Innergetic)
4. Robbie McEwen (Predictor-Lotto)
5. Stuart O'Grady (CSC)
6. Erik Zabel (Milram)
7. Gabriele Balducci (Acqua e Sapone)
8. Alessandro Petacchi (Milram)

Full Results

2007 Overall Standings

Amgen Race Leader's Jersey Levi Leipheimer (DSC)	Union Bank Best Young Rider Jersey Robert Gesink(RAB)	California Travel and Tourism KOM Leader’s Jersey Christophe Laurent (CA)
Herbalife Sprint Leader’s Jersey Juan Jose Haedo (CSC)	Adobe Most Aggressive Rider’s Jersey Stuart O'Grady (CSC)

02.23.07
2007 Overall Standings

02.21.07
2007 Stage 5 Results

02.21.07
2007 Stage 4 Results

02.21.07
2007 Stage 3 Results

02.20.07
2007 Stage 6 Results

02.20.07
2007 Stage 2 Results

02.19.07
2007 Stage 1 Results

02.18.07
2007 Prologue Results

JJ HAEDO WINS; LEVI HOLDS OVERALL LEAD
Latest News | Maps | Cities | Tour Merch. | Amgentourofcalifornia.com | Watch Live

 

 

One shocking note to add, is Team Discovery Rider George Hincappie and Anthony Cruz also of Discovery have a freak crash, upon which George break wrist. Returns to pelotin and pulls back leader, after hard fought 70 mile chase. The biggest Amgen Tour of California crowd to date witnessed Team CSC's Juan Jose "J.J." Haedo (ARG) win a sprint to the finish line in Santa Clarita to take his second stage, with overall race leader, Discovery Channel Pro Cycling Team's Levi Leipheimer (USA) close behind, maintaining possession of the Amgen Leader Jersey going into Sunday's final stage in Long Beach, Calif.

Today's Stage 6 of the Amgen Tour of California saw the toughest racing, the warmest weather and the biggest crowds of the seven racing days so far, as the peloton of world-class cyclists competed along a hilly route from Santa Barbara to Santa Clarita.

Haedo's (ARG) sprint effort at the finish overtook T-Mobile Team's Greg Henderson (NZL), Paolo Bettini (ITA), the world champion rider for Quick Step-Innergetic, Credit Agricole's Thor Hushovd (NOR) and Predictor-Lotto's Freddie Rodriguez (USA).

"I had to go really deep the whole day. I think it was the hardest day in the Amgen Tour of California for sure," said Haedo. "It was a hard day for the sprinters to go over the climb; there was a lot of attacking. I made my way back to the big group before the third KOM [King of the Mountains], and then I tried to stay in the front with my team."

Discovery Channel Pro Cycling Team's Levi Leipheimer (USA), the general classification leader since the Prologue in San Francisco seven days ago, retained the Amgen Leader Jersey after a 65-mile (105 km) breakaway spearheaded by Team CSC's Stuart O'Grady (AUS), which earned him today's Adobe Most Aggressive Rider Jersey.

"I don't have the words to describe what my team went through today. They threw everything they had at us. I'll be honest, it was stressful," said Leipheimer.

According to CHP estimates, the crowd was the biggest of any in the 15 stages of the Amgen Tour of California since the race debuted last year.

"It's exciting, and people were curious how we would do in our sophomore year. The CHP told us today that point to point it was the biggest stage we've had in our two years," said Shawn Hunter, president of AEG Sports. "We've had some great racing out there. We're very proud and more committed than ever. We love this sport."

Pat McQuaid, president of Union Cycliste International (UCI), the international governing body of cycling, also was on hand for today's stage.

"This race is bigger than it was last year. There are more people on the sidelines," said McQuaid at a post-race press conference. "The organization has gotten bigger. I'm very happy with their [the organizers'] continued commitment to this event."

In an example of the aggressive riding today, Discovery Channel Pro Cycling Team's George Hincapie (USA) and Tony Cruz (USA) touched wheels during an attack and crashed after only three miles (5 km) of racing. Hincapie, who won two stages in last year's Amgen Tour of California and fourth place overall, finished the stage, but the team released a statement that he has been diagnosed with a broken left radius and will not participate in tomorrow's final stage in Long Beach. Cruz came away with bruises and road rash, but no serious injuries.

Following the crash, the race continued to be marked by a succession of attacks from several teams to challenge Leipheimer, as well as other jersey holders. Credit Agricole's Christophe Laurent (FRA) and Quick Step-Innergetic's Jurgen Van de Walle (BEL) joined two other riders in an early breakaway to contest the California Tourism and Travel King of the Mountains (KOM) jersey in the final day of climbing. Van de Walle was slightly stronger today, but Laurent picked up enough points to retain the jersey.

"The climbing in this race was quite challenging, so it is very satisfying to win the King of the Mountains jersey," said Laurent in a press conference today. "I am very happy to take the (KOM) jersey in such an important race."

O'Grady's breakaway group of nine contained two former time trial world champions, T-Mobile Team's Michael Rogers (AUS) and Team Slipstream powered by Chipotle's Danny Pate (USA). The gap grew as wide as three minutes, but relentless chasing by Discovery Channel Pro brought it to 1:15 as the riders entered the three 3.5-mile (5.6 km) finishing circuits in Santa Clarita.

As the peloton worked to overtake the breakaway during the three circuits, Health Net presented by Maxxis riders came to the front and helped the Discovery Channel Pro team close the gap. The breakaway was caught with less than two miles to go, ensuring Leipheimer will ride into Long Beach tomorrow wearing the leader jersey for the final day of racing.

The Union Bank of California Best Young Rider Jersey was awarded to Rabobank's Robert Gesink (NED). Haedo retained the Herbalife Sprint Jersey after today's race.

Title sponsor Amgen will celebrate awareness raised during the Breakaway from Cancer™ initiative this week.

"The Breakaway from Cancer™ initiative allows people to connect with others who are fighting this illness or those who have recovered from it. Hope, inspiration and a sense of well-being come from sharing experiences with one another," said seven-time cancer survivor Heather Warrick of Santa Clarita.

Warrick was featured today in the 'Breakaway Mile' that took place at the finish line of the Amgen Tour of California, prior to the exciting conclusion of today's professional race. The one-mile ride was led by Warrick who rode on a tandem bike paired with Amgen scientist Dr. Joe Miletick who plays a crucial role in developing innovative medicines. Following Warrick and Miletick was a peloton comprised of caregivers, family members and health care professionals who supported her during her win against cancer.

For the latest information on the Breakaway from Cancer initiative and ways to support those living with the illness, visit www.breakawayfromcancer.com.

STAGE 7 PRESENTED BY AMGEN TODAY:
Sunday, Feb. 25 - Long Beach (77.5 mi/124.7 km)
Live Race Coverage
Estimated Start Time: 1 p.m. PST
Estimated Finish Time: 3:45-4:15 p.m. PST

The 2007 Amgen Tour of California champion will be crowned in Long Beach tomorrow. Stage 7 is flat, fast and will be a favorite with spectators, who can watch the best cyclists in the world battle each other throughout 10 laps on the circuitous course. Views of San Pedro Bay and the Pacific Ocean will be visible for the entire stage, which is part of the famous Long Beach Grand Prix CART racecar course, meaning the roads are wide and fast. Like the Grand Tours of Europe, winning the final stage of the 2007 Amgen Tour of California is a coveted prize.

For full results, archived footage, GPS data, team and course information, race play-by-play and more, please visit the official race Web site at www.amgentourofcalifornia.com.