2003 Tour de France, Stage 10 to Stage 20
Encyclopedia
Detailed results of the 2003 Tour de France
from Stage 10 (Gap to Marseille) to Stage 20, the finish in Paris
.
to Marseille
, July 15)
A long, largely flat 219.5 km stage after three days in the mountains gave the majority of the riders a chance to recuperate, the pace was somewhat slower than the average to this stage. The roadside temperature was high (around 40°C).
A group of nine riders made a break after just 16 km and slowly built their lead up, to 17 minutes by halfway and to a maximum of around 23 minutes. With such a substantial lead the nine rider group began to fragment with repeated attacks from around 50 km to go, José Enrique Gutiérrez
made a solo break and led into Marseille, he was closed down and passed by Fabio Sacchi
and then Jakob Piil
. These two riders worked together and soon built up a minute lead over the others. Entering the final 2 km to the finish Piil and Saachi shook hands and began to race, Piil led out but managed to hold off Saachi to become the first Danish stage winner since Bjarne Riis
in 1996. Bram de Groot
broke from the chasers to finish third and the peloton
came in over 21 minutes down. The top positions in the general classification were unchanged, the best placed rider in the breakaway was over ¾ of an hour down on Armstrong.
General classification:
Points classification:
Mountains classification:
to Toulouse
, July 17)
After the first rest day, one of the shortest stages of the tour at 153.5 km, another flat stage with only one climb, the third category Cote de Saissac at 82 km. The Tour has finished a stage in Toulouse 24 times before, the last time in 1985.
There were a number of early breakaways and one early crash but the US Postal team worked hard to keep the field together. It was not until early afternoon, just before Carcassonne, that a group of eight riders made it clear. They built up their lead to a maximum of around four minutes. With the peloton
closing and 10 km to go Juan Antonio Flecha
of Banesto attacked from the breakaway and built up a small lead of 20 seconds. Despite the field closing in he held on to win the stage by 4 seconds, the peloton coming in less than a minute behind. Former Tour star Jens Voigt
, struggling with illness, abandoned the race.
General classification:
Points classification:
Mountains classification:
to Cap' Découverte, time trial
)
The first time trial (not counting the prologue) was late this year, usually it is contested before the first mountain stage. Most expected Armstrong to take it, although in previous days he had shown to be not as strongly reigning as in previous years, but in the end he lost one and a half minutes to Jan Ullrich
although winning over the rest of the field. Alexandre Vinokourov took third place and remained with Armstrong and Ullrich in the contest for the final win, putting the other favourites at a little distance. Tyler Hamilton
is now in fourth place, hanging on despite a broken collarbone from the fall in stage 2.
General classification:
Points classification:
Mountains classification:
- Plateau de Bonascre (Ax-3 Domaines), July 19)
The 197.5 km route marked the beginning of four days in the mountains, a flattish first 120 km with two sprints ended in two category one climbs, the Port de Pailhères
at 168.5 km and the finish on the Plateau de Bonascre. Again the weather was very hot.
There were a number of early attacks, the peloton chased each escapee down only for another group to try to break. Eventually around midday a group of ten made it clear and after some effort the peloton
did not chase them over and the group built up a maximum lead of almost nine minutes. As the first climb was reached the ten-man group had a lead of around six minutes, on the Port de Pailhères the leaders faltered and the group broke up. The group containing the race leaders closed in during the climb and at the summit the leading three (Sastre, Rubiera and Mercado) had two minutes over their chasers. On the start of the 9 km climb to the finish the leaders had retained their two minute advantage. Over the climb the three leaders were gradually caught but Sastre and Mercado held out, with 3 km to go the peloton
started to break, attacks from Zubeldia and Vinokourov put the riders under pressure and while Ullrich caught up Armstrong was dropped. Sastre won and Ullrich came second, Armstrong recovered to reduce his loss to 7 seconds. With the time bonus for Ullrich coming second Armstrong's overall lead was reduced to 15 seconds. However, according to specialists, this was the day that Ullrich should have won the Tour. Still suffering the consequences of the dehydration he had suffered during the previous Time Trial
, Armstrong fell back badly at the beginning of the last climb, the Plateau de Bonascre, but Ullrich failed to capitalise on Armstrong's weakness and he didn't attack, winning only seven seconds (plus the time bonus) over the Texan rider. There is speculation about if it was an error of Ullrich's or whether he had not the physical capacity to attack.
General classification:
Points classification:
Mountains classification:
to Loudenvielle-le-Louron
, July 20)
The second day in the Pyrenees
, the 191.5 km stage had two category two climbs and four category one climbs spaced throughout the route. The toughest climbs were the Col de la Core
at 67 km, Col de Menté
at 118.5 km, the Col du Portillon
at 156 km and the final climb and descent of the Col de Peyresourde
at 180 km. The route includes the second category Col de Portet d'Aspet
, where Fabio Casartelli
was mortally injured in 1995.
Just 162 riders started the stage. There was a very early break of seventeen riders, including Richard Virenque, Gilberto Simoni, Jakob Piil and Manuel Beltran. The group steadily increased their lead over the US Postal led peloton in the early part of the race. By the first category two climb they were over nine minutes clear, by the Col de la Core over twelve minutes. When the deficit hit almost fifteen minutes the teams of USP and Euskaltel joined together at the front of the peloton
, later they were joined by Telekom and then Bianchi. By the Col du Portet d'Aspet the lead was reduced to around eleven minutes and on the Col de Menté the leading 17 were showing signs of fatigue and began to drop riders, a group of twelve being led by Virenque over the summit. Over the Col du Portillon
the leading group broke up with a leading trio of Dufaux, Simoni and Virenque leading the pelton by seven minutes over the summit. The trio remained ahead up the Col de Peyresourde as the field behind them split under repeated attacks, while Armstrong stuck close to Ullrich Vinokourov broke away. Dufaux, Simoni and Virenque kept their lead; they were joined by Peron and fought out the finish, Simoni winning the sprint. Vinokourov led in two others was 41 seconds down and Armstrong and Ullrich came in 1' 24" later.
General classification:
Points classification:
Mountains classification:
to Luz-Ardiden, July 21)
Another day in the Hautes-Pyrenees. The 159.5 km stage had three big climbs, the category one Col d'Aspin
at 94 km, the famous hors categorie
Col du Tourmalet
at 124 km and finally a hors categorie
finish at Luz-Ardiden. These were the last hors categorie
climbs on the 2003 Tour.
The stage had another fast start but the real excitement was reserved for the final 13 km up to Luz-Ardiden in what was to turn out to be one of the most epic Tour de France stages in the Armstrong 'era'. In the earlier part of the race Botero and Chavanel escaped and built up a lead of around ten minutes by the Col d'Aspin. On the ascent of the Col du Tourmalet Ullrich made a number of efforts to drop Armstrong, but with no success. By the summit the main riders were still together and the now lone escapee, Chavanel, was four minutes clear. The chasing group of Ullrich and Armstrong was seven strong and had all the main contenders except Vinokourov, who was having a tough time and only briefly joined them at the start of the final climb.
At the start of the final ascent Chavanel was five minutes up on his chasers. The chasing group remained together until about 10 km to go, Mayo attacked and was matched by Armstrong but as Armstrong set himself up for a further push he tangled with the musette bag of a young spectator and crashed, bringing down Mayo and almost Ullrich too. The main group, including Ullrich and marshalled by his friend and former colleague Tyler Hamilton, slowed for Armstrong to catch up. Armstrong did catch up despite almost coming off again when the gear on his damaged bike slipped, almost as soon as Mayo and Armstrong reached the main group they attacked again in a repeat of the situation before the crash. This time a determined Armstrong dropped Mayo and Ullrich and powered off like a man possessed after the lone Chavanel. He caught Chavanel with about 4 km to the finish, sportingly tapping him on the back to acknowledge his efforts, as he passed him to win the stage, his sixteenth stage victory and probably his last chance to gain some time over Ullrich before the final time trial. Ullrich had fallen over a minute behind but, typically, by the finish had fought back and reduced his loss to 40 seconds, not including time bonuses some of which were denied him by Mayo who took 2nd place. Richard Virenque had, barring accidents, won the polka-dot jersey.
General classification:
Points classification:
Mountains classification:
, July 23)
A 197.5 km stage in the Pyrenees Atlantiques, there were six climbs, two major - the Col du Soudet at 67.5 km and the Col Bagarguy at 110 km. The descent of the Col Bagarguy is interrupted by the minor Cote de Burdincurutcheta, a Basque name.
As often this year the stage started fast and was marked by early breakaway attempts. The early attempts were chased down, the high pace (48 km in the first hour) briefly dropped Tyler Hamilton but his CSC team-mates brought him back to the peloton
. Around midday a group of fifteen riders made it clear before the Col du Soudet. The leading group broke up during the ascent. Hamilton attacked from the peloton
at 55 km and jumped across to the leaders, around three minutes up on the peloton, before the summit. The leaders stayed together over the next small climb and maintained their lead, they dropped a number of riders including David Millar
who quickly fell back to and through the peloton. On the ascent of the Col Bagarguy Hamilton attacked the leading group and raced ahead alone. He had a two minute lead at the summit and almost four minutes over the peloton. In the fog over the Cote de Burdincurutcheta he extended his lead. The chasers were gradually caught by the peloton on the long flattish run to the finish but Hamilton pushed his lead out to five minutes. His lead started to fall with 25 km to go, but despite Fassa Bortolo, Euskaltel and Telekom leading the chase Hamilton stayed clear to win his first Tour stage ever.
General classification:
Points classification:
Mountains classification:
, July 24)
After the Pyrenees this 181 km was short and almost absolutely flat, the highest climb was 79 m. Traditionally the stages into Bordeaux have been won by one of the sprinters.
The race started with an attack by ten riders within the first minutes. The peloton
reacted at first but after holding the gap at around sixty seconds for about 25 km the chase slowed and by 40 km the lead was up to six minutes and at around 70 km the breakaway's lead peaked at just over sixteen minutes. The peloton cut into the escapees lead but too slowly to catch them and with about 40 km to go and an eight minute gap the peloton again slowed. With 18 km to the finish Servais Knaven attacked from the leading group and held off their disorganised chase to win. Robbie McEwen headed peloton in eight minutes later. The competition for the Green jersey remained very close.
General classification:
Points classification:
Mountains classification:
, July 25)
A flat 203.5 km with no climbs, two sprints and a moderate tailwind crossing four departments. With the time trial looming another breakaway success looked possible.
With the favourable conditions and the 25 km/h wind the stage started very fast. There were a few small attacks early on, a group of around thirty made a break at 26 km to be swept up at 40 km. the peloton
was still together at the first intermediate sprint in Montendre, unusually Jan Ullrich made a race of it, he was chased by Armstrong and they came second and third behind Robbie McEwen, getting small time bonuses that cut Ullrich's deficit by two seconds. Shortly after the sprint, at 61 km, a group of sixteen made a break and unlike early attempts they stayed clear. Working together the escapees quickly built up their lead to over 11 minutes by the 100 km point, the first two hours of racing passed with an average speed of 52 km/h. The lead continued to grow reaching a maximum of just over 22 minutes with around 25 km to the finish. The leading group then started to break-up as there were repeated solo attacks, the group split with eight riders moving clear. With 10 km to go attacks started from within the smaller group, David Canada making it clear with a trio of riders chasing after him. In the final kilometre Canada's lead vanished - he was passed by the chasing trio who contested a very close sprint, Pablo Lastras just winning. The peloton came in 24:05 later. The green jersey competition was still very close, it could still change hands on the final Stage in Paris.
Despite the amazing early speed the race slowed in the second portion, becoming just the second fastest road stage in Tour history. At an average speed of 49.938 km/h it was still inferior to the 50.355 km/h of Stage Four in 1999 (Laval to Blois, 194.5 km).
General classification:
Points classification:
Mountains classification:
to Nantes
, July 26)
The second long individual time trial. 49 km, flatter than the first long time trial and raced in cool rain on slippy roads rather than 30-plus °C.
The final chance for Jan Ullrich to stop Armstrong winning five-in-a-row. The two rode through in almost identical times, but shortly after the second time check at 32.5 km Ullrich fell while taking the curve on a small roundabout. Ullrich's challenge was over. The stage was won by David Millar who, despite illness and the adverse weather, set the second fastest time trial in the Tour, 54.358 km/h (Greg LeMond
54.545 km/h (1989)). A year later David Millar was excluded from the 2004 Tour, and banned from the sport for 2 years, after syringes with traces of EPO were found at his home - he admitted that this time trial was one of the occasions that he had boosted his performance with the drug.
General classification:
This was the final stage of the 2003 Tour. Traditionally a relaxed ride into Paris then a hectic ten circuits of the 6.5 km Champs-Élysées
loop. Ville d'Avray was the finishing point of the 1903 Tour. With only the sprinter's green jersey still undecided, the two intermediate and the finish were hotly contested.
At the final stage 147 riders started. With the wet roads the stage began slowly; there was a leisurely challenge for the final climbing stage, the category 4 Mont Valerian. As usual the race heated up as the first intermediate sprint at 66 km neared. The sprinter's teams, FDJ and Lotto, led out and Baden Cooke was first followed by Robbie McEwen, leaving the two on equal points. Attacks from other riders then began, small groups making it clear to be quickly caught as the second intermediate sprint at 95 km approached. At that sprint McEwen won and Cooke was second. As the pace slowed after the sprint more riders leapt off the peloton
; on the sixth lap a group of eight riders made a break and working hard built up their lead to 45 seconds. Playing tactics, the peloton held back, not beginning the chase until the final three laps. On the last lap the escape was finally caught with about 5 km to go. In an extremely close finish Jean-Patrick Nazon won the stage with Cooke just beating McEwen for second and claiming the green jersey by two points. Armstrong finished prudently far down the field, losing 15 seconds to some of his rivals.
2003 Tour de France
The 2003 Tour de France started and ended in Paris. Lasting from July 5 to July 27 the race covered 3,427.5 km , proceeding clockwise in twenty stages around France, including six major mountain stages...
from Stage 10 (Gap to Marseille) to Stage 20, the finish in Paris
Paris
Paris is the capital and largest city in France, situated on the river Seine, in northern France, at the heart of the Île-de-France region...
.
Stage 10
(GapGap, Hautes-Alpes
Gap is a commune in southeastern France, the capital of the Hautes-Alpes department.-Geography:An Alpine crossroads at the intersection of D994 and Route nationale 85 the Route Napoléon, Gap lies above sea level along the right bank of the Luye River...
to Marseille
Marseille
Marseille , known in antiquity as Massalia , is the second largest city in France, after Paris, with a population of 852,395 within its administrative limits on a land area of . The urban area of Marseille extends beyond the city limits with a population of over 1,420,000 on an area of...
, July 15)
A long, largely flat 219.5 km stage after three days in the mountains gave the majority of the riders a chance to recuperate, the pace was somewhat slower than the average to this stage. The roadside temperature was high (around 40°C).
A group of nine riders made a break after just 16 km and slowly built their lead up, to 17 minutes by halfway and to a maximum of around 23 minutes. With such a substantial lead the nine rider group began to fragment with repeated attacks from around 50 km to go, José Enrique Gutiérrez
José Enrique Gutiérrez
José Enrique Gutiérrez Cataluña is a Spanish former professional road racing cyclist. His career highlights include second place overall at the 2006 Giro d'Italia, winning a stage of the Vuelta a España and two stages at the Dauphiné Libéré.Gutiérrez's name was brought up in the 2006 Operación...
made a solo break and led into Marseille, he was closed down and passed by Fabio Sacchi
Fabio Sacchi
Fabio Sacchi is an Italian professional road bicycle racer for professional continental team Preti Mangimi.- Palmares :* Trofeo Città di Borgomanero * Milano–Torino...
and then Jakob Piil
Jakob Piil
Jakob Storm Piil is a Danish former professional road bicycle racer, where he later lived many years in Odense. He is an all-round rider, known for his aggressive style of riding, whose speciality is to pick the right breakaways. He is the cousin of Danish former professional bicycle racer Jørgen V...
. These two riders worked together and soon built up a minute lead over the others. Entering the final 2 km to the finish Piil and Saachi shook hands and began to race, Piil led out but managed to hold off Saachi to become the first Danish stage winner since Bjarne Riis
Bjarne Riis
Bjarne Lykkegård Riis , nicknamed The Eagle from Herning , is a Danish former professional road bicycle racer who placed first in the 1996 Tour de France, and is now the team owner and manager of Danish UCI ProTour outfit Team Saxo Bank Sungard...
in 1996. Bram de Groot
Bram de Groot
Bram de Groot is a Dutch former professional road bicycle racer who last rode for UCI ProTour team .- Palmares :* Uniqa Classic - Overall * Delta Ronde van Midden-Zeeland * Volta a Catalunya - 1 stage...
broke from the chasers to finish third and the peloton
Peloton
The peloton , field, bunch or pack is the large main group of riders in a road bicycle race. Riders in a group save energy by riding close near other riders...
came in over 21 minutes down. The top positions in the general classification were unchanged, the best placed rider in the breakaway was over ¾ of an hour down on Armstrong.
- Jakob PiilJakob PiilJakob Storm Piil is a Danish former professional road bicycle racer, where he later lived many years in Odense. He is an all-round rider, known for his aggressive style of riding, whose speciality is to pick the right breakaways. He is the cousin of Danish former professional bicycle racer Jørgen V...
(Denmark) 5:09:33 - Fabio SacchiFabio SacchiFabio Sacchi is an Italian professional road bicycle racer for professional continental team Preti Mangimi.- Palmares :* Trofeo Città di Borgomanero * Milano–Torino...
(Italy) +00:00 - Bram de GrootBram de GrootBram de Groot is a Dutch former professional road bicycle racer who last rode for UCI ProTour team .- Palmares :* Uniqa Classic - Overall * Delta Ronde van Midden-Zeeland * Volta a Catalunya - 1 stage...
(Netherlands) +00:49 - Damien Nazon (France) +02:07
- René HaselbacherRené HaselbacherRené Haselbacher is an Austrian retired professional road bicycle racer. He rode for major teams and , and took national titles in both road racing and the time trial...
(Austria) +02:07 - Philippe GaumontPhilippe GaumontPhilippe Gaumont is a former French professional road racing cyclist. He is notorious for having confessed to extensive doping and explaining a lot of the tricks of the trade.-Racing results:...
(France) +02:07 - Serge BaguetSerge BaguetSerge Baguet is a Belgian former professional road bicycle racer.He is the son of the ex-cyclist Roger Baguet. He is married to Sandra Rasschaert and he has a son . Baguet started his professional cycling career in 1991. He worked for Lotto for five years and one year for Vlaanderen 2002...
(Belgium) +02:07 - José Vicente García Acosta (Sp.) +02:07
- José Enrique GutiérrezJosé Enrique GutiérrezJosé Enrique Gutiérrez Cataluña is a Spanish former professional road racing cyclist. His career highlights include second place overall at the 2006 Giro d'Italia, winning a stage of the Vuelta a España and two stages at the Dauphiné Libéré.Gutiérrez's name was brought up in the 2006 Operación...
(Spain) +05:06 - Baden CookeBaden CookeBaden Cooke is an Australian professional racing cyclist for UCI ProTour team .Cooke began competitive cycling at 11. He completed secondary school at Galen College in Wangaratta, Victoria....
(Australia) +21:23
General classification:
- Lance ArmstrongLance ArmstrongLance Edward Armstrong is an American former professional road racing cyclist who won the Tour de France a record seven consecutive times, after having survived testicular cancer. He is also the founder and chairman of the Lance Armstrong Foundation for cancer research and support...
45:46:22 - Alexandre Vinokourov +0:21
- Iban MayoIban MayoIban Mayo Diez is a professional road bicycle racer. His successes have been overshadowed by doping....
+1:02 - Francisco ManceboFrancisco ManceboFrancisco Mancebo Pérez is a Spanish pro cyclist. He initially rode for team Illes Balears, but moved to AG2R Prévoyance in 2006....
+1:37 - Tyler HamiltonTyler HamiltonTyler Hamilton is a former American professional road bicycle racer and former Olympic gold medalist. Hamilton became a professional cyclist in 1995, and during the 1999, 2000 and 2001 Tour de France was a teammate of Lance Armstrong who won those races.Hamilton appeared at the 2000 Summer...
+1:52 - Jan UllrichJan UllrichJan Ullrich is a German former professional road bicycle racer. In 1997, he was the first German to win the Tour de France. He went on to take five second places and a fourth in 2004 and third in 2005. He is considered one of the best time-trialists in the history of the sport...
+2:10 - Ivan BassoIvan BassoIvan Basso is an Italian professional road bicycle racer who is currently racing with UCI ProTeam . Basso, nicknamed Ivan the Terrible, is among the best mountain riders in the professional field in the 21st century, and is considered one of the strongest stage race riders...
+2:25 - Roberto HerasRoberto HerasRoberto Heras Hernández is a Spanish former professional road bicycle racer who won the Vuelta a España a record-tying three times. He broke the record with a fourth win in 2005, but was disqualified for taking EPO. In June 2011, Heras successfully appealed the disqualification in the civil court...
+2:28 - Haimar ZubeldiaHaimar ZubeldiaHaimar Zubeldia Agirre is a Spanish professional road racing cyclist who rides for on the UCI ProTour....
+3:25 - Denis MenchovDenis MenchovDenis Nikolayevich Menchov , born 25 January 1978 in Oryol, is a professional Russian road bicycle racer for . He is a general classification rider and a climber. In 2005 he won the Vuelta a España, which he won for a second time in 2007...
+3:45
Points classification:
- Baden CookeBaden CookeBaden Cooke is an Australian professional racing cyclist for UCI ProTour team .Cooke began competitive cycling at 11. He completed secondary school at Galen College in Wangaratta, Victoria....
140 - Robbie McEwenRobbie McEwenRobbie McEwen is an Australian professional road bicycle racer, for on the UCI ProTour, specializing in sprint finishes...
131 - Erik ZabelErik ZabelErik Zabel is a former German professional road bicycle racer who last raced with Milram. With over 200 professional wins he is considered by some one of the greatest German cyclists and best cycling sprinters of history...
112
Mountains classification:
- Richard VirenqueRichard VirenqueRichard VirenqueRichard Virenque's name is pronounced Ree-shah Vee-rahnk. Virenque considers himself a man of the South but pronounces his name in standard French. Confusion is caused by the southern habit of pronouncing "en" as "ang" or "eng", making it Vee-rank. But Virenque says Vee-rahnk or...
135 - Jorg JakscheJörg JakscheJörg Jaksche is a German road bicycle racer.He has been cycling professionally since 1997, racing for the teams Polti , Team Telekom , ONCE , CSC , Liberty Seguros-Würth/Astana and Tinkoff Credit Systems in 2007.In 2004, he won the Tour Mediterranean and the Paris–Nice race.In the 2005 Tour de...
75 - Lance ArmstrongLance ArmstrongLance Edward Armstrong is an American former professional road racing cyclist who won the Tour de France a record seven consecutive times, after having survived testicular cancer. He is also the founder and chairman of the Lance Armstrong Foundation for cancer research and support...
74
Stage 11
(NarbonneNarbonne
Narbonne is a commune in southern France in the Languedoc-Roussillon region. It lies from Paris in the Aude department, of which it is a sub-prefecture. Once a prosperous port, it is now located about from the shores of the Mediterranean Sea...
to Toulouse
Toulouse
Toulouse is a city in the Haute-Garonne department in southwestern FranceIt lies on the banks of the River Garonne, 590 km away from Paris and half-way between the Atlantic Ocean and the Mediterranean Sea...
, July 17)
After the first rest day, one of the shortest stages of the tour at 153.5 km, another flat stage with only one climb, the third category Cote de Saissac at 82 km. The Tour has finished a stage in Toulouse 24 times before, the last time in 1985.
There were a number of early breakaways and one early crash but the US Postal team worked hard to keep the field together. It was not until early afternoon, just before Carcassonne, that a group of eight riders made it clear. They built up their lead to a maximum of around four minutes. With the peloton
Peloton
The peloton , field, bunch or pack is the large main group of riders in a road bicycle race. Riders in a group save energy by riding close near other riders...
closing and 10 km to go Juan Antonio Flecha
Juan Antonio Flecha
Juan Antonio Flecha Giannoni is an Argentine-born Spanish professional road bicycle racer for the UCI ProTour team .-Career:...
of Banesto attacked from the breakaway and built up a small lead of 20 seconds. Despite the field closing in he held on to win the stage by 4 seconds, the peloton coming in less than a minute behind. Former Tour star Jens Voigt
Jens Voigt
Jens Voigt is a German professional road bicycle racer for UCI ProTeam . Voigt is known for his propensity to attack, and for his positive racing attitude. He is capable of repeated attacking, holding a high tempo, and breaking away from the peloton...
, struggling with illness, abandoned the race.
- Juan Antonio FlechaJuan Antonio FlechaJuan Antonio Flecha Giannoni is an Argentine-born Spanish professional road bicycle racer for the UCI ProTour team .-Career:...
(Spain) 3:29:33 - Bram de GrootBram de GrootBram de Groot is a Dutch former professional road bicycle racer who last rode for UCI ProTour team .- Palmares :* Uniqa Classic - Overall * Delta Ronde van Midden-Zeeland * Volta a Catalunya - 1 stage...
(Netherlands) +0:04 - Isidro NozalIsidro NozalIsidro Nozal Vega is a Spanish professional road racing cyclist. He has become somewhat famous for not showering during Grand Tours for fear that the water will soften his muscles...
(Spain) +0:04 - Iñigo CuestaÍñigo CuestaÍñigo Cuesta López de Castro is a former Spanish professional road bicycle racer. Cuesta turned professional in 1994 for the Basque team. Here his results included a second place in 1995 Vuelta a Asturias, and in 1996 he signed a contract with Spanish team ONCE...
(Spain) +0:15 - Carlos da CruzCarlos Da CruzCarlos Da Cruz is a French former professional road bicycle racer. In his 11 year career, he rode for BigMat-Auber93 between 1997 and 2000, Festina in 2001 and then for UCI ProTeam Française des Jeux between 2002 and 2007....
(France) +0:23 - Stuart O'GradyStuart O'GradyStuart O'Grady OAM , nicknamed Stuey, is an Australian professional road bicycle racer on UCI ProTeam , who started as a track cyclist. He and Graeme Brown won a gold medal in Men's Madison at the 2004 Summer Olympics...
(Australia) +0:23 - Nicolas PortalNicolas PortalNicolas Portal is a French former professional road bicycle racer. In 2009, he missed much of the racing season with cardiac arrhythmia problems.- Palmares :* 2004 Criterium du Dauphiné Libéré - 1 stage* Tour de France...
(France) +0:23 - Michael Rogers (Australia) +0:23
- Robbie McEwenRobbie McEwenRobbie McEwen is an Australian professional road bicycle racer, for on the UCI ProTour, specializing in sprint finishes...
(Australia) +0:42 - Baden CookeBaden CookeBaden Cooke is an Australian professional racing cyclist for UCI ProTour team .Cooke began competitive cycling at 11. He completed secondary school at Galen College in Wangaratta, Victoria....
(Australia) +0:42
General classification:
- Lance ArmstrongLance ArmstrongLance Edward Armstrong is an American former professional road racing cyclist who won the Tour de France a record seven consecutive times, after having survived testicular cancer. He is also the founder and chairman of the Lance Armstrong Foundation for cancer research and support...
49:16:37 - Alexandre Vinokourov +0:21
- Iban MayoIban MayoIban Mayo Diez is a professional road bicycle racer. His successes have been overshadowed by doping....
+1:02 - Francisco ManceboFrancisco ManceboFrancisco Mancebo Pérez is a Spanish pro cyclist. He initially rode for team Illes Balears, but moved to AG2R Prévoyance in 2006....
+1:37 - Tyler HamiltonTyler HamiltonTyler Hamilton is a former American professional road bicycle racer and former Olympic gold medalist. Hamilton became a professional cyclist in 1995, and during the 1999, 2000 and 2001 Tour de France was a teammate of Lance Armstrong who won those races.Hamilton appeared at the 2000 Summer...
+1:52 - Jan UllrichJan UllrichJan Ullrich is a German former professional road bicycle racer. In 1997, he was the first German to win the Tour de France. He went on to take five second places and a fourth in 2004 and third in 2005. He is considered one of the best time-trialists in the history of the sport...
+2:10 - Ivan BassoIvan BassoIvan Basso is an Italian professional road bicycle racer who is currently racing with UCI ProTeam . Basso, nicknamed Ivan the Terrible, is among the best mountain riders in the professional field in the 21st century, and is considered one of the strongest stage race riders...
+2:25 - Roberto HerasRoberto HerasRoberto Heras Hernández is a Spanish former professional road bicycle racer who won the Vuelta a España a record-tying three times. He broke the record with a fourth win in 2005, but was disqualified for taking EPO. In June 2011, Heras successfully appealed the disqualification in the civil court...
+2:28 - Haimar ZubeldiaHaimar ZubeldiaHaimar Zubeldia Agirre is a Spanish professional road racing cyclist who rides for on the UCI ProTour....
+3:25 - Denis MenchovDenis MenchovDenis Nikolayevich Menchov , born 25 January 1978 in Oryol, is a professional Russian road bicycle racer for . He is a general classification rider and a climber. In 2005 he won the Vuelta a España, which he won for a second time in 2007...
+3:45
Points classification:
- Baden CookeBaden CookeBaden Cooke is an Australian professional racing cyclist for UCI ProTour team .Cooke began competitive cycling at 11. He completed secondary school at Galen College in Wangaratta, Victoria....
156 - Robbie McEwenRobbie McEwenRobbie McEwen is an Australian professional road bicycle racer, for on the UCI ProTour, specializing in sprint finishes...
148 - Erik ZabelErik ZabelErik Zabel is a former German professional road bicycle racer who last raced with Milram. With over 200 professional wins he is considered by some one of the greatest German cyclists and best cycling sprinters of history...
126
Mountains classification:
- Richard VirenqueRichard VirenqueRichard VirenqueRichard Virenque's name is pronounced Ree-shah Vee-rahnk. Virenque considers himself a man of the South but pronounces his name in standard French. Confusion is caused by the southern habit of pronouncing "en" as "ang" or "eng", making it Vee-rank. But Virenque says Vee-rahnk or...
135 - Jorg JakscheJörg JakscheJörg Jaksche is a German road bicycle racer.He has been cycling professionally since 1997, racing for the teams Polti , Team Telekom , ONCE , CSC , Liberty Seguros-Würth/Astana and Tinkoff Credit Systems in 2007.In 2004, he won the Tour Mediterranean and the Paris–Nice race.In the 2005 Tour de...
75 - Lance ArmstrongLance ArmstrongLance Edward Armstrong is an American former professional road racing cyclist who won the Tour de France a record seven consecutive times, after having survived testicular cancer. He is also the founder and chairman of the Lance Armstrong Foundation for cancer research and support...
74
Stage 12
(GaillacGaillac
Gaillac is a commune in the Tarn department in southern France.-Geography of Gaillac:Gaillac is a town situated between Toulouse, Albi and Monatauban. It has gained a large amount of recognition due to the wines that bear the towns name. The Tarn river runs along the border of the town by the...
to Cap' Découverte, time trial
Time trial
In many racing sports an athlete will compete in a time trial against the clock to secure the fastest time. In cycling, for example, a time trial can be a single track cycling event, or an individual or team time trial on the road, and either or both of the latter may form components of...
)
The first time trial (not counting the prologue) was late this year, usually it is contested before the first mountain stage. Most expected Armstrong to take it, although in previous days he had shown to be not as strongly reigning as in previous years, but in the end he lost one and a half minutes to Jan Ullrich
Jan Ullrich
Jan Ullrich is a German former professional road bicycle racer. In 1997, he was the first German to win the Tour de France. He went on to take five second places and a fourth in 2004 and third in 2005. He is considered one of the best time-trialists in the history of the sport...
although winning over the rest of the field. Alexandre Vinokourov took third place and remained with Armstrong and Ullrich in the contest for the final win, putting the other favourites at a little distance. Tyler Hamilton
Tyler Hamilton
Tyler Hamilton is a former American professional road bicycle racer and former Olympic gold medalist. Hamilton became a professional cyclist in 1995, and during the 1999, 2000 and 2001 Tour de France was a teammate of Lance Armstrong who won those races.Hamilton appeared at the 2000 Summer...
is now in fourth place, hanging on despite a broken collarbone from the fall in stage 2.
- Jan UllrichJan UllrichJan Ullrich is a German former professional road bicycle racer. In 1997, he was the first German to win the Tour de France. He went on to take five second places and a fourth in 2004 and third in 2005. He is considered one of the best time-trialists in the history of the sport...
(Germany) 58:32 - Lance ArmstrongLance ArmstrongLance Edward Armstrong is an American former professional road racing cyclist who won the Tour de France a record seven consecutive times, after having survived testicular cancer. He is also the founder and chairman of the Lance Armstrong Foundation for cancer research and support...
(USA) +1:36 - Alexandre Vinokourov (Kaz.) +2:06
- Haimar ZubeldiaHaimar ZubeldiaHaimar Zubeldia Agirre is a Spanish professional road racing cyclist who rides for on the UCI ProTour....
(Spain) +2:40 - Tyler HamiltonTyler HamiltonTyler Hamilton is a former American professional road bicycle racer and former Olympic gold medalist. Hamilton became a professional cyclist in 1995, and during the 1999, 2000 and 2001 Tour de France was a teammate of Lance Armstrong who won those races.Hamilton appeared at the 2000 Summer...
(USA) +2:43 - Uwe PeschelUwe PeschelUwe Peschel is a German professional road bicycle racer and a time trialist. At the 1992 Summer Olympics, Peschel along with Bernd Dittert, Christian Meyer and Michael Rich, captured the gold medal in the Men's Team Road Race.- Major achievements :199219961997 – Uwe Peschel is a German...
(Germany) +3:26 - David MillarDavid MillarDavid Millar is a British road racing cyclist riding for . He has won three stages of the Tour de France, two of the Vuelta a España and one Stage of the Giro d'Italia. He was the British national road champion and the national time trial champion, both in 2007...
(UK) +3:55 - Inigo Chaurreau (Spain) +4:01
- David PlazaDavid PlazaDavid Plaza Romero is a Spanish former professional road bicycle racer.- Palmarès :1991199419992000...
(Spain) +4:37 - Santiago BoteroSantiago BoteroSantiago Botero Echeverry is a Colombian former professional road bicycle racer. He was a pro from 1996 to 2010, during which time he raced in three editions of the Tour de France and four editions of the Vuelta a España...
(Colombia) +5:00
General classification:
- Lance ArmstrongLance ArmstrongLance Edward Armstrong is an American former professional road racing cyclist who won the Tour de France a record seven consecutive times, after having survived testicular cancer. He is also the founder and chairman of the Lance Armstrong Foundation for cancer research and support...
50:16:45 - Jan UllrichJan UllrichJan Ullrich is a German former professional road bicycle racer. In 1997, he was the first German to win the Tour de France. He went on to take five second places and a fourth in 2004 and third in 2005. He is considered one of the best time-trialists in the history of the sport...
+0:34 - Alexandre Vinokourov +0:51
- Tyler HamiltonTyler HamiltonTyler Hamilton is a former American professional road bicycle racer and former Olympic gold medalist. Hamilton became a professional cyclist in 1995, and during the 1999, 2000 and 2001 Tour de France was a teammate of Lance Armstrong who won those races.Hamilton appeared at the 2000 Summer...
+2:59 - Haimar ZubeldiaHaimar ZubeldiaHaimar Zubeldia Agirre is a Spanish professional road racing cyclist who rides for on the UCI ProTour....
+4:29 - Iban MayoIban MayoIban Mayo Diez is a professional road bicycle racer. His successes have been overshadowed by doping....
+4:29 - Francisco ManceboFrancisco ManceboFrancisco Mancebo Pérez is a Spanish pro cyclist. He initially rode for team Illes Balears, but moved to AG2R Prévoyance in 2006....
+5:01 - Ivan BassoIvan BassoIvan Basso is an Italian professional road bicycle racer who is currently racing with UCI ProTeam . Basso, nicknamed Ivan the Terrible, is among the best mountain riders in the professional field in the 21st century, and is considered one of the strongest stage race riders...
+6:49 - Denis MenchovDenis MenchovDenis Nikolayevich Menchov , born 25 January 1978 in Oryol, is a professional Russian road bicycle racer for . He is a general classification rider and a climber. In 2005 he won the Vuelta a España, which he won for a second time in 2007...
+7:24 - Christophe MoreauChristophe MoreauChristophe Moreau is a French former professional road racing cyclist. For many years Moreau was the primary French contender for the general classification in the Tour de France: he finished in the top 12 in the GC five times and finished the race as best Frenchman in 2000, 2003, 2004 and 2005...
+7:55
Points classification:
- Baden CookeBaden CookeBaden Cooke is an Australian professional racing cyclist for UCI ProTour team .Cooke began competitive cycling at 11. He completed secondary school at Galen College in Wangaratta, Victoria....
156 - Robbie McEwenRobbie McEwenRobbie McEwen is an Australian professional road bicycle racer, for on the UCI ProTour, specializing in sprint finishes...
148 - Erik ZabelErik ZabelErik Zabel is a former German professional road bicycle racer who last raced with Milram. With over 200 professional wins he is considered by some one of the greatest German cyclists and best cycling sprinters of history...
126
Mountains classification:
- Richard VirenqueRichard VirenqueRichard VirenqueRichard Virenque's name is pronounced Ree-shah Vee-rahnk. Virenque considers himself a man of the South but pronounces his name in standard French. Confusion is caused by the southern habit of pronouncing "en" as "ang" or "eng", making it Vee-rank. But Virenque says Vee-rahnk or...
135 - Jorg JakscheJörg JakscheJörg Jaksche is a German road bicycle racer.He has been cycling professionally since 1997, racing for the teams Polti , Team Telekom , ONCE , CSC , Liberty Seguros-Würth/Astana and Tinkoff Credit Systems in 2007.In 2004, he won the Tour Mediterranean and the Paris–Nice race.In the 2005 Tour de...
75 - Lance ArmstrongLance ArmstrongLance Edward Armstrong is an American former professional road racing cyclist who won the Tour de France a record seven consecutive times, after having survived testicular cancer. He is also the founder and chairman of the Lance Armstrong Foundation for cancer research and support...
74
Stage 13
(ToulouseToulouse
Toulouse is a city in the Haute-Garonne department in southwestern FranceIt lies on the banks of the River Garonne, 590 km away from Paris and half-way between the Atlantic Ocean and the Mediterranean Sea...
- Plateau de Bonascre (Ax-3 Domaines), July 19)
The 197.5 km route marked the beginning of four days in the mountains, a flattish first 120 km with two sprints ended in two category one climbs, the Port de Pailhères
Port de Pailhères
The Port de Pailhères or is a pass in the Ariège department of the French Pyrenees.The summit is at an altitude of 2,001 metres, and is located on the secondary road D25 between Mijanès and Ax-les-Thermes ....
at 168.5 km and the finish on the Plateau de Bonascre. Again the weather was very hot.
There were a number of early attacks, the peloton chased each escapee down only for another group to try to break. Eventually around midday a group of ten made it clear and after some effort the peloton
Peloton
The peloton , field, bunch or pack is the large main group of riders in a road bicycle race. Riders in a group save energy by riding close near other riders...
did not chase them over and the group built up a maximum lead of almost nine minutes. As the first climb was reached the ten-man group had a lead of around six minutes, on the Port de Pailhères the leaders faltered and the group broke up. The group containing the race leaders closed in during the climb and at the summit the leading three (Sastre, Rubiera and Mercado) had two minutes over their chasers. On the start of the 9 km climb to the finish the leaders had retained their two minute advantage. Over the climb the three leaders were gradually caught but Sastre and Mercado held out, with 3 km to go the peloton
Peloton
The peloton , field, bunch or pack is the large main group of riders in a road bicycle race. Riders in a group save energy by riding close near other riders...
started to break, attacks from Zubeldia and Vinokourov put the riders under pressure and while Ullrich caught up Armstrong was dropped. Sastre won and Ullrich came second, Armstrong recovered to reduce his loss to 7 seconds. With the time bonus for Ullrich coming second Armstrong's overall lead was reduced to 15 seconds. However, according to specialists, this was the day that Ullrich should have won the Tour. Still suffering the consequences of the dehydration he had suffered during the previous Time Trial
Time trial
In many racing sports an athlete will compete in a time trial against the clock to secure the fastest time. In cycling, for example, a time trial can be a single track cycling event, or an individual or team time trial on the road, and either or both of the latter may form components of...
, Armstrong fell back badly at the beginning of the last climb, the Plateau de Bonascre, but Ullrich failed to capitalise on Armstrong's weakness and he didn't attack, winning only seven seconds (plus the time bonus) over the Texan rider. There is speculation about if it was an error of Ullrich's or whether he had not the physical capacity to attack.
- Carlos SastreCarlos SastreCarlos Sastre Candil is a retired Spanish professional road bicycle racer and champion of the 2008 Tour de France. Sastre rides in 2011 for UCI Professional Continental team...
(Spain) 5:16:08 - Jan UllrichJan UllrichJan Ullrich is a German former professional road bicycle racer. In 1997, he was the first German to win the Tour de France. He went on to take five second places and a fourth in 2004 and third in 2005. He is considered one of the best time-trialists in the history of the sport...
(Germany) +1:01 - Haimar ZubeldiaHaimar ZubeldiaHaimar Zubeldia Agirre is a Spanish professional road racing cyclist who rides for on the UCI ProTour....
(Spain) +1:01 - Lance ArmstrongLance ArmstrongLance Edward Armstrong is an American former professional road racing cyclist who won the Tour de France a record seven consecutive times, after having survived testicular cancer. He is also the founder and chairman of the Lance Armstrong Foundation for cancer research and support...
(USA) +1:08 - Alexandre Vinokourov (Kaz.) +1:18
- Ivan BassoIvan BassoIvan Basso is an Italian professional road bicycle racer who is currently racing with UCI ProTeam . Basso, nicknamed Ivan the Terrible, is among the best mountain riders in the professional field in the 21st century, and is considered one of the strongest stage race riders...
(Italy) +1:18 - Juan Miguel MercadoJuan Miguel MercadoJuan Miguel Mercado Martín is a Spanish professional road bicycle racer who turned professional with Vitalicio Seguros in 1998...
(Sp.) +1:24 - Iban MayoIban MayoIban Mayo Diez is a professional road bicycle racer. His successes have been overshadowed by doping....
(Spain) +1:59 - Christophe MoreauChristophe MoreauChristophe Moreau is a French former professional road racing cyclist. For many years Moreau was the primary French contender for the general classification in the Tour de France: he finished in the top 12 in the GC five times and finished the race as best Frenchman in 2000, 2003, 2004 and 2005...
(France) +2:32 - Tyler HamiltonTyler HamiltonTyler Hamilton is a former American professional road bicycle racer and former Olympic gold medalist. Hamilton became a professional cyclist in 1995, and during the 1999, 2000 and 2001 Tour de France was a teammate of Lance Armstrong who won those races.Hamilton appeared at the 2000 Summer...
(USA) +2:32
General classification:
- Lance ArmstrongLance ArmstrongLance Edward Armstrong is an American former professional road racing cyclist who won the Tour de France a record seven consecutive times, after having survived testicular cancer. He is also the founder and chairman of the Lance Armstrong Foundation for cancer research and support...
55:34:01 - Jan UllrichJan UllrichJan Ullrich is a German former professional road bicycle racer. In 1997, he was the first German to win the Tour de France. He went on to take five second places and a fourth in 2004 and third in 2005. He is considered one of the best time-trialists in the history of the sport...
+0:15 - Alexandre Vinokourov +1:01
- Haimar ZubeldiaHaimar ZubeldiaHaimar Zubeldia Agirre is a Spanish professional road racing cyclist who rides for on the UCI ProTour....
+4:16 - Tyler HamiltonTyler HamiltonTyler Hamilton is a former American professional road bicycle racer and former Olympic gold medalist. Hamilton became a professional cyclist in 1995, and during the 1999, 2000 and 2001 Tour de France was a teammate of Lance Armstrong who won those races.Hamilton appeared at the 2000 Summer...
+4:25 - Iban MayoIban MayoIban Mayo Diez is a professional road bicycle racer. His successes have been overshadowed by doping....
+5:20 - Ivan BassoIvan BassoIvan Basso is an Italian professional road bicycle racer who is currently racing with UCI ProTeam . Basso, nicknamed Ivan the Terrible, is among the best mountain riders in the professional field in the 21st century, and is considered one of the strongest stage race riders...
+7:01 - Francisco ManceboFrancisco ManceboFrancisco Mancebo Pérez is a Spanish pro cyclist. He initially rode for team Illes Balears, but moved to AG2R Prévoyance in 2006....
+7:02 - Carlos SastreCarlos SastreCarlos Sastre Candil is a retired Spanish professional road bicycle racer and champion of the 2008 Tour de France. Sastre rides in 2011 for UCI Professional Continental team...
+8:47 - Christophe MoreauChristophe MoreauChristophe Moreau is a French former professional road racing cyclist. For many years Moreau was the primary French contender for the general classification in the Tour de France: he finished in the top 12 in the GC five times and finished the race as best Frenchman in 2000, 2003, 2004 and 2005...
+9:19
Points classification:
- Baden CookeBaden CookeBaden Cooke is an Australian professional racing cyclist for UCI ProTour team .Cooke began competitive cycling at 11. He completed secondary school at Galen College in Wangaratta, Victoria....
156 - Robbie McEwenRobbie McEwenRobbie McEwen is an Australian professional road bicycle racer, for on the UCI ProTour, specializing in sprint finishes...
148 - Erik ZabelErik ZabelErik Zabel is a former German professional road bicycle racer who last raced with Milram. With over 200 professional wins he is considered by some one of the greatest German cyclists and best cycling sprinters of history...
132
Mountains classification:
- Richard VirenqueRichard VirenqueRichard VirenqueRichard Virenque's name is pronounced Ree-shah Vee-rahnk. Virenque considers himself a man of the South but pronounces his name in standard French. Confusion is caused by the southern habit of pronouncing "en" as "ang" or "eng", making it Vee-rank. But Virenque says Vee-rahnk or...
149 - Lance ArmstrongLance ArmstrongLance Edward Armstrong is an American former professional road racing cyclist who won the Tour de France a record seven consecutive times, after having survived testicular cancer. He is also the founder and chairman of the Lance Armstrong Foundation for cancer research and support...
92 - Juan Miguel MercadoJuan Miguel MercadoJuan Miguel Mercado Martín is a Spanish professional road bicycle racer who turned professional with Vitalicio Seguros in 1998...
77
Stage 14
(Saint-GironsSaint-Girons
Saint-Girons is the name or part of the name of several communes in France:* Saint-Girons, Ariège, in the Ariège department* Saint-Girons-d'Aiguevives, in the Gironde department...
to Loudenvielle-le-Louron
Loudenvielle
Loudenvielle is a commune in the Hautes-Pyrénées department in south-western France.Its inhabitants are called Loudenviellois.Located in the Louron Valley, Loudenvielle is a popular tourist resort, with a lake, campsite, thermal spa and waterpark...
, July 20)
The second day in the Pyrenees
Pyrenees
The Pyrenees is a range of mountains in southwest Europe that forms a natural border between France and Spain...
, the 191.5 km stage had two category two climbs and four category one climbs spaced throughout the route. The toughest climbs were the Col de la Core
Col de la Core
The Col de la Core is a high mountain pass in the Ariège department of France in the Pyrenees. It connects Audressein with Seix.-Details of climb:...
at 67 km, Col de Menté
Col de Menté
The Col de Menté is a mountain pass in the central Pyrenees in the department of Haute-Garonne in France. It is situated on the D44 road between Saint-Béat and the D618...
at 118.5 km, the Col du Portillon
Col du Portillon
The Col du Portillon is a high mountain pass in the Pyrenees on the border between France and Spain. It connects Bagnères-de-Luchon in France with Bossòst in the Val d'Aran,Spain.-Details of climb:...
at 156 km and the final climb and descent of the Col de Peyresourde
Col de Peyresourde
The Col de Peyresourde is a mountain pass in the central Pyrenees on the border of the department of Haute-Garonne and Hautes-Pyrénées in France. It is situated on the D618 road between Bagnères de Luchon and Arreau.-Details of climb:...
at 180 km. The route includes the second category Col de Portet d'Aspet
Col de Portet d'Aspet
The Col de Portet d'Aspet is a mountain pass in the central Pyrenees in the department of Haute-Garonne in France. It is situated on the D618 road between Aspet and St. Girons. At , it connects the Ger and Bouigane valleys, on the slopes of the Pic de Paloumère .-Details of climb:Starting from...
, where Fabio Casartelli
Fabio Casartelli
Fabio Casartelli was an Italian cyclist and an Olympic gold medalist who died in a crash on the descent of the Col de Portet d'Aspet, France, during the 15th stage of the 1995 Tour de France.He was born in Como, Italy....
was mortally injured in 1995.
Just 162 riders started the stage. There was a very early break of seventeen riders, including Richard Virenque, Gilberto Simoni, Jakob Piil and Manuel Beltran. The group steadily increased their lead over the US Postal led peloton in the early part of the race. By the first category two climb they were over nine minutes clear, by the Col de la Core over twelve minutes. When the deficit hit almost fifteen minutes the teams of USP and Euskaltel joined together at the front of the peloton
Peloton
The peloton , field, bunch or pack is the large main group of riders in a road bicycle race. Riders in a group save energy by riding close near other riders...
, later they were joined by Telekom and then Bianchi. By the Col du Portet d'Aspet the lead was reduced to around eleven minutes and on the Col de Menté the leading 17 were showing signs of fatigue and began to drop riders, a group of twelve being led by Virenque over the summit. Over the Col du Portillon
Col du Portillon
The Col du Portillon is a high mountain pass in the Pyrenees on the border between France and Spain. It connects Bagnères-de-Luchon in France with Bossòst in the Val d'Aran,Spain.-Details of climb:...
the leading group broke up with a leading trio of Dufaux, Simoni and Virenque leading the pelton by seven minutes over the summit. The trio remained ahead up the Col de Peyresourde as the field behind them split under repeated attacks, while Armstrong stuck close to Ullrich Vinokourov broke away. Dufaux, Simoni and Virenque kept their lead; they were joined by Peron and fought out the finish, Simoni winning the sprint. Vinokourov led in two others was 41 seconds down and Armstrong and Ullrich came in 1' 24" later.
- Gilberto SimoniGilberto SimoniGilberto Simoni is an Italian ex-professional road bicycle racer, most recently for . Simoni is twice winner of the Giro d'Italia cycling race...
(Italy) 5:31:52 - Laurent DufauxLaurent DufauxLaurent Dufaux was a professional road cyclist from 1991 - 2003.- Major results :1993199419951996-External links:**...
(Switzerland) +0:00 - Richard VirenqueRichard VirenqueRichard VirenqueRichard Virenque's name is pronounced Ree-shah Vee-rahnk. Virenque considers himself a man of the South but pronounces his name in standard French. Confusion is caused by the southern habit of pronouncing "en" as "ang" or "eng", making it Vee-rank. But Virenque says Vee-rahnk or...
(France) +0:00 - Andrea PeronAndrea PeronAndrea Peron is an Italian former professional road bicycle racer. Peron turned professional in 1993, riding for team Gatorade...
(Italy) +0:03 - Walter BeneteauWalter BénéteauWalter Bénéteau is a French former professional cyclist. He has raced in every Tour de France from 2000 until 2006.-Final standings in the Tour de France:*2000 - 72nd*2001 - 42nd*2002 - 117th*2003 - 59th...
(France) +0:10 - Alexandre Vinokourov (Kaz.) +0:41
- Iban MayoIban MayoIban Mayo Diez is a professional road bicycle racer. His successes have been overshadowed by doping....
(Spain) +0:41 - Steve ZampieriSteve ZampieriSteve Zampieri is a Swiss professional road bicycle racer who is currently a free agent.- Palmares :20002001...
(Switzerland) +0:41 - Haimar ZubeldiaHaimar ZubeldiaHaimar Zubeldia Agirre is a Spanish professional road racing cyclist who rides for on the UCI ProTour....
(Spain) +1:24 - Ivan BassoIvan BassoIvan Basso is an Italian professional road bicycle racer who is currently racing with UCI ProTeam . Basso, nicknamed Ivan the Terrible, is among the best mountain riders in the professional field in the 21st century, and is considered one of the strongest stage race riders...
(Italy) +1:24
General classification:
- Lance ArmstrongLance ArmstrongLance Edward Armstrong is an American former professional road racing cyclist who won the Tour de France a record seven consecutive times, after having survived testicular cancer. He is also the founder and chairman of the Lance Armstrong Foundation for cancer research and support...
61:07:17 - Jan UllrichJan UllrichJan Ullrich is a German former professional road bicycle racer. In 1997, he was the first German to win the Tour de France. He went on to take five second places and a fourth in 2004 and third in 2005. He is considered one of the best time-trialists in the history of the sport...
+00:15 - Alexandre Vinokourov +00:18
- Haimar ZubeldiaHaimar ZubeldiaHaimar Zubeldia Agirre is a Spanish professional road racing cyclist who rides for on the UCI ProTour....
+04:16 - Iban MayoIban MayoIban Mayo Diez is a professional road bicycle racer. His successes have been overshadowed by doping....
+04:37 - Ivan BassoIvan BassoIvan Basso is an Italian professional road bicycle racer who is currently racing with UCI ProTeam . Basso, nicknamed Ivan the Terrible, is among the best mountain riders in the professional field in the 21st century, and is considered one of the strongest stage race riders...
+07:01 - Tyler HamiltonTyler HamiltonTyler Hamilton is a former American professional road bicycle racer and former Olympic gold medalist. Hamilton became a professional cyclist in 1995, and during the 1999, 2000 and 2001 Tour de France was a teammate of Lance Armstrong who won those races.Hamilton appeared at the 2000 Summer...
+07:32 - Francisco ManceboFrancisco ManceboFrancisco Mancebo Pérez is a Spanish pro cyclist. He initially rode for team Illes Balears, but moved to AG2R Prévoyance in 2006....
+10:09 - Christophe MoreauChristophe MoreauChristophe Moreau is a French former professional road racing cyclist. For many years Moreau was the primary French contender for the general classification in the Tour de France: he finished in the top 12 in the GC five times and finished the race as best Frenchman in 2000, 2003, 2004 and 2005...
+10:09 - Carlos SastreCarlos SastreCarlos Sastre Candil is a retired Spanish professional road bicycle racer and champion of the 2008 Tour de France. Sastre rides in 2011 for UCI Professional Continental team...
+12:40
Points classification:
- Baden CookeBaden CookeBaden Cooke is an Australian professional racing cyclist for UCI ProTour team .Cooke began competitive cycling at 11. He completed secondary school at Galen College in Wangaratta, Victoria....
156 - Robbie McEwenRobbie McEwenRobbie McEwen is an Australian professional road bicycle racer, for on the UCI ProTour, specializing in sprint finishes...
148 - Erik ZabelErik ZabelErik Zabel is a former German professional road bicycle racer who last raced with Milram. With over 200 professional wins he is considered by some one of the greatest German cyclists and best cycling sprinters of history...
132
Mountains classification:
- Richard VirenqueRichard VirenqueRichard VirenqueRichard Virenque's name is pronounced Ree-shah Vee-rahnk. Virenque considers himself a man of the South but pronounces his name in standard French. Confusion is caused by the southern habit of pronouncing "en" as "ang" or "eng", making it Vee-rank. But Virenque says Vee-rahnk or...
300 - Laurent DufauxLaurent DufauxLaurent Dufaux was a professional road cyclist from 1991 - 2003.- Major results :1993199419951996-External links:**...
163 - Paolo BettiniPaolo BettiniPaolo Bettini is an Italian former champion road racing cyclist, and the coach of the Italian national cycling team. Considered the best classics specialist of his generation, and probably one of the strongest of all times, he won gold medals in the 2004 Athens Olympics road race and in the 2006...
98
Stage 15
(Bagnères-de-BigorreBagnères-de-Bigorre
Bagnères-de-Bigorre is a French commune in the south-western Hautes-Pyrénées department, of which it is a sub-prefecture.-Notable people:Bagnères-de-Bigorre was the birthplace of:*Alan Brooke, 1st Viscount Alanbrooke...
to Luz-Ardiden, July 21)
Another day in the Hautes-Pyrenees. The 159.5 km stage had three big climbs, the category one Col d'Aspin
Col d'Aspin
Col d'Aspin is a high mountain pass in the Pyrenees in the department of Hautes-Pyrénées in France.It connects Sainte-Marie-de-Campan and Arreau.-Tour de France:...
at 94 km, the famous hors categorie
Hors Categorie
Hors catégorie is a French term used in cycle races to designate a climb that is "beyond categorization", an incredibly tough climb. Most climbs in cycling are designated from Category 1 to Category 4 , based on both steepness and length...
Col du Tourmalet
Col du Tourmalet
Col du Tourmalet is the highest road in the central Pyrenees in the department of Hautes-Pyrénées in France. Sainte-Marie-de-Campan is at the foot on the eastern side and the ski station La Mongie two-thirds of the way up. Luz-Saint-Sauveur is at the bottom of the western side.Tourmalet is also a...
at 124 km and finally a hors categorie
Hors Categorie
Hors catégorie is a French term used in cycle races to designate a climb that is "beyond categorization", an incredibly tough climb. Most climbs in cycling are designated from Category 1 to Category 4 , based on both steepness and length...
finish at Luz-Ardiden. These were the last hors categorie
Hors Categorie
Hors catégorie is a French term used in cycle races to designate a climb that is "beyond categorization", an incredibly tough climb. Most climbs in cycling are designated from Category 1 to Category 4 , based on both steepness and length...
climbs on the 2003 Tour.
The stage had another fast start but the real excitement was reserved for the final 13 km up to Luz-Ardiden in what was to turn out to be one of the most epic Tour de France stages in the Armstrong 'era'. In the earlier part of the race Botero and Chavanel escaped and built up a lead of around ten minutes by the Col d'Aspin. On the ascent of the Col du Tourmalet Ullrich made a number of efforts to drop Armstrong, but with no success. By the summit the main riders were still together and the now lone escapee, Chavanel, was four minutes clear. The chasing group of Ullrich and Armstrong was seven strong and had all the main contenders except Vinokourov, who was having a tough time and only briefly joined them at the start of the final climb.
At the start of the final ascent Chavanel was five minutes up on his chasers. The chasing group remained together until about 10 km to go, Mayo attacked and was matched by Armstrong but as Armstrong set himself up for a further push he tangled with the musette bag of a young spectator and crashed, bringing down Mayo and almost Ullrich too. The main group, including Ullrich and marshalled by his friend and former colleague Tyler Hamilton, slowed for Armstrong to catch up. Armstrong did catch up despite almost coming off again when the gear on his damaged bike slipped, almost as soon as Mayo and Armstrong reached the main group they attacked again in a repeat of the situation before the crash. This time a determined Armstrong dropped Mayo and Ullrich and powered off like a man possessed after the lone Chavanel. He caught Chavanel with about 4 km to the finish, sportingly tapping him on the back to acknowledge his efforts, as he passed him to win the stage, his sixteenth stage victory and probably his last chance to gain some time over Ullrich before the final time trial. Ullrich had fallen over a minute behind but, typically, by the finish had fought back and reduced his loss to 40 seconds, not including time bonuses some of which were denied him by Mayo who took 2nd place. Richard Virenque had, barring accidents, won the polka-dot jersey.
- Lance ArmstrongLance ArmstrongLance Edward Armstrong is an American former professional road racing cyclist who won the Tour de France a record seven consecutive times, after having survived testicular cancer. He is also the founder and chairman of the Lance Armstrong Foundation for cancer research and support...
(USA) 4:29:26 - Iban MayoIban MayoIban Mayo Diez is a professional road bicycle racer. His successes have been overshadowed by doping....
(Spain) 0:40 - Jan UllrichJan UllrichJan Ullrich is a German former professional road bicycle racer. In 1997, he was the first German to win the Tour de France. He went on to take five second places and a fourth in 2004 and third in 2005. He is considered one of the best time-trialists in the history of the sport...
(Germany) 0:40 - Haimar ZubeldiaHaimar ZubeldiaHaimar Zubeldia Agirre is a Spanish professional road racing cyclist who rides for on the UCI ProTour....
(Spain) 0:40 - Christophe MoreauChristophe MoreauChristophe Moreau is a French former professional road racing cyclist. For many years Moreau was the primary French contender for the general classification in the Tour de France: he finished in the top 12 in the GC five times and finished the race as best Frenchman in 2000, 2003, 2004 and 2005...
(France) 0:43 - Ivan BassoIvan BassoIvan Basso is an Italian professional road bicycle racer who is currently racing with UCI ProTeam . Basso, nicknamed Ivan the Terrible, is among the best mountain riders in the professional field in the 21st century, and is considered one of the strongest stage race riders...
(Italy) 0:47 - Tyler HamiltonTyler HamiltonTyler Hamilton is a former American professional road bicycle racer and former Olympic gold medalist. Hamilton became a professional cyclist in 1995, and during the 1999, 2000 and 2001 Tour de France was a teammate of Lance Armstrong who won those races.Hamilton appeared at the 2000 Summer...
(USA) 1:10 - Alexandre Vinokourov (Kaz.) 2:07
- José Luis RubieraJosé Luis RubieraJosé Luis Rubiera Vigil is a Spanish former professional road bicycle racer. He last rode for the UCI ProTour team .Rubiera won his first professional race at the 1997 Giro d'Italia, winning stage 19...
(Spain) 2:45 - Sylvain ChavanelSylvain ChavanelSylvain Chavanel Albira is a French professional road bicycle racer. His brother Sébastien Chavanel is also a cyclist.Chavanel started his professional career in 2000 with Jean-René Bernaudeau's team Bonjour, which became Brioches La Boulangère in 2003...
(France) 2:47
General classification:
- Lance ArmstrongLance ArmstrongLance Edward Armstrong is an American former professional road racing cyclist who won the Tour de France a record seven consecutive times, after having survived testicular cancer. He is also the founder and chairman of the Lance Armstrong Foundation for cancer research and support...
65:36:23 - Jan UllrichJan UllrichJan Ullrich is a German former professional road bicycle racer. In 1997, he was the first German to win the Tour de France. He went on to take five second places and a fourth in 2004 and third in 2005. He is considered one of the best time-trialists in the history of the sport...
+01:07 - Alexandre Vinokourov +02:45
- Haimar ZubeldiaHaimar ZubeldiaHaimar Zubeldia Agirre is a Spanish professional road racing cyclist who rides for on the UCI ProTour....
+05:16 - Iban MayoIban MayoIban Mayo Diez is a professional road bicycle racer. His successes have been overshadowed by doping....
+05:25 - Ivan BassoIvan BassoIvan Basso is an Italian professional road bicycle racer who is currently racing with UCI ProTeam . Basso, nicknamed Ivan the Terrible, is among the best mountain riders in the professional field in the 21st century, and is considered one of the strongest stage race riders...
+08:08 - Tyler HamiltonTyler HamiltonTyler Hamilton is a former American professional road bicycle racer and former Olympic gold medalist. Hamilton became a professional cyclist in 1995, and during the 1999, 2000 and 2001 Tour de France was a teammate of Lance Armstrong who won those races.Hamilton appeared at the 2000 Summer...
+09:02 - Christophe MoreauChristophe MoreauChristophe Moreau is a French former professional road racing cyclist. For many years Moreau was the primary French contender for the general classification in the Tour de France: he finished in the top 12 in the GC five times and finished the race as best Frenchman in 2000, 2003, 2004 and 2005...
+11:12 - Francisco ManceboFrancisco ManceboFrancisco Mancebo Pérez is a Spanish pro cyclist. He initially rode for team Illes Balears, but moved to AG2R Prévoyance in 2006....
+16:05 - Carlos SastreCarlos SastreCarlos Sastre Candil is a retired Spanish professional road bicycle racer and champion of the 2008 Tour de France. Sastre rides in 2011 for UCI Professional Continental team...
+16:12
Points classification:
- Baden CookeBaden CookeBaden Cooke is an Australian professional racing cyclist for UCI ProTour team .Cooke began competitive cycling at 11. He completed secondary school at Galen College in Wangaratta, Victoria....
156 - Robbie McEwenRobbie McEwenRobbie McEwen is an Australian professional road bicycle racer, for on the UCI ProTour, specializing in sprint finishes...
148 - Thor HushovdThor HushovdThor Hushovd is a Norwegian professional road bicycle racer riding . He has signed for from 2012 onwards. He is known for sprinting and time trialing and is the 2010 Norwegian and world road champion. He is the first Norwegian to lead the Tour de France, and first Scandinavian to win the road...
134
Mountains classification:
- Richard VirenqueRichard VirenqueRichard VirenqueRichard Virenque's name is pronounced Ree-shah Vee-rahnk. Virenque considers himself a man of the South but pronounces his name in standard French. Confusion is caused by the southern habit of pronouncing "en" as "ang" or "eng", making it Vee-rank. But Virenque says Vee-rahnk or...
318 - Laurent DufauxLaurent DufauxLaurent Dufaux was a professional road cyclist from 1991 - 2003.- Major results :1993199419951996-External links:**...
177 - Lance ArmstrongLance ArmstrongLance Edward Armstrong is an American former professional road racing cyclist who won the Tour de France a record seven consecutive times, after having survived testicular cancer. He is also the founder and chairman of the Lance Armstrong Foundation for cancer research and support...
167
Stage 16
(Pau to BayonneBayonne
Bayonne is a city and commune in south-western France at the confluence of the Nive and Adour rivers, in the Pyrénées-Atlantiques department, of which it is a sub-prefecture...
, July 23)
A 197.5 km stage in the Pyrenees Atlantiques, there were six climbs, two major - the Col du Soudet at 67.5 km and the Col Bagarguy at 110 km. The descent of the Col Bagarguy is interrupted by the minor Cote de Burdincurutcheta, a Basque name.
As often this year the stage started fast and was marked by early breakaway attempts. The early attempts were chased down, the high pace (48 km in the first hour) briefly dropped Tyler Hamilton but his CSC team-mates brought him back to the peloton
Peloton
The peloton , field, bunch or pack is the large main group of riders in a road bicycle race. Riders in a group save energy by riding close near other riders...
. Around midday a group of fifteen riders made it clear before the Col du Soudet. The leading group broke up during the ascent. Hamilton attacked from the peloton
Peloton
The peloton , field, bunch or pack is the large main group of riders in a road bicycle race. Riders in a group save energy by riding close near other riders...
at 55 km and jumped across to the leaders, around three minutes up on the peloton, before the summit. The leaders stayed together over the next small climb and maintained their lead, they dropped a number of riders including David Millar
David Millar
David Millar is a British road racing cyclist riding for . He has won three stages of the Tour de France, two of the Vuelta a España and one Stage of the Giro d'Italia. He was the British national road champion and the national time trial champion, both in 2007...
who quickly fell back to and through the peloton. On the ascent of the Col Bagarguy Hamilton attacked the leading group and raced ahead alone. He had a two minute lead at the summit and almost four minutes over the peloton. In the fog over the Cote de Burdincurutcheta he extended his lead. The chasers were gradually caught by the peloton on the long flattish run to the finish but Hamilton pushed his lead out to five minutes. His lead started to fall with 25 km to go, but despite Fassa Bortolo, Euskaltel and Telekom leading the chase Hamilton stayed clear to win his first Tour stage ever.
- Tyler HamiltonTyler HamiltonTyler Hamilton is a former American professional road bicycle racer and former Olympic gold medalist. Hamilton became a professional cyclist in 1995, and during the 1999, 2000 and 2001 Tour de France was a teammate of Lance Armstrong who won those races.Hamilton appeared at the 2000 Summer...
(USA) 4:59:41 - Erik ZabelErik ZabelErik Zabel is a former German professional road bicycle racer who last raced with Milram. With over 200 professional wins he is considered by some one of the greatest German cyclists and best cycling sprinters of history...
(Germany) +1:55 - Yuriy KrivtsovYuriy KrivtsovYuriy Krivtsov is a French professional road bicycle racer for UCI ProTour team . Ukrainian by birth, he became a naturalized French citizen in May 2010, and was able to change his nationality per the UCI effective with the 2011 season.- Palmares :1996...
(Ukraine) +1:55 - Luca PaoliniLuca PaoliniLuca Paolini is an Italian road bicycle racer who rides for UCI ProTeam . Paolini's home was searched in a doping investigation which was called Operazione Athena - however it appears that no evidence was found that led to any conviction of involvement in doping.- Major achievements...
(Italy) +1:55 - Gerrit GlomserGerrit GlomserGerrit Glomser is an Austrian racing cyclist with Team Volksbank. He turned professional in 1998.- Palmares :* Österreich Rundfahrt** 2 stages & GC ** 1 stage & GC ** 1 stage...
(Austria) +1:55 - Bram de GrootBram de GrootBram de Groot is a Dutch former professional road bicycle racer who last rode for UCI ProTour team .- Palmares :* Uniqa Classic - Overall * Delta Ronde van Midden-Zeeland * Volta a Catalunya - 1 stage...
(Neth.) +1:55 - Marcus Zberg (Switz.) +1:55
- Sandy CasarSandy CasarSandy Casar is a French professional racing cyclist.Casar turned professional in 2000 after riding for Jean Floch-Mantes as an amateur. As a professional he has always ridden for FDJ.Severo...
(France) +1:55 - Fabrizio GuidiFabrizio GuidiFabrizio Guidi is an Italian former road bicycle racer. Guidi won over 40 races since he turned professional in 1995, including two stages in Giro d'Italia and three stages of 1998 Vuelta a España. He also won the Intergiro competition of Giro d'Italia in 1996, 1999 and 2000...
(Italy) +1:55 - Stuart O'GradyStuart O'GradyStuart O'Grady OAM , nicknamed Stuey, is an Australian professional road bicycle racer on UCI ProTeam , who started as a track cyclist. He and Graeme Brown won a gold medal in Men's Madison at the 2004 Summer Olympics...
(Aus.) +1:55
General classification:
- Lance ArmstrongLance ArmstrongLance Edward Armstrong is an American former professional road racing cyclist who won the Tour de France a record seven consecutive times, after having survived testicular cancer. He is also the founder and chairman of the Lance Armstrong Foundation for cancer research and support...
70:37:59 - Jan UllrichJan UllrichJan Ullrich is a German former professional road bicycle racer. In 1997, he was the first German to win the Tour de France. He went on to take five second places and a fourth in 2004 and third in 2005. He is considered one of the best time-trialists in the history of the sport...
+01:07 - Alexandre Vinokourov +02:45
- Haimar ZubeldiaHaimar ZubeldiaHaimar Zubeldia Agirre is a Spanish professional road racing cyclist who rides for on the UCI ProTour....
+05:16 - Iban MayoIban MayoIban Mayo Diez is a professional road bicycle racer. His successes have been overshadowed by doping....
+05:25 - Tyler HamiltonTyler HamiltonTyler Hamilton is a former American professional road bicycle racer and former Olympic gold medalist. Hamilton became a professional cyclist in 1995, and during the 1999, 2000 and 2001 Tour de France was a teammate of Lance Armstrong who won those races.Hamilton appeared at the 2000 Summer...
+06:35 - Ivan BassoIvan BassoIvan Basso is an Italian professional road bicycle racer who is currently racing with UCI ProTeam . Basso, nicknamed Ivan the Terrible, is among the best mountain riders in the professional field in the 21st century, and is considered one of the strongest stage race riders...
+08:08 - Christophe MoreauChristophe MoreauChristophe Moreau is a French former professional road racing cyclist. For many years Moreau was the primary French contender for the general classification in the Tour de France: he finished in the top 12 in the GC five times and finished the race as best Frenchman in 2000, 2003, 2004 and 2005...
+11:12 - Francisco ManceboFrancisco ManceboFrancisco Mancebo Pérez is a Spanish pro cyclist. He initially rode for team Illes Balears, but moved to AG2R Prévoyance in 2006....
+16:05 - Carlos SastreCarlos SastreCarlos Sastre Candil is a retired Spanish professional road bicycle racer and champion of the 2008 Tour de France. Sastre rides in 2011 for UCI Professional Continental team...
+16:12
Points classification:
- Baden CookeBaden CookeBaden Cooke is an Australian professional racing cyclist for UCI ProTour team .Cooke began competitive cycling at 11. He completed secondary school at Galen College in Wangaratta, Victoria....
156 - Robbie McEwenRobbie McEwenRobbie McEwen is an Australian professional road bicycle racer, for on the UCI ProTour, specializing in sprint finishes...
148 - Erik ZabelErik ZabelErik Zabel is a former German professional road bicycle racer who last raced with Milram. With over 200 professional wins he is considered by some one of the greatest German cyclists and best cycling sprinters of history...
143
Mountains classification:
- Richard VirenqueRichard VirenqueRichard VirenqueRichard Virenque's name is pronounced Ree-shah Vee-rahnk. Virenque considers himself a man of the South but pronounces his name in standard French. Confusion is caused by the southern habit of pronouncing "en" as "ang" or "eng", making it Vee-rank. But Virenque says Vee-rahnk or...
324 - Laurent DufauxLaurent DufauxLaurent Dufaux was a professional road cyclist from 1991 - 2003.- Major results :1993199419951996-External links:**...
187 - Lance ArmstrongLance ArmstrongLance Edward Armstrong is an American former professional road racing cyclist who won the Tour de France a record seven consecutive times, after having survived testicular cancer. He is also the founder and chairman of the Lance Armstrong Foundation for cancer research and support...
168
Stage 17
(Dax to BordeauxBordeaux
Bordeaux is a port city on the Garonne River in the Gironde department in southwestern France.The Bordeaux-Arcachon-Libourne metropolitan area, has a population of 1,010,000 and constitutes the sixth-largest urban area in France. It is the capital of the Aquitaine region, as well as the prefecture...
, July 24)
After the Pyrenees this 181 km was short and almost absolutely flat, the highest climb was 79 m. Traditionally the stages into Bordeaux have been won by one of the sprinters.
The race started with an attack by ten riders within the first minutes. The peloton
Peloton
The peloton , field, bunch or pack is the large main group of riders in a road bicycle race. Riders in a group save energy by riding close near other riders...
reacted at first but after holding the gap at around sixty seconds for about 25 km the chase slowed and by 40 km the lead was up to six minutes and at around 70 km the breakaway's lead peaked at just over sixteen minutes. The peloton cut into the escapees lead but too slowly to catch them and with about 40 km to go and an eight minute gap the peloton again slowed. With 18 km to the finish Servais Knaven attacked from the leading group and held off their disorganised chase to win. Robbie McEwen headed peloton in eight minutes later. The competition for the Green jersey remained very close.
- Servais KnavenServais KnavenHenricus Theodorus Josephus Knaven is a Dutch professional road bicycle racer, currently a directeur sportif for Team Sky. Knaven won Paris–Roubaix in 2001 and is the second rider in history to start and finish the race 16 times...
(Neth.) 3:54:23 - Paolo BossoniPaolo BossoniPaolo Bossoni is an Italian professional road bicycle racer.- Palmares :* 2nd, National Road Race Championship ** 3rd * Trofeo Citta' di Castelfidardo * Coppa Sabatini...
(Italy) +0:17 - Christophe MenginChristophe MenginChristophe Mengin is a French racing cyclist and a former cyclo-cross racer. He became professional in 1995, signing to the Chazal team. His height is 1.73 m, and weight is 68 kg...
(France) +0:17 - Leon Van BonLéon van BonLéon Hendrik Jan van Bon is a road racing cyclist from the Netherlands, who won the silver medal in the men's points race at the 1992 Summer Olympics in Barcelona, Spain. He won his first major race at the professionals in 1998, winning the HEW Cyclassics...
(Netherlands) +0:17 - Salvatore CommessoSalvatore CommessoSalvatore Commesso is an Italian professional road bicycle racer that rides for the professional continental team Preti Mangimi....
(Italy) +0:17 - Vincente Garcia Acosta (Sp.) +0:17
- Peter LuttenbergerPeter LuttenbergerPeter Luttenberger is an Austrian professional road bicycle racer. He finished fifth in the General Classification of the 1996 Tour de France, but he never again managed to live up to the promise of that result, with a position as 13 in 1997 and 2003 as the best later results...
(Austria) +0:17 - Mederic Clain (France) +0:17
- Bram De GrootBram de GrootBram de Groot is a Dutch former professional road bicycle racer who last rode for UCI ProTour team .- Palmares :* Uniqa Classic - Overall * Delta Ronde van Midden-Zeeland * Volta a Catalunya - 1 stage...
(Neth.) +0:17 - Ivan ParraIván ParraIván Ramiro Parra Pinto is a Colombian professional road bicycle racer for Colombian Continental cycling team Colombia es Pasión. Iván comes from a Colombian cycling family...
(Colombia) +1:55
General classification:
- Lance ArmstrongLance ArmstrongLance Edward Armstrong is an American former professional road racing cyclist who won the Tour de France a record seven consecutive times, after having survived testicular cancer. He is also the founder and chairman of the Lance Armstrong Foundation for cancer research and support...
74:40:28 - Jan UllrichJan UllrichJan Ullrich is a German former professional road bicycle racer. In 1997, he was the first German to win the Tour de France. He went on to take five second places and a fourth in 2004 and third in 2005. He is considered one of the best time-trialists in the history of the sport...
+01:07 - Alexandre Vinokourov +02:45
- Haimar ZubeldiaHaimar ZubeldiaHaimar Zubeldia Agirre is a Spanish professional road racing cyclist who rides for on the UCI ProTour....
+05:16 - Iban MayoIban MayoIban Mayo Diez is a professional road bicycle racer. His successes have been overshadowed by doping....
+05:25 - Tyler HamiltonTyler HamiltonTyler Hamilton is a former American professional road bicycle racer and former Olympic gold medalist. Hamilton became a professional cyclist in 1995, and during the 1999, 2000 and 2001 Tour de France was a teammate of Lance Armstrong who won those races.Hamilton appeared at the 2000 Summer...
+06:35 - Ivan BassoIvan BassoIvan Basso is an Italian professional road bicycle racer who is currently racing with UCI ProTeam . Basso, nicknamed Ivan the Terrible, is among the best mountain riders in the professional field in the 21st century, and is considered one of the strongest stage race riders...
+08:08 - Christophe MoreauChristophe MoreauChristophe Moreau is a French former professional road racing cyclist. For many years Moreau was the primary French contender for the general classification in the Tour de France: he finished in the top 12 in the GC five times and finished the race as best Frenchman in 2000, 2003, 2004 and 2005...
+11:12 - Francisco ManceboFrancisco ManceboFrancisco Mancebo Pérez is a Spanish pro cyclist. He initially rode for team Illes Balears, but moved to AG2R Prévoyance in 2006....
+16:05 - Carlos SastreCarlos SastreCarlos Sastre Candil is a retired Spanish professional road bicycle racer and champion of the 2008 Tour de France. Sastre rides in 2011 for UCI Professional Continental team...
+16:12
Points classification:
- Baden CookeBaden CookeBaden Cooke is an Australian professional racing cyclist for UCI ProTour team .Cooke began competitive cycling at 11. He completed secondary school at Galen College in Wangaratta, Victoria....
169 - Robbie McEwenRobbie McEwenRobbie McEwen is an Australian professional road bicycle racer, for on the UCI ProTour, specializing in sprint finishes...
163 - Erik ZabelErik ZabelErik Zabel is a former German professional road bicycle racer who last raced with Milram. With over 200 professional wins he is considered by some one of the greatest German cyclists and best cycling sprinters of history...
157
Mountains classification:
- Richard VirenqueRichard VirenqueRichard VirenqueRichard Virenque's name is pronounced Ree-shah Vee-rahnk. Virenque considers himself a man of the South but pronounces his name in standard French. Confusion is caused by the southern habit of pronouncing "en" as "ang" or "eng", making it Vee-rank. But Virenque says Vee-rahnk or...
324 - Laurent DufauxLaurent DufauxLaurent Dufaux was a professional road cyclist from 1991 - 2003.- Major results :1993199419951996-External links:**...
187 - Lance ArmstrongLance ArmstrongLance Edward Armstrong is an American former professional road racing cyclist who won the Tour de France a record seven consecutive times, after having survived testicular cancer. He is also the founder and chairman of the Lance Armstrong Foundation for cancer research and support...
168
Stage 18
(Bordeaux to Saint-Maixent-l'ÉcoleSaint-Maixent-l'École
Saint-Maixent-l'École is a commune in the Deux-Sèvres department in western France.-Geography:Saint-Maixent-l'École is located in the Haut Val de Sèvre area of western France, about from Niort and from La Rochelle...
, July 25)
A flat 203.5 km with no climbs, two sprints and a moderate tailwind crossing four departments. With the time trial looming another breakaway success looked possible.
With the favourable conditions and the 25 km/h wind the stage started very fast. There were a few small attacks early on, a group of around thirty made a break at 26 km to be swept up at 40 km. the peloton
Peloton
The peloton , field, bunch or pack is the large main group of riders in a road bicycle race. Riders in a group save energy by riding close near other riders...
was still together at the first intermediate sprint in Montendre, unusually Jan Ullrich made a race of it, he was chased by Armstrong and they came second and third behind Robbie McEwen, getting small time bonuses that cut Ullrich's deficit by two seconds. Shortly after the sprint, at 61 km, a group of sixteen made a break and unlike early attempts they stayed clear. Working together the escapees quickly built up their lead to over 11 minutes by the 100 km point, the first two hours of racing passed with an average speed of 52 km/h. The lead continued to grow reaching a maximum of just over 22 minutes with around 25 km to the finish. The leading group then started to break-up as there were repeated solo attacks, the group split with eight riders moving clear. With 10 km to go attacks started from within the smaller group, David Canada making it clear with a trio of riders chasing after him. In the final kilometre Canada's lead vanished - he was passed by the chasing trio who contested a very close sprint, Pablo Lastras just winning. The peloton came in 24:05 later. The green jersey competition was still very close, it could still change hands on the final Stage in Paris.
Despite the amazing early speed the race slowed in the second portion, becoming just the second fastest road stage in Tour history. At an average speed of 49.938 km/h it was still inferior to the 50.355 km/h of Stage Four in 1999 (Laval to Blois, 194.5 km).
- Pablo LastrasPablo LastrasPablo Lastras García is a Spanish racing cyclist who rides for Spanish UCI ProTour team .Lastras won a stage in the 2003 Tour de France and picked up two stages in the 2002 Vuelta a España. In 2005 he won stage 8 at Tour de Suisse. He also won the Vuelta a Burgos in 2003. His idols are Bernard...
(Spain) 4:03:18 - Carlos Da CruzCarlos Da CruzCarlos Da Cruz is a French former professional road bicycle racer. In his 11 year career, he rode for BigMat-Auber93 between 1997 and 2000, Festina in 2001 and then for UCI ProTeam Française des Jeux between 2002 and 2007....
(France) +0:00 - Daniele NardelloDaniele NardelloDaniele Nardello is a retired Italian professional road racing cyclist. His career ran from 1994 to 2009, with highlights including winning the 2001 Italian national road race championship, the 2003 Züri-Metzgete, and three straight top-10 finishes and one stage win at the Tour de France.- Major...
(Italy) +0:00 - David CanadaDavid CañadaDavid Cañada Gracia is a Spanish former professional road racing cyclist. His win at the 2006 Volta a Catalunya is his best career accomplishment to date. In the 2005 Tour de France, he was in a break-away on stage 2 ; he attacked on the climb near the finish but was overhauled by Bouygues...
(Spain) +0:04 - Massimilano Lelli (Italy) +0:19
- Andy FlickingerAndy FlickingerAndy Flickinger is a former French professional road bicycle racer. He won the GP Ouest-France in 2003.- Palmares :* Circuit de la Sarthe - 1 stage * GP Ouest-France * Classic de l'Indre...
(France) +0:19 - Thomas VoecklerThomas VoecklerThomas Voeckler is a French professional road racing cyclist who rides for the cycling team.- Biography :Voeckler has been a professional cyclist since 2001. He rides for , formerly known as Bbox Bouygues Telecom, Bouygues Télécom, Brioches la Boulangère, and Bonjour...
(France) +0:19 - Paolo FornaciariPaolo FornaciariPaolo Fornaciari is a former Italian professional road bicycle racer.Fornaciari retired at the end of the 2008 season.- External links :**...
(Italy) +0:19 - Fabrizio GuidiFabrizio GuidiFabrizio Guidi is an Italian former road bicycle racer. Guidi won over 40 races since he turned professional in 1995, including two stages in Giro d'Italia and three stages of 1998 Vuelta a España. He also won the Intergiro competition of Giro d'Italia in 1996, 1999 and 2000...
(Italy) +0:35 - Vladimir MiholjevicVladimir MiholjevicVladimir Miholjević is a Croatian professional road bicycle racer for UCI Professional Continental team . He turned pro in 1997.- Palmares :* Paris–Nice - Mountains Classification * Trophy Riviera...
(Cro.) +0:35
General classification:
- Lance ArmstrongLance ArmstrongLance Edward Armstrong is an American former professional road racing cyclist who won the Tour de France a record seven consecutive times, after having survived testicular cancer. He is also the founder and chairman of the Lance Armstrong Foundation for cancer research and support...
79:07:49 - Jan UllrichJan UllrichJan Ullrich is a German former professional road bicycle racer. In 1997, he was the first German to win the Tour de France. He went on to take five second places and a fourth in 2004 and third in 2005. He is considered one of the best time-trialists in the history of the sport...
+1:05 - Alexandre Vinokourov +2:47
Points classification:
- Robbie McEwenRobbie McEwenRobbie McEwen is an Australian professional road bicycle racer, for on the UCI ProTour, specializing in sprint finishes...
178 - Baden CookeBaden CookeBaden Cooke is an Australian professional racing cyclist for UCI ProTour team .Cooke began competitive cycling at 11. He completed secondary school at Galen College in Wangaratta, Victoria....
176 - Erik ZabelErik ZabelErik Zabel is a former German professional road bicycle racer who last raced with Milram. With over 200 professional wins he is considered by some one of the greatest German cyclists and best cycling sprinters of history...
165
Mountains classification:
- Richard VirenqueRichard VirenqueRichard VirenqueRichard Virenque's name is pronounced Ree-shah Vee-rahnk. Virenque considers himself a man of the South but pronounces his name in standard French. Confusion is caused by the southern habit of pronouncing "en" as "ang" or "eng", making it Vee-rank. But Virenque says Vee-rahnk or...
324 - Laurent DufauxLaurent DufauxLaurent Dufaux was a professional road cyclist from 1991 - 2003.- Major results :1993199419951996-External links:**...
187 - Lance ArmstrongLance ArmstrongLance Edward Armstrong is an American former professional road racing cyclist who won the Tour de France a record seven consecutive times, after having survived testicular cancer. He is also the founder and chairman of the Lance Armstrong Foundation for cancer research and support...
168
Stage 19
(PornicPornic
Pornic is a commune in the Loire-Atlantique département in western France.-Breton language:The municipality launched a linguistic plan through Ya d'ar brezhoneg on 1 March 2006.-Climate:...
to Nantes
Nantes
Nantes is a city in western France, located on the Loire River, from the Atlantic coast. The city is the 6th largest in France, while its metropolitan area ranks 8th with over 800,000 inhabitants....
, July 26)
The second long individual time trial. 49 km, flatter than the first long time trial and raced in cool rain on slippy roads rather than 30-plus °C.
The final chance for Jan Ullrich to stop Armstrong winning five-in-a-row. The two rode through in almost identical times, but shortly after the second time check at 32.5 km Ullrich fell while taking the curve on a small roundabout. Ullrich's challenge was over. The stage was won by David Millar who, despite illness and the adverse weather, set the second fastest time trial in the Tour, 54.358 km/h (Greg LeMond
Greg LeMond
Gregory James LeMond is a former professional road bicycle racer from the United States and a three-time winner of the Tour de France. He was born in Lakewood, California and raised in Reno, Nevada....
54.545 km/h (1989)). A year later David Millar was excluded from the 2004 Tour, and banned from the sport for 2 years, after syringes with traces of EPO were found at his home - he admitted that this time trial was one of the occasions that he had boosted his performance with the drug.
- David MillarDavid MillarDavid Millar is a British road racing cyclist riding for . He has won three stages of the Tour de France, two of the Vuelta a España and one Stage of the Giro d'Italia. He was the British national road champion and the national time trial champion, both in 2007...
(Britain) 54:05 - Tyler HamiltonTyler HamiltonTyler Hamilton is a former American professional road bicycle racer and former Olympic gold medalist. Hamilton became a professional cyclist in 1995, and during the 1999, 2000 and 2001 Tour de France was a teammate of Lance Armstrong who won those races.Hamilton appeared at the 2000 Summer...
(USA) +0:09 - Lance ArmstrongLance ArmstrongLance Edward Armstrong is an American former professional road racing cyclist who won the Tour de France a record seven consecutive times, after having survived testicular cancer. He is also the founder and chairman of the Lance Armstrong Foundation for cancer research and support...
(USA) +0:14 - Jan UllrichJan UllrichJan Ullrich is a German former professional road bicycle racer. In 1997, he was the first German to win the Tour de France. He went on to take five second places and a fourth in 2004 and third in 2005. He is considered one of the best time-trialists in the history of the sport...
(Germany) +0:25 - Laszlo BodrogiLászló BodrogiLászló Bodrogi is a professional road bicycle racer from Hungary riding for , specializing in the individual time trial.- Biography :László was born in 1976 in Budapest, Hungary...
(Hun.) +0:26 - Vjatceslav Ekimov (Rus.) +0:56
- Victor Hugo PenaVíctor Hugo PeñaVíctor Hugo Peña Grisales is a Colombian professional road racing cyclist. He is named after both his father Hugo and the more famous author Victor Hugo. He rides for the Rock Racing professional cycling team...
(Col.) +1:00 - George HincapieGeorge HincapieGeorge Hincapié Garcés is an American professional road bicycle racer currently riding for UCI ProTeam . Hincapie resides in Greenville, South Carolina...
(USA) +1:08 - Sylvain ChavanelSylvain ChavanelSylvain Chavanel Albira is a French professional road bicycle racer. His brother Sébastien Chavanel is also a cyclist.Chavanel started his professional career in 2000 with Jean-René Bernaudeau's team Bonjour, which became Brioches La Boulangère in 2003...
(Fra.) +1:12 - Marzio BruseghinMarzio BruseghinMarzio Bruseghin is an Italian professional road bicycle racer for UCI ProTour team . His best achievement is winning the 2006 Italian time-trial championship, as well as winning two time trial stages in the Giro d'Italia...
(Ita.) +1:26
General classification:
- Lance ArmstrongLance ArmstrongLance Edward Armstrong is an American former professional road racing cyclist who won the Tour de France a record seven consecutive times, after having survived testicular cancer. He is also the founder and chairman of the Lance Armstrong Foundation for cancer research and support...
80:02:08 - Jan UllrichJan UllrichJan Ullrich is a German former professional road bicycle racer. In 1997, he was the first German to win the Tour de France. He went on to take five second places and a fourth in 2004 and third in 2005. He is considered one of the best time-trialists in the history of the sport...
+01:16 - Alexandre Vinokourov +04:29
- Tyler HamiltonTyler HamiltonTyler Hamilton is a former American professional road bicycle racer and former Olympic gold medalist. Hamilton became a professional cyclist in 1995, and during the 1999, 2000 and 2001 Tour de France was a teammate of Lance Armstrong who won those races.Hamilton appeared at the 2000 Summer...
+06:32 - Haimar ZubeldiaHaimar ZubeldiaHaimar Zubeldia Agirre is a Spanish professional road racing cyclist who rides for on the UCI ProTour....
+07:06 - Iban MayoIban MayoIban Mayo Diez is a professional road bicycle racer. His successes have been overshadowed by doping....
+07:21 - Ivan BassoIvan BassoIvan Basso is an Italian professional road bicycle racer who is currently racing with UCI ProTeam . Basso, nicknamed Ivan the Terrible, is among the best mountain riders in the professional field in the 21st century, and is considered one of the strongest stage race riders...
+10:12 - Christophe MoreauChristophe MoreauChristophe Moreau is a French former professional road racing cyclist. For many years Moreau was the primary French contender for the general classification in the Tour de France: he finished in the top 12 in the GC five times and finished the race as best Frenchman in 2000, 2003, 2004 and 2005...
+12:43 - Carlos SastreCarlos SastreCarlos Sastre Candil is a retired Spanish professional road bicycle racer and champion of the 2008 Tour de France. Sastre rides in 2011 for UCI Professional Continental team...
+18:49 - Francisco ManceboFrancisco ManceboFrancisco Mancebo Pérez is a Spanish pro cyclist. He initially rode for team Illes Balears, but moved to AG2R Prévoyance in 2006....
+19:30
Stage 20
(Ville d'Avray to Paris, July 27)This was the final stage of the 2003 Tour. Traditionally a relaxed ride into Paris then a hectic ten circuits of the 6.5 km Champs-Élysées
Champs-Élysées
The Avenue des Champs-Élysées is a prestigious avenue in Paris, France. With its cinemas, cafés, luxury specialty shops and clipped horse-chestnut trees, the Avenue des Champs-Élysées is one of the most famous streets and one of the most expensive strip of real estate in the world. The name is...
loop. Ville d'Avray was the finishing point of the 1903 Tour. With only the sprinter's green jersey still undecided, the two intermediate and the finish were hotly contested.
At the final stage 147 riders started. With the wet roads the stage began slowly; there was a leisurely challenge for the final climbing stage, the category 4 Mont Valerian. As usual the race heated up as the first intermediate sprint at 66 km neared. The sprinter's teams, FDJ and Lotto, led out and Baden Cooke was first followed by Robbie McEwen, leaving the two on equal points. Attacks from other riders then began, small groups making it clear to be quickly caught as the second intermediate sprint at 95 km approached. At that sprint McEwen won and Cooke was second. As the pace slowed after the sprint more riders leapt off the peloton
Peloton
The peloton , field, bunch or pack is the large main group of riders in a road bicycle race. Riders in a group save energy by riding close near other riders...
; on the sixth lap a group of eight riders made a break and working hard built up their lead to 45 seconds. Playing tactics, the peloton held back, not beginning the chase until the final three laps. On the last lap the escape was finally caught with about 5 km to go. In an extremely close finish Jean-Patrick Nazon won the stage with Cooke just beating McEwen for second and claiming the green jersey by two points. Armstrong finished prudently far down the field, losing 15 seconds to some of his rivals.
- Jean-Patrick NazonJean-Patrick NazonJean-Patrick Nazon is a French professional road bicycle racer who turned professional in 1997.1998 - Française des Jeux* 2 stages, Circuit des Mines2000 - Française des Jeux* 2 stages, Étoile de Bessèges...
(France) 3:38:49 - Baden CookeBaden CookeBaden Cooke is an Australian professional racing cyclist for UCI ProTour team .Cooke began competitive cycling at 11. He completed secondary school at Galen College in Wangaratta, Victoria....
(Australia) +0:00 - Robbie McEwenRobbie McEwenRobbie McEwen is an Australian professional road bicycle racer, for on the UCI ProTour, specializing in sprint finishes...
(Australia) +0:00 - Luca PaoliniLuca PaoliniLuca Paolini is an Italian road bicycle racer who rides for UCI ProTeam . Paolini's home was searched in a doping investigation which was called Operazione Athena - however it appears that no evidence was found that led to any conviction of involvement in doping.- Major achievements...
(Italy) +0:00 - Thor HushovdThor HushovdThor Hushovd is a Norwegian professional road bicycle racer riding . He has signed for from 2012 onwards. He is known for sprinting and time trialing and is the 2010 Norwegian and world road champion. He is the first Norwegian to lead the Tour de France, and first Scandinavian to win the road...
(Norway) +0:00 - Stuart O'GradyStuart O'GradyStuart O'Grady OAM , nicknamed Stuey, is an Australian professional road bicycle racer on UCI ProTeam , who started as a track cyclist. He and Graeme Brown won a gold medal in Men's Madison at the 2004 Summer Olympics...
(Australia) +0:00 - Erik ZabelErik ZabelErik Zabel is a former German professional road bicycle racer who last raced with Milram. With over 200 professional wins he is considered by some one of the greatest German cyclists and best cycling sprinters of history...
(Germany) +0:00 - Romāns VainšteinsRomans VainsteinsRomāns Vainšteins is a former professional road bicycle racer from Latvia. He won the road race at the 2000 world cycling championship in Plouay, France...
(Latvia) +0:00 - Gerrit GlomserGerrit GlomserGerrit Glomser is an Austrian racing cyclist with Team Volksbank. He turned professional in 1998.- Palmares :* Österreich Rundfahrt** 2 stages & GC ** 1 stage & GC ** 1 stage...
(Austria) +0:00 - Damien Nazon (France) +0:00