22nd Route du Sud, Cat 2.3

France, June 27-30, 1998

Past Winners    

June 27, Stage 1a - Saint-Gaudens - Saint-Gaudens, 97.7 kms:
June 27, Stage 1b - Saint-Gaudens, ITT 7.4 kms:
June 28, Stage 2 - Saint-Gaudens - Plateau de Beille, 186 kms:
June 29, Stage 3 - Tarascon-sur-Ariège - Montauban, 191.9 kms:
June 30, Stage 4 - Montauban - Castres, 161.7 kms:

Brief

German Jan Ullrich, winner of the Tour de France 1997, and Richard Virenque, his challenger, will both start on Saturday at Saint-Gaudens in the Route du Sud, the final preparation before the "Grande Boucle".

The 22nd edition of this race, contested over 4 days and finishing at Castres (Tarns) will feature the duel between Team Deutsche Telekom, with Ullrich (who came in at 10th place last week in the Tour of Switzerlands), and the Festina team with many leaders.

Festina has the climbing skills of Virenque and Zulle and the World Champion Laurent Brochard. Ullrich can also climb pretty well and he has the sprinting talents of Germans Erik Zabel and Udo Bolts in the team.

Other contenders will coome from Banesto which recently supplied the winner of the Critérium du Dauphiné, Armand de Las Cuevas.

In the context of the Tour de France, the peloton of around 100 riders will get most from the testing 2nd stage, Saint-Gaudens - Plateau de Beille, which is 186 kms long and finishes at an altitude of 1789 m. On July 22nd, the riders will have to contest nearly the same stage with a start at Luchon (Haute-Garonnes).

Stage 1a, Saint-Gaudens - Saint-Gaudens, 102.3 kms:

French rider Christophe Moreau (Festina) is the first leader of the Route du Sud after an imposing victory in the first of two stages on Saturday. The stage to Saint-Gaudens over 102.3 kms preceded the afternoon ITT of 7.4 kms.

Moreau, who won the Critérium international, who comes from the strong Festina team which includes Richard Virenque, Alex Zulle and Laurent Brochard, won the sprint from 4 other riders. The five of them has parted company with the peloton some 15 kms before the finish. They held a lead of 24 seconds at the end. 

 1. Christophe Moreau (Fra) Festina		     2.39.35
 2. Pascal Chanteur (Fra) Casino
 3. Laurent Desbiens (Fra) Cofidis
 4. Yvon Ledanois (Fra) La Francaise des Jeux
 5. Alexei Sivakov (Rus) Big Mat-Auber 93 		s.t.

Stage 1b, Saint-Gaudens, ITT 7.4 kms:

In the afternoon, Christophe Moreau (Festina), who specialises in the ITT, had to admire the qualities of a "rouleur", Nicolas Jalabert and finally relegated him to second place at 17 seconds with Virenque conceding 26 secs and Ullrich at 0.27.

Notable withdrawal was Chris Boardman, who was suffering from a gastric complaint and forfeited the ITT.

By dint of his two performances and the accompanying bonus seconds, Moreau leads the GC by 31 seconds on Laurent Desbiens. 

 1. Christophe Moreau (Fra) Festina			8.25 (52.650)
 2. Nicolas Jalabert (Fra) Cofidis           		0.17
 3. Patrick Jonker (Aus) Rabobank                  	0.18
 4. Philippe Gaumont (Fra) Cofidis 			0.19
 5. Bobby Julich (USA) Cofidis				0.23
 6. Nicolas Jalabert (Fra) Cofidis        		0.24
 ..
 8. Alex Zülle (Swi) Festina              		0.26
 9. Richard Virenque (Fra) Festina        		0.26
10. Jan Ullrich (Ger) Telekom            		0.27

GC after Stage 1b 

 1. Christophe Moreau (Fra) Festina		     2.47.54
 2. Laurent Desbiens (Fra) Cofidis 			0.31
 3. Pascal Chanteur (Fra) Casino			0.43
 4. Nicolas Jalabert (Fra) Cofidis			0.47
 5. Patrick Jonker (Ned) Rabobank         		0.48
 6. Philippe Gaumont (Fra) Cofidis        		0.49
 7. Bobby Julich (USA) Cofidis            		0.53
 8. Alexei Sivakov (Rus) Big Mat-Auber 93      		0.54
 9. Gilles Maignan (Fra) Mutuelle de Seine-et-Marne	0.55
 ..
10. Richard Virenque (Fra) Festina			0.56
11. Jan Ullrich (Ger) Telekom				0.57
 .. Armand de Las Cuevas (Fra) Banesto			1.15
 .. Laurent Brochard (Fra) Festina			1.29
46. Alex Zulle (Swi) Festina				1.32

Stage 2, Saint-Gaudens - Plateau de Beille, 186 kms:

French rider Armand de las Cuevas took over the lead in the Route du Sud after an impressive victory on the summit of Plateau de Beille after a difficult stage over 5 cols.

The first kms of the stage were animated by Charles Guilbert as the race went over the col de la Core. On the descent, 15 riders including 5 Festina riders attempted to break up the race, but they fell. The leader, Christophe Moreau, was forced to abandon.

About 50 riders including Jan Ullrich, Richard Virenque and Laurent Brochard arrived at the bottom of the climb intact. During the final 11 kms climb of Plateau de Beille, Armand of mow Cuevas attacked and dropped all the other main contenders to cross the finishing line alone.

The stage was a counterpart to Stage 11 in the upcoming Tour de France, which on July 22, will see the riders go from Luchon to the top of Plateau de Beille again a climb of 11 kms to 1789m.

The feature of the stage though was the high number of riders who abandoned.

On Monday, the third stage will be contested between Tarascon and Montauban over 191 km. 

 1. Armand de Las Cuevas (Fra) Banesto		     6.00.33 (30.953)
 2. Santiago Blanco Gil (Spa) Vitalicio Seguros		1.12
 3. Michael Boogerd (Ned) Rabobank 			1.18
 4. David Garcia Markina (Spa) Vitalicio Seguros 	1.18
 5. Jan Ullrich (Ger) Team Deutsche Telekom
 6. Laurent Madouas (Fra) Lotto-Mobistar 		2.15
 7. Jose-Maria Jimenez (Spa) Banesto			2.43
 8. Cedric Vasseur (Fra) GAN 				2.46
 9. Alberto Elli (Ita) Casino 				2.58
10. Pascal Herve (Fra) Festina-Lotus			3.08
..
33. Laurent Brochard (Fra) Festina-Lotus 	       12.16

GC after Stage 2 

 1. Armand de las Cuevas (Fra) Banesto
 2. Santiago Blanco Gil (Spa) Vitalicio Seguros		1.07
 3. Michael Boogerd (Ned) Rabobank			1.09
 4. Jan Ullrich (Ger) Team Deutsche Telekom		1.12
 5. David Garcia Markina (Spa) Vitalicio Seguros 	1.18
 6. Laurent Madouas (Fra) Lotto-Mobistar 		2.38
 7. Cedric Vasseur (Fra) GAN 				2.48
 8. Alberto Elli (Ita) Casino 				2.54
 9. Jose-Maria Jimenez (Spa) Banesto			3.04
10. Pascal Herve (Fra) Festina-Lotus			3.20
..
33. Laurent Brochard (Fra) Festina-Lotus 	       12.40

Stage 3, Tarascon-sur-Ariège - Montauban, 191.9 kms:

Armand de las Cuevas (Banesto) preserved his leader's shirt without any problems during Stage 3 of Route du Sud between Tarascon-on-Ariège and Montauban over 191.9 kms. The stage was won by Estonien Jann Kirsipuu in a mass sprint.

De Las Cuevas (30), already the winner of the Criterium Dauphiné this season, seems well placed to take the final GC on Tuesday at the end of the final stage between Montauban and Castres (Tarn).

On the GC, De Las Ceuvas is followed at 1.04 by Dutchman Michael Boogerd, 1.07 to Spaniard Santiago Blanco Gil and 1997 Tour de France Winner Jan Ullrich at fourth on 1.12.

Today's stage was raced in hot conditions and attacks were rare following the hard finish the day before on the top of Beille (1789m). The peloton came to the finish together and Kirsipuu narrowly beat German Eric Zabel, and Aart Vierhouten (Rabobank). 

 1. Jann Kirsipuu (Est) Casino			     4.48.43
 2. Erik Zabel (Ger) Team Deutsche Telekom
 3. Aart Vierhouten (Ned) Rabobank
 4. Frederic Moncassin (Fra) GAN
 5. Damien Nazon (Fra)
 6. Steven De Jongh (Ned)
 7. Oscar Freire (Spa)
 8. Philippe Gaumont (Fra)
 9. Geert Verheyen (Bel)
10. Nicolas Jalabert (Fra) Cofidis
..
19. Jan Ullrich (Ger) Team Deutsche Telekom
20. Laurent Brochard (Fra) Festina-Lotus
30. Richard Virenque (Fra) Festina-Lotus
55. Armand de las Cuevas (Fra) Banesto
72. Alex Zulle (Swi) Festina-Lotus
81. Laurent Dufaux (Swi)

GC after Stage 3 

 1. Armand de las Cuevas (Fra) Banesto		    13.38.15
 2. Michael Boogerd (Ned) Rabobank			1.04
 3. Santiago Blanco Gil (Spa) Vitalicio Seguros		1.07
 4. Jan Ullrich (Ger) Team Deutsche Telekom		1.12
 5. David Garcia Markina (Spa) Vitalicio Seguros 	1.18
 6. Laurent Madouas (Fra) Lotto-Mobistar 		2.38
 7. Cedric Vasseur (Fra) GAN 				2.48
 8. Alberto Elli (Ita) Casino 				2.54
 9. Jose-Maria Jimenez (Spa) Banesto			3.04
10. Pascal Herve (Fra) Festina-Lotus			3.20
..
15. Richard Virenque (Fra) Festina-Lotus		4.48
20. Laurent Dufaux (Swi)				7.30
33. Laurent Brochard (Fra) Festina-Lotus	       12.40
36. Alex Zulle (Swi) Festina-Lotus		       16.14

Stage 4, Montauban - Castres, 161.7 kms:

After winning the Dauphiné, Armand de Las Cuevas (Banesto) also took the overall GC in the Route du Sud cycliste after the fourth stage to Castres was won in the sprint by German Erik Zabel (Telekom). Armand de las Cuevas held of Dutch rider Michael Boogerd and rising Spaniard Santiago Blanco. The Frenchman, who was 30 years of age last Friday, took the white Leader's Jersey with an imposing attack to the summit of the plateau de Beille, earlier in the race. This was the replica of the 11th stage in the Tour de France which will be contested on July 22.

The last stage today over 161.7 kms, was betweeen Montauban et Castres, and did not present any special difficulties. But it was highlighted by a solo attack lasting 145 kms by Pascal Hervé, who at one stage was 5.25 up on the peloton and virtually guaranteed of winning the stage.

Hervé, a favourite to win the upcoming French Road Championship on Sunday, was caught by the peloton with 15 kms to go and then a mass sprint was guaranteed. Zabel was the one to triumph. Dutchman Aart Vierhouten narrowly beat three French riders Nicolas Jalabert, Stéphane Barthe and Frédéric Moncassin, all three who hail from the region where the race was held.

La Route du Sud, which was delayed by a week in this year, was the last stage race before the Tour de France. The Gernman, Jan Ullrich, winner of the 1997 Tour de France, and Richard Virenque, his main challenger, finished in 4th and 15th places, respectively, in this race only 11 days before the Tour begins in Dublin. 

 1. Eric Zabel (Ger) Team Deutsche Telekom     	      3.52.10
 2. Aart Vierhouten (Ned) Rabobank
 3. Nicolas Jalabert (Fra) Cofidis
 4. Stéphane Barthe (Fra) Casino
 5. Frédéric Moncassin (Fra) GAN
 6. Sergei Ivanov (Rus) TVM-Farm Frites
 7. Francisco Mancebo (Spa) Banesto
 8. Oscar Freire (Spa) Vitalicio Seguros
 9. Damien Nazon (Fra) La Francaise des Jeux
10. Geert Verheyen (Bel) Lotto-Mobistar
..
22. Laurent Brochard (Fra) Festina-Lotus
27. Jan Ullrich (Ger) Team Deutsche Telekom
63. Armand de las Cuevas (Fra) Banesto
69. Richard Virenque (Fra) Festina-Lotus
75. Alex Zülle (Swi) Festina-Lotus
81. Laurent Dufaux (Swi) Festina-Lotus			s.t.

Final GC

 1. Armand de las Cuevas (Fra) Banesto  	    17.30.57
 2. Michael Boogerd (Ned) Rabobank        		1.04
 3. Santi Blanco (Spa) Vitalicio Seguros 		1.07
 4. Jan Ullrich (Ger) Team Deutsche Telekom 		1.12
 5. David García (Spa) Vitalicio Seguros  		1.18
 6. Cédric Vasseur (Fra) GAN 				2.37
 7. Laurent Madouas (Fra) Lotto-Mobistar  		2.38
 8. Alberto Elli (Ita) Casino   			2.54
 9. José Maria Jiménez (Spa) Banesto  			3.04
10. Pascal Hervé (Fra) Festina-Lotus 			3.20
..
15. Richard Virenque (Fra) Festina-Lotus 		4.48
20. Laurent Dufaux (Swi) Festina-Lotus 			7.30
32. Laurent Brochard (Fra) Festina-Lotus 	       12.40
35. Alex Zülle (Swi)  Festina-Lotus 		       16.14
67. Eric Zabel (Ger) Team Deutsche Telekom 	       36.39

Past Winners

The Route du Sud began officially in 1988 as a Cat 2.4 event. It was previously known as the Tour du Tarn (1977-81) and then Tour Midi-Pyrénees (1982-87). 

1977	Jacques Esclassan (Fra) Peugeot
1978	Pierre-Raymond Villemiane (Fra) Gitane
1979	Yvon Bertin (Fra) Renault
1980	Gilbert Duclos-Lassalle (Fra) Peugeot
1981	Jean-René Bernaudeau (Fra) Peugeot
1982	Francesco Moser (Ita) Famucine
1983	Gilbert Duclos-Lassalle (Fra) Peugeot
1984	Pascal Simon (Fra) Peugeot
1985	Stephen Roche (Ire) La Redoute
1986	Niki Rüttimann (Swi) La Vie Claire
1987	Régis Clere (Fra) Teka
1988	Ronan Pensec (Fra) Z Peugeot
1989	Gilbert Duclos-Lassalle (Fra) Z Peugeot
1990	Yves Bonnamour (Fra) Castorama
1991	Laurent Dufaux (Swi) Helvetia
1992	Arturas Kasputis (Lit) Postobon
1993	Eric Boyer (Fra) GAN
1994	Alvaro Mejia (Col) Motorola
1995	Laurent Dufaux (Sui) Festina
1996	Laurent Jalabert (Fra) ONCE
1997	Patrick Jonker (Aus) Rabobank
Past winners from Mario Stiehl, Berlin