First Edition News for September 30, 2003Edited by Jeff Jones UCI rankings: Petacchi and Zabel close the gap
The UCI has updated its men's rankings following the Vuelta a España. Although Paolo Bettini (Quick.Step-Davitamon) still holds the number one spot with 2096 points, strong performances by Erik Zabel (1993 pts) and Alessandro Petacchi (1856 pts) in the Vuelta have moved them very close to the Italian. Depending on how Bettini performs this weekend at Paris-Tours, there's even a chance that he could lose his spot to either of these two sprinters. Several other riders benefited from points scored in the Vuelta, with Alejandro Valverde (3rd overall, 2nd in points classification) moving up from 36th spot to 9th. An even greater jump was that of Isidro Nozal, who started the Vuelta in 303rd position on the UCI rankings and finished in 19th, after holding the yellow jersey for 16 days, winning two stages and finishing second overall. On the other hand, Vuelta winner Roberto Heras did not gain a large number of UCI points, as he only took the jersey on the second last day and also finished second overall last year. Other riders to benefit from good rides in the Vuelta were Felix Cardenas (218th - 37th) and Michael Rasmussen (108th - 50th). In the teams rankings, Fassa Bortolo still has the number one spot, although Quick.Step, Saeco and Telekom are all very close. O.N.C.E.-Eroski, after an almost perfect performance in the Vuelta, moved from 16th into 10th in division I, while Cofidis jumped several places from 12th to 7th (not just from the Vuelta). UCI rankings as of September 28, 2003Individuals 1 Paolo Bettini (Ita) Quick.Step-Davitamon 2,096.75 pts 2 Erik Zabel (Ger) Team Telekom 1,993.75 3 Alessandro Petacchi (Ita) Fassa Bortolo 1,856.00 4 Davide Rebellin (Ita) Gerolsteiner 1,774.00 5 Gilberto Simoni (Ita) Team Saeco 1,752.00 6 Alexandre Vinokourov (Kaz) Team Telekom 1,693.50 7 Lance Armstrong (USA) US Postal presented by Berry Floor 1,521.00 8 Iban Mayo Diez (Spa) Euskaltel-Euskadi 1,425.00 9 Alejandro Valverde Belmonte (Spa) Kelme-Costa Blanca 1,366.00 10 Tyler Hamilton (USA) Team CSC 1,363.20 11 Francesco Casagrande (Ita) Lampre 1,353.00 12 Jan Ullrich (Ger) Team Bianchi 1,258.00 13 Danilo Di Luca (Ita) Team Saeco 1,246.00 14 Dario Frigo (Ita) Fassa Bortolo 1,222.00 15 Michele Bartoli (Ita) Fassa Bortolo 1,158.50 16 Francisco Mancebo Perez (Spa) iBanesto.com 1,148.00 17 Robbie Mcewen (Aus) Lotto-Domo 1,138.00 18 Michael Boogerd (Ned) Rabobank 1,122.00 19 Isidro Nozal Vega (Spa) O.N.C.E.-Eroski 1,058.00 20 Baden Cooke (Aus) FDJeux.com 1,034.00 Top riders of 2003 1 Alessandro Petacchi (Ita) Fassa Bortolo 1,839.00 pts 2 Paolo Bettini (Ita) Quick.Step-Davitamon 1,763.75 3 Gilberto Simoni (Ita) Team Saeco 1,715.00 4 Erik Zabel (Ger) Team Telekom 1,673.75 5 Alexandre Vinokourov (Kaz) Team Telekom 1,640.50 6 Lance Armstrong (USA) US Postal presented by Berry Floor 1,521.00 7 Iban Mayo Diez (Spa) Euskaltel-Euskadi 1,425.00 8 Davide Rebellin (Ita) Gerolsteiner 1,386.00 9 Alejandro Valverde Belmonte (Spa) Kelme-Costa Blanca 1,366.00 10 Tyler Hamilton (USA) Team CSC 1,363.20 Teams Division I 1 Fassa Bortolo 7,845.75 pts 2 Quick.Step-Davitamon 7,643.75 3 Team Saeco 7,456.00 4 Team Telekom 7,451.50 5 iBanesto.com 6,153.00 6 Gerolsteiner 6,010.00 7 Cofidis, Le Crédit par Téléphone 5,669.00 8 Rabobank 5,554.75 9 US Postal presented by Berry Floor 5,504.75 10 O.N.C.E.-Eroski 5,497.25 Division II 1 Bankgiroloterij Cycling Team 3,015.00 pts 2 De Nardi-Colpack 1,967.00 3 Paternina-Costa de Almeria 1,956.00 4 Marlux-Wincor Nixdorf 1,764.00 5 Ceramiche Panaria-Fiordo 1,686.00 Nations 1 Italy 14,447.25 pts 2 Spain 9,361.00 3 Germany 7,429.85 4 France 6,638.15 5 Australia 5,282.10 Full rankings: Individuals, Teams, Nations 5th Giro di Lucca last warmup for gli azzurriSeveral of the Italians picked for the World Championship squad will be in action over the next four days in the 5th edition of the Giro della Provincia di Lucca. The 706 kilometre stage race consists solely of "en ligne" road stages, and there is no time trial. Confirmed riders include Sergio Barbero, Ivan Basso, Paolo Bossoni, Francesco Casagrande, Luca Mazzanti, Andrea Noè, all of whom are part of the Italian World's squad. In addition, Michele Bartoli, Mirko Celestino, Yaroslav Popovych, Jose Ivan Gutierrez, Oscar Freire and Romans Vainsteins will all take part, making for a strong field. The stages Stage 1 - September 30: Lucca - Castelvecchio Pascoli, km 162 Teams and principal riders Alessio (Noè, Caucchioli) USA Cycling finalises U23 World's teamUSA Cycling has confirmed its final selections U23 Road World Championships in Hamilton, Canada next week. Michael Creed (Colorado Springs, Colo) and Timothy Duggan (Boulder, Colo.) will represent the U.S. in the time trial scheduled for Oct. 7, while Creed, Patrick McCarty (Texas), Saul Raisin (Dalton, Ga.), Will Frischkorn (Boulder, Colo.) and Shawn Milne (Gloucester, Mass.) will combine in the road race on Oct. 10. Slow start for GroenendaalDutch 'crosser Richard Groenendaal expects to have a slow start to the cyclo-cross season due to a knee injury that has plagued him all year. Groenendaal has had an inflamed tendon in his right knee since January, and has not been able to train at anything like full capacity. He chose not to have it operated on, relying on rest to heal it. "I'm 90 percent fit, but I've hardly ridden at all this summer," Groenendaal told ANP. "I could not work on my base condition and thus don't have many expectations for the first two months. After then I hope to be physically up to scratch again. I'll start on Sunday [in Dottengies] and will see how it goes." De Goede and Pirard to Team Ton van Bemmelen SportsDutch riders Suzanne de Goede and Christa Pirard will ride for Team Ton van Bemmelen Sports in 2004, signing one year contracts. Both riders rode for this team in 2002, but made the step to the larger Farm Frites-Hartol team in 2003. Pirard found the jump to be a little too much, and wants to spend another year in the development team. De Goede chose to leave Farm Frites-Hartol because she and team leader Michael Zijlaard had different opinions about her role in the team. She also wants to combined her sporting interests with her studies, and for that reason Team Ton van Bemmelen Sports was her preferred choice. The team will be led by Leen Merison, who takes over from Piet van Amerongen and Jacques Helderop. One of the team's riders, Olga van Velzen has also extended her contract by a year. U.S. cyclist fails dope testThe United States Anti-Doping Agency (USADA) has announced that Kathi Krause of Fair Lawn, N.J tested positive at the NORBA National Championship Series on June 22, 2003 in West Dover, Vt. She tested positive for tetrahydrocannabinol acid (THC metabolite) [the psychoactive substance present in marijuana], a prohibited substance under UCI rules. Krause accepted a provisional suspension pending the outcome of her challenge of the positive drug test. By agreeing to the provisional suspension, Krause will be given credit for the period of the time she has served the provisional suspension, should a doping violation be determined at an arbitration hearing. According to UCI rules, if Krause did not accept the provisional sanction, her suspension would begin on the day after the decision of the arbitration panel. She placed 15th in the downhill competition at the NORBA National Championship Series. New Dutch 1.3 raceA new Dutch one day race will appear on the UCI calendar next year on June 23, four days before the Dutch championships, according to ANP. The race, called the Noord Nederland Tour, will be run between Groningen and Leeuwarden and carry a UCI 1.3 classification. It will be organised by a group comprised of the Wielerpromotie Friesland and the organisation of the Henk Vos Memorial. 2003 U17 Oceania Development Camp10 Australians will travel to New Zealand for the 2003 Oceania Development Camp between October 1-6. The squad, selected on the basis of national championship results, consists of four Victorians, three NSW cyclists, and a rider from Queensland, Northern Territory, and Western Australia. New Zealand has also named a very strong group of Under 17's for the camp which will be held at Hamilton (New Zealand!) from October 1, with racing at Morrinsville on the October 4 and 5. The program is aimed at giving young Oceanian cycling talent an insight into what to expect of a trip to Europe. With the added objectives of introducing team racing strategies to the developing cyclist, as well as providing them with a vision of cycling's "big picture" in the hope to plant the dreams to help them reach their potential. Selected ridersAustralia: Mark O'Brien, Zakkari Dempster, Joshua Gundry, Mario Giramondo (Vic), Luke Cridland, Mitchell Pearson, Tyler Mclachlan (NSW), Todd Dawson (Qld), Matthew Stephens (NT), Scott Sunderland (WA). Coach: Mark Windsor New Zealand: Rowan Brown, Logan Hunn, Mark Langlands, Jonathan Lewis, Darren Shea, Andrew Thompson, Andrew Robertson, Sam Bewley, Elliot Growther, Earl Rowney. Coaches: Lynn Murphy, Troy Campbell, Graeme Hunn New Caledonia: Not named Scary Fast Cyclocross CupThis Sunday October 5, the boys and girl at Rocket Parts in cooperation with the Amgen Cycling Club are hosting the Scary Fast Cyclocross Cup. The first round takes place at the Pierce Agricultural College in Woodland Hills. The course is classic European style with run-ups, bogs and rough paved roads that wind through the farmlands located in the heart of the San Fernando Valley. The Elite/Pro Cash Purse for the first round is $1,500.00 with cash and merchandise for the amateur categories of over $2,500.00. For more information go to www.rocketparts.com and click on the "racing" page. (All rights reserved/Copyright Knapp Communications Pty Limited 2003) |
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