Cycling News Flash for October 25, 2007

Edited by Bjorn Haake

A modest Grand Tour

By Gregor Brown in Paris

L'Alpe d'Huez: A week-long campground
Photo ©: Jon Devich

The Tour de France will be a Grand Tour of modest terms for 2008. As this year's route is being presented in Paris, Cyclingnews has confirmed that there will be no transfers in the 3554 kilometres that make up next year's three-week race, July 5 to 27.

"Sometimes less is more in a Grand Tour," noted Quick.Step Team Manager Patrick Lefevere in Paris.

The race kicks off on Saturday, July 5, with its Grand Départ in the cycling-rich province of Brittany. (Read news item Tour de France 2008 to start in Brest and visit Italy.) It then travels in a counter-clockwise motion, hitting the Pyrénées and then the Alps before its traditional finish on the Champs-Élysées, Sunday, July 27, in Paris.

Keeping in its modest terms, the 95th edition will contain one time trial of 29 kilometres in Cholet and a second one – of normal Tour length – on the penultimate day of 53 kilometres, from Cerilly to Saint-Amand-Montrond.

"Maybe I might have to modify my training a little," Cadel Evans, second in the 2006 Tour, said to Cyclingnews when he heard of the minimal time trial kilometres.

The modesty of the world's largest bike race will be forgotten when riders hit the high peaks near Spain and Italy. Planned is a return to Hautacam, a romp up the 2802-metre Col de la Bonnette-Restefonds and the mythical Alpe d'Huez. The demanding mountains and minimal time trials will make a 2008 Tour de France that favours the mountain men.

Please return to Cyclingnews for the full parcours of the Tour de France.

Photography

For a thumbnail gallery of these images, click here

Images by AFP Photo

• Shake hands between the patrons of the 2007 Tour - will Alberto Contador (right) again take charge of the peloton while Tour director Christian Prudhomme takes care of the race organization?
• Four people were extremely focused during the presentation, from right to left Mauricio Soler (Barloworld), Oscar Pereiro (Caisse d'Epargne), Alberto Contador (Astana) and Cadel Evans (Predictor-Lotto)
• Jean-Yves Le Drian on the right is the president of the French region Bretagne that sees much of the first week played out on its roads.
• Contador and Pereiro shake hands but will battle each other fiercely next July.
• Christian Prudhomme wanted a humane route with less transfers, which he has achieved.
• Christian Prudhomme faces the media questions but was prepared to answer all questions.
• Alberto Contador is posing in front of the map for the 2008 Grande Boucle.
• Yep, this is where I am going to attack and drop everybody and seal my 2008 win. Alp d'Huez is back.
• Contador is young but already used to being the centre of attention.
• Prudhomme unveils the route and delivers his points to the riders and media in attendance.
• Patrice Clerc is the General Director ASO which is in charge of organizing France's biggest bike race.
• Prudhomme in front of the route.
• Le Tour de France mostly stays in France, with only a short escape into Italy.
• Prudhomme with his homework that he presented to the media.He'll get extra credit for cutting down the transfers.
• The north is spared this time as the race heads through Bretagne, Massif central, Pyrenees and Alps.

Images by John Pierce/Photosport International

• Alpe d'Huez is in the mix again making for an exciting showdown between the overall hopefuls towards the end of the race.
• Alberto Contador wants to defend his title and decided to not change winning ways, moving to Astana with Johan Bruyneel and some of his Discovery team-mates.
• Oscar Pereiro will be hoping to get his second Tour title in a more straightforward way than his 2006 win, which he received some 15 months after the finish in Paris.
• The Spaniards Contador and Pereiro are brothers in arms for now.
• Hans-Michael Holczer from Gerolsteiner welcomed the Tour route and stated that "The teams gave some input that was listened to."
• Jonathan Vaughters is heading the powerful Slipstream team, slated to be the next big American team after the folding of Discovery Channel.
• Johan Bruyneel with new team and old goals; another Tour triumph would be great for the Belgian.
• Christian Prudhomme was all smiles as he is now fully in charge of Le Tour. The first thing that went were the transfers. Nice!
• Erik Breukink is directeur sportif at Rabobank and is ok with the course, based on his smile.
• Jonathan Vaughters is looking for the time trial kilometres, but no matter how he adjusted his glasses, they didn't come full swing.
• Bernard Hinault, the five time winner who is now overseeing the race.
• Rolf Aldag of T-Mobile was present as well
• Aldag looks at the map. Italy – yes, but no Germany or any other countries in 2008; One may almost call it a true Tour de France.
• Aldag will head to Brest with a strong team if the current anti-doping investigations won't dismantle the team before July.
• Alberto Contador is already thinking about Alpe d'Huez.
• Cadel Evans is not quite sure what to think of the route. There aren't enough time trial kilometres for his liking.
• Evans may change his training but the Australian certainly has a shot at the Tour.
• Contador already shows the confident smile of a winner.
• Not only Contador was focused but 2007 runner-up Evans on the left and 2006 Pereiro as well.
• Contador, Pereiro and Evans will that be the podium in 2008?
• Cadel Evans is trying to get more time trial kilometres by intensely staring at the organizers.
• Evans in the media mass or was that mess?
• Alberto Contador is happy with the route and its lack of time trialing, though he preferred to "have the longer time trial first."
• Christian Prudhomme addresses the gathered folks to explain his thoughts on the route.
• Jonathan Vaughters is hoping for an invite of Slipstream to the 2008 Tour. He has gathered riders to make it a realistic goal.
• Le Grand Départ will be in the Bretagne/Brittany.
• Erik Breukink will hope to forget the 2007 Tour disaster with Rasmussen and make better headlines next year.
• Vaughters' team has a strong anti-doping program and this may play a decisive factor when it comes to the invitations for next year.
• Bernard Hinault smiles as he likes the route.
• The five-time winner will hope that Frenchmen can lighten it up, some 20 years after his last win.

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