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José María Jiménez became the first Spaniard to win on top of the Alto Cruz de la Demanda, in the four times that stages in the Vuelta have finished there. Prior to today, the Swiss ruled the mountain, as Toni Rominger won in 1993 and 1994, and Alex Zülle did so in 1996.
José María Jiménez (1st stage)
"The condition of a climber is never lost, it doesn't go away after a day to something else. I have had a bad time for the past 14-15 months in which I have not won. I had very bad moments like last year in the Tour when I suffered from mononucleosis. That took 6 months to cure, and then I was hit by a car. Now, I want to set higher objectives in the grand tours like the Tour or the Vuelta."
He also said that he wouldn't fight for the mountains jersey, currently worn by his teammate Juan Miguel Mercado. "I already have three and I know that for him, being younger, it will mean something special. I don't believe that the other teams will dispute it."
Joseba Beloki (ONCE, 1st GC)
"It's true that I was slightly depressed yesterday after my time trial [he only beat Sevilla by 1 second]. The stage was considered bad for us, and super for Kelme. Today it is the opposite."
Oscar Sevilla (Kelme, 2nd GC)
"I had a crisis, I really did not feel good on the whole, and I could rejoin the line at a good pace. I wasted time but the Vuelta is still long. What occurred today does not worry me."
Tomorrow's 69th Grand Prix de Fourmies completes the 'northern classics' weekend, after today's 81st edition of Paris-Brussels, won by Frenchman Emmanuel Magnien. At 210 kilometres, GP Fourmies is shorter but hillier than Paris-Brussels. It starts from Fourmies and the riders do 155 kilometres, twisting and turning through the northern French countryside. The race finishes with five laps of an 11 kilometre circuit, with a sharp climb just after the start/finish.
Last year's winner Andrej Hauptman (Tacconi Sport) will wear number one this year, backed by a strong team which includes Gianluca Bortolami. Lotto will be led by Andrei Tchmil, who is looking for some more success this season, which has been quite lean. Mapei's Andrea Tafi and Daniele Nardello were in the moves in Paris-Brussels, and they will be hoping that Paolo Bettini can work his magic tomorrow.
Jaan Kirsipuu (Ag2r) and Romans Vainsteins (Domo) will be looking for revenge after today's defeat by Emmanuel Magnien, but the course may be too bumpy. Both are pretty handy on short climbs, as evidenced in the recent Tour of Poland.
Others to watch include Jean Delatour's Laurent Brochard and Patrice Halgand, Cofidis' Nico Mattan, Telekom's Alexandre Vinokourov, and Fakta's Scott Sunderland.
The ninth and last round of the women's World Cup takes place tomorrow in the Netherlands. The Rotterdam Tour (known as the Ladies Tour Beneden-Maas in 1998-1999) is 138.5 kilometres of flat, windy, and very likely wet racing in and around the big Dutch city.
Coming into the race, there are just three women in contention for the overall honours in the World Cup. Australian Anna Millward (Saturn) holds a solid 57 point lead over Dutchwoman Mirjam Melchers (Acca Due O), and a 64 point lead over Susanne Ljungskog (Vlaanderen-T-Interim). With 75 points for a win (50 for second), Millward can only lose if either Melchers or Ljungskog win in Rotterdam, and Millward doesn't score very highly. Given Millward's record on flat courses and her formidable sprint, it's unlikely that this will happen...but this is bike racing.
Millward's German teammate Petra Rossner recently won the Holland Ladies Tour, and is considered the quickest road sprinter in the World. Combined with riders like Judith Arndt and Kimberly Bruckner, Saturn should again be the team to beat. They can afford to let riders get away, so long as Melchers and Ljungskog don't escape, and this would be the safe option to win the World Cup.
Last year's winner was Chantal Beltman, riding for the Dutch national team. She escaped from a four woman break to win the race by 2 minutes, with local favourite Leontien Van Moorsel taking second from Goulnara Ivanova and Gabriella Pregnolato.
Frank Vandenbroucke climbed back on his bike on Thursday for the first time in several months. Following the advice of physiotherapist Lieven Maesschalck, he trained for two hours. VDB is still in the base training phase of his program, which is geared to get him back to top condition in 2002, and will continue his other cross-training activities.
He also commented about Marco Pantani's revelation the other day in the Vuelta, where he said that he may have VDB and Richard Virenque in Mercatone Uno for 2002. "I heard via my manager Paul De Geyter that he is one of the people intersted, but a team for next season is not my absolute priority now. I first want to prove that I can be good again. After that I'll find an employer."
Collstrop-Palmans is seeking a wild card entry ofr the Paris-Tours World Cup race, which takes place on October 7. They are banking on the attraction of new arrival, Peter van Petegem, who rode Paris-Brussels in Collstrop colours today, and was prominent at the front.
"We have already ridden in the Ronde van Vlaanderen, Amstel Gold Race and Luik-Bastenaken-Luik," said directeur sportif Van Der Schueren. "Therefore we hope for a fourth start in the World Cup circuit. With the arrival of Van Petegem, we are hoping that there will be more doors open for our team ot start in the big races."
Emmanuel Magnien's win in today's Paris-Brussels may have come too late to save the Francaise des Jeux team. According to Limburgs Dagblad, Marc and Yvon Madiot's French lottery sponsored division II team will stop in 2002, the second French team to do so after Festina.
La Francaise des Jeux started its sponsorship in 1995, and scored a win in Paris-Roubaix, the most prestigious classic of the season, with Frédéric Guesdon. Since then, they have had a steady run of successes in the second division, but it seems that there aren't enough sponsors to keep them going next season. A merger with the embattled Mercury team was discussed, but that fell through and nothing was signed. Discussions were also held with BigMat, with a similar outcome.
Some of FdJ's riders have found other teams: Australian Brad McGee signed for Rabobank; Swiss Sven Montgomery will ride with Fassa Bortolo; Jacky Durand will go to Phonak; Emmanuel Magnien has signed for Bonjour for two years; sprinters Jean-Patrick Nazon and Jimmy Casper have a lot of teams interested in them, and Grzegorz Gwiazdowski, surprise winner of the Championship of Zurich in 1999, also has some possibilities.
The popular Spanish team, Euskaltel-Euskadi, has extended the contracts for many of its riders: Roberto Laiseka, Iban Mayo, Alberto Martinez and Alberto Lopez de Munain have all signed for another two years, assuring the team of a solid core of climbers and stage racers.
The Rabobank team has sacked one of its junior riders after he returned a positive drugs test. Johnny Hoogerland (18) was controlled positive in the Trofee van de Provincie Antwerpen on August 11 for having a too high testosterone/epitestosterone ratio. Hoogerland maintains that he hasn't taken anything, and will undergo tests to see whether he has a naturally high level of testosterone in his body.
James F. May, the founder and long time promoter of the Chris Thater Memorial, recently received the 2001 Liberty Bell Award for his contribution to the criminal justice system. The award, presented annually by the Broome County Bar Association, recognizes people for their contribution to the rule of law and civic responsibility.
Since 1983, May has been the Coordinator of Broome County's STOP-DWI Program - a comprehensive county-wide effort to prevent drunk driving. The program, created under New York State law, is funded entirely by the fine money paid by people convicted of drunk driving. While Coordinator, May has developed one of New York State's most innovative STOP-DWI Program's and some of Broome County's most high profile events to promote the STOP-DWI message.
May founded the Chris Thater Memorial in honour of his close friend who was killed by a drunk driver in 1983. The race is held to heighten awareness about drunk driving and promote healthy lifestyles. The Chris Thater Memorial has become one of the premier cycling events in the United States and is part of the Pro Cycling Tour.
May's desire to bring more young men into the Students Against Drunk Driving (SADD) Program inspired the STOP-DWI Holiday Classic, which has become one of the top high school boys invitational basketball tournaments in the country. The tournament combines leadership seminars and motivation workshops with top caliber high school basketball. Since its inception in '92, 45 players have gone on to play NCAA Division I basketball and five to the NBA.
While actively coordinating law enforcement, prosecution, treatment and education activities, May is also known for effectively partnering with the corporate and private sectors. Gaining "ambassadors" to the STOP-DWI cause, he says, allows the program to branch out further and further into the community. Under May's direction, the Broome County STOP-DWI Program has become one of the model county STOP-DWI Programs in New York State.
Since the inception of New York State's STOP-DWI in 1981, Broome County has witnessed:
Major Races and Events
September 7-29, 2002: Vuelta
a España (GT) - Preview, stage list
May 11-June 2, 2002: Giro
d'Italia (GT) - Preview, stage list, photos
July 6-28, 2002: Tour
de France (GT) - Full preview & official route details
December 8: Superprestige
Rd 5 (Cat. 1) - Erwin Vervecken
November 29-December 4: Six
Days of Noumea (6D) - Sassone/Neuville victorious
November 26-December 1: Six
Days of Zurich (6D) - Day
6 - McGrory/Gilmore/Schnider win
December 1: Melbourne
Cup on Wheels (IM) - Scott Moller, Keirin,
Sprint, Support
races
December 2: Cyclo-cross
World Cup #2 (CDM) - Sven Nijs again
November 24-December 3: Juegos
Deportivos Centroamericanos (JR) - Final results
December 8-9: Frankfurter
Rad-Cross (Cat. 2) - Alex Mudroch, UK
National Trophy Series #4 (Cat. 3) - Roger Hammond, Grote
Prijs Industrie Bosduin - Kalmthout (Cat. 1) - Bart Wellens, Int.
Radquer Obergösgen (Cat. 2) - Björn Rondelez, Trofeo
Mamma e Papa Guerciotti (Cat. 3) - Enrico Franzoi, Premio
Egondo (Cat 3) - David Seco, Irish
cyclo-cross championships - Robin Seymour
Results: local racing
Australia - CycleWest
Promotions Omnium Series #2, Eastern
Suburbs Summer Criterium Series, Carnegie
Caulfield Tuesday criterium, Southern
Cross Junior Track Open & Madison Cup, Manly
Warringah CC, George
Town Track Carnival, Carnegie
Caulfield CC, Randwick
Botany CC, Gold
Coast CATS CC, Caesar's
Illawarra CC, Caesar's
Illawarra (track)
Denmark - Danish
cyclo-cross Post Cup #3
Italy - Gran
Premio Città di Bassano
Luxembourg - GP
De Kopstal
New Zealand - Cyco
Criterium series
Spain - Elorrio
cyclo-cross
USA - Georgia
Cross Series Championship, Chimborazo
Grand Prix cyclo-cross, Boulder
Cross Rd 6, New
Mexico State Cyclo-x Champs, Sorrento
Cyclo-x & California State Champ's, Boulder
Cross Rd 5, Verge
New England series, Northampton
CC Cyclo-cross Championships, Chris
Cross International CycloCross
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