News for July 9

Bjarne Riis: "The leader? It's me!" (L'Equipe, 5-6/7/97)

The Dane, reigning champion, is doubtless worried by the threat posed by his young teammate Jan Ullrich, second last year, even if the latter tries to be reassuring. But the roles still appear to be clearly defined in Walter Godefroot's Telekom team.

Bjarne, how many interviews did you give last year before the Tour de France?

- Quite a few... But fewer than this time.

And this year, how many have you refused?

- Too many. At times it got too much and there were days when I needed some time to myself.

How did you feel when, at the start of the Tour last year, your name was hardly mentioned among the favorites?

- For me, it was normal. Miguel was the favorite, of course.

And you, did you already believe that it would be your Tour?

- I wasn't sure, even though I knew I was going well, because you always wonder if it's enough to succeed. I'm not 100% sure this year either, but now at least I know it's possible. I have more confidence. I hope I'm going to be stronger in the mountains.

Stronger than at Sestrieres and Hautacam!

- Yes. Last year it was OK... But how strong I am isn't the point, as long as I win... I'll have to be stronger psychologically too - there's lots of pressure and I mustn't let all my energy get sucked away.

If, until last year, you were an unknown champion, it was because you took a lot of time to reveal yourself...

How do you explain that?

- That's the way it goes... I was improving every year a little, of course, the last few years, a bit more each time. When I arrived in Italy (1992, with Giancarlo Ferretti and Ariostea), I changed my training, I lost weight, 4 or 5 kilos at Tour time.

How do you explain that you were underestimated for so long, I mean that you were always regarded as just a teammate?

- Maybe in the early years I was already capable of finishing 15th or 20th in a Giro, but that wouldn't have changed anything... It would have done nothing for me, it was much better to ride for someone like Fignon. Maybe if I hadn't done all that work, I wouldn't have made it to the top level, no more quickly anyway. I needed that work to improve. In 1993, it was the big change. I did a very, very clever Tour (5th). Then I knew I had high endurance.

"Winning at 32 - it makes no difference to me..."

Do you recognise yourself in the photos of your early races? Is it funny seeing those rosy cheeks?

- Hum... I'm still the same rider. Of course I've changed a lot. Yes, it's funny. I was young...

If someone had said to you five years ago that you were going to win the Tour, would you have believed them?

- Maybe I would have had a hard time believing it... But when I saw that I could make 5th, then 3rd, I saw I could maybe win... I think that it was in 1993, at Isola 2000, that I said to myself "Ah! Maybe something has changed..." It was really the first time I managed to stay with the best in the mountains (Rominger, Indurain and others). After that, I knew it had become possible to work off that base. But even now it is always possible to do better. Well, better than last year would of course be difficult, but all the other years, yes, I knew I could improve.

Could we say that Giancarlo Ferretti was the man responsible for your transformation?

- He was the person who pushed me to do better than I had up to then. Maybe not even he would have believed that I could come 5th in 1993, but he really pushed me. I remember in the Tour of Switzerland in 1993, he was always behind me shouting for me to attack, to believe in myself, to go into the lead. Still, I thought I had ridden pretty well and we won the race with Saligari. But Ferretti must have thought I was too laid back, too happy with my level, until the day when I told him "OK, stop, I'm doing my best..." But maybe that's what he wanted, that I be less complacent. When we got to the Tour, I was in attacks every day and, at Chalons, I won! It was a very important victory. Afterwards, things just clicked. I realised I had much more potential than I had thought, that my limits were much further than I had believed.

"I was frightened of doing too much"

Do you regret now having waited until you were 32 before winning the Tour?

- No, I feel as if I were 25. I makes no difference to me. I don't feel like a 33-year-old, I feel I am still improving.

So, when one wins one's first Tour at 32, how many more years does that leave at the top level?

- It's a pity everyone talks about that... I don't even think about it. I couldn't care less about having won at 32. I ride because I still enjoy it.

Does it mean a lot to you to have been the one who displaced Indurain? - I didn't just beat Indurain. The most important thing was to have beaten ten of them, to have won the Tour. But of course it was a bonus.

Is it true to say that you were the first to realise he could be beaten?

- Maybe, yes. I observed him a lot. Even though he was a magnificent rider, he had to have his limits too. He didn't often get attacked really hard. Also, I often saw that if he had to go into the red too early in a climb, he tired. When I attacked him on the Tourmalet in 1995, he had a job catching me. When I attacked again (at Cautarets), he let me go... Then I knew he was hurting. If you look carefully, he always let others do the work and then, on the last col, bang, he would ride flat out for twenty or thirty minutes.

You give the impression that you want to win a second Tour even more that the first one. As if you needed to make sure...

- Of course my will to win is stronger, but win like I did is already great. I hope to repeat it. Of course I'm not going to do like in the Giro (Tonkov and Gotti), where no-one attacked on the Mortirolo. That was a shame. It's better to be dropped than not to have tried.

Your triumph in the Amstel, was that the need to show you deserved to win the Tour as well?

- There I showed I was a complete rider. I was very, very happy. Ask someone to ride like I did in the last 50 kilometres, there aren't very many that could do that. I not only won a race, I did it in style, with panache.

Are you as satisfied with your preparation for the Tour as last year?

- I can't tell if I'm any stronger, but I've done a lot of work in the mountains. I feel good... After the classics, my condition dropped a bit, but that's normal. And I was frightened of doing too much, too. I was wary of being tired before the Tour, especially in my head. But since the Tour of Switzerland, it's OK, I'm confident.

Let's talk about Jan Ullrich anyway. For you, is he the great champion of tomorrow?

- Yes. Certainly. He has a huge talent. And at his age...

Apart from Saint-Emilion (where the German won the last timetrial of the 1996 Tour), are there days when you felt him to be stronger than you?

- No, I was stronger than him... I knew he was going well, but I had no worries.

Are you the leader of Telekom, or are you joint leaders?

- It's me.

If you were in his place, wouldn't you try to win the Tour this year?

- I don't know what he thinks inside. But you have to remember that to do a good Tour is one thing, but to win is another. Wearing the yellow jersey is not easy... Last year, he had no responsibilities; even if he had finished 10th, everyone would have been happy. If Ullrich is in front, I won't attack. It's normal, you don't attack a colleague. WIth Ullrich, the roles haven't changed. We're going to try to win the Tour together.

Gotti: the man with a plan (L'Equipe, 5-6/7/97)

PALMARES. Wore the yellow jersey in the 1995 Tour where he finished 5th. In 1996, with a stage victory in hand, he was 5th in the Giro, but abandoned the Tour on his second participation. His surprising victory in this year's Giro (plus a stage victory) makes him one of the favorites.

HIS SEASON. Injured (leg) last season, no-one thought he had come back to such a high level. He was aiming, of course, for the Giro where he has already been master in the mountains, and he made no mistake. But Gotti has always had a weakness for the Tour.

HIS STRONG POINTS. High mountains, without a doubt. On the cols, his power-to-weight ratio (he only weighs 62kg) makes him a fearsome climber. With huge endurance, he's one of those who survive best the tiredness of a big Tour of which he says jokingly he could last an extra week without any problem. A complete rider, he rarely has off days. His victory in the Giro has given him a high level of confidence.

HIS WEAK POINTS. One could mention his timetrial performances against the Tour's power-animals (betes a rouler). But, strangely, despite his slender outline, he has always managed to limit his losses. The best example remains the 1995 Tour: 11th at 4:04 behind the great Indurain between Huy and Seraing over 54km; 4th at 1:41 from the same Indurain at lac de Vassiviere over 46.5km. A certain "demobilisation" following the Giro which he finished, it is said, with a saddle sore.

HIS AMBITIONS. A place on the podium.

Kindly supplied by Matthew Bramley.

Some Aussie Results from the Weekend in Belgium

July 5, Kruishoutem - 6. Chris Long
July 6, Hamme - 6. Matthew Corin
July 7, Sleidinge - 6. Danny Massours 19.Matthew Blannin