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89th Meisterschaft von Zürich -Championnat de Zurich - CDM
Switzerland, August 18, 2002
Main page Start List Map Results
Complete Live Report
Start time: 11:30 CEST
Estimated finish time: 17:30 CEST
Welcome to Cyclingnews.com's live coverage of the 89th Meisterschaft von Zürich, the eighth round of the World Cup and the only one to be held in Switzerland. Today's race is 236.6 kilometres, consisting of a 71 kilometre loop followed by four laps of a 41.4 kilometre circuit. The main climbs on the final circuit are the Forch (10 km) and Pfannenstiel (24 km), which generally produce a selection in the race.
Defending champion is Paolo Bettini (Mapei-Quick Step), who will be looking at another good result today in order to take the World Cup lead from Johan Museeuw. The Italian is in good form, and should be one of the protagonists today. Last year he won from a breakaway of four, which included Jan Ullrich, Fernando Escartin and Francesco Casagrande. Ullrich had no answer to Bettini's sprint and had to concede.
15:55 CEST
The riders are currently on the third of four 41.4 km laps, with approximately
60 km to go. Today's weather is sunny and warm, unlike some parts of Europe
that have been flooded in recent weeks. Temperatures are hovering around the
30 degree mark, and it will be thirsty work for six hours for the peloton.
A number of the World's best are here, including World Cup leader Johan Museeuw, World Champion Oscar Freire, Tour de France champion Lance Armstrong, Laurent Jalabert and Swiss favourite Alex Zulle.
16:00 - 177 km/59 km to go
Simone Bertoletti (Lampre), Eddy Ratti (Mapei), Gianni Faresin (Gerolsteiner),
Carlos Sastre (CSC), Francesco Lara Ruiz (Team Coast) and Kim Kirchen (Fassa
Bortolo) are leading the race, with the red jerseys of the Saeco team leading
the chase in the peloton.
Levi Leipheimer (Rabobank) has just been dropped by the peloton, after spending a lot of time in an earlier break.
The leaders are on the Pfannenstiel for the second last time.
16:05 - 179 km/57 km to go
Bertoletti is dropped on the climb, as Sastre forces the pace and gets a gap.
Kirchen and Ratti are in pursuit, with Lara Ruiz and Faresin also dropped.
Kirchen and Ratti make the junction to Sastre, and there are now three leaders. Behind them, the peloton is splitting up quite substantially on the climb.
Laurent Dufaux, Danilo Di Luca, Ivan Basso, Dario Frigo and Davide Rebellin have bridged up to the top three, forming a group of eight riders. Where is Bettini?
16:11 - 183 km/53 km to go
The leading group has grown on the descent, as Richard Virenque (Domo), Lance
Armstrong (USPS), Laurent Dufaux (Alessio) and David Canada (Mapei) create a
small gap. However, the peloton realises the danger and closes it down. Oscar
Camenzind (Phonak) counter-attacks but runs out of legs on the small climb of
Wetzwil.
16:16 - 185 km/51 km to go
Dufaux is looking very strong, and has been riding at the front of the peloton
trying to create a decisive gap. He won this race in 2000, and is motivated
to repeat that. The peloton is strung out over a long distance, with plenty
of gaps as they descend back into Zurich.
16:21 - 189 km/47 km to go
Richard Virenque (Domo), Oscar Camenzind (Phonak), Nicki Sorensen (CSC), Laurent
Dufaux (Alessio) and Eddy Ratti (Mapei) try again to cause a break, but are
unsuccessful as the peloton chases them down. However, the main group is diminishing
in size.
Michele Bartoli (Fassa Bortolo) and David Canada (Mapei) have more luck, and get a couple of hundred metres gap to the main group. They are pursued by Camenzind, Di Luca, Rebellin, Kim Kirchen.
16:24 - 191 km/45 km to go
Bartoli, riding in his typical style with his hands draped over the STI cables,
is looking to make this break work. David Canada (Mapei) comes through, but
prefers to wait for the now two chasers - Juan Antonio Flecha (iBanesto) and
Paolo Valoti (Index-alexia). The peloton follows at 30 seconds.
16:28 - 195 km/41 km to go
The peloton comes through with one lap to go at 42 seconds behind the four leaders.
There are no more than 30 riders in the bunch, with CSC and Fassa Bortolo strongly
represented.
Michele Bartoli decides to go it alone, and attacks his three breakaway companions. They look at each other and he is gone.
16:32 - 199 km/37 km to go
Michele Bartoli, doing his best to wear out his brake cables, has a 20 second
gap to three riders: David Canada (Mapei), Juan Antonio Flecha (iBanesto) and
Paolo Valoti (Index-Alexia). The peloton is further back at 1'20, deciding to
wait until the climbs start before chasing. But Bartoli is a danger man - he
won this race in 1998 and also won the Amstel Gold Race this year. He should
not be underestimated.
World Cup leader Johan Museeuw has already abandoned.
16:36 - 202 km/34 km to go
Sylvester Szmyd (Tacconi) leads the peloton, with Serguei Ivanov (Fassa) on
his wheel, who of course won't chase with Bartoli up the road. Gianni Faresin
(Gerolsteiner) and Andrea Ferrigato (Alessio) move to the front to lend a hand.
The peloton has grown due to the relatively slow pace.
Bartoli waits for the three chasers, and there are four leaders again on a small climb. Maybe he wasn't waiting, as he is dropped. Canada, Valoti and Flecha are leading now.
Bartoli doesn't give up, and chases back on on the descent.
16:40 - 203 km/33 km to go
Bartoli is hanging on - just. Whenever the road goes up he suffers. Flecha decides
to attack on his own, and gets a little gap but is brought back by the other
three. The peloton, now led by Swiss champion Alexandre Moos (Phonak) is a minute
behind.
Bartoli gets some quick energy from the team car, in the form of a couple of drinks. Provided he hasn't gone too much into the red, he can recover and at least stay with these three on the climbs.
16:45 - 205 km/31 km to go
Moos is still on the front of the peloton, and has brought back the gap to 47
seconds. He is working for his Phonak captain Oscar Camenzind. Rebellin is always
attentive, riding in the top three in the peloton.
16:50 - 208 km/28 km to go
The gap between the main peloton and the four leaders is still hovering at 50
seconds. Ferrigato and Faresin are lending a hand in the chase, with Moos also
doing a lot of work.
The four leaders are Michele Bartoli (Fassa Bortolo), David Canada (Mapei), Juan Antonio Flecha (iBanesto) and Paolo Valoti (Index-Alexia). They escaped a few km before the finish of the third lap.
16:55 - 212 km/24 km to go
The last climb of the Pfannenstiel is getting starting, and there we will see
some changes in the race. Currently a biggish peloton (50 riders) is chasing
a break of four, Michele Bartoli, Paolo Valoti, Juan Antonio Flecha, and David
Canada, with a 30 second gap. Camenzind gets to the front and starts to make
the tempo. Paolo Bettini is right there with him. Basso, Frigo, and Di Luca
are also near the front.
In front, Canada has been dropped by the other three.
17:00 - 215 km/21 km to go
The gap has shrunk to just 12 seconds with 21 km to go, and the three leaders
look to be doomed. Laurent Dufaux (Alessio) is at the front of the peloton,
as is Lance Armstrong.
They hit the 3 km climb of the Pfannenstiel. Oscar Freire (Mapei) and Serguei Ivanov (Fassa Bortolo) are the first to attack the peloton, which is trimming down very fast.
17:03 - 217 km/19 km to go
Ivanov bridges up first, as Freire can't follow him. Ivanov puts the hammer
down and really makes the break hurt, especially his teammate Bartoli, who is
finally dropped.
Ivanov tries again, but Valoti and Flecha hang on. 10 riders catch them.
17:06 - 218 km/18 km to go
Dario Frigo counter attacks the now reformed leading group on the top part of
the Pfannenstiel, and is chased by Rebellin. But Rebellin can't close the gap,
and Frigo is away on his own!
17:08 - 219 km/17 km to go
Dario Frigo is first over the top of the Pfannenstiel, with a chasing group
of Rebellin, Basso and Gentili (Acqua e Sapone) in pursuit.
17:10 - 221 km/15 km to go
Dario Frigo (Tacconi Sport) is alone in the lead of the Championship of Zurich,
with 15 km of mostly downhill to go. He has a 21 second lead on a group of four
riders: Davide Rebellin (Gerolsteiner), Ivan Basso (Fassa Bortolo), Juan Antonio
Flecha (iBanesto) and Massimiliano Gentili (Acqua e Sapone). A group of nine
riders are about to catch them.
17:14 - 222 km/14 km to go
Dufaux and Ivanov are part of the chasing group, and Ivanov immediately goes
to the front to try and close the now 30 second gap. Camenzind tries to go on
the Wetzwil climb, but hasn't got the legs. Then Rebellin and Di Luca have a
go - they get a gap on the 13% climb. But Frigo is over the top.
Frigo is now on his way downhill again, and leads a group of 13 by around 30 seconds.
17:16 - 226 km/10 km to go
10 kilometres to go, and it's Dario Frigo negotiating the twisty descent off
the Pfannenstiel heading back into Zurich for the last time. A group of 11,
with Camenzind, Rebellin, Dufaux, and Ivanov are trying to chase - unsuccessfully.
The gap is 33 seconds, and Camenzind gets frustrated at his companions.
17:18 - 228 km/8 km to go
Frigo is at the bottom of the climb, and has eight flat kilometres to go to
hold off the chasers. He's a good time trialist, and has an excellent chance
of doing so.
Armstrong, Bettini, Sastre, Camenzind, Dufaux, Ivanov, Basso, Bartoli, Di Luca, Rebellin, Valoti, Gentili are all rolling through in an attempt to chase down Frigo. But as soon as they get a paceline going, it stops.
17:21 - 230 km/6 km to go
Serguei Ivanov attacks the chasing group, and gets Camenzind, Rebellin and Dufaux
on his wheel. They get caught and Camenzind and Ivanov try again. However, Dario
Frigo is still the leader of the race at the moment.
17:23 - 232 km/4 km to go
Dario Frigo will win this race, as he now has a 40 second gap on the disorganised
group of chasers. They're racing for second place and Frigo is about to pick
up his first World Cup win.
17:24 - 233 km/3 km to go
Paolo Valoti (Index) attacks, with Ivanov going with him. But the group brings
them back.
Frigo has 3 km left, riding past Lake Zurich on his way to winning the Championship of Zurich.
17:26 - 235 km/1 km to go
Dario Frigo flies under the 1km to go banner, giving it everything to ensure
that victory is his. He has plenty of time to zip up his jersey and salute the
crowd. He wins!
17:28 - 236 km/0 km to go
Dufaux and Ivanov lead out the sprint, but are swamped. Paolo Bettini gets
second, and is the new World Cup leader and looks very happy with himself as
he is congratulated by Freire and Canada, his teammates.
Lance Armstrong finished third, showing some good sprinting legs - must be all those criteriums! He was followed by Gentili and Sastre, with Bartoli taking sixth.
Results
Provisional 1 Dario Frigo (Ita) Tacconi Sport 5.56.53 2 Paolo Bettini (Ita) Mapei-Quick Step 1.20 3 Lance Armstrong (USA) US Postal Service 4 Massimiliano Gentili (Ita) Acqua e Sapone 5 Carlos Sastre (Spa) CSC-Tiscali 6 Michele Bartoli (Ita) Fassa Bortolo 7 Davide Rebellin (Ita) Gerolsteiner 8 Oscar Camenzind (Swi) Phonak 9 Ivan Basso (Ita) Fassa Bortolo 10 Laurent Dufaux (Swi) Alessio 11 Serguei Ivanov (Rus) Fassa Bortolo 12 Danilo Di Luca (Ita) Saeco-Longoni Sport World Cup standings after round 8 1 Paolo Bettini (Ita) Mapei-Quick Step 272 pts 2 Johan Museeuw (Bel) Domo-Farm Frites 270 3 Igor Astarloa (Spa) Saeco-Longoni Sport 152 4 Michele Bartoli (Ita) Fassa Bortolo 142 5 Dario Frigo (Ita) Tacconi Sport 136
Results Mail the Cyclingnews commentary team!
