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61st Vuelta a España - GT
Spain, August 26-September 17, 2006
Main Page Results Overall standings Stage Details Live report Previous Stage Next Stage
Stage 18 - September 14: Granada - Sierra de la Pandera, 153 km
Double whammy from Astana
Valverde loses more time as Kashechkin wins
By Shane Stokes in Jaén, with additional reporting from Hernan Alvarez
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Twenty four hours after Alexandre Vinokourov made a some history when he took the first Grand Tour leader's jersey of his career, Kazakhstani compatriot and Astana team-mate Andrei Kashechkin also achieved a personal first for himself when he rode to victory on stage 18 of the Vuelta a Espana.
The two riders reached the top of the hors categorie Sierra de la Pandera together, Vinokourov having attacked out of the group of favourites with just under 6 kilometres remaining to the mist-shrouded, wind-lashed summit. Valverde and third placed Carlos Sastre were amongst those who tried and failed to close, with Kashechkin the only one to successfully bridge, inside three kilometres to go. He took the stage win uncontested, while Vinokourov's time bonus plus his 32" margin over fourth placed Valverde at the finish [José Angel Gomez Marchante (Saunier Duval-Prodir) was third] saw him move 53" clear in the general classification.
"We did not talk because we are friends and we understand how things are," said Kashechkin at the post race press conference, when asked if they discussed who would take the stage. "He would work for me and I would work for him in this race, depending on who needed it. We did not do the Tour de France, but we arrived here with good form and were very motivated to do well in the Vuelta.
"Today was also a very important day as we got a message to say that the president of the country would be watching the race on the television, so it was good to have a strong performance."
Had Vino taken the victory, he would have gained additional time over Valverde courtesy of the time bonus. However Kashechkin felt that this was not necessary. "As you could see on the final climb today the peloton was exposed. There were five people who could fight for the classification and I don't think the bonification is important as everyone was flat out and things split apart [in terms of time gaps].
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"When I saw that Sastre was in trouble I knew it was the moment to go for it. I attacked then to get across [to Vinokourov]."
Kashechkin's strong ride means he moves to third overall, overtaking Carlos Sastre (CSC), who was tenth today and drops to fourth overall, 2'51 down. The Kazakhstani is 2'01 behind Vinokourov and 1'13 off the time of Valverde; he was asked if it was possible to take second place?
"I don't know the time gaps between him and me until I see the classification sheet but if the gap is more than a minute it will be difficult to get that back," he answered. "We will see tomorrow and in the time trial."
Vinokourov was delighted with the result, knowing that it means he is almost certain to win this Tour of Spain. He made his move after all of the riders from an early break had been recaptured, namely Nicki Sorensen (Team CSC), Benoît Poilvet (Credit Agricole), Raúl García De Mateo (Relax-Gam), Markel Irizar (Euskaltel-Euskadi), Pedro Horrillo (Rabobank) and Pierre Drancourt (Bouygues Telecom), plus a later move by mountains leader Egoi Martinez (Discovery Channel) and Iban Mayo (Euskaltel).
"I waited for an attack by Valverde and was going to counterattack, but saw that he wasn't having a good day. So I attacked and quickly got a gap. I think that the race will only be over in Madrid but now I have more confidence in myself. I have a good gap and think I can take more [from him] in the time trial."
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He was asked if missing the Tour de France was beneficial as it meant that he and the team were fresher than others. "Well, I would prefer to have won the Tour!" he answered. "But it is true that we are all fresh as we didn't race in July. I always try to win big races and if it happens that I win this Vuelta, it will be a good thing for me."
"The result is also important back home... there is a good reaction and it is good publicity there for us and our sport. It is a very big race and if we win, it will be a big thing for our sponsors."
Former race leader Valverde started the day just nine seconds behind Vinokourov but his slightly weaker time trialling meant that realistically, he had to take time back on his rival. However he was unable to do so and now looks destined for second place in Madrid.
"It should be acknowledged that Vinokourov is really very strong," he said after the finish. "The Kazakhs showed once again that they are very solid, even if I believe that Vinokourov was very lucky that Kashechkin came to help him in the last part of the ascension, because after having attacked very hard, I think that he started to get really tired.
"As for me, I did my best to fight and I think that it is the most important thing. My team-mates, once again, did exceptional work throughout the stage. And it is for them, for the great Vuelta which they have ridden, that I am sad not to head down from the Pandera with the yellow jersey on my shoulders. Things are very difficult for us now, but the Vuelta is not ended yet and we will fight until the last day."
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He seemed slightly more resigned when talking to Spanish television. "I fought hard. I am not disillusioned... if someone is stronger than you, then you have to accept it. We all rode well, the team were good and I can be happy with a place on the podium. I will think of the future."
Team-mate Joaquin Rodriguez said they tried to regain the maillot oro. "The two riders from Kazakhstan were very strong. We did the best we could in order to defeat Vinokourov, we played out our strategy. It was Valverde or Vinokourov, and in the end it was Vinokourov."
Saunier Duval rider Jose Gomez Marchante was third on the stage, precisely half a minute behind the leading duo. He had poor fortune and could otherwise have fared better. "I had bad luck, having a puncture in my front wheel at the bottom of the category 2 climb [Alto de los Villares]. I stopped then. My team waited for me but soon after I had more bad luck, flatting my rear wheel.
"It is noticeable that every day Vinokourov is getting better."
Yesterday's stage winner Tom Danielson was one of many tired, cold riders at the summit, but he was also in high spirits. "That was a super climb," he said, as he looked for extra clothing from his Discovery Channel team soigneur prior to riding back down the mountain to the team bus. "It reminds me of Brasstown Bald, it is pretty similar to it.
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"I was dropped in the beginning because I was tired from yesterday... I rode my ass off all day yesterday. Obviously if I hadn't done yesterday I could have done better today. [he was 8th, 46 seconds back]. The weather was hard... I was cold and tired coming up. I am happy to be done with the mountains."
The American said that the response to his stage win has been positive. "I got a nice reaction from the people back home, and especially the spectators in Spain," he said. "I can't be any happier about yesterday, it is a dream come true. Now I feel confident I can do the classification for real in the future."
Final word to today's winner, Kashechkin. Did he think the Vuelta was now over? "We will do all we can to control the race and ensure that he [Vinokourov] arrives in Madrid, after the time trial, in the first place. It is not over for sure - a crash or something like that could cause problems, so until we cross the final finish line it is not won. But things are good."
How it unfolded
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La Pandera is a mountain first climbed in 2002, when Roberto Heras prevailed over Gilberto Simoni and Oscar Sevilla over the same route as today's. Alejandro Valverde also won here in 2003 after a phenomenal performance, beating great climbers like Heras and Colombia's Felix Cardenas. That was the second Grand Tour stage win for Valverde in his sporting career and indeed a nice memory.
The race lost two great riders who didn't take the start today: Paolo Bettini (Quick Step) and Danilo Di Luca (Liquigas). Both were protagonists in this Vuelta, winning one stage apiece (Bettini won stage 2 and Di Luca stage 5), but they decided to stop their ride to Madrid.
An early breakaway was formed at km 8 with seven riders: Nicki Sorensen (CSC), Benoit Poilvet (Credit Agricole), Raul Garcia de Mateo (Relax), Markel Irizar (Euskaltel), Pedro Horrillo (Rabobank), Pierre Drancourt (Bouygues Telecom) and Olivier Kaisen (Davitamon).
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The leaders were able to keep their distance, and at the first intermediate sprint in Huelma (km 68.5), Poilvet led the race followed by Kaisen and Garcia de Mateo. At km 89, the gap between the breakaway and the bunch was 4'05. With the two big climbs in Villares and La Pandera at the end, the race went on and the peloton stayed calm.
The lead group continued to resist the chase by the second intermediate sprint (km 129) in los Villares, although their advantage began to drop. As the peloton started swallowing the members of the breakaway with less than 20 km to go, Nicki Sorensen kept his tempo and was soon alone, with the bunch a little more than a minute ahead.
However, with 14 km to go, the Dane was caught by Iban Mayo (Euskaltel) and Egoi Martinez (Discovery). The best riders weren't far behind when this duo attacked - 40 seconds was the difference at the summit of the penultimate climb at km 140.4, with 13 km left to race.
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The favourites drove hard and soon caught Mayo, while Martinez became the solo leader with 7 km to go. Luis Perez (Cofidis) joined Martinez soon afterwards, and a little later on La Pandera with 6 km to go, Alexandre Vinokourov (Astana) found the precise moment to attack. Alejandro Valverde (Illes Balears) felt the blow and couldn't follow, as Vino then led the race and distanced himself from Valverde by 45 seconds four kilometres from the finish.
At this point, Andrey Kashechkin (Astana) wasn't too far behind his team leader, and the young Kazakhstani joined Vino with 3 km to go. Both riders helped each other and finished off a magnificent day for Astana by crossing the line together, with Vinokourov giving the win to Kashechkin.
Valverde never gave up but couldn't match the might of the Kazakhstani duo, losing 43 precious seconds by the finish, just behind third-placed Jose Gomez Marchante (Saunier Duval). On the podium, it became clear Vinokourov was already thinking of kissing the winner's trophy in Madrid.
Stage 19 - September 15: Jaen-Ciudad Real, 205.3 km
Tomorrow's stage is littered with small climbs along its undulating parcours. Three categorised climbs - Alto del Parque Natural de Andujar (Cat. 2 - 750 m. above sea level - km 75), Alto de Sierra Madrona (Cat. 3 - 960 m. - km 102.6) and Alto del Tamaral (Cat. 3 - 800 m. - km 117) - and two intermediate sprints - in Las Viñas de Peñallana (km 50) and Puertollano (km 161.2) - are the feature attractions along the 205.3 km route.
A very long stage for all the riders, although the favourites will be focused on having a quiet day in the office before the final time trial on Saturday. This leaves the chance for a breakaway to be in the spotlight.
Photography
For a thumbnail gallery of these images, click here
Images by AFP Photo
- José Gomez Marchante (Saunier Duval-Prodir) attacks on the lower slops of Sierra de la Pandera, with Andrey Kashechkin (Astana Team) in hot pursuit.
- Alexandre Vinokourov (Astana Team) bides his time on the wheel of Alejandro Valverde (Caisse d'Epargne-Illes Balears).
- Alexandre Vinokourov (Astana Team) on a mission.
- Andrey Kashechkin (Astana Team) wins Stage 18 atop Sierra de la Pandera, as team-mate Alexandre Vinokourov celebrates behind him.
- Andrey Kashechkin (Astana Team) pumps his fists with delight atop Sierra de la Pandera.
- Andrey Kashechkin (Astana Team) kissed on the podium.
- Andrey Kashechkin (Astana Team) salutes the crowd.
- Alexandre Vinokourov (Astana Team) is looking every bit the 2006 Vuelta a Espana champion.
Images by Fotoreporter Sirotti
- Andrey Kashechkin (Astana Team) triumphs on Stage 18.
- Andrey Kashechkin (Astana Team) crosses the line ahead of his team-mate Alexandre Vinokourov (Astana Team).
- Andrey Kashechkin (Astana Team) on the podium with his trophy.
- Andrey Kashechkin (Astana Team) stands proudly on the podium.
- A beanied Alexandre Vinokourov (Astana Team) on the podium.
- Alexandre Vinokourov (Astana Team) happy to be in the maillot oro.
- Andrey Kashechkin (Astana Team) leads his fearless leader Alexandre Vinokourov on the La Pandera.
- Alexandre Vinokourov (Astana Team) once again displayed a show of force in the mountains.
- Alejandro Valverde (Caisse d'Epargne-Illes Balears) fights to stay in contention.
- Now that's steep...
- Igor Anton (Euskaltel-Euskadi) leads Leonardo Piepoli (Saunier Duval-Prodir).
- Alejandro Valverde (Caisse d'Epargne-Illes Balears) leads Anton and Piepoli.
- Tom Danielson (Discovery Channel) rode to a top-10 finish today.
- Luis Pérez (Cofidis) finished one place behind Danielson, in ninth.
- Egoi Martinez (Discovery Channel) came 11th.
- Sylvester Szmyd (Lampre-Fondital) finished 13th.
- Stijn Devolder (Discovery Channel) was 14th.
- Manuel Beltran (Discovery Channel) rounded out the top 15 placegetters.
- Vladimir Karpets (Caisse d'Epargne-Illes Balears) drives on alone up La Pandera.
- Iñigo Cuesta (Team CSC) and Chris Horner (Davitamon-Lotto) ride together.
- Things got a bit foggy at the top.
- And a bit craggy, too.
- Oh - and a bit rocky.
- And maybe a little spooky.
- And perhaps a little dizzy.
- And even a little surreal.
- The autobus make their way up the climb.
- José Gomez Marchante (Saunier Duval-Prodir) takes third place.
- Alejandro Valverde (Caisse d'Epargne-Illes Balears) ended up fourth on the day.
- Leonardo Piepoli (Saunier Duval-Prodir) was fifth.
- Luis Pérez (Cofidis) and Carlos Sastre (Team CSC) were 9th and 10th.
- Oh boy, that was a hard day...
- Andrey Kashechkin (Astana Team) on the podium.
- Alexandre Vinokourov (Astana Team) couldn't be happier.
- Without incident, Egoi Martinez (Discovery Channel) will wrap up the mountains classification.
- Egoi Martinez (Discovery Channel) looking a little stunned.
- Alexandre Vinokourov (Astana Team) dons the combination jersey.
- The Kazahstani twins - Andrey Kashechkin and Alexandre Vinokourov on the podium.
- Alexandre Vinokourov (Astana Team) leads team-mate Andrey Kashechkin up La Pandera.
- The craggy rockface of Sierra de la Pandera.
- José Gomez Marchante (Saunier Duval-Prodir) tried to win the stage, but couldn't match the might of Astana today.
- A lonely place.
- Unusual rock formations form part of the mystique of La Pandera.
- Not far to go now.
- Now that's discouraging!
- The peloton make their way up the climb, single file.
Results
1 Andrey Kashechkin (Kaz) Astana Team 3.57.39 (38.65 km/h) 2 Alexandre Vinokourov (Kaz) Astana Team 3 José Angel Gomez Marchante (Spa) Saunier Duval-Prodir 0.30 4 Alejandro Valverde (Spa) Caisse d'Epargne-Illes Balears 0.32 5 Leonardo Piepoli (Ita) Saunier Duval-Prodir 0.35 6 Igor Anton (Spa) Euskaltel-Euskadi 7 Samuel Sánchez (Spa) Euskaltel-Euskadi 0.46 8 Thomas Danielson (USA) Discovery Channel Pro Cycling Team 9 Luis Pérez (Spa) Cofidis, le Credit par Telephone 0.48 10 Carlos Sastre (Spa) Team CSC 11 Egoi Martinez (Spa) Discovery Channel Pro Cycling Team 1.20 12 Joaquin Rodriguez (Spa) Caisse d'Epargne-Illes Balears 13 Sylvester Szmyd (Pol) Lampre-Fondital 1.29 14 Stijn Devolder (Bel) Discovery Channel Pro Cycling Team 1.34 15 Manuel Beltran (Spa) Discovery Channel Pro Cycling Team 1.43 16 Daniel Moreno (Spa) Relax-Gam 1.56 17 Vladimir Karpets (Rus) Caisse d'Epargne-Illes Balears 2.05 18 Iñigo Cuesta (Spa) Team CSC 2.13 19 Christopher Horner (USA) Davitamon-Lotto 20 Eric Leblacher (Fra) Française des Jeux 2.34 21 Theo Eltink (Ned) Rabobank 2.36 22 Stéphane Goubert (Fra) AG2R Prevoyance 23 Sergio Paulinho (Por) Astana Team 2.45 24 Stuart O'Grady (Aus) Team CSC 2.55 25 Evgeni Petrov (Rus) Lampre-Fondital 26 Dario David Cioni (Ita) Liquigas 3.16 27 Sébastien Minard (Fra) Cofidis, le Credit par Telephone 28 Jurgen Van Goolen (Bel) Discovery Channel Pro Cycling Team 29 José Antonio Garrido (Spa) Quick Step-Innergetic 3.24 30 Aketza Peña (Spa) Euskaltel-Euskadi 3.43 31 José Miguel Elias (Spa) Relax-Gam 3.46 32 Xabier Zandio (Spa) Caisse d'Epargne-Illes Balears 3.48 33 Iñigo Chaurreau (Spa) AG2R Prevoyance 3.55 34 José Antonio Redondo (Spa) Astana Team 4.14 35 Frédéric Bessy (Fra) Cofidis, le Credit par Telephone 4.44 36 Torsten Hiekmann (Ger) Gerolsteiner 4.48 37 Heinrich Haussler (Ger) Gerolsteiner 4.49 38 Nicki Sorensen (Den) Team CSC 5.03 39 Lars Ytting Bak (Den) Team CSC 5.28 40 Hubert Dupont (Fra) AG2R Prevoyance 5.42 41 Iban Mayo (Spa) Euskaltel-Euskadi 6.02 42 Haimar Zubeldia (Spa) Euskaltel-Euskadi 43 David Arroyo (Spa) Caisse d'Epargne-Illes Balears 6.17 44 Thierry Marichal (Bel) Cofidis, le Credit par Telephone 7.18 45 Benoît Joachim (Lux) Discovery Channel Pro Cycling Team 8.04 46 Serguei Yakovlev (Kaz) Astana Team 8.08 47 Kurt-Asle Arvesen (Nor) Team CSC 8.18 48 Dmitriy Fofonov (Kaz) Credit Agricole 49 Marcus Ljungqvist (Swe) Team CSC 50 Raúl García De Mateo (Spa) Relax-Gam 8.22 51 Ángel Vallejo (Spa) Relax-Gam 9.45 52 Mario De Sarraga (Spa) Relax-Gam 10.33 53 Rubén Pérez (Spa) Euskaltel-Euskadi 10.56 54 Olivier Kaisen (Bel) Davitamon-Lotto 12.18 55 Steve Morabito (Swi) Phonak Hearing Systems 56 Vladimir Gusev (Rus) Discovery Channel Pro Cycling Team 57 Mauricio Ardila (Col) Rabobank 13.00 58 Leonardo Duque (Col) Cofidis, le Credit par Telephone 59 Bingen Fernández (Spa) Cofidis, le Credit par Telephone 60 Mikel Astarloza (Spa) AG2R Prevoyance 61 Daniele Nardello (Ita) T-Mobile Team 13.02 62 Volodymir Gustov (Ukr) Team CSC 13.12 63 Pietro Caucchioli (Ita) Credit Agricole 13.15 64 Oscar Pereiro (Spa) Caisse d'Epargne-Illes Balears 14.35 65 José Luis Arrieta (Spa) AG2R Prevoyance 66 Erik Zabel (Ger) Team Milram 67 Grischa Niermann (Ger) Rabobank 68 Pieter Mertens (Bel) Davitamon-Lotto 69 Ian Mcleod (RSA) Française des Jeux 14.39 70 Fabio Sacchi (Ita) Team Milram 14.50 71 Alexandre Usov (Blr) AG2R Prevoyance 72 Sebastian Siedler (Ger) Team Milram 14.53 73 Benoît Poilvet (Fra) Credit Agricole 15.12 74 Stephan Schreck (Ger) T-Mobile Team 15.13 75 Franck Renier (Fra) Bouygues Telecom 15.37 76 Björn Leukemans (Bel) Davitamon-Lotto 15.51 77 Kevin Hulsmans (Bel) Quick Step-Innergetic 16.32 78 Alessandro Spezialetti (Ita) Liquigas 79 Michael Barry (Can) Discovery Channel Pro Cycling Team 80 Janez Brajkovic (Slo) Discovery Channel Pro Cycling Team 81 Pieter Weening (Ned) Rabobank 16.35 82 Pierre Drancourt (Bel) Bouygues Telecom 83 Markel Irizar (Spa) Euskaltel-Euskadi 84 Iñigo Landaluze (Spa) Euskaltel-Euskadi 85 Marco Velo (Ita) Team Milram 86 David De La Fuente (Spa) Saunier Duval-Prodir 87 Fred Rodriguez (USA) Davitamon-Lotto 16.56 88 Pedro Horrillo (Spa) Rabobank 18.00 89 Matteo Carrara (Ita) Lampre-Fondital 22.10 90 Thor Hushovd (Nor) Credit Agricole 91 David Navas (Spa) AG2R Prevoyance 92 Mads Kaggestad (Nor) Credit Agricole 93 Jean-Patrick Nazon (Fra) AG2R Prevoyance 94 Enrico Franzoi (Ita) Lampre-Fondital 95 Walter Beneteau (Fra) Bouygues Telecom 96 Kjell Carlström (Fin) Liquigas 97 David George (RSA) Relax-Gam 98 Dario Andriotto (Ita) Liquigas 99 Carlos Barredo (Spa) Astana Team 100 Robert Förster (Ger) Gerolsteiner 101 Francesco Failli (Ita) Liquigas 102 Aaron Kemps (Aus) Astana Team 103 Sébastien Rosseler (Bel) Quick Step-Innergetic 104 Pablo Lastras (Spa) Caisse d'Epargne-Illes Balears 105 William Walker (Aus) Rabobank 106 Claudio Corioni (Ita) Lampre-Fondital 107 Alberto Benítez (Spa) Saunier Duval-Prodir 108 Geoffroy Lequatre (Fra) Cofidis, le Credit par Telephone 109 Bastiaan Giling (Ned) T-Mobile Team 110 Florian Stalder (Swi) Phonak Hearing Systems 111 Cyril Lemoine (Fra) Credit Agricole 112 David Loosli (Swi) Lampre-Fondital 113 Magnus Backstedt (Swe) Liquigas 114 Scott Davis (Aus) T-Mobile Team 115 Jérémy Roy (Fra) Française des Jeux 116 Joan Horrach (Spa) Caisse d'Epargne-Illes Balears 117 Luis Fernández Oliveira (Spa) Phonak Hearing Systems 118 Aurélien Clerc (Swi) Phonak Hearing Systems 119 Francisco José Ventoso (Spa) Saunier Duval-Prodir 120 David Millar (GBr) Saunier Duval-Prodir 121 Alberto Ongarato (Ita) Team Milram 122 Uros Murn (Slo) Phonak Hearing Systems 123 Enrico Poitschke (Ger) Team Milram 124 Fabien Patanchon (Fra) Française des Jeux 125 Laszlo Bodrogi (Hun) Credit Agricole 126 Kevin De Weert (Bel) Quick Step-Innergetic 127 Jorge García (Spa) Relax-Gam 128 Staf Scheirlinckx (Bel) Cofidis, le Credit par Telephone 129 Kevin Van Impe (Bel) Quick Step-Innergetic 130 José Vicent Garcia Acosta (Spa) Caisse d'Epargne-Illes Balears 131 Addy Engels (Ned) Quick Step-Innergetic 132 David Cañada (Spa) Saunier Duval-Prodir 133 Davide Vigano (Ita) Quick Step-Innergetic 134 Sébastien Joly (Fra) Française des Jeux 135 Assan Bazayev (Kaz) Astana Team DNF Daniel Becke (Ger) Team Milram DNS Danilo Di Luca (Ita) Liquigas DNS Paolo Bettini (Ita) Quick Step-Innergetic Points 1 Andrey Kashechkin (Kaz) Astana Team 25 pts 2 Alexandre Vinokourov (Kaz) Astana Team 20 3 José Angel Gomez Marchante (Spa) Saunier Duval-Prodir 16 4 Alejandro Valverde (Spa) Caisse d'Epargne-Illes Balears 14 5 Leonardo Piepoli (Ita) Saunier Duval-Prodir 12 6 Igor Anton (Spa) Euskaltel-Euskadi 10 7 Samuel Sánchez (Spa) Euskaltel-Euskadi 9 8 Thomas Danielson (USA) Discovery Channel Pro Cycling Team 8 9 Luis Pérez (Spa) Cofidis, le Credit par Telephone 7 10 Carlos Sastre (Spa) Team CSC 6 11 Egoi Martinez (Spa) Discovery Channel Pro Cycling Team 5 12 Joaquin Rodriguez (Spa) Caisse d'Epargne-Illes Balears 4 13 Sylvester Szmyd (Pol) Lampre-Fondital 3 14 Stijn Devolder (Bel) Discovery Channel Pro Cycling Team 2 15 Manuel Beltran (Spa) Discovery Channel Pro Cycling Team 1 16 Frédéric Bessy (Fra) Cofidis, le Credit par Telephone -5 17 Haimar Zubeldia (Spa) Euskaltel-Euskadi -5 Mountains Alto de Las Encebras - Cat. 3, km 46 1 Olivier Kaisen (Bel) Davitamon-Lotto 6 pts 2 Markel Irizar (Spa) Euskaltel-Euskadi 4 3 Nicki Sorensen (Den) Team CSC 2 4 Benoît Poilvet (Fra) Credit Agricole 1 Alto de Los Villares - Cat. 2, km 140 1 Egoi Martinez (Spa) Discovery Channel Pro Cycling Team 10 pts 2 Iban Mayo (Spa) Euskaltel-Euskadi 7 3 David Arroyo (Spa) Caisse d'Epargne-Illes Balears 5 4 Xabier Zandio (Spa) Caisse d'Epargne-Illes Balears 3 5 Vladimir Karpets (Rus) Caisse d'Epargne-Illes Balears 2 6 Alejandro Valverde (Spa) Caisse d'Epargne-Illes Balears 1 Sierra de la Pandera - Cat. E, km 153 1 Andrey Kashechkin (Kaz) Astana Team 30 pts 2 Alexandre Vinokourov (Kaz) Astana Team 25 3 José Angel Gomez Marchante (Spa) Saunier Duval-Prodir 20 4 Alejandro Valverde (Spa) Caisse d'Epargne-Illes Balears 16 5 Leonardo Piepoli (Ita) Saunier Duval-Prodir 12 6 Igor Anton (Spa) Euskaltel-Euskadi 10 7 Samuel Sánchez (Spa) Euskaltel-Euskadi 8 8 Thomas Danielson (USA) Discovery Channel Pro Cycling Team 6 9 Luis Pérez (Spa) Cofidis, le Credit par Telephone 4 10 Carlos Sastre (Spa) Team CSC 3 11 Egoi Martinez (Spa) Discovery Channel Pro Cycling Team 2 12 Joaquin Rodriguez (Spa) Caisse d'Epargne-Illes Balears 1 Sprints Huelma, km 68,5 1 Benoît Poilvet (Fra) Credit Agricole 4 pts 2 Olivier Kaisen (Bel) Davitamon-Lotto 2 3 Raúl García De Mateo (Spa) Relax-Gam 1 Los Villares, km 129,3 1 Nicki Sorensen (Den) Team CSC 4 pts 2 Raúl García De Mateo (Spa) Relax-Gam 2 3 Olivier Kaisen (Bel) Davitamon-Lotto 1 Teams 1 Astana 11.56.02 2 Discovery Channel Pro Cycling Team 0.35 3 Caisse D'Epargne - Illes Balears 0.52 4 Euskaltel - Euskadi 1.59 5 Team CSC 2.51 6 Cofidis, le Credit Par Telephone 5.53 7 Ag2r Prevoyance 9.08 8 Relax - GAM 10.59 9 Saunier Duval - Prodir 14.35 10 Lampre - Fondital 23.29 11 Davitamon - Lotto 26.21 12 Rabobank 27.06 13 Gerolsteiner 28.42 14 Credit Agricole 33.40 15 Française des Jeux 36.18 16 Liquigas 38.53 17 Quick Step - Innergetic 39.01 18 Team Milram 41.13 19 T- Mobile Team 47.20 20 Bouygues Telecom 51.17 21 Phonak Hearing Systems 53.33 General classification after stage 18 1 Alexandre Vinokourov (Kaz) Astana Team 71.27.08 2 Alejandro Valverde (Spa) Caisse d'Epargne-Illes Balears 0.53 3 Andrey Kashechkin (Kaz) Astana Team 2.06 4 Carlos Sastre (Spa) Team CSC 2.51 5 José Angel Gomez Marchante (Spa) Saunier Duval-Prodir 5.06 6 Thomas Danielson (USA) Discovery Channel Pro Cycling Team 7.05 7 Samuel Sánchez (Spa) Euskaltel-Euskadi 8.23 8 Manuel Beltran (Spa) Discovery Channel Pro Cycling Team 8.28 9 Luis Pérez (Spa) Cofidis, le Credit par Telephone 10.04 10 Vladimir Karpets (Rus) Caisse d'Epargne-Illes Balears 10.06 11 Stijn Devolder (Bel) Discovery Channel Pro Cycling Team 11.04 12 Egoi Martinez (Spa) Discovery Channel Pro Cycling Team 13.16 13 Leonardo Piepoli (Ita) Saunier Duval-Prodir 14.11 14 Sylvester Szmyd (Pol) Lampre-Fondital 15.44 15 Igor Anton (Spa) Euskaltel-Euskadi 16.07 16 Sergio Paulinho (Por) Astana Team 17.16 17 Joaquin Rodriguez (Spa) Caisse d'Epargne-Illes Balears 20.33 18 David Arroyo (Spa) Caisse d'Epargne-Illes Balears 24.34 19 Evgeni Petrov (Rus) Lampre-Fondital 25.36 20 Christopher Horner (USA) Davitamon-Lotto 26.58 21 Xabier Zandio (Spa) Caisse d'Epargne-Illes Balears 29.15 22 Theo Eltink (Ned) Rabobank 39.06 23 José Miguel Elias (Spa) Relax-Gam 39.16 24 Lars Ytting Bak (Den) Team CSC 40.08 25 Iñigo Chaurreau (Spa) AG2R Prevoyance 41.21 26 Nicki Sorensen (Den) Team CSC 44.03 27 Iñigo Cuesta (Spa) Team CSC 44.09 28 Vladimir Gusev (Rus) Discovery Channel Pro Cycling Team 44.49 29 Serguei Yakovlev (Kaz) Astana Team 45.32 30 Stéphane Goubert (Fra) AG2R Prevoyance 47.09 31 Janez Brajkovic (Slo) Discovery Channel Pro Cycling Team 48.55 32 Eric Leblacher (Fra) Française des Jeux 52.14 33 Iban Mayo (Spa) Euskaltel-Euskadi 52.52 34 Haimar Zubeldia (Spa) Euskaltel-Euskadi 53.09 35 Pietro Caucchioli (Ita) Credit Agricole 57.37 36 Daniel Moreno (Spa) Relax-Gam 59.02 37 Dmitriy Fofonov (Kaz) Credit Agricole 59.40 38 Dario David Cioni (Ita) Liquigas 1.01.32 39 Jurgen Van Goolen (Bel) Discovery Channel Pro Cycling Team 1.04.10 40 Hubert Dupont (Fra) AG2R Prevoyance 41 Frédéric Bessy (Fra) Cofidis, le Credit par Telephone 1.10.35 42 Carlos Barredo (Spa) Astana Team 1.14.43 43 Sébastien Minard (Fra) Cofidis, le Credit par Telephone 1.16.19 44 Thierry Marichal (Bel) Cofidis, le Credit par Telephone 1.21.54 45 José Antonio Redondo (Spa) Astana Team 1.25.41 46 Kurt-Asle Arvesen (Nor) Team CSC 1.27.09 47 Pablo Lastras (Spa) Caisse d'Epargne-Illes Balears 1.27.29 48 Daniele Nardello (Ita) T-Mobile Team 1.27.52 49 Oscar Pereiro (Spa) Caisse d'Epargne-Illes Balears 1.28.18 50 Raúl García De Mateo (Spa) Relax-Gam 1.31.30 51 José Luis Arrieta (Spa) AG2R Prevoyance 1.31.43 52 Benoît Poilvet (Fra) Credit Agricole 1.34.59 53 Marcus Ljungqvist (Swe) Team CSC 1.35.03 54 Volodymir Gustov (Ukr) Team CSC 1.35.22 55 Mikel Astarloza (Spa) AG2R Prevoyance 1.36.41 56 Ángel Vallejo (Spa) Relax-Gam 1.36.43 57 José Antonio Garrido (Spa) Quick Step-Innergetic 1.37.30 58 Iñigo Landaluze (Spa) Euskaltel-Euskadi 1.37.57 59 Torsten Hiekmann (Ger) Gerolsteiner 1.39.06 60 Pieter Weening (Ned) Rabobank 1.40.26 61 Erik Zabel (Ger) Team Milram 1.41.08 62 Sébastien Joly (Fra) Française des Jeux 1.41.33 63 Mauricio Ardila (Col) Rabobank 1.42.48 64 Benoît Joachim (Lux) Discovery Channel Pro Cycling Team 1.43.20 65 David Millar (GBr) Saunier Duval-Prodir 1.43.57 66 Aketza Peña (Spa) Euskaltel-Euskadi 1.44.05 67 Stuart O'Grady (Aus) Team CSC 1.45.26 68 David George (RSA) Relax-Gam 1.46.10 69 Rubén Pérez (Spa) Euskaltel-Euskadi 1.46.23 70 David De La Fuente (Spa) Saunier Duval-Prodir 1.46.36 71 Grischa Niermann (Ger) Rabobank 1.48.13 72 Florian Stalder (Swi) Phonak Hearing Systems 1.49.30 73 Kevin De Weert (Bel) Quick Step-Innergetic 1.50.19 74 David Loosli (Swi) Lampre-Fondital 1.52.50 75 Leonardo Duque (Col) Cofidis, le Credit par Telephone 1.58.07 76 Francisco José Ventoso (Spa) Saunier Duval-Prodir 1.58.45 77 Laszlo Bodrogi (Hun) Credit Agricole 1.59.21 78 Michael Barry (Can) Discovery Channel Pro Cycling Team 1.59.47 79 Joan Horrach (Spa) Caisse d'Epargne-Illes Balears 2.00.10 80 Thor Hushovd (Nor) Credit Agricole 2.01.56 81 Stephan Schreck (Ger) T-Mobile Team 2.02.14 82 Walter Beneteau (Fra) Bouygues Telecom 2.04.37 83 Bingen Fernández (Spa) Cofidis, le Credit par Telephone 2.05.09 84 Steve Morabito (Swi) Phonak Hearing Systems 2.05.20 85 Staf Scheirlinckx (Bel) Cofidis, le Credit par Telephone 2.06.15 86 Pieter Mertens (Bel) Davitamon-Lotto 2.06.17 87 Jorge García (Spa) Relax-Gam 2.06.30 88 David Cañada (Spa) Saunier Duval-Prodir 2.10.16 89 Alexandre Usov (Blr) AG2R Prevoyance 2.11.26 90 Luis Fernández Oliveira (Spa) Phonak Hearing Systems 2.12.24 91 Scott Davis (Aus) T-Mobile Team 2.12.25 92 Matteo Carrara (Ita) Lampre-Fondital 2.14.26 93 Björn Leukemans (Bel) Davitamon-Lotto 2.16.08 94 Heinrich Haussler (Ger) Gerolsteiner 2.16.41 95 Kevin Hulsmans (Bel) Quick Step-Innergetic 2.17.33 96 Markel Irizar (Spa) Euskaltel-Euskadi 2.19.18 97 Enrico Franzoi (Ita) Lampre-Fondital 2.20.12 98 Assan Bazayev (Kaz) Astana Team 2.23.14 99 Fabio Sacchi (Ita) Team Milram 2.23.55 100 Ian Mcleod (RSA) Française des Jeux 2.25.23 101 Alberto Benítez (Spa) Saunier Duval-Prodir 2.25.25 102 Alessandro Spezialetti (Ita) Liquigas 2.26.11 103 Geoffroy Lequatre (Fra) Cofidis, le Credit par Telephone 2.27.21 104 Mario De Sarraga (Spa) Relax-Gam 2.28.04 105 Jean-Patrick Nazon (Fra) AG2R Prevoyance 2.32.30 106 Claudio Corioni (Ita) Lampre-Fondital 2.32.56 107 Pedro Horrillo (Spa) Rabobank 2.33.07 108 Pierre Drancourt (Bel) Bouygues Telecom 2.34.27 109 Fred Rodriguez (USA) Davitamon-Lotto 2.34.30 110 William Walker (Aus) Rabobank 2.35.12 111 Uros Murn (Slo) Phonak Hearing Systems 2.36.02 112 Olivier Kaisen (Bel) Davitamon-Lotto 2.36.39 113 Aurélien Clerc (Swi) Phonak Hearing Systems 2.37.15 114 Dario Andriotto (Ita) Liquigas 2.37.21 115 Magnus Backstedt (Swe) Liquigas 2.39.25 116 Davide Vigano (Ita) Quick Step-Innergetic 2.39.34 117 Marco Velo (Ita) Team Milram 2.40.05 118 Franck Renier (Fra) Bouygues Telecom 2.41.10 119 Sébastien Rosseler (Bel) Quick Step-Innergetic 2.41.12 120 Aaron Kemps (Aus) Astana Team 2.41.20 121 Jérémy Roy (Fra) Française des Jeux 2.41.59 122 Kjell Carlström (Fin) Liquigas 2.42.32 123 José Vicent Garcia Acosta (Spa) Caisse d'Epargne-Illes Balears 2.42.35 124 Francesco Failli (Ita) Liquigas 2.42.44 125 Addy Engels (Ned) Quick Step-Innergetic 2.43.01 126 Bastiaan Giling (Ned) T-Mobile Team 2.44.20 127 David Navas (Spa) AG2R Prevoyance 2.47.28 128 Sebastian Siedler (Ger) Team Milram 2.51.01 129 Fabien Patanchon (Fra) Française des Jeux 2.53.06 130 Robert Förster (Ger) Gerolsteiner 2.53.09 131 Alberto Ongarato (Ita) Team Milram 2.54.20 132 Kevin Van Impe (Bel) Quick Step-Innergetic 2.55.15 133 Mads Kaggestad (Nor) Credit Agricole 3.05.48 134 Enrico Poitschke (Ger) Team Milram 3.14.24 135 Cyril Lemoine (Fra) Credit Agricole 3.15.54 Points classification 1 Thor Hushovd (Nor) Credit Agricole 169 pts 2 Alexandre Vinokourov (Kaz) Astana Team 138 3 Alejandro Valverde (Spa) Caisse d'Epargne-Illes Balears 131 4 Andrey Kashechkin (Kaz) Astana Team 92 5 Francisco José Ventoso (Spa) Saunier Duval-Prodir 89 6 Carlos Sastre (Spa) Team CSC 84 7 Samuel Sánchez (Spa) Euskaltel-Euskadi 83 8 Stuart O'Grady (Aus) Team CSC 82 9 Erik Zabel (Ger) Team Milram 79 10 José Angel Gomez Marchante (Spa) Saunier Duval-Prodir 68 11 Thomas Danielson (USA) Discovery Channel Pro Cycling Team 62 12 Jean-Patrick Nazon (Fra) AG2R Prevoyance 51 13 Manuel Beltran (Spa) Discovery Channel Pro Cycling Team 42 14 Igor Anton (Spa) Euskaltel-Euskadi 37 15 Egoi Martinez (Spa) Discovery Channel Pro Cycling Team 37 16 Janez Brajkovic (Slo) Discovery Channel Pro Cycling Team 37 17 Stijn Devolder (Bel) Discovery Channel Pro Cycling Team 35 18 Luis Pérez (Spa) Cofidis, le Credit par Telephone 34 19 Sergio Paulinho (Por) Astana Team 33 20 Leonardo Piepoli (Ita) Saunier Duval-Prodir 32 21 David Millar (GBr) Saunier Duval-Prodir 29 22 Uros Murn (Slo) Phonak Hearing Systems 29 23 Iñigo Landaluze (Spa) Euskaltel-Euskadi 26 24 Robert Förster (Ger) Gerolsteiner 25 25 Aurélien Clerc (Swi) Phonak Hearing Systems 22 Mountains classification 1 Egoi Martinez (Spa) Discovery Channel Pro Cycling Team 129 pts 2 Pietro Caucchioli (Ita) Credit Agricole 117 3 Alejandro Valverde (Spa) Caisse d'Epargne-Illes Balears 98 4 Andrey Kashechkin (Kaz) Astana Team 84 5 Alexandre Vinokourov (Kaz) Astana Team 82 6 José Miguel Elias (Spa) Relax-Gam 70 7 Igor Anton (Spa) Euskaltel-Euskadi 67 8 Carlos Sastre (Spa) Team CSC 63 9 José Angel Gomez Marchante (Spa) Saunier Duval-Prodir 60 10 David Arroyo (Spa) Caisse d'Epargne-Illes Balears 58 11 Thomas Danielson (USA) Discovery Channel Pro Cycling Team 44 12 Ángel Vallejo (Spa) Relax-Gam 36 13 Janez Brajkovic (Slo) Discovery Channel Pro Cycling Team 33 14 Samuel Sánchez (Spa) Euskaltel-Euskadi 32 15 Dario David Cioni (Ita) Liquigas 28 16 Benoît Joachim (Lux) Discovery Channel Pro Cycling Team 26 17 Luis Pérez (Spa) Cofidis, le Credit par Telephone 25 18 Manuel Beltran (Spa) Discovery Channel Pro Cycling Team 23 19 Alexandre Usov (Blr) AG2R Prevoyance 23 20 Eric Leblacher (Fra) Française des Jeux 21 21 Sergio Paulinho (Por) Astana Team 20 22 Vladimir Gusev (Rus) Discovery Channel Pro Cycling Team 19 23 Mario De Sarraga (Spa) Relax-Gam 18 24 José Antonio Redondo (Spa) Astana Team 18 25 Thor Hushovd (Nor) Credit Agricole 16 Combination classification 1 Alexandre Vinokourov (Kaz) Astana Team 8 pts 2 Alejandro Valverde (Spa) Caisse d'Epargne-Illes Balears 8 3 Andrey Kashechkin (Kaz) Astana Team 11 4 Carlos Sastre (Spa) Team CSC 18 5 José Angel Gomez Marchante (Spa) Saunier Duval-Prodir 24 6 Thomas Danielson (USA) Discovery Channel Pro Cycling Team 28 7 Samuel Sánchez (Spa) Euskaltel-Euskadi 28 8 Egoi Martinez (Spa) Discovery Channel Pro Cycling Team 28 9 Igor Anton (Spa) Euskaltel-Euskadi 36 10 Manuel Beltran (Spa) Discovery Channel Pro Cycling Team 39 11 Luis Pérez (Spa) Cofidis, le Credit par Telephone 44 12 Sergio Paulinho (Por) Astana Team 56 13 Stijn Devolder (Bel) Discovery Channel Pro Cycling Team 57 14 David Arroyo (Spa) Caisse d'Epargne-Illes Balears 58 15 Leonardo Piepoli (Ita) Saunier Duval-Prodir 59 16 Janez Brajkovic (Slo) Discovery Channel Pro Cycling Team 60 17 Vladimir Gusev (Rus) Discovery Channel Pro Cycling Team 76 18 Vladimir Karpets (Rus) Caisse d'Epargne-Illes Balears 83 19 Dario David Cioni (Ita) Liquigas 87 20 Joaquin Rodriguez (Spa) Caisse d'Epargne-Illes Balears 98 21 Stéphane Goubert (Fra) AG2R Prevoyance 104 22 Thor Hushovd (Nor) Credit Agricole 106 23 Evgeni Petrov (Rus) Lampre-Fondital 107 24 Eric Leblacher (Fra) Française des Jeux 109 25 Iñigo Landaluze (Spa) Euskaltel-Euskadi 114 Teams classification 1 Discovery Channel Pro Cycling Team 213.55.53 2 Astana 15.21 3 Caisse D'Epargne - Illes Balears 15.44 4 Euskaltel - Euskadi 30.01 5 Team CSC 53.59 6 Saunier Duval - Prodir 1.26.55 7 Lampre - Fondital 1.38.28 8 Ag2r Prevoyance 1.57.28 9 Relax - GAM 1.59.05 10 Cofidis, le Credit Par Telephone 2.05.33 11 Credit Agricole 2.49.13 12 Rabobank 3.08.59 13 Davitamon - Lotto 3.41.09 14 Liquigas 3.43.20 15 Quick Step - Innergetic 4.17.21 16 Française des Jeux 4.30.21 17 T- Mobile Team 4.34.38 18 Phonak Hearing Systems 4.42.22 19 Gerolsteiner 4.53.05 20 Team Milram 5.30.29 21 Bouygues Telecom 5.57.25
