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66th Paris-Nice - HC
France, March 9-16, 2008
Main Page Results & report Stage Details Previous Stage Next Stage
Stage 6 - March 15: Sisteron - Cannes, 206km
Complete live report
Live commentary by Bjorn Haake
Bonjour and welcome back to the Cyclingnews live coverage of Paris-Nice.
The penultimate day is a tough one, going over 206 kilometres from Sisteron
to Cannes. Before the riders can enjoy the Méditerranéen they will have to tackle
no less than seven ranked climbs, all category two and three. There are also
two sprints to contest. We expect some fireworks from Rebellin, Nocentini and
Popovych, to try to take time out of overall leader Gesink.
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14:02 CET 90km/82.5km to go
Currently there is
a break of eight riders, some five minutes ahead of the pack. The break contains
Bernhard Kohl (Gerolsteiner), Aleksandr Kuschynski (Liquigas), Bobby Julich
and Chris Anker Sørensen (Team CSC), Matthieu Sprick (Bouygues Telecom), Gert
Steegmans (Quick Step), Kevin Ista (Agritubel) and Clément Lhotellerie (Skil-Shimano).
Kohl will likely prove valuable later in the race for his team captain Rebellin,
should the Italian attack.
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14:10 CET
David Moncoutié (Cofidis) had two
blank seasons because of injury and even thought of quitting the sport. He is
now making his come-back and told CyclingnewsHedwig Kröner that
"I felt good in the beginning of the season. Now, Paris-Nice is a difficult
race and I'm a little behind. But I think that this may be a phase which I have
to go through in order to recover all of my abilities." The Frenchman described
the epic stage 4 that "On the Mont Ventoux, we had the yellow jersey, and Sylvain
[Chavanel], who wasn't feeling well, told me to go for it. But I didn't have
the legs to follow the best riders…" For today, he said that "My legs are
a little hard and heavy. This Paris-Nice is really difficult, and I'm not feeling
too well."
14:16 CET
Bram Tankink (Rabobank) and American
Tyler Farrar (Slipstream Chipotle - H30) have abandoned the race. This puts
Rabobank in a bad position, who already lost Australian Mathew Hayman yesterday.
They are down to six riders now.
14:19 CET
Another Australian, Simon Gerrans
(Crédit Agricole), didn't make it to the start today. And earlier in the day
it was Albert Timmer (Skil-Shimano) and Eduardo Gonzalo (Agritubel) who stopped
racing. This leaves the race with 127 riders.
14:23 CET
Lhotellerie is not just content with
the mountain points, he also takes the first sprint of the day, at km 87, ahead
of Sørensen and Kohl. The others will not like it too much. There is likely
to be an agreement for him to take the mountain points, as none of the others
have a shot at the jersey. But there is also some prize money involved, and
if they don't share it equally the riders may get into little 'discussions.'
And so may be directeurs sportifs of the various teams involved...
14:26 CET 100km/72.5km to go
On the col de Luens
it is Lhotellerie again who takes seven points, ahead of Sørensen, Sprick, Julich
and Steegmans. Shortly thereafter, Lhotellerie had enough for the day and drops
out of the front group, which now has an advantage of 5'35 over the peloton.
14:29 CET
Slight correction, Lhotellerie took
another four points on the col du Mousteiret, before dropping back. Kohl and
Ista followed behind on this category 3 climb.
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14:30 CET
Today's stage finish is in the coastal
town of Cannes. It is also known for its annual film festival. This year, it
starts on May 14. There are some interesting movies in the selection, like a
3D-version of a U2 concert, or a movie called the 11th hour – for some the 11th
hour will be today, if they want to have a shot at winning Paris-Nice this year.
The riders with the best chances of unseating Dutchman Robert Gesink are Davide
Rebellin and Rinaldo Nocentini, who are 32 and 35 seconds back, respectively.
Yaroslav Popovych points at 42 seconds and also still has a chance. All other
riders are more than a minute back, with the Quick Step duo of Juan Manuel Gárate
and yesterday's stage winner, Carlos Barredo, in fifth and sixth.
14:35 CET
Christian Wegmann, Gerolsteiner DS
gave Hedwig Kröner an update on Gerolsteiner's medical situation before
the start. He said that "Yesterday, Tom Stamsnijder had problems with his knee
and had to abandon. Carlo Westphal had fever and wasn't feeling well, so he,
too, abandoned. Andrea Moletta's knee is still swollen from a crash, and his
back hurts." He added that "the rest of the team is okay: Davide feels great,
Schumacher is getting better every day, Kohl also recovered well from his crashes."
And Kohl is showing it, being in the break!
Current race situation
- Bernhard Kohl (Gerolsteiner), Aleksandr Kuschynski (Liquigas), Bobby Julich and Chris Anker Sørensen (Team CSC), Matthieu Sprick (Bouygues Telecom), Gert Steegmans (Quick Step) and Kevin Ista (Agritubel)
- Peloton at 5.35
14:39 CET
Wegmann acknowledged that "Gesink
is really strong, it surely won't be easy to beat him, but we'll try! His team
is not complete anymore, either. They only have five riders left, plus Gesink.
But in the finale yesterday, they were stronger than I thought they would be…
they had a difficult day yesterday as they had to control the race early on,
and it was fast! They had to ride against 16 to 25 riders in front, so it wasn't
an easy task. Today, we'll see how they recovered from that effort.
14:41 CET
Two more riders have abandoned. Manuele
Mori (Saunier Duval-Scott), who was in the winning break yesterday, and Matteo
Carrara (Quick Step) called it quits for the week.
14:43 CET
Lhotellerie has added 18 points today
to his mountain tally. This gives him a total of 59 points, with Kjell Carlström
(Liquigas) 40 points behind. For today, there 22 more points on the line.
14:48 CET
Tomorrow it looks like there are 30
more points to gather, so theoretically Carlström could get a total of 52 points,
if he would win all the remaining points. That could net him the jersey, if
Lhotellerie wouldn't get more than 12 points. So, to sum it up, Lhotellerie
has all but secured the mountain jersey, which is probably why he dropped back.
Now he just has to make it safely to Nice.
14:54 CET 120km/52.5km to go
The côte du Clos
d'Espargon was taking first by Sørensen, followed by Kohl and Kuschynski
14:55 CET
Lampre is making the pace in the peloton.
Ista, who is in the break, is at the team car and gets some refreshment.
14:57 CET 92.5km/80km to go
It's going through
the country side and the three spectators on the side of the road seem indeed
belong to the same family... A Lampre rider 'decongests' his nose, fortunately
he does it away from the brave three spectators, who are clapping their hands
for the riders.
14:58 CET
The descent into Bargemon is very
scenic, but with the many turns and narrow roads a bit treacherous. There are
more people cheering the riders on in the village.
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15:00 CET
Gerolsteiner's DS Wegmann also told
Hedwig that "Today is going to be hard, and we saw yesterday how fast a jersey
can be lost in the very last day of Paris-Nice, so we'll try to do this the
other way round this year! But Gesink is really strong… he rode beyond reproach
these last few days, and hasn't shown any weaknesses yet. I think the only way
to make him suffer is if the teams in his pursuit attack him together… AG2R,
with Nocentini at three seconds [off Rebellin], is also an opportunity for us:
that's somebody who's equally strong than Davide, who has the same interests…
Of course, the risk is that Nocentini wins in the end, and we get second, or
third. But it's certainly better to have this constellation with several teams
still in contention, as opposed to just one rival left."
15:04 CET 100.5km/72km to go
The break is at
the col de Saint-Arnoux.
15:07 CET
Everybody is pulling through nicely.
There is no contest at the top and it is Sørensen ahead of Sprick and Julich.
15:07 CET
The gap has been reduced a bit and
is now just over four minutes.
15:09 CET
Julich is emptying his pocket – every
ounce counts in the mountains. In this case it was just a wrapper of a sports
bar that he decided he didn't need anymore. Julich won
Paris-Nice in 2005.
Current race situation
- Bernhard Kohl (Gerolsteiner), Aleksandr Kuschynski (Liquigas), Bobby Julich and Chris Anker Sørensen (Team CSC), Matthieu Sprick (Bouygues Telecom), Gert Steegmans (Quick Step) and Kevin Ista (Agritubel)
- Peloton at 4.14
15:11 CET 105.5km/67km to go
The descent is very
fast and fortunately it is dry, even though it is slightly overcast.
15:14 CET 107.5km/65km to go
The gap is now coming
down quickly. It is only three and a half minutes, as the peloton is strung
out in one long line. Nicolas Vogondy (Agritubel) is sitting at the very back,
desperately trying to hang on at end of the peloton.
15:15 CET
From the blimp the view is spectacular
onto the peloton, which winds its way down some hairpins. Lampre has been joined
at the front by Caisse d'Epargne.
15:18 CET
The bunch heads through Seillans.
There are a few folks on the side of the road and they get to see the riders
for about 4.9 seconds. They are really flying right now. Julich is discussing
things with Sprick in the break. Steegmans prefers to go talk to his DS, that
way he also gets a bit of a draft...
15:19 CET
With Lampre and Caisse pulling this
is good news for Rabobank, which has only Flecha and Moerenhout with Gesink
right now. The break is heading up the col de Bourigaille.
15:20 CET
Hushovd is also close to the front.
He will try to stay there, for some additional points to be gained at the final
sprint of the day and the finish, of course.
15:21 CET
Ista is slightly gapped in the break.
He is out of the saddle and trying to hang on. Julich, on the other hand, is
seated and looking good.
15:22 CET
Nicolas Vogondy (Agritubel) is having
trouble. He is falling off the peloton and is being passed by one team car after
the other.
15:24 CET
Wow - in a hairpin turn 5-6 riders
show some local knowledge by taking a little short cut, at the inside of the
switchback. Not that they saved much - a few metres at most. And a little steeper,
too. But it looks good.
15:26 CET
A young woman gets tired by just watching
the riders go uphill so fast and sits down to take a rest. She has barely enough
energy to look at the riders, but hopefully there are some good things in her
back pack for a nice feed zone stop.
15:28 CET
David Moncoutié (Cofidis) is close
to the front, but the bunch is still led by Caisse, with Lampre right behind.
The peloton looks unruly, as riders are out of their saddles and throwing their
bike left and right to make it up the hill alright.
15:30 CET
Steegmans is falling off the pace.
He would like to wait for the bunch but is getting an earful from his DS, so
he accelerates again. Kevin Ista is also falling behind. The gap is still 3'28.
Current race situation
- Bernhard Kohl (Gerolsteiner), Aleksandr Kuschynski (Liquigas), Bobby Julich and Chris Anker Sørensen (Team CSC), Matthieu Sprick (Bouygues Telecom), Gert Steegmans (Quick Step) and Kevin Ista (Agritubel)
- Peloton at 3.28
15:33 CET 117.5km/55km to go
Rémi Pauriol (Crédit
Agricole) is trying to stay in touch with the backend of the peloton. The pace
is fast enough that it is hard for the non-climbers to stay in the safety of
the bunch.
15:34 CET
Two CSC riders make it to the front
of the peloton – one of them is Fränk Schleck.
15:35 CET
Markus Eichler (Team Milram), Sandy
Casar (Française des Jeux), Sylvain Calzati (Ag2r-La Mondiale), Nicolas Portal
(Caisse d'Epargne), Jelle Vanendert (Française des Jeux) are some of the riders
at the back of the peloton.
15:36 CET
The front riders are half a kilometre
from the top of the climb. There are little gaps developing. The CSC riders
Julich and Sørensen look strong.
15:37 CET
Now it's all back together, and they
are riding in one line, minus Steegmans and Ista, of course.
15:39 CET 120.5km/52km to go
They don't sprint
over the top. Sørensen leads them over, with Julich, Sprick, Kuschynski and
Kohl behind. Right after the KOM they turn right and tackle the downhill.
15:42 CET
Rabobank press officer Luuc Eisenga
told Cyclingnews Hedwig Kröner before the start that "Bram Tankink
and Koos Moerenhout are still hurting from their crashes, but they're doing
relatively okay. And they're experienced enough to know what
to do when
your team has the Yellow Jersey – it has got to be defended! They'll be alright."
Of course that was before the start and Tanking has since abandoned the race.
15:43 CET
The front group is flying down the
hill, with the road not being to wide to leave any room for mistakes. But they
look in control during the turns on this twisting one-lane road.
15:44 CET
Hedwig asked point blank if Rabobank
was afraid that Ag2r and Gerolsteiner would collaborate. Eisenga replied: "That's
speculation. Moreover, race situations change so quickly – alliances that were
there one moment ago are gone the next… We
just have to look to our own
strength, and make the best of it."
15:46 CET
The gap is still at 3'25. On the descent
an agile small break has a bit of an advantage of the bulky peloton. Caisse
is still in the front. Luis León Sánchez is looking for a stage win, after his
plan to contend for the win in the overall vanished early.
15:47 CET 129.5km/43km to go
David Moncoutié
(Cofidis) and Björn Schröder (Team Milram) are now marking the back end of the
main bunch. Moncoutié was near the front earlier and as Eisenga said, race situations
can change quickly.
15:48 CET
Oh no, Gesink with a flat! He gets
a back wheel from his team-mate.
15:48 CET
Gesink has no team-mates to pace him
back right now., he has to do all the pulling himself.
15:49 CET
Marc De Maar (Rabobank) is back now,
along with another Rabobank, possibly Flecha.
15:50 CET
They should make it back alright,
but still, it takes a bit of energy. Energy that he may need in the final.
15:50 CET 131.5km/41km to go
Yes, they entered
the back end of the peloton, while the break storms on, still 3'14 ahead and
unaware of the yellow jersey drama behind.
15:54 CET 135.5km/37km to go
Steegmans is being
caught now. He ,must have won the argument with his DS to be able to sit up.
Either that, or he won't get dinner tonight. Caisse is making it clear to Cofidis
to stop pedaling until the yellow jersey is back at the front. It was Luis León
Sánchez himself, who went to the front and gestured to the Cofidis rider to
slow down. Sánchez is wearing the white jersey for the best young rider au lieu
de Gesink in yellow. Can't wear two jerseys, can you?
Current race situation
- Bernhard Kohl (Gerolsteiner), Aleksandr Kuschynski (Liquigas), Bobby Julich and Chris Anker Sørensen (Team CSC) and Matthieu Sprick (Bouygues Telecom)
- Peloton at 3.08
15:57 CET
Caisse has picked up the pace again.
The yellow jersey is about 20 riders back. The break passes a roundabout, while
Kohl goes up to the team car to get some advise. One more kilometre to the sprint.
15:58 CET
Damiano Cunego (Lampre) told Hedwig
that "I have fairly good legs, but my goals lie further in the season: Pais
Vasco, the Classics… But this is a good test. I had a little fever during the
first days, but then I recovered. I feel well now."
15:59 CET
The pace is so high again that the
peloton has split in two. About 50 riders make it around the roundabout on the
left, with three riders taking the long way on the right and the rest of the
bunch following suit, about 80m behind.
16:00 CET
Ooops, Gesink has only Laurens Ten
Dam left! The other Rabos got caught behind. Moerenhout is leading the second
group.
16:01 CET
The sprint was again taken by the
CSC riders, with Julich ahead of Sørensen and Sprick.
16:02 CET 140.5km/32km to go
Ista has taken some
bottles just before being caught by the bunch. He hands one to Moreau, one to
Jalabert. A good deed after a long day up front.
16:03 CET
Correction, it was actually Julich
in front of Sprick and Sørensen in third at the sprint.
16:04 CET
The gap has come down rapidly now.
It is only two and a half minutes, with Caisse still leading the charge, desperately
trying to get a stage win today.
Current race situation
- Bernhard Kohl (Gerolsteiner), Aleksandr Kuschynski (Liquigas), Bobby Julich and Chris Anker Sørensen (Team CSC) and Matthieu Sprick (Bouygues Telecom)
- Peloton at 2.33
16:07 CET
Australian champion Matt Lloyd (Silence-Lotto)
told Hedwig that "There's still something to reach out for in this race, with
Popovych in
forth position, and Evans winning the other say… But it's been
a hard race so far. It's only my second stage race this year, so I'm here more
to train and support my team-mates. I'm trying to take things one step at a
time."
16:08 CET
A sharp right hand bend is indicated
by a yellow flag. It is very helpful to warn the 120+ riders ahead of a sharp
turn. The front riders will also indicate it, so the folks in the back, who
don't have a good view on the road, will know what is going on.
16:10 CET
The break is descending like a Savoldelli!
It looks a bit scary, even with the inside pedal up. They lean so much into
the corner, you have to be afraid that they scrape the tarmac with their knees!
16:10 CET
Hushovd loves the speed, so he is
taking over the peloton at the downhill. The break rides over a very narrow
bridge - let's hope the peloton doesn't get stuck there!
16:12 CET
Attack by Sørensen With two CSC riders
it was clear that either he or Julich would be the first to go. But it is still
25km to go and the peloton is coming up fast. It is uphill again and Sørensen
looks good. Silence-Lotto has come close to the front.
16:13 CET
The peloton has no more truce, either,
with Crédit Agricole attacking!
16:13 CET 148.5km/24km to go
Steegmans is getting
dropped, which is not surprising. Voigt is also gone.
16:14 CET
Kohl is leading the break and they
are slowly getting back to the Dane in front.
16:14 CET
Monfort and Cunego are following close
behind Fofonov.
16:16 CET
Dmitriy Fofonov is the Crédit Agricole
who took off. Luis León Sánchez and Monfort went after him.
16:17 CET
Jurgen Van den Broeck (Silence-Lotto)
is now making the pace. The attack has been Silence-d. Rebellin is close to
the front. Gesink is in about tenth position. They are 1'13 behind.
16:18 CET
Now it's David López García (Caisse
d'Epargne), who attacks, but Rebellin does not react.
16:19 CET
Sylvain Chavanel is the next to go.
It's a bit chaotic, but Quick Step is taking control now of the peloton. Chavanel
is the only rider off the front.
16:20 CET
Evans is making the pace now for Popovych.
Rebellin is right behind the two, but Gesink is close to the front, too
16:21 CET 151.5km/21km to go
It looks like they
are stopping the team cars from the break, so the gap must be small. It is only
Julich and Sprick in front. Garcia is still off the front of the peloton, too.
16:21 CET
The two riders at the front are 700m
off the peak of the final climb of the day.
16:22 CET
The peloton is maybe only 40 riders,
with Evans still leading them. He looks around to check the damage.
16:23 CET
Sprick takes over the lead from Julich
right before the KOM, after sitting for a while. Monfort (Cofidis) is taking
over the front of the peloton.
16:24 CET
Over the top Schleck shows himself
at the front as well. Right over the line it is Chavanel who attacks. Four riders
are creating a gap.
16:24 CET
Rebellin and Cunego are in the group
of four!
16:25 CET
Gesink is taking over the front now,
he has to try to catch Rebellin by himself.
16:25 CET 155.5km/17km to go
They are not too
far, only 40m. But it's another effort to do for the young Dutchman.
16:26 CET
Popovych is sitting on Gesink's wheel,
getting a free ride. Once they catch the quartet, Popo could attack.
16:27 CET 156.5km/16km to go
The gap doesn't
come down and now Gesink is passed by other riders! He is trying to catch on
to the six or seven riders who passed!
16:28 CET
Schleck goes down in a left hand turn,
as does Monfort! They head for the ditch, but it looks like they are OK.
16:29 CET
The quartet has been caught, but Gesink
is still behind. He has maybe 100m. Sprick also crashed! Oh no, it is Julich
all by himself at the front now.
16:30 CET
Rebellin and Nocentini are in the
group, ahead of Gesink. Gesink loses time in the downhill. He doesn't descent
very smoothly.
16:32 CET 160.5km/12km to go
Kohl, Rebellin,
Sanchez and Cunego have slipped off the front again and are ten seconds ahead
of the chasers. Julich is still in front.
16:33 CET
Gesink is about 20 secs behind, shadowed
by Evans and Lhotellerie.
16:34 CET 162.5km/10km to go
Will the Dutchman
lose Paris-Nice now? Fortunately for him Lhotellerie will help him. The Rebellin
group with Chavanel, also, is 8 seconds ahead of the chasers. They are catching
Julich.
16:35 CET
Gesink is suffering. His mouth wide
open he tries to bridge the gap, but it looks like he has lost his 30-second
lead that he had in the overall!
16:36 CET
37 seconds for Gesink!
16:36 CET
He is out of the saddle and trying
desperately, but Rebellin and Nocentini have now the upper hand.
16:37 CET 164.5km/8km to go
Less than eight to
go and Paris-Nice is about to tumble! The front group is riding like crazy into
Cannes.
16:38 CET
Hushovd is pulling in the Popovych
group, with Gesink still behind them. Several riders have caught up with the
yellow jersey, maybe he finds some help there.
16:39 CET
Monfort and Pineau are also in the
Popo-group. Popo himself takes a long pull.
16:40 CET 167.5km/5km to go
The front group passes
a roundabout. Five more km! And no help for Gesink, other than from Lhotellerie!
16:41 CET 168.5km/4km to go
Julich is sitting
in the back, he has no reason to pull. Maybe he can recover enough for a stage
win.
16:41 CET
Cunego talks to Chavanel, while they
pull through. It's hard to talk at those speeds! One minute for Gesink!!! The
Popo group at 32 seconds.
16:42 CET
Rebellin in virtual yellow!
16:42 CET 169.5km/3km to go
They are at the ocean,
riding along the avenue in Cannes! It's windy.
16:43 CET
Nocentini pulls through, Rebellin
follows him.
16:43 CET
The rail road tracks at the left and
the ocean to the right the front group pedals ahead over 30secs of Popo group.
Gesink has reached the ocean, 1'07 back.
16:44 CET
Now it's already 1'20 for Gesink.
Good by overall.
16:45 CET
Julich is shaking his legs, trying
to loosen them up from the effort in the break.
16:45 CET
Attack by Sanchez and Cunego! Julich
follows.
16:46 CET
Now it's Chavanel who takes off! Rebellin
and Nocentini gapped, no time bonuses for them.
16:46 CET
This looks good for Chavanel! He has
a gap.
16:46 CET
Chavanel is riding down the finish
straight by himself!
16:47 CET
He wins it!
16:47 CET
Chavanel comes in ahead of Sanchez
and Julich.
16:48 CET
Rebellin takes over the yellow jersey!
Gesink has lost one and a half minutes.
16:59 CET
What a fast finish near the ocean.
As we speak Davide Rebellin is on the podium to receive his yellow jersey. He
worked very hard for it. Before the race he thought the Ventoux would be too
hard. But now he smiles from the podium. Of course he only has three seconds
on compatriot Nocentini! Cyclingnews hopes you will able to stop by again
tomorrow, when Paris-Nice will be decided. Until then, thanks for reading and
à demain. Merci.
Results
Provisional 1 Sylvain Chavanel (Fra) Cofidis - Le Crédit par Téléphone 5.00.25 2 Luis Leon Sanchez Gil (Spa) Caisse d'Epargne 0.02 3 Bobby Julich (USA) Team CSC 4 Damiano Cunego (Ita) Lampre - Fondital 0.06 5 Davide Rebellin (Ita) Gerolsteiner 6 Rinaldo Nocentini (Ita) AG2r - La Mondiale 7 Matteo Tosatto (Ita) Quickstep 8 Thor Hushovd (Nor) Crédit Agricole 9 Jérôme Pineau (Fra) Bouygues Telecom 10 Aurélien Passeron (Fra) Saunier Duval - Scott General classification after stage 5 1 Davide Rebellin (Ita) Gerolsteiner 2 Rinaldo Nocentini (Ita) AG2r - La Mondiale 0.03 3 Yaroslav Popovych (Ukr) Silence - Lotto 0.48 4 Robert Gesink (Ned) Rabobank 0.51
