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TODAY'S STAGE: TOUR DE FRANCE STAGE 19: CALL IT FIVE FOR CAVENDISH
By Chris Henry in Aubenas
July 24, 2009
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(Photo: Yuzuru Sunada)
Mark Cavendish proved to himself and the rest of the peloton that he has the capacity to finish the Tour in Paris with energy to spare, taking his fifth stage victory in this year's race in a bunch sprint in Aubenas Friday. The Columbia-HTC sprinter outpaced his already impressive tallies of four wins in the 2008 Tour, with the goal of reaching Paris firmly in mind. Cavendish once more got the better of Thor Hushovd (Cervélo TestTeam) and Gerald Ciolek in the dash to the line.
"If today's stage was in the first week, we'd have pulled for a sprint," Cavendish said of the difficult parcours, which included the second category climb of the Col de l'Escrinet just 16km from the finish. "I've won harder races than today, Milano-SanRemo for instance. But after three weeks of racing it wasn't necessarily going to be a bunch sprint."
"You could see that Rabobank didn't think I'd get over the finish of the climb, I think that's why they pulled full gas," Cavendish noted about the finale. "I said to the guys on the bus this morning that I was going to give it one last go and they had to stay with me on the climb. It doesn't necessarily mean that I go better on the climb because I've got guys with me, but it certainly stops me from giving up. When you've got three guys around you who will fight to keep you there, it's a hard weight to bear when you give up."
Setting the top of the climb as his finish line, Cavendish said he would consider anything after that a bonus. But with George Hincapie, Maxime Monfort, and Tony Martin all putting in huge pulls to bring back a two-man escape in the closing 20km, he could keep his sights set on more than just cresting the summit, sweeping into town on his way to his fifth stage win.
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The Tour de France crossed into the Rhône Valley Friday |
(Photo: Roberto Bettini)
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Moving Quickly but Getting Nowhere
A large escape marked the stage for some time as some 19 riders forged ahead, tacking onto a move started by Frenchman Thierry Hupond (Skil-Shimano). In the move were several notables who, in an attempt to save face in this year's Tour, tested their chances now that the general classification was out of reach. Among them was Cadel Evans (Silence-Lotto), who entered the Tour as a favorite but now languishes in 30th place, 40 minutes behind yellow jersey Alberto Contador.
Nicolas Roche also helped animate the move, as he has done throughout this Tour, but ultimately the cooperation was lacking among his breakaway companions. Nonetheless, the aggressive stage kept the average speed high under a scorching sun.
"We started out really well and everyone was working together, but when we got to the flatter section, things weren't working well," he explained. "The gap dropped from two and a half minutes to one. Then we started to doubt our chances, knowing that Rabobank was riding behind.
A Rainbow Emerges
After the big move faltered, it was Laurent Lefèvre (Bbox Bouygues Telecom) who first jumped clear on the Col de l'Escrinet, soon joined by the world champion, Alessandro Ballan (Lampre) halfway up. As a brief rain shower opened up on the race, the rainbow jersey of Ballan quickly pulled through and proceeded to put in the lion's share of work to cross the summit and maintain a tenuous advantage of 20 seconds on the gentle descent to Aubenas.
Ballan has had a difficult season, gripped by a virus that sidelined him throughout the spring. Today was a promising display of panache from the world champion, but once Columbia put its powerful trio on the front, it was curtains for the two escapees.
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Ballan gave it everything but came up 2km short
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(Photo: Yuzuru Sunada)
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Ballan was valiant in his efforts to stay clear but his fate was sealed with 2km to the line. Hincapie, Monfort and Martin continued to set up Cavendish as Hushovd, Ciolek, and Tyler Farrar tried in vain to summon the strength to foil him in the sprint. It wasn't to be, as Cavendish kicked with a cadence that simply couldn't be matched.
It's Not Easy Being Green
Thor Hushovd (Cervélo TestTeam) retained the lead in the points competition with an advantage of just 25 points. Unable to get around the Columbia train in the finale, the green jersey still managed second place ahead of Gerald Ciolek (Milram).
"Today I was very tired and I was missing a little bit," Hushovd admitted at the finish. "There are now 25 points between us and I have to fight for every point. I think Mark is more focused on the stage wins but you still have to take every opportunity."
An average speed of 46 kilometers per hour made today's 178km transitional stage a hard ride for everyone, Hushovd included.
"For me, today was the hardest day of the Tour so far because it was fast throughout the whole day, it wasn't flat, and with the wind it was really hard," Hushovd said.
To Mont Ventoux, at Last
The favorites for the podium in Paris stayed quiet throughout the day, keeping teammates around them and avoiding trouble on the fast run-in to Aubenas. Alberto Contador safely maintained his 4:11 lead over Andy Schleck (Saxo Bank), who sits in second place ahead of Lance Armstrong with two stages remaining. Schleck was pleased to have this stage over with, ready for Ventoux and recovered from his impressive time trial yesterday.
"Today was the last chance for a lot of riders so we could see how it was all-out from the start," Schleck said of the pace of racing. "I was just happy to finish."
"Everyone is saying that my second place is assured, but I've always said that I would that I will keep trying until Paris to take first place," he continued. "Of course, it's true that the riders behind me are going to say that they'll ride until Paris to take my place."
"Tomorrow I think we'll see a real show."
Stage 19: July 24, Bourgoin Jallieu to Aubenas 178km
1. Mark Cavendish (GBR/Columbia-HTC) 3h 50min 35sec (46.317 km/h)
2. Thor Hushovd (NOR/Cervélo TestTeam) @ s.t.
3. Gerald Ciolek (GER/Milram)
4. Greg Van Avermaet (BEL/Silence-Lotto)
5. Oscar Freire (ESP/Rabobank)
6. Jérôme Pineau (FRA/Quick Step)
7. Fumiyuki Beppu (JPN/Skil-Shimano)
8. Nicolas Roche (IRL/AG2R La Mondiale)
9. Christophe Le Mevel (FRA/Française des Jeux)
10. Martijn Maaskant (NED/Garmin-Slipstream)
Overall Classification After Stage 19
1. Alberto Contador (SPA/Astana) 77hr 06min 18sec
2. Andy Schleck (LUX/Saxo Bank) @ 4:11
3. Lance Armstrong (USA/Astana) @ 5:21
4. Bradley Wiggins (GBR/Garmin-Slipstream) @ 5:36
5. Andreas Kloden (GER/Astana) @ 5:38
6. Frank Schleck (LUX/Saxo Bank) @ 5:59
7. Vincenzo Nibali (ITA/Liquigas) @ 7:15
8. Christian Vande Velde (USA/Garmin-Slipstream) @ 10:08
9. Mikel Astarloza (SPA/Euskaltel-Euskadi) @ 12:37
10. Christophe Le Mevel (Française des Jeux) @ 12:38
Other Classifications
Green Jersey: Thor Hushovd (NOR/Cervélo TestTeam)
Polka Dot Jersey: Franco Pellizotti (ITA/Liquigas)
White Jersey: Andy Schleck (LUX/Saxo Bank)
Teams: Astana
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