Stage 21 - Cavendish Ends The Parade In Paris

Mark Cavendish ended the 2009 Tour de France in the same manner in which he started it, by winning a flat stage. While he may not have won the Green Jersey, Cavendish again proved he was the worlds premier sprinter by recording his 6th victory this year, and 10th of his career, by taking out Stage 21, the final 164km stage from Monterau to the Champs-Elysees in Paris. The utter dominance of Cavendish, and his Columbia teammates, in the sprints was especially evident in this finale as Cav, and his lead out man, Australia's Mark Renshaw, cleared out to such an extent that Renshaw finished second on the stage. US youngster Tylar Farrar, ever the bridesmaid at this years Tour filled the podium in third. Thor Hushovd's 6th on the stage was enough to see him hold on to the Green Jersey as winner of the points competition, but by just 10 points.

The main field finished together at the end, leaving no change in the final overall classification. Alberto Conatdor headed the final podium in Paris, winning his second Tour de France in a time of 85hrs 48mins 35 seconds. Andy Schleck was the runner up, some 4:11 behind Contador, although he did have the honour of taking home the White Jersey for best young rider at this years race (winning from Liquigas pair Vincenzo Nibali and Roman Kreuziger respectively). The Boss was third. Lance Armstrong showed he still had what it takes to match it with the best riders in the world finishing just 5:24 behind his Astana teammate.

Despite Cavendish's six stage wins Thor Hushovd proved the most consistent sprinter at this years Tour thanks to a couple of sorties through the mountains to pick up points. He won the Green Jersey with a total of 280 points from Cavendish (270). German Gerald Ciolek (172) quietly went about his business to finish third in the competition, however he was a long way off the two leaders.

Franco Pellizotti was peerless in the King of the Mountains competition this year. He took out the polka dot jersey with 210 points, over 70 points clear of his nearest rival and early competition leader Egoi Martinez (135). Tour winner Alberto Contador (126) managed to finish in third simply as a result of his exploits to win overall honours.

Now to the highlights and lowlights of this years Tour:

The Lowlights
1 - The course - It was a great idea in theory, but in practice it was a bit of a disaster. Contador was just too good and followed his rivals around for three weeks, attacked on two of the three mountain top finishes, won the time trial and then just held on for the ride. There were very few memorable stages.
2 - The disqualification - Yes, Thor Hushovd won the jersey fair and square with a barnstorming attack in the Alps but the fact was this decision cost Mark Cavendish, a 6-stage winner, the Green Jersey. Some have said it just proves Thor was the most consistent rider but winning 6 of the 7 flat sprint finishes sounds pretty consistent to me!
3 - Cadel Evans - Whinge, whinge, whinge. 'My team is not strong enough'. 'The other riders don't like me'. Thankfully we didn't have to put up with Cadel in the third week because he stopped trying in the Alps and sooked at the back of the r ace in the groupetto while the real boys got on with the job up front.

The Highlights
1 - Mark Cavendish - Six - count them six! - stage wins. For a sprinter that is a tally unmatched for as long as I have been watching the race. He was unbeatable and it culminated in The Manx Man and Team Colombia obliterating the field in the final sprint along the Champs Elysees. Surely the Green Jersey awaits its rightful owner next year.
2 - Heinrich Haussler - In one of the few memorable stages in this years race, Heinrich Haussler's solo ride for victory from an escape group over the last 40km's of the stage to Colmar was a superb effort from a man who was chosen to assist Thor Hushovd, despite being ranked number 1 in the world earlier in the year. And the good news is he is switching to an Australian license in 2010!
3 - Alberto Contador - Face it - he was just too good. Had it been Armstrong performing these feats we would have never heard the end of it. He was the best climber, the best time-trialler and probably could have won by another couple of minutes if he had needed too. He has now won his last 4 Grand Tours. Cycling has a new King.

Photo courtesy of Yahoo Sports.

See you all in 2010!

Stage 20 - Status Quo On Mount Ventoux

Mount Ventoux was supposed to be the final showdown of the 2009 Tour de France. Instead, with first and second on the overall classification already decided, the GC boys decided to play cat and mouse. The result was a victory for former Spanish national champion, and breakaway hero Juan Manuel Garate, who out sprinted his escape companion Tony Martin about 50 metres from the line to conquer the mountain and win the stage. Andy Schleck, again looking comfortably easy on the final climb of a Tour, led the GC boys home in third some 30 seconds later.

Stage 20, a 167km race from Montelimar to Mount Ventoux was supposed to be a battle for the podium in Paris, but the battle never eventuated. Try as he might, Andy Schleck could not drag brother Frank up to a podium position. All the Schleck brothers managed to do was crack Andreas Kloden allowing Frank to move up from 6th to 5th. While Bradley Wiggins was cracked in the final 2 km's he managed to hold on to his 4th place by just 3 seconds from Frank Schleck. The top two in the classification, Andy Schleck and Alberto Contador never looked in trouble on the climb and could have put minutes into their rivals had the development of the race warranted it. Instead, Contador helped ensure Lance Armstrong would finish on the podium in third in Paris, while Andy Schleck helped out his brother. However they neutralised each other, and Kloden was the only loser on the day. The only other man to lose out was Mikel Astraloza who had a shocker and dropped out of the top 10 to be replaced by Roman Kreuziger. Christophe Le Mevel held onto best Frenchman 10th overall.

So tomorrow sees the parade into Paris where Alberto Contador will be crowned the Tour de France champion for the second time in his career. Andy Schleck will make the podium for the first time in second, and will wear the White Jersey for best young rider as reward for a magnificent effort. For the first time Lance Armstrong will stand on the podium as a minor place getter - finishing third on the overall classification. The GC riders will be joined by Franco Pellizotti the King of the Mountains, and most-likely Thor Husvhod will be on the podium wearing the Green Jersey.

Yellow Jersey - Alberto Contador
Green Jersey - Thor Hushovd
Polka Dot Jersey - Franco Pellizotti
White Jersey - Andy Shleck

Photo courtesy of Yahoo Sports.

Stage 19 - Cavendish Makes History In Aubenas

No British rider in history has won more Tour de France stages than Mark Cavendish. The Manx Man made it 5 wins at the 2009 Tour, and 9 wins overall with yet another sprint victory on Stage 19, a 178km, classics style course between Bourgoin-Jaillieu to Aubeans. Yet again Cavendish proved too fast for Green Jersey wearer Thor Husvhod who could once again do no better than roll home in second place. Gerald Ciolek jumped early but was still no match and faded to finish third.

Although there were a number of splits in the peleton, all the GC riders finished in the main bunch leaving no change to the overall standings. They will now turn their attention to the epic climb to Mount Ventoux on the penultimate stage on Saturday. Alberto Contador retains a lead of over 4 minutes on Andy Schleck and it would take an absolute catastrophe for him to lose the Yellow Jersey before Paris.

Hushovd's second place on the stage virtually seals him the Green Jersey. While his lead over Cav was reduced to 25 points neither man will score points on the finish at the Ventoux tonight. He would therefore have to finish around 20 places behind Cavendish on the Champs Elysees on Paris to lose the points competition and on current form that seems highly unlikely.

Yellow Jersey - Alberto Contador
Green Jersey - Thor Hushovd
Polka Dot Jersey - Franco Pellizotti
White Jesrey - Andy Schleck

Photo courtsey of Yahoo Sports.

Stage 18 - All Hail The New King; Contador Reigns Supreme In Annecy

The 2009 Tour de France was hailed as the return of The Boss, but it will be better remembered for crowning of a new King of cycling, Alberto Contador. The Spaniard ensured that the yellow jersey would remain on his shoulders all the way to Paris after recording victory in the final individual time trial, a 40.5km ride around Lake Annecy. Contador had enough strength and power left to produce a performance that was good enough to defeat two-time world time trial champion Fabian Cancellara by 3 seconds. Russian roluer Mikael Ignatiev filled the podium, finishing in third.

Contador's victory saw him gain more time on his rivals and now means he is a massive 4:11 lead over his nearest rival Andy Schleck, who could only mange 21st on the days stage. Lance Armstrong regained his podium position and moved up toe third despite finishing a perhaps disappointing 16th on the day. His main rival for the podium spot now looks to be Bradley Wiggins who moved to within 11 seconds of The Boss, 5:36 behind Contador in 4th place. Frank Schleck showed he still has a major weakness in the race against the clock. He finished over 2:30 back and has dropped from 3rd to 6th accordingly. He is still only 40 seconds behind Armstrong in third though so a big attack on Mount Ventoux on Saturday could see him move back up to the final podium in Paris.

In contrast, Contador is untouchable at the top of the standings and will be crowned the Tour de France Champion for the second time when the race comes to Paris on Sunday. It is likely we are seeing the next great multiple-champion in Tour history.

Yellow Jersey - Alberto Contador
Green Jersey - Thor Hushovd
Polka Dot Jersey - Franco Pellizotti
White Jersey - Andy Schleck

Stage 17 - Schlecks Win The Battle; Contador Wins The War

After 17 days of power racing the cream finally rose to the top on the Queen stage of the Tour de France, an epic 169.5km trek from Bourg-Saint-Maurice to Le Grand-Bornard. Over four category one climbs men were pitted against mountain with nowhere to hide. There were only three survivors - the Schleck brothers, and the yellow-jersey of Alberto Contador. As is so often the case in cycling their is powers in numbers, and it was the Schlecks who won the battle. The less dangerous of the pair, Frank, was handed the stage by Contador with his brother Andy punching the air in delight as he crossed the line in third. But while the Schlecks may have won the battle, the Spaniard has won the war. Contador finished second on the stage, losing no time, and virtually sealing his second Tour de France title barring catastrophe before Paris.

Behind the trio the time gaps where huge, and as a result Contador, Andy and Frank now occupy the three podium positions at the top of the GC. The Boss showed he still had it over 99% of the field finishing in the next group on the road with Vincenzo Nibali, 2:18 behind the winner. He is still in a strong position, 4th overall, and is just 30 seconds outside a podium place. His lieutenant, Andreas Kloden, was 10 seconds further back in 6th on the stage. Brit Bradley Wiggins showed his first signs of weakness at this years event being dropped on the tough double-pronged finish, arriving just over 3 minutes behind Schleck. He is down to 6th overall. Carlos Sastre had a shocker, finishing 7 minutes back and slipped out of the top 10 just as soon as he had entered it. Yesterdays stage winner Mikel Astarloza takes his place in the top 10.

Just to tie the day off nicely all the prize jersey's were arguably finalised on the day. Thor Hushovd made the gutsy decision to make a solo move away from an initial escape to collect both bonus primes on the day's stage and increase his lead in the points competition to a seemingly unassailable 30 points. Franco Pellizotti also managed to get into the days break (again!) picking up a swag of mountains points to move 78 points clear at the top of the King of the Mountains classification. He surely has the polka dot jersey locked up now. Andy Schleck's effort also saw him increase his lead in the White Jersey competition for best young rider to over 2:43 from Nibali.

Cadel Evans was last seen heading for the nearest mountain summit with a half empty bottle of whiskey and a bible.

Yellow Jersey - Alberto Contador
Green Jersey - Thor Hushovd
Polka Dot Jersey - Franco Pellizotti
White Jersey - Andy Schleck

Photo courtsey of Yahoo Sports.

Stage 16 - Astarloza Breaks His Drought

Yesterday, Mikel Astarloza had never won a race. While he had won the overall classification at the Tour Down Under, he did not win a single stage in doing so. Never had he had the chance to put his hands up over the line in a victory salute....he has now. Astarloza was the first home from a successful escape group on Stage 16, a short but grand 159km race from Martingy to Bourg-Saint-Maurice. After the epic climbs of the Grand and Petit Saint Bernard, Astarloza had enough sprint in his legs in the closing kilometres to grab his first ever professional race victory by 6 seconds. Ever the bridesmaid, Frenchman Sandy Casar finished second on the stage, his 6th second place finish at the Tour. Stage 9 winner Pierrick Fedrigo filled the podium finishing third.

As has been the case with every non-summit finish at this years tour, all the GC riders finished in a bunch together to leave the overall classification unchanged, with Alberto Contador on top. However, there was a highlight from Lance Armstrong who turned back the clock with a stunning burst of acceleration to re-join the Contador group just before the summit of the Petit after being left behind earlier on the climb. The Boss looks to be in great form, and has just been unlucky to have run into the sports next superstar in Contador. Had he ridden the event last year, I think he would have added an eighth maillot jaune to his wardrobe.

The big loser on the day was everybody's favourite under-achiever Cadel Evans. Evans could not even make it into the final selection of 30 or so riders and finished in the second peleton on the rode, almost 4 minutes behind the winner and 3 minutes behind the elite brigade. In true Evans style he then spat the dummy post race saying that he was physically ok but could not say what the problem was for professional reasons. Presumably that means he is going to go off and blame his team. What a joke! A team does not make up 3 minutes for you on the road Cadel. Your teammate Jurgen Van Den Broeck managed to survive in the break ok. And in case you don't remember (we do!) you coughed up the last two tours in the final individual time trials! Don't think your team cost you too much their mate! Evans has dropped to 17th on the overall classification and and now trails Contador by over 7 minutes. Hopefully that is the last we here of him at this years tour. Rinaldo Noncentini and Tony Martin's bubbles also finally burst at they slipped outside the top 10 to be replaced by Christian Van de Velde and defending champ Carlos Sastre. There was also more pain for the Saxo team as a whole with peleton favourite Jens Voight crashing heavily on the descent of the Petit. He was knocked unconscious for over 4 minutes before being taken to hospital by ambulance. Although he is out of the race he avoided any serious injury.

Outside Astarloza, the big winner on the day was Franco Pellizotti who again managed to get himself into the days break. He led over both mountain passes and virtually wrapped up his first King of the Mountains jersey, increasing his lead over Egoi Martinez to 58 points.

Yellow Jersey - Alberto Contador
Green Jersey - Thor Husvhod
Polka Dot Jersey - Franco Pellizotti
White Jersey - Andy Schleck

Photos courtesy of Yahoo Sports.

Stage 15 - Contador Seals The Deal In Switzerland

They think its all over ...it is now! After two weeks of follow-the-leader in the 2009 Tour de France, Alberto Contador put paid to the race with one dynamic attack. It came on stage 15, a 207.5km journey from Pontarlier in France to Verbier in Switzerland. The blistering move, around 6km from the mountain summit could not be matched by any of the Spaniard's rivals. By the summit, Contador had a 43 second advantage over his nearest rival, Andy Schleck. Contador will win the 2009 Tour de France. Young Italian Vincenzo Nibali filled the podium finishing third on the stage.

All the action of the days stage played out on the final climb to Verbier. After a 10 man breakaway was peeled back the peleton exploded into action on the category 1 climb. Saxobank's infernal pace was enough to drop the majority of the peleton, before continued hard riding from Frank Schleck reduced the main group to an elite combination of just Frank and Andy Schleck, Alberto Contador, Lance Armstrong, Bradley Wiggins, Nibali and Roman Kreuziger. Contador chose this moment to strike. With a blistering burst of acceleration he cleared out. Andy Schleck partially matched him for a moment but could could only get halfway across the gap. Behind was chaos. Armstrong refused to chase down his teammate and the loss of momentum allowed Andreas Kloden to rejoin. Frank Schleck refused to chase down his brother leaving the work to Nibali and Wiggins. They didn't have the strength to do so and were eventually joined by Cadel Evans and Carlos Sastre who had been blown away by the early pace with which the main group attacked the climb. The elder Schleck lept up the rode to chase his brother. Only Nibali and Wiggins could go with him, and for the first time in his last 8 attempts at the Tour de France the 37 year old legs of Armstrong finally gave out on him. Lance was left behind, to be paced back to the finish by teammate Kloden.

But up ahead Contador was riding to immortality. His lead increased the further and further he went up the mountain. By the end he had gained mega time over all his rivals. 43 seconds over Andy Schleck, 1:06 over Frank Schleck and Sastre, 1:26 over Evans, and 1:35 over Armstrong. The result is a major shake up of the GC. Contador now inherits the yellow jersey by 1:37 from Armstrong. Wiggins is up to third @ 1:46 followed by Kloden (2:17), and Andy Schleck (2:26). Nibali is up to 7th.

Outside of Contador's utter dominance the big surprise packet has to be Wiggins. A former Olympic pursuit champion, who was better known for his short time-trialing ability - he is now somehow able to get over the mega-mountains at this years tour. This is a little surprising to say the least and in terms of dodgy looking performances at this years event this has to be right up there. You don't see world class riders such as Fabian Cancellara all of a sudden being able to climb with the best of them.

In terms of the competitions, the only change was the White Jersey with Andy Schleck taking the jersey off Tony Martin who could only manage 12th on the stage. He now leads the Best Young Rider classification by 25 seconds from Nibali. In the King of the Mountains Franco Pellizotti garnered himself a few extra points over his rival Egoi Martinez by leading an early break over the earlier cols. He now has an 8 point lead.

In concluding, the organisers wanted an exciting final week. As a result they made the first fortnight of the race pretty much as boring as hell quite frankly. Now we have had one mountain stage and Contador has blown the field to pieces, and barring hunger flats will win the event. Pretty moronic programming if you ask me. Especially with no more mountain top finishes in the Alps for Alberto's rivals to try and take time back off him.

Yellow Jersey - Alberto Contador
Green Jersery - Thor Hushovd
Polka Dot Jersey - Franco Pellizotti
White Jersey - Andy Schleck

Photo courtesy of Yahoo Sports.

PS - SBS - Your coverage of the race last night was f**ing disgraceful. What kind of moron do you have up there planning your commericals. Your coverage goes for over three hours and you found it necessary to whack an ad break in 2 kilometres into the final climb on one of only three mountain top finishes this year...YOU IDIOTS!!!