For the second time in three years Fabian Cancellara holds the yellow jersey after the first day of the Tour de France. Just as he did in London in 2007, Cancellara was the fastest rider around the streets of Monaco, and will wear the yellow jersey in tomorrows opening flat stage. Despite the first half of the course, almost entirely uphill, not suiting the time-trial maestro, Cancellera trailed the best time of Tony Martin by only one second at the half way mark. However, the rest of the course was downhill back into Monaco and this is where Fabian shines. Over the back half of the course he decimated his rivals with an unmatched display of power to take the stage.
In an ominous warning to his GC rivals, Alberto Contador produced an excellent display to finish second on the day, some 18 seconds behind Cancellara. Great Britain's Bradley Wiggins filled the podium in third a further second back. Contador's performance was not only the best of the GC contenders, it is also gives him rights of leadership in his formidable Astana team, with teammates Andreas Kloden (4th), Levi Leipheimer (6th), and Lance Armstrong (10th) also putting in commendable performances on the day. The Boss showed he has decent enough form to challenge for his 8th Tour de France title.
Other overall contenders who will be happy with their performance are Andy Schleck (18th), and Cadel Evans (5th). The time-trial is regarded as Schleck's biggest weakness and he will be happy to lose only a minute to a time-trial specialist such as Cancellara. Evans, last years favourite, and partly the forgotten man of this years tour, only lost 5 seconds to Contador, and finished ahead of all his other GC rivals. It is his best performance on the opening day of the Tour in his career. Young Czech star Roman Kreuziger (7th) also put in a very strong performance, and his reward will be the White Jersey for best young rider.
The two big losers on the day were Michael Rogers and Giro d'Italia winner Denis Menchov. Rogers may still have been feeling the effects of his pre-race crash yesterday, and struggled into 27th position over 70 seconds behind Cancellara. It doesn't look like he is carrying the form into the race that would have him a legitimate GC contender. Still, it was a better effort than the abysmal effort of Menchov. Favoured as a podium finisher coming in to today, Menchov lost over 90 seconds to Cancellara and could not crack into the top 50. This is a staggeringly bad result for a man who was at the pointy end of every time-trial at the Giro just over a month ago. It seems the enigmatic Menchov has somehow found a way to blow yet another crack at the Tour de France. He won't be winning, nor finishing on the podium in Paris.
But the big winners on the day were Cancellara and Contador - one proved he is still the best man against the clock in the world; the other that he is the legitimate favourite for this years tour.
Yellow Jersey - Fabian Cancellara
Green Jersey - Fabian Cancellara
Polka Dot Jersey - Alberto Contador
White Jersey - Roman Kreuziger
Photo courtersy of Yahoo Sports.
Rogers said he lost his chain twice in the time trial, forcing him to get off his bike and put it back on by hand. So being 70s down isn't that bad an effort.
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