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Putting it all together

Peat’s bike, complete with the latest offering from RockShox, will go unused this weekend.

The ride to the top of Grouse Mountain involves a 10-minute trip on the Skyride and breathtaking views in every direction.

Only four men in the 98-year history of the Tour de France have managed to win the race three times in succession: Frenchmen Louison Bobet and Jacques Anquetil, Belgian Eddy Merckx and Spaniard Miguel Induráin. American Lance Armstrong is now attempting to join those four greats of the past. Of the four, you would have thought that the insatiable Merckx would have had the easiest passage to his three in a row. He had won the Tour in 1969 and 1970 by margins of 17:54 and 12:41. Yet, his 1971 ride was the least glorious of his eventual five Tour victories. After wearing the yellow jersey for

A Tour de France contender can do everything right in training, but unless he balances that schedule with the right amount of racing, his chances of success take a nose-dive. In his first two Tour victory seasons, Lance Armstrong got it just right. In 1999, his last event before the Tour was the low-key Route du Sud, where he won the last stage, a summit finish at Plateau de Beilles. Then, last year he won the time trial stage of his last pre-Tour race, the Dauphiné Libéré, in which he helped teammate Tyler Hamilton take the overall. Both these performances boosted Armstrong’s morale

For Colorado native Jonathan Vaughters, the plan was simple enough leading into this year’s Tour de France: Hang on for the first week and a half of the three-week race, and then see how the legs feel. The first indications would likely come on the 10th stage, from Aix-les-Bains to L’Alpe d’Huez, but the stage that really stuck out in Vaughters’s mind would come the following day. "[The Tour] has an uphill time trial for the first time in five or six years, and I’m just keeping my fingers crossed," he said two-and-a-half weeks before the start of the Tour, from his summer home in Spain. "The

Only four men in the 98-year history of the Tour de France have managed to win the race three times in succession: Frenchmen Louison Bobet and Jacques Anquetil, Belgian Eddy Merckx and Spaniard Miguel Induráin. American Lance Armstrong is now attempting to join those four greats of the past. Of the four, you would have thought that the insatiable Merckx would have had the easiest passage to his three in a row. He had won the Tour in 1969 and 1970 by margins of 17:54 and 12:41. Yet, his 1971 ride was the least glorious of his eventual five Tour victories. After wearing the yellow jersey for

Select Company: A third Tour win would put Armstrong among cycling’s greats.

Lance’s perfect race prep

Best laid plans

Bust a Move: Vaughters plans to stay cool until stage 11, then shoot for the podium with a stage win or two.

In pursuit of the threepeat

In pursuit of the threepeat

She started the year not entirely certain if she wanted to be a mountain-bike racer, a road racer or a research immunologist. By early July, the decision turned out to be an easy one. Amber Neben said that even at the beginning of the 2001 season, she suspected that her "strength may be on the road." It's a good bet, however, that the 26-year-old SoBe-HeadShok rider probably surprised even herself when she jumped into the winning break at the U.S. national road race and finished second to Saturn's Kimberly Bruckner. Add to that her sixth place in the time trial and a stellar

Cat 3 in 2000. Pro contract in 2001. Not a bad year.

Jan Ullrich (G)Erik Zabel (G)Udo Bölts (G),Giuseppe Guerini (I)Jens Heppner (G)Andreas Kloden (G)Kevin Livingston (USA)Steffen Wesemann (G)Alex Vinokurov (Kaz) Country: GermanyIn the peloton since: 1991Sponsor: International telecommunications corporationBudget: $7 millionManager: Walter GodefrootDirecteur sportif: Rudy PevenageAssistants: Frans Van Looy and Mario Kummer

Francesco Casagrande (I) Fabio Baldato (I) Ivan Basso (I) Wladimir Belli (I) Sergei Ivanov (Rus) Dmitri Konyshev (Rus) Nicola Loda (I) Alessandro Petacchi (I) Country: ItalyIn the peloton since: 2000Sponsor: Cement companyBudget: $4.1 millionManager: Giancarlo FerrettiDirecteurs sportifs: Alberto Volpi and Stefano ZanattaAssistant: Oscar Pirazzini

Joseba Beloki (Sp) Santos Gonzalez (Sp) Igor Gonzalez de Galdeano (Sp) Jörg Jaksche (G) Marcos Serrano (Sp) Carlos Sastre (Sp) Ivan Gutierrez (Sp) Ivan Parra (Col) Rafael Diaz Justo (Sp) Country: SpainIn the peloton since: 1989Sponsor: National lottery run by the society for the blindBudget: $4.1 millionManager: Pablo AntonDirecteur sportif: Manolo SaizAssistants: Santiago Garcia and Sebastian Pozzo

Michael Boogerd (Nl) Erik Dekker (Nl) Bram De Groot (Nl) Steven De Jongh (Nl) Maarten Den Bakker (Nl) Marc Lotz (Nl) Grischa Niermann (G) Geert Verheyen (B) Marc Wauters (B) Country (Netherlands)In the peloton since: 1996Sponsor: Dutch banking corporationBudget: $3.5 millionManager: Jan RaasDirecteur sportif: Theo De RooyAssistants: Adri Van Houwelingen and Joop Zoetemelk

On the final day of the Fitchburg Longsjo Classic in Fitchburg, Massachusetts, Saturn’s Lyne Bessette wrapped up her third consecutive overall win a Fitchburg, while the weather once again led to a premature end of the men’s stage, neutralizing the results and leaving Saturn’s Eric Wohlberg as the men’s champion. The final stage of the women’s race came down to a field sprint, with national criterium champion Laura Van Gilder (Verizon) beating out Procter & Gamble’s Joanne Kiesanowski for the downtown criterium win. Just behind came Bessette’s closest challenger, Genevieve Jeanson (RONA),

There were no major surprises as the U.S. Postal Service team announced its line-up for the upcoming Tour de France. Joining two-time defending champion Lance Armstrong will be three Americans — Tyler Hamilton, George Hincapie and Christian Vande Velde; Spaniards Roberto Heras and Jose Luis Rubiera; Russian Viatcheslav Ekimov; Norwegian Steffen Kjaergaard; and Colombian Victor Hugo Pena. The full text of the team’s announcement follows: U.S. POSTAL SERVICE PRO CYCLING TEAM TOUR DE FRANCE TEAM ANNOUNCED Choosing from what he called were 10 valid candidates, the United States Postal Service

There were no major surprises as the U.S. Postal Service team announced its line-up for the upcoming Tour de France. Joining two-time defending champion Lance Armstrong will be three Americans — Tyler Hamilton, George Hincapie and Christian Vande Velde; Spaniards Roberto Heras and Jose Luis Rubiera; Russian Viatcheslav Ekimov; Norwegian Steffen Kjaergaard; and Colombian Victor Hugo Pena. The full text of the team’s announcement follows: U.S. POSTAL SERVICE PRO CYCLING TEAM TOUR DE FRANCE TEAM ANNOUNCED Choosing from what he called were 10 valid candidates, the United States Postal Service

When Lance Armstrong enters the start house at the prologue of this year’s Tour de France, he’ll not only be the two-time defending champion, but for the first time in his career he will be the UCI’s world No. 1 ranked rider. The UCI issued its latest rankings on Monday, with Armstrong moving into the top spot, ahead of Liquigas’s Davide Rebellin, thanks to Armstrong’s win at the recent Tour of Switzerland. Telekom’s Erik Zabel is third, with Giro d’Italia winner Gilberto Simoni fourth. UCI road rankings(at July 2)1. Lance Armstrong (USA), U.S. Postal Service, 2098pts 2. Davide Rebellin

It's live: VeloNews's exclusive pre-race coverage of our sport's biggest event. There's also a link to this area from every page on the site; look for the red box at the top, left-hand side of the page. Here's what you'll find: Exclusive live minute-by-minute coverage of each stage by VeloNews editors on location in France. Revealing profiles on the top contenders in the race, including a close look at two-time Tour winner Lance Armstrong. Daily diary entries from Americans Tyler Hamilton (Armstrong's right- hand man on the U.S. Postal Service team), Kevin Livingston (Ullrich's right-hand

Telekom (Germany)

Fassa Bortolo (Italy)

ONCE - Eroski (Spain)

Rabobank (Netherlands)

Vande Velde's back after missing last year.

Ekimov

Hincapie

VeloNews launches 2001 Tour site

Saturday’s stage 3 of the Fitchburg-Longsjo Classic in Fitchburg, Massachusetts, saw Saturn hold onto both the men’s and women’s overall leads, while 7UP-Colorado Cyclist’s John Lieswyn and RONA’s Genevieve Jeanson scored the stage wins. In the women’s race, Jeanson attacked early on in the six-lap, 69-mile race, followed by race leader Lyne Bessette (Saturn) and Jane Cosmetics’ Susan Palmer-Komar. On the hot, humid day, the three built up a lead of nearly four minutes, but when Jeanson and Bessette began playing cat-and-mouse, Palmer-Komar took advantage, launching a solo breakaway of her

Telekom’s Jan Ullrich was one of the many national champions crowned on Sunday, as he won the German national championship in Bad Duerrheim, Germany, breaking clear to beat teammate Erik Zabel by 10 seconds. Among the other new national champions were Ludovic Capelle (Belgium), Daniele Nardello (Italy), Didier Rous (Bonjour) and Mercury-Viatel’s Jans Koerts.

France's Laurent Gané took the match sprint title as the World Track Cup continued Saturday in Pordenone, Italy. Other winners included Belarus's Natalia Markovnitchenko in the women's match sprint and Russia's Olga Slioussareva in the women's pursuit. American Tanya Lindenmuth took fourth place in the match sprint, losing to Oxana Grichina in the bronze-medal match.

Slovenia, France, West Virginia, Utah. Steve Peat doesn’t care, he just keeps winning. The moptop Brit continued his win streak at round 3 of the NORBA series in the high alpine air of Deer Valley, Utah, Sunday. To keep the tear alive, Peat had to get past his main rival Nicolas Vouilloz, as well as two-time defending champion at Deer Valley, Chris Kovarik (Intense) of Australia. In the women’s race, Missy Giove (Global) had a wild ride on the loose, dusty 1.5-mile course to beat the Schwinn duo of Elke Brutsaert and Leigh Donovan. For Peat and Vouilloz, there was little pressure, as both

Lance Armstrong (USA)Viatcheslav Ekimov (RUS)Tyler Hamilton (USA)Roberto Heras (ESP)George Hincapie (USA)Steffen Kjaergaard (NOR)Victor Hugo Pena (COL)Jose Luis Rubiera (ESP)Christian Vande Velde (USA) Reserves: Cedric Vasseur (F), Matthew White (Aus) Country: United StatesIn the peloton since: 1995Sponsor: American postal serviceBudget: $6.5 millionManager: Mark GorskiDirecteur sportif: Johan BruyneelAssistants: Dirk Demol and Dan Osipow

Raivis Beohvosciks (Lat)Rubens Bertogliati (Swi)Ludo Dierckxsens (B)Robert Hunter (SA)Marco Pinotti (I)Marco Serpellini (I)Zbigniew Spruch (Pl)Jan Svorada (Cz)Johan Verstrepen (B) Reserves: Matteo Frutti (I) and Gabriele Missaglia (I) Country: ItalyIn the peloton since: 1999Sponsors: Lampre: sheet metal manufacturer; Daikin: air conditioningBudget: $2.7 millionManager: Giuseppe SaronniDirecteur sportif: Pietro AlgeriAssistants: Maurizio Piovani and Brent Copeland

Mario Aerts (B)Serge Baguet (B)Jeroen Blijlevens (Nl)Fabien De Waele (B)Guennadi Mikhailov (Rus)Kurt Van de Wouwer (B)Paul Van Hyfte (B)Rik Verbrugghe (B)Stive Vermaut (B) Reserves: Koos Moerenhout (Nl), Robbie McEwen (Aus), Steve De Wolf (B) Country: BelgiumIn the peloton since: 1984Sponsors: Lotto: National lottery; Adecco: temp agencyBudget: $3.2 millionManager: Christophe SercuDirecteurs sportifs: Jos Braeckvelt, Claude Criquélion and Walter Planckaert

David Etxebarria (Sp)Unai Etxebarria (Ven)Roberto Laiseka (Sp)Alberto Lopez de Munain (Sp)Haimar Zubeldia (Sp)Iñigo Chaurreau (Sp)Angel Castresana (Sp)Txema Del Olmo (Sp)Iker Flores (Sp) In the peloton since: 1994Sponsors: Euskaltel: telecommunications company; Euskadi: government of the Basque CountryBudget: $2.6 millionManager: Miguel MadariagaDirecteur sportif: Julian GorospeAssistant: Ruben Gorospe

Laurent Jalabert (F)Michael Blaudzun (Dk)Francisco Cerezo (Sp)Marcelino Garcia (Sp)Nicolas Jalabert (F)Jakob Piil (Dk)Nicki Sörensen (Dk)Rolf Sörensen (Dk)Plus: Nicolai Bo Larsen (Dk) or Martin Rittsel (S) Country: DenmarkIn the peloton since: 1998Sponsor: Computer systems companyBudget: $5.5 millionManager: Bjarne RiisDirecteur sportif: Alex PedersenAssistant: Johnny Weltz

Enrico Cassani (I)Servais Knaven (Nl)Axel Merckx (B)Marco Milesi (I)Johan Museeuw (B)Fred Rodriguez (USA)Romans Vainsteins (Lat)Max Van Heeswijk (Nl)Piotr Wadecki (Pl) Reserves: Koos Moerenhout (Nl), Robbie McEwen (Aus), Steve De Wolf (B) Country: BelgiumIn the peloton since: 1986Sponsors: Domo: carpet and vinyl flooring; Farm Frites: producer of French friesBudget: $6 millionManager: Patrick LefévèreDirecteurs sportifs: Hendrik Redant, Marc Sergeant and Fons De Wolf

Michele Bartoli (I)Paolo Bettini (I)Laszlo Bodrogi (Hun)David Cañada (Sp)Stefano Garzelli (I)Daniele Nardello (I)Tom Steels (B)Bart Leysen (B)Stefano Zanini (I) Country: ItalyIn the peloton since: 1993Sponsors: Mapei: Chemical building products; Quick Step: Parquet flooringBudget: $7 millionManager: Alavaro CrespiDirecteurs sportifs: Roberto Damiani, Fabrizio Fabbri, Serge Parsani, Eric Vanderaerden, Jesus Suarez Cueva and Matxin Fernandez Rodriguez

Oscar Sevilla (Sp)Santiago Botero (Col)Felix Cardenas (Col)Laurent Desbiens (F)Aitor Gonzales (Sp)José Gutierrez (Sp)Javier Pascual Llorente (Sp)Antonio Tauler (Sp)José Vidal (Sp) Country: SpainIn the peloton since: 1980Sponsors: Kelme: sports clothes and shoes; Costa Blanca: Valenciaregion of SpainBudget: $3.5 millionManager: Vicente BeldaDirecteurs sportifs: José Ignacio Labarta and José Luis Laguia

Daniel Atienza (Sp)Iñigo Cuesta (Sp)Andrei Kivilev (Kaz)Massimiliano Lelli (I)Guido Trentin (I)Nico Mattan (B)David Millar (GB)David Moncoutié (F)Christophe Rinero (F) Country: FranceIn the peloton since: 1997Sponsor: Telephone credit bankerBudget: $4.8 millionManager: Alain BondueDirecteur sportif: Bernard QuilfenAssistants: Alain Deleoeil and Francis Van LonderseleConsultant: Tony Rominger

Stéphane Heulot (F)Xavier Jan (F)Guillaume Auger (F)Ludovic Auger (F)Thierry Gouvenou (F)Christophe Capelle (F)Sébastien Talabardon (F)Loïc Lamouller (F)Alexeï Sivakov (Rus). Country FranceIn the peloton since: 1994Budget: $2.6 millionSponsors: BigMat: chain of building materials stores; Auber 93: City and general council of Seine Saint-Denis.Manager and directeur sportif: Stéphane JavaletAssistants: Thierry Bourguignon, Jean-Jacques Henry

Didier Rous (F)Walter Bénéteau (F)Sylvain Chavanel (F)Jean-Cyril Robin (F)François Simon (F)Franck Renier (F)Damien Nazon (F)Franck Bouyer (F)Olivier Perraudeau (F) Country: FranceIn the peloton since: 2000Sponsor: Chain of free newspapersBudget: $3.4 millionManager: Philippe RaimbaudDirecteur sportif: Jean-René BernaudeauAssistants: Thierry Bricaud, Christian Guiberteau and Christophe Faudot

Laurent Brochard (F)Patrice Halgand (F)Olivier Trastour (F)Laurent Roux (F)Gilles Bouvard (F)Eddy Seigneur (F)Christophe Oriol (F)Jérôme Bernard (F)Stéphane Goubert (F) Country: FranceIn the peloton since: 2000Sponsor: chain of jewelry storesBudget: $2 millionManager: Serge BarleDirecteur sportif: Michel GrosAssistant: Jean-Luc Jonrond

Ludovic Capelle (B)Sébastien Demarbaix (B)Jaan Kirsipuu (Est)Alexander Botcharov (Rus)Christophe Agnolutto (F)Benoît Salmon (F)Ludovic Turpin (F)Stéphane Bergès (F)Gilles Maignan (F) Country: FranceIn the peloton since: 1996Sponsors: AG2R: Provident insurance company; Décathlon: chain of bicycle and athletic clothing storesBudget: $3 millionManager: Vincent LavenuDirecteurs sportifs: Laurent Biondi and Gilles Mas

Sven Montgomery (Swi)Daniel Schnider (Swi)Bradley McGee (Aus)Jimmy Casper (F)Frédéric Guesdon (F)Christophe Mengin (F)Jacky Durand (F)Nicolas Vogondy (F) Country: FranceIn the peloton since: 1997Sponsor: National lotteryBudget: $3.5 millionManager and directeur sportif: Marc MadiotAssistants: Yvon Madiot, Martial Gayant and Franck Pineau

Bobby Julich (USA)Jonathan Vaughters (USA)Stuart O'Grady (Aus)Thor Hushovd (N) Jens Voigt (G)Anthony Morin (F)Sébastien Hinault (F)Frédéric Bessy (F)Christopher Jenner (NZ) Country: FranceIn the peloton since: 1998Sponsor: French bankBudget: $4 millionManager and directeur sportif: Roger LegeayDirecteur sportif: Serge BeucherieAssistant: Michel LaurentTrainer: Denis Roux

Santiago Blanco (Sp)Vicente Garcia-Acosta (Sp)Eladio JimZénez (Sp)Francisco Mancebo (Sp)Jon Odriozola (Sp)Javier Pascual Rodriguez (Sp)Leonardo Piepoli (I)Denis Menchov (Rus)Tomasz Brozyna (Pl) Country: SpainIn the peloton since: 1990Sponsor: Spanish banking corporationBudget: $4.5 millionGeneral manager: José Miguel EchavarriDirecteurs sportifs: Eusebio Unzue and José Luis Jaimerena

'That's what I'm talkin' about.' Giove said she likes the harsh downhill courses of the West.

Rock star Steve Peat meets the press.

U.S. Postal Service (U.S.)

Lampre-Daikin (Italy)

Lotto-Adecco (Belgium)

Euskaltel-Euskadi (Spain)

CSC-Tiscali (Denmark)

Domo -Farm Frites (Belgium)

Mapei-Quick Step (Italy)

Kelme-Costa Blanca (Spain)

Cofidis (France)

BigMat-Auber 93 (France)

Bonjour (France)

Jean Delatour (France)

AG2R (France)

La Française des Jeux

Crédit Agricole (France)

iBanesto.com (Spain)

Friday’s stage 2 of the Fitchburg Longsjo Classic in Fitchburg, Massachusetts, saw no change in the overall standings, as Mercury’s Baden Cooke won the men’s 77.5-mile circuit race and Genevieve Jeanson of RONA won the women’s 40.3-mile race. Jeanson beat out Bessette in a big group finish, with Verizon’s Laura Van Gilder third, but the RONA rider could only pick up a few seconds on the day thanks to time bonuses. Jeanson now trails Bessette by 47 seconds In the men’s race, team Saturn was able to hold the race together for race leader Eric Wohlberg, and the race ended with Mercury’s Cooke

Olympic gold medalist Marty Nothstein continues to show his versatility this season, with his latest showing coming at the World Track Cup in Pordenone, Italy, where he scored the silver medal in the kilometer. Nothstein clocked a time of 1:05.890, to finish second behind German Soren Lausberg. In other action on Friday, German Thomas Liese won the gold in the individual pursuit.

The only thing swirling faster than the dust at Deer Valley Saturday afternoon were the short-track racers careening around the base area of the Park City ski resort. The crash-filled men’s race resembled a roller derby, and the women’s race produced a first win for a consistent podium finisher. In the end, Subaru-Gary Fisher’s confident 21-year-old Ryder Hesjedal capped off a stellar weekend with the win, and Jimena Florit (RLX Polo Sport) finally scored what she’s been chasing since short track was invented. In an explosive men’s race, Hesjedal, who also won Friday’s cross-country, dodged

The Saturday night dual slalom is always a show at the Chevy Trucks National Championship Series, and this Saturday’s showdown at Deer Valley lived up to its billing. The red-hot Leigh Donovan (Schwinn) remained undefeated in 2001 with her third straight win, and the men’s race — which featured such compelling battles as Brian Lopes versus Nicolas Vouilloz — was won by another legend, Eric Carter (Mongoose-Hyundai). And if all that weren’t enough, Shaun Palmer was there. To watch. For an example of what the hillside crowd was treated to at the end of a hot day at Deer Valley, consider the

The Saturday night dual slalom is always a show at the Chevy Trucks National Championship Series, and this Saturday’s showdown at Deer Valley lived up to its billing. The red-hot Leigh Donovan (Schwinn) remained undefeated in 2001 with her third straight win, and the men’s race — which featured such compelling battles as Brian Lopes versus Nicolas Vouilloz — was won by another legend, Eric Carter (Mongoose-Hyundai). And if all that weren’t enough, Shaun Palmer was there. To watch. For an example of what the hillside crowd was treated to at the end of a hot day at Deer Valley, consider the

Christophe Moreau (F)Florent Brard (F)Pascal Chanteur (F)Pascal Lino (F)Angel Casero (Sp)Felix Garcia-Casas (Sp)Luis Perez (Sp)Arnaud Pretot (F)Sven Teutenberg (G) Reserve: Carlos Da Cruz (F) Country: FranceIn the peloton since: 1989Sponsor: Manufacturer of watches and chronometersBudget: $3.5 millionEquipment: Specialized bicycles, Campagnolo componentsManager and team director: Juan FernandezDirecteurs sportifs: Yvon Sanquer and Gérard RuéAssistant: Roberto Torres

Florit lived up to her No. 1 plate with her first short-track win.

Florit's win put her in the driver's seat for a repeat series title.

'I'm fast as hell, man.' Carter explains his skills.

'I'm fast as hell, man.' Carter explains his skills.