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Maybe the peloton took its cue from yesterday’s team time trial; today’s stage was just plain fast. Five men put in an impressive ride to hold off the charging sprinters, but these are the days when riders start falling apart. Tom Steels was the first rider to abandon the 2002 Tour de France. He hasn’t been feeling well during any stage and he had been coming off the back every time the road tilted even slightly. When the speed increases toward the end of the first week, struggling riders start cracking. It is a normal process. Some riders get stronger with a few days of racing in their

What would the Tour be without our man Didi?

Robbie’s Ride

Kirsipuu makes it to Rouen.

It seems that everyone except the race organizers is regretting theabsence of Mario Cipollini from this year’s Tour de France. So the LionKing’s decision Tuesday night to announce his retirement from cycling comesat an appropriate moment — although we all regret that his flamboyancewill no longer grace our sport’s biggest stage.Cipollini brought excitement to the Tour, whether it was with his fourconsecutive stage wins in 1999 or his four days in the yellow jersey in1997. And, on a day when this Tour focused its attention on a team timetrial, many have forgotten that it was in a team time

Ms. Liberty comes home

Here are the final standings from today's team time trial:Stage results1. ONCE - EROSKI 01:19:492. U.S. POSTAL SERVICE 01:20:05, at 00:163. TEAM CSC TISCALI 01:20:35, at 00:464. FASSA BORTOLO 01:21:19, at 01:305. COFIDIS CREDIT PAR TELEPHONE 01:21:33, at 01:446. IBANESTO.COM 01:21:45, at 01:567. DOMO - FARM FRITES 01:22:01, at 02:128. RABOBANK 01:22:05, at 02:169. KELME - COSTA BLANCA 01:22:08, at 02:1910. LAMPRE - DAIKIN 01:22:11, at 02:2211. CREDIT AGRICOLE 01:22:17, at 02:2812. TEAM TELEKOM 01:22:36, at 02:4713. BONJOUR 01:23:02, at 03:1314. ALESSIO 01:23:04, at 03:1515. LOTTO - ADECCO

Roadside art work

Luck plays a very important role in bike racing. When it's not on your side, it can wreak havoc on everything. It's my belief that today, bad luck cost CSC-Tiscali the victory in the team time trial and Laurent Jalabert the yellow jersey. We were leading the race through the first two time splits at 20km and40km. Then fate intervened, and Michael Sandstod flatted. Our team's radios weren't working well at that moment, and we didn't know what happened to him right away. So as he slowed to a stop, we powered on. And pulled away. Finally, Bjarne reached us over the radio and told us to slow

Advanced flower arranging for bike fans.

VeloNews photographer Casey Gibson is at the Tour de France and is taking time to shoot not just the race, but also the scenes along the road and the activity just outside of the peloton.

Team support by the glass

Invitations come in different forms and shapes on the Tour de France, depending on the region it might be visiting. In the Champagne region where the Tour passed through yesterday and today, they came as empty champagne flutes. “Take this monsieur,” said a smiling hostess at Chateau-Thierry in the department of the Marne where today's 67.5km fourth stage time trial from Epernay finished. Passing me a flute engraved with `Les champagne des Vigneron', she informed explained that from 6pm it will gain entry to a free swill of bubbly. Here we go again, I thought. Another town. Another drink.

A new stage finish, new customs and new rules.

1. Robbie McEwen (Aus), Lotto-Adecco, 174.5km in 4hr 13 min 37sec(average: 41.283 kph) 2. Erik Zabel (G), Telekom 3. Baden Cooke (Aus), FDJeux.com 4. Andrej Hauptman (Slo), Taconi Sport 5. Fabio Baldato (I), Fassa Bortolo 6. Paolo Bossoni (I), Taconi Sport 7. Jaan Kirsipuu (Est), Ag2R Prevoyance 8. Francois Simon (F), Bonjour 9. Jan Svorada (Cz), Lampre-Daikin 10. Stuart O'Grady (Aus), Credit Agricole 11. Jose Enrique Gutierrez (Sp), Kelme-Costa Blanca 12. Oscar Freire (Sp), Mapei 13. Laurent Brochard (F), Jean Delatour 14. Luciano Pagliarini (Brz), Lampre-Daikin 15. Karsten Kroon (Nl),

Gonzalez de Galdeano - First Spaniard since Indurain to wear the yellow jersey.

ONCE - Tops when it counted.

Teamwork

Postal kept it all together

Should we stay or should we go now?

Ready to roll

Mitered tubes ready for the bottom bracket shell

The Ti bottom bracket sleeve

After declaring on his Web site on Tuesday that he was through with cycling, Italian star Mario Cipollini told Gazzetta dello Sport that he was tired of "being treated like a mediocre cyclist," and again cited the non-selection of his Acqua & Sapone team to the Tour de France as one of the primary reasons for his decision to retire. "I am fed up with being treated as a mediocre cyclist and being snubbed. By who? By everyone, even by the media," said Cipollini. "No one came to my defense in the dispute with [Jean-Marie] Leblanc, (the chief of the Tour de France), who decided not to invite my

Every day and every second counts during the Tour de France, and riders like Oscar Sevilla and Levi Leipheimer are bleeding. Following the team time trial, and with four stages remaining before the first individual time trial, both men have lost over 2 minutes to Lance. The time gap is by no means insurmountable, but I don’t remember the last time either man beat Lance by that much in an individual time trial. Tour contenders can not afford to lose minutes (to each other) during the first week of the Tour. Losing time is easy and can happen anytime during any stage. Gaining time, on the

Mapei in the vineyards

O'Grady went back to check with his doctor.

Das Gelbe Trikot -- Zabel gets the jersey

Headbangers' Ball -- Durand (right) tries another long escape.

The Telekoms led the chase

Caffeinating under the gaze of Eddy.

Coffee for the staff...

...and coffee for the masses.

Lance fans in Metz...

Stuart O'Grady was involved in something of a health scare during the third stage of the Tour de France here Tuesday which left the Credit Agricole rider with an accelerated heart rate of 235 beats per minute. The 28-year-old Australian, who has in the past had a history of brief and spontaneous, accelerated heartbeats, was forced to call for help from his team car near the end of the 174.5km stage from Metz to here. Surprisingly O'Grady recovered in time to contest the closing sprint and finished the stage in 10th position, but the fact the heart scare has resurfaced - the last time it

... Lance fans on the road. (It's a 1943 Dodge Command Car, in case you're wondering.)

Okay, Okay, Okay. Enough already. Now, we've had our three bad days, which, for the superstitious among you, should mean that our bad luck streak is over... I hope. For those of you saw it on TV, Stuey is okay. His heart just misfired for about an hour, being stuck at about 235 bpm. He was light-headed and could barely pedal, which is not good during a bike race. We weren't too sure he should be continuing the race, but this is something that's happened to Stuey before, and apparently isn't quite a life-threatening as it sounds. Nonetheless, you have to hand it to him for finishing. Hope

Durand and Rénier - They were never really alone out there.

Tammy Thomas, a national-team track rider and resident at the Olympic Training Center in Colorado Springs, could be barred from bicycle racing for life after allegedly testing positive for the anabolic steroid Norbolethone, according to press reports. The 32-year-old track racer released a statement regarding the lifetime ban, proposed by the U.S. Anti-Doping Agency. She has asked for a hearing; meanwhile, the agency has declined comment, and the U.S. Olympic Committee has yet to make a formal announcement regarding the test. This is not the first doping controversy surrounding Thomas, who

U.S. Postal's Dan Osipow and Armstrong's Lawyer/Agent Bill Stapelton -- already planning the post-race appearance schedule, no doubt.

According to Lance Armstrong, there are actually 187 guys in the Tour de France, and two 800-pound gorillas. George Hincapie and Vjatcheslav Ekimov are accustomed to filling the roles of Lance’s favorite guardians. They’re not malicious in any way, but they are very good at making sure no harm comes Lance. Fortunately they are also very strong, because the U.S. Postal Service needs as much collective strength as possible for tomorrow’s team time trial. The Postal team is strong enough to have a chance at winning the team time trial. More importantly, Lance has the opportunity to gain time on

Because they could find a field of sunflowers....

It all happens at once on the Tour de France.And ain't it great ... at least when you are an Australian reporteron the Tour de France and have covering today's third stage.Not that the outcome made for a easy day, nor for total joy, thanksto four very sound reasons that made a seemingly boring day so dramatic.Reason 1: The third stage from Metz to Reims was won by an Australianin Robbie McEwen (Lotto) who again beat Germany's Erik Zabel (Telekom).Reason 2: Meanwhile, Stuart O'Grady (Credit Agricole) was undergoinga cardiogram after suffering a tachycardia attack saw his heart beat

News Item: Credit Lyonnais plans to continue its sponsorship.

According to a press release issued on Tuesday by Threshold Sports, organizers of the New York City Cycling Championship, Mario Cipollini will take part in the New York race, August 4. The release states that Cipollini and teammates Mario Scirea and Gabriele Colombo are scheduled to ride the 100km criterium in Manhattan, joining Lance Armstrong and Marty Nothstein on the list of scheduled racers. However, also on Tuesday, in a short statement issued on his Web site, Cipollini announced his imminent retirement from the sport. In a statement titled "I stop here," Cipollini said "the bitterness

VeloNews photographer Casey Gibson is at the Tour de France and is taking time to shoot not just the race, but also the scenes along the road and the activity just outside of the peloton.

VeloNews.com welcomes your letters. If you run across something in thepages of VeloNews magazine or see something on VeloNews.com thatcauses you to want to write us, dropus a line. Please include your full name and home town. By submitting mail to this address, you are consenting to the publication of your letter. Rider diariesI miss the rider diaries. That was the best part of your coverage.Corey Barton We would miss them too, if we didn't have them. Rest assured, wedo. Jonathan Vaughters and Tyler Hamilton are sending in regular reportsfrom the peloton. You can always check the

Jens Voigt before things got busy.

Long-time Tour de France supporter Credit Lyonnais, the French banking consortium which sponsors the famed yellow leader's jersey, on Monday announced an extension to their contract - but only if the race succeeds in keeping its doping problems at bay. Representatives of the company on the Tour include former Tour contender Raymond Poulidor, and the women who hand out flowers, and kisses, to the stage winners and race leader on a daily basis. Credit Lyonnais have signed a five-year extension, until 2008, to their deal which was due to expire on the Tour's centenary next year. However the

Protecting the man in yellow.

French news agency AFP reported on Monday that the Domo-Farm Frites team has reinstated Belgian cyclist Frank Vandenbroucke, who was recently given an 18-month suspension, with 12 months suspended, by the Flemish Community’s disciplinary commission. Vandenbroucke is appealing that decision. After quantities of EPO, the steroid clenbuterol and morphine were found in his home in February, Vandenbroucke was suspended by the Belgian cycling federation, but that ban was recently overturned by the Court of Arbitration for Sport in Lausanne, Switzerland. The ruling by the Flemish Community came

Cheering on the break.

Well folks, I figured that I would send in another entry today, as once again it was a strange day for Crédit Agricole. Christophe seems happy, and recovered from his tough day yesterday, so that's good. What wasn't so good, was poor Thor Hushovd. Our polar bear from Norway didn't deal too well with the heat after being in the early break, and cramped severely, having to stop to be massaged. We're not too sure about whether he'll be able to start tomorrow, as he was close to the time cut. This is a cruel, cruel sport cycling.... You're in the break, you cramp bad, and despite the fact

Passing the time, waiting for the peloton.

Planning courses in urban areas in Europe requires imagination to balance the needs of the public with those of the riders and the race entourage. Courses like we had the first two days in Luxembourg are great examples. The courses were interesting, they went right through the middle of the city center, and they caused very little disruption. The prologue course was downright scary in places, being very narrow and curvy and rough in spots. It had one particularly hair-raising downhill left turn on a narrow, fast descent in a cobblestone alley. Only the very gutsiest riders stayed on their

Translation: Give us gum!

VeloNews photographer Casey Gibson is at the Tour de France and is taking time to shoot not just the race, but also the scenes along the road and the activity just outside of the peloton.

Waiting for the sprint.

We had a long day in the saddle yesterday. Stage 1 of this year's Tourde France was no promenade. It was up and down all day and the speedskept everyone on their toes. It felt like we were riding a one-day Classic,not starting a three-week stage race.The early Tour crash index was at an all time high as well. You couldsee by some of the finish times that those mishaps took their toll. Somebig guns lost precious time. It was a crazy first day to say the least-- especially when the roads narrowed and some pace cars got stuck forcingthe riders to unclip from their pedals and slow to a near stop

At the finish line.

How many decisions can you make in one second? Should you go to the left or right? Should you shift? Brake? Where’s the guy in front of going to go? Is it too early to launch for the line? I don’t care how much power you have. To win a sprint stage of the Tour de France, you have to be able to make critical decisions in the blink of an eye. A great field sprinter has as much knowledge as he does power. Riders at this level have trouble explaining exactly how and why a finishing sprint developed the way it did. Thousands of sprint finishes, going all the way back to Junior races, have made

Repinski

Every day at the Tour there is a stage prognostics competition for journalistsand other official race followers sponsored by Sodexho, a hotel and cateringconglomerate. For the past two days, nearly every entry has had one nameat the top of the “betting” slip: Erik Zabel. Each day, the German sprinterhas failed his supporters.After the last-kilometer upset by Rubens Bertogliati on Sunday, it wasworld champion Oscar Freire who won against the odds on Monday. This time,it appeared that Zabel’s Telekom squad had done everything right.The whole team led the chase that brought back the remnants of

The letters page: This morning's mail and a flood of responses

Editor's Note: Aside from having a name that conjures up visionsof a nice refreshing pint, Rupert Guinness is a sports writer for the dailynewspaper The Australian. A former European correspondent for Winningand VeloNews, Guinness will be sending in a daily column from theTour.So you reckon cycling's recent doping problems have soured public interest in the sport? Think again. Judging by the crowds for today's second stage from Luxembourg to Saarbrücken in Germany, the sport's popularity is as high as ever. Especially in Germany despite former Tour champion Jan Ullrich's own doping muddle

Results - Stage 2 1. Oscar Freire (Spa/MAP), 181km in 4hr 19 min 51sec (average: 41.793kph), 2. Robbie McEwen (Aus/LOT), at 00:00 3. Erik Zabel (Ger/TEL), 00:00 4. Baden Cooke (Aus/FDJ), 00:00 5. Jaan Kirsipuu (Est/A2R), 00:00 6. Andrej Hauptman (Slo/TAC), 00:00 7. Pedro Horillo (Spa/MAP), 00:00 8. Fred Rodriguez (USA/DFF), 00:00 9. Gian Matteo Fagnini (Ita/TEL), 00:00 10. Stuart O'Grady (Aus/C.A), 00:00 11. Danilo Hondo (Ger/TEL), 00:00 12. Jan Svorada (Cze/LAM), 00:00 13. Francois Simon (Fra/BJR), 00:00 14. Paolo Bossoni (Ita/TAC), 00:00 15. Nico Mattan (Bel/COF), 00:00 16. Serguei Ivanov

This is why he has those stripes on his jersey. Freire takes Stage 2

The man they were all hoping to see.

After shedding Hushovd, the two Frenchmen tried their luck for a wheile before being caught and passed by Voigt.

5:10 p.m. A quick calculation shows that Lampre's Reubens Bertogliati retains his hold on the yellow jersey, two seconds ahead of Erik Zabel. Zabel, who could have earned the jersey had he finished in second, keeps the green points jersey. Meanwhile, Hushovd is still on the road, within 5km of the finish. We hope he makes the time cut. 5:01 p.m. The Telekoms are leading out Zabel perfectly. Zabel is getting a nice lead-out from Fagnini and Lotto's McEwen is coming on strong... Riders are all across the road and... It's Oscar Freire, the reigning world champion who takes it! McEwen is

Landis and Ekimov

It's all about the Lance.

How those pictures come to your living room.

The parking lot by the press tent is always packed.

Top team - CSC-Tiscali. The guy on right writes for VeloNews

5:38 p.m. Credit Agricole's Christophe Moreau has finished some 3:40 behind the main field. Bertogliati finished 19th yesterday, so with his 20-second bonus today, he has earned him the yellow jersey. Quite a win. 5:34 p.m. Talk about your good timing. Bertogliati pulled off the win. Zabel is second, McEwen is third. 5:33 p.m. Lampre's Rubens Bertogliati has attacked. 5:33 With 1km to go Telekom is at the front. 5:31 So, with 2.5km left, it's all together. The big names are up front, including O'Grady; Zabel; Jalabert and Armstrong are up front. Telekom is trying to set up their

The first entry in our daily podium girl series.