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McEwen loses yellow, but keeps greenLotto’s Robbie McEwen handed the yellow jersey over to Lance Armstrong after Wednesday’s team time trial, but he probably didn’t mind too much - on Thursday, he will be wearing the green points jersey and hunting another stage win. McEwen's short stint in the maillot jaune was a tough one for the 32-year-old from Brisbane, who suffered mightily as his team posted a time that was more than five minutes behind U.S. Postal. Still, he enjoyed his day in yellow. "It was very difficult for me today,” McEwen said. “Wearing the yellow jersey is now over. I only

The early breakaway, from left: Creed, Evans, Dionne, Lieswyn and Swindlehurst

Tour stuff

STAGE 4 July 07 Cambrai - Arras (TTT) (40.39mi/65km)

Dionne makes a late-race solo bid

Tour stuff

STAGE 4 July 07 Cambrai - Arras (TTT) (40.39mi/65km)

The peloton was having none of it

Tour stuff

Postal pounded to the win despite horrific conditions

Do they have hills in Oregon? Oh, yeah – try Mount Bachelor

Tour stuff

Though they are adversaries, Lance Armstrong, Jan Ullrich, Tyler Hamilton, and Roberto Heras know there is a time and place to work together for their mutual benefit. When a crash prior to the first section of cobblestones split the field and isolated Iban Mayo, all the other team leaders sent their men to the front to make sure the Spaniard didn’t make it back to the front group. In doing so, they have changed the face of the 2004 Tour de France and significantly damaged Mayo’s chances of challenging for the yellow jersey. While there was definitely a chance that Armstrong or Ullrich could

And what's inside

USA Cycling announced today the team that will represent the United Statesin the discipline of road cycling at this summer’s Olympic Games in Athens.After securing the maximum start positions in both men’s and women’s roadcycling, USA Cycling will be sending a mix of accomplished veterans andtalented newcomers to Athens. Five men and three women will contest theroad race, while two men and two women will also compete in the time trial.Leading the men’s roster is five-time Tour de France winner and 2000Olympic Bronze Medalist, Lance Armstrong (Austin, Texas). Armstrong’swell-documented career

Rabobank's Giro

The Tour de France's first foray into its home country, following three days in Belgium, lived up to its billing as a potential make or break stage for the yellow jersey contenders. Iban Mayo of the Euskaltel team was the most prominent casualty on Tuesday's 210 km stage from Waterloo in Belgium - the scene of Emperor Napoleon's 1815 defeat to the English - to a small town on the French border. The 26-year-old Basque climber, who relegated five-time Tour winner Lance Armstrong to a two-minute deficit on a recent time trial up the Mont Ventoux, lost almost four minutes to the American

The Uvex

Iban Mayo’s crash in stage 3 of the Tour de France on Tuesday was unfortunate. It was one of those things that all riders dread and no rider can ever completely avoid. The Tour is a race of strength, endurance and a bit of luck…. Okay, quite a bit of luck. It is ironic that it was the very thing which the riders were working to avoid - being caught up in a crash as the pack went into the narrow cobblestone section at Wandignies – that caused the wreck. It is always a good tactic to be at the front of the group when you enter a narrow or dangerous section of a race course. That is

The Limar

Norway's Thor Hushovd was left defeated, frustrated and without the Tour de France yellow jersey on Tuesday after two sections of cobbled road battered the peloton during stage three in northern France. The Credít Agricole rider lost the overall lead to Australia's Robbie McEwen after crashing just before the first section of cobbles, 64 kilometres from the end of the stage. He finished the 210km stage three minutes and 53 seconds behind the leading riders and plummeted to 92nd overall. "I got the yellow jersey yesterday but now I've lost it because of a stupid crash," he said. "The

STAGE 3 July 06 Waterloo - Wasquehal (121.173mi/195km)

STAGE 3 July 06 Waterloo - Wasquehal (121.173mi/195km)

Nazon takes the sprint ahead of Zabel and McEwen

Armstrong stayed out of trouble again today

But Mayo didn't - he lost big time

And McEwen got the jersey

Voigt and De Groot stayed away for much of the day

COURSE: This twisting course, half in Belgium, half in France,is evocative of the spring classics. It includes sections of the Tour ofFlanders course (the Meerbeke finish line at 42km, and part of the Murde Grammont at 61km) and two sectors of Paris-Roubaix cobblestones at Wandignies (146km) and Gruson (185km). FAVORITES: Should the cobblestones and weather be factors, expecta breakaway with riders like Tom Boonen and Leif Hoste to succeed, especiallywith a technical finale that makes it hard for teams to organize a chase.Otherwise, the 1400-meter-long finish straight should favor

Hincapie powered the move across the cobbles

Lance Armstrong can strike the name of Iban Mayo from his list of major rivals hoping to keep him from a sixth Tour de France victory. The Spaniard lost nearly four minutes after he was involved in a crash during the third stage, which covered 210km from Waterloo, Belgium, to Wasquehal in France. A final podium finish is still possible for Mayo, but he conceded that his hopes of overall victory are now gone. “That is clear,” said Mayo after the stage finish. “I am very sad about what happened, especially for the team rather than me. There were so many nerves out there Tuesday. Then there

Hincapie models the Giro Rev 6

The Mail Bag is a Monday-Wednesday-Friday feature on VeloNews.com, but will appear daily during the Tour. If you have a comment, an opinion or observation regarding anything you have seen in cycling, in VeloNews magazine or on VeloNews.com, write to WebLetters@InsideInc.com. Please include your full name and home town. Letters may be edited for length and clarity.Trautwig needs to try listening for a changeEditor:Al Trautwig needs to listen a little more – no, a lot more - and talk less. His producers should squelch his talking over Bobke and maybe monitor the timing of Al's ADD meds a little

What's inside Postal's new lid

INDIVIDUAL - STAGE1. Jean-Patrick Nazon (F), Ag2R Prevoyance, 4:36:452. Erik Zabel (G), T-Mobile, 00:003. Robbie Mc Ewen (Aus), Lotto-Domo, 00:004. Tom Boonen (B), Quick Step-Davitamon, 00:005. Kim Kirchen (Lux), Fassa Bortolo, 00:006. Danilo Hondo (G), Gerolsteiner, 00:007. Jaan Kirsipuu (Est), Ag2R Prevoyance, 00:008. Alessandro Bertolini (I), Alessio-Bianchi, 00:009. Fabio Baldato (I), Alessio-Bianchi, 00:0010. Gutierrez José Enrique (Sp), Phonak, 00:00 11. Michele Scarponi (I), Domina Vacanze, 00:0012. Levi Leipheimer (USA), Rabobank, 00:0013. Laurent Brochard (F), Ag2R Prevoyance,

Lotto's Lazer

Tour de France archivists found themselves blowing dust off the history books and writing a new chapter after Thor Hushovd became the first Norwegian to claim the yellow leader's jersey at the end of Monday's second stage to Namur. In a crash-filled 197km stage that began in Charleroi, Hushovd's second place behind Australian Robbie McEwen (Lotto-Domo) was all he needed to take over leadership in the green-jersey points competition, too. Hushovd (Crédit Agricole), 26, will start Tuesday's third stage from Waterloo to Wasquehal with an eight-second lead over Swiss Fabian Cancellara (Fassa

The obligatory early break

The Mail Bag is a regular feature on VeloNews.com, appearing each Monday, Wednesday and Friday. If you have a comment, an opinion or observation regarding anything you have seen in cycling, in VeloNews magazine or on VeloNews.com, write to WebLetters@InsideInc.com. Please include your full name and home town. Letters may be edited for length and clarity.Contrition only when caughtEditor:Why is it that all of the riders caught doping now want to stop “living the lie” and come clean? Don’t you think it has more to do with getting caught than living a lie? David Millar just couldn’t live with

Fagnini is out of the Tour

Individual Stage Results1. Robbie Mc Ewen (Aus), Lotto-Domo, 4:18:392. Thor Hushovd (Nor), Crédit Agricole, 00:003. Nazon Jean-Patrick (F), Ag2R Prevoyance, 00:004. Danilo Hondo (G), Gerolsteiner, 00:005. Stuart O'Grady (Aus), Cofidis, 00:006. Jaan Kirsipuu (Est), Ag2R Prevoyance, 00:007. Erik Zabel (G), T-Mobile, 00:008. Alessandro Petacchi (I), Fassa Bortolo, 00:009. Gerrit Glomser (A), Saeco, 00:0010. Mario Cipollini (I), Domina Vacanze, 00:00 11. Peter Wrolich (A), Gerolsteiner, 00:0012. Tom Boonen (B), Quick Step-Davitamon, 00:0013. Aart Vierhouten (Nl), Lotto-Domo, 00:0014. Sylvain

Lance, Och' and Miss Sheryl

Sandwiched between the always-nervous first road stage of the Tour and the potentially dangerous third day tomorrow, stage 2 offered the U.S. Postal Service the chance to take it relatively easy. As usual, the team’s instructions were to keep Lance up front and out of trouble, and since that task is going to be a bit more difficult tomorrow, conserving some energy was also an important task for the day. It’s not just the 4km of cobblestones that are a cause for concern in stage 3. The 20km preceding the cobbles are likely to be very fast and combative as riders try to secure positions near

George Hincapie doing his part for the cause.

It was another day at the office for photographer Graham Watson, who sent us these tidbits from his outbox.

Apparently the Marlboro Man took a wrong turn at Cheyenne and ended up in Belgium

I feel like crap. I don’t know why or what is going on, but I feel like crap these days. I sure am not getting my legs to turn the way I want them too and I am struggling quite a bit at the moment. These are supposed to me my kinds of days and, as I said, I am sort of on home turf, but it was all I could do just to stay in the field. If I knew what was wrong with me, I’d be a happy man, because I could do something about it. As it is, I have no idea why I feel like I lack power and struggling on the bike. It’s really tough on my head. I want to get my body to do more, but it just doesn’t

Remember all that talk about weight and lack of fitness a couple months back?

NAMUR - The first few stages of the Tour de France are always kind of tough. They probably look easy on paper compared to the mountain stages of the Pyrénées and the Alps, but don’t let the level terrain fool you. There’s no describing how nerve-wracking the opening stages of the Tour are. For starters, there’s a full field of nearly 200 guys all fired up about being at the year’s biggest race. Add high speeds, rain, a bunch of crashes, spectators in the road, a good hard chase to reel in a break away and the madness that ensues before a field sprint, and you pretty much have the recipe for

Only 3016km to go! This is supposed to be encouraging?!??!

Thor Hushovd of Crédit Agricole overcame great odds on Monday to become a somewhat unlikely leader of the 2004 Tour de France. On Tuesday, he will wear the yellow leader’s jersey because of his fast prologue time trial and the time bonuses he has collected for finishing third and second in stages 1 and 2. One of the things you have to love about the Tour is that it requires you to overcome great odds and unforeseen obstacles. Hushovd and his teammates knew that if he could finish in the top three on Monday, he would take over the race lead. They obviously were working for that during the

SRM founder Ulrich Schoberer with Saeco's Gerrit Glomser.

Italy's Alessandro Petacchi is considered to be the best sprinter in cycling, but the Fassa Bortolo speedster has struggled in the two high-speed finishes so far in this year's Tour de France. Petacchi was only eighth in Sunday's stage 1 to Charleroi behind Jaan Kirsipuu (AG2R) and again in Namur at the end of stage 2, which was won by Robbie McEwen (Lotto-Domo). After 12 months of consistent victories in sprint finishes, including a record nine stage wins in May's Giro d'Italia, he is wondering what has gone wrong. "I can't seem to sprint as I really want to, there's always somebody in

Not for spare tubes. This is an SRM telemetry unit

STAGE 2 July 05 Charleroi - Namur (121.173mi/195km)

The T-Mobile boys got these first

STAGE 2 July 05 Charleroi - Namur (121.173mi/195km)

No flex: Petacchi won't be getting too much wobble in sprints

Tour winners Emile Masson (left) and Firmin Lambot (right).

Punched the time clock and ready for work

Hushovd dons the maillot jaune

Landis leads the Postal train

COURSE: This looping course has a 50km section through Frenchterritory before returning to Belgium on rolling terrain. The last 8kmfollow the Meuse River with a finish in downtown Namur. FAVORITES: There is a sharp turn just 200 meters from the finishline, a set-up that favors McEwen or Cooke rather than Petacchi or Cipollini.Being on a Belgian team, Lotto-Domo’s McEwen will be especially anxiousto win. HISTORY: About 45km from the finish, the race passes throughMarennes, Belgium, the birthplace of former Tour winners Firmin Lambot(1919 and 1922) and Léon Scieur (1921). The last of four

McEwen rockets to the front for the victory

It looked like anyone's race in the final dash to the line

Cancellara rode safely to retain the yellow jersey

Hincapie told the press that today's goals were protecting Lance and staying out of trouble

Just getting to the start is trouble enough for the defending champ

COURSE: The first half of the course loops south on mostly valleyroads, with a handful of short hills, not the steep climbs of Liège-Bastogne-Liège. The second half between Huy and Charleroi is on straight, rolling roads where the wind could be a factor. FAVORITES: The straight finish favors Alessandro Petacchi and Mario Cipollini, rather than Zabel, Baden Cooke, Robbie McEwen and Oscar Freire, but watch for Belgian Tom Boonen to make a splash on his Tour debut. HISTORY: The last time the race came to Charleroi, in 1995, Erik Zabel took the first Tour stage win of his career. Unlike that

The scene at the start

The Tour de France peloton did its best to impersonate crash test dummies in today's first stage won by AG2R’s Jaan Kirsipuu, while Fabian Cancellara of Fassa Bortolo just retained the yellow jersey. The 202.5km stage from Liege to Charleroi lived up to apparent Tour tradition that the first day of racing be marred by numerous crashes -- and, often, costly injuries. Little wonder then that American Tour champion Lance Armstrong (U.S. Postal) admitted to being more than a little nervous in a bunch that had to race in cool, wet and often slippery conditions. “I was very nervous because of

And we're off

Euskaltel, whose team leader Iban Mayo is a contender for the Tour de France yellow jersey, have suspended their doctor Jesus Losa following a recent admission by Britain's David Millar that he used EPO. Millar admitted to using the banned blood booster erythropoietin (EPO) last week after police searched his house and found syringes with traces of the drug. The 27-year-old Scot told police he had been given advice by the Euskaltel team doctor Losa. Euskaltel confirmed Sunday that he had been suspended from the Tour while they carry out their own investigation. Euskaltel have already been

Tour de Tech: Going Tubeless at the Tour

Individual Results - Stage 11. Jaan Kirsipuu (Est), Ag2R Prevoyance, 4:40:292. Robbie Mc Ewen (Aus), Lotto-Domo, 00:003. Thor Hushovd (Nor), Crédit Agricole, 00:004. Danilo Hondo (G), Gerolsteiner, 00:005. Nazon Jean-Patrick (F), Ag2R Prevoyance, 00:006. Baden Cooke (Aus), FDJeux.com, 00:007. Arvesen Kurt-Asle (Nor), CSC, 00:008. Alessandro Petacchi (I), Fassa Bortolo, 00:009. Erik Zabel (G), T-Mobile, 00:0010. Allan Davis (Aus), Liberty-Seguras, 00:00 11. Jimmy Engoulvent (F), Cofidis, 00:0012. Jimmy Casper (F), Cofidis, 00:0013. Pineau Jérôme (F), Brioches La Boulangere, 00:0014. Sergio

Tour de Tech: Going Tubeless at the Tour

Tour de France organizers might not be regretting their decision to give the cycling-mad Belgians the chance to see some close-range drama on the race's first stage proper on Sunday. However, some of the 188 riders in this year's 91st edition would probably see things very differently after a nearly calamitous first day over 202.5km of undulating terrain from Liege to Charleroi near the Ardennes. Belgium is the home of cycling's greatest champion, Eddy Merckx, and a number of the world's best-known one-day races are held here. Thus, as an homage to the country, and especially the region

It's merely a flesh wound: Hamilton had a brief tumble