Road

A pair of North Shore residents ruled the third day of the Sea Otter Classic mountain-bike stage race Saturday, as Ryder Hesjedal (Subaru-Gary Fisher) and Alison Sydor (Trek-Volkswagen) picked up short track wins. Hesjedal’s victory came after hooking up with a three-rider break that formed four laps into the 7-lap race. Right there with the young Canadian were overall leader Bart Brentjens (Giant) and Roland Green (Trek-Volkswagen). Once together the trio steadily pulled away from the pack, with only Seamus McGrath (Haro-Lee Dungarees) and Filip Meirhaeghe (Specialized) able to stay in

Saturn’s Lyne Bessette won the women’s road overall at the Sea Otter Classic in style Saturday, taking the final stage, along with the points jersey, in a two-up sprint against Rona superstar Genevieve Jeanson. Entering the circuit race with a one-minute, 20-second lead over teammate Kimberly Bruckner, and a comfortable 2:15 over Friday’s road race winner Susan Palmer-Komar (Talgo America), Bessette was poised for the overall victory; however the Saturn women were still without a stage win. With the assurance of a powerful team her defending her leader’s jersey, Bessette took matters into

It’s not the world’s most challenging course, but with strong fields in both the men’s and women’s divisions, Nathan Rennie and Anne-Caroline Chausson could take satisfaction in their Sea Otter downhill wins on Sunday in Monterey, California. A year after a surprising Sea Otter defeat, Chausson was back to her old self, bettering her closest competitor by more than six seconds on the short, twisty course. In fact Chausson’s time (1:31.20) was so good that it would have put her ahead of 27 of the 60 men’s finishers. "I’m in better shape this year than I was this time last year," said

There’s a reason they call them world champions, and Alison Dunlap and Roland Green showed why Sunday, each taking the overall wins in the Sea Otter Classic mountain-bike stage race in Monterey, California. In his first major mountain bike race since winning gold in Vail, Green (Trek-Volkswagen) earned his GC title by putting 46 seconds into Dutchman Bart Brentjens (Giant) and winning stage 4’s 36-mile cross country. Brentjens, the 2001 Sea Otter champ, would settle for second on the day and in the overall, after surrendering the 7-second advantage he had begun the day with. The pace of the

Under gray skies that intermittently wet the course, Talgo America’s Susan Palmer-Komar won stage three of the women’s road stage race—however the real victory belonged to the women of Team Saturn. Going into Friday’s Fort Ord Road Race, the Saturn women held the number two, three, and four spots on the general classification after Thursday’s time trial and criterium. Standing in their way was the 20-year-old cycling phenom from Quebec, Genevieve Jeanson (Rona), who had shown her strength by not just winning the time trial but setting a new course record—by a full minute. A fourth place in

Chris Horner wrapped up the men’s road title at the Sea Otter Classic as he finished in the main field of the Laguna Seca circuit race Saturday, easily protecting the nearly three-minute lead he had in the overall standings. Saturn’s Mark McCormack took advantage of a final-lap charge and held off a closing field to earn a win in the final stage of the three-day, four-stage event, near Monterey, California. With just 20 laps around the twisting tarmac of the Laguna Seca speedway, there was little chance that anyone would come close to making a dent in Horner’s substantial 2:49 lead over

After 14 seasons as a professional, 35-year-old Mario Cipollini finally won the race he wanted to win more than any other. Cipollini, riding in the zebra-esque colors of his new team, Acqua & Sapone, survived a long day that saw many pre-race favorites succumb to crashes and injuries to win the 93rd Milan-San Remo. [nid:21955]Cipollini and the lead sprinters reeled in a two-man breakaway of Mapei’s Paolo Bettini and Panaria’s Giuliano Figueras with less than a kilometer to go after the pair had pulled away on the Poggio climb just seven kilometers from the finish.

Dutch racer Mirjam Melchers (Farm Frites-Hartol) won the 118km Primavera Rosa, winning a three-up sprint. The win puts her into second place overall in the women’s World Cup, 32 points behind Germany’s Petra Rossner. The race, the third in the nine-race World Cup, basically followed the final half of the men’s route of the Milan-San Remo. Melchers pulled away late in the race with Diana Ziliute (Acca Due) and Chantal Beltman (Acca Due) and beat the teammates in the sprint.

“There are a lot of guys in the peloton who are fit right now,” Ed Beamon remarked. “It’s just that Chris Horner is about two levels above that.” Had there been doubts about the Navigators director’s assessment of the Prime Alliance star’s form before, Horner surely put them to rest on the rolling hills of the Fort Ord road race at the Sea Otter Classic on Friday. The 30-year-old from Bend, Oregon and his team started the day as if he already had the leader’s jersey on his shoulders and by race’s end he did, well padded with a comfortable three-minute margin. By the strength of his

Used to be the Sea Otter Classic served as the final tune-up for the mountain-bike World Cup season, and that meant the stage race in Monterey, California was a prime indicator of who had gone hard and who had gone soft during the off-season. But this year, without the Napa Valley cross-country looming a week away, there was talk that some of the top riders might not be in top form when they arrived at the Laguna Seca Raceway for the Sea Otter’s four-stage affair, March 21-24. But following the second day of racing here, all but a few of the big names were right were you expected them to be.

The first stage of the Sea Otter Classic mountain bike stage race, a criterium raced on mountain bikes with slick tires, was won Thursday by a pair of Americans — current world champion Alison Dunlap, and veteran pro Steve Tilford. Marking the inaugural year of the Fatboy Crit at California’s Sea Otter, the course was identical to that used by the roadies — a fast half-mile lap around downtown Monterey’s Cannery Row. In the men’s 50-minute race, cross-country world champion Roland Green (Trek-Volkswagen) got things started early, jumping out front and controlling the pace. But after 15

With just a few hours of rest after this morning’s opening time trial, riders tackling this year’s edition of the Sea Otter Classic moved down to Monterey as Mercury’s Gord Fraser and Katrina Berger (Cannondale-USA) won on the tough and grinding criterium course through the streets of the historic Cannery Row district. After two stages, the day ended with U.S. Postal’s David Zabriskie and Rona’s Genevieve Jeanson maintaining their hold on the overall lead. Depth of field Seeing Fraser take a sprint finish in a criterium has been not an unusual sight in American racing over the past few

Eight days after breaking the time trial course record at the Redlands Classic, Rona’s Genevieve Jeanson was at it again on Thursday, taking down the all-time mark at the opening stage of the Sea Otter Classic in Monterey, California. Jeanson sailed around the Sea Otter’s 17-mile time trial circuit in 42:50, setting a new course record and putting 1:27 into Saturn’s Kimberley Bruckner, who came across in second despite suffering a puncture. The rest of the top five included Saturn riders Lyne Bessette (at 1:34) and Judith Arndt (at 2:06), and Cannondale-USA’s Mari Holden (at

Joe Friel is author of the successful "Training Bible" series ofbooks,  a regular columnist for VeloNews and Inside Triathlonand the founder of www.ultrafit.com. This marks the start of Friel's weekly Question-and-Answer column here on VeloNews.com. Friel will answer a selected group of questions each week. Readers can send questions to Friel in care of VeloNews.com at WebLetters@7Dogs.com.Be sure to include "Friel" in the subject line. Q: I am finding that my biggest weakness is in recovery afterrepetitive hill climbs and being able to respond to attacks before crestingthe hill. Although,

Rabobank’s rider Erik Dekker won the 37th edition of Tirreno-Adriatico in San Benedetto Del Tronto Wednesday. Dekker triumphed overall after the 162km stage around San Benedetto on Italy's Adriatic coast which was won by Italian veteran Mario Cipollini. Cipollini, riding for the Acqua e Sapone team, pipped Germany's Erik Zabel and Lithuania's Saulius Ruskys in a sprint finish. Dekker had stamped his authority on the race by winning Sunday's time trial in Rieti, taking over the leader's red and yellow jersey from Italian Danilo Di Luca. Many had expected Di Luca to take it back but

Alessio’s Franco Pellizotti won Tuesday's sixth stage of Tirreno-Adriatico, a 208km run from Rapagnano to Montegranaro. Pellizotti held off compatriots Rinaldo Nocentini and Paolo Bettini in an all-Italian podium after a sprint finish but Holland's Erik Dekker retains the leader's red and yellow jersey. It was a red-letter day for the mop-topped 24-year-old from Bibbione in the northern region of Friuli near the Slovenian border who punched the air as he crossed the line for his first professional win in his second year. He had impressed greatly in last year's Tour of Spain when he

If you want to make it simple, the basics of training come down to three steps: Step 1: Early in the season, gradually increase the weekly volume of training with medium and easy rides while including strength work. Step 2: Once a solid base of aerobic fitness and strength is established, include a few high-effort workouts weekly, gradually making them more race-like. Step 3: Significantly reduce the weekly volume starting a few weeks before an important race while keeping intensity race-like.Pretty simple, huh? Even Elmer Fudd could understand it. But perhaps you're the scientific type.

Saeco’s Danilo Di Luca, riding for the Saeco team, won Monday's fifth stageof Tirreno-Adriatico, a 150km ride from Rieti to Torricella Sicura.Di Luca, who posted a winning time of 3:39:51, finished ahead of second-placed Erik Zabel (Telekom) and Italian rider Giuliano Figueras who came third.Dutch rider Erik Dekker retains the leader's yellow and red jersey.Di Luca, who won Saturday's onerous mountain climb in his native Abruzzoregion, was among a group of eight riders who made the first significantmove on the Passo delle Campanelle climb.But the 27-year-old and his fellow escapees were soon

Cyclists are rightly concerned with eating foods that maximize energy and optimize recovery. But eating the right foods can also give your immune system a supportive boost. Unlike your heart and lungs, which are strengthened by training, your immune system may be a bit fragile. Combining training with work and a personal life can often overtax your resources, stress your body, and compromise your ability to fight off infection. A healthy immune system consists of a defending army, always prepared to protect your body against attacks from viruses, bacteria and other foreign invaders. Your

Beginning two years ago there was a sudden increase in elite athletes testing positive for metabolites of the steroid nandrolone. Many of these positive tests have occurred in Great Britain, where in 1999 alone there were 17. Several athletes, including U.S. Postal Service rider Benoit Joachim, have claimed these positive doping tests occurred inadvertently through the use of dietary supplements. Experts continue to speculate over the recent increase in nandrolone positives. Is such a sudden increase in intentional nandrolone use likely? Testing techniques allowing the period of nandrolone

Deutsche Telekom’s Alexandre Vinokurov rode into Nice to secure his first Paris-Nice triumph Sunday on the seventh and final stage won by Australian national champion Robbie McEwen of Lotto. After 157km of racing around Nice, McEwen held off Belgian sprinter Tom Steels, who finished second, and fellow Australian Baden Cooke to win his second stage of the first major stage race of the season. Vinokurov, a 28-year-old from Kazakhstan who honed his trade in France, took the lead of the "Race to the Sun" on Thursday on the climb to the summit finish at Eze, and took care to maintain his

Rabobank’s Erik Dekker won Sunday's fourth stage of the Tirreno-Adriatico cycling race to take the overall lead in the “Race of Two Seas.” Dekker won the individual time trial, pushing Moldova's Ruslan Ivanov and American Floyd Landis (U.S. Postal)into second and third place respectively and taking the overall lead from Italian rider Danilo Di Luca. Dekker had finished a close second to Di Luca in Saturday's mountain stage, considered the most onerous in the race that started Thursday on the Tyrrhenian coast near Naples and will finish next Wednesday at the usual place of San Benedetto del

Chris Horner defended his yellow leader’s jersey in the final stage of the Redlands Classic five-day stage race Sunday, but not without a scare from mountain biker Roland Green. The dedicated soldiers of Horner’s Prime Alliance team were forced to shut down the world cross-country champion after he spent much of the day in the 88-mile Sunset Road Race as the leader on the road. "It feels great," said Horner who could finally celebrate his second overall win at the traditional season opener of major American road racing. "Our guys refused to give up, and that was the difference." After

Defending Paris-Nice champion Dario Frigo (Tacconi) marked his return from a six-month drug ban by winning the sixth stage of the race on the climb to the summit of Eze on Saturday. Frigo, who now rides for the Tacconi team, was sacked by his Fassa Bortolo team after doping products were found in his hotel room during the drug-tainted 2001 Giro d'Italia. However, the most significant event of the day was former three-time winner Laurent Jalabert losing almost a minute to race leader Alexandre Vinokurov. Vinokurov, who rides for the German Telekom team of Jan Ullrich, came in safely behind

Saeco’s Danilo Di Luca, riding for the Saeco team, took the overall lead of Tirreno-Adriatico by winning Saturday's 180km third stage from Anagni to Rocca Di Cambio. Di Luca rolled in 14 seconds clear of second-placed Dutchman Erik Dekker who clinched runners-up spot by outsprinting another Italian Franco Pellizotti, who finished third. It was a vintage solo effort from 26-year-old Di Luca who was racing on home territory in his native Abruzzo region in the center of Italy and confirmed his form ahead of next week's Milan-San Remo classic in which he will spearhead his new team's challenge.

This early in the season, it can be considered either a major upset or a sign of things to come. Either way, Charles Dionne and his 7UP team will take it. The Canadian scored his first professional win Saturday, one day after his 22nd birthday, at stage 4 of the Redlands Bicycle Classic, the Redlands Downtown Criterium. With the help of his teammates, Dionne derailed the Mercury train on a blustery day in Southern California, giving 7UP a huge win to set the tone for its 2002 campaign. The women’s race also saw a surprise victor, though not of the same shocker magnitude, when U.S. criterium

Fassa Bortolo’s Alessandro Petacchi continued his winning ways when he won the hilly fifth stage of Paris-Nice after holding on to his lead amid a bunch sprint into Cannes on Friday. Deutsche Telekom’s Alexandre Vinokurov of the Telekom team finished just behind but off the podium to keep hold of the leader's yellow and white jersey two days before Sunday's final stage. Vinokurov, a silver medallist at the Sydney Olympic Games, however lost a second to the man who's chasing him down - French veteran Laurent Jalabert (CSC), a two-time winner of the race now five seconds behind the Kazakh.

Italian Paolo Bettini, who rides for the Mapei team, won the 213km second stage of Tirreno-Adriatico Friday. Deutsche Telekom’s Erik Zabel, who won Thursday's opening stage, retains the lead of the overall standings after he finished second. On a largely calm day of racing - due mainly to the flat outline of the stage - the peloton did not split until the latter stages when Bettini and teammate Oscar Freire, the world road race champion, launched an attack. The two riders were soon reeled in but Bettini anticipated the timing of the peloton's return perfectly to hold on to his slender lead

Chris Horner, the man with the yellow jersey at the Redlands Classic road race in Southern California, has said it several times during the five-day stage race this week: "It’s bike racing, anything can happen." Horner was referring in large part to Friday’s stage, the gnarly race to the top of Oak Glen. It’s been proven here before that he’s right, anything really can happen. Who knew, though, that Horner’s point would apply not to his own fate — the Prime Alliance leader defended the jersey just fine by finishing right behind the amazing Roland Green at Oak Glen Friday — but to that of

Power. Think about it. It's what separates casual riders from the elite. You can be a precision bike handler, a wheelsucker extraordinaire, an elegant pedaler - but if you can't crank when the crunch comes, you'll be left behind. But how can we improve our power rating? And how do we measure it? And isn't power directly rated to out heart rate? Well, no, not exactly. By focusing on "scientific" training, we've become too wrapped up in our heart rates. Many of us have even come to believe that high heart rates are the reason for training. But when it comes to racing, it doesn't really

Deutsche Telekom's Erik Zabel won the first stage of Italy’s Tirreno-Adriatico cycling race over 124km between Massa Lubrense and Sorrento on Thursday. The German won a sprint finish which was littered with falls to come in ahead of Italy's Giovanni Lombardi and Jan Svorada of the Czech Republic. Polish rider Piotr Wadeckj suffered potentially serious head injuries after a heavy fall in the sprint and was transferred by helicopter to hospital where tests revealed early signs of hemorrhaging.

Deutsche Telekom’s Alexandre Vinokurov took the leader's jersey after sticking with an ambitious bunch that left the peloton almost 90km from the finish of the fourth stage of Paris-Nice in Toulon, France, on Thursday. The Kazakh rider came home alone following a steep climb to the summit of Mont Faron despite a late surge by wily French veteran Laurent Jalabert (CSC). Vinokurov, who takes the race lead from French champion Didier Rous, who trailed in at 1:07, had to work to make sure he did not get left behind on the 175km stage. "My legs felt good and I was able to hang in there when it

Chris Horner and Genevieve Jeanson both tightened their grips on the yellow leaders’ jerseys of the Redlands Bicycle Classic with impressive rides during a wind-blasted circuit race in the neighborhood of Highlands, California, Thursday. Both race leaders had to chase down dangerous breaks to secure their leads before Friday’s key stage, the mountainous race to Oak Glen. With the help of his Prime Alliance teammates, Horner won his second consecutive stage, while Jeanson (Rona) finished second to Saturn’s Lyne Bessette, protecting the lead she built Wednesday when she stunned the women’s

France’s national champion Didier Rous took the leader's jersey at Paris-Nice after CSC’s Laurent Jalabert won the third stage, a 147.5km race around Saint Etienne. Rous, standing fourth at the start, came in second on the day to claim the leader's yellow and white jersey after a 4hr battle. Jalabert hit the front coming off a climb down into Croix-de-Chabouret, some 12 km out from the line. On the line the former world number one just edged out fellow escapees Rous and Aitor Osa of Spain. The chasing group fronted by Belgian Peter Van Petegem came in some ten seconds off the

The American race calendar is littered with events including the word "classic" in their titles. In some cases, it’s a stretch, but not so with the Redlands Bicycle Classic, a five-day event held in and around the hills of this Southern Californian community each spring. The list of winners in the event’s 18-year existence includes Davis Phinney, Alexi Grewal, Scott Moninger and Jonathan Vaughters. In the last two years, however, the title of Redlands men’s champion has remained in the hands of two California natives: Chris Horner and Trent Klasna. And with day one of the 2002 edition in

Lotto’s Aussie sprint ace Robbie McEwen won the second stage of Paris-Nice, edging out overall race leader Alessandro Petacchi in a charge to the line in Belleville, France, Tuesday. McEwen finished ahead of Petacchi, who retained the leader's overall jersey, and Estonia's Jaan Kirsipuu following a hilly 170km stage from Moulins to Belleville. Andrea Tafi of Italy and Germany's Danilo Hondo finished fourth and fifth. "I'm doing a lot better this year than last when I fell three times and had a really disrupted season,” McEwen said after the finish. “It's my eighth victory of the season but

Fresh off of his three-stage win streak at the Tour of Murcia, Fassa Bortolo’s Alessandro Petacchi grabbed the overall lead at Paris-Nice after winning a field sprint at the end of stage one, a 176km ride from Blois to Saint-Amand-Montrond on Monday. Petacchi took the leader’s jersey from Hungary's Laszlo Bodrogi, who won Sunday's prologue. The 28-year-old took the honors in the 176km stage, a slight climb, after holding off the challenge of Estonia's Jaan Kirsipuu and Australian Robbie McEwen. The stage win was Petacchi's fifth of the season following previous successes in the Tour of the

Mapei's Laszlo Bodrogi won the prologue of Paris-Nice in Issy-Les-Moulineaux day, edging out Frenchman Didier Rous by 0.28sec after the 5.32km run. Spaniard Javier Pascual placed third, 4sec adrift with Belgian Nico Mattan, who won the prologue last year, fifth. Last year's winner, Dario Frigo, coming off a six-month doping suspension just in time to compete, kept well in touch and came in only five seconds off the pace. Bodrogi, 25, who has spent several years in France honing his skills, is the first Hungarian to turn professional in the cycling world. He has come to the fore over the

Saturn’s Petra Rossner won the women's World Cup race in Hamilton, New Zealand, Sunday, making it two from two for the German sprinter in this year’s series. As was the case at the World Cup even last week in Canberra, Austrai, the race came down to a field sprint and Rossner, edged out the same rider, Australian Rochelle Gilmore second. Hanka Kupfernagel, riding in an international composite team, was third. The first New Zealander was Rosalind Reekie-May, who finished 11th. The Saturn team worked hard throughout the 107 km race to protect Rossner and to have her in the right position

Talk about winding up the 2002 Allen Group Sequoia Classic with a bang … and a clang, and a clatter. Mercury came up bruised and battered in the 49-mile Visalia Criterium March 10 after a pair of crashes in the final laps derailed its famous train, and 31-year-old Jonas Carney (Prime Alliance) snatched a victory in a race that he hadn’t won since he was 19. Action on the six-corner, L-shaped 0.7-mile course is always fast and furious, and this year was no exception, with the field in single file, attacks on nearly every lap and nothing staying clear for long. With a field sprint in the

Angel Edo won the fourth stage of the Tour of Murcia here on Saturday, extending his overall lead after an easy winning a sprint finish following a grade one hill climb 20km from home. Edo, not renowned for his climbing, registered a time of 4hr 16min 32sec over the 173.6km course, his compatriot David Etxebarria came second and Swiss rider and former world champion Oscar Camenzind came third. Beaten on the line twice in earlier sprints Edo, who leads the overall standings by 23 seconds ahead of Sunday's time trial final stage, was delighted. "They must have heard my victory cry way up in

After winning the second stage of the Tour de Murcia, Saeco’s Fabio Sacchi the 178.5km stage from Molina to Alguazas on Friday. As was the case yesterday, Sacchi benefited greatly from the help of his teammates, who controlled the early part of the stage and then sent Salvatore Commesso away in a three-rider break, Lampre and Phonak to chase. The three were caught with just three kilometers to go as Lampre tried to set up its ace sprinter, the Czech Jan Svorada for the finish. Sacchi spotted the lead-out, moved in on the Lampre man’s wheel and sprinted with 150m to go. "I was well

The race is on to find the winner of the cycling seasons first major stage race when the Paris-Nice (March 10-17) kicks off Sunday. Italian Dario Frigo, who would later go on to become embroiled in the nastier aspects of last year’s drug-tainted Giro d’Italia, won Paris-Nice last year coming in ahead of Raimondas Rumsas of Lithuania and Belgian Peter Van Petegem. Frigo was sacked by his Fassa Bartolo team when he was leading the Giro last June while he was discovered to be in possession of a host of banned substances. Like Frigo, the Paris-Nice was almost doomed this year when race

Fabio Sacchi of Italy, riding for Saeco, took the second stage of the Tour of Murcia after a 160km trek from Beniel to San Javier on Thursday, clocking 3hr 43min 04sec to hold off Spaniard Angel Edo in a sprint for the line. But Maia racer Edo was still smiling afterwards as he leads the field by five seconds from the Italian with Sacchi's compatriot Danilo Di Luca 5sec further back. Edo thought he had won the stage but lost out by a wheel rim in a photo finish after they just squeezed ahead of Dutchman Marc Lotz. Belgian Rik Verbrugghe had made a dash for the line 2km from the finish but

Saturn’s Judith Arndt overcame a 54-second deficit on the final day to take the overall win in Australia’s Tour de Snowy. Early race leader Mirjam Melchers had to settle for second, at 0:14, while Sweden’s Susanne Ljungskog (Vlaanderen) was third, at 0:29. Racing started Wednesday morning with an 87.2km run from Adaminaby to Cooma, and Arndt’s Saturn team came out swinging from the very beginning. After a series of attacks, Arndt shot off the front and quickly gained 30 seconds on the peloton. Behind her a group containing Melchers, Mari Holden (Cannondale-USA) and Ljungskog chased hard. But

An Italian judicial probe into doping during the 2001 Giro d'Italia has used hidden TV cameras to catch cyclists obtaining banned substances for their use during the race, La Republica newspaper reported Wednesday. The recordings tape cyclists openly asking a doctor for substances before their evening meal after the conclusion of one stage and ahead of another one the day after. The paper reports one conversation between two unnamed cyclists. "Tomorrow we're in the mountains so I need some Kena (Kenakort, a banned corticosteroid) to pick me up," says one cyclist. A second rider

Australians Alison Wright (AIS) claimed stage 2 honors and Emma James (NSWIS-Trek) won stage 3 on Tuesday at Australia’s Tour de Snowy. But there was no change in the overall standings, with Dutchwoman Mirjam Melchers holding onto the lead she first took with her stage 1 win. Stage 2 began in the town of Tumbarumba with the locals out in force to support the field of 67 riders, but as the field rolled out of town a pile up in the middle of the bunch brought down more than a dozen riders including race leader Melchers. All but one rider got back in the race, and the riders waited until

Dutchwoman Mirjam Melchers took the early overall lead in the fifth running of the Tour de Snowy after winning stage 1’s 77km ride from Khancoban to Tumbarumba in Australia on Monday. The 26-year-old crossed the line in 2:22:27, proving too strong in the sprint for Switzerland's Priska Doppmann, with reigning Australian national champion Margaret Hemsley in third. All told, 69 riders lined up for the first of five stages. After some early but unsuccessful attacks, a group of seven riders broke away at the 43km mark, just as the peloton approached the first of the day's two climbs. It was

AG2R’s Estonian sprinter Jan Kirsipuu came home alone to win the Kuurne-Brussels-Kuurne 190km classic on Sunday. Second place went to Belgian Serge Baguet, with Italy's Enrico Cassani third. Kirsipuu took the risk of a solo break with 10 kilometers to go, a move that surprised his rivals Paolo Bettini of Mapei-Quick Step and Serge Baguet of Lotto, and paid dividends with Kirsipuu’s fourth victory of the season. "I was the fastest in the leading pack and everyone was keeping a close eye on me," he said. "So I made my break early, it's perhaps the best one day victory of my

Mercury’s Gord Fraser and Diet Rites’s Tina Mayolo-Pic each took the top spot in the Downtown Grand Prix Criterium in Merced, California on Saturday. The men's race was the typical early season barn burner with every team trying its hand at escaping the main group. But with the racing so aggressive, the peloton was strung out from the gun and no breakaways were allowed to escape. Saturn, Mercury, Prime Alliance, Navigators and 7-Up-Nutra Fig all contributed to the last 15 laps of furious tempo riding to keep their lead-out trains near the front. With two laps to go Prime Alliance was in

Germany's Petra Rossner (Saturn) won a bunch sprint in the 103.1km women's road cycling World Cup race from Cooma to Thredbo, Australia on Sunday. Australia's Rochelle Gilmore and world No. 3 Mirjam Melchers of the Netherlands were second and third after a punishing race culminated in an exhausting 35km climb to this ski resort in the Snowy Mountains. The 35-year-old, who took gold on the track at the 1992 Olympics in Barcelona and is the reigning German national road champion, won in 3:14:25. "The race was fantastic in that I had the strongest team," said Rossner. "I might not have been

Team Coast’s Alex Zülle won the final stage and the overall title at the 60th edition of Spain’s Tour of Valencia, winning a 23.5km time trial through the streets of Valencia with a time of 28:34. Zülle beat second-placed Jörg Jakshe (ONCE) by 20 seconds and bested Antonio Colum, the man who began the day in the race leader’s jersey, by well over a minute. This edition of the Tour of Valencia was marked by a three-stage winning streak in the opeining stages by Fassa Bortolo’s Alessandro Petacchi. Petacchi was finally bumped out of the lead Friday when Saeco’s Danilo Di Luca scored a win in

Lotto’s Peter Van Petegem won Circuit Het Volk, the traditional opener of the Belgian road season in Belgium. The Belgian, who was one of the so-called ‘killer V’s” of last year’s Mercury squad, won a 10-rider sprint for the finish into Lokeren, the northern Belgian community at the end of the 202km race. Copyright AFP2002

Saeco’s Danilo Di Luca finally broke the three-stage winning streak of Alessandro Petacchi at Spain’s Tour of Valencia, Friday, winning the fourth stage, a tough 148km ride from Tavernes to the mountain-top finish at Sommet De Campello. Spain’s Antonio Colom (Colchon-Relax) moved into the overall lead. Di Luca again showed the good form that recently gave him a victory at the Trofeo Laigueglia, winning what is surely the toughest stage at this year’s Tour of Valencia. the hardest stage of the Vuelta Valenciana from Tavernes to Alto del Campello on Friday. The Saeco attacked with 40km to go

Fassa Bortolo's red-hot sprinter Alessandro Petacchi won his third straight stage of the Tour of Valencia, a 157.9 kilometer run from Castellon to Segorbe, on Thursday. Like his earlier two victories of the week, Petacchi charged to the line, winning a tough sprint, this time at the head of a group of 38 riders as the charged to the finish at the end of , a 157.5km stage from Castellon to Segorbe. The stage was marked by a series of unsuccessful escape attempts, particularly on the day’s climbs: the Category 1 Eslida; Montana Toras (Cat. 3), Sacanet (Cat. 2) and Montemayor (Cat. 3). The

Fassa Bortolo’s Alessandro Petacchi clinched the second stage of Spain’s Tour of Valencia on Wednesday; a 216km run from Calpe to Castellon. The Italian rider had also claimed the opening stage on Tuesday. The Italian rider also claimed the opening stage on Tuesday and both wins came after a sprint finish although Wednesday's lacked the first day's drama when world road race champion Oscar Freire and Mario Cipollini fell. Italian sprint king Cipollini grabbed second with German Erik Zabel in third. "I wasn't expecting a second win but I felt good at the end and I was able to exploit the

Fassa Bortolo’s Alessandro Petacchi won the opening stage of the Tour of Valencia in Spain on Tuesday. The Italian won a sprint at the end of a 126km stage that finished in Calpe. Petacchi came out on top in a sprint ahead of Russian Dimitri Konychev in second and Angel Vicioso of Spain in third. Spaniard Luis Perez tried to slip the peloton during the final fourth category climb 24km from the finish, but he was caught at the foot of the hill. Petacchi's Fasso Bortolo teammates, aided by riders from Acqua Sapone, Mapei and Telekom cranked up the pace to carry the specialist sprinters to

U.S. Postal Service’s George Hincapie had another near miss on Sunday, finishing second to Jaan Kirsipuu (AG2R) at the one-day Classic Haribo, the second race of the French Cup series, 203km between Uzes and Marseille. At the 127km mark of the 203km race, Kirsipuu, Hincapie, Johan Museeuw (Domo-Farm Frites), Ludo Dierckxsens (Lampre-Daikin) and Enrico Cassani (Domo-Farm Frites) escaped from the lead group. The quintet of riders would eventually build up a lead of over five minutes. With no attacks gaining any ground at the front of the race, the day was decided in a five-man finish, with

Danilo Di Luca(Saeco-Longoni Sport)won Tuesday's Trofeo Laigueglia in a sprint finish over 172km, in what is considered the opening round of the Italian cycling season. Di Luca outsprinted compatriot Eddy Mazzoleni (Sacconi-Caldirola)and Lotto’s Serge Baguet to win the 39th running of the race in his first season with the Saeco team. The race, characterized by a duel between Di Luca and Mediterranean Tour winner Michele Bartoli (Fassa Bortolo), blew apart on the slopes of the Paravenna -the last climb of the race. Di Luca powered clear and went over the top with a ten-second advantage over

Valley of the Sun has grown into the American racing season’s “opening day.” The warm Arizona weather, relatively flat terrain and consistently enjoyable racing has made it a natural for early season race miles in preparation for the California races in March. This year’s edition, however, won’t be remembered for Chris Wherry’s (Mercury) overall victory, or another dominating ride by Rona’s Genevieve Jeanson. Instead, controversy plagued the event from the start of the professional men’s road race, Saturday afternoon in Casa Grande, south of Phoenix. Two words: Mercury, Jeanson The

Michele Bartoli (Fassa Bortolo) won the 29th edition of the Tour of the Mediterranean, after finishing in the field in the fifth and final stage, won by his teammate Alessandro Petacchi. The Italian team had dominated the Med Tour from start, winning the opening team time trial and maintaining procession of the yellow leader’s jersey throughout. Petacchi won a field sprint into the French city of Marseilles at the end of a 120km stage that began in Rousset. Bartoli locked up the win on Saturday as won the race’s toughest stage, a 167km race that ended atop the steep slopes of Mount

Fassa Bortolo and Michele Bartoli scored a double win Saturday as the Italian won the fourth stage of the Mediterranean Tour, 1:07 ahead of his own teammate and regained the yellow leader’s jersey he earned on the opening day of the five-day French stage race. Under cold, wet and windy conditions Bartoli soloed in for the win at the end of the 147km stage between Londe and Toulon, finishing well ahead of teammate Paolo Tiralongo. With his win, Bartoli moves solidly into the lead, 1:11 ahead of Tiralongo and 2:05 up on Rabobank’s Michael Boogerd. A field of 166 riders contested the difficult

Acqua e Sapone’s Giovanni Lombardi won the third stage of the MediterraneanTour, Friday, sprinting in ahead of a group led by Australian Robbie McEwen(Lotto) and La Française Des Jeux’s Baden Cooke. Alessandro Petacchi(Fassa Bortolo) maintains his hold on the overall lead.Starting in Villeneuve-Loubet, 170 took on the 142km stage to Hyeresriding toward the day’s first climb, the col de l'Esterel at 38km. On thedescent, none other than cycling’s most regular early escapee, Jacky Durand(La Française Des Jeux), joined forces with Philippe Gaumont, buildinga lead of 1:45, by the 65km mark. The

Mario Cipollini added another check in his win column Thursday as the Acqua e Sapone sprint star edged-out Crédit Agricole’s Thor Hushovdat the end of the 176km second stage of the Mediterranean Tour.The rain-soaked stage from Bouc-Bel-Air to Cannet got off to a quickstart when Thierry Loder (AG2R) launched an early attack just 9km fromthe start. The French rider built his advantage to more than three-and-a-halfminutes by the 80km mark. But racing alone in the rain against a pelotondriven by the Fassa Bortolo squad of race leader Michele Bartoli took itstoll and Loder was reeled back in by

The Italian Fassa Bortolo team won the opening stage of the 29th Mediterranean Tour, besting Creddit Agricole by seven seconds in a 36km team time trial from Salon-de-Provence to Berre-l'Etang. The team’s Michele Bartoli assumed the race leader’s jersey on the strength of the team’s performance as they covered the stage in 38:10. Italy’s Mapei-Quick Step squad rounded out the top three, finishing 10 seconds behind the winning team. The 176 riders, representing 22 teams left the start in Salon-de-Provence at three-minute intervals. A small Category III climb two kilometers after the start

American George Hincapie got his season off to a strong start this weekas the U.S. Postal Service rider took third overall in Portugal’s Tourof Algarve, which ended Wednesday in Loule.Hincapie finished fourth in the 166.8km fifth and final stage of theearly season race. The American nearly pulled off the overall win, whenhe escaped from a lead group that had included the race’s overall leader,L.A. Pecol's Candido Barbosa. Hincapie started the day nearly seven minutesbehind the overall leader.At one point in the final stage Hincapie's escape group of four enjoyedenough of an advantage to make

With the 2002 Tour de Langkawi now in the books, it was time to empty the contents of the digital camera. Here’s a sampling of the sights and scenes from the final six days of racing at this 10-day race in Malaysia.

Surely Robbie Hunter would have preferred the overall title, but a look at the prize payout list for the 2002 Tour de Langkawi shows that second place isn’t so bad. Even though Hunter finished behind overall winner Hernan Dario Munoz in the standing, he made out far better in the bank account. After winning three stages and the green point’s jersey, the 24-year-old South African pocketed 119,750 ringgit ($31,513 based on exchange rate of RM3.8 to $1). Munoz was a distant second on the list, earning RM78,925 ($20,769). Third was South African national team member David George, who banked

With Kuala Lumpur’s mighty Petronas Towers shadowing the course, the 2002 Tour de Langkawi concluded with Sunday’s 75.6-kilometer criterium. When racing was done Australian Graeme Brown had his second stage win, while Colombian Hernan Dario Munoz made it home safely in the bunch, winning the overall title of this 10-day, 1310-kilometer race in Malaysia.

Lotto’s Robbie McEwen (Lotto) locked up the overall title at the Etoile de Besseges on Sunday, after finishing second in the fifth and final stage. The Australian finished behind AG2R’s Jaan Kirsipuu, the Estonian’s second win in two days. copyright AFP2002

You won’t find a more bizarre place for a finish-line, and if you happened to be in the outdoor lobby of the First World Hotel in Malaysia’s Genting Highlands, you won’t soon see a better finish. Following the brutal hors categorie climb up to the Las Vegas-style resort, Colombia’s Hernan Dario Munoz slipped away from South Africa’s David George in the last 100 meters of the 133.3-kilomoter trip from Kuala Lumpur to Genting, taking a 4-second win in Stage 9 of the 2002 Tour de Langkawi on Saturday.

Australian Robbie McEwen took control of the Etoile de Besseges stage race in France Saturday with his second consecutive second-place finish in the five-day race. The Lotto-Adecco rider finished second to stage winner Jaan Kirsipuu. The AG2R sprinter took the 146.5km stage with a finishing time of 3:20:19. With the second-place finish, McEwen earned a time bonus that put him two seconds ahead of Italian Andrea Ferrigato, who led at the start of the day. For McEwen, who is in his first year with Lotto, it’s been a stellar start to the season. He had four stage wins at the Tour Down Under

It was just a coincidence that the torrential rains came precisely at the moment Andrea Tafi stepped onto the award’s podium. But when word came down an hour later that the Mapei-Quick Step rider had been relegated to the back of the bunch for an irregular sprint, it seemed awfully appropriate. The penalty — handed down for throwing an elbow on the final straightaway — cost the 35-year-old Italian the green jersey, and continued what has been a frustrating trip to Malaysia for the aging star.

Belgian Glenn D’Hollander of Lotto-Adecco held off a charging pack to win the third stage of the Etoile de Besseges stage race in France Friday. Italian Andrea Ferrigato, winner of the second stage on Thursday, maintained the overall lead with two days left in the five-day race. D’Hollander attacked from a lead group of nine with 20km to go in the 148km race between Nimes and Fumades. The Belgian was nearly caught, but held on for the win. The on-form Australian, Robbie McEwen (Lotto-Adecco) finished second.

Italian Andrea Ferrigato took over the lead of the Etoile de Besseges stage race in France Thursday with a win in the 143km second stage. Riding for Alessio, Ferrigato outsprinted fellow Italian Lorenzo Bernucci (Landbouwkrediet-Colnago) to the finish. The two finished 15 seconds ahead of the field, which was led by stage 1 winner Robbie McEwen of Australia. Aided by a tailwind for most of the day, riders averaged close to 45 kph during Thursday’s stage between Marseille and Sainte-Tulle. Belgian Jurgen Vermeersch (Landbouwkrediet) tried an escape with 25km to go but never gained more

The lesson for the day was this: spend too much time hanging around the back of the peloton and you’re bound to end up in trouble. Among those in attendance were three former occupants of the top-10 overall here at the 2002 Tour de Langkawi in Malaysia.

The warning came courtesy of Andrea Tafi at the team dinner Tuesday night. "Don’t eat too much for breakfast tomorrow," he announced. "Wednesday will be a hard day."

The list of contenders for the 2002 Tour de Langkawi overall title was drastically diminished Tuesday, following a major shake-up on the race’s fifth day, a 129.7-kilometer trip south from Bangi to Melaka. Those still alive include Mapei-Quick Step’s Robbie Hunter, who retained the yellow jersey he’s owned since the first day of this race, last year’s TDL overall winner Paolo Lanfranchi (Alexia Alluminio), and even young Canadian mountain biker Ryder Hesjedal.

With two more stages in the books at the Tour de Langkawi, here's another sampling of sights unique to this 10-day race in Southeast Asia.

While sports fans across America were taking in the final moments of one of the biggest upsets in Super Bowl history, racing was just getting underway on Monday here in Malaysia. And while Stage 4 wasn’t as dramatic as the New England Patriots stunning win over the St. Louis Rams, it was by far the most exciting day of racing yet in the 2002 Tour de Langkawi.