Road

Riis defends CecchiniLuigi Cecchini is name that’s likely unfamiliar to many racing fans, but the Italian doctor’s relationship with Tyler Hamilton has garnered new interest since news broke last week that the American failed two anti-doping tests for banned blood transfusions. While Hamilton is staunchly defending his innocence despite test results and vows to fight a possible two-year racing ban, the low-profile Cecchini is gaining unwanted attention. Cecchini is a publicity-shy trainer who quietly works with some of the biggest names in cycling, including Michele Bartoli, star sprinter

Italy will begin hosting the world road race cycling championships in earnestin Verona on Monday, although there will be no love lost between two ofthe country's contenders for the coveted rainbow jersey in the land ofRomeo and Juliet.With 10 titles in total up for grabs in the week-long championships- held near the scenic Lake Garda for the first three days and nearby Veronathe next four - the championships promises plenty of action.Italy is hoping that new Olympic road race champion Paolo Bettini comesto the fore in the men's road race, the main event held next Sunday over265.5km of hilly

The final stage of the CD&P Bermuda Grand Prix, the Cheerios Dockyard Criterium, was held at the old Naval Dockyard’s at the far end of the island. Cruise ships, quaint tourist shops, and various bars and restaurants now inhabit the Dockyards, at one time a base for the British fleet. The Elite women set off on a perfectly sunny afternoon for a 50-minute race with multiple sprints throughout. With both time bonus primes and sprint points in the Women’s Prestige Cycling series to contend with, the pace stayed hot throughout the event. Despite multiple chances to split the field the

The second stage of the CD & P Bermuda Grand Prix took place inSt. George Friday evening with a 700-meter time trial.  Racers sprintedup a cobbled alley before making a hard left and a swooping right intoa steep hill, then doubling back onto the fast finishing straight. Local marine insurance company, XL Capitol, sponsored an open bar and pastabuffet at a café along the course where racers mingled and unwoundafter the race..In the elite women’s event Gina Grain of Victory Brewing set the fastesttime and moved into third overall on the general classification. Grain,

The Vuelta a España is coming down to the final time trial once again. Saturday’s 178km 20th stage was the last chance for anyone to attack race leader Roberto Heras going into Sunday’s finale and Santi Pérez rose to the occasion on the steep road to Puerto de Navacerrada. The rail-thin Phonak rider started the Vuelta’s penultimate stage second at 1:13 back, but he trimmed Heras’s lead by 30 seconds after putting down a vicious acceleration with 2km to go that the defending champion couldn’t answer. Pérez couldn’t win his third stage of this Vuelta – his Phonak teammate Enrique Gutiérrez

The new-look ProTour cycling circuit will go ahead with or without the approval of Tour de France organizers, world cycling's governing body the UCI said on Saturday in response to criticism of the proposed format. The UCI reacted quickly after organizers of cycling’s three grand tours - the Giro d’Italia, Tour de France and Vuelta a España - have formally told the UCI that they will not take part in the new-look Pro Tour. Vuelta sporting director Victor Cordero told AFP on Saturday that the organizers of all three major tours have "grave reservations" about the current format of the Pro

A demanding road course rearranged the general classification in boththe men’s and women’s fields at the CD&P Bermuda Grand Prix Saturday.The circuit, approximately 10 kilometers in length, contained shortsteep hills, brutal cross wind sections, and wild chickens to avoid nearthe finishing stretch.During the Women’s Elite race intermediate sprints were a main concern.With the overall classification tightly stacked together, almost twentyriders were within seconds of taking the lead. A sly counterattack after a time bonus sprint by Kenda Tire’s KateSherwin netted a large gap over the field

Richard Virenque, the only rider to win the King of the Mountains in the Tour de France seven times, will retire at the end of the season when he turns 35. Virenque, who turned professional in 1991, will bow out of the sport as one of France's most popular riders although he never matched the success of five-time Tour winner Bernard Hinault or double Tour winner Laurent Fignon. Once considered the bad boy of the sport for his role in the Festina doping scandal which rocked the Tour in 1998 and led to a later suspension, the Frenchman resurrected his career years ago. "I have been riding

Roberto Heras (Liberty Seguros) remains on track to win his third Vuelta title in five years with just two days remaining in the 59th Vuelta a España. Heras and the other favorites decided to save their energy for the exciting two-day finale and played the role of kingmakers. The main bunch only watched as such riders as Damiano Cunego (Saeco) and Stefano Garzelli (Vini Caldirola) peeled away early in the stage to fight for leftovers. It was Constantino Zaballa (Saunier Duval) who fought the hardest and won a well-deserved solo victory, holding off pursuers on the final run into Collado

Cruz one more year with DiscoveryTony Cruz will ride with Discovery Channel in 2005. Cruz is on the cusp of finishing the 2004 Vuelta a España and told VeloNews he’s already penned a contract to race next year as the team switches title sponsors from U.S. Postal Service to Discovery Channel. “I got a better deal with the team and I’m ready just to start winning races,” Cruz told VeloNews after Thursday’s stage into Ávila. “I’m satisfied with this Vuelta and with how the season went. I will be more confident next year to win more races.” Cruz enjoyed a banner year in 2004 which saw the

Riders in the Paris-Correze cycling race went missing in central France on Friday after a prankster removed the signposts, local organizers said. The signposts went missing after the first breakaway group had passed by some 30km from the finish line in the village of Saint-Amand-Montrond. Local police had to search the roads of the Cher region after contact was lost with 80 cyclists who were some ten minutes behind the leading breakaway group during the first stage of the race. "It annoys me, but that is part of the shocking things about riding," said race organizer Max Mamers. "We can't

The Bermuda Grand Prix kicked off Thursday evening in downtown Hamilton. Cruise ships sat stoically near the start-finish as racers sped down the main strip and tourists cheered from the balconies of bars and restaurants lining the course. While the island has a distinctly laid-back vibe, the race did not. With a steep climb, a 180-degree turn, and thousands of dollars in primes on the line, the course took a toll on both the men and women's fields. In the 30-minute elite women's race, Webcor, Quark, Genesis and Rona all took turns attacking the front, eventually splitting the field into a

Racing again after the rest day is always a bit of a shock to the system. After a day without hard efforts in the legs, the body shuts down, therefore when the first attacks go the following day it feels quite painful. The other things that make these stages hard is that everybody is fresh, or fresher, and is eager to attack and race. We were faced with a fairly flat stage towards Careres, yesterday, the day after our rest day. As Petacchi went home on the weekend, and Zabel lost most of his teammates early in the Vuelta, there were no teams willing to control the race for a field sprint

The road to Madrid is always bumpy in the Vuelta a España. A day after Wednesday’s decisive stage to La Covatilla, Thursday’s four-climb 196.6km stage from Béjar to Avila was perfect for a breakaway. In fact, one stayed away with journeyman Javier Pascual Rodriguez (Valenciana-Kelme) hanging on for his team's fourth win of this Vuelta. But there was certainly no cease-fire among the favorites. While Roberto Heras (Liberty Seguros) was able to hold his 1:13 lead over Santi Pérez (Phonak), several challengers went on the attack on yet another blistering hot day. Fourth-place Francisco Mancebo

Only four days stand between Roberto Heras (Liberty Seguros) and his third Vuelta a España victory in five years. The quiet Spanish rider all but eliminated arch-rival Alejandro Valverde (Valenciana-Kelme) after taking more than two minutes in Wednesday’s summit finish and only has to worry about climbing sensation Santi Pérez (Phonak) going into Saturday’s penultimate stage. “We made a big stride toward winning the Vuelta but there are still some difficult stages to come,” Heras said. “We’ll still take it day by day.” Liberty Seguros is clearly the strongest team in the race, setting a

American star Tom Danielson could be leaving Fassa Bortolo and joining up with six-time Tour de France winner Lance Armstrong at Discovery Channel in 2005. Sources at Fassa Bortolo confirmed Danielson has opted out of the second year of his two-year contract with the Italian team and is expected to join the American team for next season. Danielson is the top American hope in a new generation of riders coming through the ranks and made the jump to Europe in 2004 with a high-profile contract with Fassa Bortolo. Danielson was frustrated, however, when he was left off both the Giro d’Italia and

The hometown roads of La Covatilla high above his childhood home of Béjar were good to Roberto Heras (Liberty Seguros) in Wednesday’s four-climb 17th stage -- but perhaps not good enough. Heras gained valuable time on archrival Alejandro Valverde (Valenciana-Kelme) – 2 minutes, 10 seconds to be exact – but the verdict is still out on whether it will be enough for Heras to win his third Vuelta a España in five years. Even Heras cautioned that he’d like to have more time going into Sunday’s final time trial. “Today we made a big step toward my team and myself winning the Vuelta, but there

Valenciana-Kelme might be Spanish cycling’s red-headed step-child, but it’s taking the Vuelta a España by the throat once again. Despite getting recent setbacks that include doping allegations from ex-rider Jesus Manzano, struggles with its budget, the migration of major stars and the likely exclusion from cycling’s new super-league to debut in 2005, Kelme just keeps on truckin’. On a day that saw the news of a possible doping ban for Olympic time trial champion Tyler Hamilton overshadow the stage, little Kelme stepped up one more time. (See "Hamiltonblood tests show

Six-time Tour de France champion Lance Armstrong is already thinking about 2005, but he’s still not sure what races he’ll be starting. In an interview with The Oregonian newspaper during a visit to the Nike headquarters this week in Oregon, Armstrong said he’ll begin training in earnest in November. “At least I'm thinking of going heavier then,” Armstrong told The Oregonian. “That could get pushed back to December 1st. We have a kick-off camp the first week of December, so I know it won’t be any later than that.” Armstrong was in Oregon on Monday to attend a Nike stockholders meeting at the

Prosecutors demanded Tuesday that Italian sports doctor Michele Ferrari should be jailed for 14 months for doping offenses The Italian news agency ANSA said the public prosecutor Lorenzo Gestri asked that Ferrari be given a 14-month sentence, a 900 euro ($1100) fine and a one-year ban from medical activity. The doctor, who has worked with six-time Tour de France winner Lance Armstrong, has denied the charges and said he was being made a "scapegoat" for the drug problems in cycling. Ferrari's other clients include Mario Cipollini, Paolo Savoldelli, Gianni Bugno, Pavel Tonkov, Tony Rominger,

Vuelta wide open with week to goWith one week left, the Vuelta a España has what the Tour de France didn’t at this point of the race – suspense. Following Sunday’s action on the steep climbing time trial to Sierra Nevada, the Vuelta sees Roberto Heras (Liberty Seguros) holding a five-second lead over Alejandro Valverde (Valenciana-Kelme) going into the decisive six-day run to Madrid. The surging Santi’ Perez (Phonak), a winner of back-to-back mountain stages, is poised in third at 1:45 back while Spain’s “Mr. Steady,” Francisco Mancebo (Illes Balears), is still in the hunt at 2:02 back.

Coming a week before the 2004 world road championships in nearby Verona, the 62nd annual Milan bike show, September 17-20, marked the beginning of the 2005 selling season for road bikes and products in Italy. In a season that’s packed with international trade shows, Milan 2004 set itself apart with a focus on improving the climate for cycling in Italy and worldwide. Maurizio Fondriest, one of several former world champions from Italy who showed up to speak about the future of cycling in Italy, stressed the need for better bike paths. The 1988 world champion, who hails from Cles in the

USA Cycling has confirmed its team for the 2004 UCI Road World Championships September 27-October 3 in Verona, Italy. Competing in the elite men’s road race will be automatic nominees Fred Rodriguez (Emeryville, California), Jason McCartney (Coralville, Iowa), and Chris Horner (Bend, Oregon) as well as discretionary selections Chris Baldwin (Boulder, Colorado), Kirk O’Bee (Ada, Michigan), Patrick McCarty (Allen, Texas), Michael Creed (Colorado Springs, Colorado), Tom Danielson (Durango, Colorado), Christian Vande Velde (Boulder, Colorado), Antonio Cruz (Long Beach, California), and Guido

Tyler Hamilton is denying media reports of blood tampering that have been detected in two samples taken since he won the Olympic time trial gold medal last month. The Vuelta a España was rocked overnight following reports that the UCI informed Phonak team doctor Iñaki Arratibel that blood samples taken Aug. 19 and Sept. 18 showed traces of mixed blood cells. Follow-up tests were scheduled for later Tuesday. Phonak confirmed those reports, but said Hamilton has denied any wrong-doing. Phonak officials have scheduled a press conference at the team’s headquarters in Zurich on Tuesday

Ever since the Vuelta a España started, two-time champion Roberto Heras has been playing the cautious hand. The quiet, reticent Spaniard is hardly known for his flamboyant manner, and perhaps his bitter memories of losing the 2002 Vuelta on the final day was another reason for his prudence. Days after snagging the maillot oro at Calar Alto, the Liberty Seguros captain insisted the Vuelta was still wide open and he was wary about playing the confident patrón. It was obvious Heras knew more than the overzealous Spanish press, which had all but crowned him winner of the 59th edition – because

The UCI 1.6 Univest Grand Prix is America’s premier elite amateur event, traditionally taking top domestic and international riders around a 100km loop through the Pennsylvania countryside before taking on 13 laps of a brutal 5km finishing loop through the towns of Souderon and Telford. But when you’re at the top of your class, there’s always someone waiting to take you down a peg. In this case, it was the remains of Hurricane Ivan, which plowed its way northward to douse the Univest course with five inches of rainfall on race day. Washed-out roads, downed trees, and flooding on the long lap

Phonak came to the Vuelta a España hoping for big things from Tyler Hamilton and Oscar Sevilla. With Hamilton gone and Sevilla struggling, the Swiss team has been more than happy to watch Santiago Perez step into the void. On Thursday’s etapa reina, the three-climb monster that saw Roberto Heras (Liberty Seguros) claw his way into the overall lead, Perez finished an impressive second behind the two-time Vuelta champion. The result was a jolt of positive energy for the 27-year-old Spanish rider, who has had his share of hard knocks the past few years. “I was able to stay with the strongest

Postal angered by Hamilton’s suggestionU.S. Postal Service brass are peeved at former pupil Tyler Hamilton who suggested earlier this week the Posties weren’t working hard enough to protect Floyd Landis and his hold on the Vuelta a España leader’s jersey. Hamilton approached Postal Service assistant sport director Dirk Demol during the race and said he noticed some of the Postal riders appearing not to be doing all they could to help Landis. While Landis eventually lost the jersey to Roberto Heras (Liberty Seguros) on Thursday, Demol said Hamilton’s charges were off the mark. “He came up

Alessandro Petacchi sped into Málaga Friday, outsprinting Erik Zabel, and offering up his traditional victory salute, this time raising four fingers – the number of stages he’s won thus far in this year’s Vuelta a España You’d think some days he’d lose count. The win is the 21st of the year for Fassa Bortolo’s sprint ace, the 13th in a major tour this season, joining the nine he won at this year’s Giro d’Italia. Indeed, Petacchi’s only disappointment this year is that he failed to score a single victory in this year’s Tour de France, after he tore a ligament in his shoulder in a

Hamilton goes homeOlympic time trial champion Tyler Hamilton did not take the start to Friday’s 13th stage at the Vuelta a España. Hamilton won stage eight to become the first American to win stages in all three grand tours, but faded out of contention on the steep climbing finish to Aitana the following day. Hamilton complained of stomach problems that kept him from properly feeding during the race and said he felt sapped of strength up Aitana. He suffered again Thursday, finishing uncharacteristically in the last group at 31 minutes behind winner Roberto Heras (Liberty Seguros). “He had

Roberto Heras insisted that a win on the slopes of Calar Alto wasn’t in his game plan for Thursday. The defending Vuelta a España champion said after winning the 145km 12th stage from Almería to the Observatory complex at Calar Alto that he had simply hoped to “put a little time on some of my main rivals.” Whatever his game plan, the Liberty Seguros team captain found himself putting time on all of his rivals, including Kelme’s Alejandro Valverde and the man who began the day in the leader’s jersey, Floyd Landis of U.S. Postal. Landis finished 3:06 off Heras’s winning time, ending the

Valverde: Hoping to get through itAlejandro Valverde is hopeful he’ll be able to get through Thursday’s brutal climbing stage in the mountains near Almería without too much difficult. The Valenciana-Kelme rider suffered a serious fall early in Tuesday’s stage and showed up for the pre-race sign-in with bandages on his left knee. “I am lucky we had the day off yesterday,” Valverde told VeloNews. “I’m pretty banged up, with the most pain in my knee and my hip. We’ll see how things go but it could be difficult.” Valverde’s crash made national news and some were wondering if he’d be able to

Only two of the five elite American men nominated to the upcoming UCI world road championships in Verona, Italy, have accepted their bids, USA Cycling announced on September 15, leaving speculation on which riders might fill the remaining spots. All five women nominated have confirmed their participation in Verona. USPRO champion Fred Rodriguez (Acqua & Sapone) and 2004 Olympic team member Jason McCartney (Health Net-Maxxis) will compete at the world championships. Tyler Hamilton (Phonak), Bobby Julich (CSC), Levi Leipheimer (Rabobank), and Lance Armstrong and George Hincapie (both of U.S.

Two-time Vuelta a España winner Roberto Heras (Liberty (Seguros) appears to be the favorite to join Swiss racer Tony Rominger as the only triple victor after a stage-11 crash left chief rival Alejandro Valverde (Comunidad Valenciana-Kelme) battered and bruised. Wednesday is a rest day in the Vuelta, the first since the tour began September 4 in León, and the teams and race staff will travel from Caravaca to Almería, where Thursday’s decisive mountain stage will start. The 145km route between Almería and Observatorio Astronómico de Calor Alto, with two Category 1 climbs and a beyond-category

World champion Igor Astarloa (Lampre) will not be starting the grueling stage 12 of the Vuelta a España on Thursday – instead, he plans to concentrate on defending his title at the world road championships next month. "I need to polish my form with some specific training for (next month's) world championships in Verona." Astarloa told Reuters. "Last year I pulled out two days earlier in the Tour of Spain and won the worlds, so this year I will adopt the same strategy." Hushovd extends contract with Credit AgricoleNorwegian Thor Hushovd has extended his contract with Credit Agricole until

It’s as predictable as the swallows to Capistrano: Big tour, flat stage, early break, heart-breaking capture and a field sprint. It happens so often that one begins to wonder, why bother? But every now and then one of those early gambles pays off. This time it was U.S. Postal’s David Zabriskie who hit the jackpot in the 11th stage of the Vuelta a España with an exhausting 161km solo ride to the finish. The win added another to the team’s laurels this Vuelta, as team leader Floyd Landis stayed in the maillot de oro for another day, keeping the jersey in Postal hands, where it’s been since

The United States could host the world cyclo-cross championships within five years and will likely see a World Cup stop as soon as next year. Peter Van den Abeele, the UCI’s cyclo-cross coordinator, says a world championships and a World Cup stop in the United States is a real possibility. “I will be traveling to America and seeing about what kind of interest there is there,” Van den Abeele told VeloNews. “I would like to see a World Cup race in USA sooner, maybe even next season, and why not the world championships? Cyclo-cross is really growing in the United States and I’d like to take the

It almost had to be. Not only had Kelme’s Eladio Jimenez won when the 2000 Vuelta finished here at Xorret de Catí, he had done so while working for his then Banesto team leader, the late Jose Maria Jimenez, who won the stage in 1998. On Monday, after winning the tenth stage of the 2004 Vuelta a España, Eladio Jiminez took his laurels from none other than the great 1960s climbing sensation Julio Jimenez. Are we beginning to see a pattern here? Unlike his win in 2000 – a battle of top climbers – Jimenez’s win this time around came at the end of a long, long, break that began in the first

The race is now into the mountains and things are beginning to really shake up in the overall classification. The race is moving along nicely for us as Floyd is in gold and Triki is in the top 10. After their incredible rides in the TT they have managed to maintain their positions at the top of the classification for the last week. It has been an awesome ride for the team so far – we have won a stage and carried the leader’s jersey since the start in Leon. In the time trial it was expected that Victor, Floyd and Dave would ride well but it was a real surprise when Vic finished a close

Well, they said the Vuelta a España would open up when it hit the hills. It was, after all, in the script. Sunday’s 162km ride from Xátiva to the beyond-category mountaintop finish at Alto de Aitana was put there for a reason, and, simply put, that reason was to shake up the general classification in a way that no stage in this race has thus far managed to do. And it should come as no surprise that it was defending champion Roberto Heras (Liberty Seguros) who did much of the shaking. While he may have finished four seconds in arrears of the day’s winner, Leonardo Piepoli (Saunier Duval),

Australian Oenone Wood finished third in the Tour of Nüremberg on Sunday to claim the 2004 women's World Cup title. The ninth and last leg of the series was won by Germany’s Petra Rossner, who outsprinted a 21-rider lead group at the end of the 116.1km race. But the overall title went to Wood, with 334 points. Rossner was second overall with 293, while countrywoman Allemande Angela Brodtka wound up third with 229. Tour de Nuremberg1. Petra Rossner (G), 116km in 2:53:492. Angela Brodtka (G), s.t.3. Oenone Wood (Aus), s.t.Final World Cup overall (after 9 of 9 rounds)1. Oenone Wood (Aus), 334

British national champion Nicole Cooke (Safi Pasta-Zara Manhattan) broke away on the final climb up San Francisco's steep Taylor Street to win the T-Mobile International on Sunday. It was the second consecutive win here for the 21-year-old Cooke, who soloed in for the victory ahead of the charging field in the 51.6-mile race, which started and finished on the Embarcadero, near San Francisco's famous Ferry Building. After Quark’s Manon Jutras spent a lap away with a maximum lead of 50 seconds, the French Canadian was brought back with two laps remaining. T-Mobile’s Dede Barry then

You might think a weekend that included a broken arm for Anne-Caroline Chausson, a DNF for Miguel Martinez and no podiums for Cédric Gracia would be considered a disaster for French mountain biking. And you might think it was even worse when you added in the fact that this was the weekend of the world mountain bike championships — and the event was being held in France. But clearly a new era has dawned for the country that puts on the world’s biggest cycling show each summer. And while the French may continue to search for new stars at their grand tour in July, their fat-tire ranks are thick

The third time was not a charm for Jason McCartney, who was off the front alone and apparently bound for victory in the final miles of the T-Mobile International in San Francisco Sunday. His Health Net-Maxxis team had put five riders - McCartney, Danny Pate, Mike Sayers, John Lieswyn and Mike Jones - into an early 15-man break in the hilly 108.4-mile race, the finale of the 2004 Pro Cycling Tour. With nine 8.8-mile laps and five five-mile laps, the course dished up a total of 23 trips up the steep Fillmore and Taylor Street climbs, peaking at gradients of over 20 percent. Also in the break

A California teen-ager is America's newest national sprint champion as the USCF Elite Track National Championships concluded this weekend at the Superdrome in Frisco, Texas. Eighteen-year-old Michael Blatchford of Cypress, California, began his season by setting records in the 200-meter qualifying rounds at the Pan Am Championships and went on to become the junior national match-sprint champion and the silver medalist in the sprint at the junior world championships. On Friday, he added an elite-level national title to his collection, beating 2004 Olympian Giddeon Massie (Lansdale,

Belgian Nick Nuyens (Quick Step-Davitamon) won the 84th edition of Paris-Brussels on Saturday, edging Philippe Gilbert (Fdjeux.com) and Denmark’s Allan Johansen (BankGiroLoterij). Briton Jeremy Hunt (MrBookmaker.com) won the field sprint for fourth a few seconds later. The race really began 60km from the finish when the favorites’ teams decided to end a long breakaway by Netherlander Rudie Kemna (BankGiroLoterij) and Frenchman Benoit Poilvet (Crédit Agricole), who had an 11-minute lead on the bunch. Quick Step worked particularly hard to bring them back. Meanwhile, Italian Paolo Bettini

Maybe it was the Olympic rings on the shoulders of his skinsuit. Perhaps it’s that the guy just thrives when he’s in pain. Whatever the reason, Phonak’s Tyler Hamilton had a near-perfect time trial Saturday, becoming the first American to win a stage in each of the world’s major tours. Hamilton, fresh from taking the Olympic gold medal in the individual time trial in Athens, vaulted up the Vuelta’s general classification Saturday, winning the seventh stage of Vuelta a España, a flat 40.1km time trial around the massive Ford Motor factory in Almussafes. The performance moved him from 10th in

With six-time Tour de France champion Lance Armstrong out of Sunday’s T-Mobile International in San Francisco, the 108-mile race is wide open. And while defending champion Chris Horner (Webcor Builders) was hesitant to predict victory, as he did a year ago, Horner’s teammate Charles Dionne was less reluctant. The Canadian sprinter, who won the race in 2002 and has enjoyed a strong showing this season after an injury-plagued 2003, said his form “is similar, if not better than in 2002.” “I’ve been training on the hills in Québec, which is similar to San Francisco but with less traffic,”

If he’s there, he wins. Alessandro Petacchi may have missed the cut on a relatively tough day of climbing Wednesday, but he sure made up for it Thursday, scoring his third victory of this edition of the Vuelta a España. “I know this finish, it seemed almost perfect for me,” the Fassa Bortolo sprinter said. “I asked my team to do what they could for me and they came through and they did so on what has to be the best run to the finish at this Vuelta . . . at least as far as the sprinters are concerned.” It was one surely designed with riders like Petacchi in mind: a wide, nearly

Olympic champion Paolo Bettini of Italy and Belgian sprinter Tom Boonen, who ride for Quick Step, are among the favorites for the 225km Paris-Brussels classic cycling race on Saturday. Boonen showed his form in Wednesday's Rik Van Steenbergen Memorial race in northern Belgium where he had his 22nd victory of the season. Boonen and Bettini, despite their superb record this year, might not have it all their own way with Luxembourg's Kim Kirschen, led by an impressive Fassa Bortolo team, also a possible winner. Other challengers include Italy's Michele Bartoli, Germany's Danilo Hondo,

With its rich tradition of great road racers, you’d think the Germans would have had a few breakthroughs in cross-country racing, too. But the fact is no German man has won so much as a World Cup during the last decade, and their record in world championships is even worse: 0-for-all time. The same goes for Great Britain. The last time a U.K. rider won a cross-country World Cup (Gary Foord in 1994), Ned Overend was still a mainstay on the circuit. Outside of the junior ranks, "God Save the Queen" has never been sung at the world championships. But all that began to change on Friday in Les

Becky Conzelman continued her winning ways during the USCF Elite Track Nationals on Thursday, adding a victory in the 500 meter time trial to her gold medal in the previous day's sprint finals. The Pennsylvania native turned a 36.272 at the Superdrome in Frisco, Texas, to best silver medalist Annette Hanson (Kirkland, Washington) and bronze medalist Miranda Moon (Beaverton, Oregon). In the 200 meter time trial, 18-year-old Michael Blatchford, a resident at the Olympic Training Center in Colorado Springs, Colorado, turned a 10.719 to win gold over 2004 Olympians Giddeon Massie (Lansdale,

Six-time Tour de France champion Lance Armstrong has pulled out of Sunday’s 108-mile T-Mobile International in San Francisco, citing tendinitis in his right knee. Armstrong, who has finished the San Francisco race just once in four attempts, in 2002, thought it best to give his injury a rest and sit out this year’s race in hopes of coming back strong in 2005. The U.S. Postal Service-Berry Floor captain said his injury “started acting up toward the end of the Tour, and I didn’t talk about it – obviously not the wisest thing to do when your rivals are still looking at you – but it never got

For the bulk of Thursday morning Nathalie Schneitter was just trying to salvage something out of nothing. The Swiss rider crashed hard during the start lap of the junior women’s cross-country race in Les Gets, France, leaving her 30th in the 36-rider field. But give Schneitter credit for not mailing it in. Backed by some serious descending skills, and bolstered by an untimely mechanical for Czech rider Tereza Hurikova, the 17-year-old Schneitter clawed her way back to the front, winning the first individual title at the 2004 world mountain bike championships. “When I crash I thought my race

Another day, another jersey. Ever since Saturday's opening team time trial the U.S. Postal team has been in what team director Johan Bruyneel describes as "a very comfortable position." "The time trial gave us the lead and we really don't feel like we need to protect it," Bruyneel told VeloNews before the start of Thursday's 157km stage from Benicarló to Castellón de la Plana. "We're here to see what happens, but there really is no pressure on any of us." Pressure or not, the Posties again succeeded in keeping one of their own in the leader's jersey when a group of nearly 80 riders charged

The sporting director of the Spanish team Comunidad Valenciana-Kelme has reacted angrily to their omission from next year's Pro Tour. Kelme, relegated from cycling's elite division by the UCI this year, was not included on the list of four squads named by the UCI on Wednesday to join the Pro Tour. Spanish team Euskaltel-Euskadi, Belgium's Davitamon-Lotto, and Italian teams Liquigas and Fassa Bortolo were granted provisional licenses. They joined 13 other teams named to form the Tour, a new grand-prix-style cycling calendar comprising 28 races, including the three big Tours and former

Three national champions were crowned Wednesday during the USCF Elite Track National Championships at the Superdrome in Frisco, Texas. Nerac.com – Colby Pearce of Boulder, Colorado, Jame Carney of Durango, Colorado, Robert Lea of Taneytown, Maryland, and Guillaume Nelessen of Bellemead, New Jersey – turned a 4:31.9 to win the team pursuit. Team Veloworx – Douglas Beck of Maynard, Ohio, Curtis Gunn of Tucson, Arizona, Julian Cushing of Philadelphia, Pennsylvania, and Kenneth Williams of Kirkland, Washington – raced to the silver in 4:36.4. The bronze went to Cody Racing – Marcus Black,

It was all a matter of timing, and Denis Menchov knew he had timed it right when he looked over his shoulder near the finish line of the fifth stage of the Vuelta a España on Wednesday and saw that Alejandro Valverde wasn't with him. Menchov (Illes Balears-Banesto), was not in the minority at the start in Zaragoza when he pegged the Kelme rider as the day's favorite. "This course suits a rider like Valverde," Menchov said of the 186km haul to Morella. It wasn't the wind-blown flats that opened up the stage, or the seemingly endless run of tough, but un-rated, climbs that peaked out with

Olympic bronze medalist Bobby Julich could be joining compatriot Fred Rodriguez at the new Belgian super-team Davitamon-Lotto in 2005. The Belgian newspaper Het Niewsblad reported that Julich is close to inking a deal with the team and the 32-year-old Coloradan’s name was linked to the team in a press release by new bike sponsor Ridley Damocles. Julich did not reply to an e-mail query Tuesday from VeloNews but his current team, Team CSC, said there was no contract yet for Julich to stay with the Danish team. In 2004, Julich enjoyed his finest season since finishing third in the 1998 Tour de

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If depth is the true measure of a country’s cycling strength, then Canada certainly deserves the nod as one of the world’s best. Despite fielding a team that included just one world’s team relay veteran, the Canadians powered to a 24-second win over Switzerland in the opening event of the 2004 world mountain bike championships at Les Gets, France on Wednesday. It was the third relay victory in four years for Canada, which also took the world’s title at Vail in 2001 and Kaprun in 2002. “We know we have good depth,” said Geoff Kabush, who rode the opening leg of the four-lap race, giving

Dear Lennard,I just installed a new Wippermann 10-spd chain on an otherwise Campy Record group. All the components are one year old. I'm trying to eliminate an annoying "tinging" that I'm getting when climbing hard out of the saddle or sprinting. No success with the "tinging" but I introduced a new problem ... the new chain jumps and skips and won't stay engaged in the larger cogs. Have I worn out the rear cogs? I'm now thinking that the "tinging" noise may be coming from the engagement of the chain with the chainrings (30-42-52 ); the old Campy chain engages the rear cogset okay, but perhaps

Winds were the star of the fourth stage of the 59th Vuelta a España, all but smothering the action in the 167.5km stage from Soria to Zaragoza. Heavy cross- and headwinds made escape all but impossible. Several tried in vain, but the stage finally came down a mass sprint with Alessandro Petacchi (Fassa Bortolo) taking his second win in three days. And the day wasn’t without mishaps. Several riders hit the deck, including Olympic time trial champion Tyler Hamilton (Phonak), who crossed the line with a bloodied right knee and hip. Zaragoza equals wind Wind is always a protagonist in

Fresh off winning Tuesday’s rainy stage into Soria in the 59th Vuelta a España, Alejandro Valverde said he will leave the troubled Valenciana-Kelme team if it’s not included in next year’s UCI Pro Tour. “I still don’t know what I am doing. I still have three years of contract with Valenciana-Kelme and in principal I have to continue with them,” Valverde told the Spanish daily AS. “The team has asked for a racing license to be in the Pro Tour but it appears it’s not sure they’re going to get it. And if I am going to be among the best then it’s obvious that I have to go.” Several teams have

Juan Jose Haedo of Colavita Olive Oil took the overall title at the World Children's Cycling Classic in Georgia over Labor Day weekend, while U.S. Postal Service's George Hincapie won the weekend's final event, the U.S. 100K road race in Marietta.

Bobby Lea (T.E.A.M. Fuji) and Annette Hanson (Team Rubicon) won national individual-pursuit titles on Tuesday during the USCF Elite Track National Championships at the Superdrome in Frisco, Texas. Defending champ Lea, of Taneytown, Maryland, and Hanson, of Kirkland, Washington, each posted the fastest times in the morning’s qualification rounds. Lea went on to beat Kenny Williams (First Rate Mortgage) of Kirkland in the evening’s finals. Tucson’s Curtis Gunn (Veloworx Racing) won the bronze from Boulder’s Colby Pearce (TIAA-CREF-5280). In the women’s pursuit, Hanson defeated North

There’s never a dull moment in the Vuelta a España. Well, not if you slept through the first 100km of Monday’s soggy 157.1km third stage from Burgos to Soria. For the first half of the stage it seemed the peloton was on siesta as a four-man breakaway that included U.S. Postal Service foot soldier Benoit Joachim chalked up a lead of nearly 10 minutes. But the bunch awakened from its slumber when it got a sniff of the finish line and the lead quickly dwindled against headwinds and heavy pressure from T-Mobile, Valenciana-Kelme and Cofidis – but not before Joachim gobbled up all three

Passing around the Vuelta a España leader’s jersey wasn’t necessarily in the plan for U.S. Postal Service, but Floyd Landis was more than happy to pass the lead to teammate Max Van Heeswijk in Sunday’s second stage. Van Heeswijk chased time bonuses during the longest stage of the 2004 Vuelta and earned a six-second bonus to slip into the lead. Postal’s Benoit Joachim was third in the intermediate sprint to grab a two-second time bonus and moved ahead of Landis into second overall. “It wasn’t part of the plan that I would take the lead,” Van Heeswijk said on the Vuelta’s official race page.

Some riders would have packed it in after having struggled the way Anna Milkowski (Rona) did for the first three days of Vermont’s Green Mountain Stage Race. The first-year pro suffered through every stage, losing time to the leaders she knew she should be riding with. On Monday, however, the former schoolteacher from Maine soloed off the front with three laps remaining to win the Burlington criterium, the fourth and final stage of the 2004 Green Mountain Stage Race. “I entered the race with absolutely nothing to lose because I was very far down [on GC] and I really wanted to race hard and

Following Saturday’s team time trial to kick start the 59th Vuelta a España, the peloton hit the road Sunday with the 207km second stage, the longest of the three-week romp across Spain. With a largely flat course across the treeless expanse of northern Spain, two factors proved to be decisive in the Vuelta’s first road stage: the wind and Fassa Bortolo’s silver train. Both were protagonists, with heavy crosswinds buffeting the peloton in the second half of the stage before the bunch came in for a mass gallop. Alessandro Petacchi was back to his old tricks, winning his eighth career Vuelta

Floyd Landis was the center of attention Sunday morning in the Vuelta a España start village as the U.S. Postal Service rider proudly showed off his leader’s jersey. It’s the first time an American has worn the Vuelta’s leader’s jersey and the first time for Landis to wear a European race leader’s jersey since the Tour de l’Avenir in 1999. Landis won the Volta a Algarve in Portugal in February but took the lead in the final stage, not giving him much time to enjoy the spotlight. “I didn’t sleep in the jersey, but it’s nice to have it,” Landis joked to VeloNews before Sunday’s second stage

Anne-Marie Miller is old enough to know better, but the 49-year-old Verizon Wireless-Wheelworks rider still thought a solo breakaway in Sunday’s Mad River Road Race might be worth a shot. The third and most demanding day of the 2004 Green Mountain Stage Race, which started and finished in Waitsfield, took the elite women’s field up two major climbs in the Green Mountains, with the finishing ascent of the insidious Appalachian Gap the nail in many riders’ coffins. Miller knew she couldn’t climb with the leaders and instead chose to hit the base of the App’ Gap climb with nearly four minutes

By the morning of day three, with the Eurobike show in Friedrichshafen, Germany, only half over – the show opens its doors to the public for a day after three business-only days – the consensus was already firm: This was one of the best bike shows in years. Some of that good cheer is a spillover from the general heartiness in the industry. Through June, 2004 was on track to be a banner year, with bikes of all kinds selling well at all prices. Sales went suddenly soft in July and August, in Europe and the U.S., but the slowdown in spending affected all discretionary purchases, not just bikes,

Mit der golden and silver people yet.

Tyler Hamilton could become the first American racer to win a stage in each grand tour if he can roll out of the 59th Vuelta a España with a stage victory. The 33-year-old New Englander already has stage wins in the Giro d’Italia (a time trial in 2002) and in the Tour de France (a mountain stage in 2003) and said he’s motivated to make it a hat trick. “I have won stages in the other grand tours, so I wouldn’t mind to win one here to complete the circle,” Hamilton said before Friday’s opening ceremony. “We’ll see how things go. I’m here thinking about the overall but I will also work for

History has a way of repeating itself at U.S. Postal Service and now Floyd Landis is hoping that trend continues after he became the first American to wear the leader’s jersey at the Vuelta a España on Saturday after his team roared to victory in the opening team time trial. “We didn’t have a particular plan about who would come across first, but we had a plan on how to ride the time trial,” said Landis, who enjoyed some quality time on the podium following the stage. “Johan called in on the radio in the last 500 meters and he was generous enough to give me the lead, so I wasn’t

We have started the Vuelta on the right foot with a nice stage win in the team time trial. The TTT is one of my favorite events as it takes a complete team effort; and, the feeling when everything is running smoothly is incredible. During the effort the whole team is completely focused- it feels as if we are riding in a tunnel with nothing but the open road in front of us with the voice of Johan encouraging us over the radio, the noise of the disc wheels, the sound of the wind and our breath blocking out all other noises and distractions. In the last two years we have lost the Vuelta

On a day when all signs pointed to bunch sprint finishes, the finales of the elite men’s and women’s circuit races at day two of the Green Mountain Stage Race produced something else altogether. Men did 72 miles and the women 52 on Saturday’s undulating 19.4-mile circuit in Moretown, Vermont. On paper, the course was hard, but not hard enough to break up the respective fields. All previous editions of the race had ended in furious field sprints, but the 2004 edition was an exception. Joe Papp (ACT-UPMC) soloed off a group of four to win the men’s race, finishing off a 10km breakaway effort

Levi Leipheimer has signed a two-year contract to join the German squad Gerolsteiner for the 2005-06 seasons. After two top-10 finishes in three Tour de France starts, the 30-year-old American will join rising star Georg Totschnig as team leader going into the ProTour inaugural next season. “This is a major coup,” said team manager Hans Michael Holczer on the team’s web page. “We’ll have a strong reinforcement for the grand tours, secondly he will be able to share leadership duties with Totschnig and finally his strong experience can help young riders on our team.” Leipheimer couldn’t be

More items of note from the shores of the Bodensee: personal trainers, power measurement devices, saddles — do you detect a theme here? Tacx i-Magic Fortius trainerThe i-Magic Fortius trainer from Tacx is billed as a "virtual reality trainer," a claim that may seem overly modest when you witness the stunning capabilities of this amazing device. Hooked up to your PC or projection television, the Fortius can put you in the middle of a virtual reality race that you program, or a ride up the Alpe d'Huez taken with real-life video. You can also load in training software that analyzes and