Immediately after finishing seventh at Ghent-Wevelgem on Wednesday, Johan Museeuw was angry with how the race had developed for his Quick Step-Davitamonteam, but he later said, “I again felt a little weakness [from my coldlast week], but in any case I will be ready for the Hell” — referring toParis-Roubaix’s moniker, the Hell of the North. In hindsight, Museeuw andhis Quick Step teammates Tom Boonen and Servais Knaven should havecontrolled the 12-strong break that emerged 40km from the finish of Ghent-Wevelgem,and protected each other in the strong head winds before making some attackspay off

On paper a 30-minute event wouldn’t seem too hard. After all, no matterhow hard it is, it only lasts half an hour. But don’t tell that to theracers whose tongues were dragging after 3 minutes of Saturday’s third stagein the 2003 Sea Otter Classic MTB event. The short track race always delivers on its promise of being the hardesthalf hour in mountain bike racing. “That is the hardest stage of the Sea Otter right there,” said men’swinner Roland Green (Trek-VW). Green, who went into the day as the overall leader on GC, extended his lead after a last-lap attack took him clear of his three

Editor:Just wanted to share an experience I had with a poorly marshaled racein a residential neighborhood. A few years ago, there was a crit held in Fox Point, Wisconsin (justnorth of Milwaukee), on the Fourth of July. I figured that it would bea good final test for the legs before Superweek, and a cool race for mymom to come watch. Almost until the end, it was a fun race on a good course. On the lastlap, as the field came out of the last corner and accelerated towards thefinish line, an ambulance pulled onto the course, trying to get acrossto the fire station - not a good thing during a

The 1890s1896 Josef Fischer (G) 280km&Nbsp; (30.162kph)1897 Maurice Garin (F) 280km (28.124kph)1898 Maurice Garin (F) 268km (32.599kph)1899 Albert Champion (F) 268km (31.976kph)The 1900s1900 Emile Bouhours (F) 268km (37.352kph)1901 Lucien Lesna (F) 280km (25.861kph)1902 Lucien Lesna (F) 268km (28.088kph)1903 Hippolyte Aucouturier (F) 268km (29.104kph)1904 Hippolyte Aucouturier (F) 268km (32.518kph)1905 Louis TROUSSELIER (F) 268km (33.206kph)1906 Henri CORNET (F) 270km (27.034kph)1907 Georges PASSERIEU (F) 270km (30.971kph)1908 Cyrille VAN HAUWAERT (B) 271km (25.63kph)1909 Octave LAPIZE (F)

For many European road teams, a win at a major spring classic can go a long way toward calling the season a success. With Peter Van Petegem’s win at the Tour of Flanders last Sunday, his Lotto-Domo squad, beloved by their Belgian fans, has one feather in its cap already. And Telekom had a pleasant surprise when its 27-year-old German Andreas Klier stole a win at Ghent-Wevelgem Wednesday. But two days before the 101st running of Paris-Roubaix, arguably the most prestigious race of all the spring classics, one team is growing restless for a win: Quick Step-Davitamon. Stacked with talent, the

Day three of racing at the Sea Otter Classic pro stage race saw no major changes on the leader board, as Saturn’s Lyne Bessette and Prime Alliance’s Michael Creed took stage wins in front of an enthusiastic crowd. Originally planned to be a criterium in Santa Cruz, Friday’s course was, at the last minute, changed to the raceway circuit of years past, due both to concerns over the integrity of the Santa Cruz course and a push to intensify the stage race after the pro men protested the controversial Redwood City circuit. Instead, the circuit race course was used, a course that includes a steep

In cycling, you know you’re a bad ass when you get an Italian nickname. While il professore might not rank up there with il diablo, il pirata, or il grillo in sheer gravity, Steve Tilford’s Italian nickname is still cool. The 42-year-old Tilford (Verge Sports) won the second stage of SOBE Sea Otter mountain bike stage race in his specialty, the fat boy criterium, and proved that having a niche, however small, can’t be a bad thing. Run along a scenic coastal course in Santa Cruz, the fat boy crit allowed (forced?) mountain bike racers to shed their knobbies for slicks and then try keep from

It always seemed like a natural fit for mountain biking: the Jeep King of the Mountain series. But until now you had to be involved in snow sports to wear one of those crowns. That could change come this summer’s latest rendition of the KOM, when the fat-tire sect may be battling for a total prize purse of $100,000 during a three-race series, which will receive three hours of television coverage. And while some of the i’s and t’s still need to be dealt with – mostly regarding scheduling – this is a done deal according to Eclipse TV’s Denise Lavaroni. “It’s definitely happening,” said

After being stuck on replay for three days, the Tour of the Basque Country changed the script in Thursday’s 171-km fourth stage. The five-climb stage didn’t end in a bunch sprint and there wasn’t a new leader, as has been the plot line since Monday. With the overall fight coming down to a nail-biter in Friday’s dual-stage finale, the leading protagonists didn’t want things to get too far out of control. Lampre’s Marco Pinotti scored a huge win after going on a mega solo break to finish just three seconds ahead of the surging peloton while Kelme’s Alejandro Valverde led the bunch across just

Andreas Klier was in no hurry to leave on Wednesday afternoon. Perched in a dirty brown chair in a smoke-filled room of reporters in Wevelgem, Belgium — the finishing town of the 65th running of the midweek classic known as Ghent-Wevelgem — the blond-haired, blue-eyed German was soaking it all in.

Another stage at the Vuelta al Pais Vasco and another bunch sprint? Yes, and another photo finish in a race in what's usually a shoot-out between the mountain goats. This time it was Kelme's Alejandro Valverde who had the thicker tires to snatch the win away from Gerolsteiner's Davide Rebellin in Wednesday's 191km stage from Plentzia to Vitoria. Gerolsteiner's Fabian Wegmann was already pumping his arm in celebration, thinking that Rebellin had won when Valverde came from six riders back to score his second win this season. "We went all day thinking it would come down to a sprint, so I was

Sitting at the start-finish line before the Sea Otter’s opening Redwood City road race, Saturn’s Chris Horner was concerned. Relaxed, of course, as he always is, but concerned. In lieu of the Sea Otter’s traditional Fort Ord road race, which was replaced after permit issues hindered a full road closure, the Northern California stage race designed a new circuit race, in the hometown of Sea Otter chief operating officer Rick Sutton. But many of the riders that had pre-ridden the tight and twisty residential course, with its sharp, short climbs and narrow, technical streets, felt it was too

FDJeux.com’s Carlos Da Cruz won a sprint finish to take the first stage of a star-studded Circuit de la Sarthe in Fontenay le Comte, France, on Tuesday. In a race featuring American four-time Tour de France winner Lance Armstrong and Germany's Jan Ullrich, Da Cruz stole the limelight after 188km ride from Nantes, taking the leader's jersey in the process. The 28-year-old Frenchman crossed the line in 5:10:13, beating Russian Alexei Sivakov in a sprint to the line. The rest of the main peloton arrived almost six minutes later, with Ullrich placing 22nd at 5:52, and Armstrong finishing

Iban Mayo ended Euskaltel's drought after he won the opening stage of the 43rd Vuelta al Pais Vasco in northern Spain on Monday while CSC's Tyler Hamilton finished third. It's the first win of the season for Mayo and the first for his Euskaltel-Euskadi team, still hoping to earn a wild-card bid to race in the 2003 Tour de France. The usually high-flying Euskaltel team has been quiet this spring, out-classed by other teams hoping for a Tour bid such as Domina Vacanze, Ag2r, Milaneza-MSS and Brioches La Boulangere. One win won't get the orange-clad Basques into the Tour, but a solid week at

I don't know what to say. I guess I should just stick my head in a hole and not say anything. But, I'll blabber, just for you. How in the world I could just let 1-2-3 Saturn combo ride away must seem a mystery to the velo world? No, I'm not so stupid as to just let them go away thinking they'd come back in time for dinner. It went like this: Our first objective was to get David Clinger in secure in the KOM jersey. All he needed was to win the first KOM to wrap it up 100 percent. Our second objective was to win the stage. This was most likely to be Clinger or Danny Pate. So, off I went

It was a scene you’re unlikely to see anywhere else. The sun was barely up, having made a feeble attempt to rise on a damp, chilly Sunday morning, but already the restaurant patios were filled with customers. And in the hands of those customers were mugs filled with beer.

Russian Oleg Grishkine delivered a huge win for the Navigators in Sunday's 25th GP Rennes in France. Griskhine held off Andris Naudzus (CCC Polsat) and Jeremy Hunt (Oktos) to win the first race in Europe this year for the Navs. Griskhine's win also serves as a repeat for the Navigators, who won GP Rennes last year with Kirk O'Bee. The 157.5km circuit course ended in a bunch sprint and the Russian scored the victory for Navigators, now on their second tour of Europe this spring. Teammate Henk Vogels came across seventh after just missing victory in Friday's Route Adelie. The GP Rennes was

There wasn’t a good deal of bike racing to speak of, in either the men or women’s events, during Sunday’s fifth stage at the Redlands Classic. In fact, the parallels between the two races, held over a twisty, hilly and technical 7.5-mile loop, were the most remarkable story on an otherwise unremarkable closing day of racing. In the women’s 8-lap, 62-mile event, overall leader Genevieve Jeanson (RONA-Esker) attacked up the first hill on the first lap and simply never looked back. A brief chase ensued by Saturn’s Manon Jutras and Lyne Bessette, second and third on the GC, respectively, and

German Matthias Kessler (Telekom) won Saturday's GP Miguel Indurain in a hotly contested race that took race judges a long time to figure out who won. Kessler finished barely ahead of defending champion Angel Vicioso (ONCE) and David Etxebarria (Euskaltel) in a bunch sprint out of a lead group of 34 riders and judges scoured the photo-finish to decide who actually won. Three riders -- Pedro Díaz Lobato (Paternina), Alberto Martínez (Euskaltel) and Benjamín Noval (Fuenlabrada) - attacked with about 35km to go, but were reeled in one-by-one with less than 5km to go. GP Miguel Indurain,

It was another banner day for the Saturn Cycling program in Redlands Saturday, as ace sprinters came through with stage wins at the Redlands Downtown Criterium in both the men's and women's events. In the women’s 60-minute race, Ina Teutenberg easily won a two-up sprint against RONA-Esker’s Cathy Marsal, while on the men’s side it was Charles Dionne, winner of the same stage last year, surprising the field with a surge around the last bend, beating Health Net's Gord Fraser by several bike lengths. Teutenberg’s win, her second stage win in four days, came as little surprise as she had made

Henk Vogels nearly delivered a big result for the Navigators during its second European sorjourn of the 2003 season. Vogels finished second, just two seconds behind winner Sebastien Joly (Jean Delatour), in Friday's GP Adelie in Vitre, France. Joly came across the line in 4 hours, 34 minutes, 38 seconds, while the Australian won the bunch sprint ahead of such names as Laurent Brochard (Ag2r), winner of the Criterium International last weekend. Cedric Vasseur (Cofidis) and Jens Voigt (Credit Agricole) came across the line fourth and fifth, respectively. The GP Adelie was the fourth stop in

The top spots in the Redlands Classic general classification remain unchanged Friday, after another tough day of racing saw Genevieve Jeanson (RONA-Esker) win her second consecutive stage, while John Lieswyn of 7UP-Maxxis won a five-up sprint against breakaway companions from Prime Alliance and Navigators. A new course to the Redlands Classic, the stage 3 Panorama Point Road Race, dished out a series of steep climbs over the 10-mile loop — the worst section reaching grades of near 20% grade. The men went up and over the circuit six times, while the women raced for four. If Jeanson’s

It all worked perfectly. Our devious plan of attack was devised with utmost intelligence, and detail. We carried out the plan exactly as it was devised, and everything went right to a number. And we still lost. I hope this isn't the case as to what's happening in Iraq. Actually it can't be, as team Saturn seems to be the superior of the Fedayeen. Anyhow, we decided the best policy today was to attack early and often. We had nothing to lose, as the saying goes. We figured by getting Matt Decanio, and Mike Creed up the road as soon as the pistol fired in Friday's Panorama

Raivis Belohvosciks put down an excellent final time trial in the Three Days of La Panne to score the biggest win of his career and for his upstart Marlux team after beating Italian veteran Gianluca Bortolami by just 1 second. Thursday's final stage was split, with a morning sprint sector and an afternoon time trial to decide the overall winner. Poor weather continued to plague the race and four riders decided not to start, including Michele Bartoli (Fassa Bortolo). More than 50 riders abandoned the three-day stage-race, leaving just 88 riders finishing the race. Rabobank's Steven

The Redlands Classic continued Thursday with it's most feared stage, the Oak Glen road race, 106 miles (82 for the women) that finishes off with a nasty 10-kilometer climb that gains 2400 feet in elevation. Needless to say, it was a day for the climbers, as Canadian Genevieve Jeanson (RONA-Esker) confirmed her position as the premiere climber in North American women’s racing, riding away from her closest GC contenders in the final kilometers and winning the stage by nearly three minutes. In the men’s race, Saturn’s Nathan O’Neill showed that not only can he time trial, as evidenced by his

Italian Fabio Baldato (Alessio) won the second stage of the Three Days of La Panne on Wednesday, a blustery, sunny day in Belgium. Gianluca Bortolami (Sidermec) continued his hold on the overall lead after finishing safely in the lead bunch. Two riders were reeled in with 22km to go in the 228km stage from Zottegem to Koksijde to set up the mass sprint. A strong tailwind pushed the bunch along nicely over the final circuits, with speeds reaching nearly 70 kph on the flats. Fassa Bortolo drove things home, but the veteran Baldato had the legs to beat Gerben Lowik (Bankgiroloterij) and Jimmy

The second day of racing at the Redlands Classic brought stage victories to two familiar names in the domestic race scene, as Health Net’s Gord Fraser and Saturn’s Ina Teutenberg won the hilly stage 1 Highland circuit race. With short, steep climbs and a long, gradual downhill into a headwind, the circuit wasn’t exactly made for aggressive racing; any attempt to get away was vulnerable on the windy, wide-open descent. Although the day was claimed by a pair of sprinters, the course — a five-mile loop consisting of a 300-foot stair-step climb through a local housing community, raced eight

With the classics season now in full swing, U.S. Postal Service is regrouping with its consistent heavy-hitter George Hincapie out of the picture. Hincapie returned to the United States just days after it was announced March 15 the 29-year-old he would not be competing in the spring classics due to a lingering viral infection that left the 2001 Gent-Wevelgem champion rundown and tired. With Hincapie undergoing tests for a possible return by May, however, the Posties will be entering Sunday’s Tour of Flanders in uncharted territory. “We have to rethink our tactics because George was

Frenchman Laurent Brochard (Ag2R) dominated Sunday’s double-stage finale to win this weekend’s Criterium International. Brochard won the morning sector Sunday to take the race lead and finished third-fastest in the afternoon time trial to win for the first time this season and give his team’s a big boost at earning an at-large bid for July’s Tour de France. Brochard’s win is the first by a Frenchman at Criterium International since Laurent Jalabert won eight years ago. “It is important to win after Laurent, I hope I can go on this way,” Brochard said. “Today, the final victory was very

Chris Horner (Saturn) and Kimberly Bruckner (T-Mobile) locked up the overall titles at California’s Solano Bicycle Classic, as Horner continued his dominance and took the final circuit race and his teammate Ina Teutenberg scored a sprint win in the women’s race. Horner not only held on to his leader’s jersey, he won the stage. Jumping out of the penultimate corner, Horner bested the sprinters outlasting Greg Henderson of 7Up-Maxxis and HealthNet’s Gord Fraser in a blazing fast field sprint. The day started for the men promptly at 1 pm, when the neutralized parade of riders left downtown

It was all about Saturn at Solano on Saturday. The criterium, the third stage of the Solano Bicycle Classic, proved to be a showcase for the red and yellow, with Eric Wohlberg taking first on the men’s side and Laura Van Gilder atop the women’s race. Saturn led a charging breakaway in the men’s race, with five teammates pulling together, including Chris Horner, Trent Klasna, Mark McCormack and Viktor Rapinski, to keep the pace very high. Horner put in terrific turns at the front, stringing along Prime Alliance’s Jonathan Vaughters, Ben Brooks of Jelly Belly and all the strong GC contenders

German sprint ace Erik Zabel added one more to his palmares in the rain in Spain on Friday while Dario Frigo wrapped up the overall title at the Setmana Catalana. Zabel’s faced criticism all spring that he’s lost his touch. His first win didn’t come until Tour of Murcia, then he finished sixth at Milan-San Remo before losing his top-spot in the world rankings. Zabel, however, stayed quiet and simply let his legs – and his professionalism - do the talking. On Friday, he took his second win of the week by charging to an easy victory in the 176km fifth and final stage of Catalana week. Rain

Dario Frigo chugged away from Lance Armstrong and other top favorites to win the fourth stage of Setmana Catalana and take control of the race with just one stage remaining. The four-time Tour de France champion stayed with the lead group of riders up the long, difficult 19.5km Category 1 climb to the finish at the ski village of Pal, high in the Spanish Pyrénées, until the attacks by Juan Miguel Mercado fractured the lead group with 2km to go. Armstrong, racing in his second race of the season as he prepares for the Tour de France in July, came across 24th at 1:11 back. Frigo, however, is

Rabobank’s Beat Zberg sneaked into the overall lead of the 40th Setmana Catalana after finishing third in Wednesday’s third stage. Italian Marco Zanotti (Fassa Bortolo) delivered another loss to Erik Zabel in the bunch sprint into Parets del Valles while Gonzalo Bayarri (Phonak) finished behind Zberg to forfeit the leader’s jersey. Thursday’s 144km “queen’s stage” from Parets to Alto de Pal will be the decisive stage. U.S. Postal’s Lance Armstrong could jump into contention for final victory if he continues to demonstrate the strong form he’s shown so far in his “home race.” “Lance wants to

Swiss rider Beat Zberg (Rabobank) easily zipped past Spain’s Juan Antonio Flecha (iBanesto.com) to win Tuesday’s 158km second stage of Setmana Catalana. Phonak’s Gonzalo Bayarri came across third, but took the overall lead from Erik Zabel (Telekom) after strong placings in the opening two sprints. Zabel lost contact with the leaders of the Category 1 Alt de San Pere de Rodes, a stunning climb high above Spain’s rugged Costa Brava. Two riders – Relax’ Oscar Laguna and Paternina’s Xavier Tondo -- were off the front about 2 minutes at the base of the long, grinding climb, but the lead bunch

With temperatures pushing well into the mid 80s, and almost nowhere to hide from the blistering sun, riders battled through a hot final day at the Nova Desert Classic outside Phoenix on Sunday. When racing was done, Jeremy Horgan-Kobelski and Mary Grigson emerged as overall winners in the three-stage event that served as the kick-off race for the 2003 pro mountain biking season. Horgan-Kobelski earned his victory by facing down reigning world champion Roland Green in a one-on-one battle over the last half of the fifth and final lap around the six-mile course. After spending much of the day

One of the saddest tasks for a journalist is writing obituaries, particularly in the case of young athletes at the height of their careers. A few weeks ago in this column, I wrote about Italian racer Denis Zanette, who died of heart failure at age 32. Who knows how much the harsh life of a professional cyclist contributed to his untimely death? This past week another member of the cycling family left this world prematurely. His name was Andreï Kivilev, a 29-year-old from Kazakhstan who raced for the French team Cofidis. In both cases, the tragedy was heightened by their being recent fathers:

Paolo Bettini (Quick Step-Davitamon) won Saturday's World Cup opener, the 297km classic, Milan San-Remo. Stay tuned for a complete race wrap-up from Andrew Hood, more photos from Graham Watson and complete results. Meanwhile, to see how today's race unfolded just clickhere, to pull up our Live Update window. The defending World Cup champion of the Quick.Step-Davitamon team won an exciting sprint finish ahead of Mirko Celestino and Luca Paolini.

Quick Step’s Paolo Bettini delivered a thrilling victory in Saturday’s Milan-San Remo, denying world champion Mario Cipollini his hoped-for big gift on his 36th birthday. Indeed, Bettini did what no one has done since 1995, successfully attacking on the final climb, the famed Poggio that tops out just 5.7km from the finish, to stymie the sprinters in the World Cup opener that’s finished in a mass gallop five out of the past six years. “With two kilometers to go, I said to Luca (Paolini), 'Come on, we can do it,'” said an emotional Bettini. “I wasn’t sure we were going to make it. I thought

Sure, Cipo' won the sprint, but this time it took place 11 seconds too late.

I hate to make light of anything related to the war, but last night, the 9 o'clock local news on Channel 2 here in the Boulder/Denver area opened with the two anchor-people in a map of Iraq. Not with a map of Iraq behind them. Not standing beside a map of Iraq. No, somehow, through the magic of technology, they were actually in the map, walking around on Iraq and showing us what was happening with the war, and where. I couldn't believe my eyes, and I couldn't believe someone actually thought this was a good idea. Of course, I'm sure the local TV newsfolk were exhausted from

The place to be about 4 p.m. Saturday afternoon will be right behind the wheel of Mario Cipollini. The world champion enters the 94th Milan-San Remo race as the favorite to repeat and the only way to beat the Domina Vacanze rider will be to be on his wheel and come around him. Of course, that's assuming the 297km World Cup opener comes down to a sprint... and that most of Cipollini's powerful train makes it with him over the Poggio climb just 5.5 kilometers from the finish on the famed Via Roma in San Remo. And, that's assuming, Cipollini's threat not to start Milan-San Remo

“Where have all the flowers gone?” – Pete SeegerYour mileage may vary, they say. Especially when you’re a cyclist and it’s “springtime” in the Colorado Rockies. As most of the rest of the nation traded its hoodies for Hawaiian shirts and toddled off to get struttin’ drunk in the spring-break sunshine, Coloradans found themselves up to their American-flag lapel pins in real snow for the first time since “Wag the Dog” lit up the silver screen with its utterly fantastic, completely over-the-top tale of a president whose spin doctor whips up a war abroad as a distraction from woes at home. For

My emotions are mixed as I write this latest column from the partly sunny climes of Sedona, Arizona. On one hand I am ecstatic to be here in the desert southwest for the combined Trek-Volkswagen/Subaru-Gary Fisher training/media camp powwow. My two days here have included lots of face time with some of the world’s best mountain-bike racers (Green, Hesjedal, Sydor, Grigson, Redden, Bootes, Ferguson, etc.). And I’ve managed to sneak in a few rides on the labyrinth of sweet single-track trails that wind their way all around the outskirts of this picturesque town, two hours north of

I have been in Belgium for two weeks now, and I can already feel the difference between this year and last. At this time last year, I had not yet finished a race. This year, I have yet to finish a race, but for very different reasons. The difference between this year and last is in the familiarity of the process. I feel like I am reading a novel for a second time and I am able to focus on all the details that escaped my attention on the first read. I also have the benefit of being able to watch the new riders step into this world and share their feelings of awe and enthusiasm. Eric

Germany’s Team Coast announced Thursday that its big Tour de France hope, Jan Ullrich, will make his first appearance in the peloton at the Tour of Sarthe in April. The stage race in central France is scheduled for April 8-11. The 29-year-old German is suspended from competition until March 23 after testing positive last June for amphetamines which he said he took in a nightclub. The positive drug test was just the last chapter in a terrible year for the 1997 Tour winner. Earlier, after undergoing the first of two knee surgeries, Ullrich was convicted of drunk driving charges after running

Rabobank's Oscar Freire won Wednesday's final stage of the Tirreno-Adriatico to send a very strong message to world champion Mario Cipollini. Just days before the World Cup opener at Milan-San Remo, Freire got around Cipo and his formidable train to upset the world champion. “Guess I got lucky and Cipo made a mistake,” Freire said. Cipollini came in second, but won two bunch sprints during TA, Italy's first major stage race of the season. German Erik Zabel came across third, a good sign for the struggling Telekom veteran who's only won once this season on the eve of his major

Quick Step's Paolo Bettini saw his chances for overall victory at Tirreno-Adriatico slip away after he got caught up behind the final sprint coming into the finish line of Tuesday's 181km sixth stage from Teramo to Torricella Sicura. Bettini was about eight riders back when two-time world champion Oscar Freire (Rabobank) clipped tires with Quick Step's Luca Paolini with about 600 meters to go. Freire went down and both Bettini and Paolini got caught up in the pile-up and fell out of contention. But Bettini's loss was Danilo Di Luca's gain. The Saeco rider was just ahead of Paolini and

Editor:While reading the responses endorsing free choice I found myself agreeingwith the rider's right to choose a helmet. But then I thought back to mydays working in a rehabilitation hospital. Seeing the drooling, babblingeffects of a head injury was a powerful image, but the bills and financialimpact on the family and society made just as big an impact. When making a choice, one should consider one’s commitment to his orher family, and if one really wants to be supported as a gorp by Medicaid. Wes Hunter,Alma, CO Bad timing, bad choiceEditor:I was very shocked to hear about the

Italian Ruggero Marzoli (Alessio) won a sloppy uphill sprint into the scenic hilltop town of Rapagnano Monday as the Tirreno-Adriatico pedaled into sunny skies a day after Sunday’s stage was snowed out. Monday’s 181km fifth stage from Monte San Giusto to Rapagnano brought the “Race of Two Seas” closer to the sea after Sunday’s snowy, cold weather forced race officials to cancel the fourth stage over 800-metre Valico Colfiorito climb. Racers woke up to sunny but cool temperatures for the rolling stage ending with a 3-kilometer climb. Ukraine Sergiy Matveyev (Panaria) made the day’s big move,

An emotionally spent Alexandre Vinokourov was more relieved than happy after wrapping up the 61st Paris-Nice on Sunday. It was a tumultuous week for the quiet Kazakh, who fulfilled his promise to win the race in honor of his fallen compatriot and friend, Andrei Kivilev, who died from injuries in a spill in Tuesday’s third stage. “It’s been a very hard week and I’ve given all my concentration to winning the race for ‘Kivi,’” said Vinokourov, who finished 43 seconds ahead of ONCE’s Mikel Zarrabeitia. Spanish rider David Bernabeu scored a big win for his Portuguese-based Milaneza team to

World champion Mario Cipollini won the third stage of Tirreno-Adriatico on Saturday, a 175 kilometer run between Tarquinia and Foligno. The Domina Vacanze team's sprint ace, who added to his first stage win in Sabaudia on Thursday, prevailed in a charge to the line over Telekom’s Erik Zabel and Dario Pieri. Quick Step's Paolo Bettini, boosted by a good set of bonus points, snagged the the overall lead away from Filippo Pozzato (Fassa Bortolo). Cipollini set the pace throughout the stage which was marked by several accidents with the going made tougher by the cold and biting wind. The

Alexandre Vinokourov pushed one day closer to delivering victory in the 61st Paris-Nice after surviving a cold, blustery day along France’s Cote d’Azur. CSC’s Tyler Hamilton lit up the 194km sixth stage from Toulon to Cannes in what he called a “suicidal attack,” riding solo for more than 100 kilometers. His escape, which he described as “a training ride,” gave Hamilton the best climber’s jersey for his efforts. ONCE’s Joaquim Rodriguez won coming into classy Cannes in a five-up sprint on the famed Boulevard de la Croisette after attacking on the Category 2 Col du Tanneron with 23km to

Walked into the office today and what did I see? Two dozen Krispy Kremedonuts staring up at me. Nothing like those little glazed wonders to geta column started, although I’m still partial to my neighborhood DaylightDonuts. This brings up my question for the day: If Tim Horton’s can stepup and sponsor the Canadian national team, and the Canadian national championships every year, why hasn’t someone gotten Dunkin’ Donuts to do the same for the U.S.? It’s a natural. Cyclists love donuts. At least this one does. Anyhow, USA Cycling finally announced the date and location of the 2003elite road

Fassa Bortolo rider Filippo Pozzato won Friday's second stage of the Tirreno-Adriatico stage race, a 215km stage from Sabaudi to Tarquinia. Pozzato took over the lead from fellow Italian Mario Cipollini after the longest stage of the Italian stage race. The 21-year-old Pozzato, a rising star in his homeland, won a sprint finish to beat Italian Paolo Bettini and former world champion Romans Vainsteins of Latvia after negotiating the 484-meter Tolfa climb at the 160km mark. Pozzato waited patiently for his moment before attacking in the final 100 meters to edge out Bettini and

World champion Mario Cipollini, of the Domina Vacanze team, dominated a sprint finish to win the first stage of Tirreno-Adriatico as it finished in Sabaudia, Italy, Thursday. The 35-year-old Italian held off compatriot Dario Pieri to take the leader's jersey after the 178km ride around Sabaudia. After some mediocre riding in the early season Spanish races, Cipollini took full advantage of his team's close protection throughout the day before they led him on to a flat final straight. "I was feeling quite calm, I knew I had worked well recently and knew my fitness was up to scratch,"

The mood at Paris-Nice turned sullen Wednesday morning as riders, support staff and fans learned that Cofidis’s Andrei Kivilev had died from injuries caused in his freakish fall during a stage a day earlier. Kivilev fell face first with about 40km left in 182km stage into Saint Etienne and later lapsed into a coma, which doctors sustained with drugs to control his blood pressure. Cofidis team doctors said Kivilev died at 10:00 a.m. Wednesday morning at a hospital in Le Puy-En-Velay, France, after attending physicians doctors lost an all-night battle to control swelling of the 29-year-old’s

Gerolsteiner's Davide Rebellin won the second stage of Paris-Nice, sprinting out of a lead group of six riders that escaped on the slopes of the Category 1 Croix de Chaubouret and held off pursuers on a long descent into Saint Etienne. With time bonuses, Rebellin also took the yellow jesey of overall leader, three seconds ahead of defending champion Alexandre Vinokourov (Telekom), who finished second in the stage. The group also included Fassa Bortolo's Dario Frigo who drove the pace on the day's hardest climb and now stands in third place overall at 13 seconds. Stuart

Paris-Nice got its third race leader in three days after Gerolsteiner’s David Rebellin out-sprinted his five rivals in a breakaway that shook up the 61st Paris-Nice. Tuesday’s 182km second stage from La Clayette to Saint Etienne hit four rated climbs, then Category 1 Croix du Chaubouret before an 18km descent to the finish-line and the long, grinding stage separated the contenders from the rest of the field. 2001 champion Dario Frigo (Fassa Bortolo) punched the accelerator with 2km to the summit to Chaubouret to split the lead group of about 40 riders. Only Rebellin and defending champion

Racing resumed Sunday at the Pomona Valley Stage Race in patented 75-degree Southern California weather, with just enough of a breeze to blow back the smog curtain that normally covers nearby Mount Baldy (snow-capped this time of year). While not pivotal in determining the overall winners of the race (that was essentially decided in the race's first uphill time-trial stage), Sunday's criterium still provided a remote possibility of dethroning overall leaders Genevieve Jeanson and Tom Danielson from their top spots -- if either suffered a race-ending crash, or California's much-anticipated

As predicted, the 191km first stage of Paris-Nice finished in a field sprint, perhaps the only opportunity for the sprinters to show their stuff in this mountainous edition of this early season French stage race.VeloNews.com followed the action all the way to the finish line in Paray le Monial. Just click here to bring up our live update window.Check in soon for a complete stage wrap up from European correspondent Andrew Hood, full results and stunning photos from the camera of Graham Watson. 61st Paris-Nice, March 9-16, stages: Prologue, March 9 - Issy les Moulineaux , 4.8km Stage 1, March

Fassa Bortolo’s Alessandro Petacchi made it look easy in Monday’s firststage of the 61st Paris-Nice, and he wasn’t even feeling all thathealthy. Fassa Bortolo did nice work driving Petacchi to his third win this seasonwhile Stuart O’Grady (Crédit Agricole) came across third to earn just enoughtime bonuses to grab the overall leader’s jersey away from prologue winnerNico Mattan (Cofidis). “I really have to thank my team because I was not feeling very goodtoday,” said Petacchi, already a winner at Trofeo Luis Puig and of a stageat Tour of Valencia last month in Spain. “Our train did a great

Orlando's Festival of Speed was very nearly an all-Ivan affair, as Saturn's Ivan Dominguez won the Saturday criterium and local rider Ivan Franco (Jet Network-Home Finance) tested Jittery Joe's Jeff Hopkins in Sunday's circuit race. Hopkins, though, managed to edge out Franco for the win to complete the weekend of National Racing Calendar racing. On Saturday, Dominguez was clearly the strongman in the evening criterium, winning out of a group of seven that included 7UP-Maxxis teammates John Lieswyn and Brice Jones, who tried repeatedly to work over the Saturn rider. "Ivan was just

Gord Fraser (HealthNet) pulled off his second win at the Pomona Valley Stage Race on Saturday, the Stage 3 Puddingstone Road Race held in and around Bonelli Regional Park. The 7.8 mile loop offered 700 feet of climbing per lap with a total elite men's distance of 98 miles with the elite women riding 72 miles. Fraser credited his team's ability to close down any of the breaks that tried to escape the pack (a mistake that almost cost them Friday's Circuit Race). And while an early break of six riders comprised of fellow HealthNet riders Russell Stevensen and Jason Lokkesmoe provided just

It was a day's of two's for Tyler Hamilton and Lance Armstrong. Each barely missed winning a race against the clock by just two seconds; Hamilton at the opening prologue of the 61st Paris-Nice and Armstrong in the final time trial of the Tour of Murcia in Spain. Both were making their respective season debuts this week and it's obvious both are already in fine shape heading into more important races later in the season. Here's a look at all the racing action Sunday in Europe: Hamilton debuts in P-N openerCSC's Tyler Hamilton just missed winning Sunday's opening

Two familiar names in North American racing – Gord Fraser and GenevieveJeanson -- scored wins Friday at the KB Home circuit race, the second stageof the Pomona Valley Stage race. Held in one of Southern California's newest planned communities, atthe very end of Southern California's newest freeways (as if it needs both),the stage kicked off under sunny skies and mild breezes (only partiallysmog-filled). With the women's race starting at 1:25 in the afternoon andthe men following at 3:00, competitors raced on a 2.3-mile nearly dead-flatloop around a work-in-progress, the ultra-suburban KB

Despite the insistence of director Juan Fernandez that his team is financially healthy the Union Cycliste Internationale on Thursday suspended Germany’s Team Coast for its failure to provide necessary financial guarantees. Fernandez had earlier said that the team is in a good position to retain the services of 1997 Tour de France winner Jan Ullrich (see “Ullrich still a Coastie, says Fernandez” below), but the UCI action now puts that contract in doubt. The troubled team's riders have been told they may continue participating in Spain’s Tour of Murcia, which ends on Sunday, however

Chris Carmichael, now renowned as Lance Armstrong’s personal coach,has been elected to the U.S. Bicycling Hall of Fame along with four otherswho will be formally inducted at a banquet on May 25 in Somerville, NewJersey.Hall of Fame President Ernie Seubert and Chairman of the Nominationand Selection Committee Ray Cipollini certified the votes after tallyingballots cast by industry leaders, cycling governing bodies and journalists.Carmichael, who lives in Colorado Springs, was selected as a Contributorfor his coaching, which includes serving as U.S. Cycling Federation’s Men’sRoad coach from

Lampre’s Jan Svorada came back to Spain and did what he did this time last year: Win the opening stage of the Tour de Murcia in a tough field sprint. But this year he had to beat Erik Zabel to do it. The two battled to the line at the end of Wednesday’s 162km first stage between Murcia and Ceuti in southeastern Spain, a day that also served as the season debut of four-time Tour de France winner Lance Armstrong. Indeed, Armstrong was the clearly the center of attention before the start in Murcia as big crowds hovered around the U.S. Postal Service bus hoping to catch a glimpse of the

Mountain biker Carl Swenson of Boulder scored a career-high fifth-place finish in the 50km freestyle race this weekend at the 2003 FIS Nordic World Ski Championships in Val di Fiemme, Italy. Swenson, 32, a two-time Olympian and six-time U.S. national champion who raced mountain bikes for RLX-Polo Sport last season, snapped a pole in a crash early in Saturday’s race, but recovered to finish just 1:24 behind Czech Martin Koukal, who claimed the gold in 1:54.25.3. Swedes Anders Soedergren and Joergen Brink took the silver and bronze, respectively. Swenson’s performance was icing on this year’s

Dutch racer Roy Sentjens (Rabobank) won Sunday’s 56th Kuurne-Brussels-Kuurne, finishing alone 19 seconds ahead of Belgian Leif Hoste (Lotto-Domo) in the semi-classic that shares the same weekend with Het Volk to open the Belgian season. With 2km to go, the 22-year-old Sentjens attacked the remnants of a group of eight riders that escaped early in the race to score the first victory of his career. Eight riders, including Postal’s Tony Cruz, broke clear early in the race in horrible weather and built up a 12-minute gap with 80km to go. Volker Ordowski (Gerolsteiner) accelerated and trimmed the

Johan Museeuw showed no signs of age as he roared to victory in Saturday’s Het Volk, the opener of the Belgian racing season. His Quick Step team dominated the 200km course across the cobbles of Belgium, finishing with four riders in the top-five. Only U.S. Postal’s Max Van Heeswijk challenged the team’s gauntlet and there was little he could do on his own but hang on to finish second ahead of Paolo Bettini at 16 seconds back. Het Volk marked the Quick Step debut of Tom Boonen and the return of Franck Vandenbroucke, who crossed the line hand-in-hand to take fourth and fifth, respectively, at

Alessandro Petacchi takes the final sprint into Valencia

Spain's Martin Perdiguero came out of nowhere to win Friday's difficult climbing stage in the Tour of Valencia while Dario Frigo moved back into the overall lead. The pint-sized Domina Vacanze rider is known more for his sprinting prowess, but vaulted past Frigo in the final 50 meters to claim a surprising stage-win. Perdiguero insisted the win shouldn't come as any surprise. "I've lost a lot of weight and came into this season with a lot of motivation to show I can climb better. Look what happened today. I was at the front and now I have won," Perdiguero said. Frigo drove

Saeco's Igor Astarloa sprinted to victory in the third stage of the Tour of Valencia on Thursday, charging out of a lead group of 52 riders that finished in Puerto de Sagunto 30 minutes sooner than organizers had originally expected. The lead group flew over a difficult three-climb stage and came into this industrial port ready for a sprint. Saeco teammate Santos Gonzalez put down a strong lead-out and Astarloa held out against compatriots Angel Edo (Milaneza-MSS) and Angel Vicioso (ONCE) to score his first win of the season. "I was afraid that I might have gone too early, but I had a

Italian Alessandro Petacchi (Fassa Bortolo) had an easy time winning the would-be Spanish classic Trofeo Luis Puig on Sunday in Valencia. Petacchi easily handled Kelme’s Isaac Galvez to win the 178km race, which fell flat in its hyped showdown among the stars of sprinting, many of whom were MIA. Rabobank’s Oscar Freire, fresh off two wins at Ruta del Sol last week, fell ill to stomach flu and didn’t start. World champion Mario Cipollini was dropped on the opening climb to make a rather disappointing start to his 2003 season. And Telekom’s Erik Zabel finished more than two minutes off and

Rising French star Sylvain Chavanel (Brioches La Boulangère) delivered the goods in Saturday's 180km Tour du Haut Var, nipping Spanish rider Samuel Sanchez (Euskaltel) to grab the victory. A 10-rider rider break went away at the Cote de Tuilieres with about 20km to go. With 2km to go, Chavanel, Sanchez, Cofidis' Andrei Kivilev and Stephane Goubert attacked off the group and came in for the sprint. Chavanel nipped Sanchez and Kivilev took third. "There were a lot of breaks in the last 10km, but nobody wanted to arrive at a final sprint with me," said Quick Step's Paolo Bettini,

American Fred Rodriguez (Sidermec), won the second stage of Greece’s Tourde Rhodes on Friday.Rodriguez beat Holland’s Rudi Kemna and Czech rider Jan Svorada to thefinish at the end of the 120km stage, a large loop that left Rhodes traveledthrough Apollona and finished again in Rhodes.Rodriguez’s shot at a win was uncertain until the final kilometer ofthe race as a three-man breakaway headed by Vlaanderen-T Interim’s RudolfWentzel lasted from the day’s first sprint at 20km until the very lastkilometer.Sebastian Lang (Gerolsteiner), holds on to the overall lead, thoughhe he is now tied with

Alessio’s Ruslan Ivanov was simply stronger than four others in the breakaway that closed out the fifth and final stage Thursday in the 49th Ruta del Sol in southern Spain while Kelme’s Juan Pascual Llorente held on for final victory. Ivanov dropped Inigo Chaurreau (AG2R) and Gustavo Toledo (Paternina) on a Category 2 climb just 5km from the finish and unleashed a stage-winning attack on the flats with 1km to go. Jose Luis Martinez (Paternina) and Santi Blanco (Relax-Fuenlabrada) tried to hang on, but the veteran Alessio rider simply out-muscled the Spanish riders in the Ruta’s final

In weather that’s more reminiscent of his home back in Holland than sunny Andalucia, Dutch rider Remmert Wielinga endured a long day in the saddle through cold, wind and rain to deliver Rabobank its third stage victory in the 49th Ruta del Sol. Wielinga – winner of a stage at the Mallorca Challenge earlier this month – outmuscled Kelme’s Ivan Parra and ONCE’s Joaquin Rodriguez to win Wednesday’s difficult stage, which featured no less than four category-two climbs. The trio peeled away from Quick Step’s Patrik Sinkewitz and Euskaltel’s Unai Extebarria on the final climb of the day. Parra