Tour of Qatar

Belgium's Greg Van Avermaet (Predictor-Lotto) won the fifth and penultimate stage of the Tour of Qatar on Thursday. Van Avermaet beat home German Marcel Sieberg and Frenchman Stephane Poulhies in a sprint finish to the 156km stage between Al-Zubarah and Mesaieed. Fellow Belgian Wilfried Cretskens (Quick Step), who was part of the race-deciding 10-man breakaway, took the race leader's jersey from teammate and compatriot Tom Boonen, who finished 20th, more than two minutes down, along with the main chasing pack. Tour rookie Van Avermaet was overjoyed with his stage win. "It's my

Belgian Tom Boonen dominated Australian Graeme Brown in a bunch sprint to win an explosive fourth stage of the Tour of Qatar on Wednedsday. Quick Step’s Boonen thus picked up his third individual stage win in as many days after a mainly flat 139km of racing between the Camelodrome and the Gulf of Doha. Brazilian Murilo Fischer (Liquigas) finished third behind Rabobank’s Brown, who on Monday was accused of causing mayhem in the bunch sprint during which Predictor-Lotto’s Tom Steels crashed and was left with a broken collarbone. Boonen will take a 27-second lead over teammate Steven De Jongh

Belgium's Tom Boonen (Quick Step) won the third stage of the Tour of Qatar around Doha on Tuesday, beating Italian sprint king Alessandro Petacchi (Milram) for the second consecutive day. Austria's Bernard Eisel (T-Mobile) took third spot behind Boonen who strengthened his grip on the leader's gold jersey. Boonen said afterwards: "I was in about 50th place with three kilometers to go, which was too far back, but Matteo Tosatto helped me get up to the front. I then let the Milram team do the work before waiting for the right moment to start my sprint." Boonen refused to go

Former world champion Tom Boonen won the second stage of the Tour of Qatar over 135km from Al Wakra to Doha on Monday, moving into the overall leader's gold jersey in the process. The Quick Step rider beat Milram's Alessandro Petacchi and Frenchman Jean-Patrick Nazon in a sprint finish to snatch the gold jersey from his Dutch teammate Steven de Jong, who held it after Quick Step's team time trial victory in Sunday's opening stage. The defending Tour of Qatar champion Boonen admitted he had been lucky to win after Pettachi's Milram team launched their leader's sprint

Belgium’s Quick Step-Innergetic team shrugged off this week's doping allegations to take top honors in the opening stage of the Tour of Qatar, a team time trial in Doha on Sunday. Dutchman Steven De Jongh crossed the line first after the six kilometer race against the clock to be the first to take charge of the leader's gold jersey. Quick Step, with former world champion Tom Boonen riding in Qatar, covered the circuit in a time of six minutes 33 seconds. Quick Step was followed in by Milram, four seconds adrift, with Liguigas another four seconds back in third. "It was very tough,"

Sprinters Tom Boonen and Alessandro Petacchi will fight their first duels of the season when the Tour of Qatar clicks into gear Sunday in Doha. Boonen, the 2005 world champion who rides for Quick Step, shook off the opposition to win four of last year's stages and the overall crown. However, this year the Belgian's hopes will be tempered by 33-year-old Milram sprinter Petacchi, who will be burning to get a few wins under his belt following a 2006 season blighted by injury. "I'm back and in top form. I hope this year will be as successful for me as 2005," said the Italian, who

Alessandro Petacchi hopes a return to form at the Tour of Qatar will help him erase a disappointing 2006 campaign that saw him riddled with injuries. The Milram sprinter will bring his full train to the desert race (January 28 to February 2) with ambitions of snagging a victory and boosting his confidence ahead of what the “gentleman sprinter" hopes will be a comeback season. “I want to regain the sensations I had at the beginning of last year. I’ve had a good training block and I am motivated for the coming season,” Petacchi said. “I haven’t been able to raise my arms in victory since last

World champion Tom Boonen (Quick Step) won the Tour of Qatar on Friday after capturing the fifth and final stage, a 151km run between Al Thakira and Doha. The Belgian rider, who also won the first three stages, sprinted to the final victory ahead of Germany's Erik Zabel (Milram), and Italy's Fabrizio Guidi (Phonak). The 25-year-old Boonen was deprived of a clean sweep this week only after Austria's Bernhard Eisel (Française des Jeux) took Thursday's fourth stage. Boonen credited the weather with an assist in what appeared to be an easy victory. "Because of the wind, which

Austria's Bernhard Eisel finally ended the winning streak of world champion Tom Boonen when he sprinted to victory in the fourth stage of the Tour of Qatar on Thursday. The Francaise des Jeux rider nicked Germany's Erik Zabel (Milram) and Belgian Boonen (Quick Step) at the line after the 145km run from Al Zubarah to Doha, scoring his first win of the season. Boonen, winner of the first three stages, has been unbeaten since he won his world title in September. He holds the overall race lead going into Friday's 151km final stage between Al Thakira and here with a seven-second

World champion Tom Boonen (Quick Step) maintained his perfect start to the Tour of Qatar with victory in Wednesday's 160km third stage. The 25-year-old Belgian once again beat Germany's Erik Zabel (Milram) and Matti Breschel (CSC) of Denmark to add to his wins in the first two stages. Once again the stage was marked by blustery winds and an early break, as Bart Van Heule (Chocolade Jacques-T Interim), René Weissinger (Skil-Shimano) and Geert Omloop (Unibet) took off at 12km. Twenty-four kilometers later, they were joined by a counterattacking bunch of six: Chris Horner

World champion Tom Boonen (Quick Step) won the windy second stage of the Tour of Qatar Tuesday, a 138km leg between Doha's camel race track and the Al Khor Corniche. The 25-year-old Belgian, who also won the first stage on Monday and heads the overall standings, proved too strong for Italian Paride Grillo (Ceramica Panaria-Navigare) and German veteran Eric Zabel (Milram) in a sprint finish. "It wasn't so simple today," said Boonen. "The wind and the sometime-dangerous roads made the course difficult. There were a lot of falls and punctures. You had to be careful." Frenchman Gilles

World champion Tom Boonen (Quick Step) won the opening 131km stage of the Tour of Qatar between Doha and Al Khor Corniche on Monday. The 25-year-old Belgian proved too strong for German veteran Eric Zabel and Robert Hunter of South Africa in a sprint finish. Top 10 resultsStage1. Tom Boonen (B) Quick Step, 131km in 2:56:342. Erik Zabel (G), same time3. Robert Hunter (RSA), s.t.4. Fabian Cancellara (Swi), s.t.5. Fabrizio Guidi (I), s.t.,6. Aurelien Clerc (Swi), s.t.7. Nick Ingels (B,) s.t.8. Sebastien Lang (G,) s.t.9. Aart Vierhouten (Ned), s.t.10. Steven de Jongh (Ned), s.t.Overall (after

Robbie McEwen (Davitamon-Lotto) finally got it right in a week dominated by sprinting’s biggest names. After watching Tom Boonen and Mario Cipollini take the glory earlier, the Aussie boxer punched his way to victory in the 153km final stage from Sealine Beach Resort to Doha Corniche. There were some early attempts at a breakaway, but the sprinter teams were anxious for one more stab at the spoils before leaving behind the oil-rich Persian Gulf nation. Boonen came through third, but McEwen scored the win that eluded him all week in Qatar. Team CSC delivered Lars Michaelsen into the overall

Mario Cipollini is back at the front of the pack after scoring an importantvictory in Thursday’s fourth stage of the Tour of Qatar, his first sincelast year’s Tour de Georgia. The 37-year-old Tuscan held off 24-year-old Tom Boonen (Quick Step)in a significant objective for the Lion King, who edged near retirementbut joined the Liquigas-Bianchi team with new motivation to come back tothe elite levels of sprinting after two lackluster seasons. “Every win encourages you very much and this one in a particular waysince it comes after months full of sacrifices and a very tough training,”Cipollini

Team CSC blew through the Tour of Qatar peloton in Wednesday’s thirdstage like a tornado, doing a ditty much like the team pulled off in lastyear’s Paris-Nice and delivered Danish veteran Lars Michaelsen an over-duestage victory.Team CSC put six of its eight riders into the day’s decisive move of17 riders in the blustery 194km stage across the otherwise flat Qatar,leaving pre-stage leader Tom Boonen (Quick Step) gasping for air.In the end, five Team CSC riders were in the top seven (Fred Rodriguezfought bravely to finish sixth), with Michaelsen taking the flowers androokie Matti Breschel in

Tom Boonen made it two in a row at the Tour of Qatar on Tuesday, out-sprinting Fabrizio Guidi (CSC) and Robbie McEwen (Davitamon-Lotto) to claim his second straight win on the 2005 season. The 24-year-old Quick Step star was part of a 21-man breakaway that tore away from the main bunch at 90km into the 167.5km course from the Camel Track to the Qatar Olympic Committee headquarters. Six Quick Step riders were in the decisive 21-man group, including Kevin Hulsmans, Servais Knaven, Nick Nuyens, Guido Trenti and Wilfried Cretskens and Boonen. The group held a 40-second gap on the main bunch

Boonen outkicks Cipo' in QatarQuick Step's Tom Boonen won the first stage of the Tour of Qatar onMonday, finishing ahead of Mario Cipollini and RobertHunter, the winner of last Saturday's Doha International GP.Monday's stage, the first of five in the ASO-organized event, covered 143km from Al Khor Corniche to the Doha Hyatt Plaza. Boonen holds the leader's jersey with a four-second advantage over Cipollini."This was one of my best ever final sprints. I am extremely happy with my form and winning straightaway after the problems I had this winter certainly boosts my morale,"

South African sprinter Robert Hunter (Rabobank) took care of business in the Middle East to win Friday’s final stage and claim the overall title of the third Tour of Qatar. Hunter won his second stage in three days to claim the overall prize, scoring a big win ahead of Italian Francesco Chicchi (Fassa Bortolo) and Wouter van Mechelen (Vlaanderen), who came across third. With only one second separating race leader Hunter and archrival Robbie McEwen (Lotto-Domo) going into Friday’s 163km finale, it was heated battle from the gun. A group of about 40 riders tore away early as Lotto-Domo

Belgian Tom Steels (Landbouwkrediet) got his season off to a good start Wednesday, beating compatriot Jo Planckaert (Mr Bookmakers) in a bunch sprint to open the five-day l'Etoile de Bessèges race in France. Stuart O’Grady (Cofidis) and Gorka Gonzalez (Euskaltel) livened things up early with a long breakaway, but the Aussie was reeled in with 15km to go and it came down to a mass gallop coming into Marseille. The race continues Thursday with the 149km second stage into Palavas-les-Flots. l'Etoile de Bessèges, Stage 1, Marseille1. Tom Steels (B), Landbouwkrediet, 139km in 3:34:03 (39.131

Tour de France green jersey winner Baden Cooke (Française desJeux) stormed to victory in the Grand Prix La Marseillaise on Tuesday toopen the French racing season. Cooke nipped Jo Planckaert (MR Bookmaker.com) to take the bunch sprintin the 152km race from Gardanne to Aubagne. Italian Fabio Baldato (Alessio-Bianchi) came across the line third. Racing continues Wednesday in France with the five-day l'Etoile de Bessèges.GP La Marseillaise (UCI 1.3)1. Baden Cooke (Aus), FDJeux.com, 152km in 3:38:302. Jo Planckaert (B), Mr Bookmakers3. Fabio Baldato (I), Alessio-Bianchi4. Stefan Van Dijck

Oscar Freire profited from quality work from his orange Rabobank train to win Monday’s stage into Port d'Alcudia by a half-bike length ahead of Erik Zabel (T-Mobile). Five Rabos set a blistering pace over the final 10km to catapult the former two-time world champion to victory. Sunday’s winner, Allan Davis of Liberty Seguros, was caught out of position but sprung back to finish third. “Today was different than yesterday’s circuit course when it was hard to find the right position,” Freire said after winning in 3 hours, 57 minutes, 38 seconds. “Today the team did amazing work over the final

Italian Alberto Loddo (Lampre) won Friday's mass field sprint to take the opening stage of the Tour of Qatar, a 90km circuit in Doha. Under sunny skies, Loddo beat out Frenchman Damien Nazon (Brioches La Boulangere) and Italian Massimo Strazzer (Phonak) and claimed the race leader's gold jersey. Loddo counted heavily on his Lampre teammates to bring back the main breakaway duo of the day, consisting of Christophe Kern (Brioches La Boulangere) and Michael Blaudzun (CSC), whose lead reached a maximum of 1:25. In the overall standings, Loddo leads Strazzer by three seconds, and Nazon by

The upcoming Tour of Qatar cycling race will not be threatened by a potential conflict in the Middle East, race organizer Jean-Marie Leblanc said Wednesday. Leblanc said that the race, held in the little Middle East country that juts out into the Persian Gulf east of Saudi Arabia, holds no hidden dangers for any of the sports top names. Leblanc, who visited Qatar recently to examine the situation, said that he feels comfortable holding the race, despite the growing threat of conflict in the region. "The message from Qatar is clear: 'above all tell everyone in Europe that there's no

German Thorsten Wilhelms erased a 1-second deficit during the final stage of the Tour of Qatar to take the overall win on Friday. Wilhelms was first across the line in the 123.5km run from Sealine Beach to Doha, posting a winning time of 3:18:22. That was good enough to give the Team Coast rider a 5-second bulge over second-place finisher Damien Nazon in the final standings. Rudi Kemna of the Netherlands was third. Nazon had entered the day in the lead, but finished ninth in the final stage. Other notables included Laurent Jalabert, who was 15th on Friday and finished fifth overall, and Jan

Behind a strong second-place effort in the fourth stage, Frenchman Damien Nazon moved into first place overall at the five-day Tour of Qatar. Lampre rider Alberto Loddo took the stage win, a 125.5km run from Ras Laffan to Doha. Nazon’s lead is a scant one second over German Thorsten Wilhelms. Sweden’s Magnus Backstedt is six seconds back. Previous day’s overall leader, Brazilian Luciano Pagliarini, had a rough day during the fourth stage, falling out of the top 10 all together. Other notables include Telekom’s Jan Ullrich who finished 12th on Thursday and is 13th overall, and Laurent

Brazilian Luciano Pagliarini now shares the overall lead with Sweden's Magnus Backstedt in the Tour of Qatar after the third stage on Wednesday. Lampre team rider Pagliarini put in a surge midway through the 179km stage to end the day tied with Backstedt of the Fakta team, who finished fourth behind winner Thorsten Wilhelms of Germany. In the stage from the dromedary racetrack in Camelodrome to Doha, Laurent Jalabert finished 31st to leave the Frenchman seventh overall, seven seconds behind the leaders in a tightly packed first 10 who are separated by just eight seconds. Jan Ullrich of

Swedish Fakta rider Maagnus Backstedt took over the lead in the five-day Tour of Qatar on Tuesday, while Frenchman Damien Nazon got the win in the second stage. Nazon completed the 131km run from Al Zubarah to Doha in 3:04:16, outgunning Brit Jeremy Hunt at the finish. Backstedt’s lead is two seconds over Brazilian Luciano Pagliarini, while Nazon is four seconds back. Day one leader Ivan Quaranta was ninth on Tuesday and fell to fourth in the overall.

Ivan Quaranta of Italy picked off the 117km opening stage of the five-day Tour of Qatar in Doha on Monday, winning a sprint finish at the expense of Brazilian Luciano Pagliarini and Jean-Patrick Nazon of France. Quaranta crossed the line in 2:43:44. Sweden's Magnus Backstedt led a nine-man escape after 26km and Frenchman Laurent Jalabert also joined the hunt as the leading pack held out until some 8km from the finish. Quaranta, a junior world track champion a decade ago, then chose his moment to snatch the victory. The Index-Alesia rider has been in good form over the past two seasons with