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Sandy Casar Wins Stage 18 July 27, 2007

Posted by dperry1ma in Alberto Contador, Axel Merckx, Barloworld, Bernhard Eisel, Bouygues Telecom, Cadel Evans, Claudio Corioni, Crédit Agricole, Discovery Channel, Erik Zabel, Francaise des Jeux, Gerolsteiner, Lampre-Fondital, Laurent Lefevre, Mauricio Soler, Michael Boogerd, Milram, Predictor-Lotto, Quickstep, Rabobank, Robbie Hunter, Robert Forster, Sandy Casar, Sebastien Chavanel, Sebastien Hinault, Stage 18, T-Mobile, Thor Hushovd, Tom Boonen, Tour de France, Yaroslav Popovych.
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Sandy Casar Wins Stage 18

It was another long flat stage and another long breakaway. The only thing missing was Jens Voight who has been a fixture on the long breakaway this Tour.

A group of four broke away early, Michael Boogerd (Rabobank), Laurent Lefevre (Bouygues Telecom), Frederik Willems (Liquigas) and Sandy Casar (Francaise des Jeux). Willems was lost to another canine collision, but was quickly replaced by Axel Merckx (T-Mobile) who had been chasing. [Willems was later seen in the peloton, so no serious injuries to riders, no word on the dog]. No one in the peloton bothered to chase as Boogerd was the only GC threat at 16, and the remaining group of four finished in a nice sprint Casar followed by Merckz then Boogerd. Both Boogerd and Merckx have announced that they are retiring following this Tour, so many were rooting for one of them to take the stage.

Teh peloton came in 8:35 behind the breakaway, which had lead by as much as 17:30 at one point, and the finish was a near copy of Stage 17 with Boonen taking the second sprint, followed by Hunter, Zabel and Chavanel. The GC contenders were all in the pack, so no real change in the top of the GC standings, except for a jump for Michael Boogerd from 16th to 13th. The Euskaltel-Euskadi riders lead a late charge by the peloton that prevented Boogerd from jumping into the top 10, perhaps because their rider Mikel Astarloza is in the 10th spot….

Contador retains the Yellow Jersey, Boonen the Green and Soler the Polka Dot.

Today’s Top Finishers:

1. CASAR Sandy 161 FRANCAISE DES JEUX 5h 13′ 31″
2. MERCKX Axel 28 T-MOBILE TEAM 5h 13′ 32″ + 00′ 01″
3. LEFEVRE Laurent 125 BOUYGUES TELECOM 5h 13′ 32″ + 00′ 01″
4. BOOGERD Michael 52 RABOBANK 5h 13′ 32″ + 00′ 01″
5. BOONEN Tom 171 QUICK STEP – INNERGETIC 5h 22′ 05″ + 08′ 34″
6. HUNTER Robert 216 BARLOWORLD 5h 22′ 05″ + 08′ 34″
7. ZABEL Erik 181 TEAM MILRAM 5h 22′ 05″ + 08′ 34″
8. CHAVANEL Sébastien 162 FRANCAISE DES JEUX 5h 22′ 05″ + 08′ 34″
9. EISEL Bernhard 24 T-MOBILE TEAM 5h 22′ 05″ + 08′ 34″
10. HUSHOVD Thor 101 CREDIT AGRICOLE 5h 22′ 05″ + 08′ 34″
11. CORIONI Claudio 85 LAMPRE-FONDITAL 5h 22′ 05″ + 08′ 34″
12. FÖRSTER Robert 92 GEROLSTEINER 5h 22′ 05″ + 08′ 34″
13. POPOVYCH Yaroslav 118 DISCOVERY CHANNEL TEAM 5h 22′ 05″ + 08′ 34″
14. EVANS Cadel 41 PREDICTOR – LOTTO 5h 22′ 05″ + 08′ 34″
15. HINAULT Sébastien 108 CREDIT AGRICOLE 5h 22′ 05″ + 08′ 34″

Daniele Bennati Wins Stage 17 July 26, 2007

Posted by dperry1ma in Ag2r, CSC, Daniele Bennati, Daniele Righi, David Millar, Erik Zabel, Francaise des Jeux, Gerolsteiner, Gert Steegmans, Jens Voight, Lampre, Liquigas, Manuel Quinziato, Markus Fothen, Martin Elmiger, Matteo Tosatto, Quick Step, Quickstep, Robbie Hunter, Robert Forster, Saunier Duval, Sebastien Chavanel, Stage 17, Sven Krauss, Tom Boonen, Tour de France.
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Daniele Bennati Winning Stage 17A long flat ride through the plains offered little excitement, which was a welcome state after one of the most tumultuous days in the history of the Tour yesterday.

Jens Voight (CSC) led a breakaway starting at 9km that built an 8 min. lead for the group of 8 by the 170km mark. The peloton and GC contenders decided early not to chase, so it was very quiet day indeed at the top of the standings. In addition to Voight, the group included Martin Elmiger (Ag2r), Daniele Bennati (Lampre), Daniele Righi (Lampre), David Millar (Saunier Duval), Markus Fothen (Gerolsteiner), Manuel Quinziato (Liquigas), Matteo Tosatto (Quick Step). On the final hill in the stage (a Cat 4 bump) he attacked the group and broke it up leading a group of 4 (Voight, Bennati, Elmiger and Fothen) into a high speed chase to the finish.

The success of the break created two sprints; the four man break played cat-and-mouse until 100m when Daniele Bennati took a very short sprint. Bennati’s win is the second stage win by an Italian rider in this year’s Tour, and the first by a Lampre rider this year. The scattered remaining elements of the original 8 man breakaway straggled in, leaving the teams’ sprint specialists to battle for the 9th spot points.

The second sprint materialized in the same final 100m with Boonen’s Quickstep escort setting him up perfectly. Boonen took the points for 9th, Sebastien Chavanel trailing him by a full bike length and Robbie Hunter took 11th, maintaining his hold on 2nd place in the Green Jersey standings.

Contador donned the Yellow Jersey following the stage, Tom Boonen retained the Green Jersey, and Mauricio Soler has captured this year’s KOM Polka Dot Jersey. The Yellow Jersey and the Green Jersey are still up for grabs, with Contador, Evans and Leipheimer all in a position to win or lose the Yellow Jersey in Cognac Saturday, and Boonen, Hunter and Zabel still able to win or lose the Green Jersey over the next 3 days.

Today’s Top Finishers:

1. BENNATI Daniele 82 LAMPRE-FONDITAL 4h 14′ 04″
2. FOTHEN Markus 93 GEROLSTEINER 4h 14′ 04″
3. ELMIGER Martin 65 AG2R PREVOYANCE 4h 14′ 04″
4. VOIGT Jens 38 TEAM CSC 4h 14′ 04″
5. MILLAR David 201 SAUNIER DUVAL – PRODIR 4h 16′ 45″ + 02′ 41″
6. TOSATTO Matteo 178 QUICK STEP – INNERGETIC 4h 16′ 47″ + 02′ 43″
7. QUINZIATO Manuel 157 LIQUIGAS 4h 17′ 24″ + 03′ 20″
8. RIGHI Daniele 87 LAMPRE-FONDITAL 4h 17′ 24″ + 03′ 20″
9. BOONEN Tom 171 QUICK STEP – INNERGETIC 4h 23′ 41″ + 09′ 37″
10. CHAVANEL Sébastien 162 FRANCAISE DES JEUX 4h 23′ 41″ + 09′ 37″
11. HUNTER Robert 216 BARLOWORLD 4h 23′ 41″ + 09′ 37″
12. FÖRSTER Robert 92 GEROLSTEINER 4h 23′ 41″ + 09′ 37″
13. ZABEL Erik 181 TEAM MILRAM 4h 23′ 41″ + 09′ 37″
14. STEEGMANS Gert 176 QUICK STEP – INNERGETIC 4h 23′ 43″ + 09′ 39″
15. KRAUSS Sven 96 GEROLSTEINER 4h 23′ 43″ + 09′ 39″

How Astana Affects The Stages July 25, 2007

Posted by dperry1ma in Alberto Contador, Alejandro Valverde, Barloworld, Crédit Agricole, CSC, Discovery Channel, Fabian Cancellara, Kim Kirchen, Levi Leipheimer, Liquigas, Michael Rasmussen, Quickstep, Rabobank, Stage wins, T-Mobile, Tom Boonen, Tour de France.
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By now it has been well publicized that the withdrawal of Team Astana as a result of a failed doping test on team leader Alexander Vinokourov has stripped 3 of the Tour’s top GC contenders from the rankings, most notably Andreas Kloden who had been in 5th place in the GC at the time of the withdrawal. But Vinokourov’s suspension also hands two riders stage wins that had originally been awarded to the Kazakh rider. Cadel Evans takes the stage win for Stage 13 and Kim Kirchen the win for Stage 15.

[UPDATE: It is not yet clear how the withdrawal of Michael Rasmussen by his team for violating team rules will affect the official result of Stages 8 and 16. Since he did not fail a doping test, his stage wins may stand. I will update this listing once Tour organizers have announced a decision on the earlier stages.]

[UPDATE 2: Sorry, no slight to Robbie McEwen intended! McEwen won and holds the stage win for Stage 1. Fabian Cancellara still held the Maillot Jaune at the end of the stage but did not win the stage.]

The complete list of stage winners to date:

Prologue, London – Fabian Cancellara, CSC
Stage 1, London/Canterbury – Fabian Cancellara, CSCRobbie McEwen, Predictor-Lotto
Stage 2, Dunkirk/Ghent – Gert Steegmans, Quickstep
Stage 3, Waregem/Compiegne – Fabian Cancellara, CSC
Stage 4, Villers-Cotterets/Joigny – Thor Hushovd, Credit Agricole
Stage 5, Chablis/Autun – Filippo Pozzatto, Liquigas
Stage 6, Semur-en-Auxois/Bourg-en-Bresse – Tom Boonen, Quickstep
Stage 7, Bourg-en-Bresse/Le Grand-Bornand – Linus Gerdemann, T-Mobile
Stage 8, Le Grand-Bornand/Tigne – Michael Rasmussen, Rabobank (?Valverde?)
Stage 9, Val-d’Isere/Briancon – Juan Mauricio Soler [Hernandez], Barloworld
Stage 10, Tallard/Marseille – Cedric Vasseur, Quickstep
Stage 11, Marseille/Montpellier – Robbie Hunter, Barloworld
Stage 12, Montpellier/Castres – Tom Boonen, Quickstep
Stage 13, Albi/Albi (TT) – Cadel Evans, Predictor-Lotto
Stage 14, Mazamet/Plateau-de-Beille – Alberto Contador, Discovery
Stage 15, Foix/Loudenvielle – Kim Kirchen, T-Mobile
Stage 16, Orthez/Col d’Aubisque – Michael Rasmussen, Rabobank (?Leipheimer?)

That’s 4 stage wins for Quickstep, 3 for CSC, 2 each for Barloworld, [Rabobank] and T-Mobile, and 1 each for Credit Agricole, Discovery Channel and Liquigas.

Done But No Quit In Vinokourov – Vino Wins Stage 15 July 23, 2007

Posted by dperry1ma in Ag2r, Alberto Contador, Alexander Vinokourov, Astana, Bernhard Kohl, Cadel Evans, Caisse d'Epargne, Christian Van de Velde, CSC, David Arroyo, Discovery Channel, Euskaltel-Euskadi, George Hincapie, Gerolsteiner, Haimar Zubeldia, Juan Jose Cobo, Juan Manuel Garate, Kim Kirchen, Ludovic Turpin, Michael Boogerd, Michael Rasmussen, Mikel Astarloza, Quickstep, Rabobank, Saunier Duval, Stage 15, T-Mobile, Tour de France, Uncategorized.
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5 rated climbs, including 2 Cat 1’s and an HC (above rating) gave the Tour another chance to separate the field, and separate it did… A huge 25 man breakaway eventally broke up with a group of 6 pulling away and then 3 broke off the front of that group. Alexander Vinokourov jumping out to lead the 3 in the front over the Col de Peyresourde. The man who looked completely cooked yesterday simply overpowered the field and raced to the win…an incredible performance.

Vinokourov Wins Stage 15

The GC contenders finished 6 minutes behind, with Alberto Contador dueled Michael Rasmussen for the top position, pulling away from the rest of the yellow jersey group just before the top of the last climb. At the end of the descent, Contador and Rasmussen finished a minute ahead of Leipheimer, Evans and the other contenders.

[Complete Results Here]

Today’s Top Finishers:
1. VINOKOUROV Alexandre 191 ASTANA 5h 34′ 28″
2. KIRCHEN Kim 27 T-MOBILE TEAM 5h 35′ 19″ + 00′ 51″
3. ZUBELDIA Haimar 71 EUSKALTEL – EUSKADI 5h 35′ 19″ + 00′ 51″
4. COBO ACEBO Juan Jose 204 SAUNIER DUVAL – PRODIR 5h 35′ 26″ + 00′ 58″
5. GARATE Juan Manuel 174 QUICK STEP – INNERGETIC 5h 36′ 42″ + 02′ 14″
6. ARROYO David 12 CAISSE D’EPARGNE 5h 37′ 51″ + 03′ 23″
7. KOHL Bernhard 95 GEROLSTEINER 5h 38′ 53″ + 04′ 25″
8. VANDEVELDE Christian 37 TEAM CSC 5h 38′ 53″ + 04′ 25″
9. TURPIN Ludovic 69 AG2R PREVOYANCE 5h 39′ 44″ + 05′ 16″
10. CONTADOR Alberto 112 DISCOVERY CHANNEL TEAM 5h 39′ 59″ + 05′ 31″
11. RASMUSSEN Michael 58 RABOBANK 5h 39′ 59″ + 05′ 31″
12. HINCAPIE George 114 DISCOVERY CHANNEL TEAM 5h 40′ 15″ + 05′ 47″
13. EVANS Cadel 41 PREDICTOR – LOTTO 5h 40′ 55″ + 06′ 27″
14. ASTARLOZA Mikel 73 EUSKALTEL – EUSKADI 5h 40′ 55″ + 06′ 27″
15. BOOGERD Michael 52 RABOBANK 5h 40′ 55″ + 06′ 27″

Vasseur Wins Stage 10 After All Day Breakaway July 18, 2007

Posted by dperry1ma in Aleksandre Kuschynski, Andriy Grivko, Cédric Vasseur, Cofidis, Crédit Agricole, CSC, Francaise des Jeux, Jens Voigt, Juan Antonio Flecha, Lampre, Liquigas, Marcus Burghardt, Michal Albasini, Milram, Paolo Bossoni, Patrice Halgand, Quickstep, Rabobank, Sandy Casar, Staf Scheirlinckx, Stage 10, T-Mobile, Team Cofidis, Team Crédit Agricole, Team CSC, Team Francaise des Jeux, Team Lampre-Fondital, Team Liquigas, Team Milram, Team Quickstep, Team Rabobank, Team T-Mobile, Tour de France.
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A long, uncontested breakaway set the stage for a hot finish on this very hot day in southern France. The breakaway consisted of Jens Voigt (CSC), Juan Antonio Flecha (Rabobank), Paolo Bossoni (Lampre), Patrice Halgand (Credit Agricole), Staf Scheirlinckx (Cofidis), Michal Albasini (Liquigas), Aleksandre Kuschynski (Liquigas), Sandy Casar (Francaise des Jeux), Cedric Vasseur (Quick Step), Andriy Grivko (Milram), and Marcus Burghardt (T-Mobile). With 25km to go, the breakaway split into two pieces with Halgand attacking and pulling Casar, Vasseur, Voight and Albasini with him. After a quick descent into Marseille, the lead 5 played cat and mouse games for the final 4km before a slow sprint over the final 300m, with Vasseur edging out Casar for the win… the first French stage win of the tour.

Top Finishers Today:

1. VASSEUR Cédric 179 QUICK STEP – INNERGETIC 5h 20′ 24″
2. CASAR Sandy 161 FRANCAISE DES JEUX 5h 20′ 24″
3. ALBASINI Michael 152 LIQUIGAS 5h 20′ 24″
4. HALGAND Patrice 107 CREDIT AGRICOLE 5h 20′ 24″
5. VOIGT Jens 38 TEAM CSC 5h 20′ 24″
6. SCHEIRLINCKX Staf 147 COFIDIS CREDIT PAR TELEPHONE 5h 21′ 00″ + 00′ 36″
7. BOSSONI Paolo 83 LAMPRE-FONDITAL 5h 21′ 00″ + 00′ 36″
8. BURGHARDT Marcus 22 T-MOBILE TEAM 5h 21′ 25″ + 01′ 01″
9. KUSCHYNSKI Aleksandr 156 LIQUIGAS 5h 22′ 58″ + 02′ 34″
10. FLECHA Juan Antonio 55 RABOBANK 5h 22′ 58″ + 02′ 34″
11. GRIVKO Andriy 184 TEAM MILRAM 5h 24′ 06″ + 03′ 42″
12. CHAVANEL Sébastien 162 FRANCAISE DES JEUX 5h 31′ 00″ + 10′ 36″
13. BOONEN Tom 171 QUICK STEP – INNERGETIC 5h 31′ 00″ + 10′ 36″
14. VENTOSO Francisco 209 SAUNIER DUVAL – PRODIR 5h 31′ 00″ + 10′ 36″
15. HUNTER Robert 216 BARLOWORLD 5h 31′ 00″ + 10′ 36″

Boonen at Last! July 13, 2007

Posted by dperry1ma in Barloworld, Daniele Bennati, Erik Zabel, Fabian Cancellara, Gerolsteiner, Lampre-Fondital, Liquigas, Milram, Murilo Fischer, Oscar Freire, Quickstep, Rabobank, Robert Forster, Robert Hunter, Romain Feillu, Stage 6, Sylvain Chavanel, Team Agritubel, Team Barloworld, Team Cofidis, Team Crédit Agricole, Team Francaise des Jeux, Team Gerolsteiner, Team Lampre-Fondital, Team Liquigas, Team Milram, Team Quickstep, Team Rabobank, Thor Hushovd, Tom Boonen, Tour de France.
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Boonen Wins Stage 6Tom Boonen (Quickstep) finally got the stage win that he has been eluding him in a tough sprint finish that put him a bikelength ahead of Oscar Freire (Rabobank) and Erik Zabel.

Boonen finished 2nd to his teamate Gert Steegmans in Stage 2, and there was some question whether he still had the power to win a tough sprint, but he proved that he still has it today. Oscar Freire meanwhile keeps knocking on the door, having finished 3rd, 2nd and 2nd in the last three stages. Of course Zabel has been 3rd, 2nd, 1st and 3rd over the past four stages….

Fabian Cancellara in yellow for one more day, Boonen takes over the Green and Sylvain Chavanel’s 40 pts. in the KOM will be safe until at least tomorrow.

Complete results here

Top Finishers:
1. BOONEN Tom 171 QUICK STEP – INNERGETIC 05:20:59
2. FREIRE Oscar 56 RABOBANK 05:20:59 + 00:00:00
3. ZABEL Erik 181 TEAM MILRAM 05:20:59 + 00:00:00
4. CHAVANEL Sebastien 162 FRANCAISE DES JEUX 05:20:59 + 00:00:00
5. HUSHOVD Thor 101 CREDIT AGRICOLE 05:20:59 + 00:00:00
6. BENNATI Daniele 82 LAMPRE-FONDITAL 05:20:59 + 00:00:00
7. FORSTER Robert 92 GEROLSTEINER 05:20:59 + 00:00:00
8. HUNTER Robert 216 BARLOWORLD 05:20:59 + 00:00:00
9. FEILLU Romain 134 AGRITUBEL 05:20:59 + 00:00:00
10. FISCHER Murilo Antoniobil 155 LIQUIGAS 05:20:59 + 00:00:00

Stage 5 Goes to Pozzato July 12, 2007

Posted by dperry1ma in Bouygues Telecom, Bram Tankink, Christian Moreni, Cofidis, Daniele Bennati, Discovery Channel, Erik Zabel, Fabian Cancellara, Filippo Pozzato, George Hincapie, Jérôme Pineau, Kim Kerchen, Lampre-Fondital, Liquigas, Milram, Oscar Freire, Quickstep, Quickstep-Innergetic, Rabobank, Stage 5, Stefan Schumacher, Sylvain Chavanel, Team Bouygues Telecom, Team Cofidis, Team Discovery Channel, Team Gerolsteiner, Team Lampre-Fondital, Team Liquigas, Team Milram, Team Quickstep, Team Rabobank, Team T-Mobile.
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Filippo Pozzato of Liquigas won a long and winding sprint to take Stage 5. Fabian Cancellara stayed with the peloton despite some challenging climbs, finished 12th, and holds on to the Jersey for another day (2 actually). Sylvain Chavanel’s persistence in long breakaways brough him the Polka Dot Jersey as his won 30 of the days 34 available 1st place points by taking the first 6 of 7 climbs as part of the breakaway.

Tom Boonen lost the peloton in the hils, and finished the day 1:20 behind the Pozzato, which opened the door for Erik Zabel to take the Green Jersey with his 16 point 5th place finish.

Complete results here:

Top Finishers:

1. POZZATO Filippo 151 LIQUIGAS 04:39:01
2. FREIRE Oscar 56 RABOBANK 04:39:01 + 00:00:00
3. BENNATI Daniele 82 LAMPRE-FONDITAL 04:39:01 + 00:00:00
4. KIRCHEN Kim 27 T-MOBILE TEAM 04:39:01 + 00:00:00
5. ZABEL Erik 181 TEAM MILRAM 04:39:01 + 00:00:00
6. HINCAPIE George 114 DISCOVERY CHANNEL TEAM 04:39:01 + 00:00:00
7. MORENI Cristian 144 COFIDIS CREDIT PAR TELEPHONE 04:39:01 + 00:00:00
8. SCHUMACHER Stefan 91 GEROLSTEINER 04:39:01 + 00:00:00
9. TANKINK Bram 177 QUICK STEP – INNERGETIC 04:39:01 + 00:00:00
10. PINEAU Jérôme 126 BOUYGUES TELECOM 04:39:01 + 00:00:00

Hushovd! July 11, 2007

Posted by dperry1ma in Barloworld, Crédit Agricole, Danilo Napolitano, Erik Zabel, Gerolsteiner, Gert Steegmans, Lampre-Fondital, Mark Cavendish, Milram, Oscar Freire, Predictor-Lotto, Quickstep, Quickstep-Innergetic, Rabobank, Robert Forster, Robert Hunter, Sebastien Chavanel, Stage 4, Stephane Auge, Sylvain Chavanel, T-Mobile, Team Barloworld, Team Crédit Agricole, Team Francaise des Jeux, Team Gerolsteiner, Team Lampre-Fondital, Team Milram, Team Quickstep, Team Rabobank, Team T-Mobile, Thor Hushovd, Tom Boonen, Tour de France.
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Thor Hushovd was not to be denied, and thanks to support from his Credit Agricole team, he was delivered to the line in good position to win the sprint to the finish.

Not as much drama as yesterday, and the peloton crossed en masse, with only a handful of stragglers losing time in the GC. Cancellara retained the Yellow Jersey, though Hushovd’s win moved him back into contention 29 seconds down. Hushovd is also now threatening Tom Boonen’s Green Jersey, which he has held since the second stage finish, with Hushovd moving from 10th into 2nd place as a result of the final sprint points today. And Stephane Auge retained the Polka Dot Jersey for a second day, picking up just one point in the first climb. 2 of the 5 riders in the breakaway put on climbing points, with Sylvain Chavanel picking up 7 and Christian Knees picking up 5.

1. HUSHOVD Thor 101 CREDIT AGRICOLE 04:37:47
2. HUNTER Robert 216 BARLOWORLD 04:37:47 + 00:00:00
3. FREIRE Oscar 56 RABOBANK 04:37:47 + 00:00:00
4. ZABEL Erik 181 TEAM MILRAM 04:37:47 + 00:00:00
5. NAPOLITANO Danilo 86 LAMPRE-FONDITAL 04:37:47 + 00:00:00
6. STEEGMANS Gert 176 QUICK STEP – INNERGETIC 04:37:47 + 00:00:00
7. FORSTER Robert 92 GEROLSTEINER 04:37:47 + 00:00:00
8. BOONEN Tom 171 QUICK STEP – INNERGETIC 04:37:47 + 00:00:00
9. CHAVANEL Sebastien 162 FRANCAISE DES JEUX 04:37:47 + 00:00:00
10. CAVENDISH Mark 23 T-MOBILE TEAM 04:37:47 + 00:00:00

Belgians Steegmans and Boonen Finish 1 and 2 in Ghent July 9, 2007

Posted by dperry1ma in Gert Steegmans, Quickstep, Quickstep-Innergetic, Stage 2, Team Quickstep, Tom Boonen, Tour de France.
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Steegmans lead teammate Tom Boonen out to attack the finish line, but ended up crossing first, with Boonen right on his wheel, for a Quickstep Belgian 1-2 finish in a rain and crash marred stage.

Complete results here and at the official Tour de France site:

Top finishers:

No. Name Nat. Team Time Gap
1 176 STEEGMANS, Gert BEL QSI 03:48:22.000 00:00:00.000
2 171 BOONEN, Tom BEL QSI 03:48:22.000 00:00:00.000
3 151 POZZATO, Filippo ITA LIQ 03:48:22.000 00:00:00.000
4 216 HUNTER, Robert RSA BAR 03:48:22.000 00:00:00.000
5 134 FEILLU, Romain FRA AGR 03:48:22.000 00:00:00.000
6 046 MC EWEN, Robbie AUS PRL 03:48:22.000 00:00:00.000
7 181 ZABEL, Erik GER MRM 03:48:22.000 00:00:00.000
8 094 HAUSSLER, Heinrich GER GST 03:48:22.000 00:00:00.000
9 056 FREIRE, Oscar ESP RAB 03:48:22.000 00:00:00.000
10 162 CHAVANEL, Sébastien FRA FDJ 03:48:22.000 00:00:00.000
11 102 BONNET, William FRA C.A 03:48:22.000 00:00:00.00

McEwen overcomes crash to win stage July 9, 2007

Posted by dperry1ma in David Millar, David Zabriskie, Fabian Cancellara, Mark Cavendish, Predictor-Lotto, Quickstep, Quickstep-Innergetic, Sebastien Chavanel, Team Crédit Agricole, Team Predictor-Lotto, Thor Hushovd, Tom Boonen, Uncategorized.
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Robbie McEwen got back into Stage 1 today with a lot of help from his Predictor-Lotto teamates after crashing, or rather being crashed into, during a slow down in the peloton about 25km from the finish. After considerable effort to both overcome injuries to a hand, wrist and leg, and to catch up with the peloton, he still had enough juice to sweep around the right side of the pack for a sprint to the finish line. McEwen was well behind the front edge of the peloton when he made his move, and apparently the other sprinters had written him off as a threat, because the whole group appeared to be caught by surprise for a split second. It was all the advantage he needed as he crossed the line a full bike length ahead of Thor Hushovd. Third place provided some additional drama as Tom Boonen and Sebastian Chavanel provided a photo finish with Boonen leading by inches.

Fabian Cancellara crossed with the peloton and held onto his yellow jersey for at least another day, while David Millar assumed the Polka Dot jersey, and McEwen the green thanks to their performances today. Both David Zabriskie and Mark Cavendish lost over 2 minutes after dropping off the peloton during separate incidents.

Complete results here and at the official site

Top Finishers

1. MC EWEN Robbie 46 PREDICTOR – LOTTO 04:39:01
2. HUSHOVD Thor 101 CREDIT AGRICOLE 04:39:01 + 00:00:00
3. BOONEN Tom 171 QUICK STEP – INNERGETIC 04:39:01 + 00:00:00
4. CHAVANEL Sébastien 162 FRANCAISE DES JEUX 04:39:01 + 00:00:00
5. FEILLU Romain 134 AGRITUBEL 04:39:01 + 00:00:00
6. FÖRSTER Robert 92 GEROLSTEINER 04:39:01 + 00:00:00
7. FREIRE Oscar 56 RABOBANK 04:39:01 + 00:00:00
8. BURGHARDT Marcus 22 T-MOBILE TEAM 04:39:01 + 00:00:00
9. VENTOSO Francisco 209 SAUNIER DUVAL – PRODIR 04:39:01 + 00:00:00
10. VAITKUS Tomas 119 DISCOVERY CHANNEL TEAM 04:39:01 + 00:00:00

Quickstep Announces Roster July 5, 2007

Posted by dperry1ma in Bram Tankink, Carlos Barredo, Cédric Vasseur, Gert Steegmans, Juan Manuel Garate, Matteo Tosatto, Quickstep, Quickstep-Innergetic, Sébastien Rosseler, Steven De Jongh, Team Quickstep, Tom Boonen.
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Team Quickstep-Innergetic will be lead by Tom Boonen as expected. In addition to the Belgian GC challenger, the team will be made up of Carlos Barredo (Esp), Steven De Jongh (Ned), Juan Manuel Garate (Esp), Bram Tankink (Ned), Matteo Tosatto (Ita), Sébastien Rosseler (Bel), Gert Steegmans (Bel), and Cédric Vasseur (Fra).