Random post: Contador leaving Astana,Frank getting married,Fedrigo meeting Sarkozy and more...

UPDATE : Miss Fede is leaving for a holiday tomorrow and won't be back before of August, 15th.So,don't expect anything new from me for at least 2 weeks.Bye (before I forget: LL Sanchez won San Sebastian in front of Vino and Sastre)!

The Tour is over,my good working computer is back and I'm leaving on Sunday.Therefore,here's the last random post of the month: enjoy!

http://www.gazzetta.it/Ciclismo/28-07-2010/contador-lascia-astana-71600876700.shtml :let's start from yesterday's big news: Contador is leaving Astana.The Spaniard however hasn't revealed yet for which team he'll be riding next year. La Gazzetta dello Sport claims that the Spaniard may end up riding for Bjarne Riis and,as I already wrote some days ago,that would be pretty shocking for me. In fact,as you know,my favourite riders are the Schleck brothers and Chris Sorensen,and things next year will surely be hard for me since the Schlecks are leaving Riis while Chris isn't.If then Contador joins Riis,Chris may end up working as a helper for the Spaniard during le Tour 2011. Therefore,Fangirl will have thousands of problems with sharing her support between los Schlecks and Chris. In such a difficult situation,as already mentioned some days ago,Fangirl could take terrible decisions like buying one of those Footon-Servetto kits and wearing it until the end of the year as a sign of protest ("Protest against who? And against what?",Logic has often asked without getting any answer).

However,leaving myself aside for a while,I think that this is a difficult moment especially for Astana's men and also for some of the Saxo Bank's riders. Saxo Bank guys in fact have made their team flag out of the statement 'He's not just my captain,he's also my best friend!' But now that the best friend (Andy/Frank Schleck) is leaving and that Contador is arriving, those who remain with Riis in spite of everything (so far the only one who's surely going to do so is Chris Sorensen,who renewed his contract already 6 months ago) will probably change their motto from 'He's not just my captain,he's also my best friend!' to 'He's not just my captain,he's also the main rival of my best friend!' The consequences of that may be terrible,unless Contador becomes 'everyone's new best friend' during one of those training camp that SB always holds in the middle of the nowhere during the winter.

Anyway,I realise I'm running too fast.We don't know yet if Contador will really end up riding for Riis and we don't even know who will remain with Uncle Bjarne.The only thing that is sure right now is that Contador is leaving Astana.And,as mentioned,I think that Astana guys are totally pissed off right now.Without talking about Vinokourov (I think we can't imagine how pissed off he is right now), just think about Beppe Martinelli (Astana ds),who has other 2 years of contracts with the Kazakhistani team.

10 days ago,during an interview with the Italian tv,Martinelli said that Contador was going to renew his contract before of the end of the Tour.A week later,he finds out that the Spaniard will change team. I think he's probably pretty shocked by that,especially if you consider that Astana this year was a very strong team because it had the magic duo Vinokourov + Contador. But next year Contador will change team and,if Vino really decides to stop racing,the main riders on the team may be Tiralongo,Iglinsky and Gasparotto. Things change-not always for the better,unfortunately.

http://www.schleckfans.com/ : On to a happier news,Frank Schleck is marrying Martine next month.On this website there are some information about the marriage.I obviously wish the couple (and the little Leea) all of the best for their future!

http://gaffa.dk/artikel/40670 :a random link to an even more random interview with Matti Breschel.The topic? Music (like many other people who have been teenagers over the last 15 years,Matti likes Green Day-and he even played in a band)!

http://www.cyclingnews.com/blogs/andy-schleck/from-school-renegade-to-tour-star :In his last blog entry, Andy talks about a funny episode that occurred to him when he still was at school. Then,he confirms that he's riding Vuelta together with Frankie (yay!!). As well as that,this post informs us that the only Luxembourgian who didn't support Andy during this Tour de France wasn't Kim Kirchen,but the former Maths teacher of the Mondorf rider (apparently,Luxembourgish Maths teachers can be strange creatures... ;)

http://www.cyclingnews.com/features/thomas-dekker-a-dopers-desire-for-redemption : Once upon a time I used to think of Thomas Dekker as one of the most promising riders of his age. Then, he was banned from Cycledom for 2 years. Now he's given this interview to Cyclingnews and I hope he can start racing again.I mean,he's just 25!

http://www.sporten.dk/cykling/her-er-de-smukke-tour-kaerester : at the Post-Tour party of Saxo Bank,Andy Schleck showed he's got 2 shirts in his wardrobe. The blue one in the picture and the one he wears at every Tour de France presentation.Btw,if you think Andy could have chosen better clothes for that party (or if you still haven't got over the shirt he sported at last year Tour's presentation),take a look at this page: http://www.cyclingfans.com/node/1232 .In it there's a picture of Pierrick Fedrigo meeting Sarkozy and said pic perfectly shows that,after a Tdf,even choosing a decent shirt from your wardrobe/suitcase can become a deed...

And in the end,they finally reached Paris: randomness,celebrations and links

Another Tour de France is over and another Tour de France was won by Alberto Contador. Cycling isn't maths (luckily),but 1 Giro plus 1 Vuelta plus 3 Tours makes 5 Grand Tours won by the Spaniard,which divided for 27 (the years of life of Contador) give the result of 'Great cycling champion'.So,chapeau to Alberto for winning this year race. As you could see from my last post,after the final TT I was a bit brainwashed.In my defense however I must say that,less than 5" after watching Andy losing this Tour,I had to hear a journalist reminding me that next year also Riccò will probably take part in the Grande Boucle.

"This year things ended up this way,but just imagine what an epic battle these two riders will offer us next year: Alberto Contador and Andy Schleck fighting on the French climbs, together with our Grand Tour hope Riccardo Riccò",the cycling historian Beppe Conti said with a smile on his face.

Now,me wonders, did he really think to make Schleck supporters feel better by saying that?

If so,well,thank you for the effort,sir. Really,thinking about Riccò's comeback in the Grand Tours was right what I needed after watching my favourite rider losing a Tour for 39". Really,that news made me jump around the house screaming happily "Oh,Riccò will come back soon! I'm so excited! Oh,I so hope Quick Step will sign a new contract with him and I so hope he'll be able to race Vuelta,steal a podium spot from a good honest rider and,why not,steal Lombardy Tour from Cunego or Gilbert.What a joy! What an excitement!"

However,I have to admit that Beppe Conti was totally right about one thing: Riccò (and not Nibali) is perfect for wearing the clothes of "Italian new hope for Grand Tours",especially if you consider that almost all the important cyclists who had doping problems over the last months were Italians (Di Luca, Rebellin, Riccò, Pellizotti, Basso...).He's the perfect flag for Italian cycling,no doubts about that.

And then,as many of Conti's colleagues point out every time he wins something,Vinokourov is 'unpleasant,too patriotic,too arrogant and is even a former doper', while Riccò is 'a boy who made a mistake' but,in spite of that,is the living portrait of humilty,modesty and is a very pleasant person,a person who left his girlfriend after that she was found positive (or not?) at the anti-doping. Geez,what a jerk,ehm,what a great cycling champion we Italians have.And to say that some people still detest that rider.I wonder why...

Anyway I realise that,as usual,I'm straying away from the point.So let's forget about Riccò and Beppe Conti and go to the heart of this post: yesterday Tour de France stage,the podium and the celebrations.

During the first part of the Paris stage,as usual, the riders were seen riding happily towards the Champs Elysées. Arashiro ate a lollipop,Vinokourov attacked a packet of crisps,Contador drank a glass of champagne...At a certain point,the Spaniard and Andy Schleck decided to simulate an attack and,to my horror,they had to stop because Andy had a mechanical problem and had to change his bike.This time,however,Contador waited for the Luxembourgian.

On Champs Elysées the atmosphere changed,since the fight for the green jersey was still open and some riders tried to form a beakaway before of the last spint of this Tour.Those riders were Nicki Sorensen,Christian Knees and Karsten Kroon and they didn't have any luck.

Cavendish won the final sprint of the race and,thanks to his second placement,Petacchi won the green jersey."I'm very happy",the Italian said after the finish-line."My son is surely watching me right now and he will surely say 'Dad all green!"

After the finish-line,the podium celebrations began.

Cavendish went on the podium for receiving the stage victory award and that moment signed the beginning of my usual 'How awful the Tour trophies are' monologue,which takes place every year at the end of Tour de France.

The following rider to receive his award was the green jersey Petacchi.The Italian won the green jersey 42 years after Bitossi and became the second Italian to do so in the whole history of Cycledom.On the podium,he had the little shoes of his little son Alessandro jr. around his neck.

Charteau was the surprise winner of the polka dots jersey (second was 39 year-old Moreau). I've read that some people complained about his victory in that competition but I think that Anthony has no blame at all in that.If the organisers really want a grimpeur to win the polka dots jersey,they should simply give less points to 4 category climbs and more points to those who come first on climbs like Tourmalet,Aubisque and so on.

The 'most attacking rider of the Tour' award was given to Sylvain Chavanel.I think it was a right choice,especially if you consider that Sylvain was at the front of the race very often,won 2 stages, got the yellow jersey twice and showed his teeth at the head of the peloton even during the last stage of Champs Elysées.Chapeau,monsieur Chavanel.

Andy Schleck looked a bit disappointed as he received his white jersey and the thousandth Skoda Yeti of his career.I wonder where he stores all those horrible things,one of which was kindly defined by Andy as 'teddy' on Twitter. Let's just hope Leea and the other children of Saxo Bank's riders have a weakness for white, furry and scaring toys.

Contador really looked relieved when he hopped on the Paris podium for the third time in his life.He got off of it and soon climbed it again,this time with Andy Schleck and Denis Menchov at his side.Contador received the usual blue trophy (he's already got 3 of them at home),Andy received a transparent plate of glass,while Menchov received a golden glass plate as well.

This time the anthem that Contador heard from the podium was the right one,while Menchov and Schleck looked very serious and both took their hats off in front of the Spanish anthem.In that occasion,me had the clear feeling that Andy was spying Menchov's moves on the podium.

Best team was then Radioshack,whose riders went on the podium with jerseys that remind us that,in the World,there are 28 millions of people who suffer from cancer.
After the podium celebrations,the boys were finally ready to have their well deserved beers, pizzas and parties in Paris.

Frank Schleck was in the French city as well,together with Martine and Leea. On http://www.sporten.dk/cykling/fraenk-schleck-vi-havde-vundet you can find an interview with him.This article reminds us that the Schleck brothers are going to leave Riis team (*Fangirl sighs*) at the end of the year and another article on the same website tells us that both Fuglsang and Breschel have already decided what their cycling future will be,although they said they wanted to wait some days before of revealing their decisions to the press.On http://www.sporten.dk/webtv/269/11666 then there's a video interview with Voigt who,so far,is the only non-Danish person that I've ever heard pronouncing the word 'Fuglsang' in a very speedy and determined way.Also Jens tells us that he's already decided what his team for next year will be,but he also belongs to the "Let's make the supporters suffer!" party (I'm joking,since I know that for at least one week now the riders should just think about themselves and forget about bikes).

As far as the riders' celebration is concerned,here are some websites with very good pictures:

http://www.tdwsport.com/ Tim De Waele's pictures from the last Tour de France day are very interesting.For example,in one of them there is Contador with the blue trophy and Schleck with the infamous transparent glass plate.

From the pictures we can also understand that the fashion sense of some teams isn't actually that good.Just take a look at Menchov's orange hat (my eyes were burning!) and to the yellow shorts of the Astana riders (the same ones that Vinokorouv was wearing after Friday's TT and that probably caused the tears of Contador) and you'll understand what I mean.

On this website there are also some impressive shots of the riders with the Arc de Triomphé behind them and there are also lots of pictures of Armstrong,who is now ready for his last retire from the riding peloton.Also for Moerenhout and Moreau this was the last TdF,while it isn't clear yet what Vinokourov will do next year.

The website also features some nice pictures of the riders' train travel towards Paris (apropos: Chris Sorensen was next to Voigt on the train; does this mean that he has definitely abandoned Nicki for Jens? ;)

http://www.corvospro.com/arimages.aspx Also Corvos pictures are very good and they feature lots of different teams.There are the usual pictures of Saxo Bank Danish riders with Viking helmets on (read what I've written above about the fashion sense of some riders...),Cavendish with Renshaw,Andy Schleck looking enviously at Contador's blue trophy and,obviously,there are lots of pictures of Rabobank Dutch riders.

http://www.bettiniphoto.net/ :there are some very good pictures also on Roberto Bettini's website.The Italian photographer (who took the first two pictures of this post) this year took part in his 20th Tour as a photographer.Congratulations!<>

http://www.wort.lu/wort/web/fotogalerien/104301/index.php?pg=0 Wort.Lu dedicates a little photo gallery to the Schleck brothers and to the Grand Duke of Luxembourg.

So,that was the last stage of the Tour.Congratulations (and thank you!) to all the riders who took part in the race and also to everyone who worked for the Tour (journalists,chronists,drivers,etc). Sometimes they say/write some stupid things but hey,who doesn't (read my "those 42 seconds won't be important at the end of the Tour" statement in the post about Rotterdam's prologue...)? They're human beings as well and,although sometimes I joke about them,I know that without them the Tour would be very different.

To next year-and remember,Alberto,that Andy will be even stronger next July!

(Pictures by Bettini;last picture by Reuters)

Hat off for Andy Schleck:

Tears.Tears that worth like diamonds and that remind us that,before of being athletes,cyclists and champions,the Tour de France riders are boys.Young boys with their own personalities, dreams,friends,manias and problems,with their own fears and with their own hopes.

Tears.There are different kind of tears.Someone can cry because they're happy,because they're sad,because they're afraid,because they're angry...And what kind of tears were those that both Alberto Contador and Andy Schleck left on the asphalt of Pauillac,after today's decisive TTs?

Alberto Contador began this Tour as the absolute favourite of the race.His main advesary, according to many people,was going to be Lance Armstrong,his former teammate and winner of 7 Tours de France.When,on the climb towards Morzine,Armstrong disappeared from the high floors of the GC,Contador probably felt relieved.Relieved but also worried because a new adversary was ready to face him.He had already arrived on the podium last year and Contador already knew that it was going to be an adversary for him.This latter fact became even clearer that evening in the Alps.That lanky boy had become stronger,braver and was more determined than ever.

Before of that day in the Alps,Contador had already lived some important moments: the 'defeat' (as someone called it) of the TT,when Armstrong rode faster than him; the mechanical problem that he had to face on the cobblestones of Arenberg; the breakdown of his enemy,of his rival,of his former teammate Lance Armstrong.

In the following days,then, Contador would have lived other important moments.The victory of Spain in the soccer world championship gave him some happy moments immediately after Morzine's stage; Mendè created a little fracture between him and his teammate,his chief,his most precious man,Vinokourov; the following day,Vinokourov fixed it with a great proof of courage; in Aix 3 Domains he had to undergo Andy Schleck's pressure; and the following day,on Port de Balés,he dropped his rival,his friend,the main contender to his crown with the help of a mechanical problem of that young boy from Luxembourg.After that,Aberto faced debates, polemics,booes and excused his rival,his friend,the main contender to his throne.On Tourmalet he hanged to the wheels of that boy and tried to drop him,without managing to.Then,knowing he had the TT on his side,he left the victory of that epic stage to his rival,to his friend,to the main contender for his throne."You get this stage,I get the Tour",that was the deal between the boy in yellow and the rider in white.

The last TT was the last obstacle before of the Champs Elysées and Contador knew it already on that day,inside the fog of Tourmalet. On that day,Bordeaux TT looked as an apparently easy task for the man who,last year,rode even stronger than Cancellara in Annecy.

But sometimes maths and reality don't get on well.Contador had always defeated his rival in every TT they had faced over the last years, but this afternoon things were different.Contador's saddle was extremely slippery and the young,determined rival was riding the TT of his life.At a certain point,he almost caught Contador,he almost took the yellow jersey away from him.But then,at the end,the young boy slowed down and Alberto Contador won his third Tour de France.

After the finish-line,the Spaniard hugged his teammate,his chief,his most precious man, Vinokourov.Then,he broke into tears.Tears of freedom,of tension,of nervousness. 39" separated him from his main rival-the 39" that Alberto had gained on that tall boy during the Port de Balés stage.

At the beginning of this Tour,Andy Schleck was extremely confident.The world press didn't pay a lot of attention to him,but he didn't care.He knew he was strong and he had faith in himself,in his brother and in his team.He knew that Contador was the man he had to beat,but he also knew that he had improved a lot since the 2009 Tour de France.He was ready to fight for yellow.

The start of the race wasn't that good for Andy Schleck.On the first day every GC contender rode faster than him on the slippery roads of Rotterdam.At that point,there were more than 3000 kms to face before of arriving to Paris and the 42" he lost from his main rival,his friend,the man he wanted to defeat didn't look that important.

Two days after,on a slippery descent in Belgium,he crashed and his teammate Cancellara stopped the whole peloton in order to help his captain in his attempt of coming back on the other riders.The following day,on the Roubaix cobblestones,Andy Schleck gained some seconds on every other GC rider with the help of the Swiss rider,who took the yellow jersey back from Chavanel.But that same day, on the Roubauix cobblestones, Andy also lost his most precious teammate,his best friend,his brother Frank.

After the first days of race,however,things started to go wonderfully for Andy.In Morzine he got his first Tour de France stage victory ever,the first one of a career that will probably be full of joys; on the following day,he got the yellow jersey from the world champion Evans; in Mendé he lost 10" from Contador,but that day showed that the Spaniard was extremely nervous.So nervous to steal a stage victory to a teammate.

A few hours later,however,the joy that Andy was feeling in front of the chance of winning the Tour turned into anger.On Port de Balés,Andy Schleck attacked and,while riding up on his pedals,forgot an essential cycling rule: never change gear while you're accelerating so fast.His chain popped and Schleck had to stop.He was alone in that moment.No team car,no teammates, just a supporter who tried to help him.Angry,Andy hopped on his bike again after more than 30 long seconds.In front of him,Contador,Menchov and Samuel Sanchez were speeding up.The lanky 25 year old launched himself in the descent,trying to forget the risks of the road.Then,he rode desperately into Bagneres de Luchon,where he found out that he had lost the yellow jersey for 39 bloody seconds.

At that point,it seemed that he had just one way to win this Tour.And that way was dropping his friend,his main rival,the new yellow jersey on the Tourmalet.Andy didn't manage to drop the Spaniard in the fog of Tourmalet,but he won that epic stage.The young Luxembourgian, however,thought that he hadn't lost the race yet.He was still confident and he was still hoping for a miracle.

This afternoon,Andy Schleck started his TT knowing that he had to ride as fast as he had never done before.As said,he was still hoping in a miracle.And during the first 20 kms,it looked as the miracle could happen.Schleck was just 2" behind his rival,but then he started to slow down.He reached Pauillac,got off his bike,sat down on the asphalt,shoulders towards the road.From the silence of the audience,he understood that he had lost this Tour.Lost for just 39".The seconds that he had lost that day,during the Port de Balés stage.

The tears that he hadn't shown to the cameras before,that he had kept inside his blue eyes on many other occasions in the last weeks,finally appeared.The young boy started to cry and the support of the public couldn't do anything.Tears of disappointment,of anger,of tension.Tears that worth like diamonds.

There is still one stage before of the end of this Tour and right now 39" divide Alberto Contador and Andy Schleck. An unwritten cycling rule says that GC contenders can't attack on the last day of a Grand Tour,but everything is still possible.

Anyway,in spite of the final result of this year Tour de France,one thing is already sure: this year race was bitter for Andy Schleck,but it was the birth of a champion.In 2007 Schleck was young and unexperienced in the Giro won by Di Luca.People knew that he could become a champion, but they also knew that he could lose himself in the fog of unexperience.In 2008 he actually lost himself in the rain of Hautacam.In 2009 he won Liége,but never looked as strong as Contador during the Tour.Now,instead, we can state that Andy Schleck from Luxembourg is a champion.

As far as Contador is concerned,he was incredible in resisting psychological pressure and in not giving in when Andy Schleck was going to take the yellow jersey away from him.But still,I don't think he'll be totally happy with this victory.This Tour will be always reminded as the Tour in which Andy Schleck's chain came off on Port de Balés.Everyone will always remember that moment and many will always believe that,without that problem,Andy Schleck would have won this Tour.And Contador will surely be saddened by that.He will always repeat himself and the others that he would have dropped Andy on Tourmalet,if he had needed to.But nevertheless, he'll never be able to prove that.

So,here I end this definitely too long and far too poetical post (ok,I admit it: sometimes I like wasting time writing this kind of long poetical bullshits). Like many other Schleck supporters,I lived today's TT in a condition of 'trance'.I was so tense that I even bit my nails more than once (and this isn't a habit of mine) and I was going to cry for nervousness.

I believe that Andy Schleck's chain problem decided this Tour and no matter what the others think.But I also believe that today's stage proved that Andy is a champion and I'm sure that he'll be back stronger and more determined next year.

And then,irony (or sadism,if you prefer) of destiny,me has one thing to point out.The one who today had to race the TT of his life was Andy.But in team SB,also someone else raced the TT of his life without even thinking too much about it.In fact,Chris Sorensen was 21st in today's TT.The Danish climber (and my second favourite rider in this Tour) in fact was faster than guys like Vinokourov and Leipheimer, and 57" faster than Contador.I'm glad he rode well,but I can't avoid thinking about what could have happened if Andy had ridden as fast as Chris did this afternoon.

Anyway,now I close this long post.A part of me still says that it ain't over 'till it's over.After all, someone tomorrow might start his sprint one lap earlier than predicted,cause a big crash and in said crash both Contador and his main man Vinokourov (btw,coudn't it be that Contador this afternoon cried because,after the finish-line,he found Vinokourov and not his girlfriend waiting for him?) could be involved and lose a minute each,while Andy could fly to victory.Ok,I know I'm daydreaming-but I just can't believe that Andy lost a Tour de France for just 39".

Now I leave you-for real-and go to dine with my relatives.Some of them have already expressed admiration for Andy and my sister told me that,if she was an Andy's supporter,she would have started crying like mad in the last km of the TT.But still,I would have preferred to hear them complain about Andy's Tour victory rather than hear them saying that 'Andy Schleck was strong,but Contador was better and luckier than him'.

Andy gets another stage victory:

As Fangirl feared,Andy Schleck couldn't drop Contador this afternoon.And so,according to Logic,the Luxembourgian's going to lose this year Tour de France.
Surprisingly,although Logic inspires sad thoughts in her ("Contador let Andy win this stage,Contador was stronger than Andy this afternoon,Andy's going to lose this Tour..."),right now Fangirl is happy.In fact,although Andy couldn't drop Contador, this afternoon he raced in a very determined way,looked really strong,got another stage victory and showed to everyone that he's finally become a champion.A young,handsome champion.
To say the truth,even Fangirl has recently admitted that Contador probably gave Andy this victory as a present ("You get the Tourmalet stage,I get the Tour"),but in spite of this,one thing is sure: those who win on Tour de France's legendary climbs (and Tourmalet is one of them) enter the history of Cycledom.And this afternoon Andy Schleck definitely entered cycling history by winning on this famous mountain.
During the stage there were some amazing looks between Contador and Schleck and one of them,the one after Contador's impressive attack,almost gave me goosebumps.It was so intense and so meaningful!
After the stage then there were some very nice scenes.Firstly,Andy hugged Contador. Then,the Spaniard kidded with Andy by hitting him jokingly on the cheek.If I had been Andy,I wouldn't have reacted as kindly as he did ;)
Today also Andy's team was very good.Many have pointed out the disappointing performances of Saxo Bank,which was great during the first flat stages but then disappeared as soon as the Tour road started to become steeper.Today instead everyone did his work at the front.And,as usual,Chris Sorensen's facial expressions caused some chronists to joke about him.Actually,while Chris was pulling at the head of the peloton,even my mother felt worried about him and asked me whether the guy at the head of the bunch was dying."No mum,it's ok,it's Chris Sorensen.That's his style".At those words,she stopped feeling worried.
Then,after Fuglsang's work,Andy attacked.Before of that moment there had been a breakaway formed by some interesting guys (Kolobnev,Burghardt,Pauriol,Boasson Hagen,Flecha...) and Sastre had tried to join them with a little help from Konovalovas (and not 'Konolas' as someone on tv called him).But when Andy attacked,as I was saying,the last breakaway rider,Kolobnev,was caught after a few seconds (deciding to go on a breakaway the day of Tourmalet stage wasn't a very brilliant idea,unless those riders just wanted to try to survive in that way...).
At that point,with about 10 kms to go,the 'Andy and Alberto show' ('AS and AC show' sounds well too) began.The Luxembourgian,the blond,the blue-eyed young man versus the Spaniard,the dark-haired,the dark-eyed champion of 27.
It was also a psychological battle,the one between those champions.But then,when Contador realised that a sprint was going to decide the Tourmalet's winner,he let Andy win the stage.So,in that way,today both these boys have got their two tickets to Cycling History: Andy did so by winning on Tourmalet,while Contador did so by winning his 3rd TdF.Or,at least,that's what everyone thinks.But remember that there are still a lot of kms before of reaching Paris and that there are just 8 seconds between Conta and Schleck.As Andy said after the stage,'everything can still happen'.
Just like you can see one of your school marks going down from 9 to 8 on the penultimate day of school because your teacher is a b...,ehm,because your teacher didn't think you were as brilliant as usual in the last test of the year,well,in the same way Contador's yellow jersey could slip onto Andy' shoulders after the TT.Dreaming is possible,isn't it?
In spite of today's stage,in fact,I still think that Andy can win this Tour.Actually Fangirl thinks that Saxo Bank guys (supporters,riders,soigneurs,everyone) should try to cast a spell on Contador.Said spell should hit Conta on Saturday morning and make him enter the infamous "Michael Rasmussen's TT mood".In that way,Alberto should crash at least 3 times during the TT and Schleck should easily win the Tour.
Obviously Logic dislikes this idea,since she doesn't believe in spells and she also knows that,if Andy should won the Tour in that way,nor he nor the supporters would be totally happy.
Talking about the supporters,then,I have to say that some of the people who were on the Tourmalet this afternoon were idiots.I mean,you stay there for many hours and then,when the riders arrive,you begin to run behind them? You must be a fool to do that!
I was next to one of those incredible running creatures during Tonale's stage at the Giro and I can assure you that they don't care at all about riders.They just care about themselves.I'm particularly annoyed by those people not just because one of them ruined every picture of the riders that I tried to take on that day.No.I'm particularly annoyed by those people because on that day,every time they stopped after their runs,they asked someone things like "Has Pinotti already arrived?" or "Who was at the head of the race?" .In their own stupidity,in fact,those people had been running behind Pinotti a few seconds before,but were too stupid to realise it.
Luckily no one crashed because of a supporter (or because of a sheep...) and so we can say that everything went well this afternoon,the afternoon that gave Andy the joy of another victory,that allowed Contador to keep his yellow jersey and get closer to Paris,and that saw Vinokourov losing 8 positions in the GC (anyway,that's another story...).
Before of closing this post,btw,here's a great vid that you might enjoy:
http://www.saxobanktakingthelead.com/?p=3675 (yes,my 'good working computer' is finally back and so I can watch vids again).The main actor in this video is the fucking amazing Jens Voigt and I'm sure that many SB supporters will surely find it interesting.Btw I totally believe him when he says that it's good to share a room with Chris Sorensen.I mean,in that hotel room Chris basically slept on a couch (notice the book net to the pillow...) in order to leave the big comfortable bed to the injured Jens.And then,according to Jens,Chris even manages to get asleep before that his roomate starts to snore.What a great couple of men.

Random Post on the Rest Day of the Tour: marketing,history and the great Jens Voigt

The second rest day of 2010 Tour de France arrives right before of the crucial stage,the Tourmalet one.Unless Contador makes a disaster in the last TT,in fact,the winner of the race will be decided tomorrow by that famous climb,who a century ago was climbed by the Tour cyclists for the first time.I don't know if you've heard some of the histories regarding the discovery of Tourmalet.If you haven't,take a look at the last link of this post : it will shock you ;)

Yesterday's stage didn't see any change in the GC.Understandable,if you consider that the last climb was 60 kms far from the finish-line.A similar thing happened last year in the so-called 'Tourmalet stage'.The funny thing is that the man who won that stage (in which there were 50 kms between the last climb and the finish-line) is the same who won yesterday's stage. His name is Pierrick Fedrigo,but he's also known as 'the Frenchman with the big nose' or 'the punishers of the Italians'.In fact when he got his first Tour de France victory he outsprinted Totò Commesso, while last year he won by ousprinting Pellizotti.This year instead he got his victory after outsprinting different riders, between which there were also Damiano Cunego.
Obviously yesterday as soon as I noticed that Fedrigo was in a breakaway together with an Italian rider, I stated that he was surely going to win the stage.And,eventually,he did win.
Anyway,as mentioned today was the second rest day of this Tour; therefore me this evening had the time to collect some random links that will direct you to some random news/pictures/ marketing rumours/blogs/whatever else that me considers interesting.Here they are:
http://www.cyclingnews.com/features/contador-key-to-transfer-market :let's begin from the most hateful part: marketing rumours.This article states that Contador could renew contract for Astana or get a brand new team under the protection of Bjarne Riis.
I don't know what could happen if Alberto chose the latter option,since then Chris Anker Sorensen might become his new helper and Fangirl would definitely have to choose whether to support the Schleck brothers or Chris Anker Sorensen during Grand Tours.However,if Alberto does choose Saxo Bank,I'm sure that this time nothing will prevent Vino from taking his revenge on the Spaniard.
The article however also talks about Denis Menchov.LL Sanchez could join Rabobvank next year and so the Russian may end up riding for Katusha,aka the great (and only) Russian team of Pro Tour.Talking about Rabobank,it is said that also Matti Breschel could end up riding for the Dutch team next year.That would be pretty annoying for me because next year I'll already have enough problems with sharing my support between Chris Sorensen and the Schlecks.If also Matti changes team,well,Fangirl could take extreme decisions,like becoming a full-time supporter of Footon-Sevetto (she already supports that team every time Capelli is riding) and buying one of their horrible kits.
http://www.cyclingnews.com/news/basso-finishes-in-the-gruppetto :Basso finished the race in the gruppetto yesterday.In spite of this,chapeau to him: he's trying to honour this Tour in spite of illnesses and bad luck and he's really giving it all although he's already won the Giro this year.

http://www.tdwsport.com/ :Tim De Waele spent the whole day taking nice pictures of the riders.However this time there aren't many pictures of Andy Schleck on his website and if you are a bit disappointed by that I suggest you checking the pictures from the first rest day of the Tour.
http://www.velonation.com/News/ID/4973/Tour-de-France-Schlecks-busy-rest-day-warms-up-his-motor-for-Tourmalet-offensive.aspx :Andy Schleck has said he will attack on Tourmalet tomorrow afternoon.Let's hope that climb will be long and hard enough to drop Contador and get back the yellow jersey!
http://blog.tv2.dk/chris.anker.ol/entry377335.html :yes,to everyone's surprise,the link to Chris Anker Sorensen's blog was included in today's random post.In it Chris talks about his roommate Jens Voigt,who the other day had a bad crash on the Peyresourde descent.Here are some part of this blog entry (thank you Google Translater for allowing me to understand Danish!).

"Yesterday",writes Chris,"I had my worst day so far in this TdF (...).I felt a bit more comfortable after the stage,when George Hincapie said: 'This is the toughest stage start that I've ever faced in a Tour'.He has taken part in the Tour a few times now,so he should know what he's talking about.
"Yesterday unfortunately Jens Voigt crashed on the first descent.I was riding behind him when it happened and he was really unlucky.In a curve,in fact,his front tyre exploded (...).Jens is in good spirits,although he has many bruises and has been given 5 stitches.After coming back to the hotel room (ndr; after having been given stitches?),he was moaning in the bathroom. Then,suddenly,he came up to me in the room and said 'This is just too much.I've got bruises all over my body and I even got sunburned.In such a situation,it is alright to complain a bit,isn't it?' (...) After the crash in fact Jens' jersey was torn up on his back,therefore he got sun on his back for 6 hours and found himself sunburnt at the end of the day.
"In spite of all these problems,however,Jens didn't lose his good humour.At the dinner table he told me about his problems after the crash.His bicycle was destroyed,so he needed a new one. Little problem,both our team cars were at the front of the race (...).Therefore Jens received a bike from a Mavic car (Mavic is the neutral mechanical service).However there was a problem with this bike,since it had been prepared for a 1.50 m tall man,while Jens is 1.90 m (...).Luckily Jens had to race with that small bike for 'just' 20 kms.
"I must admit that Jens yesterday was my hero.Getting through a stage like that in spite of all those problems was impressive.And yesterday evening he was even as good humoured as always and this was even more impressive".
Obviously the title of this entry is "Hat off for Jens Voigt" and I really can't avoid to subscirbe Chris' words.After all,there's a reason if he's been nicknamed 'Fucking Amazing Jens Voigt' (or 'Chuck Norris of Cycling') all around the Blogosphere...
http://www.sport1.de/de/radsport/artikel_265942.html :talking about Jens Voigt,here's another link (in German) about him.He said that "Contador doesn't look that strong",that before of crashing he had the time to think "Okay,this is gonna hurt" and confirms once again that he's going to race also next year.You gotta love this man!
http://paneegazzetta.gazzetta.it/ :here's the blog of one of La Gazzetta's best journalists,Marco Pastonesi.His style is very brilliant and entertaining and his posts talk about cyclists,climbs and also about how the life of a cycling journalist is during the TdF.
http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Col_du_Tourmalet : some information about Tourmalet (read the part 'Origins in the Tour' to have some fun).

So,that's all from me for the moment.The crucial moment is coming and tomorrow evening me could be totally happy or completely down.No half ways between those moods will be available.However,just remember that,even if Contador tomorrow should distance Andy, 'it ain't over 'til it's over'.After all everyone,even Contador,can have a problem with their chains...

Do we really look that stupid?

Thanks to some long and adventurous bus travels that I had to face over the last hours,also today I've spent a lot of time reflecting about yesterday's TdF stage (and asking myself why the hell I live in Bergamo-but that's another story).Tonight I even made a very strange dream in which the TdF riders were riding on a harbour when,all of a sudden,Andy crashed and Vinokourov jumped over him,making him lose a lot of time while the other riders kept on riding.Then,all of a sudden,the action moved to a dirty pizzeria in which I found myself discussing cycling tactics with one of the people I hate the most in this world.I'm a professionist in making strange dreams (the one in which father Christmas was trying to kill me was probably the best),but this time I was pretty shocked as well .

During my long reflections,however,I spent a lot of time thinking about Contador's words,the ones that he said after yesterday stage.I didn't approve his attack at all,but as an Italian motto says,"La corsa l'è corsa,pietà l'è morta".Contador is not the first one to attack a rider with mechanical problems and,unfortunately,he won't be the last one.

What caught my attention a lot,in all this affaire,was what Contador said after the stage.After reading the interview he released to Cyclingnew,in fact,I asked myself a question: Do we (supporters,journalists and so on) really look that stupid? Does he really think that we can believe his lies? Come on,Alberto.I know you can do better than that.Invent something else.Please. I know that,watching us supporters jumping around and screaming on the climbs, we don't look that intelligent,but believe me,we have a brain and we can even use it. So,respect us a bit.
Personally,I had ignored Contador's excuse after Mendé's stage (the one in which he stole an almost certain victory to his teammate Vinokourov).But yesterday's excuse imo couldn't be ignored. Once,in order to skip a philosophy test,my best friend arrived late at school and said that his motorbike had broken down and that he had had to push it from his home to school.Little problem,that day it was very hot and sunny but,in spite of this,he wasn't sweated at all.And then, after the lessons, said friend even rode away on the saddle of his motorbike.This makes you understand that I've got a good experience in stupid excuses but still I consider Contador's excuse as one of the 10 most stupid things that I've ever heard (the other 9 placements of the Top 10 are obviously occupied by different Berlusconi' statements). But what did Contador actually say yesterday afternoon? Well,if you don't know yet,just check this out :http://www.cyclingnews.com/news/contador-defends-his-attack-on-the-bales .Using this article,I've decided to write little useless comments of mine to some of Contador's words.

But before I begin,let me warn you: don't dare to say that "Schleck had what he deserved because in Spa everyone had to wait for him".Don't dare to say that,because otherwise you'll enter my personal black list and will remain there forever and ever.I know that on that day Andy could have lost his Tour,but also Contador,Basso,Armstrong and so on had crashed.So shut up,you and all those great people who yesterday laughed "Ah ah ah,this time there's no Cancellara ready to stop Contador!" after Andy's mechanical problem.

Anyway,let's begin with the funny part.Contador after yesterday stage said: "Andy and I had been marking each other and I was starting to think about attacking.I was told after I did attack that there had been an incident, but when I launched the attack I didn't have any idea about what the incident .When I did find out what had happened we already had a big advantage and it was too late to do anything about it as we were all riding hard."

Now,take a big breath and read again all those words.Then,if you have the chance of watching a vid from yesterday's stage on YouTube (I can't because my computer is too old),enjoy the view.Then,read again Contador's words.After doing those things,you're allowed to laugh in a hysterical way or,if you prefer,feel insulted by these words.

I mean,does Alberto really think that we're so stupid? Does he really think that we will believe him when he says that nor Vinokourov nor his ds told him that Andy had had that mechanical problem?!? Come on man,don't make fun of us in this way.Please.We've grown up people, aren't we? Let's sit at the table and admit our responsabilities then.

Now,just imagine the situation.You're there,in a group of riders.The yellow jersey,who is your main rival for the GC,attacks.You try to follow him.Then,all of a sudden,the man in the yellow jersey disappears.He can't fly,so he must be somewhere.All of a sudden you see a yellow thing at the side of the road, your ds tells you something on the radio and your teammate Vinokourov looks incredibly happy.In that moment,you would probably think that, perhaps, the yellow jersey has crashed-or something similar. Or at least,you would think so unless your name is Alberto Contador.In that case,you'd simply believe that Schleck has flown away between the clouds and you'd try to chase him.
"Some people understand what happened and others didn't understand.Those are the circumstances of racing and I knew there would be some debate about this incident. I attacked before he had a problem with his chain and was a long way ahead when I heard what had happened",Contador continued.I totally agree with the first sentence and I totally disagree with the second one.When Andy had that problem,he,and not Contador,had attacked. So please, Alberto,don't say these stupid things.
But let's go on."Anyway I don't believe that 30 seconds at this point in the race is going to decide whether or not you win the Tour de France",Conta said. Sorry,Alberto,but I don't believe you when you say these things.
I could go on,but I realise that I'm simply losing my time.The yellow jersey has gone and Contador underestimates my intelligence.What a drama. I know that some of my posts are very stupid,but one of my favourite ways of saying is: "Stupid people can't pretend to be intelligent, intelligent people can pretend to be stupid".And,actually,I'm considered an intelligent person not just by myself,but also by many people who know me in person.So,I have the right to feel insulted.
Anyway,I've read that Contador has made an apology vid for Andy.Unfortunately I haven't seen it yet because my computer doesn't work very well with videos.But my mind tells me one thing: if you know you have done nothing wrong,you don't need to apology yourself.
Here I end this angry useless post.But before,let me say once again that I took Contador's words as a direct insult to my intelligence.Hopefully,I'm not the only one.

La corsa l'è corsa,pietà l'è morta:

Shocking.As a Schleck supporter,I can't find any other word to describe today's TdF stage ending in Bagneres de Luchon-or how else it is called.

Shocked.In an interview that Andy released to the Italian tv a few minutes ago,he used this word to describe how he feels right now.

Shock.That was the sensation that hit me when there were about 4 kms to the top of today's last climb (apropos: may it be cursed forever and ever).

At that point of the race,Andy Schleck had just attacked and he seemed to have dropped Contador. Then,to my shock,horror,amazement, disgust,whatever you want,Andy's bike chain had a problem and the Luxembourgian had to stop.It took him a lot of time to make things go back in order and,during that time,Contador flew away with Menchov,Samu Sanchez and someone else.

Andy was alone,behind all the other GC riders,and tried-without suceeding-to come back on Contador's group.On the descent he really looked furious,shocked and angry.But anger,motivation and disappointment couldn't do anything and our boy crossed the finish-line 39" after Contador (new yellow jersey),Sanchez,Menchov and someone else.

After all,an ancient cycling rule said that 'the race is race,piety is dead'.This rule wasn't applied in the Spa stage of this Tour,but it was applied today.After all,Contador had the right to do so. He's not the first one and he's not the last one to take advantge from a problem o his adversary.But fuck,losing 39" in that way hurts.

I spent the whole climb screaming like mad and,when Andy had that problem,I fell in panic and almost wanted to cry.Even my sister was very moved and supported Andy as well in his chase behind Alberto.Still,there was nothing to do against the Spaniard.And,if I felt that way,I can't imagine how Andy Schleck felt at that point.

As one of my favourite mottos say,"Good luck is blind but bad luck has eyes everywhere" (la fortuna è cieca,ma la sfiga ci vede benissimo).And in cycling, just like in life,you need at least a bit of good luck.You can have skills,you can have talent,you can be motivated.But,in cycling as in life,if you aren't lucky at all you can't go anywhere.Or,at least, you can't go where you'd love to.

I'm in a big hurry right now and I'm obviously still very shocked.I'm also very pessimistic right now,but one thing is sure: there are still 2 mountain stages before of the end of this Tour and Andy can still hope in a miracle and try to win this Tour.After all,as a popular way of saying states,"hope dies last".So,boy,chin up and go to get that yellow jersey again: you're the strongest this year and,after all this bad luck against you and Frank,things must change.