Alberto Contador Expunged from UCI Record Books

The UCI has expunged Alberto Contador's name from the UCI record books for the races involved in his doping case. Michele Scarponi is now listed as the 2011 Giro d'Italia winner and Andy Schleck as the 2010 Tour de France winner.

Now, both the Giro and Tour organizations can move on to declaring the new winners and updating their own race records.

Related stories:
Giro d'Italia "Albo d'Oro"
Giro d'Italia "Albo d'Oro", Part II


The UCI entries:

07 May-29 May 2011

UCI WorldTour Ranking #10 - Giro d'Italia

ITA

UWT

SCARPONI (ITA)

03 Jul-25 Jul 2010

World Ranking #13 - Tour de France

FRA

HIS

SCHLECK (LUX)

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Giro d'Italia "Albo d'Oro", Part II

Yesterday we asked the question, "When will the Giro d'Italia change the winner for 2011 from Alberto Contador to Michele Scarponi?" and we tweeted Michele Aquarone, Managing Director at RCS Sports (head of Giro d'Italia), with the question.

In reply Mr. Acquarone wrote, "Work in progress! :)"

Respected INRNG wrote in with, "ASO say they are waiting for formal instructions from the UCI, only then can they act on 2010 Tour result"

To which Mr. Acquarone replied to with, "Maybe I'm wrong but I believe that CAS already did it..."

I looked back at the CAS report and in fact it does say (edited for brevity), "Mr. Contador is disqualified from the Tour de France...from all competitions he participated in after January 25, 2011....including forfeiture of any medals, points and prizes."

To which INRNG pointed me to the Tour de France posting on their website in which it says (bolding is mine), "The CAS suspended the Spanish rider for two years. He was also stripped of the title for the Tour de France 2010 as well as his victories in 2011, including the Giro d’Italia. On the basis of this verdict, the International Cycling Union is likely to award victory for the 2010 edition to Andy Schleck, the runner-up in the race."

So, the question that remains open at the moment is whether the UCI is part of a process that is not yet complete to allow TdF and Giro to officially announce new winners?

Time will tell...

Later update thanks to INRNG: UCI on February 6, 2012 stated, "Alberto Contador case: the consequences of the CAS ruling: The disqualification of Alberto Contador from the 2010 Tour de France as a result of the CAS ruling as well as his suspension backdated to 25 January 2011 entails the amendment of the classifications of all events in which the rider participated during this period as well as other associated rankings."

It appears this would be the reason for the delays in officially recognizing the new winners.

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Giro d'Italia "Albo d'Oro"

When will the Giro d'Italia change the winner for 2011 from Alberto Contador to Michele Scarponi? We'll tweet Michele Acquarone to see what he says. As of today:

ALBO D'ORO

ANNO	NAZ.	ATLETA	TEAM DI APPARTENENZA
2011		CONTADOR Alberto Velasco	Saxo Bank Sungard
2010		BASSO Ivan	Liquigas-Doimo
2009		MENCHOV Denis	Rabobank
2008		CONTADOR Alberto	Astana

The Giro has a more pressing problem on its hands at the moment: Since Contador was stripped of his victories that also means he was stripped of the points he brought to Team Saxo Bank (representing approximately 68% of the Saxo Bank-Sungard team's total points) which enabled the team to qualify as a ProTeam. In turn, that has now led to the UCI having to rule on Team Saxo Bank’s future, possibly being stripped of its ProTeam status. Michele Acquarone and his Giro team are contemplating what to do if the UCI cuts Saxo Bank and decides to not name a replacement (bringing the number of Proteam's from 18 to 17). As Aquarone said, "At that point we will evaluate whether to proceed with the replacement of Saxo Bank....we will have to do this in the in the shortest possible time."

The Tour de France has also yet to revise its records for 2010:

Yr	Nat.	Winner	Number of stages	The riders		Kilometers	Time	Average speed (km/h)	Age
				Engagés	Classés
2011		Cadel EVANS	21	198	167	3 430,5	86h12'22"		34
2010		Alberto CONTADOR	20 + prologue	180	170	3 642	91h58'48"		27
2009		Alberto CONTADOR	21	180	156	3 459	85h48'35"		26
2008		Carlos SASTRE	21	180	145	3 559	87h52'52"	40,492	33
2007		Alberto CONTADOR	20 + prologue	189	141	3 570	91h00'26"	39,228	24

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"Bad Day" for Giro d'Italia

This afternoon Michele Acquarone, Managing Director at RCS Sport which owns the Giro d'Italia, tweeted "Bad day" in reference to today's suspension of Alberto Contador and the retroactive stripping of Contador's 2011 Giro d'Italia victory.

Later, Acquarone told cyclingnews.com , "I'm very upset but we can’t be quiet on this, I will need to produce a new trophy. Until this morning Alberto Contador was our winner. Tomorrow we’ll have a committee meeting and we’ll discuss if there’s anything we can do and how to work to protect our races. I believe big damage has been caused to the Giro, and there’s a big problem but I want to discuss it all with the staff and the CEO to understand. I’ve not read the sentence and what the judges have said but right now it’s too early. I need to take some time to understand and discuss with my people. Tomorrow we will make our position."

The idea of "how to work to protect our races" is exactly the dilemma that then race director Angelo Zomegnan faced in March, 2011, two months before the start of the Giro. His words at the time, "The sport's justice process is slower than we would wish. Clearly, something is not working in the guarantee of our event. I have my hands tied, I can not tell Contador to go home if he and his team want to take part. There is always the presumption of innocence and Contador at the moment is an acquitted athlete in a process and is free to race. But it is clear that this is not the ideal situation."

Obviously, this situation cannot be allowed to happen again. It will be interesting to see what changes are made in the UCI rules to prevent a re-occurrence of this kind, or if RCS Sport can take unilateral action to protect their event.

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Michele Scarponi Becomes 2011 Giro d'Italia Winner

After a seemingly forever 566 days Alberto Contador was today handed a two year suspension by the Court of Arbitration for Sport (CAS) for the presence of clenbuterol in his urine sample during the 2010 Tour de France.

The suspension means that Contador will lose race results dating back to the 2010 Tour de France and includes the 2011 Giro d'Italia. Andy Schleck will become the 2010 Tour de France winner. Michele Scarponi (Lampre-ISD) becomes the winner of the 2011 Giro d'Italia with Vincenzo Nibali (Liquigas-Cannondale) moving into 2nd place and John Gadret (AG2R La Mondiale) moving into 3rd.

Of the CAS decision Michele Scarponi said, "Together with my team, Lampre-ISD, I acknowledge the decision by the CAS about the Contador case. For what concerns the human aspect, I'm very sorry for Alberto. For what concerns the professional aspect, this decision doesn't change the value of the results I obtained and the targets for the future"

The two year suspension for Contador ends August 5th, 2012, which only leaves the Vuelta a España as the only grand tour he can contest this year.

Related Stories:
The Giro and the Contador Problem
The Giro and the Contador Problem, Part II
Contador Wins 2011 Giro d'Italia
2010 Tour de France: Contador Wins, Petacchi Takes Green Jersey

Photo: 2011 Giro d'Italia podium

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Limar Giro d'Italia Editions

Limar introduced their Limar 777 Giro d'Italia edition helmet and eyewear at Eurobike.


Stopping by the Limar booth were two time, 1991 and 1992, world road champion Gianni Bugno (right) and Spanish rider Carlos Betancur Gomez (left); (center) Giovanni Caporali of Limar.

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2011 Giro d'Italia, Always More Global

The 94th Giro d'Italia which ended Sunday, May 29, with the triumphant arrival of Alberto Contador in Piazza Duomo in Milan recorded the most widespread global coverage in the race's history.

According to estimates conducted by Eurodata TV Worldwide the 2011 Corsa Rosa has reached a potential audience of over 800 million viewers worldwide.

The Giro was broadcast live in 168 countries on five continents through the following television networks:

EUROPE: Eurosport, Veo7 and ETB in Spain, VRT Belgium, the Czech Republic CT4 Sport, TV2 Norway CSR and Switzerland;

AMERICAS: Universal Sports in the United States and Canada, TDN Mexico to Central America, ESPN Sur ESPN Brazil in South America;

ASIA: JSports Japan, Kazakhstan, Khabar TV;

OCEANIA: SBS Australia;

AFRICA: Supersports.

In Italy, the Giro this year went live on RAI 3 television, RAI Sport 1 (with repeats on RAI Sport 2) and Eurosport. The total of the live broadcast on RAI were 184 hours divided as follows: 70 hours on RAI 3 (terrestrial digital and analog), 114 hours of RAI Sport 1 (DTT). The total cumulative audience on RAI reached almost 115 million viewers.

The most viewed stage, 3,819,934 viewers (on RAI 3), was that of Conegliano - Val di Fassa and Gardeccia.

The RAI website recorded 2,083,082 page views and a daily average of 24,963 unique users, +9% and +2% respectively compared to the 2010 Giro. Taking into account web data of RAI Sport1 and RAI 3 the Giro totaled 3.4 million page views.

Gazzetta TV had an enormous increase in video streaming use, an 84% increase; live race video streaming was seen by 2,185,774.

The 95th edition Of the Giro d'Italia will start from Denmark on May 5, 2012. The official presentation will take place on October 22, 2011.

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Behind the Scenes at the 2011 Giro d'Italia

My thanks to Gianmarco Dodesini Valsecchi , an Italian film maker doing work for several cycling companies, for sending a link to this film made for Vittoria. His production company, www.341production.com, will have it's website ready in several weeks; in the meantime Gianmarco can be contacted at info@341production.com.

Definitely worth watching:

Full size here.

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Stories for the Italian Cycling Journal about rides, granfondos, touring, having a good time cycling in Italy, Italian cycling history, etc. are always welcome. Contact me at veronaman@gmail.com. There are more than 2,000 stories in this blog. The search feature to the right works best for finding subjects in the blog. There is also a translate button at the bottom so you can translate each page.

Giro d'Italia, Stage 21

Stage 21, Sunday, May 29, 2011: FIERA MILANO (RHO – PERO) - MILAN, 26 KM individual time trial.

Alberto Contador (Saxo Bank Sungard) is the winner of the 94th Giro d’Italia and the Maglia Rosa Estathé 2011, 6’10” ahead of Michele Scarponi (Lampre – ISD). Vincenzo Nibali (Liquigas – Cannondale) came third after 6’56”.

Alberto Contador (Saxo Bank Sungard) is also the Maglia Rosso Passione Gruppo Saint-Gobain 2011.

Roman Kreuziger (Pro Team Astana) is the Maglia Bianca Adecco 2011.

Stefano Garzelli (Acqua & Sapone) is the Maglia Verde Banca Mediolanum 2011.


David Millar (Team Garmin Cervelo) won the final stage. The winner completed the individual time-trial from Fiera Milano (Rho – Pero) to Milan in 30’13” at the average speed of 51,627 km/h. Alex Rasmussen (HTC – Highroad) was second after 7” and Alberto Contador (Saxo Bank Sungard) third after 36”.


The Maglia Rosa and Maglia Rossa, Alberto Contador: "This win is amazing, it looked easy but was actually very difficult. A big thanks to my family, my friends, my team and the fans."

The Maglia Verde, Stefano Garzelli: "It is a great emotion, after 11 years to still be around here with the Maglia Verde."

The Maglia Bianca, Roman Kreuziger: "I managed to keep this jersey and we won the team championship. Of course I hoped to be in the top ten but if I won the Maglia Bianca means that I’m still young, right? I have time to grow and I'm sure that confronting the great champions who have fought in this Giro d’Italia has undoubtedly helped me to grow further."

Top 10 GC:

1 Alberto Contador Velasco (Spa) Saxo Bank Sungard 84:05:14
2 Michele Scarponi (Ita) Lampre - ISD 0:06:10
3 Vincenzo Nibali (Ita) Liquigas-Cannondale 0:06:56
4 John Gadret (Fra) AG2R La Mondiale 0:10:04
5 Joaquím Rodríguez Oliver (Spa) Katusha Team 0:11:05
6 Roman Kreuziger (Cze) Pro Team Astana 0:11:28
7 José Rujano Guillen (Ven) Androni Giocattoli 0:12:12
8 Denis Menchov (Rus) Geox-TMC 0:12:18
9 Steven Kruijswijk (Ned) Rabobank Cycling Team 0:13:51
10 Kanstantsin Sivtsov (Blr) HTC-Highroad 0:14:10



During the award ceremony for Alberto Contador a wrong version of the national Spanish anthem was played. Spanish Sport General Director, Matilde Garcia Duarte, issued an immediate formal complaint. The management of the Giro d'Italia responded by apologizing to Alberto Contador, the Spanish Government, Spanish authorities attending the event, and all Spanish citizens.

And, so ended the 94th edition of the Giro d'Italia.

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Giro d'Italia, Stage 20

Brief report today.

Vasili Kiryienka (Movistar Team) won the twentieth stage of the 94th Giro d’Italia. The winner completed the route in 6:17’03” at the average speed of 38,509 km/h. José Rujano Guillen (Androni Giocattoli) was second at -4:43 and Joaquin Rodriguez Oliver (Katusha Team) third at -4:45. Scarponi added another 22 seconds over his GC lead of Nibali.

Top 10 GC:
1 Alberto Contador Velasco (Spa) Saxo Bank Sungard 83:34:25
2 Michele Scarponi (Ita) Lampre - ISD 0:05:18
3 Vincenzo Nibali (Ita) Liquigas-Cannondale 0:06:14
4 John Gadret (Fra) AG2R La Mondiale 0:07:49
5 Joaquím Rodríguez Oliver (Spa) Katusha Team 0:09:27
6 José Rujano Guillen (Ven) Androni Giocattoli 0:10:23
7 Roman Kreuziger (Cze) Pro Team Astana 0:10:38
8 Denis Menchov (Rus) Geox-TMC 0:10:51
9 Steven Kruijswijk (Ned) Rabobank Cycling Team 0:12:56
10 Mikel Nieve Ituralde (Spa) Euskaltel-Euskadi 0:12:57

Alberto Contador (Saxo Bank Sungard) is the Maglia Rosa Estathé, 5’18” ahead of Michele Scarponi (Lampre – ISD) and 6’14” ahead of Vincenzo Nibali (Liquigas – Cannondale).
Alberto Contador (Saxo Bank Sungard) is the Maglia Rosso Passione Gruppo Saint-Gobain.
Roman Kreuziger (Pro Team Astana) is the Maglia Bianca Adecco.
Stefano Garzelli (Acqua & Sapone) is the Maglia Verde Banca Mediolanum.

Stage 21, Sunday, will be an individual time trial to conclude the 2011 Giro d'Italia. See here for latest details regarding the modified route.

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Spotted on Colle delle Finestre

Photo: Thanks Eros Poli (www.eros-poli.com)

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Giro d'Italia, Stage 19

Stage 19, Friday, May 27th, 2011, BERGAMO-MACUGNAGA, 209 km

START

162 riders roll out at 11.25 am. Felice Gimondi and Eddy Merckx are enjoying the race.



After 4 km 19 riders get away: Dessel, Ermeti, Beyer, Sasma, Azanza Soto, Cheula, Brutt, Caruso, Spilak, Samoilau, Kiserlovski, Favilli, Van Winden, Didier, Carlstrom, Stetina, Popovych, Rovny and Hoogerland.

The bunch, paced by the Acqua & Sapone and Farnese Vini – Neri Sottoli riders, does not leave much room: at km 14 the field is 26” back. The breakaway is caught at km 28.

At km 48, Bak, Rabottini and Pineau fly off; the field does not respond. Average speed after one hour: 50.200 kph.

At km 54: the leaders have a 2’05” lead. The three front-runners do not cooperate and Pineau decides to launch an attack on the two other. At km 60, the QuickStep rider has a 38” lead over Bak and Rabottini and 6’25” over the peloton.

Pineau decides to wait for the two chasers and, at km 68, the three are at the front together. Average speed after two hours: 45,900 kph.

In Vergiate – km 92 – the break reaches a 11’50” lead.

100 km to go: the field is closing the gap down to 7’30”.

At the beginning of the climb to the Mottarone the bunch, paced by Acqua & Sapone, is 5’ behind. Average speed after three hours: 41,600 kph. Almost at the end of the ascent Garzelli (the oldest rider in the Giro) jumps away from the peloton as the chasers are approaching the break.

King of the Mountain – 1st category, Mottarone (VB) [m 1.341]: Pineau comes over the climb ahead of Rabottini and Bak, Garzelli 26” behind, with the main bunch at 1’10” . On the downhill Grazelli, then Chenel and Tschopp catch the three escapees. 6 men are leading now. 50 km to go, 3’35” of delay for the bunch, paced by the Katusha riders.

Intermediate Sprint, Ornavasso (VB): Bak first to cross the IS, ahead of Tschopp, Garzelli, Pineau, Chevel, Rabottini. The bunch pass 2’22” later. The last climb leading to the finish line begins. Bak is suffering, 5 men are left to lead. Di Luca is guiding the chasing group with the Pink Jersey. 25 km to go: Pineau and Rabottini accelerate, the rest of the break is caught by the bunch. With 20 km to go, 36” of lead.

13 km to go: Pineau and Rabottini are caught by the field – 50 riders approx. – which is always paced by the Team Katusha riders. The Green Jersey, Garzelli, in difficulty.

6 km to go, Tiralongo accelerates. With 5 km to go, the Astana rider has an 11” lead over the Pink-Jersey group.

– 4 km: 20”.

– 3 km: 20”. Dupont jumps out with Rodriguez, on his wheel, who leaves the French rider behind and chases Tiralongo.

Last km: sprint by Contador who catches and passes Rodriguez and joins Tiralongo - 400 metres. Contador has a few words with Tiralongo and rides to the line with his former teammate from Astana. Together they fly to the finish line.

FINISH – KOM – 3rd category, Macugnaga (VB) [m 1.060]: Paolo Tiralongo wins the stage ahead of Alberto Contador, Vincenzo Nibali in third 3” behind.


Time of the winner: 5h 26’ 27” at an average speed of 38.413 kph.

Tiralongo: "After a life (12 seasons) as a domestique, I’ve finally reached my goal of winning a race. My wife sacrifices so much for me to live this life as a cyclist.
It was Alberto who suggested to me to attack with six kilometres to go. He touched my shoulder to give me the signal. He had seen my motivation before. I had tried to go away once before. This was my only week of freedom. Otherwise, I always give 100% for my captains. I can imagine that 90% of the riders are very happy that I’ve won today after seeing me racing for my captains for such a long time. The first of them is Contador. When I saw him coming across to me, I saw a friend, not a rival. I knew he would do what he could to make me win this stage."


Top 10 GC:
Result
1 Alberto Contador Velasco (Spa) Saxo Bank Sungard 77:11:24
2 Michele Scarponi (Ita) Lampre - ISD 0:05:18
3 Vincenzo Nibali (Ita) Liquigas-Cannondale 0:05:52
4 John Gadret (Fra) AG2R La Mondiale 0:07:53
5 Kanstantsin Sivtsov (Blr) HTC-Highroad 0:09:58
6 Mikel Nieve Ituralde (Spa) Euskaltel-Euskadi 0:10:08
7 Roman Kreuziger (Cze) Pro Team Astana 0:10:20
8 Joaquin Rodriguez Oliver (Spa) Katusha Team 0:10:43
9 Denis Menchov (Rus) Geox-TMC 0:10:51
10 José Rujano Guillen (Ven) Androni Giocattoli 0:11:50
http://www.blogger.com/img/blank.gif
Classification leaders:
Alberto Contador (Saxo Bank Sungard) is the Maglia Rosa Estathé, 5’18” ahead of Michele Scarponi (Lampre – ISD) and 5’52” ahead of Vincenzo Nibali (Liquigas – Cannondale).
Alberto Contador (Saxo Bank Sungard) is the Maglia Rosso Passione Gruppo Saint-Gobain.
Roman Kreuziger (Pro Team Astana) is the Maglia Bianca Adecco.
Stefano Garzelli (Acqua & Sapone) is the Maglia Verde Banca Mediolanum.

Stage 20: here for more details.

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Stories for the Italian Cycling Journal about rides, granfondos, watching and touring during the Giro, having a good time cycling in Italy, Italian cycling history, etc. are always welcome. Contact me at veronaman@gmail.com. There are more than 1,900 stories in this blog. The search feature to the right works best for finding subjects in the blog. There is also a translate button at the bottom so you can translate each page.

La Carovana at the Giro d'Italia, Part II

Part I



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Stories for the Italian Cycling Journal about rides, granfondos, watching and touring during the Giro, having a good time cycling in Italy, Italian cycling history, etc. are always welcome. Contact me at veronaman@gmail.com. There are more than 1,900 stories in this blog. The search feature to the right works best for finding subjects in the blog. There is also a translate button at the bottom so you can translate each page.

Giro d'Italia, Saturday: Colle delle Finestre

On hand for tomorrow: the Colle delle Finestre, 18 km, 45 switchbacks, and slopes of more than 12% (9.2% average); last 8 km are gravel.

Becomre familiar with the Colle delle Finestre with these related stories:
GEOX-TMC Recon of Colle delle Finestre of May 5, 2011
First Hand Report: Colle delle Finestre
2005 Giro d'Italia: Climb of the Colle delle Finestre

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Stories for the Italian Cycling Journal about rides, granfondos, watching and touring during the Giro, having a good time cycling in Italy, Italian cycling history, etc. are always welcome. Contact me at veronaman@gmail.com. There are more than 1,900 stories in this blog. The search feature to the right works best for finding subjects in the blog. There is also a translate button at the bottom so you can translate each page.

Giro d'Italia, Stage 18

Stage 18, Thursday, May 26, 2011, MORBEGNO – SAN PELLEGRINO TERME, 151 km.

START

162 riders roll out at 1.25 pm. Right away a very high speed but the field is always together.


After 50 km from the start, the whole bunch is still together. Average speed after one hour: 53.100 kph. A number of attacks on the front of the field. Agnoli asks for a “time out”. Unheard. The accelerations keep on going. On the steep uphill leading to Bergamo Alta the peloton is split into three groups.

Intermediate Sprint, Bergamo: Bakelandts crosses the IS first ahead of Tankink and Pinotti who lead the first group (50 riders) including the Pink Jersey. The main bunch has a 1’ delay.

In Alzano Lombardo, km 96, 20 riders clear out (Vicioso, Brambilla, Sastre, Kozontchuk, Pinotti, Losada, Capecchi, Pasamontes, Bakelandts, Tiralongo, Gatto, Cataldo, Pineau, Seeldrayers, Hernandez, Tankink, Navarro, Downing, Deignan, Carrara). Average speed after two hours: 50.800 kph.

50 km to go: 3’22” lead for the 20 breakaway riders over the first chasing group. On the front 6 riders attack; at km 103, Pinotti, Capecchi, Seeldrayers, Pineau, Downing and Brambilla are the leaders. On the uphill leading to the Ganda Pass, Pineau, Downing and Brambilla lose contact. Three men are now leading the race.

King of the Mountain, 2nd category : Passo di Ganda (BG) [m 1.060]: Pinotti first to come over the climb ahead of Capecchi, Seeldrayers, Brambilla 15” behind, Tiralongo 1’25” behind. The latter flies off in the pursuit of the front-runners on the phill. The Pink-Jersey group gets to the top 4’55” behind. On the downhill Tiralongo joins Brambilla but the three leaders cannot be caught and the victory is at stake between them.

Last km: a phase of mutual scrutiny among the three breakers - Pinotti has Seeldrayers and Capecchi on his wheel. From the last bend – 250 metres to go – Pinotti starts off the sprint.

FINISH

It is Eros Capecchi who passes and snatches the win ahead of Marco Pinotti, in second. Kevin Seeldrayers in third. In fourth and fifth, at 1’20”, Brambilla and Tiralongo respectively. The first victory for Liquigas in this Giro.

Time of the winner: 3h 20’ 38” at an average speed of 45.157 kph.


Capecchi: "I waited and tried for a long time now. To succeeded in the finish of a race is important, it's like a dream come true. Yesterday I tried to find the right breakaway group, unfortunately without success. I felt that my legs felt very well compared to previous weeks and today I threw myself into the race without hesitation. It's been a grind. The Ganda Pass was a perfect springboard for the group split up, then Seeldraeyers, Pinotti and I jockeyed to win. I chose the right time."

Top 10 GC:
1 Alberto Contador Velasco (Spa) Saxo Bank Sungard 71:45:09
2 Michele Scarponi (Ita) Lampre - ISD 0:04:58
3 Vincenzo Nibali (Ita) Liquigas-Cannondale 0:05:45
4 John Gadret (Fra) AG2R La Mondiale 0:07:35
5 Kanstantsin Sivtsov (Blr) HTC-Highroad 0:09:12
6 José Rujano Guillen (Ven) Androni Giocattoli 0:09:18
7 Mikel Nieve Ituralde (Spa) Euskaltel-Euskadi 0:09:22
8 Denis Menchov (Rus) Geox-TMC 0:09:38
9 Roman Kreuziger (Cze) Pro Team Astana 0:09:47
10 Joaquím Rodríguez Oliver (Spa) Katusha Team 0:10:25

Classification leaders:
Alberto Contador (Saxo Bank Sungard) is the Maglia Rosa Estathé, 4’58” ahead of Michele Scarponi (Lampre – ISD) and 5’45” ahead of Vincenzo Nibali (Liquigas – Cannondale).
Alberto Contador (Saxo Bank Sungard) is the Maglia Rosso Passione Gruppo Saint-Gobain.
Roman Kreuziger (Pro Team Astana) is the Maglia Bianca Adecco.
Stefano Garzelli (Acqua & Sapone) is the Maglia Verde Banca Mediolanum.

Stage 19, Bergamo-Macugnaga, 209 km is rated "Alta Montagna".



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Stories for the Italian Cycling Journal about rides, granfondos, watching and touring during the Giro, having a good time cycling in Italy, Italian cycling history, etc. are always welcome. Contact me at veronaman@gmail.com. There are more than 1,900 stories in this blog. The search feature to the right works best for finding subjects in the blog. There is also a translate button at the bottom so you can translate each page.

Giro d'Italia Final Stage Modified

Sunday, May 29th, the final stage will take place in Milano with an indivdual time trial. The stage has been modified with the start now being in the vicinity of the Fiera Milano of Rho-Pero rather than Piazza Castello. The finish, at the Duomo of Milano, remains the same. The first rider will go off at 1420, the last rider to arrive at the finish is anticipated at 1730.

The new course will be 26 km, the original was 32.8 km.


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Stories for the Italian Cycling Journal about rides, granfondos, watching and touring during the Giro, having a good time cycling in Italy, Italian cycling history, etc. are always welcome. Contact me at veronaman@gmail.com. There are more than 1,900 stories in this blog. The search feature to the right works best for finding subjects in the blog. There is also a translate button at the bottom so you can translate each page.

Giro d'Italia, Stage 17

Stage 17, Wednesday, May 25, 2011, FELTRE-TIRANO, 230 km. The Giro's guest of honour: the English designer Paul Smith, a great cycling fan, fulfils today the desire to live a Giro stage among the riders. At the passage of the athletes from Trento, Sir Smith will “enter the race" in the car of the Giro d’Italia Director Angelo Zomegnan.


At 11.20 am, 164 riders (non starting: Masciarelli) roll out. Average speed after one hour: 47.900 kph.

At km 52, 15 riders clear out: Taborre, Gastauer, Frank, Sivstov, Vorganov, Losada, Ulissi, Lastras, Bakelandts, Kiserlovski, Giordani, Engels, Hernandez and Le Mevel.

At km 60, the 15 riders are chased by Dupont 55” behind and the bunch 3’ behind - Dupont catches the break 10 km later. 16 riders on the front.

In Trento, km 80, the breakaway has a 4’30” lead. In Lavis: 4’30”. Average speed after 2 hours: 46.200 kph.

In Cles – km 120 – the field is 6’50” behind. With 100 km to go the breakaway has a 7’35” lead over the bunch. Average speed after three hours: 43.200 kph.

At the beginning of the climb to the Passo del Tonale the bunch, paced by the Liquigas – Cannondale riders, reduces the gap: 5’45”.

Km 152, -6’20” for the bunch. Average after four hours: 40.400 kph

King of the Mountain, 2nd category: Passo del Tonale (BS) [m 1.883]: Gastauer is first over the climb ahead of Dupont, Bakelandts and the rest of the breakaway but Giordani and Engels lost contact: a 14-man break. The field is 6’10” back.

Intermediate Sprint: Edolo (BS): Bakelandts gets the IS ahead of Sivstov, Lastras and the other leaders. The gap is going down and the bunch, paced by the Geox – Tmc riders, crosses it 3’55” behind.

On the uphill to the Aprica, with 25 km to go, the field chase the breakaway 3’42” behind. Attempted and failed accelerations on the front. Le Mevel is suffering.

King of the Mountain – 3rd category, Aprica (SO) [m 1.173]: Lastras first followed by Visconti, Siutsu, the rest strung out. The bunch, paced again by the Liquigas – Cannondale riders, has a 3’40” delay on the top of the mountain. On the downhill Lastras is leading. Nibali on the front of the chasers. 10 km to go, the breakaway keep a 3’10” lead.

3 km to go, Lastras, Ulissi, Bakelandts and Visconti.

Last km: the 4 riders fight for the win. Ulissi accelerates, Visconti comes from the right to pass Ulissi along the left close to the barriers; Lastras on the other side of the road. Visconti shoves Ulissi out of his line twice.


FINISH

Giovanni Visconti takes the win at the foto finish ahead of Giovanni Ulissi and Pablo Lastras. The Panel of Commissaires, after watching the film of the race, relagate Giovanni Visconti from the first to the third place. Therefore, 22 year old Ulissi ((Lampre - ISD) wins the stage ahead of Lastras. The Italian Champion in third.

Time of the winner: 5h 31’ 51”, at an average speed of 41.585 kph.

Ulissi: "I'm so happy, I can't believe I won a stage in Giro d'Italia. I knew that the stage was suitable for the breakaways, so I paid attention in the first part of the race. I joined in a good action, then I managed my energies. In the sprint, I think that I did no harm and that I deserve the victory".


Top 10 GC:
1 Alberto Contador Velasco (Spa) Saxo Bank Sungard 68:18:27
2 Michele Scarponi (Ita) Lampre - ISD 0:04:58
3 Vincenzo Nibali (Ita) Liquigas-Cannondale 0:05:45
4 John Gadret (Fra) AG2R La Mondiale 0:07:35
5 Kanstantsin Sivtsov (Blr) HTC-Highroad 0:09:12
6 José Rujano Guillen (Ven) Androni Giocattoli 0:09:18
7 Mikel Nieve Ituralde (Spa) Euskaltel-Euskadi 0:09:22
8 Denis Menchov (Rus) Geox-TMC 0:09:38
9 Roman Kreuziger (Cze) Pro Team Astana 0:09:47
10 Joaquím Rodríguez Oliver (Spa) Katusha Team 0:10:25

Classification leaders:
Alberto Contador (Saxo Bank Sungard) is the Maglia Rosa Estathé, 4’58” ahead of Michele Scarponi (Lampre – ISD).
Alberto Contador (Saxo Bank Sungard) is the Maglia Rosso Passione Gruppo Saint-Gobain.
Roman Kreuziger (Pro Team Astana) is the Maglia Bianca Adecco.
Stefano Garzelli (Acqua & Sapone) is the Maglia Verde Banca Mediolanum.

Stage 18, Morbegno-San Pellegrino Terme, 151 km is rated "Pianeggiante".




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Stories for the Italian Cycling Journal about rides, granfondos, watching and touring during the Giro, having a good time cycling in Italy, Italian cycling history, etc. are always welcome. Contact me at veronaman@gmail.com. There are more than 1,900 stories in this blog. The search feature to the right works best for finding subjects in the blog. There is also a translate button at the bottom so you can translate each page.

Giro d'Italia, Stage 16

Stage 16, Tuesday, May 24, 2011, BELLUNO-NEVEGAL, individual time trial of 12.7 km. Belluno:


The stage was preceded by a minute's silence in memory of Xavier Tondo Volpini, the Spanish Movistar Team rider who died at home yesterday in a freak accident involving his garage door.

Alberto Contador (Saxo Bank - Sungard) won the 16th of the 94th Giro d’Italia. Contador completed the uphill time-trial from Belluno to Nevegal in 28’55” at the average speed of 26,351 km/h. Vincenzo Nibali (Liquigas – Cannondale) was second in 29’29” and Michele Scarponi (Lampre – ISD) third in 29’33”.

Faustino Muñoz, Contador's mechanic on Saxo Bank, was expelled from the race today. The Spaniard, already furious at the end of the Zoncolan stage with the fans along the climb for insulting and spitting on Contador, opened the car door on purpose to hit a spectator.

For this uphill TT Scarponi rode his Wilier Superleggera with a medium profile front wheel and a high profile rear wheel; gearing 50-36 with 11-27.



Top 10 GC after stage:
1 Alberto Contador Velasco (Spa) Saxo Bank Sungard 62:43:37
2 Michele Scarponi (Ita) Lampre - ISD 0:04:58
3 Vincenzo Nibali (Ita) Liquigas-Cannondale 0:05:45
4 John Gadret (Fra) AG2R La Mondiale 0:07:35
5 José Rujano Guillen (Ven) Androni Giocattoli 0:09:18
6 Mikel Nieve Ituralde (Spa) Euskaltel-Euskadi 0:09:22
7 Denis Menchov (Rus) Geox-TMC 0:09:38
8 Roman Kreuziger (Cze) Pro Team Astana 0:09:47
9 Joaquím Rodríguez Oliver (Spa) Katusha Team 0:10:25
10 Igor Anton Hernandez (Spa) Euskaltel-Euskadi 0:10:58

Classification leaders:
Alberto Contador (Saxo Bank Sungard) is the Maglia Rosa Estathé, 4’58” ahead of Michele Scarponi (Lampre – ISD).
Alberto Contador (Saxo Bank Sungard) is the Maglia Rosso Passione Gruppo Saint-Gobain.
Roman Kreuziger (Pro Team Astana) is the Maglia Bianca Adecco.
Stefano Garzelli (Acqua & Sapone) is the Maglia Verde Banca Mediolanum.http://www.blogger.com/img/blank.gif

Once again Contador proved he is the strongest rider in the Giro, this time winning the TT by 34 seconds over Nibali and 38 seconds over Scarponi. It appears Contador has an insurmountable lead.

Nevertheless, the race for 2nd is an especially important one this year. At the moment only 47 seconds separate Scarponi (2nd) and Nibali (3rd). The elephant in the Giro is the "Contador Problem".

The Court of Arbitration for Sport (CAS) hearing will take place in June in Lausanne, a decision will be reached before the start of the Tour de France. If the Court of Arbitration for Sport decides in favor of the UCI, and if Contador receives a one year ban, all the victories back to July 21, 2010 would be stripped, including the 2010 Tour de France and this Giro d'Italia.

Stage 17, Feltre-Tirano, 230 km, is rated "Alta Montagna". Perhaps Nibali, with his excellent descending skills, will attack on the long Passo del Tonale descent.

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Giro d'Italia, Preview Stage 16

Stage 16 for tomorrow will be a 12.7 km individual time trial from Belluno to Nevegal.

During today's rest day Nibali, currently 3rd, commented, "It will be faster than the Plan de Corones time trial of last year. The central part of the course will be very hard. It will be a beautiful TT."

Average grade: 8.2%. Average of 10.3% for 4.4 km beginning past Caleipo.

Maximum grade: 14%


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Stories for the Italian Cycling Journal about rides, granfondos, watching and touring during the Giro, having a good time cycling in Italy, Italian cycling history, etc. are always welcome. Contact me at veronaman@gmail.com. There are more than 1,900 stories in this blog. The search feature to the right works best for finding subjects in the blog. There is also a translate button at the bottom so you can translate each page.

Giro d'Italia, Stage 15

Stage 15, Sunday, May 22, 2011, CONEGLIANO – GARDECCIA/VAL DI FASSA, 229 km

START

At 10:19 am 172 riders(not starting: Hunter) roll out for the stage in the Dolomites.

At km 10, Sella and Hoogerland break away. In their pursuit Aramendia, Kuschynski, Kaisen, Seeldrayers and Popovych.

At km 28: 7 escapees. At the beginning of the climb towards Piancavallo, Kaisen is dropped. 11 riders clear off the bunch: Garzelli, Tschopp, Pirazzi, Nieve, Sastre, Di Luca, Losada, Pasamontes, Petrov, Weening and Deignan. Average speed after one hour: 34.800 kph.

King of the Mountain – 1st category, Piancavallo (PN) [m 1.290]: Sella 1st at KOM, with Hoogerland, Popovych and the other three members of the break. The 11 chasers come over the climb 18” behind . The field is at 3’30” and Baakelandtss anticipates it. The latter catches the 11 riders and together they join the leaders.

At km 62: 18-man break. Average speed after two hours: 34.400 kph.

At km 72: 8’24”.

150 km to go: 9’20”. Average speed after three hours: 34.600 kph.

King of the Mountain – 2nd category, Forcella Cibiana (BL) [m 1.530]: Garzelli, Sella, Hoogerland and the other 15. The bunch is 9’05” behind paced by the Liquigas – Cannondale riders.


100 km to go, the bunch is 8’30” behind. In Cortina d’Ampezzo, where the ascent towards the Passo Giau begins, the 18-man breakaway have a 10’10” lead. On the uphill Hoogerland jumps out and gains some terrain. The chasing group string out. Garzelli and Nieve in pursuit of Hoogerland. The rest of the group does not keep up the pace. Garzelli catches and passes Hoogerland.

King of the Mountain – Cima Coppi, Passo Giau (BL) [m 2.236]: Garzelli is 42” ahead of Nieve, and 2’15” ahead of Hoogerland. The rest of the chasing group, paced by Di Luca, reaches the top 1’43” behind. The bunch, led by Rodriguez, Arroyo, Contado, Rujano and Nibali, has a 9’35” delay. On the downhill, Nibali accelerates with Contador and Arroyo chaing him.

Intermediate Sprint, Rocca Pietore (BL): Garzelli first with 1’16” over Baakelandts and Nieve. Seeldrayers 2’05” behind. At 2’20” Sella and Di Luca. At 2’40” Petrov; at 3’ Pirazzi; at 3’12” Weening, Degnani and Hoogerland. At 3’50” Sastre and Tschopp; at 5’15” Pasamontes; at 6’05” Popovych. Nibali is now 8’25” down on Garzelli. The Pink-Jersey group is 8’53” behind.

Uphill again: on the ramps of the Fedaia Pass, Nibali sits up and is back in the Contador group. Arroyo pulls away from this group and gains a few seconds. Contador takes off, Rujano and Kruijswijk go with him. Nibali is in difficulty.

King of the Mountain – 1st category, Passo Fedaia (BL) [m 2.057]: A lone Garzelli with a 40” lead over Nieve and 3’10” over Bakelandts. Sella is 4’22” back, Seeldrayers 6’. The Pink Jersey group (with Gadret, Rujano, Menchov, Rodriguez, Scarponi, Arroyo, Kreuziger) is 6’35” behind. Nibali comes over the climb 7’35”. The Liquigas rider catches the Pink Jersey group at the very end of the downhill.


With 10 km to go: Garzelli, Nieve 20” and Bakelandts 3’25” back. Sella 5’48”. The Pink Jersey group is t 6’35”.

7 km to go, Nieve catches and passes Garzelli at the start of the final ascent. Contador attacks and gains some terrain. At his chase: Scarponi and Gadret.

Last km: Nieve has 1’ lead over Garzelli.

FINISH – KOM 1st category. Rifugio Gardeccia (TN) [m 1.948]: Mikel Nieve Ituralde (Euskaltel - Euskadi) wins this stage ahead of Stefano Garzelli at 1’41”. Contador in third at 1’51” and Scarponi in fourth at 1’57”; Scarponi moves into 2nd place ahead of Nibali at 4’20”.

Time of the winner: 7h 27’ 14”, at an average speed of 30.722 kph.

Contador: "It was a hard day, really hard. I think it was the hardest stage of my career. We've suffered a lot in the last few days."

Scarponi: "I'm satisfied, this was a good day for me. I think that this was a very tough stage but I faced it pedaling with regularity and this was the best choice that allowed me to be competitive in each moment of the race. Now I'm second in the overall standing, but I know that there will be a last week of Giro that will be tough. I'm sorry that my team mate Marzano had to quit the race because of temperature (fever): he was very important for me and I want to thank him for what he has done until now".

Top 10 GC:
1 Alberto Contador Velasco (Spa) Saxo Bank Sungard 62:14:42
2 Michele Scarponi (Ita) Lampre - ISD 0:04:20
3 Vincenzo Nibali (Ita) Liquigas-Cannondale 0:05:11
4 John Gadret (Fra) AG2R La Mondiale 0:06:08
5 Mikel Nieve Ituralde (Spa) Euskaltel-Euskadi 0:07:03
6 José Rujano Guillen (Ven) Androni Giocattoli 0:08:39
7 Denis Menchov (Rus) Geox-TMC 0:08:46
8 Roman Kreuziger (Cze) Pro Team Astana 0:08:58
9 Joaquím Rodríguez Oliver (Spa) Katusha Team 0:09:20
10 David Arroyo Duran (Spa) Movistar Team 0:09:30

Classification leaders:
Alberto Contador (Saxo Bank Sungard) is the Maglia Rosa Estathé.
Alberto Contador (Saxo Bank Sungard) is the Maglia Rosso Passione Gruppo Saint-Gobain.
Roman Kreuziger (Pro Team Astana) is the Maglia Bianca Adecco.
Stefano Garzelli (Acqua & Sapone) is the Maglia Verde Banca Mediolanum.

Monday is a rest day.

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Stories for the Italian Cycling Journal about rides, granfondos, watching and touring during the Giro, having a good time cycling in Italy, Italian cycling history, etc. are always welcome. Contact me at veronaman@gmail.com. There are more than 1,900 stories in this blog. The search feature to the right works best for finding subjects in the blog. There is also a translate button at the bottom so you can translate each page.