Alessandro Petacchi was thought to be off form since he had an injury to his pinky a few weeks ago. He has not show any of his usual sprinting prowess lately. AleJet showed everyone he is back to his form with a win in the Vuelta today.
George Hincapie is having his best ever year for wins. He takes the Plouay Grand Prix in a sprint finish beating Usov and Rebellin.
Yahoo! Sports – Cycling – Hincapie wins Plouay Grand Prix in sprint finish
Rabobank’s Denis Menchov took the lead in the Vuelta today with a win in the Prologue TT. Menchov beat a great time set by Rik Verbrugge (who hold the record for fastest TT in the Giro).
Notable placing are a third by Tom Danielson, 7th by defending champion Roberto Heras and a 9th place by (I focus on the Giro) Gilberto Simoni.
The Vuelta kicks off today with a 7km prologue time trial.
Web Oficial de la Vuelta a Espa?a 2005 – Official Web Site Vuelta a Espa?a 2005
Gerard Bisceglia steps up and defends Lance Armstrong on the shaky allegations from L’Equipe.
“This kind of years-ago testing of a single sample with new technology is completely without credibility.”
“What’s worse is that Lance cannot defend himself because there is no mechanism for final resolution,”
Lance Armstrong went on Larry King Live last night to talk about the doping allegations that were printed in L’Equipe. Armstrong was in New York with Bob Costas while Larry King was in Washington. Armstrong appeared annoyed at the allegations, but was relaxed overall. The main issues about this doping revelation as L’Equipe would like to say are:
The TDF Blog reports that Lance Armstrong will appear on Larry King Live to talk about the L’Equipe story that claims Armstrong took EPO during the 1999 Tour de France. Bob Costas will also be involved in the interview.
Tour de France 2005: Armstrong to appear on Larry King Live to discuss L’Equipe allegations
Lance Armstrong fought back to the report in L’Equipe and Jean Marie LeBlanc’s comments. Lawsuits are threatened, but Armstrong is considering if it is worth the fight.
“In the meantime, it would cost a million and a half dollars and a year of my life. I have a lot better things to do with the million and a half … a lot better things I can do with my time. Ultimately, I have to ask myself that question.”
Armstrong questioned the validity of the tests that show he took EPO in 1999. Plus, he calls into question the process the lab took in leaking his name in particular after conducting tests which cannot be verified.
The Tour coverage started after David Zabriske’s incredible Stage 1 TT ride. Now on the Cervelo website you can see a video of David Zabriske riding the TT. He looks super smooth and comfortable. This video is a good study on good time trial form.
Cervélo Media Center Movie Viewer
Davide Rebellin knows a good thing when he sees it, so he signed on for two more years with the German team Gerolsteiner. Rebellin won 3 Ardennes classics in a row in 2004, and he likes how the team improves every year.
“This team improves itself from year to year, and we have an outstanding personal harmony. It was just a formality that I would stay with Gerolsteiner.”
Eurosport – Cycling – Live and Results. Men and Women. – UCI Protour