Golden Opportunities
During the Tour's opening week, stage wins and a chance to wear the yellow jersey are on everybody's mind.
by Jeremy Whittle
As the 83rd edition of the Tour de France got underway in the Netherlands, there was an overwhelming sense that the wet-and-rainy prologue in ‘s-Hertogenbosch was little more than a damp introduction to an inevitable sixth consecutive Tour de France victory by Spain's Miguel Indurain.
There were the usual round of challengers, of course. But for the past five years stars like Tony Rominger, Alex Zulle, Bjame Riis, and Evgeni Berzin had all seen their best efforts fall far short of stopping the Indurain express, and there was little reason to believe that this year's Tour would be any different.
Indurain's propensity for grabbing the yellow jersey in the first long time trial at the start of the Tour's second week and then holding on to it thereafter had become almost a tradition at the Tour, which made this opening week one of opportunity for those bent on getting a chance to wear the maillot jaune before it became part of the Spaniard's wardrobe.
Given that fact, many expected GAN's Chris Boardman to his jersey-winning prologue ride of 1994, but it was Switzerland's Zulle who snatched a surprise victory in the 9.4-kilometer Tour de France opening test. The ONCE rider's time of 10:53 was two seconds faster than Britain's Boardman, perhaps still a bit cautious after crashing out of last year's rainy prologue and breaking his ankle. The Swiss was followed by Berzin of Gewiss and the Mapei/GB pair of Abraham Olano and Rominger, but the day's biggest surprise was the relatively low-key performance of Indurain, whose 11:05 was only seventh fastest.
The wet, windy conditions had indeed encouraged cautious riding, but when the Tour's big hitters finally rolled down the start ramp, speeds well over 50 kph were soon being recorded. Zulle's ONCE team dominated the day, placing three riders in the top 10, while Indurain did not have a Banesto teammate in the top 50. "Sure, it's good psychologically," acknowledged Zulle. "But this is a specialist's test, and over three weeks it doesn't affect the outcome of the race."
Sprinters center stage
With the prologue over and done with, it was time for the sprinters to take center stage, and Frederic Moncassin of GAN took a brilliant first career win in the Tour on the opening road stage based in ‘s-Hertogenbosch, while Italy's Mario Cipollini, who was unable to counter the Frenchman's finishing burst, found himself controversially penalized by the race judges for "irregular sprinting" apparently because Moncassin had to back off after finding himself sandwiched precariously between the aggressive Cipollini and the barriers.
"It's definitely the best win of my career," said Moncassin afterward. "The team's having a great year, and we've all worked very hard to be in top form for this opening week. I'd like to keep the green jersey, but if the chance comes to take more time bonuses and wear yellow, then go for it."
The opening stage was also marred by a series of bad crashes that left several major players, including Motorola's Frankie Andreu, Luc Leblanc of Polti and Refin's sprinter Djamolidine Abdujaparov, struggling behind the main field. Largely to blame were strong crosswinds, combined with the numerous roundabouts and traffic islands that abound in Holland.
The following day, Cipollini scored a thrilling win in Wasquehal and in doing so exacted revenge for his relegation in stage one's placings by the Tour commissaires. Always glad to live up to his larger-than-life image, the Italian star had also been fined for wearing red shorts (purportedly to match his green, white and red national championship jersey) instead of Saeco's black ones.
Unrepentant, the "Lion King's" thighs were once again adorned in red as he held his line to snatch victory in the Lille suburb. The Tour had finally entered France, but Cipollini's victory thwarted Moncassin's dream of taking the yellow jersey on home turf. The GAN sprinter finished fourth and ended the day within a scant second of Zulle's maillot jaune. “I was extremely disappointed over what happened yesterday." Cipollini said. “Today the record had to be set straight. The wind made it a hard day, but towards the end the conditions were good, and the team was able to do a great job."
French yellow jersey
Moncassin triumphantly ended a day of cliff-hanging suspense for French fans during stage three by snatching the yellow jersey after a tense sprint in Nogent-sur-Oise won by Telekom's Erik Zabel.
During the stage, beset with strong winds and heavy showers, all eyes were on GAN as Moncassin once again tried to snatch the necessary time bonuses. But with the Saeco team working hard at the front for Cipollini, the 27-year-old Moncassin had his work cut out just to enter the final kilometers close to the head of the bunch. As the field entered the final thousand meters, with the Italian star perfectly placed, Moncassin finally wormed his way to Cipollini's back wheel. The Italian hit the front with Moncassin and Zabel glued to his slipstream and TVM's Jeroen Blijlevens and green jersey leader Jan Svorada battling to stay in contention.
Three hundred meters from the finish, Zabel jumped away to the right, opening daylight between himself and "Super Mario." The German, using a 53x11 gear, held on to beat a flagging Cipollini to the line, while Moncassin fought off Panaria's Svorada to take the vital eight-second bonus for third place and, most important of all, the maillot jaune from Zulle.
Fairy-tale victory
Lowly French squad, Aubervilliers '93, a much-criticized late inclusion among the teams for this year's Tour de France, scored a fairy-tale victory in stage four to Lac de Madine as 23-year-old speedster Cyril Saugrain outsprinted his four breakaway partners. “It’s my first Tour and my first pro win,” said the jubilant Saugrain. “We’re a lot smaller than the other teams on the Tour, but since we found out that we were going to ride, everybody’s worked so hard. Today’s win represents the fruit of three years of hard work.”
While Saugrain joyfully celebrated his unexpected success, GAN’s Stephane Heulot, part of the same day-long break of five men, picked up enough time to take the yellow jersey from the shoulders of Moncassin. “I joined the break only so that the team would have someone there if needed,” explained Heulot. “At the finish, I was thinking more of the jersey than the stage win. I hope to stay in yellow for a few days, but I don’t have any illusions.”
Four and a half minutes later the main field arrived, and points jersey incumbent Svorada, fully aware that Moncassin now had green on his mind, jumped hard, lifting his front wheel off the ground and then crashing heavily to the road. Immediately behind him, Festina's Laurent Brochard and Mauro Bettin of Refin were also brought down, while Telekom's Riis narrowly averted disaster by sliding against the barriers.
Sprinting spoils
The sprinters were back at it in stage five, as TVM's Blijlevens put the frustration of two second places behind him by winning the stage after another hectic finish, this one in the Vosges town of Besancon. "My team worked hard in the first stages in Holland, but today I told them to leave me to it," said Blijlevens after the finish. While Blijlevens celebrated his victory, Svorada and Cipollini were already packing for home, and the Dutchman noted their absence. "Everybody expected me to win in Holland," he said. "But, of course, without Cipo and Svorada, today's finish was a little more open."
In the case of Cipollini, who had been voicing his Olympic aspirations, retreat from the Tour's stresses had been long planned, although he felt obliged to talk vaguely of fatigue and a slight fever. Svorada, on the other hand, had appeared a strong contender for the points competition but had to abandon due to deep muscle trauma from his heavy fall at Lac de Madine.
The stage had been plagued by strong headwinds and heavy showers, and crashes continued to take their toll. Zulle and Riis suffered mid-race falls, and moments later TV cameras at the back of the race caught Motorola's Lance Armstrong and Gilles Bouvard of Lotto arguing heatedly with arms raised, after the Texan stopped to help fallen team-mate Laurent Madouas. "It was nothing – I'm fine," said Armstrong coyly at the finish. "That guy was out of order, and it was about time somebody told him so."
Meanwhile, Gewiss' climber Ivan Gotti, fifth in last year's Tour, abandoned with a muscle tear in his right calf, which was bad news indeed for Gewiss leader Berzin, who had been looking forward to Gotti's help in the high mountains.
Seven kilometers from the line, with the bunch all together, it was time for the sprinters' teams to move forward, and Telekom, GAN, and Rabobank promptly obliged. After a futile attack by Rabobank's Slava Ekimov, Moncassin led things out with 500 meters remaining, but Blijlevens was far too strong for the Frenchman, and he came across the line, arms raised, to bring TVM its first major success of the year.
Stormy onslaught
Stage six, a day of violent Alpine storms, saw Rabobank's Michael Boogerd score a hard-earned win for the Dutch team, while Motorola's Armstrong abandoned after 45 km, apparently with bronchitis. It was the seventh successive day of rain on this year's Tour as thunderstorms, gale-force winds and even fallen trees blighted the race's tortuous route through the Jura mountains.
After 63 km, Rabobank's Leon Van Bon took flight with MG's Marco Saligari. The pair was quickly pursued by Refin's Abdujaparov and Andrea Ferrigato of Roslotto, and with the sodden peloton 3:20 behind the quartet, the lead group's hopes of staying clear were high. But as the kilometers ticked by, and in spite of a solo effort from Van Bon, the foursome was caught on the cote de Senoy, 39 km from Aix les Bains.
Lightning and thunder rolled menacingly over the heads of the peloton as the main field came back together in torrential rain. With two kilometers to go, Boogerd made his bid for glory. Melchor Mauri of ONCE gave chase, but 800 meters from the line the Spaniard overshot a tight righthand bend. With Telekom’s Zabel leading the field up to his back wheel, the exultant Boogerd stayed clear of the pack by a mere second to finally bring the Dutch team the victory that they had been desperately pursuing since the Tour began.
Alpine drama unfolds
Now it was time to head into the mountains, and in one of the most dramatic day’s racing in the long history of the Tour de France, the Russian Berzin became the first rider from the former Eastern Bloc to wear the race leader’s yellow jersey, while, incredibly, Indurain cracked on the stage’s final climb to Les Arcs.With torrential rainstorms sweeping across the Savoie region of the French Alps, Telekom’s Danish team leader Riis ignited the Tour as he attacked on the descent of the Col de la Madeleine. The extraordinary day of racing saw race leader Heulot abandon the Tour in tears at the top of the day’s second col as he succumbed to tendinitis in his right leg. In addition, Rabobank’s Johan Bruyneel disappeared horrifyingly into a yawning mountain ravine, only to miraculously remount moments later.
"I'm happy to be alive," said Bruyneel. "The guy in front of me moved out to the right, and I had to brake hard, but there just wasn't enough time and I'd gone too far to avoid the parapet. Next thing I knew, I was flying — I didn't know where I was going to land, but the branches caught me."
But this amazing drama was only the prelude to the moment that shocked the entire Tour. Three and a half kilometers from the finish at the summit of Les Arcs, the ferocious pace set by ONCE's Aitor Garmendia at the head of a group containing most of the race favorites proved too much for the heretofore seemingly invincible Indurain.
As Polti's Leblanc caught lone breakaway Laurent Dufaux of Festina, a minute further up the climb, Indurain slipped inexorably towards the rear of a small group containing, among others, Gewiss' Berzin, Mapei's Rominger and Olano, Telekom's Riis, Fernando Escartin of Kelme, and Roslotto's Piotr Ugrumov.
At the same moment, Zulle, who had fallen no less than twice on the descent of the penultimate climb, the Comet de Roselend, began to struggle as shock set into his muscles. Indurain and Zulle, first and second, respectively, at last year's Tour, were left to battle alone against the climb, with Indurain frantically signaling for a drink as first Zulle and then even TVM's Bo Hamburger left him behind.
Ahead of them, Leblanc was already celebrating an excellent stage win, while Olano, Berzin, Rominger and Riis, seizing on an opportunity that has taken five years to come, set about distancing the great Spaniard. Two kilometres from the finish, Indurain appeared utterly exhausted, his mouth set in a taut grimace and his legs barely able to tap out a climbing rhythm.
Even with the realization that he was losing valuable time to his rivals, Banesto's leader typically showed few obvious signs of panic, but his team car was quick to drive alongside offering support and encouragement. For once, there was little that he or they could do, and the 31-year-old Navarran struggled painfully on in an attempt to limit his losses. "Miguel hasn't lost the Tour today," insisted his former teammate Pedro Delgado, winner of the 1988 Tour, afterwards as he stood in the press tent at Les Arcs. "But it's clear that his rivals are in a very strong position."
Olano, meanwhile, was driving the favorites' group, with Rominger sitting tightly on his back wheel jumping clear in the closing few hundred meters to take second place. Berzin came in nine seconds further back, alongside Riis and Escartin; but the blond 26-year-old Russian had done enough to take the first yellow jersey of his career on a day that will long live in the memory of those who saw it.
