Blog of Stephen Glenn who was Liberal Democrat candidate for Linlithgow and East Falkirk candidate from the 2005 and 2010 Westminster General Elections.
As a fan of Douglas Adams he knows the true meaning of 42. When not blogging and Lib Demming he can be found supporting Livingston Football Club.
Today as in every year since 1975 the Tour de France is heading for 8 circuits of the Champs-Élysées. Most of the prizes have been decided.
On the Col Du Tourmalet on Thursday the Polka Dot Jersey for the King of the Mountains was finally planted firmly on shoulders of Anthony Charteau (BBox). The challenge from fellow Frenchman and the old man of the Tour Christophe Moreau (Caisse d'Espange) failed to close the remaining gap.
Yesterday it was as you were for Yellow and White (Young Rider) as last year. Alberto Contador (Astana) was 31" ahead of Andy Schleck (Saxobank) in the time trial into Pauillac. It means that Contador leads by 39", an irony not lost on many which was the exact time difference he took out of Schleck following his chain falling off when he was attacking Contador on the Port de Bales on Monday. It means that Contador is in Yellow and Scheleck will equal Jan Ullrich with a third successive White Jersey. The top three have all been the best young rider because Denis Menchov rode a good time trail yesterday to displace the Olympic Champion Sammy Sanchez from the final podium.
Lance Armstrong in his last Tour will be on the podium but only as a part of the best team as Radioshack have won that prize.
However, the real excitement lies in the Green Jersey competition for points. The current standings are:
Alessandro Petacchi (Lampre) 213
Thor Hushovd (Cervelo) 203
Mark Cavendish (HTC-Columbia) 197
The point allocation on the line will be 35 for first, 30 for second, 26 for third, 24, 22, 20, 19 etc. There are also two intermediate sprints on the Champs-Élysées offering 6,4 and 2 points. It means that three teams will be working hard to secure the Green Jersey today.
If Mark Cavendish can repeat his performance in the French Capital from last year and win on the famous boulevard. The Norwegian would have to be second to stay ahead and the Italian if he was seventh would be equal on points but behind the Manxman on stage wins therefore losing his lead. The question is will any of them be in a position to take the intermediate sprints as often these go to a breakaway, or will the teams keep up the tempo for the full eight circuits to give their men a chance to get a shot at the 12 points on offer.
This will be an exciting afternoon on the approach to Paris, especially for three sprinters and a busy one for their teams.
While Mark Cavendish did win his third stage of this years Tour de France we will have to wonder if Tyler Ferrar's (Garmin) tactic of going from 500m out zooming past Cav's lead out man Mark Renshaw would have worked. We won't know as the repeated headbutts on Ferrar's lead out man Julian Dean and then the block of Farrar an the barriers has lead correctly I think to the Columbia man's disqualification from the Tour.
Watch the below from channel F10 at about 4:22.
Farrar stil managed to cross the line third after all of Renshaw's attentions so you have to really wonder what if? We shall find out on the next sprinters stage which probably isn't until Saturday when Cavendish will have to follow the wheel of another team mate. Was it unlucky 13 for Cav as he loses the man he is confident will lead him to the front when it matters?
UPDATE: Here is what Mark Renshaw had to say about the incident to Australian TV after crossing the line before he knew he was kicked off the Tour.
Also here is the moment caught live on camera that Cav finds out and his total disbelief and his immediate reaction to defend his team mate.
And finally here is Ferrar's take on the incident.
UPDATE 2: Yeah I've done a little digging and found footage of the one day in 1997 that Eric Zabel who is now the sprint coach on Columbia-HTC got relegated for similar behaviour in the finish. It was throwing a water bottle and drug use that led to exclusions for the tour that day.
Two stages later and in first Montgaris and yesterday in Gueugnon it was the Manx Missile that shot to the front in the final 200 metres and was never headed. He is now level on 12 stage wins in the Tour with other great sprinters from my memory:
Mario Cipollini (Italy) wins in 6 tours over 7 years (1993 -1999) Luçon -Les Sables [93]; Perros Guirec -Vitré, Alençon - Le Harve [95]; Hertogenbosch - Wasquehal [96]; Rouen - Forges-les-Eaux, St Valery-en-Caux - Vire [97], Cholet - Châteauroux, La Châtre - Brive [98]; Laval - Blois, Bonneval - Ameins, Ameins - Maubeuge, Avensnes-sur-Helpe - Thionville [99]
2009 Monaco to Brignoles, Marseille to La Grande-Motte, Limoges to Issoudun, Vatan to Saint-Fargeau, Bourgoin-Jallieu to Aubenas, Montereau-Fault-Yonne to Paris
2010 Épernay - Montargis, Montgaris - Gueugnon
He has also won back to back stages on four occasions 12&13 in 2008, 2&3 and 10&11 in 2009 and now 5&6 this year.
Today we start to really go uphill. We're entering the Jura region on the way to the Alps on Sunday (no not the Whisky producing Island). It is a rarely visited part of France for the Tour but the narrow roads and forested switch back up and down the six progressively harder clims of the day lie ahead. The toughest climbs of today are only category 2 so it shouldn't challenge any of the GC contenders, but a group might take a change to get away and stay away today.
After the last climb however there is a 4km roll along the plateau into the finish at the ski Station des Rousses. Which may be enough of a chance for Fabian Cancellera to maybe recover any time he may lose on the ascent to defend his maillot jaune. Although yesterday a break of more than a second in the peleton meant that Gerraint Thomas who was in the leading 14 clawed back 3 seconds to make Cancellera's lead down to 20 seconds. Bradley Wiggins and David Millar are also both Brits currently in the top 15. We'll soon be seeing what Brad has for this year and well as discovering what Gerraint might have in the Cols. Millar doesn't usually contest the mountains every day but can do the odd good one.
You can watch it all live on ITV4 from 2:30 this afternoon.
For the second day the three man escape was caught in the closing stages on this occasion with 4km to the finish, with Cavendish's HTC team heading the peleton as the last man ahead of the race Jose Juan Gutierrez (Caisse d'Epargne) is finally swept up. Along with Jurgen Van de Walle (Quick Step) and Julien El Fares (Cofidis) they had been ahead since the early stages. Gutierrez sweeping up all three of the intermediate sprints on the way, coming second to the other two in the two fourth category climbs of the day.
But after HTC has led the sweep up the train seemed unable to keep it as they weaved into Montargis. In fact Garmin took over the lead at one point and Britain's own David Millar (sitting 15th overnight) at the fore. Cavendish and Thor Hushovd are yet again further back riding shoulder to shoulder. But as the last Garmin rider peels off it is Mark Renshaw on the wheel followed closely by a certain Manxman.
As you can tell by the picture Cavendish did indeed win his eleventh stage on the Tour over the last three years. Followed by Gerald Ciolek (Milram), Edvald Boasen (Sky), Jose Joaquin Rojas (Caisse d'Epargne) before Hushovd.
Sprinters are often some of the toughest men in pro-cycling. Day in day out they are getting elbowed at the front of the pack in the closing stages. If something goes even slightly wrong they are involved in some of the highest speed crashes in traffic. Only a crash over a wall descending a mountain can compare. But how much does it mean to someone like Cav to have won today, having crashed out on the first ideal stage, punctured before the cobbles and had nothing to give yesterday? Well I think this says it all.
So congratulations Mark Cavendish, and that comes not just from me but from a certain seven time winner as well. Having apologised to his team yesterday for not being able to repay them for their support he made it up for them all today.
Now if you are quick you can catch the highlights on ITV4 which is about to start.
Yesterday's stage left a lot of questions for Mark Cavendish and the HTC-Columbia team.
His team took control of the race 5km from the finish, last year that would have been enough. His big powerful train would have propelled him towards the front of the peleton ready to launch him towards the line with a couple of hundred metres to go. Sure there were roundabouts in the lead up to the finish but the HTC boys were grouped at the front and looking out for their man.
Then it came Mark Renshaw was at the head with Cavendish in his wheel. Over to the right hand side of the road. Cav and Thor Hushovd had been shoulder to shoulder behind their respective lead out men in the seconds before.
Then against the script over on the left comes a surge from the other sprinter, who was near the front through all the roundabouts, Alessandro Petacchi made a run for the line. There seemed to be no response from Cavendish and Hushovd realised he was on the wrong wheel too late to switch across the road to come in 9th in the sprint, 3 places ahead of Cav who appeared in the last metres to have lost one of his pedal bindings.
But even before that it looks like Cavendish infection earlier this year may have taken something away from him. He may not be quite the sprinter he was over the last two years as a result. Of course it may be like everyone else he was still merely shattered after the Hell of the North the previous day, when he did ride well and came in 25th when there were groups all down the road. There was a 1% incline at the end, not a lot but after the day before it may have been sapping.
Today of course is another day and another day suitable for sprinters. Again it is flat with no real concern providing an escape isn't given too much head. But there may be concern over just how much speed in currently in the legs of Britain's top sprinter, or course come later today I may not have any concerns over that whatsoever. Cav has been one to bounce back before when he hasn't won as expected with a double, Friday's stage is also for the sprinters. So we wait and see.
Well it wasn't the coastal winds that caused chaos on the first mass finish of this years Tour de France but some of the bends towards the finish of the race.
First having just entered the last 3km when anybody involved in a crash has their time protected with the group they are with sprint king Mark Cavendish (HTC-Columbia), fellow Brit Jeremy Hunt (Cervelo) and Oscar Freire (Rabobank) and were amongst those that went down.
Later just inside the flame rouge marking the final kilometre there was a second crash which literally blocked the road behind a lead group of about 25-30. This took out Tyler Farrar (Garmin-Transitions) amongst others.
So it was left to Alessandro Petacchi (Lampre) who also benefitted when Cav crashed in the Tour of Switzerland to take the line, Cav's normal lead out man Mark Renshaw took second, which makes you wonder what would have happened in the Manx engine was there. Last year's Green Jersey winner Thor Hushovd (Cervélo) took third place. With Robbie McEwen (Katusha) and Mathieu Ladagnous (Française des Jeux) the first French men making up the top five.
There had been an earlier all day break away of three who had been captured with 8km to go before the real drama of the day took over. The fact was that all the sprinters' teams were vying for position in the lead up to the finish. All in all a thrilling end to what might otherwise have been a normal bunch finish. Just have to hope that nobody else is going to have to retire as a result, Swiss rider Mathias Frank (BMC) didn't not line up at the start this morning having broken his wrist in a crash in the 8.9km time trial prologue yesterday.
Update: Just heard that Adam Hansen has suffered a broken collar bone and will be out of the HTC-Columbia train.
Tomorrow we have the first hilly stage of the race. In total there are three each category 3 and 4 climbs so someone in a breakaway coud pull on the first King of the Mountains jersey when they arrive in Spa. See below.
No it is not an Up Pompeii!reference to Frankie Howerd's Lurcio, even though I'm sure Woolwich educated Frankie would approve of a prologue on London Pride. (Also I just had to include an image)
And although it is nothing to do with Italy it is strange that this year both the Tour de France and the Giro d'Italia have decided to start from the Netherlands (who actually may well be still partying like Brazilians after knocking the 6 times winners out of the World Cup). Oooh noo, please, it's wicked to mock the afflicted!
No it is that time of year that the French all head off on holiday, but these days on certain of their roads they are being joined by the Spanish, Dutch, Italians, Americans, Austalians, Kazachs, Luxembourgers and of course a growing contingent of Brits amongst others.
The other glorious thing is that little freeview box is enough to get me live coverage whenever I can get back in time to see it. As every stage will be having some live coverage on ITV4. Seeing as there are more Brits taking part that the last time we had a British national team in the field. We have British Team Sky headed by Bradley Wiggins who equalled the best British performances last year. And the winningest Brit in any tour with six stages last year Mark Cavendish going for Green with his impressive HTC-Columbia train.
Other Brits taking part are David Millar (Garmin Transitions), Charlie Wegelius (Omega Pharma-Lotto), Geraint Thomas and Steve Cummins (both Team Sky), Daniel Lloyd and Jeremy Hunt (both Cervélo)
But titter ye not, the Tour de France to mark the 100th Anniversary of its first mountain stages is starting in the flattest country in Europe.
Yes tomorrow is le Grand Depart in the 2010 Tour de France from Rotterdam. There will be cobbles, mountains and the thrills to come over the next three weeks.
So let's start with the classic* Kraftwerk song.
This year marks the hundredth year of the mountains as a part of the tour, yeah the Pyrenees were first included in the 1910 edition of the race. The Col du Tormalet is being climbed twice in this years tour. So here is one of the approaches to and descents from the summit quicker than the peleton will manage.
If your not convinced that the Tour is for you, bear in mind we have Brits in Mark Cavendish who will be competing for the sprints most days having won six stages last year and Bradley Wiggins going for a better place than his fourth overall last year as the head of the BSkyB team. Here are some of the highlights from last year.
Earlier today I promised that I would give my take on the BBC's Sports Personality of the Year shortlist. So here we go.
First off here is the actual shortlist of 10
Jenson Button
Mark Cavendish
Tom Daley
Jessica Ennis
Ryan Giggs
David Haye
Phillips Idowu
Andy Murray
Andrew Strauss
Beth Tweddle
Let's start of the Football and Cricket, these two sports seem to have a right to have someone on the list. If you look at the full list of nominees from the press you may see why. Cricket had Stuart Broad, Andrew Flintoff and Charlotte Edwards nominated along with Strauss. Football had Kelly Smith, John Terry, Cristiano Ronaldo and Darren Fletcher keeping Giggs company.
Of course Strauss was the highest scorer in the Ashes series with 474 for an average of 52.66. So he was undoubtedly the batsman of the series add on to that captaining the side to regain the Ashes. But that sadly in my eyes is not enough to warrant winning this prize across all sports. As for Ryan Giggs yes he was again an integral part in his eleventh Premier League title with Man United, winning the PFA player of the year title in the process. But none of that in itself is enough to lift the award. If anything Ryan still playing at the top level for the same team should qualify for the Lifetime Achievement Award which is going to Seve Ballesteros tomorrow.
Boxing only have David Haye on the shortlist this year, both Amir Khan and Carl Froch were nominated. But Boxers don't fair well in winning. Ricky Hatton never did and Joe Calzaghe had to wait so long at the top before he won in 2007. Haye though has stepped up from Cruiserweight where he held the WBA, WBC and WBO world titles to take on the Heavyweights. He was originally to fight either of the Klitschko brothers Vitali the WBC Champ on 20 June ,the Vladimir IBF and WBA on the same date, only for Haye to pull out injured. In the end just last month he defeated the giant seven foot Nikolai Valuev. When Lennox Lewis and Joe Calzaghe won this title they were both undisputed World Champions admittedly something Haye almost did at Cruiserweight. A mighty achievement but he may and should be passed over for the Top spot this time.
Andy Murray may have won more tennis events in this year than any previous male tennis player in a season. Indeed his six tour titles not counting the slams was more than anyone else, even Federer and Nadal. But Greg Rusedski won his award for getting to the US open final, Andy did that last year. This prize will be Andy's in the future I'm sure when he breaks the British tennis duck since Fred Perry and lifts one of the Grand Slams. So not this year even though he was at one point number two in the world.
As for Jenson Button he had a blinding start to this season, but then somewhat tailed off to win his championship. He did hang in there to lift the world championship, but the early season form was as much a part of the ingenuity of Ross Brawn as the skills of JB, even though I love F1 I fell that Brawn GP should win the team award but not Jenson the individual. Jenson also has the disadvantage that sometimes our World Champs don't win while the losers do. Lewis Hamilton didn't win as Champion last year and Mansell and Damon Hill both won Sports Personality as losers before winning again as World Champs.
That leaves the other five from where I think the deserving winner. Four individual World Champions and the winningest man in his sport this year.
The world of cycling is limited to just one choice Mark Cavendish. Both Bradley Wiggins and Vitoria Pendleton were also on the nominations, Bradley had . Cav won an amazing six stages on the Tour de France after 3 stages in the Giro d'Italia and 2 in the Tour de Suisse. Some will say that Cav had the help of his lead out train, but not for all of these stage wins. For some he was riding on his opponents wheel which shows just how good a sprinter he was.
Athletics produces two worthy candidates Phillips Idowu following in the hop, step and jumps of Jonathan Edwards won the Triple Jump and Jessica Ennis continues the depth of British success in the multi-event disciplines. Denise Lewis never lifted the top prize for her Heptathlon indeed only Daley Thompson as a multi-event athlete has won SPotY. But she put aside the disappointment of injury in Olympic year and watching Kelly Sotherton fail to capitalise on the retirement of Kluft. However, for someone not of the typical heptathlete physique she towered above the more lengthy limbed opponents to lead with the third best day one score ever and end up only 100 points shy of Denise Lewis's British and Commonwealth record with 6,731 points.
Phillips faced a different disappointment at Beijing, he went as the longest jumper in the world after his trials performance. Jumped further in the final but only took silver. But added the World Outdoor championships with a PB and World Best performance of 17.73 to his World Indoor, Commonwealth and European Indoor titles. He has jumped further than Jonathan Edwards indoors but has yet to get to the distance that the former Olympic champion did outdoors, but a constantly improving effort again this year from a man who is already one of the best in the world at the moment.
Tom Daley is currently Britain's youngest senior world champion. Having jumped in the synchronised event in Beijing, the youngster went solo to his success this year. Whilst he does not yet have the high level of difficulty of some of his opponents he kept consistent good scores and when they had a poor final round of dives soared ahead of the two Chinese to take gold. Quite an achievement for a lower tariff performer. In fact his winning score of 539.85 pts was higher than Matt Mitcham's 537.95 which secured gold at the Olympics last year. His new partnership with Max Brink only finished 9th in the final, but for a first year together the synchronisation needs time to bed in.
That leads to Beth Tweddle, who came third in 2006 when she was Britain's first world Champion on the Uneven Bars. However, this year she fell in her preferred event in qualifying in front of the home crowd in London. A couple of days later having qualified for her other event the floor for which she had never medalled in her previous two World Champ finals she pulled out all the stops and won. Indeed that failure in the uneven bars was the only time that she failed to top the podium in her two events in competition this year.
My personal preference for the top three this year is:
1. Beth Tweddle
2. Mark Cavendish
3. Tom Daley
I suspect I will be wrong as this omits any of the so called "big" sports and is based purely on another sportsman basis of meritocracy.
The real battle of the Tour de France came down the the climb of Mont Ventoux and good choice by the Tour Organisers, the final hour of the ascent of the Giant of Provence lived up to it hype of being the place where the general classifications would be decided.
The seven heads of state Alberto Contador, Andy Schleck, Lance Armstrong, Bradley Wiggins, Andreas Kloden, Frank Schleck and Vincenzo Nibali were the ones who kept together when the big group hit the slopes above Bedoin. They started to close down the leaders up the slopes Juan Manuel Garate and Tony Martin, but that wasn't the reason for their speed.
Frank Schleck attacked a number of times, but each time he was marked by Lance Armstrong determined not to cede his third step on the podium. When little brother Andy attacked it was the Maillot Jaune on the back of Contador that came with, but when Frank didn't follow he sat up. Obviously more determined to help his brother get a leap on Armstrong rather than try and get the 4'11" he needed over the man who was covering his every move.
Kloden was the first of the big 7 to suffer and slip off the back. But Nibali and Wiggins also at times seemed to struggle to get back. But over and over again 6 of the heads of state kept together. Kloden any time he thought there was a hope of getting back on the back wheel suffered as another acceleration pulled them away again.
Then in the final two kilometres Andy went again this time with brother Frank on his wheel. Armstong and Contador went with, but Wiggins seemed unable to respond. Was this the time that more British hopes were to fade, almost at the point when the memorial marks the death of Tom Simpson on the same slopes. But no Wiggins kept digging in finding reserves from somewhere.
At the line Garate crossed first, then Martin. Then the three leaders of the race A. Schleck, with Contador and a three second gap to Armstrong. But with Kloden down the road the only real gap that mattered was going to be between Frank Schleck and Bradley Wiggins. At 43" after Garate the elder Schleck crossed the line Brad had to get there before the race showed +1'06". Then on the left hand side of the road almost out of view of the camera Bradley Wiggin's reminiscent of Steven Roche he appeared crossing the line at +1'03" twenty seconds lost both 4th place retained for the procession towards the Champs Elysees tomorrow.
Of course the Brits have had a good tour David Miller has been doing sterling work, and just missed out on the run into Barcelona of individual glory. Wiggins of course has ridden high up the GC and has given hope of making a podium in Paris in the years to come (why did that Texan have to come out of retirement this year?). But a little man from the Isle of Man is going for 6 tomorrow. If only he hadn't been disqualified on the run into Besancon we may still have seen him and Thor Husovd competing the two intermediates as well as the final bunch sprint on the Champs Eylsees tomorrow.
But as it is Britain's top stage winner Mark Cavendish and equal top finisher Bradley Wiggins can look forward to Paris tomorrow one to relax the other has one more goal, to be the first of the men to cover the 3252km of the 96th Tour de France, even if only by a few yards and hundredths of a second.
Thor Hushovd rides for the Cervelo Testteam in the Tour de France
In most of the bunch sprints he is not to be found on his own lead out man's wheel* but that of Mark Cavendish's team Columbia Highroad
Thor has yet to beat the speed of Mark Cavendish in a straight sprint to the line this Tour de France**.
On today's stage into Besancon the barriers are narrowing as the sprint gets towards the end instead of staying consistent; see here.
Mark Cavendish has always gone to the right when Mark Renshaw peels off to launch his final push to the line (Hushovd knows this see point 1 he's always in the prime spot to observe)
There have been occasions of leaning in sprint finishes in the past has not led to disqualification.
The head race commissaire has announced that once he makes a decision it is final. There is no right to appeal. However, a few days ago the morning after he made a decision that there was a split in the peleton he changed his mind overnight and reinstated 15 secs that many including Britain's Bradley Wiggins had been docked on the line.
This is the second incident in which a British cyclist in jersey contention has been penalised by French cycling officials in this years Tour.
France have repeatedly been losing out to Team GB cyclists including Wiggins and Cavendish on the track in recent years.
The Tour while under the auspices of the UCI is also somewhat a law unto itself at times (which is both good and bad at times).
One does wonder if it had been Tom Boonen against Hushovd whether a disqualification would have been the decision, or whether a reversal of line placings (an alternative penalty) would have sufficed, or even if the result would have held.
Why did the course at the end narrow so much? Could the race not have stopped further up the road if the road was wider there? Have the race officials noticed they have got the course wrong on this occasion but are afraid to admit their mistake? Does it have anything to do with the ongoing success of British cycling?
I may be a little cynical but both of the controversial line decisions in this weeks tour have affected British racers. Brad Wiggins was less that 20 metres behind Lance Armstrong, 5 positions in that 'split' 15 seconds may well have be enough to prevent him doing anything in the General Classification. On the last sprinters stage before the Champs Elysees was the finish made deliberately tighter on Cavendish's launch side, thus effectively ending the close Green Jersey contest?
UPDATE: Just like to say that a number of the anti-Cavendish comments on Twitter this evening are homophobic in nature. Our use of language really needs sorting out.
UPDATE 2: Here is what Robbie McEwen, an experienced Tour Sprinter who was also robbed of a final Green Jersey, had to say via Twitter:
18:32 Cav didn't really move much, barrier did but his looking over shoulder lining up Thor is what judges would have dq'd him for. full dq harsh
18:33 most they should have done if anything was reverse placings.
18:54 re:Cav DQ.Trying analyse impartially-both mates of mine.Calling it like i see it.Sprinting tactically is very fine line.I lost a green by DQ
18:57 if Cav hadn't had a look, he wouldn't been DQ'd I think. Fine line.again, total dq is OTT. shame to ruin a gd battle. gd luck to both
*Indeed does anyone know who that is?
**Barcelona where Thor did win beating Cavendish in the same group was a tough uphill finish.
