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STAGE 5: THE BEST LAD: CAVENDISH WINS FIRST CAREER TOUR STAGE IN CHÂTEAUROUX
Tim Maloney-European Editor
July 9, 2008
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Perhaps in a decade or so, we’ll be talking about the long career of sprinter Mark Cavendish and his many wins, as today, the 23 year old Manx speedster took his first Tour De France stage win in Châteauroux, surely his first of many more. The modest Cavendish credited his Columbia team with putting him into position to win the stage today, saying “with all the selfless work the team did for me, I had to win today. They are a great bunch of lads”! Cavendish was the best lad today and is enjoying a great season so far with a World Madison Championships, Two stage wins in the Giro d’Italia and now a Tour De France victory.
“A Tour stage win was a big objective for me this season and I am ecstatic for the win and for the team. The Tour is the biggest race so it is great to win here.” Cavendish may be looking at some additional bunch finish wins, as the man from the Isle Of Man is determined to make it to Paris. “I don’t think it is fair to the race organizers if I drop out; I want to go all the way to Paris”. If Cav finishes the Tour De France, he and his UK (and Columbia) teammate Bradley Wiggins, already World Madison Champions are looking for Olympic Gold in Beijing. “Once the Tour is over, there are three and a half weeks to recuperate so I think it’ll be all right,” said the ambitious Cavendish.
With a close 4th place finish today in, Châteauroux, Credit Agricole’s Thor Hushovd took over the Maillot Vert of Points leadership at the Tour De France. Sporting a blond beard, the Viking fastman was delighted to don the Green tunic today. “Oh finally I’ve got the Maillot Vert! It is my big objective of the season. I’ve already won a stage so far and now I can really concentrate on keeping the Maillot Vert!”
German strongman Stefen Schumacher (Gerolsteiner) maintained his race lead today and the determined man from Stutgart was happy the way things went. “Our team controlled the race well until the sprinters team came to the front so we are happy to have the jersey for tomorrow. Our tactics are that we will really fight to keep the jersey. But tomorrow’s stage will not be easy; there are mountains and the uphill finish so it won’t be easy.” Schumacher is just a dozen seconds ahead of Kirchen (Columbia) and Millar (Garmin), with Evans (Silence) at 21” Vande Velde (Garmin) 37” back, so the German and his Gerolsteiner boys will be under major pressure to maintain the Maillot Jaune Thursday.
How It Happened
Before the official stage start, during the roll-out, Mauricio Soler crashed and a few kilometers later, he abandoned the Tour De France. It was a bright, sunny summer day with a tailwind blowing west towards Châteauroux. After 11km of official racing, Lilian Jégou (FDJ) punched it even though the peloton was riding hard. Two other French riders got across to him; former French champ Florent Brard (COF) and current French champ Nicolas Vogondy (AGR). Once three French riders were away, the peloton slowed and the trio were off the front. Maillot Jaune Stefen Schumacher’s Gerolsteiner team rode tempo on the front to control the break, which gained a maximum gap of 8’15’’ after 52km.
Under a warm sun, the blue jerseys of Gerolsteiner pedaled on the front as the course rolled up and down through the verdant farm country of La France Profonde on the road to Châteauroux, but eventually the jig was up for the three French riders as Crédit Agricole and Columbia hit the front with 70km to go and cranked up the pace. By 20km to go in Saint Maur, home of some of the best goat cheese on the planet, the three front runners were just 1’20’’ up on the peloton as the sprinters began to get ready to rock.
Vogondy, Brard and Jégou were just being reeled in in the last 2km when the maillot tricoleur of French champ Vogondy attacked solo to try and hold off the charging sprinters, but he couldn’t resist the charge of the speedsters and was passed with 150 meters to go. Hushovd jumped first, but Cavendish countered up the middle of the road and won Stage 5 going away.
Thursday 10 July
Stage 6: Aigurande–Super Besse / 195.5km
The first climbs of the Tour de France appear with the crossing of the Massif Central mountains. First it’s the Col de la Croix-Morand, an 8km, 5.1-percent ascent, then the mountaintop finish up the 11km, 4.7-percent climb to Super-Besse. This could be the first big battle between fast climbers like Ricco’, Schleck, Valverde and Damiano Cunego for the win atop Super Besse, while Maillot Jaune Schumacher may have trouble making keeping contact.
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