Schleck Just :39” Out Of Race Lead, Promises To Go On The Attack

2010 Tour de France Tuesday 20 July
Stage 15: Pamiers Bagnères-de-Luchon 187.5 km

SRAM RED Limited Tour Edition (LTE) equipped Alberto Contador (Astana) will wear the Maillot Jaune on Stage 16 as the two time Tour winner took the race lead today in Bagnères-de-Luchon. Post-race, Contadoe told French TV “At this moment it’s a really good situation for me, but 30 seconds more or 30 seconds less could change things a bit. It’s always good to be ahead in the general classification.

“I didn’t know anything about the problems with Andy Schleck, but when I realized it I was already ahead of him. The only things that I saw was that he was beginning to attack and then he slowed down. I didn’t realize that he had a problem with the bike.

“When I attacked it was before he had the problem…we’ve got a really good relationship and, in the sporting sense we also get along well, especially if you see what we did on the road to Spa, where he had big crash but today when I attacked it wasn’t because I knew he had problems. I’m sure he will attack me and I always have fear of what he might be able to do…”

Former Maillot Jaune Andy Schleck was trying to stay calm after losing the lead in the Tour. “Now I’m really angry. I will ride on the Tourmalet until I fall from my bike and give everything to this race. I felt really good today but what counted at the end of the day is the time that you have when you arrive at the finish and I was so far back even with what I did on the descent.

“I promised my brother this morning that I wouldn’t take any risk on the downhill but I think I went down pretty fast… for me, let me put it that way. I didn’t want to lose too much time.

“Things happen, and everything happens for a reason. People can say what they want but they also have realize that Alberto was one of the guys who waited for me in Spa and that was really a great sign of fair play. Chapeau! Today was a different story, a different scenario but the Tour is not finished.

“If you just stay calm it’s worthwhile. If yell at people, it won’t change the situation. It is how it is. I’m not crying behind my jersey. In the end it comes down to the fact that this is a bike race and we will make the final count. I’m not done with.”

The 15th Stage of the 2010 Tour de France in Pamiers with 175
riders still in the race. The weather was sunny and warm but not torrid like the previous week. There were attacks from the gun and after 26km, the bunch split and Astana tried to gap the second group that included Maillot Jaune Schleck. They got 10” but Saxo Bank closed the gap and on the first climb, the Cat.4 Côte de Carla-Bayle, a 3.1km climb at 4.1% after 30.0Km the points winners included the riders in first and second in the green jersey race, Petacchi and Hushovd, who tried to get in a big break but nothing doing in the first hour (average speed 47.5km/hr)

No break got away until the 93km point, when seven were involved in the initial move, then three others bridged up. The 10 riders away were Vandborg (LIQ), Van Summeren (GRM), Ivanov (KAT), Ballan (BMC), Reda (QST), Voeckler & Turgot (BTL) and SRAM RED equipped riders Lloyd Mondory (Ag2r La Mondiale), Luke Roberts (Milram), and Perez Arrieta (Footon).

At the foot of the Cat.2 Portet d’Aspet, a 5.8 km ascent at 6.8% with the monument to the late Fabio Casartelli, the lead on the peloton was 4’35”. The peloton took it easy up the climb and at the summit the gap was up to 7’40”. Saxo Bank took over the front and atop the day’s third climb, the Cat.2 Col des Ares, a 6.1 km climb at 4.7 after 126.5Km, the gap was 10’. Eventually the maximum lead for the break was was 10’45” at 138km.

On the final ascent of the day, the Beyond Category 19.3 km climb at 6.1% of the Port de Balès, Voeckler attacked 8km from the top and this was the winning move, the first time that a French champion has won a stage of the Tour since Jacky Durand in Cahors in 1994. Voeckler led fellow escapees Ballan and Perez Arrieta.

As the group Maillot Jaune ascended the Port de Balès 5’ behind Vockler, Schleck launched an attack with about 3km to the summit from a group that included Contador, Van den Broeck, Menchov and Sanchez but suffered a mechanical and lost over 30” before he chased back, but it was too late. Contador, Menchov and Sanchez were already gone. Although Schleck got to within 22” of Contador on the descent, he eventually lost 39” to the Spaniard by the finish. SRAM RED LTE equipped Alberto Contador (Astana) will wear the yellow jersey in Stage 16.

2010 Tour de France Tuesday 20 July
Stage 16: Bagnères-de-Luchon Pau 199.5 km
Stage 16 tackles the Cat. 1 Col de Peyresourde, an 11.0km ascent at 7.4% right from the start, then the Cat. 1 Col d’Aspin, a 12.3km climb at 6.3% after 42km. 30km later, it’s the Beyond Category Col du Tourmalet, a daunting 17.1km climb at 7.3% that is the highest point of the 2010 Tour. Finally the last mountain is the Beyond Category Col d’Aubisque after 138km, a 29.2km climb at 4.2 % that is 60km from the finish, including a 30km descent. This is almost the same route where Eddy Merckx won after a 180-kilometre breakaway in 1969. Will we see something similar from Andy Schleck Tuesday?

Stage Fifteen Results
1. Thomas Voeckler (Fra) Bbox Bouygues Telecom 4h44’51”
3. Aitor Perez Arrieta (Spa) Footon-Servetto @ 1’25” (SRAM RED)
4. Lloyd Mondory (Fra) AG2R La Mondiale @ 2’50” (SRAM RED)
5. Luke Roberts (Aus) Team Milram (SRAM RED)
7. Alberto Contador Velasco (Spa) Astana @ same time (SRAM RED/ZIPP)
12. Andy Schleck (Lux) Team Saxo Bank @ 3’29” (SRAM RED/ZIPP)

2010 Tour de France General Classification
1. Alberto Contador Velasco (Spa) Astana 72h50’42”
2. Andy Schleck (Lux) Team Saxo Bank @ :08” (SRAM RED/ZIPP)
7. Levi Leipheimer (USA) Team Radioshack @ 5’25” (SRAM RED)
9. Alexander Vinokourov (Kaz) Astana @ 7’12” (SRAM RED/ZIPP)
13. Carlos Sastre (Spa) Cervelo Test Team @ 9’02” (SRAM RED/ZIPP)
15. Andreas Klöden (Ger) Team Radioshack @ 10’27” (SRAM RED)
17. Nicolas Roche (Irl) AG2R La Mondiale @ 12’34” (SRAM RED)
19. John Gadret (Fra) AG2R La Mondiale @ 14’24” (SRAM RED)