Road and Track Bicycle Racing News

Saturday, October 9, 2004

Paris-Tours - For the sprinters
Posted Sat Oct 9 13:33:16 2004 (EDT in North America)

The penultimate leg of the current World Cup Series, the well established classic event,
Paris-Tours, will see the starting flag dropped on the 98th. edition tomorrow, Sunday 10 October.

The course is relatively flat and often there is a tailwind and so the event is tailor made for 
the sprinters.

Zabel and Petacchi won't be there, but recently crowned World Champion, Oscar Freire of Spain,
and Australia's Stuart O'Grady will be plonking their front wheels on the start line and are
both about equal favourites for a win.

But there will be action aplenty as Davide Rebellin and Paolo Bettini duel it out for overall
leadership of the World Cup Series. With Rebellin currently leading Bettini by a slim margin
of six points and either of these riders capable of winning tomorrow in Tours.

World Cup - current standings:
 1 Rebellin  314 points
 2 Bettini   308
 3 Freire    202
 4 O'Grady   150
 5 Boogerd   146
 6 Flecha    140
 7 Dekker    137
 8 Wesemann  131
 9 Zabel     108
10 Backstedt 100


(Source: SixDay Staff)

OZ: Show us the money, says velodrome king
Posted Sat Oct 9 12:50:45 2004 (EDT in North America)

By James MacSmith
October 10, 2004 (Australian Time)
The Sun-Herald
Page Tools


Dual Olympic gold medallist Graeme Brown says he could walk down George Street with his medals 
around his neck and no one would know who he was.

Brown won as many gold medals as Ian Thorpe and Ryan Bailey in Athens but his feats in the 
madison and the 4000 metres team pursuit have gone largely unnoticed in Australia.

He was dragged into the headlines before the Games when disgraced cyclist Mark French falsely 
implicated him in the drugs scandal swirling around the Australian team, but that was the first 
and last time he made front-page news.

Brown labelled French "a dickhead" for dragging cycling into the quagmire of doping but says he 
is not bitter about his own treatment.

Brown arrived back in Sydney last week and begins training again tomorrow after a 40-day lay-off.

He said he would do it all over again, despite his anonymity in Australia - he lives and rides 
professionally in Italy, where he is feted as a hero - but that gold medallists should receive 
some monetary rewards for their performances.

"It was disappointing that I didn't get to soak it up and get welcomed by the Prime Minister but 
I had to get back to my life," Brown said.

"I've got two gold medals and a world record [in the pursuit] that will probably stand for a long 
time.

"And my family and I know that I'm Olympic champion.

"But all that stuff about Mark French was on the front page of the papers for weeks. It didn't need 
to be there and after it all finished we as a team probably didn't get the recognition we deserved. 
We were the most successful team ever and a lot of people still don't realise that. But it's not 
something I think about too much.

"We all know we achieved something special in Athens that has never been done before and might 
never be done again."

Brown, 25, said the French saga barely rated a mention overseas and in no way distracted him or 
his teammates on their drive to Olympic gold.

"It all meant nothing to me," he said. "Mark French is just a dickhead. The whole thing shouldn't
have blown up like it did. In Italy you didn't ever hear about it.

"He should have just taken it on the chin and bowed out but he was in the shit and tried to drag 
everyone else in.

"He was a little rich kid that tried to get away with it. Before it all happened I got along with 
him really well but now . . ."

Darwin-born Brown now lives in Pistoia, Italy, for much of the year. He will marry fellow cyclist 
Hayley Rutherford this month.

During the 4000m team pursuit the riders average 60kmh, an experience Brown describes as "fun, 
stressful, thinking, pain and excitement".

He said the two gold medals were a great reward for all the hard work and sacrifice over the years 
but he advocated a bonus scheme.

"In Russia, Olympic medallists get $250,000 and in Italy they get €130,000 ($220,000) and a pension," 
he said. "It is a bit of a shame there isn't a similar incentive or reward program in Australia.

"All you get is a pat on the back from John Howard if you are lucky. But don't get me wrong. I love 
what I do and the Olympics were such a great experience I can't wait to do it again."


(Source: Sydney Morning Herald)

Updating: Tour du Sénégal (Senegal) Cat. 2.5
Posted Sat Oct 9 12:39:23 2004 (EDT in North America)

6 Oct, 2004 - Stage 5 - Thiès-St Louis - 192.4 km
1 SOSNOVTCHENKO Denis  (Rus) Colombia-Selle Italia     4.30.54
2 MUCANZA Marcio       (Ang) Angola                       0.03	
3 FICTOOR David        (Ned) Snel Isostar                 0.07


7 Oct, 2004 - Stage 6 - St Louis-Louga-St Louis - 138.2 km 
1 ILLIANO Raffaele     (Ita) Colombia-Selle Italia     3.13.48
2 FERNANDEZ Gerardo    (Ang) Angola                       0.13
3 DUCLOS Sebastien     (Fra) Comite Du Morbihan            s.t.

GC results not available.

Fuller results listing on the Cycle Racing Site 


(Source: Cycle Racing)

Melbourne-Warrnambool - Australia
Posted Sat Oct 9 12:16:04 2004 (EDT in North America)

Saturday, Oct 9, 299.1 km. Cat 1.5 Results: 
 1  WALKER William     (Aus) Jayco-VIS/Brunswick CC           7.59.22
 2  CLARKE Jonathan    (Aus) Jayco-VIS/Carnegie Caulfield CC +   0.05 
 3  PELL David         (Aus) Bendigo & District CC               1.05
 4  VAN HOUT Russell   (Aus) Colombia-Selle Italia               s.t.
 5  CLARKE Hilton      (Aus) Cyclingnews.com                     s.t.
 6  MILOSTIC Peter     (Aus) Penrith Panthers CC                 s.t.
 7  GATTO Dominic      (Aus) Brunswick CC                        s.t.
 8  GRAHAM Andy        (Aus) Port Fairy CC                       s.t.
 9  ENGLAND Richard    (Aus) Team MGZT                           s.t.
10  LJUNGBLAD Jonas    (Swe) Amore & Vita Beretta                4.55


(Source: Cycle Racing)

Men Only
Posted Sat Oct 9 11:58:39 2004 (EDT in North America)

Here's Italy's Stefano Garzelli 

(Source: Six Day staff; Photo Courtesy: Cycle Info Site) 

Ladies Only
Posted Sat Oct 9 11:42:34 2004 (EDT in North America)

Here's Lada Koslikova from the Czech Republic

(Source: Six Day staff; Photo Courtesy: Cycle Info Site) 

Happy Birthday - Women
Posted Sat Oct 9 11:38:25 2004 (EDT in North America)

Susan Haywood (1971) USA - 33 today
240th UCI Ranking


(Source: Six Day staff) 

Happy Birthday - Men
Posted Sat Oct 9 11:21:41 2004 (EDT in North America)

Antoon Digneff (1910) Belgium - Died April 11, 1991
3rd (The first edition of) Vuelta a Espana 1935 (1st Gustave Deloor, Bel; 2nd Mariano Canardo, Spa)

Noel Vantyghem (1947) Belgium
1st Paris-Tours 1972.


(Source: Six Day staff) 

Today's Menu
Posted Sat Oct 9 11:06:58 2004 (EDT in North America)

Saturday, October 9 Main Events: 

MEN: 
  Stage Races: 
    Stage 8 - Mbour-Dakar - 120 km of Tour du Sénégal (Senegal) Cat.  2.5

  Single Day races:
    Melbourne-Warrnambool - Australia - 299.1 km - Cat. 1.5   

  Six Day Races:    None

WOMEN: 
  Stage Races:      None

  Single Day races: None


(Source: UCI)

UCI Calendars:     Track     Road     Women     UCI Home Page (Multilingual)