Italy's youthful new Champion There was a startling and sudden transformation in Italian cycling this season, with baby-faced Damiano Cunego succeeding brooding drug victim Marco Pantani as the sport's new hero.In February, Pantani was found dead in a resort hotel room, surrounded by notes describing his depression; the official cause given was cocaine poisoning. Last month, Cunego capped an extraordinary season by becoming, at 23, the youngest rider ever to be ranked No. 1 in the world. At five foot seven and 128 pounds, Cunego is similar in size to Italy's last great cycling star and specializes in climbing like Pantani. But while Pantani was a brooding "Pirate" dogged by one doping allegation after another, Cunego is a wide-eyed "Little Prince" with poise and purpose who many observers believe will be the sport's next great rider after American Lance Armstrong. "When I was a little younger Armstrong wasn't winning, it was the years of his illness," Cunego said in an interview with The Associated Press. "We Italians followed Pantani." Italy's cycling "tifosi" - fans - now follow Cunego. "He's a young, clean face and people love to dream," said Beppe Martinelli, the team director who discovered and developed Cunego and Pantani. "The people here still like to dream about Pantani's victories and now they're dreaming that he can do what Pantani did." Cunego burst onto the scene this season by winning the Giro del Trentino in April, a warmup race for the Giro d'Italia. Then he entered the bigger Giro as a support rider for teammate Gilberto Simoni, the defending champion, and blew by Simoni in the mountains to win the stage race considered second in importance only to the Tour de France. By winning last month's Giro del Lombardia, he became the first cyclist since Eddy Merckx 32 years ago to win the first big three-week stage race of the season and the final single-day classic. He finished the season with 13 wins. "I think it's very impressive, especially if you see the whole season," said Johan Bruyneel, sporting director of Armstrong's team. "Of course the Giro is remarkable and jumps out, but it's not only the Giro, it was his performance level the whole year," Bruyneel told the AP. "I followed him a little bit in April, he was doing well in some races, and then he won the races before the Giro, he won the Giro, then he took a break and when he started racing again he won again immediately. Then he went to the Tour of Spain with initially the intention of doing two weeks to prepare for the worlds, but he did the whole thing." Cunego finished 16th in the Spanish Vuelta. The most exciting thing about Cunego is his ability and desire to win every type of race like the legends of old. Next season, a new pro tour will be in place that will require each of the top 20 teams, including Cunego's Saeco (which is about to merge with Lampre), to compete in all of the top races. The revolution is largely aimed at Armstrong's past decision to focus only on the Tour, which is why the American finished the season ranked only No. 7. "Being able to recuperate well physically allows me to race a little more than others," said Cunego, who has a special certificate from the International Cycling Union attesting that the natural hematocrit level in his blood is above the norm. "Maybe it helps me in multi-stage races, to recuperate faster." While climbing is his specialty, Cunego also excels in downhill sections and sprinting, the combination that earned him the Giro del Lombardia title. "The climbs are what I like most, but also the sprints because I'm fairly fast," he said. "If the race comes down to four or five riders I can win more often than not." Tour followers may have thought that Ivan Basso, who finished third behind Armstrong in this year's French race, was Italy's best hope to challenge the American. But Cunego showed in his final victory of the season he has something extra. Cunego acknowledged that Basso was stronger on the uphill sections, but Cunego dug deep and started catching up in the final phases of the ascent. Cunego showed off his superb descending skills and then beat Dutchman Michael Boogerd and Basso in a flat sprint finish. Cunego's only weakness appears to be time trials. "He's never going to be a specialist in time trials, but he can definitely improve," Bruyneel said. "It takes years of experience to acquire the endurance and resistance. That's something he's going to have to improve on and will improve on." Cunego agrees. "In December and January, I'll work a lot on my position on the bike. It takes time, we'll try to do it gradually," he said. Cunego is also taking a gradual approach to the Tour. After winning the Giro, his team kept him out of this year's race so as not to burn him out. But next season's plan includes both. "I'm not going with the ambition to win, but to learn for the following years," he said of the French race. The last rider to win the Giro and Tour in the same season was Pantani, in 1998. "Maybe it was written somewhere that a new cyclist would emerge in the year that Pantani died," Martinelli said. "I believe a little bit in these things. Don't get me wrong, I'm sorry about what happened to Pantani, but what Cunego has done has drawn people back to cycling." Source : Canadian Press
Pantani memorial Statue contract awarded
Sat Nov 20 19:08:26 2004
Emanuela Pierantozzi, Barcelona silver Judo medallist and sculptrice is successful artist A former Judo champion, 36 year old Emanuela Pierantozzi won the contract over 71 other candidates.![]()
Emanuela Pierantozzi in Sydney Marco, 1998 Tour de France Emanuela Pierantozzi won silver at the 1992 Barcelona Olympics in Judo and bronze in 2000 in Sidney. She was also World Champion in 1989 and 1991. Currently she manages Judo schools in Bologna and Genoa in addition to her sculpting endeavours. She is the daughter of an artist. Her father Giovanni is a painter and Emanuela has sculpted for many years. The bidders' sketches were narrowed down by the selection committee in Pantani's home town of Cesenatico and there were eventually eight finalists from whom Emanuela was selected. She envisages a three meter high statue of Pantani climbing in the Alps and it is slated to be finished by next February 14, the first anniversary of the Champion's passing. Source : la Gazzetta dello Sport (Italian)
Beloki breaks with Saunier-Duval
Sat Nov 20 15:55:45 2004
Liberty-Seguros with Manolo Saiz his probable new squad.MADRID (Spain) - Joseba Beloki, 31 year old Basque rider, three times finishing on the podium at the Tour de France, has become dissatisfied with his current Saunier-Duval team. If he can be released from his contract with his present team, it is almost certain that he will ride next year for the Liberty-Seguros squad managed by controversial director, Manolo Saiz. Source : Marca (Spanish)
Men Only
Sat Nov 20 05:56:33 2004
Here's Holland's Geert Van Bondt winning Gand Vevelgem 2000 Source : Six Day staff; Photo Courtesy : Cyclisme féminin (French)
Ladies Only
Sat Nov 20 05:44:33 2004
Here's where America's Dotsie Cowden hangs her hat..... If you want to meet her, sign up for her Cycling Camp in California next February. And here she is, Summer, 2003 :Source : Six Day staff![]()
Happy Birthday - Men
Sat Nov 20 05:30:33 2004
Leonida Frascarelli (1906) Italy - Died on June 18, 1991 3rd 1929 Giro d'Italia (1st Alfredo Binda, Italy; 2nd Domenico Piemontesi, Italy;) 5th 1929 World Championship Road Race (1st Georges Ronsse, Belgium; 2nd Nicolas Frantz, Luxembourg; 3rd Alfredo Binda, Italy; 4th Jef Dervaes. Belgium) Source : Six Day staff
Happy Birthday - Women
Sat Nov 20 05:28:33 2004
Sorry, None today Source : Six Day staff
Today's Menu
Sat Nov 20 05:06:33 2004
Saturday, November 20, 2004 Main Events: MEN: Stage Races : None Single Day races : None Six Day and Other Track Races : None WOMEN : Stage Races : None Single Day races : None Source : UCI
UCI Calendars: Road Track UCI Home Page (Multilingual)