Russian cyclist Denis Menchov had a big lead Sunday as he approached the finish of the Giro d'Italia, but in the final half mile, he skidded out on the wet cobblestone, narrowly avoided getting hit by a passing motorcycle and slid on the ground for about 10 yards. That didn't stop him, though: He got up, discarded his damaged bike, hopped on a new bike given to him by a quick-thinking member of his team car, and won the race.
Menchov screamed as he crossed the finish line, and explained his emotions afterward:
"I knew all the tension over three weeks was finally over, so I had to express that," he said in Spanish, his words relayed by an interpreter. "It was a very, very big satisfaction for me. The best moment of my career, for sure." ...Lance Armstrong was also in the race; he took a conservative approach to avoid crashing and finished 12th.
"I think I am one of the best in the world and it is in my possibility to win the Tour de France," he said. "I don't know if I'm going to do it because it takes a good team and a lot of luck, but I know I am able to do it someday."
Reader Comments (Page 1 of 1)
6-01-2009 @ 12:16PM
mike said...
That was an awesome move, but I don't think bike riders should have a car going right next to them ready to give them a replacement bike. Part of the challenge should be riding carefully enough that you don't wreck your bike, and if you do wreck, you shouldn't get a new one.
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6-01-2009 @ 12:26PM
jzz3skys said...
"Lance Armstrong was also in the race; he took a conservative approach to avoid crashing and finished 12th."
That's misleading. Lance, who's coming back from a collarbone fracture sustained at a race in Spain in March, started this race as a supporter rider for American Levi Leipheimer who placed 3rd in the 2007 Tour de France. During one of the late mountain stages when it was clear that Levi wasn't going to win, Lance went for it and chased a breakaway rider in a stage that ended on top of a mountain. Although he showed some rust, his comeback has been mostly impressive. But he began the final stage of this race more than 12 minutes back, so he rode with the peloton. No way he was going to win.
Last year's winner of this particular race, the Giro d'Italia, was Alberto Contador, the 2007 winner of the Tour de France. Contador might have won last year's Tour de France except that his Astana team was disqualified due to doping allegations from the previous year. Leipheimer and now Lance are also Astana riders, so the pecking order for the upcoming Tour - will it be Lance or Contador? - should be an interesting first chapter.
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6-01-2009 @ 12:30PM
jzz3skys said...
Here's the NY Times article containing most of this information. Contador didn't enter this year's Giro d'Italia in preparation for the Tour de France.
http://www.nytimes.com/2009/05/31/sports/cycling/31cycling.html?ref=global-home
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