Make that 5 Stage Wins for Mark Cavendish
British sprinter Mark Cavendish experienced a cyclist’s dream on Sunday. The HTC-Columbia rider was the first over the Tour de France finish line on the Champs-Elysées in Paris. After suffering through the Pyrenées, Cavendish burst forth in the first sprinter’s stage in nearly a week to prove that he is still the fastest man in the world, then proved it again two days later. This is his second consecutive Tour as the best sprinter in Paris.
“I came around the last corner and I just jumped and started my sprint,” said Cavendish. “It’s different on the Champs-Elysées to every other sprint in the Tour de France where you kind of have to save as much energy as possible because every day is so hard. In Paris you’ve got nothing to save your energy for so you just go balls-out to the line and that’s kind of what I did today.”
Alessandro Petacchi was not far behind, and became the second Italian ever to win the green jersey at the end of the Tour de France. Petacchi won the first and fourth stages, taking the points lead from the time-trial champion Fabian Cancellara before passing the green jersey back and forth between Thor Hushovd and the Italian for most of the race. Cancellara and Sylvain Chavanel each held the jersey for one day, but Hushovd held it for eleven and Petacchi for seven. Cavendish finally managed to squeeze into the competition after Stage 18, dropping a surprised Hushovd to 3rd place and finished only 11 points behind Petacchi.
“I’m disappointed this year not to win the green jersey,” said Cavendish. “I set out to do so – it was a target for this year – but I had some bad luck in the first days and was out of the running but the team fought back, did our best and I lost it by 11 points. But we won five stages and we’ve got to be happy with this year’s Tour.”
Despite the green jersey competition and the fight over the stage win, the race was really about a rider who didn’t win a single stage in the 2010 Tour. Alberto Contador has become the third champion to win the Tour de France three times.
“The three wins are all very different,” said Contador. “The first, in 2007, had something special, precisely because that was the first. Last year, the context was difficult and this made it difficult. And this year I have had difficult moments, but I could count on a strong team. I realize that each year I gain in experience. I know better manage a team throughout the race.”
The 20th Stage, 102.5kms from Longjumeau to the Champs-Elysées in Paris, was the latest stage start of the year. 170 riders, 27 less than the prologues on July 3, began the stage just before 3pm. This was the last day of competition for Lance Armstrong, who rests easy knowing his new team RadioShack was the best performing team in this year’s Tour.
Contador’s team Astana led the peloton when the stage entered the streets of Paris for an eight-lap circuit of the Champs. Cavendish sprinted ahead at 200m from the finish line and left everybody else fighting over second place. Andy Schleck finished second for the second time, and was the best young rider for the third time in three Tours. Last year, he finished 4:11 behind Contador, this year only 39 seconds behind – the fifth closest finish in Tour de France history.
“It’s a completely different feeling to when I came second in 2009. I got up there and look at the yellow jersey now and I realize I was so close – but in the end it’s so far away. I almost had it. I wore yellow for six days and I’m more than sure that I want to do better. I have a meeting on the Champs-Elysées next year with the yellow jersey. I’ll be back to win it.”
With Contador climbing above the average Tour-winning age and Schleck climbing toward it, the young Luxembourg rider has a future to look forward to.
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