Prolific McEwan seeks a 14th stage win
Australian sprinter Robbie McEwen stands in third place in the points classification and 23rd overall in the 2010 edition of the Tour de France, as of the sixth stage. The three-time green jersey winner was among of the fastest sprinters in the world at his peak.
“It's going to be my 12th Tour,” said McEwen. “I've finished ten out of them. My aim is to win a stage. If I manage to do so I'll see, but the goal is to win one. I won't to add to my tally of wins... After the first week, I'll see how things go to start considering fighting for the green jersey. I feel I've still got the power. Otherwise I would'nt go for it. I'll be trying to use some of my team mates but unlike teams like HTC-Columbia, Garmin or Quick Step, we don't have a train in the Katusha squad. We have more riders for climbs and breakaways...”
Having missed the last Tour, the Team Katusha cyclist is back at 38 years of age, after 13 stage victories on the Tour, four of them in cities that will be hosting stages again this year.
“There's a stage finish in Brussels, a city where I've one 4 Paris-Brussels races. And then there are Reims, Montargis, Pau and Paris where I’ve won on the Tour. Stages that I remember like the back of my hand... I've actually looked at footage of my victories to remember the finishes. That could prove to be an advantage.”
At the end of the sixth stage, McEwen crashed into a cameraman after crossing the finish line, irritating existing back problems. The cyclist was sent to a local hospital to be checked out, while the cameraman will not be allowed to participate in the next stage.
"I saw this guy jump in front me and I was not able to avoid him because of the high speed," McEwen said in a team statement.
This is his second injury, after being involved in the large group crash in stage two.
Today’s sixth stage presented a last chance for the sprinters before the route enters the alps. The longest stage of the tour, with just four 4th category climbs, was a good occasion for a long breakaway. McEwen finished the stage in 4th place for the fourth time so far in the Tour, finishing seventh in the fifth stage and 14th in the third stage.
“I planned my season around the Tour. I had a decent start to the season at the Tour Down Under. After my accident last year, I knew that I needed a year to be competitive again, to be in good condition. I've had my ups and downs but now I feel strong. I plan to ride another season so obviously I hope to do another Tour but you never know what can happen and if I'm selected. So for the moment, nothing is concrete.”
This is the Australian’s twelfth Tour de France, after 1997-2000 and 2002-2008, achieving a total of 13 stage wins so far. In the first stage of the 2007 Tour, McEwen crashed 20 km from the finish line, yet remarkably, he still managed to take the stage victory. His team helped him to rejoin the group, after hurting his wrist and elbow, in time for a close sprint finish. He was later forced out of the race when he failed to finish the eight mountain stage within the time limit.
McEwen was the first Australian to win the green jersey in 2002, which he won twice more by 2006, defeating rivals such as fellow Australian, Stuart O'Grady, and international competitors Erik Zabel and Thor Hushovd.
McEwen fractured two vertebrae in the 2004 Tour and finished the race in pain. The same year, he finished second to Lance Armstrong in a criterium. He came third behind Hushovd and O’Grady in the 2005 Tour, and placed eighth in 2008, but was forced to miss the Tour in 2009 because of an injury.
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