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01.03.2007/ Petacchi won second stage Vuelta Valenciana, Puerto: Sanchez Montesino
- I can't do anything without sufficient evidence, Paolo Bettini receives Velo D'or on Friday, Kroon did six days
with a broken rib in California
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New: Open letter Unibet.com to ASO, RCS and Unipublic: Do not wreck the European bike!
Jörg Jaksche: no team and without investigation
Special coverage Jan Ullrich retires
Petacchi won second stage Vuelta Valenciana
Alessandro Petacchi has won the the second stage of the Vuelta Valenciana on Wednesday. After 148.2 kilometers
the Italian was first, followed by the Spaniard Vicente Reynes (Caisse d’Epargne) and Daniele Bennati (Lampre) on the
next ranks. With his fifth win this season the Milram pro took over the overall lead.
Just like the day before the
race was dominated by a break. Soon after the start Serafin Martinez (Karpin-Galicia), Jose Ruiz (Andalucia-Cajasur) and Raul
Alarcon (Saunier Duval) escaped and established a comfortable gap. Only Luca Solari (Team LPR) could close the gap. The four
riders extended the gap to a maximum of 3:50 minutes. But it wasn't enough. Especially team Lampre with overall leader Daniele
Bennati saw its chances for a bunch sprint, intending to defend the jersey of the overall leader.
The escape was stopped
after 128 kilometers. There were some attacks on the last 20 kilometers, but finally there was a bunch sprint again. This
time Alessandro Petacchi prevailed. He crossed the finish line half a wheel's length before Vicente Reynes, the third of the
day before. The winner of first stage, Daniele Bennati, finished third. “I am still a little tired as I only had a day's
break after the Volta ao Algarve. But today my team worked very well for me and brought me in a good position. Many thanks,
particularly to Erik,” Petacchi said. He doesn't think about the overall classification, which he won two years ago,
yet. “I plan from day to day, then we'll see happens.”
With his victory Alessandro Petacchi took over the
overall lead from Daniele Bennati, who follows with a gap of two seconds. The third stage on Thursday with start and finish
in Vila Real goes over 151 kilometers. Despite a climb of the first category about 60 kilometers to the finish a bunch sprint
is expected again.
On Tuesday Bennati had won the first stage of the Vuelta Valenciana. "The perfect sprint ," Bennati said.
"The team was great and help me to obtain this victory, that I fell like a little revenge for the three second places obtained
in Tour Mediterraneen. The second stage could be a good chance to try to repeat this good result."
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| Daniele Bennati won the first stage... (picture : Cyclingheroes) |
Puerto: Sanchez Montesino - I can't do anything without sufficient evidence
The president of the Spanish Cycling federation told in an interview that his federation could not act against
several Spanish riders who were mentioned in the Puerto report since they have no sufficient evidence.
Speaking with German daily newspaper General Anzeiger Bonn, Sanchez Montesino said: "It is sad that somebody
like Ullrich retired in this way. He had many successes but unfortunally what will stay is that what we all have been through,
the fall-out of Operacion Puerto. Although still not everything is clarified, the image of cycling has heavily suffered. Ullrich
is one of the victims."
Asked why with the exception of Jörg Jaksche, Ruben Plaza and Jan Ullrich all riders were racing again, Montesinos
said: "We as a federation sanctioned nobody, Because so far we did not have a reason. The Operacion Puerto is not more than
an allegation. Nothing is proved. That is why we can't sanction anybody or even withdraw somebody's license." Montesinos
continued by saying: "In every country the federations have reacted like they thought it was accurate. We have all suffered.
First of all the federation. We were very surprised about the percolations of which untill today not one was really confirmed.
Neither before a court nor somewhere else. That's why we did not act against the athletes."
Paolo Bettini receives Velo D'or on Friday
World Champion Paolo Bettini will receive, Friday 2nd March 2007 the prestigious Velo D’or award assigned
by the French magazine ‘Velomagazine’ to last seasons best athlete.
Bettini, the third Italian after Pantani and Cipollini to win this award, was voted by a panel of some of
the most important international sporting journalists. "This is a prestigious award that I’ve been close
to winning before," Bettini said. "This award represents to the cycling world what the Golden Ball does for football.
I am delighted to have won it".
Bettini, accompanied by his wife Monica, will fly to Paris on Friday morning and will be presented with his
award at 4pm at the Velomagazine headquarters.
"We’ll be staying in Paris until Sunday," Bettini continued:" as we want to make the most of this opportunity
to visit this magical city."
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| Current World & Olympic champion Paolo Bettini (picture: Cyclingheroes) |
Kroon did six days with a broken rib in California
Karsten Kroon managed to do six stages in Tour of California with a broken rib, but he did not realize until
Tuesday, when he returned home to Europe.
"Last night I sat up in bed to sneeze and I almost passed out from the pain.
There was no doubt something was wrong and I went straight to the hospital this morning. As it turned out there was a gap
of about one centimeter in the fracture," explains Karsten Kroon and continues:
"I crashed during the first stage in
California and I did go to the hospital after to get x-rays done. But they only took pictures of the front, where everything
was fine. When I crashed I hit a pole both at the front and the back of my body and apparently the damage was at the back."
Kroon
got back on his bike and did the last 10 kilometers of the first stage and during the next six stages he was in quite a lot
of pain. Now he is forced to take a break, which he hopes will be a short one.
"I don't know how long it'll take, but
I'm hoping to be able to race again in a couple of weeks, even though it'll probably hurt a lot longer than that. My rib was
put back together this morning and I also had some massage and some tape put on, but there's not much else you can do about
it. So now I'll just have to wait for it to heal," sighs Kroon and elaborates:
"This is the worst start to a season
ever for me. First I fractured my wrist and now my rib. But I'll make a strong comeback for sure," says Kroon, who will have
to make do with a home trainer for the time being.
Source CSC
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| Karsten Kroon did the Tour of California with a broken rib (picture: Cyclingheroes) |
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