To Lance Armstrong, of course.
To Ivan Basso and Jan Ullrich. There's a difference between coming in second (or third) and losing.
To King of the Mountains Mickael Rasmussen. Hopefully that time trial is already a distant memory.
To Yaroslav Popovych, the top young rider. And nobody offically keeps track of old guys, but cheers to Laurent Brochard, age 37.
To the top sprinter, Thor Hushovd.
To Iker Flores, the Lanterne Rouge. Someone has to finish last, and doesn't that beat not finishing?
To the top team, T-Mobile. (Anybody see a touch of irony in this?)
To the nine Americans: Lance Armstrong (1st, Discovery), Levi Leipheimer (6th, Gerolsteiner), Floyd Landis (9th, Phonak), George Hincapie (14th, Discovery), Bobby Julich (17th, CSC), Chris Horner (33rd, Saunier Duval), and Dave Zabriskie (withdrew, CSC). Only one of these guys has announced his retirement; hopefully cycling's popularity here in the U.S. will continue to grow, both in participation and fan support.
Pass the champagne.
Posted by Nic at July 24, 2005 11:43 AM | TrackBack