If I might comment on this year's Tour de France, I think it's being run in an effort to bring the title back to France.
Fewer international riders are represented (40 of the 180 are from France with by far the largest majority), only four Americans are in the race, and one entire squad has been left off the entry list. This being the team that had the winner in it last year.
The thing that makes me worry a little is what will 2009 look like if a Frenchman fails to win the Tour this year? Will it be a crit around the city of Paris with obstacles for anyone who's not a native?
Just thinking as I wait for the dispatches to update.
Gimme your thoughts...
Showing posts with label 180 riders. Show all posts
Showing posts with label 180 riders. Show all posts
Saturday, July 5, 2008
Countries - Riders in the Tour
This year, according to the official site of the Tour de France, there are only FOUR Americans riding in the TDF.
Here's the listing of how the rider numbers break down across country lines...
The 180 riders in the 95th Tour represent 28 countries.
40: France
30: Spain
21: Italy
16: Germany
12: Belgium
10: The Netherlands
9: Australia
4: USA, Russia and Switzerland
3: Colombia, Great Britain and Luxembourg
2: South Africa, Austria, Belarus, Noway, Sweden and Ukraine
1: Brazil, Canada, Denmark, Kazakhstan, New Zealand, Poland, Czech Republic, Slovakia and Slovenia
Here's the listing of how the rider numbers break down across country lines...
The 180 riders in the 95th Tour represent 28 countries.
40: France
30: Spain
21: Italy
16: Germany
12: Belgium
10: The Netherlands
9: Australia
4: USA, Russia and Switzerland
3: Colombia, Great Britain and Luxembourg
2: South Africa, Austria, Belarus, Noway, Sweden and Ukraine
1: Brazil, Canada, Denmark, Kazakhstan, New Zealand, Poland, Czech Republic, Slovakia and Slovenia
From the Netherlands
In a recent Radio Netherlands' news report, they said...
I disagree about the way the drug charges comment was presented. Contador and his team are not in the race because of drug use (alleged) by some of his TEAM's riders. Contador was clean, otherwise the UCI et al would be hounding him like they did Floyd Landis.
Further, the Tour seems not to touch another country this year. I'm saying this without taking a closer look at the map, but it seems that everything stays within France for the 95th Tour de France.
"The 95th edition of the Tour de France starts in Brest later this afternoon. For the first time since 1967 there is no prologue. The opening stage is a 197.5 kilometre race from Brest to Plumelec. The sprinters are expected to make a good showing as the first stage is fairly flat.
A number of cyclists including Denmark's Michael Rasmussen and last year's winner Alberto Contador, have been excluded from this year's tour due to drugs charges. This year's favourites are Australia's Cadel Evans, Spain's Alejandro Valverde and Russia's Denis Menchov."
I disagree about the way the drug charges comment was presented. Contador and his team are not in the race because of drug use (alleged) by some of his TEAM's riders. Contador was clean, otherwise the UCI et al would be hounding him like they did Floyd Landis.
Further, the Tour seems not to touch another country this year. I'm saying this without taking a closer look at the map, but it seems that everything stays within France for the 95th Tour de France.
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