Contador wins third consecutive velo d'or

[isayic]

?????????????????

Contador has a lot to learn

What has he to learn? To be an A(beeeep)hole like Lance?

 

[gatete]

What has he to learn? To be an A(beeeep)hole like Lance?

ahh, sarcasm is sometimes hard to reach

 

[Mellow Velo]

"I will pretty much only think of the Tour de France for next year," he said.
I'd say he's learnt a lot from Lance.
How to be a part time cyclist, part time celebrity.
Feet up after July, again.

I'd have given it to Philip Gilbert for riding competitively, the whole season.

 

[franciep10]

It also seems he's really interested in CdE.

the only thing preventing a deal between caisse and contador right know is money, once that is solved ur going to see contador in red and black

 

[blaxland]

"I will pretty much only think of the Tour de France for next year," he said.
I'd say he's learnt a lot from Lance.
How to be a part time cyclist, part time celebrity.
Feet up after July, again.

I'd have given it to Philip Gilbert for riding competitively, the whole season.

+1 agreed,Gilbert did have strong finish to the season but i would also rank Cavendish above contador for rider of the year award.......

 

[Angliru]

The Velo d'Or winner is selected by an international panel of journalists.

AC has just been confirmed the winner.

Doc, thank oh so very much for clearing up the misconception that this was an award determined by the opinions of only French journalists.

I think it is a well deserved honor. Cav had a great year especially with his unexpected MSR win and Tour dominance in the sprints. I just have to think though IMO that his reign coincided with the decline and injuries of almost every other top sprinter with the exception of the up and coming Farrar. Benatti is still trying to recover the form that made him one of the elite. Freire crashed out of the ToC and hasn't been able to reach the form he had at the seasons start. Boonen's drama is well known. Petacchi, was limited in the races he could compete while riding for LPR, but did beat Cav earlier in the season in a head to head sprint. I believe he's joined Lampre and thus should be back in the big events and will make things interesting for Cav.
McEwen may be on the downward slope of his career although he claims otherwise. Only Hushovd has been there throughout the season but is obviously no match for Cav unless the course is technical, conditions less than ideal and maybe the finish is on a slight uphill grade.

Nevertheless, Cav, with the exceptional help of the Columbia machine that dominated sprints all season, would have also been a worthy winner BUT... Contador competed from March thru July and as is mentioned above his record for 2009 speaks for itself. So what he didn't race after the Tour. With your team being snatched from under you one would think think that trying to determine where you'll be racing next year and who with would've been pretty high on the list of priorities.

 

[Angliru]

"I will pretty much only think of the Tour de France for next year," he said.
I'd say he's learnt a lot from Lance.
How to be a part time cyclist, part time celebrity.
Feet up after July, again.

I'd have given it to Philip Gilbert for riding competitively, the whole season.

I doubt he had his "feet up". Likely he was trying to make sense of where he was going to be riding next season and reeling from the physically and mentally exhausting ordeal that was the 2009 Tour. Maybe you would have preferred he did the Vuelta with Vino? Supreme Headache Part Two. I am fearful though that with the Tour performances of Sastre and Menchov after their hard efforts in the Giro, that it will be a template for future Tour contenders to continue to avoid following for fear of similar stumbles in the big race

He also states, as mentioned above, that he'll bypass the 2010 Giro and ride L-B-L and Fleche Wallone, that's not to mention his likely participation, competitively, in Paris-Nice, Tour of the Basque Country and probably the Dauphine. Unlike Lance he usually enters these events to win (the stage races) with the exception of the Dauphine.

No slight intended to Gilbert who ended the season with such a flurry of wins that it made my head spin. Good to see all of his aggressive riding pay off. Riders like Gilbert are one of the reasons I enjoy the sport so much.

 

[Publicus]

"I will pretty much only think of the Tour de France for next year," he said.
I'd say he's learnt a lot from Lance.
How to be a part time cyclist, part time celebrity.
Feet up after July, again.

I'd have given it to Philip Gilbert for riding competitively, the whole season.

Wasn't this in response to the question of whether he would ride the Giro? I'd personally like to see him skip next ywar's Tour in favor of the Giro/Vuelta double, but given the general hype of his coflict with Lance and JB and the fact that most riders treat the TdF as THE event of the year, one could understand him focusing on the TdF. I'll join you in your criticism if his early program deviates from his usual (other than adding in some classics to get cobbles in) and he doesn't race again afte the TdF.

 

[franciep10]

Wasn't this in response to the question of whether he would ride the Giro? I'd personally like to see him skip next ywar's Tour in favor of the Giro/Vuelta double, but given the general hype of his coflict with Lance and JB and the fact that most riders treat the TdF as THE event of the year, one could understand him focusing on the TdF. I'll join you in your criticism if his early program deviates from his usual (other than adding in some classics to get cobbles in) and he doesn't race again afte the TdF.

when he get's five tours he should start thinking about the giro/vuelta, I hope one day he can do the giro/tour by riding himself into form in the giro similar to 2008. By the 2008 giro was one of the top giro's i've watched

 

[Timmy-loves-Rabo]

to be fair, cavendish had a little team better support then contador had.

 

[Echoes]

Cavendish like every modern sprinters stays in the peloton all day long and then makes a real effort of 200m, with the help of his teammates?

Is that worth such an award?

 

[il_fiammingo]

+1 agreed,Gilbert did have strong finish to the season but i would also rank Cavendish above contador for rider of the year award.......

IMO, AC is a deserved winner too.
Nevertheless, it's crazy what a non-Tour winner has to perform to get this trophy. Their holidays don't start end of July.

2006 - Bettini:
- wins: 2 stages Tirreno, 1 stage Giro, National Championship, 1 stage Vuelta, World Championship, Lombardia
- 2nd Liege, 8th AGR, 7th RvV

2005 - Boonen:
- wins: 2 stages Paris-Nice, GP E3, RvV, Paris-Roubaix, Tour of Belgium (+2 stages), 2 stages Tour, World Championship
- 8th Sanremo, 2nd Het Volk,

2002 - Cipollini:
- wins: Sanremo, Gent-Wevelgem, World Championship, 3 Vuelta Stages, 1 Stage Tirreno, 6 stages Giro
- 9th RvV

1996 - Museeuw:
- wins: Brabantse Pijl, Paris-Roubaix, National Championship, UCI WorldCup, World Championship
- 8th Sanremo, 3rd RvV, 3rd AGR, 10th Olympics, 3rd Leeds Classic, 3rd Zurich, 2nd Paris-Bruxelles

1995 - Jalabert:
- wins: Sanremo, Fleche Wallone, Paris-Nice (+1 stage), Criterium Internationale (+2 stages), Catalunya (+2 stages), 1 stage Tour, Vuelta (+6 stages)
- 2nd Pays Basque, 4th Liege, 4th Tour, 4th San Sebastian, 6th Leeds,

1994 - Rominger:
- wins: Vuelta (+6 stages), Paris-Nice (+1 stage), Pays Basque (+2 stages), Hour Record
- 2nd Criterium Internationale, 6th Liege

 

[Buffalo Soldier]

Nevertheless, it's crazy what a non-Tour winner has to perform to get this trophy. Their holidays don't start end of July.

Last 4 had to win world championships! (other 2 won the vuelta)