Great finishes

[Belokki]

5th of June, 1988
Stage 17
Giro d'Italia
Passo Gavia
unpaved road
16%
snowstorm
Andy Hampsten
truly an epic victory
beat that Lance Armstrong.

He won 7 Tours after surviving cancer! TOP THAT ANYONE

 

[JavierOtxoa]

He won 7 Tours after surviving cancer! TOP THAT ANYONE

What about an 'insignifiant' rider, Eddy Merkcx?
Most career victories by a professional cyclist: 525.
Most victories in one season: 54.
Most stage victories in the Tour de France: 34.
Most stage victories in one Tour de France: 8, in 1970 and 1974 (shared with Charles P?lissier in 1930 and Freddy Maertens in 1976).
Most days with the yellow jersey in the Tour de France: 96.
The only cyclist to have won the yellow, green and red polka-dotted jersey in the same Tour de France (1969).
Most victories in classics: 28.
Most victories of a single classic: 7 (in Milan-Sanremo).

 

[Belokki]

What about an 'insignifiant' rider, Eddy Merkcx?
Most career victories by a professional cyclist: 525.
Most victories in one season: 54.
Most stage victories in the Tour de France: 34.
Most stage victories in one Tour de France: 8, in 1970 and 1974 (shared with Charles P?lissier in 1930 and Freddy Maertens in 1976).
Most days with the yellow jersey in the Tour de France: 96.
The only cyclist to have won the yellow, green and red polka-dotted jersey in the same Tour de France (1969).
Most victories in classics: 28.
Most victories of a single classic: 7 (in Milan-Sanremo).

Merkcx was cought doping...end of story

 

[JavierOtxoa]

Merkcx was cought doping...end of story

Eddy WAS (once) , Lance IS on dope and we didn't know yet the end of ..story.

 

[Susan Westemeyer]

Hey guys, we're talking about race and stage finales here -- let's keep it on topic!

 

[JavierOtxoa]

Hey guys, we're talking about race and stage finales here -- let's keep it on topic!

Sorry! Mea culpa.

 

[El Loto]

McEwen stage 1 of the 2007 Tour.

Crashed in the last 20k somehow made his way up a climb and hooked onto the peloton. Was nowhere when Hunter opened the sprint and managed to slingshot round the outside.

 

[lookkg386]

McEwen stage 1 of the 2007 Tour.

Crashed in the last 20k somehow made his way up a climb and hooked onto the peloton. Was nowhere when Hunter opened the sprint and managed to slingshot round the outside.

Finished like a man possesed!

 

[krebs303]

Armstrong,Pantani, Mt Ventoux

 

[Anonymous]

Armstrong,Pantani, Mt Ventoux

oooh.. controversial...

 

[lookkg386]

oooh.. controversial...

with those two involved...never

 

[eric_vv]

5th of June, 1988
Stage 17
Giro d'Italia
Passo Gavia
unpaved road
16%
snowstorm
Andy Hampsten
truly an epic victory
beat that Lance Armstrong.

Great day, Epic stage, but Hampsten didn't win. Erik Breukink won that stage. Hampsten is always the main topic in the english speaking media. But he wasn't the first at the top of the Gavia (that was Johan van der Velde) and he wasn't the first at the finish (that was Breukink).

 

[Bala Verde]

Great day, Epic stage, but Hampsten didn't win. Erik Breukink won that stage. Hampsten is always the main topic in the english speaking media. But he wasn't the first at the top of the Gavia (that was Johan van der Velde) and he wasn't the first at the finish (that was Breukink).

check this out

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=y5wPEymv-oQ

what i find interesting is that some of these associations say they are comitted to the health and well being of the riders in an attempt to defend their D-policies. What a farce.

Great finish, although no one actually seems to have any pictures of that finish.

 

[il_fiammingo]

Paris-Roubaix 1990: Planckaert vs Bauer

 

[Biciclette Bianchi]

Zabel versus Freire, when Zabel already thought he won.

I'm a Zabel fan, so this one really hurt! Exciting finish, though.


Dave

 

[mr. tibbs]

OK I got mine: 2008 Tour de France stage 1.

It was so exciting with that uphill finish and all the GC guys fighting with the Ardenes classics guys for the yellow jersey. So great.

At a little over 1 km to go, Roman Feilleu goes and gets a gap. When he is caught, Schumacher goes and gets a gap. Then Kirchen fires right before they catch Schumacher and gets a HUGE gap. I remember thinking it was over, and Kirchen had yellow.

But then the next shot is from the helicopter and you can see Valverde shoot out of the bunch like a rocket. What acceleration! He flies past Kirchen and gets the win. So good.

And the picture is awesome, too:

 

[md2020]

Great day, Epic stage, but Hampsten didn't win. Erik Breukink won that stage. Hampsten is always the main topic in the english speaking media. But he wasn't the first at the top of the Gavia (that was Johan van der Velde) and he wasn't the first at the finish (that was Breukink).

Why wouldn't he be the main topic for that day? He may not have won the stage but he attacked his rivals on the Gavia, took the pink jersey and won the Giro that day.

Breukink only finished the stage a few seconds ahead of him and while Vandevelde reached the summit first he finished 48 minutes back.

BTW, here's his recount of it:

http://www.pezcyclingnews.com/?pg=fullstory&id=5499

 

[Flamme Rouge]

Vino taking the final stage of the tour. I'm partial to anyone who can go short and spoil a sprint and the more the sprinters want it the more i love it

I have to agree with this one...great and unexpected finish!!!

 

[eric_vv]

Why wouldn't he be the main topic for that day? He may not have won the stage but he attacked his rivals on the Gavia, took the pink jersey and won the Giro that day.

Breukink only finished the stage a few seconds ahead of him and while Vandevelde reached the summit first he finished 48 minutes back.
BTW, here's his recount of it:

http://www.pezcyclingnews.com/?pg=fullstory&id=5499

My point is that he was only made the hero of that day because he eventually won the giro, but my hero of that day has to be Van der Velde. He was the one who attacked the climb and he was the one who reached the top first. Because of the focus on Hampsten in the English speaking media many fans think he won that day which simply isn't true. I don't mean to belittle his achievement that day (every rider on the gavia that day is a hero to me) but I simply prefer the story of van der Velde's race.

Obviously being Dutch myself it?s only logical I keep reading the story?s about both Dutch guys in our media while Hampsten hardly gets a mention. In fact Breukink hardly gets a mention if this stage is discussed here now, it?s always about van der Velde.

Hampsten also didn?t win the giro that day, many assumed he would lose it to Breukink (he was only 15 seconds down after that stage) because there were 2 TT?s remaining and Breukink was the TT specialist of the day. The 1988 giro is remembered for this stage, but for the overall that stage wasn?t decisive, that would come later.

If you can read Dutch you might try this link for Van der Velde?s story.
http://wernermaes.wordpress.com/2008/05/30/passo-di-gavia-1988/

Or try this one about Breukink and van der Velde revisiting the Gavia mixed with the original footage
http://www.vpro.nl/programma/sportpaleis/afleveringen/10284925/

 

[Angliru]

Or at every Tour where there is the first bump in the road (ie non sprinters stage) he would pull over and get of his bike like he had been shot and was in so much pain that no mere mortal could comprehend, all the while in his Green jersey with green shorts, and shoes and bike, (that he had just paid a 1000 SFr fine for because it was illegal not to wear team kits back then.)
That is indeed a style that a bloke from a little island of the side of another little island could never hope to have!

You fail to mention that being an Italian, Cipo was always coming off putting on a magnificent display of sprinting prowess for 3 weeks in May at the Giro.
Riding for Italian teams, performing well at the Giro was an obligation. First and foremost he was a sprinter. So what he wasn't much of a climber at the Tour. The theory that its difficult to excel or win both the Giro and the Tour in the same year in modern times should also apply to sprinters trying to win the points jersey at both events in the same year. I'm curious to see how often that has been done in the past 20 years.

 

[Angliru]

Vino taking the final stage of the tour. I'm partial to anyone who can go short and spoil a sprint and the more the sprinters want it the more i love it

What was also so incredible was that he was inspired by the proximity of Gerolsteiner's Leipheimer to him in the overall standings. Leipheimer had a small lead on Vino (around 2 seconds) in the gc. Vino attacked first versus Leipheimer and 2 or 3 of his Gerolsteiner teammates to gain bonus seconds at one of the designated sprinter primes bringing him even with Leipheimer for the 5th spot in the overall. Leipheimer and his Gerolsteiner team had to know it was coming but could nothing to stop him. That successful stage ending counter to Bradley McGee's attack snatched the 5th spot away from Leipheimer. That day Vino was a true force of nature not to be denied!

 

[Angliru]

OK I got mine: 2008 Tour de France stage 1.

It was so exciting with that uphill finish and all the GC guys fighting with the Ardenes classics guys for the yellow jersey. So great.

I have to second that one Mr. Tibbs. I jumped out of my seat cheering when I saw Valverde explode out of the pack for the win. I knew that this stage was perfect for him as was the early stage of the Vuelta that he won in 2008.

Being a Valverde fanatic (I admit it, he's my favorite of the current pro's), I have to add two more of my favorites:

2006 Liege-Bastogne-Liege- in the last 10 kilometers there is attack after attack out of an elite group of riders-Basso, Valverde, Cunego, Bettini, Perdiguero, Boogerd, Diluca, Schleck, Joaquim Rodriguez ..... Valverde just sat in and covered the attacks or followed wheels since Rodriguez was off the front with Boogerd. Attacks came and were immediately countered. Schleck attacked up one side was covered and immediately after he was caught Basso attacked on the opposite side, followed my Kessler (or Sinkewitz). Valverde jumped earlier than anyone else after the last turn and created a gap that neither Bettini or a hard charging Cunego could bridge.

2003 Vuelta a Espana, Stage 15 to the summit of Sierra de la Pandera- Roberto Heras and Felix Cardenas had broken away from everyone and seemed destined to battle it out for the stage win. The thing about this stage is that the finishline is about a 2 kilometer descent from the end of the actual climbing. Valverde had been paced up the climb within striking distance by Oscar Sevilla. The video of the race actually shows from a distance the point at which Valverde accelerates away from Sevilla as the grade goes negative and down in pursuit of an oblivious Heras and Cardenas. As they make their way through the last couple of curves you see the motorider and his cameraman looking behind them as Valverde makes his way through the race caravan of vehicles, shocking Cardenas and Heras as he appears and disappears like a Houdini passing them in the final turn to jet on to an exciting stage win. A win that really started Valverde's legend.

 

[RDV4ROUBAIX]

1995 Worlds / Columbia

Abraham Olano finally wins a rainbow for Spain in the rain, ON A FLAT! When Olano made his move, Indurain held off every counter from the likes of Pantani, Giannetti, Chiapppucci, Koychev, and Richard, and still ended up 2nd in a Spanish 1-2 punch.

 

[bianchigirl]

That was a great race - Indurain was the perfect team mate that day, he was quite strong enough to win it but he repaid Olano for his work at the Tour. Spain took both titles as Indurain won the TT title.

Chiapucci finishing at Sestriere with a charging Indurain closing after he'd had been out alone over all the major climbs of the day (and in that dodgy Carrera strip, too) - still the grandest exploit I've seen.

 

[ak-zaaf]

Why wouldn't he be the main topic for that day? He may not have won the stage but he attacked his rivals on the Gavia, took the pink jersey and won the Giro that day.

Breukink only finished the stage a few seconds ahead of him and while Vandevelde reached the summit first he finished 48 minutes back.

BTW, here's his recount of it:

http://www.pezcyclingnews.com/?pg=fullstory&id=5499

Johan van der Velde got the nickname Uomo di Gavia that day.
He's the main topic.