www.cyclingnews.com presents the 90th Tour de France, 2003. Page 1 of 10 Cyclingnews TV News Tech Features Road MTB BMX Cyclo-cross Track Photos Fitness Letters Search Forum Tour home Preview 90th Tour de France - July 5-27, 2003 Photos Live coverage Main Page Live report Results Overall standings Previous Stage Rest day wrap-up Next Stage Start list Stages & results Stage 15 - Monday, July 21: Bagnères-de-Bigorre - Luz-Ardiden, 159.5 km News Map & profiles Tour diaries Armstrong wins stage & makes miracle comeback Features & tech 2003 Tour de France "still not over" says sportsman Ullrich FAQ Today's Tour Tour history features By Tim Maloney, European Editor in Luz-Ardiden Recently on Lance Armstrong Cyclingnews.com Not too far from Lourdes, a city known for religious miracles, at the top of an ancient, fog-shrouded peak in the Pyrenees, American Lance Armstrong made a miraculous comeback from a sudden, unexpected collision with a spectator with 9km to go to win Stage 15 and solidify his tenuous grip on the Maillot Jaune at the centenary Tour de France. Today's mystery was whether four-time Tour de France winner Lance Giro finale Armstrong could hold off the onslaught of Jan Ullrich. Despite the crash, Armstrong showed that he's got what's inside to win his fifth Photo ©: Bettini consecutive Tour. "This has been a Tour of too many problems; too many close calls, too many near misses," he said after his win. "I just wish it would stop and I could have some uneventful days." But as the "What goes around American has struggled this year at the Tour de France, his ride to comes around," says Paris has been anything but uneventful. Armstrong after a historic stage of the Tour. Make way for "le patron" Armstrong said, "I just wish the problems would stop. Many of the Photo: © Jeff Tse/Cyclingnews problems I haven't discussed, but there have been a lot of strange The Five-times club things that happened this Tour de France that I need to stop having. Some of them were evident like the stage to Gap; other things were not talked about. It's been a very odd, crisis-filled Tour. But it was a good day today." Armstrong's USPS team director Johan Bruyneel has been playing excellent poker during the last two stages, but Stage 15 was the moment when the Lance-Jan showdown had to happen. "Today, Lance absolutely had to attack," Bruyneel said. "He had a lot of problems today with the crash and when Mayo attacked he made his move... It was a sensational climb by Lance." Bruyneel was emphatic in his evaluation of the centenary Tour, saying, "With all the suspense, I think that this is the best Tour in the last 20 years." In the third part of our series on the quintuple After some tense moments on Stage 15 when Ullrich distanced Armstrong on the Tour winners we look at the career of the last penultimate climb, the Col du Tourmalet, there was a major regrouping at the base of the great French champion, ascent to Luz Ardiden. Lance's US Postal Service-Berry Floor teammates Manuel 'Triki' Bernard Hinault. Beltran and Chechu Rubiera were back as part of a 30-strong group that hit the base of the 13km climb together. Beltran upped the tempo as the slope steepened, and suddenly Chute Lance Armstrong made his move on Ullrich with 9km to go to the summit. Armstrong! After Armstrong's As Armstrong gapped Ullrich slightly with Iban Mayo (Euskaltel-Euskadi) on his wheel, a tangle with a spectator, Armstrong goes down! is it time for more spectator caught the Maillot Jaune's right handlebar and he went head over heels. Mayo Photo: © AFP barriers? went over the top of Armstrong, while the fast-closing Ullrich veered left to avoid the dumped duo. Brad McGee Brad's spent the last Tour de France director Jean-Marie Leblanc said, "There was a spectator who just wouldn't move alongside the few days in a world of road as Armstrong was passing by. He knocked Armstrong down and that took down Iban Mayo who was behind trouble, but determined him. Ullrich had to swerve to avoid the crash and it seemed that a musette caught Armstrong. But we can't put not to quit. barriers everywhere..." Tour news Lance Armstrong: What Bruyneel's reaction was, "When Lance crashed, I thought it was over." goes around comes around, Mayo thinking USPS-Berry Floor team owner Thom Weisel told Cyclingnews, "It was awesome today; it's going to go down as of stages, Chavanel one of the epic stages of all time. When Lance crashed, we had no idea what happened and we were concerned... offers first Tour opus, Daniel Becke: Lance It was a harrowing experience. But Chris [USPS mechanic Chris Van Roosbroek] gave him a great shove!" will win the Tour, Beloki heads home, Van Roosbroek told Cyclingnews, "We saw on TV he crashed and I tried to get out of the car, but with all the Prize money update, spectators, it was very hard to get out. Once I reached Lance, I just pushed him as hard as I could. He was Communique having trouble getting his foot in the pedals and almost crashed later on." Tour news Stage 14 quotes, Up the road, Jan Ullrich was not attacking Lance when he was down. "It was correct that Verbrugghe hits his when Armstrong crashed, I didn't attack, because cycling is a fair-play sport," said Ullrich limit, Heras weakened after the stage. Tyler Hamilton (CSC) agreed. "After Lance crashed, the other guys kept on going, but it's an unwritten rule that if the Maillot Jaune crashes, you give him a chance to Igor's insights get back," said hamilton. "I didn't feel like other guys were waiting, so it was my Another incredible day, responsibility to go up front and tell them to slow down and wait a few seconds." says our pro commentator. Ullrich and Hamilton's sporting gestures will go down as a great moment in Tour de France Fair play Dr. Michele Ferrari Photo: © CN history, as echoed by Johan Bruyneel, who said, "the fact that Ullrich waited for (Lance) was amazing. It was the attitude of a true champion." Dr Ferrari thnks Armstrong's final attacks were powered Armstrong was aware that Ullrich didn't attack when he crashed, saying "the fact of the matter is that I did the by adrenaline. same two years ago on the descent of the Col de Peyresourde. I was with a few guys and said 'look, we can't race until we know [Ullrich] is okay, if he's back in the race.' What goes around comes around, so I'm very grateful to Jan for remembering my gesture two years ago. Perhaps that's why he did that today. The tables were turned two years ago and I think that what I did two years ago was the correct thing and what Jan did today was the correct thing." http://autobus.cyclingnews.com/road/2003/tour03/?id=results/stage15 10/9/2012 www.cyclingnews.com presents the 90th Tour de France, 2003. Page 2 of 10 Fuelled by adrenalin and with fire in his eyes, Lance got back to the front group after his topsy-turvy progress and he attacked again. Mayo tried to follow again but Lance had finally found something extra on the cool, foggy climb through thousands of screaming fans. Armstrong explained his tactics and state of mind on Luz-Ardiden, saying, "Sometimes the best way for me to ride is angry, but I wasn't angry today when I attacked. I was a little bit desperate because I knew I needed to make the race today to put time into Jan before the final time trial." Earlier in the day, as Armstrong and Ullrich were midway up the historic climb of the Tourmalet in the closest Tour de France ever, Ullrich made a powerful surge that Armstrong didn't follow. "Jan made a very strong attack on the Tourmalet but I felt like it was not the time to do that. Tourmalet is a long climb and a long descent... So for me, tactically, it was not the time (for Ullrich) to go." Armstrong powered past early attacker Sylvain Chavanel (Brioches La Boulangère) in the final few kilometres to take Stage 15, his 16th stage win in the Tour de France. Armstrong was clearly happy to the win, but today wasn't his sweetest win. "In terms of emotion, my stage win in Limoges in 1995 was my biggest win," said Armstrong. "You can always judge the emotion by the last 100 meters and perhaps I was too tired today to savor my win. But there's no comparison to the rush I had in 1995." Rest Day-Pau / Tuesday July 22 Stage 16 Pau-Bayonne Wednesday, July 23 / 197.5km From Pau to Bayonne, where the bayonet was invented and home of the tasty "jambon de Bayonne" ham, Stage 16 offers the last significant climbing in the 100th anniversary Tour de France. This stage traverses the eastern Pyrenees, through the Basque region of France, and includes the nasty ascent of the Bagarguy, followed by Burdincurutcheta. These are the last two chances to attack in the mountains, since it's pretty much all downhill to Bayonne on the Atlantic coast. Thirty-one years ago, Dutchman Duyndam took the win, while local resident David Millar may be looking for a home win if he can rally from the illness which has hampered his ride through the mountains.