Mark Cavendish snatched his first Tour de France green jersey thanks to his stage win in Brignoles on Sunday and made it clear he could thank team adviser Erik Zabel for it.
The Briton won the first mass sprint of this Tour, having had to wait five days last year for the first of his four stage victories.
As a result, in 2008 he was never really in a position to go for the points qualification, finally won by Spain’s Oscar Freire.
“The green jersey is a big goal for any sprinter and it’s beautiful and emotional to wear it,†said Cavendish.
To take it all the way to Paris is another matter but the Manx can count on the very best adviser in his Team Columbia — Zabel who won the green jersey six times… Details
Lance Armstrong’s most fervent supporters and those who love to hate him were in full agreement on one point before the start of the Tour de France.
The consensus: That the uneasy balance of power within the Astana team that has cast Armstrong in a supporting role simply could not last.
The detractors claim Armstrong is too arrogant to play second fiddle to anyone. His fans insist he is simply too determined and talented to have his ability constricted by playing nursemaid to teammate and Tour favorite Alberto Contador.
Both camps, with their polar reasoning for the same outcome, could still be proven correct. Yet Saturday’s opening time trial stage … Details
 Swiss Fabian Cancellara snatched the Tour de France yellow jersey with a smashing victory in the opening time trial on Saturday, while seven-times champion Lance Armstrong made a respectable return to the race he used to dominate.
Hot favorite and 2007 champion Alberto Contador of Spain was second, 18 seconds behind Cancellara. Briton Bradley Wiggins was third, 19 seconds off the pace.
Contador, who was named Astana leader by team manager Johan Bruyneel, lived up to expectations and stamped his authority on the squad with a solid performance.
Neither German Andreas Kloeden, fourth, nor Americans Levi Leipheimer and Armstrong …Â Details
Team Surfing USA, composed of Laird Hamilton, Tim Commeford (bassist for Rage Against the Machine), Don Wildman (founder of Bally Total Fitness), and Jason Winn (founder of Bonk Breaker Energy Bars) took part in a 3,000 mile “Race Across America†road cycling relay race last week to earn money for a charity.Â
The team showed up in their board shorts and took some heckling for not taking the event very serious. However, the surfers showed up the hecklers by … Details