September 27/07 2:25 am - Road World Championships: Elite Men's ITT Photos, Report & Results

Posted by Editoress on 09/27/07
 

Road World Championships Stuttgart, Germany

Coverage sponsored by Norco

Photos

Fabian Cancellara (Switzerland) left no doubt that he is the top triallist on the planet right now, with a completely dominant performance that saw him win by over 52 seconds. Laszlo Bodrogi (Hungary) took the silver medal, five and a half seconds ahead of a surprisingly strong Stef Clement of the Netherlands, while last year's silver medallist David Zabriskie of the USA could manage no better than 12th. Canada's top finisher was national champion Ryder Hesjedal in 24th, 3:07.88 down, with Svein Tuft 30th at 3:45.93.

The day began with rain, which had stopped by the time the first rider went off at 12:30 pm. However, the road was very wet for the first half of the field, and only dried completely for the last 12-15 riders. Tuft, who went off fifth, admitted that it was sketchy.

"For some of the corners you pretty much had to come to a dead stop because it was so slick. Even so, I had a bit of a washout a few times. The wet does slow you down, but at the end of the day, the power wasn't there for me. Time trialing takes a lot motivation, and it's hard to put out power when you are tapped out. It was pretty much similar to last year; ever since Beauce I've been going down. Probably the only way I will ever do a good Worlds is if I'm injured in the early season."

Cancellara also said that the wet conditions had been on his mind, after a crash in the Tour de France under similar conditions.

"When I saw the rain this morning, it reminded me of the crash I had at the tour. I didn't want to crash again, and it was on my mind so I was more careful. It would have been better to have the same conditions for everyone, yes, but the best riders went last, and they were still the fastest."

Hesjedal commented "It was probably one of the best rides of my year. Those of us who went early, in the rain, suffered a bit from the conditions, and the first time around the circuit I was a bit cautious, feeling it out, and by the second time it was definitely improving. But, besides the Nationals, it was the best feeling I've had on a time trial bike this year."

Race Notes

- Cancellara was inevitably asked about doping, and how all the controversy has affected him. He gave a long impassioned speech on the subject, stating: "I was waiting for this question about doping ... It is so bad to be always talking about this shit. I look back and I have had 35 controls this year, but they still say 'how is it possible that he wins' [clean]. When everyone does 100% their best it is possible to win; CSC is the best team, with the best anti-doping program, and we work with the UCI and WADA ... but people look and they see only bad, bad things. I think we have to look to the future and positive things. Cycling is such a beautiful sport..."

- UCI President Pat McQuaid held another press conference to address the legal action Dr Susanne Eisenmann, the Stuttgart Minister for Sport, announced to the press earlier today regarding getting a legal injunction to stop Paolo Bettini from racing on Sunday. He pulled no punches, saying "The UCI denounce the actions of Dr Eisenmann, who is using the problems of doping to advance her own political strategy."

McQuaid said that it was very clear that the declaration which Bettini refuses to sign is voluntary and has no standing under the UCI rules, and that he cannot be excluded from racing for not signing it. He also hinted that the organizers are using the situation to avoid paying out substantial sums of money owing to the UCI under the contract to host the Worlds.

In addition, he blasted them for telling former champions such as Eddy Merckx, Gianni Bugno and Rudi Aldag that they are not welcome. "It is unacceptable from the UCI's point of view. These athletes have added great honour to the sport ... and our sport is now being undermined by politicians."

Finally, he hinted darkly that this attitude could affect the ability of Stuttgart to attract other sporting events, since "we will communicate with other sports".

We are currently awaiting to hear the outcome of the bizarre legal injunction action that the city is trying to bring to stop Bettini from competing.