NationMaster - Encyclopedia: 2002 Tour de France

The Tour de France of 2002 started in Luxembourg on July 6, 2002, and ended in Paris on July 28. France was visited counter-clockwise, so the Pyrenees were there before the Alps. On average, the stages were shorter than in previous years, in an attempt to make illegal substances (doping) less necessary for the riders. The Tour de France (French for Tour of France), often referred to as La Grande Boucle, Le Tour or The Tour, is an epic long distance road bicycle racing competition for professionals held over three weeks in July in and around France. ... 2002 is a common year starting on Tuesday of the Gregorian calendar. ... July 6 is the 187th day of the year (188th in leap years) in the Gregorian Calendar, with 178 days remaining. ... 2002 is a common year starting on Tuesday of the Gregorian calendar. ... The Eiffel Tower has become a symbol of Paris throughout the world. ... July 28 is the 209th day (210th in leap years) of the year in the Gregorian Calendar, with 156 days remaining. ... Central Pyrenees The Pyrenees (French: PyrÃ©nÃ©es; Spanish: Pirineos; Occitan: PirenÃ¨us or PirenÃ¨as; Catalan Pirineus; Aragonese: PerinÃ©s; Basque: Pirinioak) are a range of mountains in southwest Europe that form a natural border between France and Spain. ... The Alps is the collective name for one of the great mountain range systems of Europe, stretching from Austria and Slovenia in the east, through Italy, Switzerland, Liechtenstein and Germany to France in the west. ... In sports, doping refers to the use of performance-enhancing drugs, such as anabolic steroids or EPO, particularly those that are forbidden by the organizations that regulate competitions. ...

Great favourite was American Lance Armstrong, winner in 1999, 2000 and 2001. The main opposition would probably come from the ONCE team with Joseba Beloki (3rd last year), Igor Gonzalez de Galdeano (5th last year) and Marcos Serrano (9th last year), and from the Kelme riders Oscar Sevilla (7th last year, 2nd in last year's Vuelta a Espana) and Santiago Botero (8th last year). Other riders to keep in account for a high place in the final rankings were Tyler Hamilton (2nd Giro 2002), Levi Leipheimer (3rd Vuelta 2001), Christophe Moreau (4th Tour 2000) and Armstrong's team mate Roberto Heras (4th Vuelta 2001). Important riders who were not present were Jan Ullrich (2nd last year, injury) and Gilberto Simoni (winner 2001 Giro, doping). Armstrong on the cover of Sports Illustrated shortly before the 2005 Tour de France. ... The Tour de France of 2001 was relatively short, but also difficult, with a number of heavy mountain stages, a team time trial and a climbing time trial. ... Joseba Beloki (b. ... The Vuelta a España bicycle race is one of the three Grand Tours of Europe and, after the Tour de France and the Giro dItalia, the third most important road cycling stage race in the world. ... Santiago Botero Echeverry (born October 27, 1972 in MedellÃn, Colombia) is a Colombian professional road bicycle racer. ... Tyler Hamilton (born March 1, 1971 in Marblehead, Massachusetts) is an American professional road bicycle racer. ... Levi Leipheimer (born October 24, 1973) is a professional American cyclist from Butte, Montana, currently riding for the European cycling team Gerolsteiner. ... This article needs to be cleaned up to conform to a higher standard of quality. ... Roberto Heras Hernández was born on February 1, 1974 in Spain. ... Jan Ullrich in the T-Mobile Team uniform in Pforzheim during the 2005 Tour de France Jan Ullrich (born December 2, 1973 in Rostock, Germany) is a German professional road bicycle racer. ... Gilberto Simoni (born August 25, 1971) is an Italian cyclist. ...

Overall final standings

Armstrong on the cover of Sports Illustrated shortly before the 2005 Tour de France. ... Download high resolution version (1520x800, 18 KB) Wikipedia does not have an article with this exact name. ... The US Postal Service Pro Cycling Team presented by Berry Floor operated from 1996 through 2004, and during its time fielded one of the biggest names in modern cycling: Lance Armstrong. ... Joseba Beloki (b. ... Source: Sodipodis Clipart Gallery. ... Besides being an English word (definition), it is also a name standing for one of the following: The heavy metal album Once by Nightwish. ... This article needs to be cleaned up to conform to a higher standard of quality. ... Large flag of Lithuania Image originally derived from the public domain flags of the CIA World Factbook. ... Santiago Botero Echeverry (born October 27, 1972 in MedellÃn, Colombia) is a Colombian professional road bicycle racer. ... General info: Large flag of Colombia Dimensions: 453x302 pixels Source: Image originally derived from the public domain flags of the CIA World Factbook License: Originally public domain, modifications under GFDL Most of the flags have had their colours improved and many have been resized to the proper ratios. ... Kelmė is a town in the central part of Lithuania. ... Source: Sodipodis Clipart Gallery. ... Besides being an English word (definition), it is also a name standing for one of the following: The heavy metal album Once by Nightwish. ... José Azevedo (born 19 September 1973) is a notable Portuguese professional cyclist. ... File links The following pages link to this file: Austria A.C. Milan Belgium Czech Republic Cyprus Economy of the Czech Republic Chelsea F.C. European Union Estonia European Parliament Talk:European Union European Peoples Party (Christian Democrats) and European Democrats Finland France Fulham F.C. Football World Cup... Besides being an English word (definition), it is also a name standing for one of the following: The heavy metal album Once by Nightwish. ... Francisco Mancebo (born March 9, 1976 in Madrid) is a Spanish pro cyclist for Team Illes Balears. ... Source: Sodipodis Clipart Gallery. ... Levi Leipheimer (born October 24, 1973) is a professional American cyclist from Butte, Montana, currently riding for the European cycling team Gerolsteiner. ... Download high resolution version (1520x800, 18 KB) Wikipedia does not have an article with this exact name. ... Rabobank is a Dutch bank with offices all over the world, although primarily in the Netherlands. ... Roberto Heras Hernández was born on February 1, 1974 in Spain. ... Source: Sodipodis Clipart Gallery. ... The US Postal Service Pro Cycling Team presented by Berry Floor operated from 1996 through 2004, and during its time fielded one of the biggest names in modern cycling: Lance Armstrong. ... Source: Sodipodis Clipart Gallery. ... Team CSC is a Danish road bicycle racing team managed by former Tour de France winner Bjarne Riis. ...

Prologue (Luxembourg)

As usual, the Tour started with a prologue, a short individual time trial, this time one of 7 km in Luxembourg. Armstrong won, which was not a surprise, since he is known as a very good time trialist. What was a surprise, was the second place of Frenchman Laurent Jalabert. Of the favourites, Moreau had a disappointing race, ending only 40th, 24 seconds behind Armstrong. An Individual Time Trial (ITT) is a road bicycle race in which cyclists race alone against the clock (in French: contre la montre - literally against the watch). There are also track-based time trials where riders compete in velodromes, and team time trials (TTT). ... Laurent Jalabert was born in France in 1968, a professional cyclist from 1989-2002. ...

This article needs to be cleaned up to conform to a higher standard of quality. ... David Millar (born January 4, 1977 in Malta, and grew up in many places including Hong Kong, although claiming Scottish nationality) is, or until mid-2004 was, Britains finest road racing cyclist. ...

Stage 1 (Luxembourg-Luxembourg)

German sprinter Erik Zabel had his birthday today. He had good hopes of winning both the stage and the yellow jersey: He was 25 seconds behind Armstrong in the general classification, but winning the first intermediate sprint gained him 6 seconds, and winning the stage would have gained an extra 20 seconds bonus. If Zabel would not succeed, Jalabert would have had his chance: A third place in the first bonus sprint gained him 2 seconds, just enough to take the yellow. Erik Zabel (born July 7, 1970, Berlin) is a German professional racing cyclist. ...

However, either man could easily lose the yellow if an attacer would end before the peloton. Stéphane Berges, Christophe Mengin and Ludo Dierckxsens gave it a try, and had a maximum lead of 4'10". However, the peloton caught them back, and on a short but difficult climb another group with important riders like Armstrong and Botero got away. They were caught back as well, but Moreau lost contact with the peloton during the chase.

After yet another attack, the peloton came in full to the finish, Zabel's Telekom team preparing what they hoped would be a win for their leader. However, 1 km before the finish the unknown Swiss rider Rubens Bertogliati attacked, and surprisingly was able to hold out until the finish. Zabel won the spurt of the peloton, but Bertogliati gained both the stage and the yellow jersey. Moreau's poor start continued, he crashed twice and lost 3'20", and his chances seem over.

general classification: Robbie McEwen (born June 24, 1972, Brisbane, Queensland, Australia) is an Australian professional road bicycle racer. ... Stuart OGrady is an Australian cyclist, born 6 August 1973 in Adelaide, South Australia. ...

Stage 3 (Metz-Reims)

Jacky Durand, always known for his attacking style, often riding ahead of the peloton for a large part of the stage, did it again this time. He attacked after 3 km, and got Franck Renier with him. In the peloton, the third places in the bonus sprints (gaining 2 seconds) were fought. Jan Svorada took the first one before Zabel, protecting the interests of his team mate Bertogliati, but Zabel won the second and third, thus passing Bertogliati in the general classification. Location within France Rhine watershed Metz is a city in the North-East of France, capital of the Lorraine rÃ©gion and of the dÃ©partement of Moselle (57). ... Location within France Reims (English traditionally Rheims) (pronounced in French) is a city of northern France, 144 km (89 miles) east-northeast of Paris. ... Jacky Durand (born 10 February 1967) is a French cyclist. ...

The lead of Durand and Renier grew to a maximum of 11'10", but combined work by the Telekom (Zabel) and Lotto (McEwen) teams finally led to the two being nevertheless caught back. Hushovd tried to win 'Bertogliati-style', but also failed, and Robbie McEwen showed himself the strongest in the sprint. Zabel was second, but nevertheless very happy, since he took over the yellow jersey. Bertogliati, happy to have worn it for three days, is still not without honour: He now carries the white jersey of the best young rider.

Stage 4 (Epernay-Château Thierry, team time trial)

The team time trial had been removed from the Tour some years earlier, but in 2001 it had been re-instated. This year's team time trial looked like it was going to be won by CSC Tiscali (Jalabert) in a close fight with ONCE (Beloki, Gonzalez de Galdeano), with US Postal (Armstrong) not far behind. However, the CSC Tiscali team had to wait when Sandstød had a puncture, and because of that fell to third place. In the general classification the result brought a large change, the first 14 places now being taken by ONCE and US Postal riders, with Igor Gonzalez de Galdeano in the yellow. Several of the main riders from the other teams already are over 2 minutes behind Gonzalez de Galdeano, Beloki and Armstrong. Épernay is a town and commune of northern France. ... Ch teau-Thierry is a commune of north-eastern France, about 56 miles east-northeast of Paris. ...

José Azevedo (born 19 September 1973) is a notable Portuguese professional cyclist. ... George Hincapie (born June 29th 1973 in Queens, N.Y) is an American professional road bicycle racer. ...

Stage 5 (Soissons to Rouen)

Several attacks were made in the early part of the race, but none of these lasted very long until Jan Kirsipuu, Christophe Edalaine, Stefano Casagranda, Michael Sandstød and Ludo Dierckxsens escaped 85 km from the finish. The ONCE team of yellow jersey Gonzalez de Galdeano led the peloton, but did not make attempts to catch the five back, since they were enough behind in the general classification (over 4 minutes) not to threaten Gonzalez de Galdeano. This changed when the teams of the sprinters (with the notable exception of Zabel's Telekom team) took over the lead. However, they came too late, and the five got to sprint for the stage win. Kirsipuu showed that he was by far the best sprinter among them, and took the stage. Another sprinter, Belgian's Tom Steels was less lucky and was the first to abandon this year, Marco Pinotti also abandoned on this stage. McEwen won the sprint for sixth place, but Zabel's ninth place gave him just enough points to keep the green jersey. The city of Soissons in the Aisne dÃ©partement, Picardie, France on the Aisne River is about 60 miles northeast of Paris and is one of the most ancient cities of France, and is probably the ancient capital of the Suessiones. ... Location within France Rouen (pronounced in French, sometimes also ) is the historical capital city of Normandy, in northern France, and presently the capital of the Upper Normandy rÃ©gion. ... Marco Pinotti is an Italian professional cyclist. ...

Stage 6 (Fourges-les-Aux-Alençon)

Many attacks came in the first part of the stage, with Karsten Kroon being found among the attackers several times, but none could stay away for long until Steffen Wesemann, Jacky Durand, Paul van Hyfte, Emmanuel Magnien, Massimo Apollonio and Constantino Zaballa made the attack. However, they too were caught back about 10 km before the finish, and the Tour saw another mass spurt. This time Erik Zabel, whose team Telekom did not need to ride behind the escapers since Wesemann is also from his team, managed to win the spurt, before Freire and McEwen. The three are clearly the best sprinters in this year's tour. Alexander Shefer and Rik Verbrugghe gave up today. Alen on is a town in Normandy, France, pr fecture (capital) of the Orne d partement. ...

General classification: Thor Hushovd (born January 18, 1978 in Grimstad, Norway) is a professional road bicycle racer since 2000. ...

Stage 7 (Bagnoles De l'Orne-Avranches)

As in the previous stages, many attacks were made in the beginning, and one group finally managed to stay ahead - this time Franck Renier, Leon van Bon and Antony Morin were the ones to try. However, the teams of the sprinters caught them back again. 1 km before the finish, Pedro Horillo tried to win the race by a late escape. However, Bradley McGee showed his capacities in uphill sprinting, and overtook Horillo during the final sprint. Horillo in the end got third place for his attempt. The last few kilometres were hectic, with several crashes. Among the casualties were Moreau and Freire, finishing far behind, but also Armstrong. With the help of the rest of the US Postal team he managed to diminish his loss, but at the finish he was still 27 seconds behind, dropping him from third to eighth place in the GC, the first 7 places all being taken by ONCE riders. Interesting detail for this stage is that all 4 participating Australians finished in the top-8. Didier Rous did not finish the stage. Avranches is a commune of Normandy, France, in the Manche département, of which it is a sous-préfecture. ... ...

Stage 8 (St-Martin de Landelles-Plouay)

A group of seven escaped this time, consisting of Franck Renier, Sébastien Hinault, Stephane Augé, Erik Dekker, Karsten Kroon, Servais Knaven and Raivis Belohvosciks. This time the work of the teams from ONCE (Gonzalez de Galdeano and Beloki) and AG2R (Kirsipuu) was not enough to catch them back, and the seven were to decide who would win the stage. Dekker made several breakaway attempts, then had to drop back, but managed to return. Belohvosciks seemed to have the best form of the seven, but his attacks were also countered. In the spurt, Kroon won, partly through excellent help from his team mate Dekker. Although it is known that on July 14 (Quatorze Juillet) the French riders always do a bit extra to try to win the stage, today it was the Netherlands that scored the first three places. Robbie McEwen won two points on Zabel in the first sprint, and one more at the finish, but it was not enough to take over the green jersey. Oscar Freire and Aart Vierhouten did not start today's stage. Plouay is a village and commune in the Morbihan département in Brittany, France, with approximately 5000 inhabitants. ... Erik Dekker (born August 21, 1970, Hoogeveen) is a Dutch professional cyclist since 1992. ...

Stage 9 (Lanester-Lorient, time trial)

As expected, the time trial did a lot to upset the general classification. Hungarian specialist Laszlo Bodrogi set an early time that lasted quite long, until Santiago Botero topped it. In the end, Botero's time was not beaten by anyone, Armstrong coming closest, 11 seconds behind. Gonzalez de Galdeano lost only 8 seconds to Armstrong, and is now 26 seconds ahead in the GC - note that Armstrong lost 27 seconds in stage 7; he would have worn the yellow with 1 second difference otherwise. Riders like Gontchar and Beloki also did not lose much time, so Armstrong might well have a harder fight ahead than the previous years. Lorient is a commune and a seaport of Brittany, France, in the Morbihan dÃ©partement, of which it is a sous-prÃ©fecture. ...

Stage 10 (Bazas-Pau)

The last stage before the mountains showed the usual pattern: Many attacks in the early part of the stage, then a group that managed to get away. This time the group was relatively large, consisting of 10 riders. Patrice Halgand apparently was of the opinion that this was too many, and attacked on the final climb with 21 km to go. Only Stuart O'Grady, Ludo Dierckxsens and Jerome Pineau were able to follow. With 8 km to go, he attacked a second time, and rode alone to the finish for a well-deserved victory. O'Grady, the best sprinter in the group, even missed second place as Pineau managed to escape shortly before the finish. On a sad note, a French boy died after having been hit by a car in the caravan preceding and following the Tour. ChÃ¢teau de Pau Pau is a city of southwestern France, prÃ©fecture (capital) of the PyrÃ©nÃ©es-Atlantiques dÃ©partement. ...

Categories: Tour de France | 2002 in sports The Tour de France (French for Tour of France), often referred to as La Grande Boucle, Le Tour or The Tour, is an epic long distance road bicycle racing competition for professionals held over three weeks in July in and around France. ... The 1903 Tour de France was the first Tour de France, set up and sponsored by the newspaper LAuto. ... The Tour de France 1904 was the second edition of the Tour de France, held from July 2 to July 24, 1904. ... The 1905 Tour de France was the third Tour de France, held from July 9th to July 30th, 1905. ... The 1906 Tour de France was the 4th Tour de France, and second to use the point system. ... The 1914 Tour de France was the 12th Tour de France, taking place June 28 to July 26, 1914. ... The 1939 Tour de France was the 33rd Tour de France, taking Place July 10 to July 30, 1939. ... The 1980 Tour de France was the 67th Tour de France. ... The 1983 Tour de France was the 70th Tour de France, and was won by French rider Laurent Fignon. ... At the 1984 Tour de France, the 71st Tour de France, French rider Laurent Fignon won his second consecutive Tour, beating teammate Bernard Hinault by over 10 minutes. ... The 1985 Tour de France saw Bernard Hinault attempt to equal the records of Jacques Anquetil and Eddy Merckx of winning the Tour de France for the fifth time. ... The 1986 Tour de France is one of the most memorable to American fans, due to Greg LeMond becoming the first American to win Tour de France. ... The 1987 Tour de France was the 74th Tour de France. ... The 1988 Tour de France was the 75th Tour de France. ... The 1989 Tour de France was the 76th Tour de France. ... The 1990 Tour de France was the 77th Tour de France. ... The 1991 Tour de France was the 78th Tour de France. ... The 1992 Tour de France was the 79th Tour de France. ... The 1993 Tour de France was the 80th Tour de France. ... The 1994 Tour de France was the 81st Tour de France. ... The 1995 Tour de France was the 82nd Tour de France. ... The 1996 Tour de France was the 83rd Tour de France, it took place June 29 - July 21, 1996. ... The 1997 Tour de France was the 84th Tour de France, it took place July 5â€“27, 1997. ... The 1998 Tour de France was marred by doping scandals throughout, starting with the arrest of Willy Voet a soigneur in the French Festina team. ... The 1999 Tour de France was won by Lance Armstrong by 7 minutes 37 seconds, his first victory of the worlds greatest road cycling event. ... The 2000 Tour de France was won by Lance Armstrong. ... The Tour de France of 2001 was relatively short, but also difficult, with a number of heavy mountain stages, a team time trial and a climbing time trial. ... The Tour de France of 2003 started and ended in Paris. ... The 91st Tour de France (July 3 - July 25, 2004). ... The 92nd Tour de France was held from July 2 to July 24, 2005. ... The 2006 Tour de France will be the 93rd Tour de France. ... Maillot jaune (French for yellow jersey) is the t-shirt worn by the current overall leader of many bicycle races, originally and most notably the Tour de France. ... The maillot vert (French for green jersey) is the jersey or t-shirt worn by the leader of the Tour de Frances points classification. ... The polka dot jersey (French: maillot à pois rouge) is awarded for the best climber during the mountain stages of the Tour de France cycle race. ... The Maillot blanc, or white jersey The Maillot blanc (French for white jersey) is given to the best young rider in the Tour de France. ...

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