Cycling: Armstrong makes history with dramatic tour win

8.15am

PARIS - Lance Armstrong celebrated the centenary of the Tour de France by winning the world's most famous cycle race for the fifth time today, a feat only four other men had achieved.

The 31-year-old cancer survivor, who came back from the near-fatal disease in 1999 to win his first Tour, emulated France's Jacques Anquetil and Bernard Hinault, Belgian Eddy Merckx and Spain's Miguel Indurain at the end of the 94.5-mile final stage to the Champs-Elysees.

"It's a great feeling when someone like Hinault comes to you on the podium to say 'welcome to the club'," said Armstrong, who beat German Jan Ullrich by 61 seconds overall, his narrowest Tour win by far.

Kazakh Alexander Vinokourov was third, four minutes 14 seconds behind the US Postal team leader, who was challenged and tested for the three weeks, 20 stages and 2,130 miles of fastest Tour ever, raced at an average of 25.440 mph.

Tour organizers could not have dreamt of a more fitting winner for the centenary of their race.

The race was tense, hard fought, often dramatic, and finally crowned a larger than life character.

"It was superb, the best race in 20 years or at least since 1989 when I took over as the Tour director," said Tour director Jean-Marie Leblanc.

"The champions were at their best everyday, they were tested and challenged daily, both physically and mentally," he added.

From the very first day, Armstrong suffered and struggled like never before.

"It's definitely the most stressful Tour, considering my physical and mental fatigue, by factor of 10.

"In the other years I had five, or six, seven minutes. I think it perfectly sets up an attempt for number six," the American said.

Before the prologue, which he finished a disappointing ninth, Armstrong suffered from diarrhoea and hip tendonitis.

He was involved in a crash on stage one, which forced Tyler Hamilton, the other American hero in this Tour, to race for three weeks with a broken collarbone and still he finished fourth.

Later, in the ninth stage in Gap, Armstrong narrowly avoided disaster when he dodged past Spanish rival Joseba Beloki as the 2002 runner-up crashed in front of him.

Armstrong also fell in the climb to Luz-Ardiden on the 15th stage when the handle of a spectator's bag got caught in his handlebars.

But the accident spurred him to a champion's reaction which virtually handed him his fifth Tour win as he went on to drop Ullrich and take the stage.

Armstrong also conceded his most spectacular defeat in the Tour in the first 28-mile time trial between Gaillac and Cap Decouverte, when he suffered dehydration and lost 96 seconds to Ullrich.

But Armstrong said all the excitement and drama was what made the magic of the Tour.

"The Tour de France is an open road and it's a long race. If one day a plane landed on the race I wouldn't be surprised.

"I'd prefer not to have all the drama like this year but anything can happen," he said.

The Texan also discovered for the first time he had rivals capable of testing him.

Ullrich, second for the fifth time in six Tours, confirmed he was the rider who could, one day, beat the American.

The German, Tour winner in 1997, conceded defeat in another dramatic crash in Saturday's last time trial between Pornic and Nantes, but he was not too disappointed.

"Overall I can't be sad. I came here hoping to win a stage. My goal was to get ready for next year," said the Bianchi team leader.

"Challenging Lance for overall victory was not part of my plans. I'm actually surprised everything went so well," he added.

Ullrich missed the Tour last year because of a knee operation and was then given a six-month doping ban for taking Ecstasy in a discotheque.

Vinokourov, inspired by the death of his best friend Andrei Kivilev in March's Paris-Nice race, was also a revelation while Beloki showed great willpower and stamina before crashing out of the race.

If all of them, and perhaps Italy's 1998 Tour winner Marco Pantani, absent because of personal problems, should start the race next year, Armstrong's quest for a sixth win could be even more tricky.

While Armstrong logically topped the bill, France's Richard Virenque and Australia's Baden Cooke stole the secondary roles.

Virenque took his sixth King of the Mountains jersey, equalling a record held by Spain's Federico Bahamontes and Belgian Lucien van Impe.

Cooke took the green jersey rewarding the Tour's best sprinter by two points from last year's winner Robbie McEwen.

- REUTERS

TOUR DE FRANCE FINAL STAGE RESULTS:

1. Jean-Patrick Nazon (France) Jean Delatour

2. Baden Cooke (Australia) FDJeux.com

3. Robbie McEwen (Australia) Lotto

4. Luca Paolini (Italy) Quick Step

5. Thor Hushovd (Norway) Credit Agricole

6. Stuart O'Grady (Australia) Credit Agricole

7. Erik Zabel (Germany) Team Telekom

8. Romans Vainsteins (Latvia) Vini Caldirola

9. Gerrit Glomser (Austria) Saeco

10. Damien Nazon (France) Briches

11. Fabrizio Guidi (Italy) Team Bianchi

12. Oscar Freire (Spain) Rabobank

13. Laurent Brochard (France) AG2R

14. Paolo Bettini (Italy) Quick Step

15. Juan Antonio Flecha (Spain) Ibanesto.com

16. David Munoz (Spain) Kelme

17. Andy Flickinger (France) AG2R

18. Anthony Geslin (France) Brioches

19. Philippe Gaumont (France) Cofidis

20. Salvatore Commesso (Italy) Saeco

21. Marcus Zberg (Switzerland) Gerolsteiner

22. Rene Andrle (Czech Republic) ONCE

23. Fabio Sacchi (Italy) Saeco

24. Alexandre Botcharov (Russia) AG2R

25. Nicolas Portal (France) AG2R

26. Carlos Da Cruz (France) FDJeux.com

27. Andrea Peron (Italy) Team CSC

28. Alessandro Bertolini (Italy) Alessio

29. Christophe Moreau (France) Credit Agricole

30. Andrea Noe (Italy) Alessio


TOUR DE FRANCE WINNERS SINCE 1903

1903 Maurice Garin (France)

1904 Henri Cornet (France)

1905 Louis Trousselier (France)

1906 Rene Pottier (France)

1907 Lucien Petit-Breton (France)

1908 Petit-Breton

1909 Francois Faber (Luxembourg)

1910 Octave Lapize (France)

1911 Gustave Garrigou (France)

1912 Odile Defraye (Belgium)

1913 Philippe Thys (Belgium)

1914 Thys

1919 Firmin Lambot (Belgium)

1920 Thys

1921 Leon Scieur (Belgium)

1922 Lambot

1923 Henri Pelissier (France)

1924 Ottavio Bottecchia (Italy)

1925 Bottecchia

1926 Lucien Buysse (Belgium)

1927 Nicolas Frantz (Luxembourg)

1928 Frantz

1929 Maurice De Waele (Belgium)

1930 Andre Leducq (France)

1931 Antonin Magne (France)

1932 Leducq

1933 Georges Speicher (France)

1934 Magne

1935 Romain Maes (Belgium)

1936 Sylvere Maes (Belgium)

1937 Roger Lapebie (France)

1938 Gino Bartali (Italy)

1939 Sylvere Maes (Belgium)

1947 Jean Robic (France)

1948 Bartali

1949 Fausto Coppi (Italy)

1950 Ferdi Kubler (Switzerland)

1951 Hugo Koblet (Switzerland)

1952 Coppi

1953 Louison Bobet (France)

1954 Bobet

1955 Bobet

1956 Roger Walkowiak (France)

1957 Jacques Anquetil (France)

1958 Charly Gaul (Luxembourg)

1959 Federico Bahamontes (Spain)

1960 Gastone Nencini (Italy)

1961 Anquetil

1962 Anquetil

1963 Anquetil

1964 Anquetil

1965 Felice Gimondi (Italy)

1966 Lucien Aimar (France)

1967 Roger Pingeon (France)

1968 Jan Janssen (Netherlands)

1969 Eddy Merckx (Belgium)

1970 Merckx

1971 Merckx

1972 Merckx

1973 Luis Ocana (Spain)

1974 Merckx

1975 Bernard Thevenet (France)

1976 Lucien Van Impe (Belgium)

1977 Thevenet

1978 Bernard Hinault (France)

1979 Hinault

1980 Joop Zoetemelk (Netherlands)

1981 Hinault

1982 Hinault

1983 Laurent Fignon (France)

1984 Fignon

1985 Hinault

1986 Greg LeMond (US)

1987 Stephen Roche (Ireland)

1988 Pedro Delgado (Spain)

1989 LeMond

1990 LeMond

1991 Miguel Indurain (Spain)

1992 Indurain

1993 Indurain

1994 Indurain

1995 Indurain

1996 Bjarne Riis (Denmark)

1997 Jan Ullrich (Germany)

1998 Marco Pantani (Italy)

1999 Lance Armstrong (US)

2000 Armstrong

2001 Armstrong

2002 Armstrong

2003 Armstrong