96th Tour de France - Stage 15  Team &  Rider Reactions
Alberto Contador, Lance Armstrong, Linus Gerdemann and more... Cadel Evans 'Worst Tour day ever'

Stage winner Alberto Contador
“Lance is my idol, but today I could not think of that. He’s very professional, and I know he will work for me, he has said so. This stage was a kind of liberation for me, especially with the difficult days before. I needed a stage like this. Last night I was only hoping for good legs. I did have some doubts because you never know about other riders.”

Asked if this was the best day of his career, a serious Contador replied, “No, that would be in 2005 when I won a stage at the Tour Down Under after my accident,” (Referring to a life-threatening cerebral condition he suffered in 2004 but rebounded from the following year.)

The smoking gun of Alberto Contador's attack. Photo © 2009 Fotoreporter Sirotti

Lance Armstrong
On the race action today...

 “Saxo set the tempo from the bottom. They were going all out. I think we were all on the ropes. A few attacks here and there and I tried to go with a couple. When Alberto went he showed he’s the best rider in the race, certainly the best climber.” After a reflective pause Lance continued, “You know, when everyone’s on the limit and you can accelerate again and I’ve been there, that’s how you win the Tour. Hats off to him. Also hats off to the Schleck Brothers, they rode good too."

Armstrong on the summit finish and his performance today...

 “Honestly I didn’t know what to expect. It’s been so long since we had a finish like this. It was as hard as I thought it was going to be and a lot harder than Andorra. It’s been four years since I’ve done something like that and I was unsure. I felt good leading up to it but that high end stuff is what I’m missing.”

Lance finishes on Verbiers. Photo © 2009 Fotoreporter Sirotti

“I’d give myself a B-minus I guess. A day like this really shows who is the best and I wasn’t on par with what’s required to win the Tour. That’s reality, that’s not devastating news or anything. We’ve still got three strong cards to play. If other teams want to mess with us and play tactical games we’ve still got myself and Andreas. We’ll have to look at the overall to see where we are tonight. As a team we’re strong. There’s been a lot of drama between Alberto and I, especially in the media, but at the end of the day we all sit around the table and in the team meeting and we all say the last thing we can do is lose the Tour. If we ride into Paris with the yellow jersey on the team I am cool with that. I’ve got seven of them at home.”

Saxo Bank
Andy Schleck Second And Now Fifth Overall & Maillot Blanc
Team Saxo Bank was represented in the breakaway of ten riders of today's stage to Verbier in Switzerland where Fabian Cancellara was extra motivated to get away. The Swiss champion was in the front group Fedrigo (Bbox), Flecha (Rabobank), Van den Broeck (Lotto), Hesjedal (Garmin), Asterloza (Euskatel), Guiterrez (Caisse d 'Epargne) Spilak (Lampre) and Moncoutie and Minard (Cofidis).

Fabian Cancellara on the attack. Photo © 2009 Fotoreporter Sirotti

At the foot of the last climb to Verbier the race truly opened as Team Saxo Bank set a high pace dropping most of the top favorites leaving only Andy Schleck, Fränk Schleck, Lance Armstrong and Alberto Contador (Astana) in the front group. Soon after, Alberto Contador launched a lightning attack leaving everyone behind.

Team Saxo Bank's Andy Schleck kept on fighting alone tried catching the Spaniard as well as dropping the seven time champion of the Tour de France, Lance Armstrong. Andy Schleck showed his great class by finishing 43 seconds behind the Astana rider. Fränk Schleck crossed the finish line about twenty seconds behind his brother. Andy Schleck is now the leader of the youth competition 5th on the G.C. and brother Fränk in tenth.

Chris Anker Sørensen
"It was a tough day where we did everything we could to dominate the race and we can see that the pressure on the competitors at the beginning of the climb made its clear mark on the events in which the front group was reduced to a handful of riders. It was fantastic to see so many Danes on the mountain side who were out to support us”, said a tired Sørensen after the stage.

Bjarne Riis
Content after the first stage in the Alps...

“It was a good day for Team Saxo Bank. We launched the attack like we planned. Alberto Contador was simply the best today but we are very pleased with our effort and also the results of our efforts to create the race.”

Cervélo TestTeam
Carlos Sastre Climbed back into contention...
Sastre was able to stay with the top favorites but couldn't follow when Alberto Contador attacked with 5km to go...

"I rode as best I could. I would have liked to have had the same explosiveness at that moment, but I didn't. I am more of a diesel and I like to go at my own steady pace. That's what I did and I was able to come back,

 "I was there in the front. That was good result. It was a difficult stage after almost one week flat and this kind of finish is good for me, but I recognize that these riders are stronger than me today."

Sastre expressed satisfaction with his ride and climbed from 17th to 11th overall, at 3:52 behind Contador.

"It was a hard day, it was really fast. It was more or less like I expected. I know this Tour de France has been difficult. The team was fantastic. I used all my teammates today, they were close to me until the last important moments. We are content. It's been a successful Tour de France for all of us."

Cervélo worked to keep Sastre protected from strong winds that buffeted the peloton all day.

"It was full-on all day. It wasn't especially easy or hard, it was just a high tempo the whole time. The speed was fast, but it's always like that heading toward a climb. It's always stressed and hectic and everyone fighting for position before the climb, but that's normal," said Heinrich Haussler, (76th at 7:56). "We just tried to keep Carlos out of the wind until we got to the climb. I don't even know what happened after that. I am suffering a little bit from the energy I used the other day when I won the stage. I used a bit of energy in the breakaway. I am looking forward to the rest day."

Contador and his powerful Astana team will now take control of the race, leaving Sastre and his Cervélo teammates the freedom to hunt for stages and animate the race with attacks.

Defending champion Carlos Sastre
On the last week of the tour with a string of hard climbing stages in the Alps...

"This has been a really strange Tour de France. Everyone is just talking about Contador and Armstrong or the Schleck brothers, as if they are the only ones doing this race. You saw some other riders today making their race; I am happy with my condition, my team and with the results. I don't worry too much right now. I just go day-by-day, doing my race and doing what I think is good for me."

Silence-Lotto reactions after stage 15 of Tour de France
Cadel Evans
Worst day ever at the Tour...
With 50 kilometres to go Cadel Evans told his coach that he was not in a good day. And he confirmed it at the final ascent.

"This was the worst of all my days at Tour de France. It never went as I wanted. Pity, too bad".

Cadel Evans... Worst tour day ever; and still climbed better than most.
Photo © 2009 Fotoreporter Sirotti

Coach Roberto Damiani
"When you hear that, you cannot but wonder how he fought for the stage classification over the last ascent".

Marc Coucke - "Not dissatisfied"
Sponsor Marc Coucke was not dissatisfied after the first Alpine stage.

"If this was really Cadel's worst Tour day ever, things will be interesting next week."

"And what a stage by Jurgen Van den Broeck! For himself, as he has demonstrated that our country has a future great Tour rider in being.  And for us, as our jersey has been all day long by thousands along the road, and by millions on telly."

Cheering  for Cadel tremendously popular
During the Tour, Silence Lotto organize a contest allowing spectators along the Tour to win superb prizes...

Marc Coucke : "The response is every day better. From start to finish, people cheer for Evans and his team mates. They are there even in the rain..  Photos are made along the way from those who encourage our team, and they can win superb prizes when they are published on our web site. Back home after the Tour, they can check on our web site, they run a chance to win the big prize, a Canyon bike.

 Lampre-N.G.C.
Simon Spilak Most Aggressive Rider Stage 15
The Slovenian rider was in a breakaway of 12 athletes begun at the 42nd km and, when there were 20 km to go, he attacked solo, reaching the final climb with an advantage of 50” on the followers. Spilak’s action was neutralized at 6.5 km from the finish where he finished 70th. The first blue-fucsia rider that reached the arrival was Loosli, 49th at 5’21”.

Simon Spilak
“I’m happy for my performance and for the award: it’s funny thinking that in Colmar I had such a bad day and I was the last at the finish ! - It was in the plan of the day to get in the breakaway, while my attack at 20 km to the arrival began because I saw that there was no more cooperation among the attackers and that the main bunch was recovering very fast”.

Fabrizio Bontempi, Lampre-NGC’s sport director, is satisfied: “Spilak performed a very good race, winning the proper award for what he did.”

Team Milram
 Peter Velits 18th in Verbier Satisfied with performance...

"That was a damned hard mountaintop finish. I felt well and am satisfied with my performance. My form is getting better and better. Now I am looking forward to the rest day."

Linus Gerdemann chaces with George Hincapie. Photo © 2009 Fotoreporter Sirotti

Milram Captain Linus Gerdemann
"We went into the final climb with the whole team near the front, in order to find the right position for the climb. Then it turned into a classic climb. I didn't have the best legs today and in the finale just tried to lose as little time as possible."

Christian Henn, Directeur Sportif
"The stage turned out as expected. Our riders did their best. In the team ranking we are still in a good fourth place. That shows that we have a good, diverse team. On Wednesday comes the next hard stage."

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