d'Italia - Stage 4 Live Ticker
Live Ticker for the Team Time Trial from Savigliano to Cuneo.
© 210
Gazzetta dello Sport
93rd Giro d'Italia -
Stage 4 Team Time Trial Start Order
Live Ticker for the Team Time Trial in Savigliano... The battle for the pink
jersey and to make up time commences at 14:50 CET
Celebrating our tenth year!
2010 Giro d'Italia
Jersey Leaders After Stage 3
Maglia Rosa: Alexandr Vinokourov Astana
Maglia Rossa: Graeme Brown Rabobank
Maglia Bianca: Richie Porte Saxo Bank (U26)
Team: Saxo Bank
Today's startlist
and times
General
Classification After Stage 3
Graphic © 210 Gazzetta dello
Sport
Teams will be launched from the start at 5 minute intervals for the 33 km
test against the clock. Intermediate time check at: 17.9 km.
LIVE TICKER
1448 CET - The Cofidis team are lined up on the start ramp and are ready to
begin their ride in two minutes. Teams depart in five minute intervals. They
ride as follows:
Cofidis, le Credit en Ligne 1450 CET
Colnago-CSF Inox 1455 CET
Footon-Servetto 1500 CET
BMC Racing Team 1505 CET
Quick Step 1510 CET
Caisse d'Epargne 1515 CET
Acqua & Sapone 1520 CET
Bbox Bouygues Telecom 1525 CET
Ag2R-La Mondiale 1530 CET
Androni Giocattoli 1535 CET
Lampre-Farnese Vini 1540 CET
Team Katusha 1545 CET
Sky Professional Cycling Team 1550 CET
Omega Pharma-Lotto 1555 CET
Cervélo TestTeam 1600 CET
Garmin-Transitions 1605 CET
Rabobank 1610 CET
Team Milram 1615 CET
Liquigas-Doimo 1620 CET
Team HTC-Columbia 1625 CET
Team Saxo Bank 1630 CET
Astana 1635 CET
1452 CET - Cofidis are underway, and now the Colnago team prepare to start.
The weather along the course is HORRIBLE.
Remember, Garmin - setting off 1605 CET - are without Christian
Vandevelde, who retired following his stage 3 crash. We wish him well, and hope
he is back for the Tour de France.
Who are the favourites today - many people are predicting Sky, Columbia and
Garmin to do well. All have won TTTs in the past 12 months. It will be
interesting to see how Astana ride - although there is no team time trial in le
Tour, all eyes will be on how they defend their Maglia Rosa. They were
criticised following this year's Paris-Nice, remember.
1500 CET - Three teams out on the course now: Cofidis, Colnago and those
Footon riders in their silly jerseys. Don't expect any of these to play a part
in the stage result today.
1505 CET - BMC are next off; remember this is Cadel Evans' team. He lies 43
seconds off the race lead.....what is his tactic here? Is he riding the Giro for
training, or does he want to win this event which launched him onto the scene in
2002?
Columbia have three riders in the top 10 who lie within ten seconds of
race leader Alexandre Vinokourov. What are the chances of Sieberg, Goss and
Greipel heading the GC come 1730CET tonight?
1508 CET - Quick Step are the fifth team out on the road, departing the start
house in two minutes.
Whether or not Cadel Evans is riding for the win, it seems unlikely that
Sky's Bradley Wiggins, who lies 4'28" off the race lead following the crashes he
was caught up in on Stages 2 and 3, will contest the GC. His focus will now be
that race in July.
1513 CET - Caisse d'Epargne are awaiting the start of their ride over this
32km course.
1518 CET - 2000 Giro winner Stefano Garzelli leads his Acqua e Sapone off in
two minutes.
His days of challenging for the GC may be over, but remember Garzelli took
the KoM title in 2009.
Just when you thought that the crashes would be over, the wet conditions that
greeted us today are not improving over most of the course. Let's hope no-one
falls heavily.
1530 CET - Cofidis go through the finish, posting a time of 39'05".
1534 CET - BMC are the fastest at the 17.9km checkpoint, Colnago second and
Cofidis third. The French team's time will not be top of the classification for
long.
1535 CET - Colnago post the fastest time, finishing in 38'45", twenty
seconds faster than Cofidis.
1541 CET - Footon go five seconds quicker than Colnago, and post the fastest
time. 38'40"
1545 CET - BMC go 52 seconds quicker, setting a new best time of 37'58"
1548 CET - Quick Step sets the fourth fastest time 38'51.
1. BMC Racing Team 37'58
2. Footon-Servetto 38'40
3. Colnago-CSF Inox 38'45
4. Quick Step 38'51
5. Cofidis 39'05
I have been joined in the commentary box by our Italian expert, Fabio.
1551 CET - AG2R at the intermediate time check, 28 second behind.
1552 CET - Sky off to a bad start .... Chris Sutton has a flat just one
kilometre into the ride. That caused some panic in the British squad, until
their DS ordered them to go on and not wait for the Aussie.
1554 CET - Caisse on the way to the line. Here they come.. Fifth time thus
far: 38'57". Right a minute behind the current leaders.
News came through that Androni Giocattoli bettered BMC's record at the 17-km
check by three seconds. Quite a good start for the Italian team, isn't it?
Suttonless Sky entered the seventh minute of their ride, with the wind
changing its directions a bit too frequently, and this could have quite of an
impact on the stage outcome.
1558 CET - A & S will come to the finish next, only few meters left......only
five guys left in the "main group" of the red team
The sun has come out at the finish line now, which is a huge relief.
1600 CET - Cervélo Test Team are now under way.
Not an outstanding time for the Garzelli boys: 39'16". 7th time thus far.
01'18" down to BMC.
Current Ranking
1. BMC Racing Team 37'58"
2. Footon-Servetto - 42"
3. Colnago-CSF Inox - 47"
4. Quick Step - 53"
5. Caisse d'Epargne - 1'00"
6. Cofidis - 1'07"
7. Aqua e Sapone - 1'18
1601 CET - Wiggo paces the SKY crew almost thrice as much as his teammates.
He tries to pick up up the pace "gently", but the truth is that the man is so
fast he risks to "drop" the other riders.
1603 CET - Bouygues Telecom getting closer and closer to the end of their
efforts
They finish 58 seconds behind BMC, posting 36'56". That's time number five at
present
1605 CET - Arguably stage favourites Garmin set off from Savigliano. They
have Millar only one second behind Vino in the GC, but they don't have
Vandevelde any longer.
Good start for the Lampres, only six seconds down to Androni (and three to
BMC Racing Team) at the halfway point check.
1605 CET - Heavy rain greets Sky at around 15 minutes into their ride.
Team Katusha set the best intermediate time, bettering Androni's record by
53 SECONDS!!
A good time is expected, unless they fade away rapidly! What a start
for the Russians, maybe the changing wind gave them some helping hand
though......
1607 CET - Ag2r are coming into finish. Not expecting a great time here. Poor
performance by the French squad too: 39'27". Ninth time, almost one and a half
minutes behind BMC. Ninth time, almost one and a half minutes behind BMC.
Sky go fastest at the time check, despite the rain they are going through AND
Sutton's early puncture. 19'31" is their time.
The Brits did better than Katusha by four seconds. Not even the storm that
targeted them could stop Wiggo and associates.
What a start for the Russians, maybe the changing wind gave them a
helping hand though. Horrible out there in some places. Winds played a key part
in the Dutch stages, and seems they want to be one of the Giro's main characters
also after the race got back to the 'homeland'.
19'31" for Team Sky at the intermediate check! The Brits did better than
Katusha by four seconds. Not even the storm that targeted them could stop Wiggo
and associates.
1612 CET - Here come the Androni Giocattoli team. They have fallen behind
dramatically.
Some after-race comments from Cadel Evans:
"I just did my job today, but when I sit on the wheels of my teammates in rides
like this it's not a matter of "how good I'm", but of "how good the whole team
is". Weather was not on our side today, but we'll see what the best teams will
be able to do later".
39'01" is their time, so their early promise faded dramatically. 1'03" behind
BMC, despite posting a time almost a minute ahead at the timecheck. 1'03" behind
BMC, despite posting a time almost a minute ahead at the time check.
1515 CET - Milram begins, as Omega Pharma post a time of 28" down on Sky's
time at the 17.9km check. Team Sky appear to have come out of the worst of the
rain downpour, as Garmin are moving into it.
Bad weather and wind might have something to do with Androni's losses in the
second half of the route.
Already one rider from the Argyle clad team has dropped back. And Jack
Bobridge is struggling to stay on the wheels too.
1616 CET - Sky are losing another rider too. Not sure who it is, but they
could be down to SIX riders.
Meanwhile, Daniele Hondo is leading the 6 man Lampre team home. They've
missed BMC's benchmark time... Simoni is still on the wheels, riding at the back
of their train. Cunego is in 3rd wheel too.
A few words all the way from Marzio Bruseghin:
"I'm very sorry for not being able to help the team at all today. The effects of
my fall took tall on my legs, unfortunately. But my teammates were just great. I
hope that I may recover soon and then can go on the attack, aiming for some good
results".
Dantesque weather for the Garmin guys, riding under pouring rain.
38'20" is the Lampre time, so a respectable effort. 2nd fastest as it stands.
1618 CET - Sky ARE down to six riders, as we speculated a moment ago.
Remember, the team's time is taken when the fifth rider crosses the line.
1620 CET - Liquigas are the latest to start their ride. Ivan Basso is
18" off the race lead, Vincenzo Nibali five seconds behind Vinokourov.
1621 CET - Katusha are coming home to finish. 800m to go - and they
must take the fastest time. 37'04" is their time.
Stefano Garzelli: "Overall I think we had
a good result today. We gave it everything. We knew that this wasn't our stage,
and that we just had to limit our losses, so I can't complain. We had to be
careful in the early piece 'cause it was raining. Now we'll see what we can do
in the next days. Our main goal in this Giro is to attack and try and get some
success".
Katusha go fastest by 54 seconds! Incredible time" Karpets was only 17"
off the race lead this morning. He will move up the GC after the stage,
that I'm sure of.
1625 CET - HTC Columbia begin; only two teams left to start now.
Garmin approach the intermediate check point..... it's not going to be the
fastest time, that's for sure.
Michele Scarponi's comments bore striking
resemblances to Garzelli's. "In my opinion we did fine today. We did the best we
could, but unfortunately found bad weather on the road and that wasn't much of
help".
Our live
ticker continues in Part 2
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