Paris-Nice

Stage 5:  Pernes-les-Fontaines to Aix-en-Provence, 157km/98mi

By Cathy Mehl

The young upstart Peter Sagan (Liquigas-Doimo) wasted no time in securing his second win in three days, riding away from the peloton with less than three kilometers to go for a solo victory in Aix-en-Provence.  The 20-year old Slovakian neo-pro has clearly made Paris-Nice his coming out party and looks poised to have a successful first season in the pro ranks.   Chasing after him for second and third places were Mirco Lorenzetto (Lampre) and Alejandro Valverde (Caisse d’Epargne).  Astana’s Alberto Contador held the yellow jersey for a second day and retained the race lead. The best-placed Team RadioShack riders were Geoffroy Lequatre and Jani Brajkovic at 25-seconds off the winning time.  Levi Leipheimer came in at more than two-mintues down.

After the stage Team Director Alain Gallopin explained the situation for Levi: “We were well represented in the front with four riders when the Ag2R team attacked.  At that moment Levi had to get off his bike due to a mechanical problem.  He rode into a hole in the road and his chain dropped so he had to stop and put it on again.  The race was riding away at that exact moment so it’s over and out of course.  You cannot come back at that point.  We were present but we were not compensated.”

The sun finally came out on Friday although temperatures remained cold.  Early and constant breaks put the peloton of 165 on notice that it would be a tough day in the saddle with high speeds throughout the day.  With 50km to go a group of four finally broke away and built a gap of more than one-minute.  At 25km to go Ag2R went forward to work for Nicholas Roche, with many riders unable to stay in contact with the front group, including Leipheimer with his untimely mechanical.  Driving toward a sprint finish, Sagan surprised all with his sudden attack and there was no looking back for the young rider. 

The Race to the Sun has two stages to go.  Saturday is the longest stage of the race at 208km from Peynier to Tourrettes-sur-Loup before the finale on Sunday at 119km in Nice.

Beyond the Finish Line:  The Cathedral of the Holy Saviour is situated to the north in the medieval part of Aix.  Built on the site of a former Roman forum and an adjacent basilica, it contains a mixture of all styles from the 5^th to the 17^th century, including a richly decorated portal in the Gothic style with doors elaborately carved in walnut.

Top Ten Results

1        Peter Sagan (Svk) Liquigas - Doimo           3:34:15        

2        Mirco Lorenzetto (Ita) Lampre - Farnese Vini      0:00:02        

3        Alejandro Valverde (Spa) Caisse d'Epargne                   

4        Matthieu Ladagnous (Fra) Française des Jeux                

5        Jens Voigt (Ger) Team Saxo Bank               

6        Simon Gerrans (Aus) Sky Professional Cycling Team            

7        Koldo Fernandez (Spa) Euskatltel - Euskadi                  

8        Nicolas Roche (Irl) AG2R La Mondiale                 

9        Matthew Harley Goss (Aus) Team HTC - Columbia                

10      Alberto Contador (Spa) Astana

Team RadioShack Results

32      Geoffroy Lequatre (Fra) 0:00:25

42      Jani Brajkovic (Slo)

58      Christopher Horner (USA) 0:01:58

62      Sébastien Rosseler (Bel)  0:02:36

79      Tiago Machado (Por)

81      Levi Leipheimer (USA)

150    Yaroslav Popovych (Ukr) 0:16:50

General Classification after Stage 5

1        Alberto Contador (Spa) Astana        20:41:40      

2        Alejandro Valverde (Spa) Caisse d'Epargne        0:00:20        

3        Roman Kreuziger (Cze) Liquigas - Doimo 0:00:25        

4        Luis-Leon Sanchez (Spa) Caisse d'Epargne         0:00:26        

5        Samuel Sanchez (Spa) Euskatltel - Euskadi         0:00:29        

6        Jens Voigt (Ger) Team Saxo Bank    0:00:34        

7        Joaquim Rodriguez (Spa) Team Katusha   0:00:36        

8        Peter Sagan (Svk) Liquigas - Doimo           0:00:42        

9        David Millar (GBr) Garmin - Transitions   0:01:02        

10      Reine Taaramae (Est) Cofidis, Le Credit en Ligne         0:01:06 

Team RadioShack on General Classification

17      Jani Brajkovic (Slo)  0:01:56

30      Levi Leipheimer (USA) 0:03:57

52      Geoffroy Lequatre (Fra)          0:06:58

64      Tiago Machado (Por) 0:08:45 

93      Sébastien Rosseler (Bel)          0:18:13 

95      Christopher Horner (USA)  0:18:38          

125    Yaroslav Popovych (Ukr) 0:30:56 

Photos courtesy of Graham Watson