Who won the 2006 edition of the Tour De France? To be honest, I had to look it up myself.
I could have told you that Floyd Landis was stripped of the title following his testing positive to doping but as to who was elevated to the victor’s spot, I couldn’t have told you.
For the record, the dubious honour of being the first winner of the Tour de France not to wear the famous maillot jaune on the dais in Paris belongs to Spanish rider Oscar Pereiro.
Though he is doubtlessly proud of his “win”, he will never truly be remembered for winning the Tour De France. Instead, history will remember him as an asterisk victor – the man who took the honour of victory well after the race had finished when it was revealed the man thought to be the victor had won without honour.
Now Pereiro’s fellow Spaniard, Alberto Contador, will be the second man in the history of the world’s most famous bicycle race to be stripped of his victory after having heard the sounds of his national anthem ring out across the Champs Elysees.
Meanwhile, looking up at Contador on that day in July in 2010, was the man who should have been wearing yellow – Andy Schleck.
Schleck and Contador’s battle for supremacy in the 2010 Tour was the stuff of legend but their most famous battles of that year occurred alarmingly close to the 21st of July – the day Contador was to test positive for doping.
There was July the 22nd – the stage on the Col du Tourmalet which saw the two attack each other relentlessly with neither able to gain ascendancy, before Contador graciously allowed Schleck to take the stage win without giving up a second of his lead.
This made Contador only the seventh man in the history of the Tour to win the yellow jersey without winning a single stage of the race and the first since – surprise, surprise – Pereiro.
Of course, Schleck will now be counted among the 90+ riders to have won both a stage and the race itself. But would he have been able to shake Contador and take a Tour-winning lead were it not for the clenbuterol coursing through the Spaniard’s veins?
Then there were the events of July 20th where, on the Port de Balès, Schleck – who was wearing the yellow jersey – attempted to break away from Contador only for his chain to slip from his bike. Contador took advantage of Schleck’s technical troubles and finished the day’s stage having made 37 seconds on Schleck and taken the maillot jaune.
In the end, it was by this exact time – 37 seconds – that Contador won the Tour. Much has been made of this ever since.
Did Contador act without honour in attacking the race leader when he was in technical strife or did he just respond to a challenge from the man in front of him and, by the time he found out why and how he had shook Schleck so easily, the damage was done?
Now though, Contador’s actions on Balès mean nothing because that slipped chain is incomparable to the drugs Contador had on board.
Some would argue in the end justice was served. Contador has been stripped of his 2010 title, will serve a two year ban (which will, with time already served, make him eligible for this year’s Vuelta a Espana) and Andy Schleck will be named as the true winner of the 2010 Tour.
But to those who say justice was served, I would ask one question.
Who won the 2006 Tour?
ItsCalledFootball
Roar Guru
Kasey, I'm not making allegations about Cadel, just wondering when "the allegations will start to surface". However, with the number of these cases popping up about the winners, the sport is tarnished by it. And I don't belive this is the only sport in the world that drug cheating goes on in either - I believe most sportsman these days take performance enhancing drugs and a lot of it is covered up, for the commercial good of sport.
Kasey
Guest
re: Evans: So allegations are enough for you are the ICF? So sad that the obnce great sport of cycling has decended into this where just insinuations and the like are enough to convict a cyclist in the court of public opinion. How does one prove a negative? If Evans never tests positive in his career, the doubters will just say he was a step ahead of the testers.
ItsCalledFootball
Roar Guru
How do you know Schleck wasn't doping as well. The most famous winners of Cycling's great race in recent times, have all been convicted or clouded by doping allegations and that is something they still haven't cleaned up. The cheats seem to be always one step ahead of the testers and its a few years later that we detect sone form of cheating. Cadel Evans is a clean cyclist - one would hope - as I still hold that first Tour de France victory memory dear to my heart. Until the allegations start to surface anyway.
Daniels
Guest
I think that Andy Shleck is not going to face the probems of Perrera, as some beleve that he would of won the tour had his chain not slipped. (a poor time trial would not of effected him as much that year) In the case of Landis, Parrera was soundly beaten, by floyd, and that would overall effect the outcome that occured.
Doug
Guest
I think the point of banning Contador is to discourage cyclists from being tempted to use performance enhancing drugs. People being able to remember that Andy Schleck won the tour in 2010 is rather beside the point. If they want to know they who won they can always ask Google.
Jimbo
Guest
Schleck did come out and defend Contador fairly vigorously in the press after this decision was handed down, for what it's worth...
HardcorePrawn
Guest
It doesn't seem to get mentioned much these days, but does anyone know how Contador's and Schleck's relationship with one another is? At the start of the 2010 Tour de France it got mentioned a fair bit on SBS' coverage that they were best of friends, to the point that prior to the TdF they even went on holiday together with their respective partners (I like to imagine the pair of them attempting to light a gas stove outside a 4-person tent in a windswept camp site, but I presume that their holiday was more glamorous than that!). After 'Chain-gate' it appeared as though Schleck had become decidedly frosty towards Contador, but I haven't heard if they patched up their differences following that. Now that Andy is an asterisked winner, with Contador disgraced and stripped of his title, are these 2 former best friends ever likely to see eye-to-eye again?
Wallah
Guest
Rediculous that it has taken this long. Seems like everyone knew he was guilty (particularly given their were placticides in the sample, bit of a give away for transfusions) but in typical european form politics drove the agenda. To top it off they gave him a soft sentenance because as you say @Jimbo he's had the big benefit of being still able to race. There isn't any substitute racing like racing.
Jimbo
Guest
I think it is a disgrace that Contador's ban takes into account time apparently served, whilst he was still racing for the majority of the time. He will be able to come back in August with only a few months out of actual racing. 2 years without any racing in the legs will set back a career a long way - and deservedly so - as with any sport, there is no substitute for proper competition, no matter how good the training. Although he won't have officially won anything, with 1 and a half seasons of racing under his belt, Contador will come back in far better shape than most dopers, and additionally, the wins Schleck and Scarponi (among others) may well have earned legitimately will always have an asterix next to them, when Contador should never have been competing in the first place.
nordster
Guest
i guess with Pereira he was never really a GC contender so his "win" was doubly tarnished as he would never had led the race on real terms. with Schleck i guess its different, but he can never say he really won it on the road which is a shame.