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Daily Feedbag

By Chris Fontecchio

A quick roundup -- lots of news out there today...

  • Landis to skip the Giro. I agree with Chimpy who speculates that Floyd has gotten out of the gate perhaps a little too quickly.
  • De Ronde moment: This is what it's about.
  • Freire to skip Flanders for the Ardennes... He says it's because he loves them so much, and with a Dutch sponsor this is probably a good thing to say. But the ominous hint about saddlesore recurrence might be the real story. Other than La Fleche, I hadn't thought Liege or Amstel was really his terrain.
  • Get ready for Three Days of the Bread: Bicirace has their preview up and have the rest beaten to the punch, for once.
  • Pippo Pozzato, who lines up at Driedaags tomorrow, chats up CyclingNews. Cool story on Boonen's salute at the San Remo finish:
Filippo Pozzato: Well I didn't realize that Tom had done that...Petacchi, I don't care, but I really liked Tom's gesture. Above all, as a sportsman, as a person, he showed he's a great guy.

It was something spontaneous, something from his heart. Tom gained a lot of points with me as far as I'm concerned with that gesture. In fact, at the Tour of Flanders, I'm more willing than ever to help him win. To be up front with him and help him win again would be beautiful.

  • We've barely touched on Basso's victory at Criterium International... sorry bout that. All I'll say is that CSC got a much needed break after a crap spring. And Basso -- he better start winning these training races, the Giro is a month off, and most of the competitors at Crit Int'l are eyeing July.  Anyway, I thought it'd be nice to poach some quotes from CyclingNews in honor of the win:
"I'm equally surprised and happy. It means a great deal to me to win here in France, where I've always felt welcome. I didn't actually come here to win and wasn't banking on my form being good enough for a top result, but after the work the team did this morning, I found myself in a position where it was possible. I'm very pleased with my time trial today and it gives me a good feeling in relation to the big stage races."

Said his team manager Bjarne Riis: "The team worked impeccably today. We split the peloton on the climbs and managed to isolate Dekker [on Stage 2], and then it was up to Ivan to finish the job. He deserved this victory and it confirms that his form is extremely good this year. He's actually only just started to build it up towards the Giro, but he's already strong enough to make a difference in a tough race such as this.

"Ivan has got a big result under his belt now and this goes to show he's an all-round rider. It was a good win for the team and we defended our victory from the previous years in a brilliant way. Ivan has impressed in all three stages - and this after a week where he has really worked hard with his training at home. The race has proved a good test, and no one can disagree with the fact that he passed with flying colors. He is very motivated to win the Giro and he'll be even stronger then."

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