Wiggins wins Tour's final time trial in Chartres
Briton will wear yellow jersey to Paris
Photos
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Bradley Wiggins was in a class of his own as he claimed his second time trial victory in this year’s race and with it cleared the final hurdle on his way to becoming the first British rider to win the Tour de France. Fastest at all of the intermediate check points, Wiggins completed the 53.5km course between Bonneval and Chartres in 1-04-13, putting him 1-16 ahead of his Sky team-mate Chris Froome, who consolidated his position in second place overall.
Third place on the day went to Rabobank’s Luis León Sánchez, who held the lead for a substantial part of the afternoon but ended up 1-50 down on Wiggins. Vincenzo Nibali (Liquigas) produced another competitive performance to cement his grip on the third spot on the podium. But there was a significant change further down the top 10 as defending champion Cadel Evans finished outside the top 50 on the day to drop to seventh place overall behind Haimar Zubeldia.
As has been the case so often during this race, the day was all about Team Sky and, of course, Wiggins. “This is what I wanted to do, to go out with a bang,” said the Briton, who is set to be crowned Tour de France champion in Paris tomorrow afternoon. “The Tour isn’t over until now, but this is what I do best. I came out here in March with Sean to look at the course and I knew it would suit me.”
Wiggins has looked stronger than all of his rivals during theTour’s final week and said that he knew from his first pedal stroke as he warmed up that he was going to perform well.
“I knew I was on it when I went down the start ramp. In the last 15-20k I knew what my advantage was and I was thinking about my wife and kids, my mum, all of the people who’ve helped me get to where I am… I know it sounds cheesy but I was thinking about the fact that I’ve spent my whole life working to get to this point – this is the defining moment. It’s all been summed up today.”
“I knew I was on it when I went down the start ramp. In the last 15-20k I knew what my advantage was and I was thinking about my wife and kids, my mum, all of the people who’ve helped me get to where I am… I know it sounds cheesy but I was thinking about the fact that I’ve spent my whole life working to get to this point – this is the defining moment. It’s all been summed up today.”
Team Sky boss Dave Brailsford, whose daily mantra has been “We’re taking it one day at a time”, acknowledged: “We can start thinking about winning this race barring accidents.”
Brailsford was fulsome in his praise for his team leader and the rest of the Sky team. “I think Brad showed today why he is the leader of this team. He smashed the best time and Froomey did the same as well. It’s good to have two guys who can top the world in a sport that, quite honestly, we weren’t all that good at not so long ago. For Brad as a British rider to win this race in a British team with a British sponsor is a fantastic achievement,” said Brailsford.
He added: “People laughed when I said that our aim was to win the Tour within five years with a clean British rider. But I wouldn’t underestimate the effect that our Olympic experience has had. But this is a different sport on a very different playing field. But today is all about Bradley Wiggins and his incredible achievement.”
Gretsch and Sánchez set early pace
Argos-Shimano’s Patrick Gretsch set the fastest time for the 53.5km course among the early starters. Almost two hours passed before Luis León Sánchez clipped 38 seconds off Gretsch’s mark, the Spaniard crossing the line in 1-06-03.
The Rabobank rider remained in pole position for another two-and-a-half hours. During that period Peter Velits came closest to Sánchez’s time, finishing 12 seconds down just as Froome and Wiggins were making their final preparations before taking to the start ramp.
There were huge cheers when Wiggins set off down the ramp. Up ahead of Wiggins, Froome and Nibali, best young rider Tejay Van Garderen (BMC Racing) set the fastest time at the first check point, but that mark lasted just a matter of minutes. Froome went through 23 seconds quicker, then Wiggins followed another 12 seconds faster.
By the second check, Van Garderen’s fast start appeared to be taking a toll as he went through fourth fastest. However, by that point the young American had his team leader Evans in his sights and seemed to get a lift as he blasted by the defending champion. Froome also looked to be slipping slightly as he came through just four seconds faster than Sánchez. Wiggins, though, was unstoppable. Now 54 seconds up on Froome, he had his second stage win in his sights.
Wiggins fastest from first to last
Froome picked up his pace again coming into the final quarter of the test. He went through the third time check 22 seconds up on Sánchez. However, Wiggins was still pulling away. Now 1-15 up on his team-mate, he looked as smooth and faultless as ever.
At the line, Froome was not far off catching his three-minute man, Nibali, as he bettered Sánchez’s mark by 34 seconds. But Froome’s lead lasted little more than 90 seconds.
Wiggins powered relentlessly on towards the line, only sitting up out of his tuck in the very final metres to punch the air and celebrate his victory. It had been a superbly judged ride rounding off a fantastic performance over the whole three weeks. Chapeau, Brad!
| 1 | Bradley Wiggins (GBr) Sky Procycling | 1:04:13 | |
| 2 | Christopher Froome (GBr) Sky Procycling | 0:01:16 | |
| 3 | Luis Leon Sanchez Gil (Spa) Rabobank Cycling Team | 0:01:50 | |
| 4 | Peter Velits (Svk) Omega Pharma-QuickStep | 0:02:02 | |
| 5 | Richie Porte (Aus) Sky Procycling | 0:02:25 | |
| 6 | Patrick Gretsch (Ger) Argos - Shimano | 0:02:28 | |
| 7 | Tejay van Garderen (USA) BMC Racing Team | 0:02:34 | |
| 8 | Vasili Kiryienka (Blr) Movistar Team | 0:02:46 | |
| 9 | Rein Taaramae (Est) Cofidis, Le Credit En Ligne | 0:02:50 | |
| 10 | Jérémy Roy (Fra) FDJ-Big Mat | 0:03:05 | |
| 11 | David Zabriskie (USA) Garmin - Sharp | 0:03:12 | |
| 12 | Matthieu Sprick (Fra) Argos - Shimano | 0:03:20 | |
| 13 | Ruben Plaza Molina (Spa) Movistar Team | 0:03:24 | |
| 14 | Daniel Oss (Ita) Liquigas-Cannondale | 0:03:27 | |
| 15 | Anthony Roux (Fra) FDJ-Big Mat | 0:03:34 | |
| 16 | Vincenzo Nibali (Ita) Liquigas-Cannondale | 0:03:38 | |
| 17 | Christian Vande Velde (USA) Garmin - Sharp | 0:03:40 | |
| 18 | Bert Grabsch (Ger) Omega Pharma-QuickStep | 0:03:43 | |
| 19 | Andreas Klöden (Ger) RadioShack-Nissan | 0:03:49 | |
| 20 | Jens Voigt (Ger) RadioShack-Nissan | ||
| 21 | Christophe Kern (Fra) Team Europcar | 0:03:56 | |
| 22 | Dries Devenyns (Bel) Omega Pharma-QuickStep | 0:03:57 | |
| 23 | Lars Ytting Bak (Den) Lotto Belisol Team | 0:04:05 | |
| 24 | Maxime Monfort (Bel) RadioShack-Nissan | 0:04:06 | |
| 25 | Dominik Nerz (Ger) Liquigas-Cannondale | 0:04:14 | |
| 26 | Jurgen Van Den Broeck (Bel) Lotto Belisol Team | 0:04:22 | |
| 27 | Manuel Quinziato (Ita) BMC Racing Team | 0:04:24 | |
| 28 | Denis Menchov (Rus) Katusha Team | 0:04:28 | |
| 29 | Aliaksandr Kuchynski (Blr) Katusha Team | ||
| 30 | Maxime Bouet (Fra) AG2R La Mondiale | 0:04:32 | |
| 31 | Andriy Grivko (Ukr) Astana Pro Team | 0:04:37 | |
| 32 | Daniel Martin (Irl) Garmin - Sharp | 0:04:41 | |
| 33 | Sandy Casar (Fra) FDJ-Big Mat | 0:04:53 | |
| 34 | George Hincapie (USA) BMC Racing Team | 0:04:57 | |
| 35 | Yaroslav Popovych (Ukr) RadioShack-Nissan | 0:05:08 | |
| 36 | Eduard Vorganov (Rus) Katusha Team | 0:05:09 | |
| 37 | Johan Vansummeren (Bel) Garmin - Sharp | 0:05:11 | |
| 38 | Ivan Basso (Ita) Liquigas-Cannondale | 0:05:15 | |
| 39 | Vladimir Karpets (Rus) Movistar Team | 0:05:17 | |
| 40 | Luca Paolini (Ita) Katusha Team | 0:05:25 | |
| 41 | Thibaut Pinot (Fra) FDJ-Big Mat | 0:05:31 | |
| 42 | Haimar Zubeldia Agirre (Spa) RadioShack-Nissan | 0:05:32 | |
| 43 | Kevin De Weert (Bel) Omega Pharma-QuickStep | 0:05:33 | |
| 44 | Christopher Horner (USA) RadioShack-Nissan | ||
| 45 | Peter Sagan (Svk) Liquigas-Cannondale | 0:05:34 | |
| 46 | Kris Boeckmans (Bel) Vacansoleil-DCM Pro Cycling Team | 0:05:35 | |
| 47 | Adam Hansen (Aus) Lotto Belisol Team | 0:05:37 | |
| 48 | Janez Brajkovic (Slo) Astana Pro Team | 0:05:38 | |
| 49 | Fredrik Kessiakoff (Swe) Astana Pro Team | 0:05:48 | |
| 50 | Michele Scarponi (Ita) Lampre - ISD | 0:05:49 | |
| 51 | Yann Huguet (Fra) Argos - Shimano | 0:05:53 | |
| 52 | Cadel Evans (Aus) BMC Racing Team | 0:05:54 | |
| 53 | Michael Rogers (Aus) Sky Procycling | 0:05:55 | |
| 54 | Laurens Ten Dam (Ned) Rabobank Cycling Team | 0:06:01 | |
| 55 | Andrey Kashechkin (Kaz) Astana Pro Team | 0:06:03 | |
| 56 | Maxim Iglinskiy (Kaz) Astana Pro Team | 0:06:06 | |
| 57 | Yukiya Arashiro (Jpn) Team Europcar | ||
| 58 | Michael Schär (Swi) BMC Racing Team | 0:06:07 | |
| 59 | Christian Knees (Ger) Sky Procycling | ||
| 60 | Alexandr Vinokourov (Kaz) Astana Pro Team | 0:06:09 | |
| 61 | Borut Bozic (Slo) Astana Pro Team | 0:06:12 | |
| 62 | Michael Albasini (Swi) Orica GreenEdge Cycling Team | ||
| 63 | Simon Gerrans (Aus) Orica GreenEdge Cycling Team | 0:06:13 | |
| 64 | Pierre Rolland (Fra) Team Europcar | 0:06:14 | |
| 65 | Egoi Martinez De Esteban (Spa) Euskaltel - Euskadi | ||
| 66 | Julien Fouchard (Fra) Cofidis, Le Credit En Ligne | 0:06:17 | |
| 67 | Amaël Moinard (Fra) BMC Racing Team | 0:06:18 | |
| 68 | Bernhard Eisel (Aut) Sky Procycling | 0:06:19 | |
| 69 | David Millar (GBr) Garmin - Sharp | 0:06:22 | |
| 70 | Cyril Lemoine (Fra) Saur - Sojasun | 0:06:24 | |
| 71 | Albert Timmer (Ned) Argos - Shimano | ||
| 72 | Kristijan Koren (Slo) Liquigas-Cannondale | ||
| 73 | Johnny Hoogerland (Ned) Vacansoleil-DCM Pro Cycling Team | 0:06:28 | |
| 74 | Christophe Riblon (Fra) AG2R La Mondiale | 0:06:29 | |
| 75 | Koen De Kort (Ned) Argos - Shimano | 0:06:31 | |
| 76 | Jean-Christophe Peraud (Fra) AG2R La Mondiale | 0:06:38 | |
| 77 | Nicolas Roche (Irl) AG2R La Mondiale | 0:06:39 | |
| 78 | Chris Anker Sörensen (Den) Team Saxo Bank-Tinkoff Bank | 0:06:41 | |
| 79 | Danilo Hondo (Ger) Lampre - ISD | 0:06:43 | |
| 80 | Bram Tankink (Ned) Rabobank Cycling Team | 0:06:44 | |
| 81 | Giampaolo Caruso (Ita) Katusha Team | 0:06:45 | |
| 82 | Mark Cavendish (GBr) Sky Procycling | 0:06:58 | |
| 83 | Greg Henderson (NZl) Lotto Belisol Team | 0:07:01 | |
| 84 | Sergio Miguel Moreira Paulinho (Por) Team Saxo Bank-Tinkoff Bank | ||
| 85 | Nicki Sörensen (Den) Team Saxo Bank-Tinkoff Bank | 0:07:02 | |
| 86 | Brice Feillu (Fra) Saur - Sojasun | ||
| 87 | Juan Jose Cobo Acebo (Spa) Movistar Team | ||
| 88 | Rui Alberto Faria Da Costa (Por) Movistar Team | 0:07:12 | |
| 89 | Sylvester Szmyd (Pol) Liquigas-Cannondale | ||
| 90 | Davide Malacarne (Ita) Team Europcar | 0:07:14 | |
| 91 | Dmitriy Fofonov (Kaz) Astana Pro Team | 0:07:17 | |
| 92 | Matthieu Ladagnous (Fra) FDJ-Big Mat | 0:07:27 | |
| 93 | Steven Kruijswijk (Ned) Rabobank Cycling Team | 0:07:32 | |
| 94 | Francis De Greef (Bel) Lotto Belisol Team | 0:07:33 | |
| 95 | Yury Trofimov (Rus) Katusha Team | 0:07:35 | |
| 96 | Cyril Gautier (Fra) Team Europcar | 0:07:39 | |
| 97 | Marcus Burghardt (Ger) BMC Racing Team | 0:07:47 | |
| 98 | Daryl Impey (RSA) Orica GreenEdge Cycling Team | 0:07:48 | |
| 99 | Pierrick Fedrigo (Fra) FDJ-Big Mat | 0:07:51 | |
| 100 | Stephen Cummings (GBr) BMC Racing Team | ||
| 101 | Joan Horrach Rippoll (Spa) Katusha Team | 0:07:54 | |
| 102 | Jorge Azanza Soto (Spa) Euskaltel - Euskadi | 0:07:57 | |
| 103 | Edvald Boasson Hagen (Nor) Sky Procycling | ||
| 104 | Pieter Weening (Ned) Orica GreenEdge Cycling Team | 0:08:01 | |
| 105 | Marcel Sieberg (Ger) Lotto Belisol Team | 0:08:02 | |
| 106 | Jurgen Roelandts (Bel) Lotto Belisol Team | ||
| 107 | Jérôme Pineau (Fra) Omega Pharma-QuickStep | ||
| 108 | Ruben Perez Moreno (Spa) Euskaltel - Euskadi | 0:08:09 | |
| 109 | Pablo Urtasun Perez (Spa) Euskaltel - Euskadi | 0:08:10 | |
| 110 | Cédric Pineau (Fra) FDJ-Big Mat | 0:08:13 | |
| 111 | Rafael Valls Ferri (Spa) Vacansoleil-DCM Pro Cycling Team | 0:08:24 | |
| 112 | Yohann Gene (Fra) Team Europcar | 0:08:26 | |
| 113 | Alejandro Valverde Belmonte (Spa) Movistar Team | 0:08:36 | |
| 114 | Jimmy Engoulvent (Fra) Saur - Sojasun | ||
| 115 | Jan Ghyselinck (Bel) Cofidis, Le Credit En Ligne | 0:08:40 | |
| 116 | Gorka Izagirre Insausti (Spa) Euskaltel - Euskadi | 0:08:46 | |
| 117 | Julien Simon (Fra) Saur - Sojasun | 0:08:48 | |
| 118 | Jelle Vanendert (Bel) Lotto Belisol Team | 0:08:55 | |
| 119 | Anders Lund (Den) Team Saxo Bank-Tinkoff Bank | 0:08:56 | |
| 120 | Matthew Harley Goss (Aus) Orica GreenEdge Cycling Team | 0:08:57 | |
| 121 | Philippe Gilbert (Bel) BMC Racing Team | 0:08:58 | |
| 122 | Nicolas Edet (Fra) Cofidis, Le Credit En Ligne | ||
| 123 | Martin Velits (Svk) Omega Pharma-QuickStep | ||
| 124 | Blel Kadri (Fra) AG2R La Mondiale | 0:08:59 | |
| 125 | Roy Curvers (Ned) Argos - Shimano | 0:09:00 | |
| 126 | Simone Stortoni (Ita) Lampre - ISD | ||
| 127 | Juan José Haedo (Arg) Team Saxo Bank-Tinkoff Bank | 0:09:02 | |
| 128 | Romain Zingle (Bel) Cofidis, Le Credit En Ligne | ||
| 129 | Federico Canuti (Ita) Liquigas-Cannondale | 0:09:03 | |
| 130 | André Greipel (Ger) Lotto Belisol Team | 0:09:04 | |
| 131 | Nick Nuyens (Bel) Team Saxo Bank-Tinkoff Bank | 0:09:06 | |
| 132 | Sébastien Hinault (Fra) AG2R La Mondiale | ||
| 133 | Jonathan Cantwell (Aus) Team Saxo Bank-Tinkoff Bank | ||
| 134 | Michael Morkov (Den) Team Saxo Bank-Tinkoff Bank | 0:09:11 | |
| 135 | Mikael Cherel (Fra) AG2R La Mondiale | ||
| 136 | Luis Angel Mate Mardones (Spa) Cofidis, Le Credit En Ligne | 0:09:14 | |
| 137 | Fabrice Jeandesboz (Fra) Saur - Sojasun | 0:09:22 | |
| 138 | Jerome Coppel (Fra) Saur - Sojasun | 0:09:32 | |
| 139 | Stuart O'Grady (Aus) Orica GreenEdge Cycling Team | ||
| 140 | Thomas Voeckler (Fra) Team Europcar | 0:09:33 | |
| 141 | Levi Leipheimer (USA) Omega Pharma-QuickStep | 0:09:41 | |
| 142 | Marco Marcato (Ita) Vacansoleil-DCM Pro Cycling Team | 0:09:47 | |
| 143 | Baden Cooke (Aus) Orica GreenEdge Cycling Team | 0:09:55 | |
| 144 | Sebastian Langeveld (Ned) Orica GreenEdge Cycling Team | 0:09:59 | |
| 145 | Guillaume Levarlet (Fra) Saur - Sojasun | 0:10:00 | |
| 146 | Samuel Dumoulin (Fra) Cofidis, Le Credit En Ligne | 0:10:14 | |
| 147 | Alessandro Vanotti (Ita) Liquigas-Cannondale | 0:10:18 | |
| 148 | Jean Marc Marino (Fra) Saur - Sojasun | 0:10:19 | |
| 149 | Sébastien Minard (Fra) AG2R La Mondiale | 0:10:27 | |
| 150 | Marco Marzano (Ita) Lampre - ISD | 0:10:32 | |
| 151 | Tyler Farrar (USA) Garmin - Sharp | 0:10:56 | |
| 152 | Arthur Vichot (Fra) FDJ-Big Mat | 0:11:04 | |
| 153 | Karsten Kroon (Ned) Team Saxo Bank-Tinkoff Bank | 0:11:10 |
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