Tour de France Lanterne Rouge: Update: Vansevenant's goal

Monday, July 07, 2008

Update: Vansevenant's goal

The rider page for Wim Vansevenant at the Silence-Lotto team website makes it clear that him earning an unprecedented and historic third Lanterne Rouge at the Tour de France is a personal - and perhaps team - goal.

Here is a lovely translation of that page courtesy of Rose Cantine - many many thanks! (Earlier I had posted a very bad machine translation).

"Vansevenant can seem cold and standoff-ish when you meet him for the first time. But don’t let first impressions fool you. This is his last season as a professional rider. For years, Vansevenant has served as the loyal domestique to Peter van Petegem. But, along the way, he has also proved to be very helpful in many races. Vansevenant is one of the few riders who can cover a lot of kilometers, close gaps and still maintain that pace for days thereafter. Last season, he succeeded in bringing the Lanterne Rouge title to Belgium twice in a row. A unique achievement, as only two riders have ever done this in the past. In 13 years as a professional rider, he won one stage in the Tour of Vaucluse, more than 10 years ago."

"Vansevenant is comfortable with his role as a domestique. It is a role that one must not underestimate: closing gaps in the peloton, picking up bidons, riding in the wind, climbing mountains, etc. Few riders have developed the expertise that Vansevenant has in this role. He looks back on his cycling career with satisfaction. He is positive about the future of cycling especially given recent success in anti-doping campaigns and in training techniques. In 2008, Vansevenant will be an important participant in the greatest cycling competitions – the Tour of Flanders, Paris-Roubaix and the Tour de France. This year, he can set a record by becoming the only person to win the Lanterne Rouge title three times in a row."

Labels: Vansevenant