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TdF 2010: waiting for the final TT
By: Michele Ferrari
Published: 23 Jul 2010
As it happened in other past editions of the race, the heat influenced the development of the TdF 2010, making the riding all the more demanding and hard, forcing the riders to measure out energies carefully, growing thinner and thinner every passing stage.
Compelled to take huge amounts of fluids, the athletes had greater difficulties in taking in the necessary calories to replenish glycogen stores; nighttime rest was also affected and reduced by the high temperatures.
None among the favorites dared to attack far from the finish, especially on the mountains, just as no team was really capable to make the race hard and selective in the first phases of the stages.
From this perspective, it's been a rather boring and disappointing TdF, dominated by Contador, only apparently challenged by Andy Schleck on the climbs: even on the final ascent of the Tourmalet, it looked like Andy was rather aiming to preserve his podium spot, potentially threatened by the final time trial.
Contador and Schleck didn't have any rival on the slopes, managing to express some performances comparable to the ones seen in the last couple of years:
- on the Col de la Madeleine, the last 9.5 km at 7.6% were done at 1735 m/h (6.28 w/kg)
- in Ax-3-Domaines, 8 km at 8%, the VAM was 1745m/h (6.23 w/kg)
- Col du Tourmalet, in the last 9 km they climbed at 1780m/h, equal to 6.42 w/kg.
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