Tour of Rwanda
The overall classification was won by the USA’s Kiel Reijnen of Team Type 1 but Joseph Biziyaremye deserves a mention too. That’s him above in Pierre Carey’s photo, just look at the crowd’s reaction as he crosses the line. L’Equipe’s Philippe Le Gars tells the story better than me but if you want it in English, here goes.
We’ve had plenty of courtroom reports from Alberto Contador and Jeannie Longo. Riccardo Ricco got a criminal record and a prison sentence. Operation Puerto is being reheated too. All in one week and it’s not yet Friday.
Don’t forget the tale of a breakaway league where some of the big teams in the sport are thinking of setting up on a new version of pro cycling. But it goes without saying the sport is about a lot more than lawyers and bankers. There’s no better example than the Tour of Rwanda.
Oh Noah
Polls in France regular say Yannick Noah is “the most popular Frenchman”. An odd choice perhaps given the semi-retired tennis player is more famous in France for patronising rip-offs of West African music and tax evasion but he comes across as the cheerful sort, an eternal teenager enjoying life doing some good with charity work.
Go to Spain and the polling is all about the general election today. But if anyone tried asking I suspect Noah would win “most unpopular Frenchman” in Spain by some margin. He’s just managed to upset an entire nation with an article in French daily Le Monde:
UPDATE added below at 18:00 CET I read about the scheme for UCI approval of bikes soon after it was announced and my first thought was that it sounded like an excessive procedure, that a governing body doesn’t need to validate equipment. After all, manufacturers can face prodigious law suits from customers if the product … Read more
I twittered the other day about Eritrean rider Daniel Teklehaimanot possibly joining the Cervélo Test Team and since then, a second source has independently hinted at the same thing although he says it’s at the “possibility” stage rather than contract time. You might not of heard of him but he’s 21 and finished sixth in … Read more