May 18/02 4:38 am - Tour de l'Aude: Stage 2

Posted by Editoress on 05/18/02
 

Tour de L'Aude - Stage 2
Courtesy Team Saturn

That Saturn Cycling Team had an impressive showing in the second stage of the Tour de L'Aude today, placing second in the team time trial behind the Russian Itera Team. The very strong Nurenberger Team with Hanka Kupfernagel at the helm was third.

The Saturn Team began the day with a handicap having only five women for the team effort against the clock. Whereas other teams had six, the Saturn Team's five women had to shoulder the extra load that a sixth rider would have offered. On the traditional "circuit de la Clape" in Gruissan, the Saturn team managed to keep the yellow jersey and keep an advance of four seconds on the Russian Zabelliskaia with the game of the bonus seconds.

The very strong Russian team won the 28 kilometer TTT in 39:38 despite a very difficult 80 kilometer an hour wind which made the TTT an exercise of a tightrope walker. The Saturn Team finished 24 seconds behind the Russian Team with a time of 40:02. The Nurenberger Team was third with a time of 41:17. Bonus seconds of ten, six and four were given to the first three teams, and with her eight-second cushion on Zabelliskaia from yesterday's stage, Saturn's effort kept the Yellow Jersey on Ina Teutenberg's shoulders by four seconds.

Tomorrow's stage of 116 kilometers takes the riders between Fleury d'Aude and St Pierre de la Mer, with only one QOM of second category, but certainly with the same strong win, and the same narrow roads.

Results for TTT 28 KM

1 Itera Team 39:38:24
2 Saturn Cycling Team 0:24:33
3 Nurnberger Versicherung 1:38:80
4 Figurella Dream Team 2:15:70
5 Francfurt/Oder-Red Bull 3:03:03
6 Team Farm-Frites Hartol 2:30:77
7 British National Team 3:49:18
9 Lithuania 4:13:84
10 Vlaanderen T Interim 4:21:01
11 Germany 4:48:84
12 Australia 4:24:89
13 France 5:11:99
14 Czech Republic 5:40:91
15 Power Plate - Bik 5:49:44
16 C.A. Mantes La Ville 78 6:00:35
17 Canada 6:22:65

GC
1 Ina Yoko Teutenberg (Ger) Saturn Cycling Team 2:47:25
2 Olga Zabelinskaia (Rus) Itera Team 0:04
3 Kirsty Robb (NZl) Team Farm-Frites Hartol 1:04
4 Jenny Algelid Bengtsson (Swe) Nurnberger Versicherung 1:05
5 Judith Arndt (Ger) Saturn Cycling Team 1:34
6 Valentina Polkhanova (Rus) Itera Team s.t.
7 Hanka Kupfernagel (Ger) Nurnberger Versicherung 1:35
8 Rasa Polikeviciute (Ltu) Lithuanian National Team 1:43
9 Alessandra Cappellotto (Ita) Power Plate - Bik 1:44
10 Heidi Van De Vijver (Bel) Vlaanderen T Interim
11 Jolanta Polikeviciute (Ltu) Lithuanian National Team

14 Mirjam Melchers (Ned) Team Farm-Frites Hartol
15 Susanne Ljungskog (Swe) Vlaanderen T Interim
16 Edita Pucinskaite (Ltu) Figurella Dream Team
19 Leah Goldstein (Can) Canadian National Team all s.t.
21 Petra Rossner (Ger) Saturn Cycling Team 7:59
48 Catherine Marsal (Fra) Saturn Cycling Team
50 Pia Sundstedt (Fin) Figurella Dream Team all s.t
60 Erin Carter (Can) Canadian National Team 11:08
79 Sue Smith (Can) Canadian National Team 18:01
84 Gina Grain (Can) Canadian National Team
85 Kristy Scrymgeour (Aus) Saturn Cycling Team
87 Nicole Demars (Can) Canadian National Team all s.t.
94 Selina Elm (Can) Canadian National Team 22:30