Tour de France
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Lost it all at the end. Game over for schlek, next years his year.
Great read that.
Pardon my ignorance, but it that Stephen Roche's son?
A couple of other things... Whilst I get the outcry over what Contador did, what is the point of having an "unwritten rule"? Like it or not, and I don't, what he did was not cheating. It was unsporting, for sure and not 'in the spirit' of the race, but if there's no rule to break, there's no cheating.
And why the f#$! does nobody ever attack on the last day? Especially when the gap is so small? Double especially when there's a 'beef' about how at least part of that lead came to be... Are there rules that say if one of Schlek's teammates had just wiped Contador out a few miles from home, and Schlek had made up the 38 seconds, that he / they would have been disqualified?
Pardon my ignorance, but it that Stephen Roche's son?
A couple of other things... Whilst I get the outcry over what Contador did, what is the point of having an "unwritten rule"? Like it or not, and I don't, what he did was not cheating. It was unsporting, for sure and not 'in the spirit' of the race, but if there's no rule to break, there's no cheating.
And why the f#$! does nobody ever attack on the last day? Especially when the gap is so small? Double especially when there's a 'beef' about how at least part of that lead came to be... Are there rules that say if one of Schlek's teammates had just wiped Contador out a few miles from home, and Schlek had made up the 38 seconds, that he / they would have been disqualified?
[quote author=Whaddapie link=topic=40908.msg1145660#msg1145660 date=1280502409]
Great read that.
Pardon my ignorance, but it that Stephen Roche's son?
A couple of other things... Whilst I get the outcry over what Contador did, what is the point of having an "unwritten rule"? Like it or not, and I don't, what he did was not cheating. It was unsporting, for sure and not 'in the spirit' of the race, but if there's no rule to break, there's no cheating.
And why the f#$! does nobody ever attack on the last day? Especially when the gap is so small? Double especially when there's a 'beef' about how at least part of that lead came to be... Are there rules that say if one of Schlek's teammates had just wiped Contador out a few miles from home, and Schlek had made up the 38 seconds, that he / they would have been disqualified?
[/quote]
Yep, he is Stephen Roche's son - who is refreshingly impartial during commentary/ highlights, and yet still very supportive.
What Contador did broke one of the most fundamental riders laws in the race - you should not, under any circumstances, attack the yellow jersey if he has a crash, or a mechanical failure. It simply isnt done. There arent many other examples in sports I can think of where something this important isnt written down, but I guess its because it would be very difficult to put exact regulations around it, and detail all the scenarios. Its a case of being honourable and treating each occurence on its merits. Make no mistake, the powers that be arent happy, and given that the French authorities act like 5yr old with toothache at the best of times expect swift and vicious retribution at the first available opportunity.
Re the last day - think of it as just that, the last day, rather than the last stage (because it really is unique). Since the early days of the race the purpose was to bring the peloton into Paris en masse for the spectacle, which is why you dont tend to get breakaways, nobody competes for jerseys, etc
Great read that.
Pardon my ignorance, but it that Stephen Roche's son?
A couple of other things... Whilst I get the outcry over what Contador did, what is the point of having an "unwritten rule"? Like it or not, and I don't, what he did was not cheating. It was unsporting, for sure and not 'in the spirit' of the race, but if there's no rule to break, there's no cheating.
And why the f#$! does nobody ever attack on the last day? Especially when the gap is so small? Double especially when there's a 'beef' about how at least part of that lead came to be... Are there rules that say if one of Schlek's teammates had just wiped Contador out a few miles from home, and Schlek had made up the 38 seconds, that he / they would have been disqualified?
[/quote]
Yep, he is Stephen Roche's son - who is refreshingly impartial during commentary/ highlights, and yet still very supportive.
What Contador did broke one of the most fundamental riders laws in the race - you should not, under any circumstances, attack the yellow jersey if he has a crash, or a mechanical failure. It simply isnt done. There arent many other examples in sports I can think of where something this important isnt written down, but I guess its because it would be very difficult to put exact regulations around it, and detail all the scenarios. Its a case of being honourable and treating each occurence on its merits. Make no mistake, the powers that be arent happy, and given that the French authorities act like 5yr old with toothache at the best of times expect swift and vicious retribution at the first available opportunity.
Re the last day - think of it as just that, the last day, rather than the last stage (because it really is unique). Since the early days of the race the purpose was to bring the peloton into Paris en masse for the spectacle, which is why you dont tend to get breakaways, nobody competes for jerseys, etc
and they pass champagne around the bunch.
I get the theories, lads - I have watched it since I was a kid...
I just can't understand how somebody has NEVER tried it on the last day, especially if they're down by a very small margin.
Let him get a glass or two of champers in, then ATTACK! 🙂
And I really, REALLY hate these unwritten rules. In every game. They're bollcks. Make 'em rules, or stop moaning.
I just can't understand how somebody has NEVER tried it on the last day, especially if they're down by a very small margin.
Let him get a glass or two of champers in, then ATTACK! 🙂
And I really, REALLY hate these unwritten rules. In every game. They're bollcks. Make 'em rules, or stop moaning.
So you're on the side of playing on, until the ball goes dead? Serious or acting, it can wait?
No, actually I do prefer the sporting gesture, and I look to kick the ball out and ensure that the lad's ok, etc...
But what I'm moaning about is the lack of a rule, governing such 'guidelines' - Like when Arsenal scored against that team in the cup a few years back, from a 'return-the-ball' throw in... I don't think it should have been replayed, 'cos he didn't break a rule. What should have happened was Arsenal, when they realised their 'error', should have simply allowed the opposition to score (a la Robbie deliberately missing the penalty), to even things up, and then start again from there.
If there's no rule to break, there's no 'cheating'. There's 'unsportsmanship', and it's shite, but something like this (Contador) incident is always a possibility when it's just a guideline, not a rule.
But what I'm moaning about is the lack of a rule, governing such 'guidelines' - Like when Arsenal scored against that team in the cup a few years back, from a 'return-the-ball' throw in... I don't think it should have been replayed, 'cos he didn't break a rule. What should have happened was Arsenal, when they realised their 'error', should have simply allowed the opposition to score (a la Robbie deliberately missing the penalty), to even things up, and then start again from there.
If there's no rule to break, there's no 'cheating'. There's 'unsportsmanship', and it's shite, but something like this (Contador) incident is always a possibility when it's just a guideline, not a rule.
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