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2003 Milano-San Remo

94th edition: Saturday, March 22, 2003

Milano-San Remo Podium history | 2004 Edition | 2002 Edition

World Cup Round 1. 297 km. 195 starters, 170 classified finishers

Pictures from the pre-race sign-up

Paolo Bettini wins the 2003 Milano-San Remo

Complete Results: Paolo Bettini wins a 3-up sprint in a breakaway that escaped on the Poggio. Mario Cipollini gets 4th place winning the field sprint.

Paolo Bettini (Quick Step) 6hr 44min 43sec. 44.03 km/hr

Mirko Celestino (Saeco) s.t.
Luca Paolini (Quick Step) @ 2sec
Mario Cipollini (Domina) @ 11sec
Dario Pieri (Saeco) s.t.
Erik Zabel (Telekom) s.t.
Oscar Freire (Rabobank) s.t.
Jan Svorada (Lampre) s.t.
Serguei Ivanov (Fassa Bortono) s.t.
Guido Trenti (Fassa Bortolo) s.t.
Gianluca Bortolami (Caldirola) s.t.
Bernhard Eisel (FDJ) s.t.
Marcus Zberg (Gerolsteiner) s.t.
Baden Cooke (FDJ) s.t.
Graziano Gasparre (De Nardi) s.t.
Matthew Wilson (FDJ) s.t.
Kim Kirchen (Fassa Bortolo) s.t.
Marc Lotz (Rabobank) s.t.
Beat Zberg (Rabobank) s.t.
Ruggero Marzoli (Alessio) s.t.
Stuart O'Grady (Credit Agricole) s.t.
Mariano Piccoli (Lampre) s.t.
Fabio Sacchi (Saeco) s.t.
David Millar (Cofidis) s.t.
Xavier Florencio (ONCE) s.t.
Alexandre Botcharov (Ag2r) s.t.
Laurent Brochard (Ag2r) s.t.
René Haselbacher (Gerolsteiner) s.t.
Michael Blaudzun (CSC) s.t.
Robbie McEwen (Lotto-Domo) s.t.
Martin Elmiger (Phonak) s.t.
Andrea Noè (Alessio) s.t.
Raimondas Runsas (Lampre) s.t.
Vladimir Duma (Landbouwkrediet) s.t.
Maximilian Sciadri (Lampre) s.t.
Oskar Camenzind (Phonak) s.t.
Igor Astarloa (Saeco) s.t.
Fabrizio Guidi (Coast) s.t.
Giuliano Figueras (Panaria) s.t.
Fabio Baldato (Alessio) s.t.
Miguel Martin Perdiguero (Domina Vacanze) s.t.
Robert Hunter (Rabobank) s.t.
Nicolas Jalabert (CSC) s.t.
Bram Tankink (Quick Step) s.t.
Angel Vicioso (ONCE) s.t.
Paolo Bossoni (Vini Caldirola) s.t.
Gianluca Sironi (Vini Caldirola) s.t.
Paolo Lanfranchi (Panaria) s.t.
Bert Grabsch (Phonak) s.t.
Manuel Quinziato (Lampre) s.t.
Alessandro Cortinovis (Lampre) s.t.
Oscar Pereiro (Phonak) s.t.
Yaoslav Popovych (Landbouwkrediet) s.t.
Alejandro Valverde (Kelme) s.t.
Massimiliano Lelli (Cofidis) s.t.
Laurent Dufaux (Alessio) s.t.
Leonardo Zanotti (De Nardi) s.t.
Max van Heeswijk (US Postal) s.t.
Zbigniew Spruch (Lampre) s.t.
Andrea Peron (CSC) s.t.
Richard Virenque (Quick Step) s.t.
Giovanni Lombardi (Domna Vacanze) s.t.
Viatcheslav Ekimov (US Postal) s.t.
Juan Antonio Flecha (iBanesto.com) s.t.
Daniele Bennati (Domina Vacanze) s.t.
Nico Mattan (Cofidis) s.t.
Jan Hruska (ONCE) s.t.
Christophe Oriol (Ag2r) s.t.
Steffen Wesemann (Telekom) s.t.
Jan Schaffrath (Telekom) s.t.
Ruslan Ivanov (Alessio) s.t.
Gian Matteo Fagnini (Telekom) @ 21sec
Romans Vainsteins (Vini Caldirola) s.t.
Serhiy Honchar (De Nardi) @ 24sec
Angelo Lopeboselli (Cofidis) @ 28sec
Davide Rebellin (Gerolsteiner) s.t.
Rolf Aldag (Telekom) s.t.
Tom Boonen (Quick Step) s.t.
Paolo Fornaciari (Saeco) s.t.
Danilo Di Luca (Saeco) s.t.
Alexandre Shefer (Saeco) s.t.
Dmitri Fofonov (Cofidis) @ 1min 0sec
Eugeni Petrov (iBanesto.com) s.t.
Lorenzo Bernucci (Lanbouwkrediet) @ 1min 48sec
Gianpaolo Caruso (ONCE) s.t.
Matteo Carrara (De Nardi) s.t.
Stefano Zanini (Saeco) @ 1min 54sec
Lennie Kristensen (CSC) s.t.
Isaac Galvez Lopez (Kelme) @ 2min 24sec
Philippe Gaumont (Cofidis) s.t.
Leon Van Bon (Lotto-Domo) s.t.
Marco Milesi (Vini Caldirola) @ 2min 30sec
Matthias Kessler (Telekom) s.t.
Andy Flickinger (Ag2r) @ 2min 49sec
Mario Scirea (Domina Vacanze) s.t.
Leonardo Giodani (De Nardi) @ 3min 44sec
Alexandre Vinokourov (Telekom) s.t.
Bradley Wiggins (FDJ) @ 3min 57sec
Mikel Astarloza (Ag2r) @ 4min 17sec
Fabian Wegmann (Gerolsteiner) @ 5min 4sec
Hans de Clercq (Lotto-Domo) s.t.
Gabriele Balducci (Vini Caldirola) s.t.
Koos Moerenhout (Lotto-Domo) s.t.
Victor Hugo Pena (US Postal) s.t.
Benoit Joachim (US Postal) s.t.
Antonio Cruz (US postal) s.t.
Gabriele Missaglia (Lampre) s.t.
Sergiy Avdyeyev (Landbouwkrediet) s.t.
Matteo Tosatto (Fassa Bortolo) s.t.
Michele Bartolo (Fassa Bortolo) s.t.
André Korff (Coast) s.t.
Rik Verbrugghe (Lotto-Domo) s.t.
Jo Planckaert (Cofidis) s.t.
Frank Vandenbroucke (Quick Step) s.t.
Ludovic Turpin (Ag2r) s.t.
Steffen Kjaergaard (US Postal) @ 5min 43sec
Davide Bramti (Quick Step) @ 6min 28sec
Jordi Riera Valls (Kelme) s.t.
Daniel Becke (Coast) s.t.
Andrea Tafi (CSC) s.t.
David Derepas (FDJ) s.t.
Massimo Strazzer (Phonak) s.t.
Paolo Tiralongo (Panaria) s.t.
Luca Mazzanti (Panaria)s.t.
Aart Vierhouten (Lotto-Domo) @ 8min 31sec
Gorik Gardeyn (Lotto-Domo) s.t.
Denis Bertolini (Phonak) s.t.
Michael Rogers (Quick Step) s.t.
Massimo Apollonio (Vini Caldirola) s.t.
Matthew White (US Postal) s.t.
Julia Dean (CSC) s.t.
Thomas Liese (Coast) s.t.
Christopher Jenner (Credit Agricole) s.t.
Michele Gobbi (De Nardi) s.t.
Fred Rodriguez (Vini Caldrirola) s.t.
Raphael Schweda (Coast) s.t.
Udo Bolts (Gerolsteiner) s.t.
Roger Beuchat (Phonak) s.t.
Sergiy Matveyev (Panaria) s.t.
Guido Trentin (Cofidis) s.t.
Alexandre Moos (Phonak) s.t.
Yohan Charpenteau (Credit Agricole) @ 8min 45sec
Cédric Fragniere (Credit Agricole) @ 8min 58sec
Allan Davis (ONCE) @ 10min 2sec
Lauri Aus (Ag2r) @ 11min 37sec
Stéphane Auge (Credit Agrisole) s.t.
Eric Leblacher (Credit Agricole) s.t.
Marc Wauters (Rabobank) s.t.
Peter Wrolich (Gerolsteiner) s.t.
Bram De Groot (Rabobank) s.t.
Karsten Kroon (Rabobank) s.t.
Jan Boven (Rabobank) s.t.
Wim Vansevenant (Lotto-Domo) @ 12min 47sec
Paul van Hyfte (CSC) @ 12min 52sec
Julian Usano Martinez (Kelme) s.t.
Regi Lhuillier (FDJ) s.t.
Stefan Adamsson (Coast) s.t.
Mark Scanlon (Ag2r) s.t.
Yuriy Mitlushenko (Landbouwkrediet) s.t.
Jakob Piil (CSC) s.t.
Rafael Mateos Perez (iBanesto.com) s.t.
Carlos Dacruz (FDJ) s.t.
Jacky Durad (FDJ) s.t.
Claudio Bartoli (Panaria) s.t.
Michele Colleoni (De Nardi) s.t.
Brett Lancaster (Panaria) s.t.
Scott Davis (Panaria) s.t.
Sebastian Lang (Gerolsteiner) @ 17min 49sec
Ruslan Gryschenko (Landbouwkrediet) @ 19min 40sec
Corey Sweet (Credit Agricole) @ 19min 59sec

On the eve of the race, La Gazzetta Dello Sport has handicapped the stars and rated their likelihood of victory:

5 Stars: Cipollini
4 Stars: Bettini, Di Luca, Freire & Zabel
3 Stars: Petacchi, Pozzato & Vainsteins
2 Stars: Bartoli, Figueras, Rebellin, McEwen, Popovych & M. Zberg
1 Star: Flecha, Marzoli, O'Grady, Pieri, Vandenbroucke & Vinokourov

A thoughtful and reliable observer sent me a note saying that Cipollini did not look as sharp on the climbs of Tirreno-Adriatico as his arch-rivals Zabel and Freire. I think this confirms Cipollini's own feelings. He delayed his 2003 season debut because he felt his form was not quite there. Perhaps we will have some savage attacks in the late climbs of the race as Robobank and Telekom try to exploit any weakness to get Zabel and/or Freire away from the World Champion. The Domina Vacanze boys will have to work very hard to keep it all together for the final sprint. But, even there, Freire can beat Cipo in a flat-out drag race, as he showed in the final stage of T-A. But don't underestimate the skill of the Domina team, they are the best leadout team in the world. And Cipollini does not enter a race to get 2nd. He hates to lose. His will to win M-SR, a deeply cherished goal for all Italian racers, will make this a very interesting race

Pictures from the sign-up

Cristiano Mariani, a friend of Mauro Mondonico, was at the morning sign-up for the start of the 2003 Milano-San Remo. He kindly sent the pictures he took and gave us permission to post them.

Phonak's Massimo Strazzer

Mauro Mondonico, who will be the driver for the chief referee of the race, talks with his father Antonio. Lombardi, Cipollini's lead-out man is the zebra in the foreground.