1998 Tour | 2000 Tour | Tour de France database |Quick Facts | Final GC | Stage results with running GC | The Story of the 1999 Tour de France
1999 Tour de France map
Les Woodland's book Dirty Feet: How the great unwashed created the Tour is France is available as an audiobook here. For the print or Kindle eBook versions, just cick on the Amazon link on the right.
1999 Tour de France Quick Facts:
3,686.8 km, traveled at a then record average speed of 40.276 km/hr.
180 starters and 141 classified finishers
Erik Zabel wins his 4th Green Jersey for best sprinter.
Richard Virenque wins his 5th Polka Dot Jersey for best climber.
For various reason, the winners of the previous three Tours (Ullrich, Pantani and Riis) did not participate.
The Tour was effectively won by Armstrong in the second stage when there was a mass crash, destroying the hopes of his competitors, notably Alex Zülle.
This did not become apparent until the stage nine finish at Setrieres, where Armstrong's lead was a solid 6min 3sec
In 2012 Lance Armstrong was stripped of all of his Tour wins after his doping became known.
Complete Final 1999 Tour de France General Classification:
Climbers' Competition:
Points Competition:
Young Rider:
Team GC:
Stage results with running GC:
Prologue, Saturday, July 3, Puy de Fou 6.8 km Individual Time Trial
1 | Lance Armstrong | 8min 2sec |
2 | Alex Zulle | @ 7sec |
3 | Abraham Olano | @ 11sec |
4 | Christophe Moreau | @ 15sec |
5 | Chris Boardman | @ 16sec |
6 | Rik Verbrugghe | @ 18sec |
7 | Alexander Vinokourov | @ 21sec |
8 | Santos Gonzalez | @ 21sec |
9 | Laurent Brochard | s.t. |
10 | Gilles Maignan | @ 23sec |
Stage 1: Sunday, July 4, Montaigu - Challans. 209 km. 42.12 km/hr
1 | Jaan Kirsipuu | 4hr 56min 18sec |
2 | Tom Steels | all same time |
3 | Erik Zabel | |
4 | Stuart O'Grady | |
5 | Silvio Martinello | |
6 | Jimmy Casper | |
7 | Nicola Minali | |
8 | George Hincapie | |
9 | François Simon | |
10 | Christophe Moreau |
General Classification after Stage 1:
1 | Lance Armstrong | 5hr 4min 20sec |
2 | Alex Zulle | @ 7sec |
3 | Abraham Olano | @ 11sec |
4 | Christophe Moreau | @ 15sec |
5 | Chris Boardman | @ 16sec |
6 | Jaan Kirsipuu | s.t. |
7 | Rik Verbrugghe | @ 18sec |
8 | Stuart O'Grady | @ 20sec |
9 | Alxender Vinokerov | @ 21sec |
10 | Laurent Brochard | s.t. |
Stage 2: Monday, July 5, Challans - St. Nazaire. 146 km. 46.822 km/hr
1 | Tom Steels | 3hr 45min 32sec |
2 | Jaan Kirsipuu | All same time |
3 | Mario Cipollini | |
4 | Erik Zabel | |
5 | Jimmy Casper | |
6 | George Hincapie | |
7 | Jan Svorada | |
8 | Silvio Martinello | |
9 | Stuart O'Grady | |
10 | François Simon |
General Classification after Stage 2
1 | Jaan Kirsipuu | 8hr 49min 38sec |
2 | Lance Armstrong | @ 14sec |
3 | Stuart O'Grady | @ 22sec |
4 | Abraham Olano | @ 25sec |
5 | Christophe Moreau | @ 29sec |
6 | Tom Steels | @ 31sec |
7 | George Hincapie | @ 32sec |
8 | Alexander Vinokourov | @ 35sec |
9 | Santos Gonzalez | s.t. |
10 | Andrea Peron | @ 37sec |
Stage 3: Tuesday, July 6, Nantes - Laval 194 km. 43.31 km/hr
1 | Tom Steels | 4 hr 29 min 27 |
2 | Erik Zabel | All Same Time |
3 | Stuart O'Grady | |
4 | Nicola Minali | |
5 | George Hincapie | |
6 | Jimmy Casper | |
7 | Robby McEwen | |
8 | Silvio Martinello | |
9 | Elio Aggiano | |
10 | Mario Cipollini |
General Classification after Stage 3
1 | Jaan Kirisipuu | 13hr 18min 59sec |
2 | Tom Steels | @ 17sec |
3 | Stuart O'Grady | @ 20sec |
4 | Lance Armstrong | s.t. |
5 | Abraham Olano | @ 31sec |
6 | George Hincapie | @ 34sec |
7 | Christophe Moreau | @ 35sec |
8 | Erik Zabel | @ 40sec |
9 | Alexander Vinkourov | @ 41sec |
10 | Santos Gonzalez | s.t. |
Stage 4, Wednesday, July 7, Laval - Blois, 194.5 km. 50.355 km/hr
Fastest stage to date in Tour history
1 | Mario Cipollini | 3hr 51min 45sec |
2 | Erik Zabel | All Same time |
3 | Stuart O'Grady | |
4 | Tom Steels | |
5 | Jaan Kirsipuu | |
6 | Nicola Minali | |
7 | Christophe Moreau | |
8 | Damien Nazon | |
9 | George Hincapie | |
10 | Jay Sweet |
General Classification after Stage 4
1 | Jaan Kirsipuu | 17hr 10min 40sec |
2 | Stuart O'Grady | @ 16sec |
3 | Tom Steels | @ 21sec |
4 | Lance Armstrong | @ 24sec |
5 | Erik Zabel | @ 32sec |
6 | Abraham Olano | @ 35sec |
7 | George Hincapie | @ 38sec |
8 | Christophe Moreau | @ 39sec |
9 | Mario Cipollini | @ 44sec |
10 | Alexander Vinokourov | @ 45sec |
Stage 5: Thursday, July 8, Thursday, Bonneval - Amiens. 228 km
1 | Mario Cipollini | 5hr 36min 28sec |
2 | Tom Steels | All same time |
3 | Jan Kirsipuu | |
4 | Robbie McEwen | |
5 | Erik Zabel | |
6 | Stuart O'Grady | |
7 | Nicola Minali | |
8 | Christophe Capelle | |
9 | Damien Nazon | |
10 | Jan Svorada |
General Classification after Stage 5
1 | Jan Kirsipuu | 22hr 47min 0sec |
2 | Tom Steels | @ 17sec |
3 | Stuart O'Grady | @ 24sec |
4 | Lance Armstrong | @ 32sec |
5 | Mario Cipollini | @ 21sec |
6 | Erik Zabel | @ 40sec |
7 | Abraham Olano | @ 43sec |
8 | George Hincapie | @ 46sec |
9 | Christophe Moreau | @ 47sec |
10 | Alexander Vinokourov | @ 53sec |
Stage 6: Friday, July 9, Amiens - Maubeuge, 169 km
1 | Tom Steels (Disqualified) | |
1 | Mario Cipollini awarded stage | 4hr 11min 9sec |
2 | Erik Zabel | All same time |
3 | Jan Kirsipuu | |
4 | Jan Svorada | |
5 | Damien Nazon | |
6 | George Hincapie | |
7 | Silvio Martinello | |
8 | Stuart O'Grady | |
9 | Nicola Minali |
General Classification after Stage 6
1 | Jan Kirsipuu | 26hr 57min 55sec |
2 | Mario Cipollini | @ 26sec |
3 | Tom Steels | @ 31sec |
4 | Stuart O'Grady | @ 38sec |
5 | Erik Zabel | s.t. |
6 | Lance Armstrong | @ 46sec |
7 | Abraham Olano | @ 57sec |
8 | George Hincapie | @ 58sec |
9 | Christophe Moreau | @ 1min 1sec |
10 | François Simon | @ 1min 4sec |
Stage 7: Saturday, July 10, Avesnes sur Helpe - Thionville, 223 km
1 | Mario Cipollini - 4 in a row! | 5hr 26min 59sec |
2 | Stuart O'Grady | All same time |
3 | Jan Kirsipuu | |
4 | Vogels | |
5 | Jan Svorada | |
6 | Damien Nazon | |
7 | Christophe Capelle | |
8 | Jimmy Casper | |
9 | George Hincapie | |
10 | François Simon |
General Classification after Stage 7
1 | Jan Kirsipuu | 32hr 24min 46sec |
2 | Mario Cipollini | @ 14sec |
3 | Stuart O'Grady | @ 34sec |
4 | Erik Zabel | @ 44sec |
5 | Lance Armstrong | @ 54sec |
6 | Abraham Olano | @ 1min 5sec |
7 | George Hincapie | @ 1min 6sec |
8 | Tom Steels | @ 1min 9sec |
9 | Christophe Moreau | s.t. |
10 | François Simon | @ 1min 12sec |
Stage 8: Sunday, July 11, Metz 56.5 km Individual Time Trial
49.417 km/hr
Bobby Julich crashes at about km 30 and is forced to retire
1 | Lance Armstrong | 1hr 8min 36sec |
2 | Alex Zulle | @ 58sec |
3 | Christophe Moreau | @ 2min 5sec |
4 | Abraham Olano | @ 2min 22sec |
5 | Tyler Hamilton | @ 3min 31sec |
6 | Chris Boardman | @ 3min 32sec |
7 | Alvaro Gonzalez de Galdeano | @ 3min 40sec |
8 | Jens Voigt | @ 3min 42sec |
9 | Stuart O'Grady | @ 3min 45sec |
10 | Laurent Dufaux | @ 3min 56sec |
General Classification after Stage 8
1 | Lance Armstrong | 33hr 34min 16sec |
2 | Christophe Moreau | @ 2min 20sec |
3 | Abraham Olano | @ 2min 33sec |
4 | Stuart O'Grady | @ 3min 25sec |
5 | Alvaro Gonzalez de Galdeano | @ 4min 10sec |
6 | Jens Voigt | @ 4sec 10sec |
7 | Laurent Dufaux | @ 4min 19sec |
8 | Andrea Peron | @ 4min 22sec |
9 | Santos Gonzalez | @ 4min 37sec |
10 | Daniele Nardello | @ 4min 46sec |
Stage 9: Tuesday, July 13, Le Grand Bornand - Sestrieres, 213.5 km.
Major ascents: Tamié, Télégraphe, Galibier, Montgenèvre, Sestrieres. 35.864 km/hr
1 | Lance Armstrong | 5hr 57min 11sec |
2 | Alex Zulle | @ 31sec |
3 | Fernando Escartin | @ 1min 26sec |
4 | Ivan Gotti | s.t. |
5 | Manuel Beltran | @ 2min 27sec |
6 | Richard Virenque | s.t. |
7 | Carlos Contreras | @ 2min 29sec |
8 | Kurt van de Wouver | @ 3min 10sec |
9 | Abraham Olano | s.t. |
10 | Laurent Dufaux | @ 3min 30sec |
General Classification after Stage 9
1 | Lance Armstrong | 39hr 31min 7sec |
2 | Abraham Olano | @ 6 min 3sec |
3 | Christophe Moreau | @ 7min 44sec |
4 | Alex Zulle | @ 7min 47sec |
5 | Laurent Dufeaux | @ 8min 7sec |
6 | Danielle Nardello | @ 8min 39sec |
7 | Angel Casero | @ 8min 54sec |
8 | Fernando Escartin | @ 9min 1sec |
9 | Richard Virenque | @ 10min 2sec |
10 | Pavel Tonkov | @ 10min 34sec |
Stage 10: Wednesday, July 14, Sestrieres - L'Alpe d'Huez. 220.5 km
32.868 km/hr
Major ascents: Mont Cenis, Croix de Fer, L'Alpe d'Huez
1 | Giuseppe Guerini | 6hr 42min 31sec |
2 | Pavel Tonkov | @ 21sec |
3 | Fernando Escartin | @ 25sec |
4 | Alex Zulle | s.t. |
5 | Lance Armstrong | s.t. |
6 | Richard Virenque | s.t. |
7 | Laurent Dufaux | s.t. |
8 | Kurt van de Wouwer | s.t. |
9 | Mauel Beltran | @ 32sec |
10 | Carlos Contreras | @ 49sec |
General Classification after Stage 10
1 | Lance Armstrong | 46hr 14min 3sec |
2 | Abraham Olano | @ 7min 42sec |
3 | Alex Zulle | @ 7min 47sec |
4 | Laurent Dufaux | @ 8min 7sec |
5 | Fernando Escartin | @ 8min 53sec |
6 | Richard Virenque | @ 10min 2sec |
7 | Pavel Tonkov | @ 10min 18sec |
8 | Daniele Nardello | @ 10min 56sec |
9 | Giuseppe Guerini | @ 10min 57sec |
10 | Angel Casero | @ 11min 11sec |
Stage 11: Thursday, July 15, Bourg d'Oisans - St. Etienne. 198.5 km
Major ascents: Parménie, Croix de Chaubouret
1 | Ludo Dierckxsens | 4hr 34min 3sec |
2 | Dmitri Konyshev | @ 1min 26sec |
3 | Alexander Vinokourov | s.t. |
4 | Wladimir Belli | @ 1min 29sec |
5 | Rik Verbrugghe | @ 1min 33sec |
6 | Laurent Lefevre | @ 3min 53sec |
7 | Riccardo Forconi | @ 5min 7sec |
8 | Erik Zabel | @ 22min 18sec |
9 | Robbie McEwen | s.t. |
10 | Gianpaolo Mondeni | s.t. |
General Classification after Stage 11
1 | Lance Armstrong | 51hr 10min 28sec |
2 | Abraham Olano | @ 7min 42sec |
3 | Alex Zulle | @ 7min 47sec |
4 | Laurent Dufaux | @ 8min 7sec |
5 | Fernando Escartin | @ 8min 57sec |
6 | Richard Virenque | @ 10min 1sec |
7 | Pavel Tonkov | @ 10min 18sec |
8 | Daniele Nardello | @ 10min 56sec |
9 | Giuseppe Guerini | @ 10min 57sec |
10 | Angel Casero | @ 11min 11sec |
Stage 12: Friday, July 16, St. Galmier - St. Flour, 201.5 km
Major ascents: Croix de l'Homme Mort, Lestival
1 | David Etxebarria | 4hr 53min 50sec |
2 | François Simon | @ 25sec |
3 | Alberto Elli | @ 33sec |
4 | Steve De Wolf | @ 40sec |
5 | Jose Joaquim Castelblanco | @ 1min 11sec |
6 | Massimilliano Lelli | @ 1min 18sec |
7 | Frederic Bessy | @ 1min 24sec |
8 | Marc Lotz | @ 1min 32sec |
9 | Stephene Heulot | @ 1min 34sec |
10 | Didier Rous | @ 1min 50sec |
General Classification after Stage 12
1 | Lance Armstrong | 56hr 16min 53sec |
2 | Abraham Olano | @ 7min 44sec |
3 | Alex Zulle | @ 7min 47sec |
4 | Laurent Dufaux | @ 8min 7sec |
5 | Fernando Escartin | @ 8min 53sec |
6 | Stephane Heulot | @ 9min 10sec |
7 | Richard Virenque | @ 10min 3sec |
8 | Pavel Tonkov | @ 10min 18sec |
9 | Daniele Nardello | @ 10min 58sec |
10 | Giuseppe Guerini | @ 11min 11sec |
Stage 13: Saturday, July 17, St. Flour - Albi. 236.5 Km. 1999's longest stage.
Major ascent: Moissetie
1 | Salvatore Commesso | 5hr 52min 45sec |
2 | Marco Serpellini | @ 2sec |
3 | Mariano Piccoli | @ 2min 7sec |
4 | Paolo Lanfranchi | s.t. |
5 | Rolande Meier | s.t. |
6 | Christophe Mengin | s.t. |
7 | Miguel Angel Pena | s.t. |
8 | Javier Rodriguez Pasqual | s.t. |
9 | Lylian Lebreton | @ 2min 12sec |
10 | Francisco Cerezo | s.t. |
General Classification after Stage 13
1 | Lance Armstrong | 62hr 32min 2sec |
2 | Abraham Olano | @ 7min 44sec |
3 | Alex Zulle | @ 7min 47sec |
4 | Laurent Dufaux | @ 8min 7sec |
5 | Fernando Escartin | @ 8min 53sec |
6 | Stephene Heulot | @ 9min 10sec |
7 | Richard Virenque | @ 10min 3sec |
8 | Pavel Tonkov | @ 10min 18sec |
9 | Daniele Nardello | @ 10min 58sec |
10 | Giuseppe Guerini | @ 11min 7sec |
Stage 14: Sunday, July 18, Castres - St. Gaudens, 199 km
1 | Dimitri Konyshev | 4hr 37min 59sec |
2 | Gianni Faresin | s.t. |
3 | Massimilliano Lelli | @ 4sec |
4 | Steffen Wesemann | @ 51Sec |
5 | Jacky Durand | s.t. |
6 | Wladimir Belli | s.t. |
7 | Erik Zabel | @ 13min 27sec |
8 | Stuart O'Grady | s.t. |
9 | Christophe Capelle | s.t. |
10 | Gianpaolo Mondini | s.t. |
GC after Stage 14:
Stage 15: Tuesday, July 20, St. Gaudens - Piau Engaly, 173 km.
Major ascents: Ares, Mente, Portillon, Peyresourde, Val Louron, Piau-Engaly
1 | Fernando Escartin | 5hr 19min 49sec |
2 | Alex Zulle | @ 2min 1sec |
3 | Richard Virenque | s.t. |
4 | Lance Armstrong | @ 2min 10sec |
5 | Kurt Van de Wouver | @ 2min 37sec |
6 | Angel Casero | s.t. |
7 | Daniele Nardello | @ 2min 45sec |
8 | Laurent Dufaux | s.t. |
9 | Francisco Tomas Garcia | @ 3min 39sec |
10 | Wladimir Belli | @ 4min 0sec |
General Classification after Stage 15. 40.007 km/hr average speed for the Tour so far
1 | Lance Armstrong | 72hr 45min 27sec |
2 | Fernando Escartin | @ 6min 19sec |
3 | Alex Zulle | @ 7min 26sec |
4 | Laurent Dufaux | @ 8min 36sec |
5 | Richard Virenque | @ 9min 46sec |
6 | Daniele Nardello | @ 11min 33sec |
7 | Angel Casero | @ 11min 40sec |
8 | Abraham Olano | @ 12min 45sec |
9 | Wladimir Belli | @ 15min 16sec |
10 | Kurt Van de Wouver | @ 16min 41sec |
Stage 16: Wednesday, July 21, Lannemezan - Pau 192 km
Major ascents: Aspin, Tourmalet, Soulor, Aubisque
1 | David Etxebarria | 5hr 17min 7sec |
2 | Carlos Contreras | s.t. |
3 | Alberto Elli | s.t. |
4 | Alexander Vinokourov | s.t. |
5 | Jose Luis Arrieta | s.t. |
6 | Marcos Serrano | @ 5sec |
7 | Wldaimir Belli | @ 21sec |
8 | Pavel Tonkov | s.t. |
9 | Fancisco Tomas Garcia | s.t. |
10 | Alex Zulle | s.t |
11 | Lance Armstrong | @21sec |
General Classification after Stage 16.
1 | Lance Armstrong | 78hr 2min 53sec |
2 | Fernando Escartin | @ 6min 15sec |
3 | Alex Zulle | @ 7min 28sec |
4 | Laurent Dufaux | @ 10min 30sec |
5 | Richard Virenque | @ 11min 40sec |
6 | Daniele Nardello | @ 13min 27sec |
7 | Angel Casero | @ 13min 34sec |
8 | Abraham Olano | @ 14min 29sec |
9 | Wladimir Belli | @ 15min 14sec |
10 | Kurt Van De Wouver | @ 18min 35sec |
Stage 17: Thursday, July 22, Mourenx - Bordeaux 199 km.
1 | Tom Steels | 4hr 22min 29sec |
2 | Robbie McEwen | s.t. |
3 | Erik Zabel | s.t. |
4 | George Hincapie | s.t. |
5 | Silvio Martinello | s.t. |
6 | Lars Michaelsen | s.t. |
7 | Pascal Chanteur | s.t. |
8 | Gianpaolo Mondini | s.t. |
9 | Christophe Capelle | s.t. |
10 | Alexander Vinokourov | s.t. |
General Classification after Stage 17. 3,301.8 km ridden so far @ 40.058 km/hr average speed
1 | Lance Armstrong | 82hr 25min 30sec |
2 | Fernando Escartin | @ 6min 15sec |
3 | Alex Zulle | @ 7min 28sec |
4 | Laurent Dufaux | @ 10min 30sec |
5 | Richard Virenque | @ 11min 40sec |
6 | Daniele Nardello | @ 13min 19sec |
7 | Angel Casero | @ 13min 34sec |
8 | Abraham Olano | @ 14min 29sec |
9 | Wladimir Belli | @ 15min 14sec |
10 | Kurt Van de Wouver | @ 18min 27sec |
Stage 18: Friday, July 23. Jonzac - Futuroscope. Shortened to 184.7 km.
1 | Gianpaolo Mondini | 4hr 17min 43sec |
2 | Jean-Cyril Robin | @ 3sec |
3 | Alexander Vinokourov | s.t. |
4 | Mariano Piccoli | s.t. |
5 | Claude Lamour | s.t. |
6 | Francois Simon | s.t. |
7 | Stefano Garzelli | s.t. |
8 | Jorg Jaksche | s.t. |
9 | Elio Aggiano | s.t. |
10 | Thierry Bourguignon | s.t. |
GC after Stage 18:
Stage19: Saturday, July 24, Futuroscope 57 km individual time trial. Armstrong averaged 50.085 km/hr
1 | Lance Armstrong | 1hr 8min 17sec |
2 | Alex Zulle | @ 9sec |
3 | Tyler Hamilton | @ 1min 35sec |
4 | Angel Casero | @ 1min 37sec |
5 | Rik Verbrugghe | @ 2min 3sec |
6 | Abraham Olano | @ 2min 18sec |
7 | Wladimir Belli | @ 2min 23sec |
8 | Galdeano Gonzalez | @ 2min 28sec |
9 | Jens Voigt | @ 2min 43sec |
10 | Stuart O'Grady | @ 2min 47sec |
General Classification after Stage 19
1 | Lance Armstrong | 87hr 54min 37sec |
2 | Alex Zulle | @ 7min 37sec |
3 | Fernando Escartin | @ 10min 26sec |
4 | Laurent Dufaux | @ 14min 43sec |
5 | Angel Casero | @ 15min 11sec |
6 | Abraham Olano | @ 16min 47sec |
7 | Daniele Nardello | @ 17min 2sec |
8 | Richard Virenque | @ 17min 28sec |
9 | Wladimir Belli | @ 17min 37sec |
10 | Andrea Peron | @ 23min 10sec |
Stage 20: Sunday, July 25, Arpajon - Paris/Champs Elysées, 143.5 km
1 | Robbie McEwen | 3hr 37min 39sec |
2 | Erik Zabel | s.t. |
3 | Silvio Martinello | s.t. |
4 | Stuart O'Grady | s.t. |
5 | Carlos Da Cruz | s.t. |
6 | Lars Michaelsen | s.t. |
7 | Salvatore Commesso | s.t. |
8 | Tom Steels | s.t. |
9 | Stefen Wesemann | s.t. |
10 | Gianpaolo Mondini | s.t. |
The Story of the 1999 Tour de France:
This excerpt is from "The Story of the Tour de France", Volume 2. If you enjoy it we hope you will consider purchasing the book, either print, Kindle eBook or audiobook. The Amazon link here will the purchase easy.
Over the winter more allegations of drug use surfaced. Some could not be confirmed, others were obvious on their face. The conclusion one had to come to after digesting the accumulation of horrible information is that the situation was at least as bad or worse than the 1998 Tour led one to believe. And then the situation managed to deteriorate. After stage 5 in the 1999 Giro, the Italian National Sports Council (CONI) subjected 16 riders from 3 different teams to a new comprehensive blood and urine test. Two of the riders tested positive for dope but no sanctions were applied. The riders, as they have always been since the start of testing, were incensed. Marco Pantani, Oscar Camenzind, Laurent Jalabert and Mario Cipollini held a press conference and declared that if the national sports organization intruded any further upon the testing regimen which had heretofore been the responsibility of the UCI, they would stop racing. Of that group of 4, Pantani was not the only rider who would have drug problems. In 2004 Camenzind retired after receiving a 2-year suspension for EPO.
Before the start of the penultimate stage of the 1999 Giro, Marco Pantani was awakened so that a blood test could be administered. His hematocrit of 52 percent resulted in his being ejected from the Giro after he had won 4 stages and was leading in the General Classification. The cycling world was stunned. Pantani's squalificato seemed to affect many racing fans far more deeply than the Festina scandal, probably because of Pantani's powerfully heroic image. He had triumphed over a horrible accident and saved the Tour during its greatest crises. Partisans of Pantani made accusations of a conspiracy. In fact, the riders have long known how to foil the hematocrit test. When they knew they would be subjected to a test they would take saline injections and aspirin and in no time the rider's hematocrit was within the legal limit. Some teams even provided the riders with small centrifuges so that they could "manage" their red blood cell concentration. By waking Pantani up to take the test he wasn't able to take measures to bring his hematocrit down. He was a goner. Pantani was too devastated by the disqualification to consider riding the Tour.
In mid-June the Tour announced that the TVM team along with several individuals including ONCE team manager Manolo Saiz and rider Richard Virenque would not be allowed to participate in the Tour. Missing from the list of banned riders were the Festina and Mercatone Uno teams and Marco Pantani. Later on the UCI overruled the Tour organization and insisted that the Tour allow Virenque and Saiz to participate. And the doping in pro racing continued with 4 riders tossed from the Tour of Switzerland for high hematocrits.
In June Ullrich announced that he had injured his knee in the Tour of Germany and would not be able to compete in the Tour. With Pantani and Ullrich out, the press cast about for a favorite. At the top of a lot of lists were Pavel Tonkov (1996 Giro winner), Alex Zülle, Fernando Escartin and Ivan Gotti (1997 and 1999 Giro winner).
And there was another rider to consider. He had withdrawn from the 1996 Tour and could not ride the 1997 and 1998 editions as he endured surgery and chemotherapy to cure what should have been a life-ending case of testicular cancer. In the fall of 1997 he announced the resumption of his professional cycling career. That return was bumpy with intermittent success and withdrawals. But by mid 1998 he had clearly returned to the top ranks of professional cycling with a win in the Tour of Luxembourg, fourth in the Vuelta and fourth in the World Time Trial Championships. In 1999 he won the prologue of the Dauphiné Libéré, and narrowly lost a 2-up sprint to Michael Boogerd in the Amstel Gold Race. Lance Armstrong had returned. But he returned a different athlete. The man who had been a strong, punchy 175-pound powerhouse and who was one of the youngest-ever World Road Champions was now a gaunt, lean stage racer. He now trained and raced with a deliberate focus that turned out to be his most powerful weapon against his usual challenger, Jan Ullrich.
When Armstrong was diagnosed with cancer, he had just inked a $2.5-million, 2-year contract with the French team Cofidis. When Armstrong told Cofidis he was ready to return to racing they responded by firing him. Now Cofidis boss François Migraine didn't quite see it that way. He said that he was told Armstrong had testicular cancer two weeks after the Cofidis contract was signed. He said he promised to support Armstrong even if he couldn't fulfill the contract. Saying that he did not hear much from Armstrong, he sent Alain Bondue to the U.S. to find out what was happening exactly and to renegotiate the contract.
It is Bondue's renegotiating of the contract while Armstrong was so sick that infuriated the rider.
Migraine says that Cofidis did end up paying Armstrong approximately $600,000 to settle the contract and had reached a tentative agreement for the 1998 season before Armstrong signed for US Postal.
After a hard search for a new team Armstrong signed with the American US Postal squad and it was in their blue outfit that he was riding the Tour. While Armstrong was not on many possible Tour winner lists, Miguel Indurain had said that he thought Armstrong had a serious chance of winning the Tour.
With Pantani, Ullrich and Riis not starting the Tour, 1999 was one of those rare years in which there were no former Tour winners. The 1999 Tour started in the Loire Valley town of Le-Puy-de-Fou and went clockwise (Alps first) up to northeastern France and then a big transfer to begin the Alps on stage 9. After the Alps came the Massif Central, the Pyrenees and then the final time trial on the penultimate stage.
Armstrong showed that he had mastered the first component of a successful Tour rider, time trialing, winning the 6.8-kilometer prologue and beating Zülle by 7 seconds. Armstrong said that this day was doubly sweet, that he got more than the pleasure of the Yellow Jersey. After completing his ride and learning that he was the winner, he went by the Cofidis team who were there with the team managers. These were the managers who had come to his hospital bed when he was in the worst throes of chemotherapy and told him that they needed to re-do his contract. "That was for you," he told them.
Armstrong winning the 1999 Tour Prologue |
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The Tour was upended on the second stage. Starting at Challans, southeast of Nantes, the riders were sent to the island of Noirmoutier before returning to the mainland and a finish in St. Nazaire. The riders had to negotiate the Passage du Gois, a narrow 4-kilometer long road that is submerged except at low tide. Even when exposed, it is a dangerous, slippery road. Worse, there was a hard crosswind. Making the situation even more dire, the entire peloton reached the constricted road intact. Armstrong, Olano, Escartin, Tonkov, Virenque and Julich were in the front of the pack when it made the treacherous crossing and emerged unscathed. But behind them was chaos. A crash took down Zülle, Gotti and Michael Boogerd who were then badly delayed in the mess. The teams that had managed to get clear of the passage without damage went to the front of the lead group and pulled hard in order to derive the maximum benefit. The Zülle group eventually came in 6 minutes, 3 seconds after Tom Steels led in the front lucky 70 riders. At one terrible, early blow, Zülle, a wonderfully talented but accident-prone rider, was out of contention. With the time bonuses the sprinters were earning, Estonian sprinter Jaan Kirsipuu was now the leader with Armstrong only 14 seconds back in second place.
Stage 4 was notable because tailwinds allowed the riders to set a new record for the fastest road stage, 50.356 kilometers per hour, beating the 1993 record held by Johan Bruyneel.
Mario Cipollini wins stage 4 in Blois. |
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While there were several fine sprinters in the 1999 Tour, the finest, far and away, was Tuscan Mario Cipollini. By the end of stage 7 he had done what no postwar rider had done, win 4 stages in a row. One had to go back to the 1930 Tour when Charles Pélissier was the reigning speed demon to find the last 4-time consecutive stage winner. As they raced over the flatter roads of Northern France, the fast finishers enjoyed the time in the Tour when they could strut their stuff. The next day, in Metz, was a 56.5-kilometer individual time trial. Then the mountains had to be conquered. The General Classification men would come out of hiding after a period where their primary job had been to avoid trouble.
During the time trial, misfortune struck 2 important riders. Bobby Julich crashed and had to abandon. Abraham Olano crashed and lost enough time that the man who started after him, Armstrong, caught and passed him. Armstrong's victory in the stage was substantial. Zülle, who came in second, could only come within 57 seconds of him. The new General Classification with a rest day to be followed by the first Alpine stage:
The remaining big question was whether Armstrong could climb with men like Zülle, Escartin and Virenque. Before he came down with cancer, he couldn't. The ninth stage would certainly settle the question with the Tamié, Télégraphe, Galibier, Montgenèvre and a hilltop finish at Sestriere on the day's menu. It was a cold, wet day with hail on the descent of the Montgenèvre. Virenque got away on the Galibier and was the first over the Montgenèvre but couldn't hold his lead. On the descent of the Montgenèvre Escartin and Gotti took wild chances and managed to create a gap of about 30 seconds. On the final climb a small group of 5 of the best including Armstrong and Zülle were together. With less than 7 kilometers to go Armstrong jumped away. He caught and passed Escartin and then went right on by a dumbfounded Gotti. With the encouragement of Bruyneel coming over his earphone Armstrong rode ever harder and further from his chasers. The only credible threat coming up the road was from Zülle, but he couldn't do it. Armstrong crossed the line alone, 31 seconds ahead of Zülle and 2½ minutes ahead of Virenque.
The new General Classification:
Armstrong was now in the ideal position. He had a healthy lead, one so large that he could ride economically, just keeping his dangermen in check. He didn't have to waste energy on offensive exploits. In fact, he had been in control since the crash in stage 2 but insecurity about Olano's climbing abilities had prevented US Postal from relaxing. Armstrong adopted exactly that conservative strategy for the next day's stage to the top of L'Alpe d'Huez. With over 6 minutes in hand he planned to avoid disaster and let the others try to take the race from him. At the base of the Alpe the fast pace caused Olano to drop off. Part way up the climb Italian Giuseppe Guerini took flight with Tonkov hot on his tail. Tonkov couldn't close the gap but he was just dangerous enough that Armstrong went after him. Near the top a photographer got right in Guerini's way and the 2 went down together. Guerini jumped back on his bike and was able to regain his momentum and stayed away for a terrific victory with Tonkov only 21 seconds back. The Armstrong/Zülle group came within 4 seconds of Tonkov at the end. The net result for the day with Olano's 2-minute time loss was that Armstrong now had a lead of 7 minutes, 42 seconds over the still second placed Spaniard. Zülle was now third, 5 seconds behind Olano.
Now the Tour went across the Massif Central. While this terrain didn't have the dramatic climbs of the Alps and the Pyrenees, the sawtooth stage profiles were demanding. An escape could do damage if the leaders' teams weren't alert and willing to work hard. Stage 12 was a classic stage of this sort with 6 climbs rated category 2 and 3; stage 13 had 7 rated climbs. While these days were characterized by constant attacks and high temperatures, the top of the standings didn't change.
Before the start of the 2 Pyrenean stages the Tour took its second rest day. There were now 3 stages left that could affect the Tour's outcome: the 2 remaining days in the mountains and the 57-kilometer time trial. If the pure climbers wanted to take back time from Armstrong, time was running out.
Stage 15 had 6 big mountains: the Ares, Menté, Portillon, Peyresourde, Val Louron, and a hilltop finish at Piau-Engaly. From the first climb the non-stop attacks started. Virenque, Laurent Brochard and others shattered the peloton. In the now-reduced pack, US Postal kept a high but not hot pace since most of the breakaways were not threats to the leadership. But when Fernando Escartin took off on the Portillon, Armstrong himself closed the gap. Escartin went again on the Peyresourde and began to hook up with riders who had escaped earlier. Escartin dropped all the other riders and soloed in for the win. Virenque and Zülle, who had been able to withstand Armstrong's attempts to drop them, managed to beat the Yellow Jersey to the finish by 9 seconds. For Armstrong and his team those final kilometers of that stage represented a rare episode of support failure. Armstrong bonked. He ran out of food and couldn't keep up with the others. Again Olano had been the main casualty, this day coming in 7 minutes after Escartin and losing his second place in the standings.
Stage 15: Fernando Escartin wins in Piau-Engaly. Zülle and and Virenque are 2 minutes back. |
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That afternoon rumors became more solid when the French paper Le Monde announced that a drug test had shown Armstrong to be using a corticosteroid. The cycling press could not believe that Armstrong could emerge from cancer and be the extraordinary stage racer he had become, and delightedly fanned the rumors. It turned out to be the skin cream Armstrong had been using to fight saddle sores. It contained minute traces of cortisone but Armstrong had been cleared by the Tour authorities to use the medicine.
Stage 16 would be tough with the Aspin, Tourmalet, Soulor and the Aubisque. With a descent into Pau after the final climb, this stage would not give the pure climbers the chance to get real time if Armstrong should falter. While there was action off the front, Armstrong stayed focused on his rivals. On the Tourmalet, a hard acceleration by Postal rider Kevin Livingston caused Virenque to lose contact. The main worries were Escartin and Zülle who were both indefatigable and strong. At the top of the Tourmalet Escartin attacked and took Zülle and Armstrong with him. Escartin tried again on the Soulor and again Armstrong stayed with him. In the final drive to Pau Armstrong let the others go, not needing to fight for a stage win or further tire himself. After the Pyrenees the General Classification stood thus:
Armstrong chose to ride the stage 19 time trial to win, rather than playing it safe and riding carefully. But he beat Zülle by only 9 seconds. The main loser of the day was Escartin, who not unexpectedly, lost gobs of time and his second place. The Tour was now Armstrong's. Like the 1971 Tour (when Ocaña crashed out while in Yellow), this is a Tour that invites speculation. What if Zülle had not crashed in the Passage du Gois and lost 6 minutes? Now I understand that all the riders had to ride the same roads, it was the same for everyone and Armstrong was the heads-up savvy rider who made sure he was in the front of the peloton on that dangerous road. But if Zülle, who did crash a lot, had not lost that time, then perhaps Armstrong would not have had the luxury of a defensive ride. It would surely have been a closer Tour that might have gone another way.
Armstrong joined an elite group (Merckx, Hinault and Indurain) when he won all of the 1999 Tour's time trials. That French cycling was still at a low ebb was made clear. The highest placed Frenchman was Virenque at eighth place, 17 minutes, 28 seconds behind Armstrong. For the first time since 1926, in the era of Belgian Tour hegemony, no Frenchman had won a stage. In 1926 the highest placed French rider came in eighth as well.
Final 1999 Tour de France General Classification:
Climbers' Competition:
Points Competition:
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