After three weeks, 21 stages, visiting six countries, a compelling Tour de France is in the books. There may have been many questions leading up to the race regarding Astana and the identity of its team leader, but those were emphatically answered by a man considered to be the greatest climber of his generation, Alberto Contador.
The Spaniard, despite perhaps lacking the tactical knowledge of his team-mate and rival Lance Armstrong, knew exactly when and how to attack his rivals and put them under pressure. The first sign of his position as Astana's leader came during his ascent in Andorra on Stage 7 which put him ahead of Armstrong in the General Classification, and his fantastic display up to Verbier on Stage 15, which put him in the yellow jersey by 1:37, meant that it became his Tour to lose.
Previous years had seen Contador falter in time trials, but his 2nd place finish in the Stage 1 event in Monaco suggested that he could not only limit his losses against Armstrong, Bradley Wiggins and his other GC rivals on Stage 18 in Annecy, but actually make gains. He did just that, producing an amazing display to win the stage and, to all intents and purposes, the Tour.
All he had to do was maintain his 4:11 lead into Paris, which he did with comfort, and despite the embarrassment over standing on the podium and being played the Danish national anthem instead of the Spanish, he proudly took the final yellow jersey and the plaudits, and a place among the greats of the sport.
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