Who will win the 2008 Tour de France?
Thursday, July 24th, 2008
Will we see a ”winner” in this year’s Tour?.
The 2008 Tour de France is almost ready to conclude despite all these doping scandals that have plagued cycling’s premiere event.
Of course, this year’s Tour is still something Cadel Evans to lose. He already has a firm grasp on that title and if everything works out as planned, I won’t be surprised to see this guy winning it. So who else will win this year’s Tour if Evans finds himself being tested positive for performance enhancing drugs?
First we have Damiano Cunego. He has shown considerable growth as a rider since winning the 2004 Giro d’Italia, the type of results and maturity that is needed to win the world’s biggest cycling race.
The 26-year-old won the young rider classification in his only Tour de France appearance in 2006 but failed to live up to his earlier promise until he won the Giro di Lombardia last fall. Add to the fact that he is a former winner of the Giro d’Italia, the ‘’little prince’’ who rides for Lampre is a huge talent in stage racing, especially in the mountains. Next we have Alejandro Valverde. Known as the ‘Green Bullet’ in some circles, he might just be blasting his way to the top of the Tour de France podium.
The 28 year-old Spaniard from Murcia who was brilliant throughout 2006 has that same spark this year, thanks to big wins like Liege-Bastogne-Liege and Dauphine Libere. The former was a welcome addition to Valverde’s solid palmares, but the latter, coming only three weeks before the Tour de France depart, indicates that his one-day racing legs have developed to handle stages races.
Alejandro Valverde is also a proficient…
Will Cadel Evans win the 2008 Tour de France?
Monday, July 21st, 2008
Because quite frankly, you’ll never know who’ll win it even after the tournament is over.
It has been well documented that doping scandals have always plagued cycling’s premiere event. And these doping scandals can snatch the title away from whoever wins it, like last year when Michael Rasmussen should’ve been the winner but because of him getting tested positive for dope, the 2007 title was then literally handed over to Alberto Contador. Guess what, we already have THREE in the 2008 Tour de France.
Sad huh? The latest of which? Riccardo Ricco. The guy already won two stages of the Tour de France as people are probably starting to marvel his endurance in what is a very very grueling spot. When he was tested positive for performance enhancing drugs, it was all over.
The biggest question now is, who will will don the maillot jaune of best overall rider when the three-week race concludes in Paris? Who will be the next Lance Armstrong?
The list of favorites boils down to just five men; Cadel Evans (Silence-Lotto), Damiano Cunego (Lampre), Alejandro Valverde (Caisse d’Epargne), Denis Menchov (Rabobank) and Carlos Sastre (CSC-Saxo).
But since Cadel Evans is the first guy we mentioned, let’s find out if this dude can win this one shall we?
Cadel Evans has been in the top ten in the last three years, including second in 2007, that’s why he is the hottest pick for the 2008 title. Last year, just 23 seconds separated him from a Tour victory.
This year, his morale has surely been raised, thanks to one of his best spring campaigns in years, with wins in Vuelta a Andalucía (stage), Paris-Nice (Mont Ventoux stage), Coppi e Bartali (overall and stage) and the recent announcement that the Silence-Lotto team would be 100 percent behind him, leaving top sprinter Robbie McEwen to look after himself in the bunch gallops.
Can he win it all? There’s only one way to…
Ronaldinho joins AC Milan
Friday, July 18th, 2008
Former Barcelona FC Star Ronaldinho is now a member of Italian football giants AC Milan.
You read it people, Ronaldinho won’t be playing for Manchester City in the coming 2008-09 English Premier League season but instead, will play in the San Siro to join AC Milan in the Italian Serie A.
After spending his last years in the Spanish league dealing with numerous injuries, the (now) former Barcelona superstar, Ronaldinho, is hoping he’ll have a fresh start in the Italian league as he tries to help AC Milan bring the title home to the San Siro.
Ronaldinho, together with another Brazilian footballer, the 2007 FIFA World Player of the Year Kaka, will form some kind of combination in AC Milan. Their success, of course, remains to be seen.
For now, the Italian football giants are excited to introduce their newly acquired star. Thursday was the day when they formally introduced the Brazilian football icon to the excited AC Milan fans.
Ronaldinho is happy about the transfer of course. After he realized that he is no longer welcomed in Barcelona, why wouldn’t he?
‘’I can confirm that I strongly wanted to join AC Milan,’’ Ronaldinho said. ‘’It’s true. Many things have happened but in the end I have become a Rossonero player. I am happy to find so many Brazilians but also all the champions that wear the Rossoneri colours.’’
‘’I am really happy. After many years I am here. I am delighted to have arrived to AC Milan and I hope to be able to give a lot of joy to everyone.’’
How can Manchester City compete with…
Katie Hoff is ready for the 2008 Bejiing Olympics
Thursday, July 17th, 2008
The Beijing games are almost here.
Of course, we’re still a few more weeks from August 8, 2008, when the 2008 Beijing Olympic Games start. Hopefully, the U.S. basketball team will find the redemption they’re looking for since Europeans started beating them on the basketball courts.
One who’ll also be looking for redemption is swimmer Katie Hoff. She was just a shoo-in to make the 2004 Olympic team. She was just 15 years old then. But something happened back in Athens that made her so eager to redeem herself in this year’s Olympic games.
Her trip for the 2004 Olympic Games in Athens was the first international flight she did it without her parents, who couldn’t afford the cost of last-minute travel to the Olympics. Yup, her parents were not around to support her. And to make matters worse for the young lady, her coach, Paul Yetter wasn’t even allowed on the pool deck and couldn’t be with Hoff much of the time.
With all these factors, her losing in the 2004 Olympics in Athens was almost known even before she took the flight. She finished 6th in her heat and 17th overall.
Katie Hoff admitted that she really didn’t get over her disappointment in Athens until she went to Montreal for the 2005 World Championships. And back on July 25, 2005, nearly a year after Athens, Hoff finally found redemption in these international tournaments. She won the 200 IM final in 2:10.41.
‘’When I touched the wall in the 200 IM, the first thing I thought was, ‘OK, I’m good again,”’ Hoff said. ‘’I proved to everyone, especially to…”
Spain’s Pain ends after winning Euro 2008
Tuesday, July 1st, 2008
Yes, Spain just became the new Euro 2008 champions.
The 2008 UEFA European Football Championships have just ended with Spain winning it all to end 44 years of underachievement. They beat Germany 1-0, in Vienna last Sunday despite of Spain’s, as well as the tournament’s leading scorer, David Villa, playing with an injury.
In the end, Villa hurting was not a factor as it was Fernando Torres who was able to lead Spain to the title after scoring the game-winning goal in the 33rd minute. The German side, more specifically Michael Ballack, did everything that they could to even things up. Unfortunately for them, Spain simply held on.
Spain was coming into the Euro 2008 final as international heavyweights of football but can’t seem to win any major tournament whatsoever since 1964. Yes, Spaniards were regarded as big chokers when it comes to them playing on that pitch.
After beating Germany, they are no longer regarded as chokers but Euro 2008 champions. How about that eh?
Spain is a nation divided by their regions. Lyrics of their national anthem was not even used for crying out loud. The Spanish side needed to win this tournament and after Fernando Torres did just that for them, Spain was united even for just a few minutes.
‘’Viva Espana’’ sang their fans before the sangria started flowing.
This was billed as a clash of Germany’s efficiency and power versus Spain’s fluidity and creativity which were on display as Russia were swept aside in the semi-finals. The Germans’ drive came from Michael Ballack, with the Chelsea midfielder passed fit despite carrying a calf injury on the eve of the final.
‘Against the odds we will win the trophy’, read one headline from a…
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