velonews uk

Andy Schleck has conceded that his only hope of beating Alberto Contador in this year’s Tour de France is to attack him on the way to the summit finish on the Col du Tourmalet tomorrow, as he seeks not only to make up the eight second deficit he incurred after Tuesday’s notorious Chaingate incident, but also build a sufficient cushion to counter the Astana rider’s expected superiority in Saturday’s time trial.

“Did you enjoy that? Any complaints?” asked Neil Smith, co-organiser of last weekend’s Anthony Maynard Sportive, as he swiped my timing chip on the finishing line. Perhaps he’d read some of my previous reports. “Yes” and “No” respectively, were my responses offered in those mildly euphoric, endorphin-enhanced moments when the pedalling stops, in this instance after 110km in the saddle.

With six stage victories by home riders so far in this year’s Tour de France and Anthony Charteau and Christophe Moreau set to lock horns on the way up to the Tourmalet tomorrow to decide who is this year’s King of the Mountains, you could be forgiven for thinking that French cycling is experiencing something of a revival, but a recent poll suggests that public support for the race is in terminal decline.