This week is the final week at the World Most Famous Cycling competition and we can see more clearly that the racers are now being more aggressive than in the rest of the competition. At the head Alberto Contador is leading the competition but he is being followed by the seven time champion. Definitely is going to be a good week to follow the competition.


Once again the entire competition is going to be define this last week . The stages look difficult to conclude giving the advantage to the strongest ones to score more points and make a better time. Like all the previous years, the last week is the week in which  all the times start to point to whom is going to win the competition.

In the general position table we can see that Alberto Contador is leading the board with a time of 67h 33′ 15″. He is being follow by Lance Armstrong with a difference of 01′ 37″. Now we have to remember what Lance said about feeling weak or strong to win the competition. He promised that if he decided during the race that Contador was doing a better job than him, he was  going to lead his win, but I think that being in the second place is a clue that he is going to give it all to win this competition one more time and make the French hate him a  bit more.

Here is the general table of positions.

1. CONTADOR A. (AST) with 67h 33′ 15″
2. ARMSTRONG L. (AST) + 01′ 37″
3. WIGGINS B. (GRM) + 01′ 46″
4. KLÖDEN A. (AST) + 02′ 17″
5. SCHLECK A. (SAX) + 02′ 26″
6. NIBALI V. (LIQ) + 02′ 51″
7. LE MEVEL C. (FDJ) + 03′ 09″
8. SCHLECK F. (SAX) + 03′ 25″
9. SASTRE C. (CTT) + 03′ 52″
10. VANDE VELDE C. (GRM) + 03′ 59″

About the stages this week, we can see that they are difficult and we have a preview of all of them here as well:

July 21: Stage 16, Martigny (Switzerland) to Bourg-Saint-Maurice (France), 99.4 miles: No one will win the Tour today, but it could be lost with even a brief lapse. A stage with similar topography cost Garmin’s Christian Vande Velde his podium hopes last year. The leading group will begin by scaling the “beyond classification” 8,110-foot Col du Grand-Saint-Bernard pass. As soon as that descent ends, the climb up the Category 1 “Petit” Saint-Bernard begins. Another descent wraps up this survival-of-the-fittest stage.

July 22: Stage 17, Bourg-Saint-Maurice to Le Grand-Bornand, 105 miles: The stage profile looks like the seismograph of an earthquake, with five categorized climbs and a downhill finish. The climbing could be greater than the sum of its parts, especially if it’s hot — a pitfall day for the overall contenders.

July 23: Stage 18, Annecy (individual time trial), 24.8 miles: In a departure from recent tradition, this test, usually scheduled for the penultimate day, recedes somewhat in importance because of its placement, but still could be a critical setup for the grand finale if time gaps among the leaders are close. The course circumnavigates a picturesque lake and includes one modest hill.

July 24: Stage 19, Bourgoin-Jallieu to Aubenas, 110.6 miles: The least exhausted breakaway specialists will contest this stage while the overall leaders conserve energy.

July 25: Stage 20, Montelimar to Mont Ventoux, 103.8 miles: All the marbles will be at stake on the windswept, barren moonscape of this geologic anomaly, where so many riders have found glory and grief. It’s hard to overstate how dramatic this finish could be, as even substantial margins could evaporate.

July 26: Stage 21, Montereau-Fault-Yonne to Paris, 101.9 miles: Almost always entertaining, the parade stage could have a bearing on what is expected to be a fierce battle for the green, or top sprinter’s, jersey. That honor is acutely coveted by young Columbia sensation Mark Cavendish, who will be trying to fend off rivals, including Cervelo Test Team’s Thor Hushovd and Oscar Freire of Rabobank.

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