CYCLING Live

Giro d'Italia - *Palermo-Palermo

Live Comments

17:55 - Right, that's a wrap. Be sure to return tomorrow for full action of the first road stage of this year's race. Live coverage from 15:30 CET.
17:49 - Top ten: 1 Slipstream 26.32, 2 CSC @6, 3 High Road @7, 4 Liquigas @8, 5 Barloworld @14, 6 LPR Brakes @28, 7 Astana @29, 8 Tinkoff @33, 9 Quick Step @42, 10 Lampre @45
17:46 - So, it's the maglia rosa for Christian Vande Velde after he lead his Slipstream team over the line with the best time here in Palermo.
17:41 - Di Luca leads home four team-mates across the finish line to take sixth place, 28 seconds down.
17:40 - LPR, the final team on the road, cross the banner... it's a good time, but will not put them into the mix.
17:39 - Silence-Lotto finish 1'18" down on Slipstream. They will no doubt be on the receiving end of a roasting from their directeur sportif for that ragged display. That said, they're hear for stage wins from Robbie McEwen... this was never a priority for the team.
17:37 - Our first message of the day comes all the way from Iceland: "This is a great day, and you guys are doing a good job. I would like to send a greeting to all the cycling fans who are watching. (all the way from Iceland)From HFR cycling team in Iceland. www.hfr.is Best regards, Sigmundur Grétar Hermannsson" Many thanks Sigmundur.
17:34 - Silence-Lotto all over the place: every corner sees them split apart. On one occasion, four riders broke clear... which would have been perilous at the finish line seeing that the time is taken as the fifth rider crosses the line. They come together, but then split up again... a terribly erratic conclusion to their TTT by Robbie McEwen's outfit.
17:33 - Gerolsteiner cross the line in 12th, 54 seconds off the pace.
17:31 - FIRST GIRO CASUALTY: CSF's Maximiliano Richeze did not start today's race after news broke that he failed a doping test at the recent Circuit de la Sarthe. An early blow for the Giro organisers and their concept of biological passports...
17:29 - Gerolsteiner are down to six riders as they go under the one-to-go banner.
17:28 - LPR roll round the tight bend at the far end of the course and now, alongside the beach, are making their way back to the finish line, just over 10 km ahead.
17:26 - It's fourth for Liquigas, nine seconds down on Slipstream. All the teams crossing the line now are putting in impressive times, but it looks like that of Robert Millar's team will not be surpassed.
17:25 - Liquigas are also putting in a solid run. Approaching the one-to-go banner, they might well push High Road for third place...
17:22 - It's good, but not good enough: third place for High Road, just seven seconds behind Slipstream.
17:21 - They may be down to just six riders, but High Road are now roaring to the finish line... could they create an upset?
17:19 - Di Luca, wearing pink, leads his team LPR Brakes... today starts his quest to be the first back-to-back winner of the Giro since Spaniard Miguel Indurain in the early 90s.
17:16 - A superb ride by Barloworld: all nine men rip towards the finish line to take third, just 14 seconds down from Slipstream. Astana are edge out to fourth.
17:15 - LPR Brakes, the final team, get their time trial underway with a roar from the Di Luca supporting crowd.
17:15 - From T-Mobile pink to High Road black-and-white... Bradley Wiggins' team are seemingly in disarray. Just over half way through, but they are beginning to split up...
17:09 - Gerolsteiner are on the road, with Silence-Lott just about to start.
17:07 - The moment of truth: CSC approach the finish line... will they make up those eight seconds? They have put in a massive dig over the last 5 clicks, and lost one man in the process. A valient effort: just six seconds off Slipstream. A betting man would put his money on Vande Velde wearing the maglia rosa tonight. That said, the likelihood of a bookie taking bets now is minimal!!
17:03 - Francaise des Jeux post a weak time, almost one and a half minutes off the pace... Not their best discipline this.
17:01 - Liquigas are off! Just three more teams to go now, including LPR Brakes, who will be last down the ramp by virtue of Danilo Di Luca's win last year. A win, of course, that came when he was wearing the colours of Liquigas...
16:58 - Lampre cross the line in fifth, 45 seconds off the blistering pace set by Slipstream, whose rider Christian Vande Valde is in provisional pink. No Cunego this year - the Italian is concentrating on the Tour de France.
16:56 - High Road, formally known as T-Mobile, the next onto the road. Two Brits included - Mark Cavendish and Bradley 'Mod' Wiggins.
16:53 - Barloworld down the ramp...
16:52 - Team CSC cross the 10.4km check eight seconds in arrears. They look like they will push Slipstream today...
16:50 - Provisional top ten: 1 Slipstream 26.32, 2 Astana 27.01, 3 Tinkoff 27.05, 4 QuickStep 27.14, 5 Milram 27.17, 6 Serramenti Diquigiovanni 27.23, 7 Caisse d'Epargne 27.26, 8 Saunier-Duval 27.34, 9 Rabobank 27.35, 10 Cofidis 27.35
16:46 - Euskaltel come home in drips and drabs, over a minute back. That was quite a mess from the Basque team.. 1'17" down on Slipstream.
16:44 - But it is not over yet. Slipstream may have put in a heroic drive, but Team CSC are on the road now and they have set themselves the pink jersey as a target today...
16:42 - David Millar explains why he pulled up at the end and allowed Slipstream team mate Christian Vande Velde cross the line first: "For me the most important was to ride a really good course and for the team to win. Once I knew the finish was in sight I slowed and allowed Christian to lead the team over. He's a great rider and it would be nice for an American to wear the pink jersey tonight."
16:40 - The green shirts of CSF ride past the beach following the half-way stage. Surely they will not ride in the Tour... those shirts would make them all Robbie McEwen class!!
16:38 - Second place for Astana! Current top five leaderboard: Slipstream 26:32, Astana at 29, Tinkoff at 33, QuickStep at 42, Milram at 45.
16:34 - Astana will be next to cross the finish line... they are still riding as nine men, which is promising for directeur sportif Sean Yates. But maybe it also shows that they could have given it some more wellie?
16:32 - QuickStep take third, 42 seconds behind that brutal time set by Slipstream.
16:31 - Send in your thoughts, observations, predictions to me at lowefelix@hotmail.com
16:29 - Back at the start, Lampre are poised to start. No Damiano Cunego of course...
16:28 - I must say, the Tifosi are not really out in their masses today... In this particular section where Astana are roaring past, there is just a splattering of fans...
16:26 - Slipstream smash Tinkoff's time by 33 seconds to blast into the lead. A great effort there... David Millar, the Scot, was so tired that he sat up and rode the last section at a lower pace than his team-mates. Remember, the time given to the team is that of the fifth rider to pass through over the line.
16:26 - Copy and paste this link into your browser to see a map of today's route: javascript:popup('/Speciali/Giroditalia/2008/planimetria/T01_plan.html')
16:23 - One of the race favourites, alberto Contador, is currently riding on the back of his Astana snake... they are getting into their rhythm as they pass the sea on the beach side section of the route.
16:22 - Caisse D'Epargne take fourth, 21 seconds behind Tinkoff.
16:21 - Astana are third at the 10km check, nine seconds behind current leaders at that point, Slipstream.
16:20 - Caisse d'Epargne are approaching the finish at the Teatro Massimo... the Spanish outfit are just one rider down...
16:18 - A fierce pace by Slipstream sees rider Patrick McCarty completely blown away on one small rise. He will complete the rest of the TTT on his own... that's the second rider the team has lost... Zabriskie and Millar are putting in a titanic effort.
16:18 - Paolo Bettini's Quick Step are 18 seconds down after the 10 km mark.
16:17 - Arrival of the Diquigiovanni - Androni team. They almost pip Milram for second, but in the end have to settle for third place, 18 seconds down on current leaders Tinkoff.
16:16 - At the finish line, Saunier-Duval's Riccardo Ricco is happy with his team's performance.
16:15 - Sean Yates' Astana team look strong. The pace is high and one rider has been distanced. The same can be said for Slipstream, just further up the road, where one rider has been dropped.
16:12 - Saunier Duval have just gone through the finish, 29 seconds in arrears to take third place. Cofidis are fourth.
16:12 - The weather, while humid, is not great in Palermo. it's not raining now, but there was a bit of water earlier on...
16:11 - Current leaders: Tinkoff at 27:05
16:08 - We pick up the action as Slipstream have just got off. There are now eight teams who have left the start gate. Times coming right up. Astana are next off...
16:06 - TODAY'S START LIST: 15:30 Team Milram 15:35 Tinkoff 15:40 Cofidis 15:45 Saunier Duval-Scott 15:50 S. Diquigiovanni - Androni G. 15:55 Caisse d'Epargne 16:00 Slipstream/Chipotle H30 16:05 Quick Step 16:10 Astana 16:15 Rabobank 16:20 Euskatel-Euskadi 16:25 CSF Group-Navigare 16:30 Lampre 16:35 Francaise des Jeux 16:40 Team CSC 16:45 AG2R 16:50 Barloworld 16:55 High Road 17:00 Liquigas 17:05 Gerolsteiner 17:10 Silence-Lott 17:15 LPR Brakes
15:53 - Today's opening largely flat and smooth course loops around the centre of the beautiful city of Palermo, starting at the impressive Piazza Politeama and finishing 23.6km later in front of the Teatro Massimo.
15:53 - Hello and welcome to eurosport.yahoo.com's live coverage of this year's Giro d'Italia. The first of 2008's major tours starts with a team time trial here in the up-and-coming Sicilian city of Palermo. Stay tuned for live comments and all the latest news from the peloton.