ADELAIDE, Australia, 25 January 2004 — Australian cyclist Patrick Jonker will take a healthy time advantage into today’s final stage of the Tour Down Under and is poised to claim overall victory.
His third strong ride in as many days means only a disaster will come between the 34-year-old local favorite and a perfect retirement present.
Australian Ben Day won Saturday’s crucial fifth stage, a 147-kilometer looped course that started and finished at Willunga, south of Adelaide.
Jonker coped well with the 3km climb up Old Willunga Hill at 123km, where this Tour is often won and lost, and finished only a few seconds behind Day.
Jonker will take a 1min 34sec lead ahead of compatriot Robbie McEwen into today’s 90km Adelaide street race.
But Jonker was assuming nothing on the eve of his last day as a professional cyclist.
“You know how it is with racing, there’s always a fall or puncture around the corner,” he said. “But we’re a lot closer than we’ve ever been.”
The biggest overall winning margin in this event’s six-year history is a scant 21sec.
Armstrong Says New Doping Scandal Hurting Cycling
In Solvang, California, five-time Tour de France winner Lance Armstrong said Friday he welcomed any move by French authorities to crack down on doping scandals.
“The French are the most aggressive when it comes to chasing these things down. That’s all I can say,” said Armstrong.
The Olympic bronze medalist Armstrong was responding to fresh allegations of a doping scandal in France, involving the arrest of several former and current members of the Cofidis team.
“It’s obviously not good for cycling,” said the 32-year-old American Armstrong. “It’s another controversy, another bruise. I only know about it through the internet so I can’t really comment.”
Armstrong was in Solvang to attend a news conference on Friday to discuss future plans for his US Postal Service cycling team.
“What I read is what everybody knows. It’s unfortunate, it’s bad for all of us. It’s like any scandal. It’s probably not as big as they make it out to be but it’s still not good,” he said.
French judicial sources said this week that riders with the Cofidis team have admitted to doping under police questioning.
