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1997 Tour de France map

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1997 Tour Quick Facts:

The 1997 Tour de France was 3,943.8 kilometers long and was ridden at an average speed of 39.238 km/hr.

There were 198 starters of whom 139 made it to Paris.

1996 second place Jan Ullrich put on an incredible display of power in the 10th stage to Arcalis, taking the lead and easily defending it to Paris. Richard Virenque never gave up trying to beat Ullrich, but the end was never really in doubt. At 23 years old, many thought Ullrich might win the Tour 6 or 7 times more.

Marco Pantani gave a foretaste of what he would do in 1998 when he won solo at L'Alpe d'Huez.

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Final 1997 Tour de France General Classification:

1. Jan Ullrich (Telekom): 100hr 30min 35sec
2. Richard Virenque (Festina) @ 9min 9sec
3. Marco Pantani (Mercatone Uno) @ 14min 3sec
4. Abraham Olano (Banesto) @ 15min 55sec
5. Fernando Escartin (Kelme) @ 20min 32sec
6. Francesco Casagrande (Saeco) @ 22min 47sec
7. Bjarne Riis (Telekom) @ 26min 34sec
8. José-Maria Jimenez (Banesto) @ 31min 17sec
9. Laurent Dufaux (Festina) @ 31min 55sec
10. Roberto Conti (Mercatne Uno) @ 32min 26sec
11. Beat Zberg (Mercatone Uno) @ 35min 41sec
12. Oscar Camenzind (Mapei-GB) @ 35min 52sec
13. Peter Luttenberger (Rabobank) @ 45min 39sec
14. Manuel Beltran (Banesto) @ 49min 34sec
15. Jean-Cyril Robin (US Postal) @ 58min 35sec
16. Michael Boogerd (Rabobank) @ 1hr 33sec
17. Bobby Julich (Cofidis) @ 1hr 1min 10sec
18. Daniele Nardello (Mapei-GB) @ 1hr 1min 30sec
19. Christophe Moreau (Festina) @ 1hr 2min 48sec
20. Stéphane Heulot (FDJ) @ 1hr 6min 13sec
21. Udo Bolts (Telekom) @ 1hr 9min 13sec
22. Hernan Buenahora (Kelme) @ 1hr 13min 48sec
23. Laurent Roux (Festina) @ 1hr 17min 44sec
24. Massimo Podenzana (Mercatone Uno) @ 1hr 20min 56sec
25. Laurent Madouas (Lotto-Mobistar)@ 1hr 24min 58sec
26. Pascal Chanteur (Casino) @ 1hr 25min 48sec
27. Santiago Blanco (Banesto) @ 1hr 29min 18sec
28. Thierry Bourguignon (Big Mat-Auber 93) @ 1hr 29min 35sec
29. Angel Casero (Banesto) @ 1hr 35min 11sec
30. Alberto Elli (Casino) @ 1hr 37min 23sec

Climbers' Competition:

1. Richard Virenque (Festina): 579 points
2. Jan Ullrich (Telekom): 328
3. Francesco Casagrande (Saeco): 309

Points Competition:

1. Erik Zabel (Telekom): 350 points
2. Frédéric Moncassin (Gan): 223
3. Mario Traversoni(Mercatone Uno): 198

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Individual Stages, Results and running GC

Prologue: Saturday, July 5, Rouen 7.3 km Individual Time Trial.

1. Chris Boardman: 8min 20sec
2. Jan Ullrich @ 2sec
3. Evgeni Berzin @ 5sec
4. Tony Rominger s.t.
5. Alex Zulle s.t.
6. Peter Meinert @ 7sec
7. Rolf Sorensen s.t.
8. Abraham Olano s.t.
9. Laurent Brochard @ 11sec
10. Christophe Moreau @ 12sec

Stage 1: Sunday, July 6, Rouen - Forges les Eaux, 192 km.

1. Mario Cipollini: 4hr 39min 59sec
2. Tom Steels s.t.
3. Frederic Moncassin s.t.
4. Erik Zabel s.t.
5. Robbie McEwen s.t.
6. Nicolas Jalabert s.t.
7. Gordon Fraser s.t.
8. Nicola Minali s.t.
9. Francois Simon s.t.
10. Mario Traversoni s.t.

GC after Stage 1:

1. Mario Cipollini: 4hr 48min 9sec
2. Chris Boardman @ 10sec
3. Jan Ullrich @ 12sec
4. Tony Rominger @ 15sec
5. Abraham Olano @ 20sec
6. Tom Steels @ 24sec
7. Servais Knaven @ 25sec
8. Erik Dekker @ 27sec
9. Oscar Camenzind s.t.
10. Frank Vandenbroucke @ 28sec

Stage 2: Monday, July 7, St. Valery en Caux - Vie, 262 km.

1. Mario Cipollini: 6hr 27min 47sec
2. Erik Zabel s.t.
3. Jeroen Blijlevens s.t.
4. Frederic Moncassin s.t.
5. Sergei Outschakov s.t.
6. Adriano Baffi s.t.
7. Claude Lamour s.t.
8. Henk Vogels s.t.
9. Robbie McEwen s.t.
10. Massimo Strazzer s.t.

GC after Stage 2:

1. Mario Cipollini: 11hr 15min 30sec
2. Chris Boardman @ 36sec
3. Jan Ullrich @ 38sec
4. Tony Rominger @ 41sec
5. Abraham Olano @ 46sec
6. Laurent Jalabert @ 48sec
7. Jeroen Blijlevens @ 48sec
8. Erik Zabel @ 49sec
9. Tom Steels @ 50sec
10. Servais Knaven @ 51sec

Stage 3: Tuesday, July 8, Vire - Plumelec, 224 km.

1. Erik Zabel: 4hr 54min 33sec
2. Frank Vandenbroucke s.t.
3. Bjarne Riis s.t.
4. Laurent Jalabert s.t.
5. Davide Rebellin s.t.
6. Abraham Olano s.t.
7. Jean-Cyril Robin s.t.
8. Jan Ullrich s.t.
9. Laurent Dufaux s.t.
10. Pascal Chanteur s.t.

GC after Stage 3:

1. Mario Cipollini: 16hr 10min 12sec
2. Erik Zabel @ 14sec
3. Chris Boardman @ 27sec
4. Jan Ullrich @ 29sec
5. Frank Vandenbroucke @ 33sec
6. Abraham Olano @ 37sec
7. Laurent Jalabert @ 39sec
8. Pascal Lino @ 52sec
9. Frederic Moncassin @ 55sec
10. Oscar Camenzind s.t.

Stage 4: Wednesday, July 9, Plumelec - Le Puy du Fou, 223 km.

1. Nicola Minali: 5hr 46sec 42sec
2. Frederic Moncassin s.t.
3. Erik Zabel s.t.
4. Mario Cipollini s.t.
5. Jeroen Blijlevens s.t.
6. Fabio Baldato s.t.
7. Jan Kirsipuu s.t.
8. Stuart O'Grady s.t.
9. Robby McEwen s.t.
10. Nicola Loda s.t.

GC after stage 4:

1. Mario Cipollini: 21hr 56min 46sec
2. Erik Zabel @ 4sec
3. Chris Boardman @ 35sec
4. Jan Ullrich @ 37sec
5. Frank Vandenbroucke s.t.
6. Abraham Olano @ 45sec
7. Laurent Jalabert @ 47sec
8. Frederic Moncassin @ 51sec
9. Pascal Lino @ 1min
10. Oscar Camenzind @ 1min 3sec

Stage 5: Thursday, July 10, Chantonnay - La Chatre, 261.5 km.

1. Cedric Vasseur: 6hr 16min 14sec
2. Stuart O'Grady @ 2min 32sec
3. Francisco Cabello s.t.
4. Marco Artunghi s.t.
5. Peter Meinert
6. Thierry Bourguignon s.t.
7. Fabrice Gougot s.t.
8. Stephane Cueff s.t.
9. Marco Zen s.t.
10. Bo Hamburger s.t.

GC after Stage 5:

1. Cedric Vasseur: 28hr 14min 35sec
2. Mario Cipollini @ 2min 17sec
3. Erik Zabel @ 2min 19sec
4. Chris Boardman @ 2min 54sec
5. Jan Ullrich @ 2min 56sec
6. Frank Vandenbroucke @ 3min
7. Abraham Olano @ 3min 4sec
8. Stuart O'Grady @ 3min 5sec
9. Frederic Moncassin @ 3min 6sec
10. Laurent Jalabert s.t.

Stage 6: Friday, July 11, Le Blanc - Marennes, 215.5 km.

1. Jeroen Blijlevens: 5hr 58min 9sec
2. Djamolidine Abdoujaparov s.t.
3. Mario Traversoni s.t.
4. Nicola Minali s.t.
5. Frederic Moncassin s.t.
6. Robbie McEwen s.t.
7. Fabio Baldato s.t.
8. Damien Nazon s.t.
9. Massimo Strazzer s.t.
10. François Simon s.t.

GC after Stage 6:

1. Cedric Vasseur: 34hr 12min 44sec
2. Erik Zabel @ 2min 9sec
3. Mario Cipollini @ 2min 15sec
4. Chris Boardman @ 2min 54sec
5. Jan Ullrich @ 2min 56sec
6. Frank Vandenbroucke @ 3min
7. Stuart O'Grady @ 3min 3sec
8. Frederic Moncassin @ 3min 4sec
9. Abraham Olano s.t.
10. Laurent Jalabert @ 3min 6sec

Stage 7: Saturday, July 12, Marrennes - Bordeaux, 194 km.

1. Erik Zabel: 4hr 11min 15sec
2. Jan Kirsipuu s.t.
3. Jeroen Blijlevens s.t.
4. Robbie McEwen s.t.
5. Massimo Strazzer s.t.
6. François Simon s.t.
7. Henk Vogels s.t.
8. Frederic Moncassin s.t.
9. Nicolas Jalabert s.t.
10. Mario Traversoni s.t.

GC after Stage 7:

1. Cedric Vasseur: 38hr 23min 59sec
2. Erik Zabel @ 1min 49sec
3. Chris Boardman @ 2min 54sec
4. Jan Ullrich @ 2min 56sec
5. Stuart O'Grady @ 3min 3sec
6. Frederic Moncassin @ 3min 4sec
7. Abraham Olano s.t.
8. Laurent Jalabert @ 3min 6sec
9. Oscar Camenzind @ 3min 22sec
10. Davide Rebellin @ 3min 24sec

Stage 8: Sunday, July 13, Sauternes - Pau, 161.5 km.

1. Erik Zabel: 3hr 22min 42sec
2. Nicola Minali s.t.
3. Jeroen Blijlevens s.t.
4. Frederic Moncassin s.t.
5. Lauri Aus s.t.
6. Gian Matteo Fagnini s.t.
7. Andrei Tchmil s.t.
8. Massimo Strazzer s.t.
9. Nicolas Jalabert s.t.
10. Adriano Baffi s.t.

GC after Stage 8:

1. Cedric Vasseur: 41hr 46min 41sec
2. Erik Zabel @ 1min 21sec
3. Chris Boardman @ 2min 54sec
4. Jan Ullrich @ 2min 56sec
5. Stuart O'Grady @ 2min 59sec
6. Frederic Moncassin @ 3min 4sec
7. Abraham Olano s.t.
8. Laurent Jalabert @ 3min 6sec
9. Oscar Camenzind @ 3min 22sec
10. Davide Rebellin @ 3min 24sec

Stage 9: Monday, July 14, Pau - Loudenvielle, 182 km.

Major Climbs: Le Soulor, Tourmalet, Aspin, Val Louron/Azet.

1. Laurent Brochard: 5hr 24min 57sec
2. Richard Virenque @ 14sec
3. Marco Pantani s.t.
4. Jan Ullrich s.t.
5. Jose Maria Jimenez @ 33sec
6. Laurent Dufaux @ 41sec
7. Fernando Escartin s.t.
8. Bjarne Riis s.t.
9. Francesco Casagrande @ 1min 7sec
10. Abraham Olano s.t.

20. Cedric Vasseur @ 2min 57sec

GC after Stage 9:

1. Cedric Vasseur: 47hr 14min 35sec
2. Jan Ullrich @ 13sec
3. Abraham Olano @ 1min 14sec
4. Bjarne Riis @ 1min 43sec
5. Richard Virenque s.t.
6. Fernando Escartin @ 2min 14sec
7. Oscar Camenzind @ 2min 27sec
8. Laurent Dufaux @ 2min 48sec
9. Daniele Nardello @ 3min 49sec
10. Laurent Brochard @ 4min 4sec

Stage 10: Tuesday, July 15, Luchon - Arcalis, 252.5 km.

Major climbs: Portet d'Aspet, Port, Port d'Envalira, Ordino, Andora/Arcalis

1. Jan Ullrich: 7hr 46min 6sec
2. Marco Pantani @ 1min 6sec
3. Richard Virenque s.t.
4. Francesco Casagrande @ 2min 1sec
5. Bjarne Riis @ 3min 23sec
6. Laurent Dufaux @ 3min 27sec
7. Jose-Maria Jimenez @ 3min 45sec
8. Fernando Escartin s.t.
9. Abraham Olano s.t.
10. Alberto Elli s.t.

GC after Stage 10:

1. Jan Ullrich: 55hr 54sec
2. Richard Virenque @ 2min 58sec
3. Abrahman Olano @ 4min 46sec
4. Bjarne Riis @ 4min 53sec
5. Marco Pantani @ 5min 29sec
6. Fernando Escartin @ 5min 46sec
7. Laurent Dufaux @ 6min 2sec
8. Oscar Camenzind @ 7min
9. Francesco Casagrande @ 7min 20sec
10. Cedric Vasseur @ 7min 31sec

Stage 11: Wednesday, July 16, Andorra - Perpignan, 192 km.

Major climbs: Port d'Envalira, Chioula

1. Laurent Debiens: 5hr 5min 5sec
2. Carlo Finco s.t.
3. Sergei Outschakov s.t.
4. Frederic Moncassin @ 18sec
5. Erik Zabel s.t.
6. Mario Traversoni s.t.
7. Fabio Baldato s.t.
8. Frankie Andreu s.t.
9. Adriano Baffi s.t.
10. Gianluca Pierobon s.t.

GC after stage 11:

1. Jan Ullrich: 60hr 6min 17sec
2. Richard Virenque @ 2min 38sec
3. Abrahman Olano @ 4min 46sec
4. Bjarne Riis @ 4min 53sec
5. Marco Pantani @ 65min 29sec
6. Fernando Escartin @ 5min 46sec
7. Laurent Dufaux @ 6min 2sec
8. Oscar Camenzind @ 7min
9. Francesco Casagrande @ 7min 20sec
10. Cedric Vasseur @ 7min 31sec

Stage 12: Friday, July 18, St. Etienne 55.5 km Individual Time Trial.

The time trial had 1 climb, the Croix de Chaubouret, rated second category.

1. Jan Ullrich: 1hr 16min 24sec
2. Richard Virenque @ 3min 4sec
3. Bjarne Riis @ 3min 8sec
4. Abraham Olano @ 3min 14sec
5. Marco Pantani @ 3min 42sec
6. Francesco Casagrande @ 3min 56sec
7. Frank Vandenbroucke @ 4min 44sec
8. Zenon Jaskula @ 4min 50sec
9. Beat Zberg @ 5min
10. Michael Boogerd @ 5min 4sec

GC after stage 12:

1. Jan Ullrich: 61hr 22min 41sec
2. Richard Virenque @ 5min 42sec
3. Abraham Olano @ 8min
4. Bjarne Riis @ 8min 11sec
5. Marco Pantani @ 9min 11sec
6. Fernando Escartin @ 9min 11sec
7. Francesco Casagrande @ 11min 16sec
8. Laurent Dufaux @ 12min 28sec
9. Oscar Camenzind @ 13min 15sec
10. Pascal Lino @ 14min 16sec

Stage 13: St. Etienne - L'Alpe d'Huez, 203.5 km.

Major climbs: Grand Bois, L'Alpe d'Huez

1. Marco Pantani: 5ht 2min 42sec
2. Jan Ullrich @ 47sec
3. Richard Virenque @ 1min 27sec
4. Francesco Casagrande @ 2min 27sec
5. Bjarne Riis @ 2min 28sec
6. Beat Zberg @ 2min 59sec
7. Udo Bolts s.t.
8. Roberto Conti s.t.
9. Laurent Madouas s.t.
10. Laurent Jalabert @ 3min 22sec

GC after Stage 13:

1. Jan Ullrich: 66hr 26min 10sec
2. Richard Virenque @ 6min 22sec
3. Marco Pantani @ 8min 24sec
4. Bjarne Riis @ 9min 42sec
5. Abraham Olano @ 10min 38sec
6. Francesco Casagrande @ 12min 56sec
7. Fernando Escartin @ 14min 36sec
8. Oscar Camenzind @ 16min 59sec
9. Jose-Maria Jimenez @ 18min 32sec
10. Laurent Dufaux @ 18min 46sec

Stage 14: Sunday, July 20, Bourg d'Oisans - Courchevel, 148 km.

Major climbs: Glandon, Madeleine, Courchevel.

1. Richard Virenque: 4hr 34min 16sec
2. Jan Ullrich s.t.
3. Fernando Escartin @ 47sec
4. Laurent Dufaux @ 1min 19sec
5. Bjarne Riis @ 1min 24sec
6. Marco Pantani @ 3min 6sec
7. Francesco Casagrande @ 3min 36sec
8. Jose-Maria Jimenez @ 3min 50sec
9. Abraham Olano s.t.
10. Roberto Conti @ 4min 41sec

GC after Stage 14:

1. Jan Ullrich: 71hr 26sec
2. Richard Virenque @ 6min 22sec
3. Bjarne Riis @ 11min 6sec
4. Marco Pantani @ 11min 30sec
5. Abraham Olano @ 14min 28sec
6. Fernando Escartin @ 15min 23sec
7. Francesco Casagrande @ 16min 32sec
8. Laurent Dufaux @ 20min 5sec
9. Jose-Maria Jimenez @ 22min 22sec
10. Roberto Conti @ 25min 39sec

Stage 15: Monday, July 21, Courchevel - Morzine, 208.5 km.

Major Climbs: Forclaz, Croix-Fry, Colombiere, Joux-Plane

1. Marco Pantani: 5hr 57min 16sec
2. Richard Virenque @ 1min 17sec
3. Jan Ullrich s.t.
4. Beat Zberg @ 1min 59sec
5. Francesco Casagrande s.t.
6. Bobby Julich s.t.
7. Fernando Escartin s.t.
8. Bjarne Riis @ 2min 6sec
9. Jose-Maria Jimenez @ 2min 37sec
10. Oscar Canenzind @ 3min 29sec

GC after stage 15:

1. Jan Ullrich: 76hr 58min 59sec
2. Richard Virenque @ 6min 12sec
3. Marco Pantani @ 10min 13sec
4. Bjarne Riis @ 11min 55sec
5. Fernando Escartin @ 16min 5sec
6. Abraham Olano @ 16min 40sec
7. Francesco Casagrande @ 17min 14sec
8. Jose-Maria Jimenez @ 23min 42sec
9. Roberti Conti @ 28min 20sec
10. Laurent Dufaux @ 29min 46sec

Stage 16: Tuesday, July 22, Morzine - Fribourg, 181 km.

Major climb: 1st category Le Croix.

1. Christophe Mengin: 4hr 30min 11sec
2. Frank Vandenbroucke s.t.
3. Richard Virenque s.t.
4. Gianluca Pierobon s.t.
5. Laurent Dufaux s.t.
6. Francesco Casagrande s.t.
7. Abraham Olano s.t.
8. Udo Bolts s.t.
9. Marco Pantani s.t.
10. Orlando Rodriguez s.t.
11. Jan Ullrich s.t.

GC after stage 16:

1. Jan Ullrich: 81hr 29min 10sec
2. Richard Virenque @ 6min 22sec
3. Marco Pantani @ 10min 13sec
4. Fernando Escartin @ 16min 5sec
5. Abraham Olano @ 16min 40sec
6. Francesco Casagrande @ 17min 14sec
7. Bjarne Riis @ 18min 4sec
8. Jose-Maria Jimenez @ 23min 42sec
9. Roberto Conti @ 28min 20sec
10. Lurent Dufaux @ 29min 46sec

Stage 17: Wednesday, July 23, Fribourg - Colmar, 218.5 km.

1. Neil Stephens: 4hr 54min 38sec
2. Oscar Camenzind @ 3sec
3. Viatscheslav Ekimov s.t.
4. Laurent Roux s.t.
5. Erik Dekker s.t.
6. Javier Pascual s.t.
7. Bobby Julich s.t.
8. Serguei Outschakov s.t.
9. Peter Farazijn s.t.
10. Christophe Mengin s.t.
11. Massimo Podenzana s.t.
12. Georg Totschnig @ 5sec
13. Aitor Garmendia @ 6sec
14. Erik Zabel won the field sprint @ 3min 58sec

GC after stage 17:

1. Jan Ullrich: 86hr 27min 46sec
2. Richard Virenque @ 6min 22sec
3. Marco Pantani @ 10min 13sec
4. Fernando Escartin @ 16min 5sec
5. Abraham Olano @ 16min 40sec
6. Francesco Casagrande @ 17min 14sec
7. Bjarne Riis @ 18min 4sec
8. Jose-Maria Jimenez @ 23min 42sec
9. Roberto Conti @ 28min 20sec
10. Laurent Dufaux @ 29min 26sec

Stage 18: Thursday, July 24, Colmar - Montbeliard, 175.5 km.

Major climbs: Gueberschwir, Grand Ballon, Hundsruck, Ballon d'Alsace.

1. Dider Rous: 4hr 24min 48sec
2. Pascal Herve @ 5min 9sec
3. Bobby Julich @ 5min 10sec
4. Laurent Roux s.t.
5. Angel Casero s.t.
6. Laurent Dufaux @ 5min 12sec
7. Daniele Nardello @ 5min 14sec
8. Manuel Beltran s.t.
9. Laurent Madouas @ 5min 16sec

GC after Stage 18:

1. Jan Ullrich: 90hr 58min 3sec
2. Richard Virenque @ 6min 22sec
3. Marco Pantani @ 10min 13sec
4. Fernando Escartin @ 16min 5sec
5. Abraham Olano @ 16min 40sec
6. Francesco Casagrande @ 17min 14sec
7. Bjarne Riis @ 18min 4sec
8. Jose-Maria Jimenez @ 23min 42sec
9. Roberto Conti @ 28min 20sec
10. Laurent Dufaux @ 29min 29sec

Stage 19: Friday, July 25, Montbéliard - Dijon, 172 km.

1. Mario Traversoni was 26 seconds behind the 2 riders first across the line, Bart Voskamp and Jens Heppner, who were both relegated for irregular sprinting.
2. Francois Simon s.t.
3. Marco Saligari s.t.
4. Christian Henn s.t.
5. Viatscheslav Ekimov s.t.
6. Thierry Bourguignon s.t.
7. Erik Dekker s.t.
8. Servais Knaven s.t.
9. Serguei Outschakov s.t.
10. Bart Voskamp: 4hr 3min 17sec
11. Jens Heppner same time as Voskamp.

GC after Stage 19:

1. Jan Ullrich: 95hr 19min 17sec
2. Richard Virenque @ 6min 22sec
3. Marco Pantani @ 10min 13sec
4. Fernando Escartin @ 16min 5sec
5. Abraham Olano @ 16min 40sec
6. Francesco Casagrande @ 17min 14sec
7. Bjarne Riis @ 18min 4sec
8. Jose-Maria Jimenez @ 23min 42sec
9. Roberto Conti @ 28min 20sec
10. Laurent Dufaux @ 29min 29sec

Stage 20: Saturday, July 26, Disneyland 63 km Individual Time Trial.

1. Abraham Olano: 1hr 15min 57sec
2. Jan Ullrich @ 45sec
3. Philippe Gaumont @ 1min 12sec
4. Bobby Julich @ 2min 24sec
5. Erik Dekker @ 2min 39sec
6. Christophe Moreau @ 2min 56sec
7. Laurent Brochard @ 3min 10sec
8. Laurent Dufaux @ 3min 11sec
9. Richard Virenque @ 3min 32sec
10. Arturas Kaspustis @ 3min 48sec

GC after Stage 20:

1. Jan Ullrich: 96hr 35min 59sec
2. Richard Virenque @ 9min 9sec
3. Marco Pantani @ 14min 3sec
4. Abraham Olano @ 15min 55sec
5. Fernando Escartin @ 20min 32sec
6. Francesco Casagrande @ 22min 47sec
7. Bjarne Riis @ 26min 34sec
8. Jose-Maria Jimenez @ 31min 17sec
9. Laurent Dufaux @ 31min 55sec
10. Roberto Conti @ 32min 26sec

20th and Final Stage: Sunday, July 27, Disneyland - Paris (Champs Elysées), 149.5 km.

1. Nicola Minali: 3hr 54min 36sec
2. Erik Zabel s.t.
3. Henk Vogels s.t.
4. Jeroen Blijlevens s.t.
5. George Hincapie s.t.
6. Robbie McEwen s.t.
7. Lauri Aus s.t.
8. Nicola Lauda s.t.
9. Philippe Gaumont s.t.
10. Rolf Sorensen s.t.

Final 1997 Tour de France General Classification:

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The Story of the 1997 Tour de France:

This excerpt is from "The Story of the Tour de France", Volume 2 If you enjoy it we hope you will consider purchasing the book, either print or electronic. The Amazon link here will make either purchase easy.

Bjarne Riis set about the job of winning a second successive Tour. He would be over 33 years old but so were Scieur, Lambot, Zoetemelk, Buysse, Bartali and Pélissier when they won. Of that group only Zoetemelk had won in the last 40 years. But Riis' domination had been complete and it was rational to believe that he could do it again. Although he had abandoned the Tour of Switzerland, he had good results in the spring including a win in the Amstel Gold Race that seemed to confirm his optimism. Moreover, he had a superb team. The Telekom squad was brimming with good, dedicated talent, including the previous Tour's second place, young Jan Ullrich.

There was a bit of a problem. Ullrich, while riding as a domestique for Riis, still ended up a close second to the Dane. As the 1996 Tour was drawing to a close and Riis was faltering with exhaustion, Ullrich was stronger than ever, winning the final time trial. I remember the dueling TV interviews in the summer of 1997 with Riis asserting the Ullrich would ride for him, since Riis was the designated captain of the team. Ullrich seemed to demur on that point a bit. Anyone watching could see that the chains of servitude were not as strongly forged as Riis wanted to think they were. After the 1996 Tour and his terrific second place Ullrich declared that the Tour would be the centerpiece of his career.

Ullrich had turned pro for Telekom late in the 1994 season. He was a shoo-in to ride for Germany in the 1996 Atlanta Olympic Games but chose instead to ride the Tour to help Riis. Ullrich had no notable victories in the spring of 1997 but came to the Tour looking very good.

There was no rematch with Miguel Indurain. He retired at the end of the 1996 season, becoming the Olympic Time Trial Champion in August and starting but abandoning the Vuelta a España that September. The mantle of leadership of the Banesto team fell to Abraham Olano who had finished a credible ninth in the 1996 Tour, 3 minutes, 14 seconds ahead of Indurain.

Other men who could wear Yellow in Paris included the previous year's third place Richard Virenque, Alex Zülle, the fading Tony Rominger, Evgeni Berzin and a rising Italian star. Marco Pantani was a cycling type whose equal had not been seen since Charly Gaul. He was what the Italians call a scattista, a man who can explode on a steep climb when the other good climbers are already at their limit. This type of pure climber is the bane of men like Indurain, Ullrich and Hinault who find a rhythm on an ascent and can climb at a very high rate, but don't react well to changes of speed. Pantani in 1994, his second year as a pro, scored a second in the Giro and a third place in the Tour. In 1995 it looked as if his career was over after he suffered a terrible accident that shattered his femur. He doggedly set out to prove how very wrong the doctors were to doubt that the small climber would ever walk again. By early 1997 he was fully competitive. He abandoned the Giro but earlier had come in fourth in the Critérium International. Like Gaul, Pantani was a bomb who could go off any time the road went up.

The 1997 Tour was counter-clockwise (Pyrenees first) and set up to give the riders a relentless pounding in the mountains. The hard climbing started in stage 9 and continued without stop through the Massif Central and the Alps. After the Alps were concluded in stage 16, the riders would get a hard dose of the Vosges in stage 18. This Tour would test recovery as well as climbing. Not since the 1976 Tour stacked up all the climbing in 9 sequential stages had the mountains been all run up against each other. 1976 had yielded Lucien van Impe, the finest climber of his age as the winner. Might the 1997 Tour be as kind to Richard Virenque or Marco Pantani?

Chris Boardman did the job he was paid to do, winning the Tour's 7.3-kilometer prologue time trial. Win it he did but Jan Ullrich was only 2 seconds slower and Zülle was only 5 seconds off the winner's pace. So strong were they that these men who would contend for Yellow were almost able to beat the prologue specialist at his own game.

The first 4 stages run through Brittany and Normandy were dominated by the pure sprinters with Italian Mario Cipollini winning the first 2. Then Ullrich's teammate Erik Zabel won stage 3 and Nicola Minali bagged stage 4. Since the end of stage 1 Cipollini had been wearing the Yellow Jersey.

It was rumored that tension between Riis and Ullrich started with the first stage when Riis was caught in a massive crash and delayed. Ullrich didn't wait for the 1996 Tour winner to help him get back up to the field. The fast-moving early stages claimed 2 victims: Zülle suffered several crashes and finally gave up after the fourth stage and Tony Rominger had to withdraw with a broken collarbone.

The fifth stage saw the Tour's first real exploit when Cédric Vasseur went on a 147-kilometer break and won the stage by 2½ minutes, 27 years after his father Alain had won a Tour stage. But unlike the father's win, Cedric's earned him the Yellow Jersey.

As the Tour headed for the Pyrenees the sprinters continued to own the race with Zabel winning 3 of the stages so far. His job was made easier because the ranks of the speedsters were considerably thinned. Belgian Tom Steels was thrown out of the Tour for throwing a water bottle at Frédéric Moncassin, Djamolidine Abdoujaparov was tossed from the Tour for a positive dope test, and Mario Cipollini quit with an injured knee.

After stage 8 and before the climbing began the General Classification stood thus:

1. Cedric Vasseur

2. Erik Zabel @ 1 minute 21 seconds

3. Chris Boardman @ 2 minutes 54 seconds

4. Jan Ullrich @ 2 minutes 56 seconds

5. Stuart O'Grady @ 2 minutes 59 seconds

Stage 9, held on Bastille Day, July 14, took the race from Pau to Loudenvielle by going over the Soulor, the Tourmalet, the Aspin, up to Val Louron-Azet before descending to Loudenvielle. Virenque was aggressive the entire day while Ullrich stayed with Riis who was having a tough start in the mountains. When Virenque attacked on the final climb Ullrich easily went with him, leaving his leader behind. Pantani and Laurent Brochard formed a lead group over the top. Brochard took off on the descent but Ullrich was uninterested in Brochard and kept his eye on Virenque. While Ullrich had no trouble marking Virenque, he initiated no attacks of his own, perhaps because Godefroot had not yet decided to give his young rider complete freedom to seek the big win. Vasseur was able to hang on to the lead for another day. The new General Classification showed that even though the Tour was still young, things had already begun to sort themselves out.

1. Cédric Vasseur

2. Jan Ullrich @ 13 seconds

3. Abraham Olano @ 1 minute 14 seconds

4. Bjarne Riis @ 1 minute 43 seconds

5. Richard Virenque @ same time

Riis continued to tell the press that he was still the team leader. In fact, he was doing very well and had a good position in the standings but Ullrich was clearly the stronger rider.

The next day was even harder, 252 kilometers that went over the Portet d'Aspet, the Port, the Port d'Envalira, the Ordino and a final 32-kilometer ascent to Andorra/Arcalis. Now Godefroot moved to backing Ullrich as his man. On the big last climb with 10 kilometers to go, Ullrich accelerated twice, and with the second acceleration, even the finest pure climbers in the world, Pantani and Virenque, were helpless before the his demonstration of power. Ullrich smoothly rolled up the mountain and into the Yellow Jersey.

The stage's results:

1. Jan Ullrich

2. Marco Pantani @ 1 minute 8 seconds

3. Richard Virenque @ same time

4. Francesco Casagrande @ 2 minutes 1 second

5. Bjarne Riis @ 3 minutes 23 seconds

Which yielded a new General Classification:

1. Jan Ullrich

2. Richard Virenque @ 2 minutes 58 seconds

3. Abraham Olano @ 4 minutes 46 seconds

4. Bjarne Riis @ 4 minutes 53 seconds

5. Marco Pantani @ 5 minutes 29 seconds

10. Cédric Vasseur @ 7 minutes 31 seconds

The post-stage comments indicated a new appreciation of Ullrich's extraordinary physical talents. Bernard Hinault thought he would be able to dominate the Tour for another 7 or 8 years. Virenque hoped Ullrich wouldn't go on a 5-Tour winning streak. Ullrich had clearly concentrated everyone's attention. After a rest day, a hilly 55.5-kilometer individual time trial was scheduled. Virenque had voiced his optimistic hope that he would only lose a couple of minutes in what was presumed to be Ullrich's specialty. His director didn't think a loss of 4 or more minutes would be a surprise. Virenque was the penultimate starter with Ullrich his 3-minute man. Just near the end Ullrich caught Virenque and increased his lead to 5 minutes, 42 seconds. Virenque had no intentions of giving up. With the Alps coming he said he would now be on the roads that would play to his advantage.

Ullrich riding to victory in the stage 12 individual time trial at St. Etienne.

Stage 13 presented a real opportunity to take a chunk of time out of Ullrich if it were indeed possible. It was an easterly run in from St. Etienne over flattish country with a ascent to the top of L'Alpe d'Huez. The steep slopes of the Alpe would give the pure climbers a chance to shake Ullrich and set a new tone for the Alpine stages. Ullrich was dropped but only by Marco Pantani and not until the riders were well into the climb. Making his way through hundreds of thousands of fans who formed a narrow defile, Pantani was able to beat Ullrich to the top by 47 seconds. Jean-Paul Ollivier says that Ullrich intentionally eased to let Pantani have the win, being careful not to let the diminutive climber gain too much time. Virenque's hope to start his challenge to Ullrich on the fabled Alpe turned out to be an empty one. He lost another 40 seconds to the German. Ullrich voiced the thought that Virenque had lost too much time to be considered a true threat to the Tour leadership. Pantani had moved into third place but so far Ullrich didn't seem to show any signs of weakness.

	Marco Pantani winning stage 13 at L'Alpe d'Huez

2 real climbing stages were left. Stage 14 started at Bourg d'Oisans, near the bottom of L'Alpe d'Huez, and went over the Glandon and Madeleine before the first category ascent to Courchevel. The evening after the L'Alpe d'Huez stage Virenque had been told that Ullrich was suffering from food poisoning. Virenque's Festina team decided that the next day (stage 14) would be the perfect time to deploy a set-piece assault on the supposedly ailing German. Once on the Glandon the Festina team, which had some good climbers, went all-out. By the time the front group crested the Glandon there were about 20 riders in the main lead group and Ullrich was isolated without teammates. In addition to being a fine climber, Virenque was a first rate descender. I talked to one of the professional drivers of the race officials' cars in important races and asked him who the best descenders were in the late 1990's. Richard Virenque's name was the first one he mentioned. Pantani was also high on his list.

Virenque decided to descend the Glandon aggressively with Ullrich close on his tail. Ullrich had a super light climbing bike that was a poor-handling, unstable affair that caused him to come close to grief more than once on the treacherous descent. At the bottom of the hill Ullrich slowed for some teammates but Virenque kept on alone. Riis put himself at Ullrich's service and got him back to Virenque in time for the final climb. There, Ullrich stayed with Virenque no matter how hard the Frenchman tried to get away. Virenque got the stage win but now he was down to just 1 climbing stage to take back 6 minutes, 22 seconds. The day had been a hard one. Frank Vandenbroucke led in 93 riders who finished 36 minutes, 56 seconds after Virenque. This was beyond the Tour time elimination cutoff, and special dispensation was made by the officials to keep the peloton from being reduced to 62 riders at one stroke.

The major protagonists of the 1997 Tour in the mountains. Pantani leads Virenque and Ullrich.

If there might be a stage where Virenque could recover some time, it was the fifteenth with the Forclaz, Croix Fry, Colombière and the Joux-Plane. It turned out to be a stage without high drama. Pantani had been complaining of a sore throat and breathing trouble since the L'Alpe d'Huez stage and had threatened to abandon. Yet he broke away on the final climb and also being a gifted descender, rode off for the stage win while Ullrich marked Virenque and finished with his nemesis.

With the Alpine stages finished, the General Classification stood thus:

1. Jan Ullrich

2. Richard Virenque @ 6 minutes 22 seconds

3. Marco Pantani @ 10 minutes 13 seconds

4. Bjarne Riis @ 11 minutes 55 seconds

5. Fernando Escartin @ 16 minutes 5 seconds

A chink in the German's armor showed in stage 18, the Vosges stage. On the penultimate major climb of the stage Ullrich had to let Virenque go. Showing grit, Ullrich was able to regain contact and finished with Virenque in the main group. Now there was only the final time trial the day before the stage into Paris. Ullrich didn't win it, but after defending his lead since the tenth stage he could be allowed a second place to Olano, one of the finest time trialists in the world. Virenque lost almost another 3 minutes to Ullrich over the 63 kilometers. He was tired as well. And also tired, having been unwell in the Alps, and perhaps a bit cranky was Riis. His final time trial was terrible. After damaging his bike in a fall, he suffered a series of mishaps as his mechanics couldn't get his wheel in correctly. Riis must have been furious at how the entire Tour turned out after he had prepared so carefully for what he was sure would be a repeat win. He finally threw his bike to the ground in fury, a move that was caught on worldwide television.

While Ullrich voiced worry that something could go wrong on the final stage, nothing did and he won what everyone thought would be the first in a series of stunning Tour victories.

Final 1997 Tour de France General Classification:

1. Jan Ullrich (Telekom): 100 hours 30 minutes 35 seconds

2. Richard Virenque (Festina) @ 9 minutes 9 seconds

3. Marco Pantani (Mercatone Uno) @ 14 minutes 3 seconds

4. Abraham Olano (Banesto) @ 15 minutes 55 seconds

5. Fernando Escartin (Kelme) @ 20 minutes 32 seconds

Climbers' competition:

1. Richard Virenque: 579 points

2. Jan Ullrich: 328 points

3. Francesco Casagrande: 309 points

Points competition:

1. Erik Zabel: 350 points

2. Frédéric Moncassin: 223 points

3. Mario Traversoni: 198 points

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