Breaking: Ciprelli charged with trafficking EPO

French sports news website L'Equipe reported yesterday that Patrice Ciprelli, husband of 59-time French National Champion Jeannie Longo, has confessed to purchasing the banned blood-booster EPO in 2010 and 2011. Ciprelli was arrested during a police raid on the couple's home on the 8th of February. Evidence was  presented on Friday to a judge and the decision has now been taken to charge him with trafficking the drug

Joly jacks it in

Joly suffered cancer during his career
(image credit: Thomas Ducroquet CC BY 3.0) 

French rider Sébastien Joly - who was diagnosed with testicular cancer on his 28th birthday in 2007 - has announced his retirement, says the Fédération Française de Cyclisme.

The rider, born in Tournon on the 25th of June in 1979, turned professional in 2000 with Bonjour and switched to Jean Delatour in 2003, winning the Route Adélie de Vitré with them. A year later he was with Crédit Agricole and remained on the team for two seasons, making his Tour de France debut with them in 2004 and winning the Tour du Limousin the following year. He moved on to FDJ in 2006 when he won the King of the Mountains at the Critérium du Dauphiné. The team honoured his contract in 2007 and throughout his cancer treatment, and he remained with them until 2010, racing with Saur-Sojasun since then.

2012 Tour de France revealed!

The route of the 2012 Tour de France has been unveiled at a lavish presentation ceremony, a joking Christian Prudhomme confirming that the leaked details last week were in fact correct and genuine. Course details reveal that although there will be less of a focus on the high altitude brutality of the last few years, a larger number of short, steep climbs have been introduced and 25 mountain tops is actually more than in 2011.

Nine flat stages are very much to Mark Cavendish's liking, as he told the BBC after the route was announced. However, it appears to be a parcours very much suited to Alberto Contador who says that if he is able to compete in the race following his upcoming doping trial, he'll miss the Giro to concentrate on the Tour. Andy Schleck must also be feeling cheerful now that it's apparent the sprinters and time trialists won't be having everything all their own way. Bradley Wiggins may like the look of things, too.

No major changes to the rules after 2011's radical overhaul of the climbing and intermediate sprint systems, though available points will be shared among more riders at the Hors Categorie mountains; apparently an attempt  to prevent the race being won on the climbs, making the final General Classification more evenly matched between grimpeurs and others. The jerseys also change little with the yellow, white and green closely resembling last year's garments while the King of the Mountains polka dots have been altered slightly to provide a more modern look.

La Planche des Belles Filles in the Vosges is making its
first appearance in the Tour, but its no stranger to cycling
having been used in the Les Trois Ballons sportive many
times. Parts of the climb have a gradient of 14%.
(© Anthospace CC BY-SA 3.0)

In total, the race will feature:

9 flat stages
9 new stage towns
1 prologue and 20 stages
4 medium mountain stages - one with a summit finish
5 mountain stages - two with a summit finish
2 individual time-trial stages
2 rest days
3479km

Mountains:

1 in the Vosges
3 in the Jura
4 in the Swiss Jura
6 in the Alps
11 in the Pyrenees

Stages:

P Prologue Saturday 30 June Liège > Liège 6.1 km

1 Plain Sunday 1 July Liège > Seraing 198 km

2 Plain Monday 2 July Visé > Tournai 207 km

3 Medium mountains Tuesday 3 July Orchies > Boulogne-sur-Mer 197 km

4 Plain Wednesday 4 July Abbeville > Rouen 214 km

5 Plain Thursday 5 July Rouen > Saint-Quentin 197 km

6 Plain Friday 6 July Épernay > Metz 210 km

7 Medium mountains Saturday 7 July Tomblaine > La Planche des Belles Filles 199 km

8 Medium mountains Sunday 8 July Belfort > Porrentruy 154 km

9 Individual time-trial Monday 9 July Arc-et-Senans > Besançon 38 km

10 High Mountains Wednesday 11 July Mâcon > Bellegarde-sur-Valserine 194 km

11 High Mountains Thursday 12 July Albertville > La Toussuire - Les Sybelles 140 km

12 Medium mountains Friday 13 July Saint-Jean-de-Maurienne > Annonay Davézieux 220 km

13 Plain Saturday 14 July Saint-Paul-Trois-Châteaux > Le Cap d’Agde 215 km

14 High Mountains Sunday 15 July Limoux > Foix 192 km

15 Plain Monday 16 July Samatan > Pau 160 km

16 High Mountains Wednesday 18 July Pau > Bagnères-de-Luchon 197 km

17 High Mountains Thursday 19 July Bagnères-de-Luchon > Peyragudes 144 km

18 Plain Friday 20 July Blagnac > Brive-la-Gaillarde 215 km

19 Individual time-trial Saturday 21 July Bonneval > Chartres 52 km

20 Plain Sunday 22 July Rambouillet > Paris Champs-Élysées 130 km

Looking for the ideal camper for next year's Tour de France?

Tour de France: Stage 5 Preview

It's funny that the Festival des Vieilles Charrues, which takes place annually in Brittany, isn't better known over here in Blighty. It's not that far across the water and, among many attractions, offered Snoop Dogg, Lou Reed, the Chemical Brothers, Barrington Levy, Kaiser Chiefs and the extremely talented Polly Jean Harvey - sufficient to attract no less than 240,000 fans which is significantly more than Glastonbury. It being France, the food was probably better than the sweaty lentil burgers you get at British festivals, too. I bet the toilets were grim though.

Stage profile for today: not that hilly but not that flat either.

Anyway, the festival takes place just outside Carhaix in the Finistère department of Brittany, a part of France with more than a few similarities to the far west of Cornwall which lies not too far to the north and with which the Bretons have maintained trade and cultural links since prehistoric times, which also happens to host the start of today's Stage 5 of the Tour de France. Yesterday saw the first hills of the race, tiny ones in comparison to what's coming when the riders reach the Massif Central and virtually non-existent compared to the real biggies when they get to the Haute Pyrenees and Alps admittedly, but hills they definitely were; that this was the case been made plain by Alberto Contador, a man who gains altitude like a BAC Lightning, choosing it as the stage upon which he was going to claw back some of the time lost during a decidedly unfortunate start to the Tour. That he did, too, coming a very close second place and giving stage winner Cadel Evans a scare. Today is more of the same: the hills are little ones, rising to no more than 281m at Côte de Gurunhuel - which despite lack of altitude is a Category 4, so it won't be without challenge - but there are plenty of them.

It's a well-known fact that the Bretons
like their menhirs.

As is always the case, the parcours takes plenty of French sights and this part of the world is particularly interesting for those who like to look at big bits of stone stuck into the ground for unknown purposes - the road passes by the unusual limestone (most are granite) menhir known as Min ar Groac'h which is worth looking out for at the side of the D54 road leading past Plourac'h. The distinctly-not-very-French placenames, incidentally, arise from the fact that the Breton language Brezhoneg is a Brythonic Celtic language closely related to Welsh and Cornish. The first climb of any note, albeit uncategorised, comes just past the 25km point at Callac where there is a picturesque ruined church (those ancient Celts who erected Min ar Groac'h might take some pleasure were they still around to see that their menhirs are in much better shape overall than the monuments of this newly-come Christianity) and a Gallo-Roman bridge. A few kilometres further north-west is the uncommonly attractive village of Plougonver, home to around 700 people and the location of beautiful granite houses surrounding the church. The village is spread out along the road, meaning that there are fields literally a stone's throw from the centre which makes it feel even smaller than it is and the locals have taken great care to retain the beauty and character of the place.

There's no chance for the riders to stop for a spot of sight-seeing though because they'll soon be upon that Category 4 climb which comes at the 45km point. The cruise downhill - longer than the ascent, look out for the three towers at Guingamp along the way, all that remain of the three castles which once stood in the town  - will be a welcome chance to recharge the batteries because it's not much further to the start of the intermediate sprint at Goudelin, a bit of  pity because the cameras will be concentrating on what Mark Cavendish is up to (winning it, we suspect, as any early breakaways who fancy getting the points like they have done in the last stages may find themselves pulled back in on Côte de Gurunhuel) rather than letting us see the Chapelle Notre Dame de L'Isle which has some Flamboyant (a 14th/15th Century architectural style, known as Decorated in England) ogee arch doorways and is thus of interest if you happen to find that sort of stuff interesting. However, this is a bike race, so the cameras are doing what they should.

Bet you'd like to live here - but you don't. Er - unless you do, that is, in which case you probably consider yourself rather fortunate to live in Guingamp.

Shortly afterwards is the feeding station at Pludual, site of le Manoir de Périmorvan which is either ruined or still inhabited, depending on which source you choose to believe. No doubt today's footage shall reveal the truth because if there's one thing the camera operators in the helicopters like, it's chateaux. It's then just a little way further until the route swings to the east and joins the D786 at Plouha, following the coastline for the remainder of the stage. This is an exceptionally beautiful region even by French standards with long, sandy beaches and dramatic rocks which must have taken more than their fair share of ships that sought shelter from Atlantic storms along this part of the coast. About a kilometre off the coast are the tiny Iles-Saint-Quay, which are even tidier at high tide when they become a series of rocky outcrops, the largest and driest of which have tiny cottages perched on top. You seriously do not want to miss this bit.

St.-Brieuc cathedral looks as much like Nosferatu's
castle as the home of saintly relics.

There are a few smallish climbs, as would be expected from a rocky coast, leading on to Saint-Brieuc which is named after a medieval Welsh monk who brought Christianity to the area in the 6th Century and founder of the local cathedral which today houses some of his relics. Two years ago, large quantities of algae washed up on the beach here and began to rot, emitting gases so noxious that they killed a couple of dogs and a horse (and, indirectly, the driver of a truck carrying a load of the algae who was overcome and crashed). Some kilometres further on is Pleneuf val Andre, a built-up resort with one of the most beautiful beaches anywhere in Northern Europe and, just off the coast, the rocky islet of Le Verdelet which, if the weather continues being windy (and it looks like it will) promises dramatic scenes. There's an S-shaped causeway leading to the islet which, after the fun on Passage du Gois a few days ago, the riders will be glad they're not required to ride.

Erquy. Devil country.

Next up is more winding coastal roads, taking in Erquy which is situated around a picturesque bay and has a very flirtatious-looking mermaid on its coat of arms.

DEVIL WATCH: Being located around 12km from the finish with small hills and wooded sections, Erquy looks the ideal place to spot German devils as well as flirty mermaids. We reckon he'll make an appearance just as the Tour leaves the town for the headland seen on the right of the photo. On the other hand, for sheer dramatic effect he might show up somewhere on Cap Fréhel, though as the location of the finish it's not natural Devil country.

Cap Fréhel looks to be the highlight of the stage. Unusually, it's not a reasonably-sized town as is typical of Tour finishes but a windswept, rocky peninsula with two lighthouses which is well worth looking up on Google Earth ( 48°41'13.07"N  2°19'3.51"W). The helicopters are going to get some stunning footage of the cliffs here and it may well prove to be the most beautiful stage finish of the 2011 Tour.

Weather - Local weather looks set to be much the same as yesterday. The wind is 30kmph in Carhaix right now, and though it's not raining light-to-moderate rain is forecast throughout Brittany by early afternoon. The wind should drop slightly, but crosswinds along the coastal sections will liven things up a bit. However, it looks like the wind is pretty much settled into blowing from the south west, which means for a lot of the route it's going to be a tailwind.

Big, strong and fast is what you need to
be to win a stage like this one. That's
your cue, Thundergod.

Predictions: Alberto Contador made an heroic effort to claw his way up the standings yesterday and finished to close to winner Cadel Evans that it's wasn't immediately apparent who had won. He's now in 41st overall and may want to improve that further today - if he does then, well, he's Contador and if he avoids accidents he'll probably be in at least the top three. This could be a good stage for Thor Hushovd too, since he's no doubt rather enjoying his time in the yellow jersey and would probably like to wear it for a bit longer. He may be better known as a sprinter, but while this stage does have climbs it's not really one for the grimpeurs and a sprinter with his physical strength could do well here. Mark Cavendish is the most likely lad for the intermediate sprint. He's not won one yet this year, but over the last couple of days he's left nobody in any doubt that he'll win one before too long and he does have a habit of beginning to do so on the fifth day in stage races. Frank Schleck will do well, we think - in fact, we wouldn't be too surprised if he's moved up to second place overall by the end of the day. The Schlecks seem to have learned how to ride fast on the flat over the winter which when combined with their phenomenal ability in the hills makes them even more of a force to be reckoned with than they were last year, so Andy might do alright for himself too - but he'll be more interested in saving himself for the proper climbs, the first of which comes on Saturday, when even he will need to work hard to keep up with Contador. We also think that today might be the day we see Bradley Wiggins on the podium. We know he can climb, we know he can sprint and we know he can keep going for as long as it takes, all things necessary today, and he's let it be known that he's "feeling strong" this morning. British fingers should be kept crossed.

Passage de Gois race

Once a year, a running race is held along the Passage de Gois - the starting point of this year's Tour de France - after the tide has come in. It's called the Foulées du Gois and is limited to 30 entrants. Those who are slow are often forced to swim for the final part of the 4.15km course.

Route du Sud Stage 3 results

Anthony Charteau couldn't repeat the success he had yesterday, but Davide Rebellin rode extremely well and took another third place. Not bad at all for a man his age!

1  Jurgen Van Goolen (Veranda's Willems-Accent)
2  Peter Kennaugh (Team Sky                       + 1'36"
3  Davide Rebellin (Miche-Guerciotti 
4  Sébastien Joly (Saur-Sojasun)
5  Arnold Jeannesson (FDJ)
6  Thomas DeGand (Veranda's Willems-Accent)
7  José Herrada Lopez (Caja Rujal)
8  Sandy Casar (FDJ)
9  Benoît Vaugrenard (FDJ)
10 Maxime Mederel (BigMat-Auber93)
11 Vasil Kiryenka (Movistar)
12 Sergio Pardilla (Movistar)
13 John Gadret (AG2R-La Mondiale)

Overall classification
1  Vasil Kiryenka (Movistar)
2  Davide Rebellin (Miche-Guerciotti               + 43"
3  Peter Kennaugh (Team Sky                        + 45"
4  Sébastien Joly (Saur-Sojasun                    + 51"
5  Thomas Degand (Veranda's Willems-Accent)
6  José Herrada Lopez (Caja Rujal)
7  Sandy Casar (FDJ)
8  Maxime Mederel (BigMat-Auber93)
9  Jean-Marc Marino (Saur-Sojasun)
10 Anthony Charteau (Team Europcar) 

Tour de France countdown

Less than a month to go, and it looks to be a good one with emphasis on the Alps this year. In my opinion, anti-clockwise Tours are always better than clockwise Tours because the entrants tire themselves out on the long journey through Northern France, Brittany, the Massif Central and on to the Pyrenees, then have to contend with serious mountains (though there's some proper climbs in the Pyrenees too, such as Col du Tourmalet at 2115m). Alberto Contador, now his suspension following a doping positive test result is up, will be taking part; but since he'll be under even more suspicion than Tour riders usually are and will presumably have either ride clean or risk getting caught again - whether or not he can keep Andy Schleck at bay this year will either prove or disprove his claims of innocence. Probably not worth putting any money on British (or Manx) rider Mark Cavendish this time around - he was first over the line in several stages last year, but this is not a Tour that favours sprinters - but if anyone wants to place a bet on him for reasons of national pride, Stage 5. ;-)

Col Agnel - highest point of this year's Tour and a good opportunity for those of you who only watch le Tour for the scenery.

Some interesting mountain stages this year, including 23 summit finishes with the 2645m Col du Galibier (first appearance in the Tour a century ago, when only three riders rode up it - the rest gave up and walked) being climbed twice. The Col de Montgenèvre, in Italy, should be a hard slog too, rising to 1854m. The little-known and rarely used Col Agnel is the highest point this year, going up as far as 2744m. Stage 18 finishes on Galibier, making it the highest ever stage finish. Longest stage is Stage 6 at 226.5km, featuring the very impressive Basilique Sainte-Thérèse at the end. The Casse Déserte also appears, a strange and lunar-like landscape including 10km considered by many riders to be the most difficult of any Tour route and which makes up for the omission of Mont Ventoux this year.

Casse Déserte: lunar-like. Were it not for the fir trees, at any rate.

21 stages in all, two rest days and two time trials. Total distance 3430.5km, average stage length (not including time trials) 177km. Expect all the usual circus, pain, drugs, crashes, injury, scenery, scandal, spectacle, bizarre accusations (last year's "tiny engines hidden inside frames" was a classic), frightening thigh muscles, tantrums, more drugs, German devils, cheating, broken bones, blood, sweat and tears that make every year more fun than the last.