Luxembourg time trial champion Andy Schleck (Saxo Bank) put in his best effort in the Tour de France's penultimate race against the clock, but it wasn't enough to unseat soon-to-be three time winner Alberto Contador (Astana). In the end, it was only 31 seconds that separated the best of class in this year's edition, and Schleck intends to come back next July and finally overtake his rival.
"I will return next year to win. Alberto is not unbeatable," a confident Schleck said following the stage.
When looking back on the three-weeks he saw a few things that, for the 2011 edition, he hopes will help propel him onto the podium's top step. The most obvious problem was in the opening prologue, where he lost a huge chunk of time in just 8.9 kilometers. Next year he'll be 26 years old and his time trialing will likely improve with age, but he sees the key to victory as a family matter.
"If Frank had been there, it would have been a different game," he insisted.
Had his brother been with him in the mountains, the pair could have worked together to wear down Contador, which would have given them a better chance to dethrone the Spaniard. Frank was forced to abandon the race following a crash on the cobblestones during stage three, but he still managed to help during his exit by creating a gap that gave Andy a 1 minute and 13 second advantage over Contador by the time he reached the finish in Arenberg.
The day before they reached the cobblestones had almost been a catastrophe for the the brothers, with both hitting the pavement on the descent of the Col de Stockeu with no chance to reintegrate with the peloton. Amazingly, both Saxo Bank leaders were granted re-entry into the contest for the overall when the peloton, led by teammate Fabian Cancellara, neutralized the stage in front of them.
Today's 52 kilometer time trial from Bordeaux to Pauillac saw Schleck come the closest to maillot jaune than he's ever been, with just 39 seconds being the final gap to a place in the annals of cycling history as a Tour winner.
"I did the first 40 kilometers very quickly," he reflected. "I lost more time in the final kilometers. I always said I would fight until the end. That's what I did. I have always said that I have improved, but to beat Contador is not easy."
At 25 years old, he will stand atop the final podium in Paris as the race's best young rider for the last time in his career. He will now turn his focus towards making improvements that will help him win next year's edition. The last person to win the best young rider competition three times was Jan Ullrich, and with two successive second place finishes to Contador, Schleck will hope he doesn't also emulate the German's string of near misses for yellow.