Alberto Contador’s third victory in “Tour de France” was marked not only in Spain, but also in Kazakhstan and those countries whose bicycle racers represented “Astana” team. This win was not easy for Contador, who said: "At times I had difficulty from a psychological and physical standpoint." But the tremendous backing from his fans helped him kiss the coveted cup in Paris.

These are the names of those who worked for their captain and the team’s image: Daniel Navarro, David de la Fuente, Jesus Hernandez, Benjamin Noval and Daniel Moreno (Spain), Paolo Tiralongo (Italy), Andrey Grivko (Ukraine), Maxim Iglinski (Kazakhstan).

Special thanks to the “great vizier” Alexander Vinokourov, without whose help the Spaniard’s triumph might have not occurred. A tearful Contador hugged him after the 19th stage. Apart from Vino, Contador was congratulated on by Cameron Diaz and Tom Cruise and ahead of the last stage – by the French President Nicolas Sarkozy.

Contador was not in top form, but did what he had to. The defending champion’s lead over Andy Schleck is 39 seconds. Schleck, who is second to Contador, said without regret: "Beating Contador is not easy, but I tried everything” and he promised to come back next year to win.

During the race, Schleck was hindered by the withdrawal of his older brother and teammate. Frank Schleck broke his collarbone in a crash over the cobblestones in the third stage along the Belgian-French border.

The 39-second margin is exactly the time that Schleck lost to Contador in the controversial 15th stage on Monday. That's when the Luxembourg rider's bike chain became entangled in a final Pyrenean climb and Contador sped on. Some called it a breach of cycling's etiquette, which calls for riders to respect the yellow jersey - Schleck was wearing it then - in times of uncontrollable mishaps like a crash.

The 25-year-old Schlek’s future is great; he has won the white jersey (for best young rider) three times. The 27-year-old Contador, who is known as “El Pistolero” for his trademark finger-firing gesture has five wins in Grand Tours. The world seems to watch the opposition of two outstanding riders for pretty long time.

Askar Sultan

Photo: AFP

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