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by **Elliot M** » Mon Jul 28, 2003 1:54 am

Went to the TDF finish at Paris, watched the race which was too far away for decent pics, but then I caught up with Maria who'd been hanging around the riders looking for Tyler Hamilton... and got these pics!

TOP TIP: stand near Coke publicity girls to get close to riders.

Camera didn't like Jan so here's his teammate
[img]http://www.hill193.co.uk/bikes/tdf03/bianchi.jpg[/img]
Fassa rider only has an eye for Coke
[img]http://www.hill193.co.uk/bikes/tdf03/fassa.jpg[/img]
She was popular with a few riders
[img]http://www.hill193.co.uk/bikes/tdf03/delatour.jpg[/img]

More to follow in the morning.

by **Elliot M** » Mon Jul 28, 2003 9:59 am

Everyone wants a piece of Virenque
[img]http://www.hill193.co.uk/bikes/tdf03/virenque.jpg[/img]
Rolf Aldag, I think?
[img]http://www.hill193.co.uk/bikes/tdf03/aldag.jpg[/img]
Don't know who this is but he has the worst mullet
[img]http://www.hill193.co.uk/bikes/tdf03/mullet.jpg[/img]
Almost got decked here by woman d'un certain age taking no prisoners in a bid to grab Christophe Moreau
[img]http://www.hill193.co.uk/bikes/tdf03/moreau.jpg[/img]
Stuart O'Grady grins as he runs over my foot
[img]http://www.hill193.co.uk/bikes/tdf03/ogrady.jpg[/img]
Spoke to David Millar, he didn't say much, probably the bronchitis
[img]http://www.hill193.co.uk/bikes/tdf03/millar.jpg[/img]

by **Elliot M** » Mon Jul 28, 2003 10:05 am

Tyler Hamilton got nearly as much attention as Lance post-race
[img]http://www.hill193.co.uk/bikes/tdf03/tyler.jpg[/img]
Tyler's thousand-yard (3000 km) stare
[img]http://www.hill193.co.uk/bikes/tdf03/tyler2.jpg[/img]
Crowd outside medical control -- Lance inside trying to concentrate on the job in hand
[img]http://www.hill193.co.uk/bikes/tdf03/medical.jpg[/img]
Into the scrum
[img]http://www.hill193.co.uk/bikes/tdf03/lancemedical.jpg[/img][/img]

by **Elliot M** » Mon Jul 28, 2003 10:07 am

Lucky shot -- I am about to get a very firm hand in the chest from cop at left
[img]http://www.hill193.co.uk/bikes/tdf03/lance.jpg[/img]
[/img]

by **Will** » Mon Jul 28, 2003 10:17 am

incredible pics elliot!

what did you say to millar?

by **Elliot M** » Mon Jul 28, 2003 10:31 am

I think it was "nice one Dave" or something like that.

It was bizarre that security was very tight during race (saw Robin Williams get told off by police for crossing the circuit about 4 hours before the race) but after it the presentation and parades finished you could just head straight into team area on the Place de la Concorde.

Maria managed to see the start, then the middle of the race as it looped round, and then head into Paris for the finish! I'd have more but my batteries kept playing up...

by **Will** » Mon Jul 28, 2003 10:35 am

what was the coke girl like close up?

by **the other Steve Dennis** » Mon Jul 28, 2003 11:35 am

Great Photos guys,

The mullet belongs to one of the greatest, hard working gutsy bike riders of our day Laurent Brochard.

by **Elliot M** » Mon Jul 28, 2003 12:05 pm

Ah yes of course. He got a nice solo breakaway for a couple of laps early on, didnt he.

by **David Lombari** » Mon Jul 28, 2003 12:47 pm

"Don't know who this is but he has the worst mullet"
Isn't that the woman who occasionally serves us at the cafe?

by **Elliot M** » Mon Jul 28, 2003 12:51 pm

Notice that the bloke in yellow behind him is carrying a bronze american eagle -- I think he carried it all the way from Austin, TX to give to Armstrong but it didn't happen.

by **Will** » Mon Jul 28, 2003 2:08 pm

From the Cycling News website ;-)

[quote]Tour podium girl kicked out
Only three of the four Credit Lyonnais podium girls made it to the Champs-ElysÃ©es yesterday. Blond podium girl Alicia was thrown out of the Tour this week. The official version has it that she "kept stacking up the mistakes". But behind the scenes, the story is that she kept smiling and kissing off the podium too, with a cyclist that never came close to wearing the Yellow CrÃ©dit Lyonnais jersey. It's in the girls' contracts that they can't socialize with the riders in that way.

It's not an isolated case of butterflies kicking in during a big tour. There's always a good gossip for grabs after the Tour has left the Champs-ElysÃ©es. "Alicia wasn't kicked out because of that," her visibly offended ex-colleagues told the Belgian Press. "And even if she was, is it forbidden to fall in love? Christophe Moreau fell in love with one of the Tour Misses years ago, and they are still together!"

"Of course we get looked at," the interviewee continued. "But not only by the cyclists, mostly by the journalists! Three weeks away from the wife, hey!"

Cyclingnews awaits Podium Girl Gone Bad's opinion on this...

by **Snoop Doug** » Tue Jul 29, 2003 8:55 am

Saturday. Carole and I took Keira to La Louvre, and of course we saw Mona Lisa, waste of time if yer ask me. Where's her bleedin' bicycle fer starters? Rained hard, got wet and stopped for lunch of pancakes, Salade Nicoise and Soupe a L'Oignon et bieres in a nice caff. It carried on raining so we stayed quite a while. Went back towards the hotel and Carole (boy was she nice to me or what) let me go and watch Contre La Montre in a bar. I think I was the only English guy in there. Wahey!! David Millar won the stage!! I must confess to being slightly beered by this stage and avec cigar too. You probably could have heard me down in Marseille, great atmosphere yada yada.

Sunday. The big day. After brekkie, we went for a stroll around in the rain and set up camp at a bar just as the rain stopped. The sun came out big time. We had no lunch, the place was only doing drinks, like I cared! Met some nice Dutch folk, a party of Yanks and Will from Pearsons in Sutton, small world. Smoked a cigar and drank beer and champers. A fantastic day, the atmosphere was just wicked. It built up all day and I thought Paris was going to explode when Le Tour finally arrived. Afterwards, as we toddled back to our room, a cyclist passed by on the quiet street we stayed on. It was none other than 4th placed Tyler Hamilton, In my opinion (and many others), probably the hero of Le Tour, cycling four foot away in our street! Time for a profound announcement from the drunkard. Go Tyler! It was all I could manage. Still, fair play, he slowed and gave us a wave.

We all had a great long weekend (I checked with Carole and Keira and they agreed) and I would recommend it to anyone, what a fantastic atmosphere, the French love their cycling all right. I have a couple of photos but not a clue as to how to post them, how does that work?? Mind you, they are not a patch on those already on the site.

Le Snoop

by **Maria David** » Tue Jul 29, 2003 9:14 pm

Sunday was definitely a good day out - I set off at around 11ish from Versailles with a book in my rucksack thinking I'd need something to fill in the day as I hung around looking for cyclists.
By the end of the day I hadn't opened a single page. It's a busy life cyclist spotting - started off at ville d'avray station in the rain waiting to see the guys arrive from Nantes. I hadn't planned that bit, but I just happened to arrive at that very same station too when I was travelling from Versailles. I think that's where the similarity between me and a pro cyclist ends.

Under the grey skies and in civil clothing they looked pretty much nothing to write home about. SNCF seemed to have got the worst of them as most of them looked bedraggled and bleary eyed, especially Virenque. Lance, Ullrich, Hamilton, and some of the other star riders had opted for other means of transport.

In the cycle village numerous opps to see the cyclists as each of the 144 competitors rode out to pick up their packed lunches/powerbars get on stage and be introduced to the crowd, do a couple of interviews, ride back to the bus for a final wee before the journey, then ride out again to the start line. Lance looked anxious. Miller looked relaxed. Virenque was very chatty.
Saw the "depart fictif", and then jumped on train to Franklin Roosevelt station (via La Defense).
Got to Champs Elysees at around 2ish, very crowded - stood on a plinth to see the parade of sponsor's floats.
Moved down to Place de la Concorde - still crowded but managed to squeeze onto wall and got views of the riders as they did their 10 circuits of Champs Elysees.
Also got view of what was happening on the big screen and listened to commentary.

A French man (Jean-Patrick Nazon) won but there was lots of euphoria over Lance Armstrong. It's a rollercoaster, this relationship between the French and famous Texans !

Met up with Elliot, who'd been watching it from Tuileries Gardens, opposite.
Once all the fanfare was over and the majority of the spectators had gone home/left to watch the pantomine on the Champs Elysees we headed off to the team buses to await the pros. Loads of swish bikes to look at from close up. Half hoped to "pick up a souvenir", but to no avail.
Soon it all became one big bun fight/scrum to get photos/autographs/take a piece of someone's body etc. between tourists and photojournalists alike, to capture the moment.

Things were especially fraught when Lance and Tyler were in the vicinity.
Poor guys were mobbed all the way into the Hotel Crillon opposite.
Tyler was kinda cute though, even if he didn't look old enough to be out of short trousers !

Elliot got some great photos. I took some too, though didn't have a digital camera. I got the main men in the morning, when it was comparatively easier, though my film ran out when Lance came by.
I got the main men in the evening too, though when I photoed Lance I was in a scrum and when he walked full frontal straight towards me my film had run out again. What is it with this guy ??!!
Hope to get something good when the film is developed, otherwise I'll just have to sign up as a Coke girl for next year. And judging by what I saw with the other girls, I might even end up with a bit more than some decent photos of Lance !

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