dun dun dun…
Petacchi!
It seems he just ran out of gas, just saw it on Eurosport 5 minutes ago.
Unreal. The guy was paperboying it up the first big climb. I guess the drugs wore off today.
KIDDING. I’m only kidding. That’s a bummer to see him go, but now Robbie can start kicking some tail.
I think you’ll see many, many more people abandon this stage and tomorrow. I saw two stages very similar to these inthe Dauphine, and if it is hot (which it was then and seems to be now) they are brutal. And today’s finish to Morzine is much harder than people think.
So far, five have dropped out today.
On eurosport.com, they were saying that Petacchi’s manager “is furious”. While I don’t think they expected him to finish, his manager doesn’t feel that he put in any effort at all.
In his defense, he took 4 road stages in a row(not including the TTT) and that’s about all you can ask from a guy in the TdF. I bet he wants to save himself for the Tour d’Espana(or whatever it’s called).
For my money, this is the Big Show. You should show up with at least the intention of finishing. For example, I’d like to think that if I ever make it to Kona, they’ll have to drag me off the course and strap me to the gurney before I dropped out. The guy who finishes 175th in the TdF is still one of less than roughly 17,500 who will finish in our lifetimes. Much less if you consider how many people will do it several years. The real number is probably much less than 10,000.
Petacchi hates to be compared to Cippo, but I think this withdrawal will perpetuate the comparisons. It’s especially interesting since the reason given for not inviting Cippo is that his team didn’t have any decent climbers. Laurent Fignon said “The only sanction you can take is to not invite the team next year,”. Hmmmm.
“Petacchi hates to be compared to Cippo, but I think this withdrawal will perpetuate the comparisons”. Absolutely!
Winning 4 stages in a week is no minor achievement. From an economical point of view, he is probably very satisfied about his performance. But Cippo and him may be more remembered for dropping out as soon as the race hits the mountains than for winning so many more-sprinter-friendly stages.
If the big German, Rolf Aitag (sp?), can make it up those mountains, Petacchi can as well. Sheer laziness and lack of heart. I cut him no slack. Heart is everything in sport. No heart, you don’t belong there… Like another poster, I cannot stomach quitters. If Petacchi had been thoroughly spent it would have been another issue, but he was doing 8 miles an hour, or so, like some Boy Scout trying to get his cycling merit badge. Then he quit. Why didn’t he break down crying? What a loser… By comparison, Hincapie, no small fellow, dragged his 180 lb (or thereabouts) frame up those hills and finished the stage. No wonder Petacchi’s manager is pissed. I’d fire the guy.
-Robert
What a loser…
Petacchi’s a loser? How did you do in the Tour this year?
By your logic of judging potential success based solely on an athlete’s weight, there are a heck of a lot of people reading this board who also should have no problems finishing the Tour… yet we aren’t there.
You have no idea why he didn’t finish. And it really doesn’t matter. He came to do what he wanted to do, and he was incredibly successful. Nobody wanted to see him wear the green jersey in Paris more than me, but to call him a loser?
I wonder what he’d call you.
Uh, NOT!
"Four-time stage winner Alessandro Petacchi said he retired from the Tour de France early on Saturday’s first mountain stage because he would never have made it to the end of the race. " -Velo News
Simply put, he quit because he was afraid. Afraid he might not finish the stage or the full tour. He didn’t look sick when he got into the team car and none of the reports I’ve seen say he was sick. He certainly didn’t give that as a reason.
I’ll never ride the tour and never would have had the talent, but that is totally irrelevant. Did Jordan ever quit? How about Mark Spitz? Dead tired from all the prelims and finals he held on to finish in grand style. That’s what champions do.
Please, why are you apologizing for such a pathetic performance? This guy is paid millions to ride Le Tour and for his endorsements. Cippo was a bad influence on him…
Powder his bottom, diaper him and send him home. Sheezh…
And, that’s Aldag.
-Robert
This guy is paid millions to ride Le Tour and for his endorsements.
More brilliance… no, he’s not paid to ride the Tour; he’s paid to win races, and to that end he’s likely the most successful racer this year. What a loser (guess who I’m talking about).
If that’s true, why would his manager be pissed? Also, isn’t this a team event? Is it just idle nosiness that has OLN reporting on the number of “complete” teams left in the tour? His teammates must be very pleased. Why doesn’t USP have its own prima donna? Sheezh, Lance must feel cheated he doesn’t have such a “winner” riding with him.
Look, there is no doubt Petacchi is very talented. That only makes the situation much, much worse. This is like putting the Mona Lisa in a closet. No one expects him to be a complete rider. We do expect him to try, and not even as hard as Tyler Hamilton. TH could have quit in a heart beat, but he has more than ONE heart beat. Fans should be disappointed when these multi-millionaire athletes pull stuff like this. I’m sure you’d be just as sanguine if your lawyer said “Oops, sorry you got the electric chair for the parking ticket, but I had a bad headache and didn’t think I could make it through the full hearing.” Ditto for your doctor and your brain surgery.
And, quit making this personal. I haven’t attacked you. Stick to the facts, not the ad hominem. Petacchi is a legitimate target of our criticism both as a public athlete and because he let the fans and his teammates down.
-Robert
And, quit making this personal. I haven’t attacked you. Stick to the facts
Calling Petacchi a loser is sticking to the facts? Your first post had one fact in it–that Petacchi dropped out–the rest was nothing but an extremely whiny rant.
Personal attack? You don’t consider your attacks on Petacchi to be personal? Not to me, but to him? He’s a man, not a character in a movie.
Your doctor/lawyer example couldn’t be more ridiculous. I pay my doctor and lawyer. I do not pay Petacchi. Though I think it’s safe to say that the people who do have already gotten their money’s worth this year.
I’m sorry if you feel I’ve attacked you, but listening to armchair quarterbacks gets so old. Anyone who even gets invited to ride the Tour deserves respect. And unlike the Cipollinis, Simonis, Pantanis, and Roberts of this world, Petacchi is one of the very few who DOES NOT talk smack about other people. That’s one of the reasons I like him so much.
Sorry Eric, but I think I have to go with Robert on this. If Petacchi quit for the reasons he sites and not because of some sickness, injury, or other such malady, then I am very disappointed. He is obviously incredibly talanted and very critical to his team. It may not be a fair comparison, but to ME it seems that what he did (again unless he was injured, sick…) is no different than a star NFL runningback quitting during the first quarter of the Super Bowl after he attained some great personal achievement like setting the all time rushing record. While doing so is certainly impressive and significant (just as is winning 4 stages of the tour) it doesn’t change the fact that the individual is a key member of a team that is involved in an important competition. Such a person supremely selfish. Again, if he did not drop out from a problem other than the race was hard and he was going slow, then IMO not only is he a loser, but he’s also a dick. If his motivation was otherwise, I’ll direct my insults at myself.
Oh well, no pleasing the armchair quarterbacks. Now he’s a loser and a dick. Interesting. You’d think he was the first guy to ever drop out of the Tour.
By the way, if he’s such a loser and a dick, why did he do the whole thing last year? Yes, he completed it last year not having won a single stage. So why when he’s leading with the green jersey would he just drop out? The day before the mountains–the last stage he won–he suffered so bad even on the tiny hills that his team mates had to push him.
Why is it that you guys aren’t doggin’ Simoni? He’s the one with the big mouth before the Tour.
Oh well, he’s a loser and a dick, and I can only hope that he’s still such a loser at the Worlds since I’ll be there to watch him “lose.”
Words from the man himself:
*"I didn’t plan to retire but I was struggling on the very first climb. *
**
*"I knew it would have been impossible to make it to the finish of the stage and I knew I could never have finished the Tour de France. *
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*“I can usually climb quite well but I’m not at my best at the moment, even though I’ve won four stages. I hope everybody doesn’t forget my four wins just because I’ve retired on the first mountain stage.” *
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*Looking back, he added: "I finished my first Tour last year, got through all the mountains and made it to Paris. *
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*"But you can’t do that if you haven’t got the legs and that’s my case at this year. *
**
“I know my decision to quit will anger my team director Giancarlo Ferretti, but there was no way I could have carried on.”
What are you saying?
I’m just pulling you leg. Everybody knows there’s no pleasing armchair quarterbacks. That’s one of the reasons it’s so much fun to play the position.