MONTLUCON, France — At the Tour de France, this is it. The only stage that matters in cycling’s three-week showcase is Saturday’s time trial. And for Carlos Sastre, who is wearing the yellow jersey, this is the moment he’s been waiting for.
The Spanish veteran is a strong climber and now needs the time trial of his career if he is to be the winner when the race ends Sunday in Paris.
Five riders appear to have a shot at the title, although surprises could await in Saturday’s 33-mile leg from Cerilly to Saint-Amand-Montrond. Three Alpine stages ended Tuesday, cutting the field of legitimate hopefuls.
The top of the standings didn’t change after Friday’s 19th stage in which Sylvain Chavanel of France led a two-man breakaway to win.
Overall, Frank Schleck of Luxembourg is in second place, 1 minute, 24 seconds back. Bernhard Kohl of Austria is 1:33 behind, and Cadel Evans of Australia is fourth, a second slower.
Denis Menchov of Russia trails by 2:39 and has an outside shot because he’s a strong time-trial rider.
For Kohl or Schleck to win, each will need an incredibly good day and a bad one for Sastre. For Menchov, the calculation is Sastre having a bad day and Evans a terrible one.
U.S. rider Christian Vande Velde of the Garmin-Chipotle, who is sixth at 4:41 behind Sastre, is a solid time-trial rider. But his best chance at a top-three finish would seem to depend on a combination of troubles striking the higher-placed contenders.
