2010 Paris–Nice

2009 2010 Paris–Nice 2011 Paris-Nice 2010 map.svg 300px 2010 UCI World Ranking 2 26 7–14 March 2010 7+Prologue 1268.5 km 28h 35' 35" Alberto Contador ESP AST 2010 yellow Luis León SánchezAfter removal of Alejandro Valverde, see lead paragraph. ESP GCE 2010 Roman Kreuziger CZE LIQ 2010 Peter Sagan SVK LIQ 2010 green Amaël Moinard FRA COF 2010 polkadot Roman Kreuziger CZE LIQ 2010 white ALM 2010 The 2010 Paris–Nice was the 68th running of the Paris–Nice cycling stage race, often known as the Race to the Sun. It started on 7 March and ended on 14 March in Nice and consisted of a prologue time-trial and seven stages.Stephen Farrand http://www.cyclingnews.com/news/2010-paris-nice-route-unveiled 2010 Paris-Nice route unveiled 21 January 2010 Cycling News 14 March 2010 https://web.archive.org/web/20100328100653/http://www.cyclingnews.com/news/2010-paris-nice-route-unveiled 28 March 2010 live Alberto Contador of Spain won the race, regaining the title he had won in 2007.https://news.bbc.co.uk/sport2/hi/other_sports/cycling/8567053.stm Contador claims second Paris–Nice 14 March 2010 BBC Sport 14 March 2010 https://web.archive.org/web/20100315054515/http://news.bbc.co.uk/sport2/hi/other_sports/cycling/8567053.stm 15 March 2010 live Alejandro Valverde finished second, but his results during 2010 were expunged as part of the terms of his suspension for involvement in the 2006 Operación Puerto doping case.The CAS imposes a two-year ban on Alejandro Valverde CAS 31 May 2009 http://www.tas-cas.org/en/infogenerales.asp/4-3-4242-1092-4-1-1/5-0-1092-15-1-1/ 31 May 2009 dead https://web.archive.org/web/20100605053630/http://www.tas-cas.org/en/infogenerales.asp/4-3-4242-1092-4-1-1/5-0-1092-15-1-1/ 5 June 2010 Teams 22 teams were invited to the 2010 Paris–Nice, including 16 of the 18 ProTour teams, and both teams that had lost that status at the end of the preceding season. The teams were:http://www.cyclingnews.com/news/22-teams-invited-to-paris-nice 22 teams invited to Paris–Nice 28 January 2010 Cycling News 14 March 2010 https://web.archive.org/web/20100405095332/http://www.cyclingnews.com/news/22-teams-invited-to-paris-nice 5 April 2010 live 18em ALM 2010 AST 2010 BBO 2010 GCE 2010 CTT 2010 COF 2010 EUS 2010 FDJ 2010 GRM 2010 LAM 2010 LIQ 2010 OLO 2010 QST 2010 RAB 2010 SAU 2010 SKS 2010 THR 2010 KAT 2010 RSH 2010 SAX 2010 SKY 2010 VAC 2010 Route +Stage characteristics and winnershttps://www.bikeraceinfo.com/stageraces/ParisNice/2010-paris-nice.html Paris - Nice (Historic) France, March 7 - March 14, 2010 BikeRaceInfo 24 August 2024 Stage Date Course Distance Type Winner P 7 March Montfort-l'Amaury 8 km on 20px|link=|alt= Individual time trial Lars Boom NED 1 8 March Saint-Arnoult-en-Yvelines to Contres 201.5 km on 20px|link=|alt= Flat stage Greg Henderson NZL 2 9 March Contres to Limoges 201 km on 20px|link=|alt= Hilly stage William Bonnet FRA 3 10 March Saint-Junien to Aurillac 155 km onStage 3 was shortened by 53 km mi on, from 208 km mi on, due to snow. 20px|link=|alt= Hilly stage Peter Sagan SVK 4 11 March Maurs to Mende 173.5 km on 20px|link=|alt= Medium mountain stage Alberto Contador ESP 5 12 March Pernes-les-Fontaines to Aix-en-Provence 157 km on 20px|link=|alt= Hilly stage Peter Sagan SVK 6 13 March Peynier to Tourrettes-sur-Loup 220 km on 20px|link=|alt= Medium mountain stage Xavier Tondo ESP 7 14 March Nice to Nice 119 km on 20px|link=|alt= Mountain stage Amaël Moinard FRA Stages Prologue 7 March 2010 — Montfort-l'Amaury, 8 km on, (ITT) The course for the prologue time trial was a relatively simple 8 km on out-and-back ride through Montfort-l'Amaury. It was almost entirely flat, with one small categorized climb, to award the first polka dot jersey, coming after 1.5 km on. The course was not very technical, as it contained just two sharp turns.http://www.cyclingnews.com/races/68th-paris-nice-his/prologue March 7, Prologue: Montfort-l'Amaury 8km 2 March 2010 Cycling News 8 March 2010 https://web.archive.org/web/20100401204724/http://www.cyclingnews.com/races/68th-paris-nice-his/prologue 1 April 2010 dead dmy-all Lars Boom and Peter Sagan, both former cyclo-cross specialists, posted strong times early in the day, with Boom 10 seconds the better of the two. Expecting to be beaten, Boom watched overall contenders like Levi Leipheimer, Alberto Contador, and defending champion Luis León Sánchez all fall short, giving the young Dutchman the win. Boom later said his cyclo-cross experience helped him, as the course covered several different types of terrain. The win gave Boom all four jerseys on the first podium – in his stead, Jens Voigt wore the green points jersey, Sagan the white youth classification jersey, and Alejandro Valverde the polka dot jersey for the mountains classification lead.Jonathan S. Brand http://www.cyclingnews.com/races/68th-paris-nice-his/prologue/results Sonic Boom hits prologue opener 7 March 2010 Cycling News 8 March 2010 https://web.archive.org/web/20100309094602/http://www.cyclingnews.com/races/68th-paris-nice-his/prologue/results 9 March 2010 dead dmy-all Prologue results and General Classification after the Prologue CyclistTeamTime 1 Lars Boom NED20px|Yellow jersey20px|Green jersey20px|Polka dot jersey20px|White jersey RAB 2010 10'56" 2 Jens Voigt GER SAX 2010 + 3" 3 Levi Leipheimer USA20px RSH 2010 + 6" 4 Alberto Contador ESP AST 2010 + 6" 5 Peter Sagan SVK LIQ 2010 + 10" 6 Xavier Tondó ESP CTT 2010 + 10" 7 David Millar GBR GRM 2010 + 11" 8 Luis León Sánchez ESP GCE 2010 + 12" 9 Roman Kreuziger CZE LIQ 2010 + 13" 10 Samuel Sánchez ESP EUS 2010 + 15" Stage 1 8 March 2010 — Saint-Arnoult-en-Yvelines to Contres, 201.5 km 1 on The first road race stage was a perfectly flat ride from Saint-Arnoult-en-Yvelines to Contres, heading due south.http://www.cyclingnews.com/races/68th-paris-nice-his/stage-1 Stage 1: Saint-Arnoult-en-Yvelines – Contres – 201.5 km 2 March 2010 Cycling News 8 March 2010 https://web.archive.org/web/20100406011841/http://www.cyclingnews.com/races/68th-paris-nice-his/stage-1 6 April 2010 dead dmy-all What had the makings of a straightforward day of racing changed drastically in the final 3 km on, as strong crosswinds blasted the peloton. Many riders crashed, including Heinrich Haussler, Levi Leipheimer and Alberto Contador, with Contador's crash serious enough to leave him wondering if he could continue the race.http://www.cyclingnews.com/news/contador-bruised-in-paris-nice-tumble Contador bruised in Paris–Nice tumble 8 March 2010 Cycling News 8 March 2010 https://web.archive.org/web/20100406004732/http://www.cyclingnews.com/news/contador-bruised-in-paris-nice-tumble 6 April 2010 livehttp://www.velonation.com/News/ID/3377/Contador-crashes-hard-hopes-he-doesnt-have-to-abandon-Paris-Nice.aspx Contador crashes hard, hopes he doesn't have to abandon Paris–Nice 8 March 2010 Velo Nation 8 March 2010 https://web.archive.org/web/20100310235458/http://www.velonation.com/News/ID/3377/Contador-crashes-hard-hopes-he-doesnt-have-to-abandon-Paris-Nice.aspx 10 March 2010 live The principal breakaway of the day involved Philippe Gilbert and Tom Veelers. They broke away 5 km on into the stage. Euskaltel–Euskadi had tried to place a rider in this breakaway attempt, but their team leader Samuel Sánchez had, incidentally, crashed moments earlier, meaning the squad had to rally around him. Gilbert and Veelers stood little chance of staying away for the stage win on such a flat course, and were caught 50 km on from the finish line. After other ultimately inconsequential breakaway attempts that occurred after the catch, most of the peloton was together at the 3 km on mark, when the strong winds started to blow. The winds, combined with a timely attack, made it so 15 riders gained 17 seconds on the rest of the field. Race leader Lars Boom was in this breakaway, as were overall contenders Luis León Sánchez and Alejandro Valverde. Contador and Leipheimer both missed the selection because of their crashes. Team Sky's Greg Henderson was easily the strongest sprinter in the selective final break, and took the stage win. Boom retained all four jerseys on the stage 1 podium, with Kreuziger assuming the white jersey in his stead and Voigt and Valverde continuing to wear the green and polka dot jerseys.http://www.cyclingnews.com/races/68th-paris-nice-his/stage-1/results Henderson wins windy stage to Contres 8 March 2010 Cycling News 8 March 2010 https://web.archive.org/web/20100310025828/http://www.cyclingnews.com/races/68th-paris-nice-his/stage-1/results 10 March 2010 dead dmy-all Stage 1 result CyclistTeamTime 1 Greg Henderson NZL SKY 2010 4h 22'17" 2 Grega Bole SLO LAM 2010 s.t. 3 Jérémie Galland FRA SAU 2010 s.t. 4 Alexandr Kolobnev RUS KAT 2010 s.t. 5 Alejandro Valverde ESP20px GCE 2010 s.t. 6 Nicolas Roche IRL ALM 2010 s.t. 7 Jens Voigt GER SAX 2010 s.t. 8 Marco Marcato ITA VAC 2010 s.t. 9 Tony Martin GER THR 2010 s.t. 10 Roman Kreuziger CZE LIQ 2010 s.t. General Classification after Stage 1 CyclistTeamTime1Lars Boom NED20px|Yellow jersey20px|Green jersey20px|Polka dot jersey20px|White jerseyRAB 2010 4h 33' 11"2Jens Voigt GERSAX 2010 + 5"3David Millar GBRGRM 2010 + 13"4Luis León Sánchez ESPGCE 2010 + 14"5Roman Kreuziger CZELIQ 2010 + 15"6Greg Henderson NZLSKY 2010 + 20"7Levi Leipheimer USARSH 2010 + 25"8Alberto Contador ESPAST 2010 + 25"9Peter Sagan SVKLIQ 2010 + 29"10Xavier Tondó ESPCTT 2010 + 29" Stage 2 9 March 2010 — Contres to Limoges, 201 km 1 on Stage 2 was mostly flat, but it included three third-category climbs, including the Côte de Maison Neuve at the 156 km on mark, which had an average gradient of over 6%.http://www.cyclingnews.com/races/68th-paris-nice-his/stage-2 Stage 2: Contres – Limoges – 201 km 2 March 2010 Cycling News 9 March 2010 https://web.archive.org/web/20100326045440/http://www.cyclingnews.com/races/68th-paris-nice-his/stage-2 26 March 2010 dead dmy-all Another early breakaway took place on this stage, with the Dutch teams Vacansoleil and Skil–Shimano trying to prove their combativeness to the ASO to potentially get wildcard entries to the upcoming Tour de France. Vacansoleil's Jens Mouris and Skil–Shimano's Koen de Kort were joined by Liquigas-Doimo rider Mauro Finetto and Saur-Sojasun's Laurent Mangel. Their escape, which took form just 4 km on into the stage. Their maximum advantage on the Caisse d'Epargned-led peloton was 4'15", and they were easily caught with 11 km on left to race. Mangel was first over the first two climbs on the day, and took over possession of the polka dot jersey from race leader Lars Boom after the stage. Several teams tried to set up the sprint finish, but in the chaos a crash took place 500 m on from the line, thinning the possibilities for stage winner (though all who crashed were awarded the same time as the stage winner). Peter Sagan was in first position on the road in sight of the finish line, but he was overhauled by Bbox Bouygues Telecom rider William Bonnet, giving that team its first win of the season on European soil. Boom retained the race leadership and the white jersey for the youth classification, and Kreuziger again wore the white jersey in his place. Luis León Sánchez, third on the stage, took ownership of the green jersey for the points classification.http://www.cyclingnews.com/races/68th-paris-nice-his/stage-2/results Bonnet surprises in Limoges 9 March 2010 Cycling News 9 March 2010 https://web.archive.org/web/20100310025532/http://www.cyclingnews.com/races/68th-paris-nice-his/stage-2/results 10 March 2010 dead dmy-all Stage 2 result CyclistTeamTime 1 William Bonnet FRA BTL 2010 4h 22'40" 2 Peter Sagan SVK LIQ 2010 s.t. 3 Luis León Sánchez ESP20px GCE 2010 s.t. 4 Mirco Lorenzetto ITA LAM 2010 s.t. 5 Juan José Haedo ARG SAX 2010 s.t. 6 Samuel Dumoulin FRA COF 2010 s.t. 7 Tom Veelers NED SKS 2010 s.t. 8 Eduard Vorganov RUS KAT 2010 s.t. 9 Borut Božič SLO VAC 2010 s.t. 10 Francesco Chicchi ITA LIQ 2010 s.t. General Classification after Stage 2 CyclistTeamTime1Lars Boom NED20px|Yellow jersey20px|White jerseyRAB 2010 8h 55' 51"2Jens Voigt GERSAX 2010 + 5"3Luis León Sánchez ESP20px|Green jersey20pxGCE 2010 + 10"4David Millar GBRGRM 2010 + 13"5Roman Kreuziger CZELIQ 2010 + 15"6Greg Henderson NZLSKY 2010 + 20"7Peter Sagan SVKLIQ 2010 + 23"8Levi Leipheimer USARSH 2010 + 25"9Alberto Contador ESPAST 2010 + 25"10Xavier Tondó ESPCTT 2010 + 29" Stage 3 10 March 2010 — Saint-Junien to Aurillac, 208 km on This course, as originally designed, was undulating, with six categorized climbs. The first half contained three third-category climbs, all with gradients lesser than 6%. The second half of the course contained three second-category climbs, with the Côte de Sexcles at 300 m on in ascent and 6.4% grade and the shorter but steeper Côte de la Martinie just before the finish. A quick 3 km on stretch of descending followed the Côte de la Martinie before the finish line.http://www.cyclingnews.com/races/68th-paris-nice-his/stage-3 Stage 3: Saint-Junien – Aurillac – 208 km 2 March 2010 Cycling News 9 March 2010 https://web.archive.org/web/20100323184237/http://www.cyclingnews.com/races/68th-paris-nice-his/stage-3 23 March 2010 dead dmy-all Due to snow in and around Saint-Junien, the start of the third stage was moved by 53 km on, to Saint-Yrieix-la-Perche. Therefore, the first two categorized climbs (category 3) were left out of the stage.Jean-François Quénet http://www.cyclingnews.com/news/paris-nice-stage-shortened-due-to-snow Paris–Nice stage shortened due to snow 10 March 2010 Cycling News 10 March 2010 https://web.archive.org/web/20100312084259/http://www.cyclingnews.com/news/paris-nice-stage-shortened-due-to-snow 12 March 2010 live Three riders broke away 33 km on into the stage. Once again, a SKS 2010 rider was among them, on this day Yann Huguet. Jürgen Roelandts and Nikolas Maes joined him, and they built a seven-minute advantage by the 67 km on mark. The gap slowly fell from that point, and after Huguet and Roelandts dropped Maes they were caught with 6 km on left. Six riders counterattacked on the way up the Côte de la Martinie, with Nicolas Roche and Peter Sagan instigating the move. THR 2010 reacted quickly, with André Greipel pacing Tony Martin into the break. They were also joined by Jens Voigt, Joaquim Rodríguez, and Alberto Contador. Contador pulled the group through the 1 km on to go mark before pulling up and finishing 2 seconds back of stage winner Sagan. Voigt assumed the overall race leadership. Sagan took both the green and white jerseys on the podium after the stage; his teammate Roman Kreuziger wore the white jersey in the next stage.http://www.cyclingnews.com/races/68th-paris-nice-his/stage-3/results Paris–Nice stage shortened due to snow 10 March 2010 Cycling News 11 March 2010 https://web.archive.org/web/20100312084628/http://www.cyclingnews.com/races/68th-paris-nice-his/stage-3/results 12 March 2010 dead Stage 3 result CyclistTeamTime 1 Peter Sagan SVK20px LIQ 2010 3h 44'28" 2 Joaquim Rodríguez ESP KAT 2010 s.t. 3 Nicolas Roche IRE ALM 2010 s.t. 4 Jens Voigt GER SAX 2010 + 2" 5 Tony Martin GER THR 2010 + 2" 6 Alberto Contador ESP AST 2010 + 2" 7 Mirco Lorenzetto ITA LAM 2010 + 6" 8 Samuel Dumoulin FRA COF 2010 + 6" 9 Xavier Florencio ESP CTT 2010 + 6" 10 Marco Marcato ITA VAC 2010 + 6" General Classification after Stage 3 CyclistTeamTime1Jens Voigt GER20px|Yellow jerseySAX 2010 12h 40' 26"2Peter Sagan SVK20px|Green jersey20px|White jersey20pxLIQ 2010 + 6"3Luis León Sánchez ESPGCE 2010 + 9"4David Millar GBRGRM 2010 + 12"5Roman Kreuziger CZE20pxLIQ 2010 + 14"6Lars Boom NEDRAB 2010 + 20"7Alberto Contador ESPAST 2010 + 20"8Levi Leipheimer USARSH 2010 + 24"9Joaquim Rodríguez ESPKAT 2010 + 28"10Xavier Tondó ESPCTT 2010 + 28" Stage 4 11 March 2010 — Maurs to Mende, 173.5 km on right|thumb|alt=Many spectators in warm clothes stand behind barricades watching a lone cyclist in a blue and yellow jersey with white trim. A motorcycle follows the cyclist.|Alberto Contador approaches the finish line in Mende, where he would take the stage win and the overall race leadership. Stage 4 had many time gaps, as it included two difficult climbs in the final 7 km on. The second-category Côte de Chabrits, at 6.8% grade, crested at that point. Following a quick descent, the final 3 km on of the stage were spent on the first-category Côte de la Croix Neuve climb in Mende, with a steady 10.7% grade.http://www.cyclingnews.com/races/68th-paris-nice-his/stage-4 Stage 4: Maurs – Mende – 173.5 km 2 March 2010 Cycling News 9 March 2010 https://web.archive.org/web/20100323175642/http://www.cyclingnews.com/races/68th-paris-nice-his/stage-4 23 March 2010 dead dmy-all Wild card rivals VAC 2010 and SKS 2010 were again active in the breakaways, placing Marco Marcato and Albert Timmer, respectively, in the day's principal break alongside Jérôme Pineau, Jean-Marc Marino, Julien Loubet, Amaël Moinard, and Mikel Nieve. Their advantage on the peloton hovered between three and four minutes for most of the stage, until AST 2010 took to pacing the main field to start to bring them back. The catch occurred 9 km on from the finish line. After other riders tried their luck and were brought back, Alberto Contador put in an attack that no one could answer, netting him the stage win. The field finished scattered behind him, and when overnight race leader Jens Voigt finished 44 seconds back, Contador also became the new race leader.http://www.cyclingnews.com/races/68th-paris-nice-his/stage-4/results Contador bangs out a win in Mende 11 March 2010 Cycling News 11 March 2010 https://web.archive.org/web/20100312121009/http://www.cyclingnews.com/races/68th-paris-nice-his/stage-4/results 12 March 2010 dead dmy-all Stage 4 result CyclistTeamTime 1 Alberto Contador ESP AST 2010 4h 26' 47" 2 Alejandro Valverde ESP GCE 2010 + 10" 3 Samuel Sánchez ESP EUS 2010 + 10" 4 Joaquim Rodríguez ESP KAT 2010 + 18" 5 Thomas Voeckler FRA BBO 2010 + 20" 6 Damiano Cunego ITA LAM 2010 + 21" 7 Roman Kreuziger CZE LIQ 2010 + 21" 8 Christophe Le Mével FRA FDJ 2010 + 29" 9 Luis León Sánchez ESP GCE 2010 + 29" 10 Rein Taaramäe EST COF 2010 + 31" General Classification after Stage 4 CyclistTeamTime1Alberto Contador ESP20px|Yellow jerseyAST 2010 17h 07' 23"2Alejandro Valverde ESPGCE 2010 + 24"3Roman Kreuziger CZE20px|White jerseyLIQ 2010 + 25"4Luis León Sánchez ESPGCE 2010 + 28"5Samuel Sánchez ESPEUS 2010 + 29"6Jens Voigt GERSAX 2010 + 34"7Joaquim Rodríguez ESPKAT 2010 + 36"8Peter Sagan SVK20px|Green jerseyLIQ 2010 + 54"9David Millar GBRGRM 2010 + 1' 03"10Rein Taaramäe ESTCOF 2010 + 1' 06" Stage 5 12 March 2010 — Pernes-les-Fontaines to Aix-en-Provence, 157 km 1 on The fifth stage was again undulating. There were four categorized climbs on course, with the last occurring 30 km on from the finish line, and an uncategorized "wall" just before the stage ended.http://www.cyclingnews.com/races/68th-paris-nice-his/stage-5 Stage 5: Pernes-les-Fontaines – Aix-en-Provence – 157 km 2 March 2010 Cycling News 9 March 2010 https://web.archive.org/web/20100323214328/http://www.cyclingnews.com/races/68th-paris-nice-his/stage-5 23 March 2010 dead dmy-all In heavy contrast to the previous days of racing, stage five began with sunshine and warm temperatures. Sylvain Chavanel instigated the day's first breakaway, but AST 2010 drilled the peloton at 45 km/h on in the stage's second hour, meaning Chavanel's group was not away for very long. At around 50 km on to go, Carlos Barredo, Volodymir Gustov, Sylvain Calzati, and Rein Taaramäe tried their luck. This group's maximum advantage was 1' 20", meaning Taaramäe was briefly race leader on the road, as he started the stage 1' 06" down to Alberto Contador. Taaramäe took maximum mountains points on the last two climbs, protecting teammate Amaël Moinard's newly-taken lead in the mountains classification. With 25 km on remaining, after the catch occurred, ALM 2010 set a blistering pace at the front of the main field, trying to set up Nicolas Roche for a sprint win. The pace fractured the peloton, with Levi Leipheimer and Thomas Voeckler notables among a large group that lost 2' 36" at the finish line. With 3 km on left to go, Peter Sagan put in an "audacious" attack that won the young Slovak his second stage in three days. Top general classification contenders like Alejandro Valverde and Contador finished together 2 seconds behind Sagan, as they were unable to overtake Sagan on the road. Contador referred to the day as "a terrible stage", as no team seemed able to take control of the chaotic day of racing.Daniel Benson http://www.cyclingnews.com/races/68th-paris-nice-his/stage-5/results Sagan wins his second stage with audacious attack 12 March 2010 Cycling News 12 March 2010 https://web.archive.org/web/20100314083507/http://www.cyclingnews.com/races/68th-paris-nice-his/stage-5/results 14 March 2010 dead Stage 5 result CyclistTeamTime 1 Peter Sagan SVK 20px|Green jersey LIQ 2010 3h 34' 15" 2 Mirco Lorenzetto ITA LAM 2010 + 2" 3 Alejandro Valverde ESP GCE 2010 + 2" 4 Matthieu Ladagnous FRA FDJ 2010 + 2" 5 Jens Voigt GER SAX 2010 + 2" 6 Simon Gerrans AUS SKY 2010 + 2" 7 Koldo Fernández ESP EUS 2010 + 2" 8 Nicolas Roche IRE ALM 2010 + 2" 9 Matthew Goss AUS THR 2010 + 2" 10 Alberto Contador ESP 20px|Yellow jersey AST 2010 + 2" General Classification after Stage 5 CyclistTeamTime1Alberto Contador ESP20px|Yellow jerseyAST 2010 20h 41' 40"2Alejandro Valverde ESPGCE 2010 + 20"3Roman Kreuziger CZE20px|White jerseyLIQ 2010 + 25"4Luis León Sánchez ESPGCE 2010 + 26"5Samuel Sánchez ESPEUS 2010 + 29"6Jens Voigt GERSAX 2010 + 34"7Joaquim Rodríguez ESPKAT 2010 + 36"8Peter Sagan SVK20px|Green jerseyLIQ 2010 + 42"9David Millar GBRGRM 2010 + 1' 02"10Rein Taaramäe ESTCOF 2010 + 1' 06" Stage 6 13 March 2010 — Peynier to Tourrettes-sur-Loup, 220 km on Stage six was the queen stage, with eight categorized climbs on the road. The last was the first-category Col de Vence, which had a 6.6% grade, steady for the 9.7 km 1 on the climb took. A steep descent and a small raise to the finish line followed.http://www.cyclingnews.com/races/68th-paris-nice-his/stage-6 Stage 6: Peynie – Tourrettes-sur-Loup – 220 km 2 March 2010 Cycling News 9 March 2010 https://web.archive.org/web/20100323181716/http://www.cyclingnews.com/races/68th-paris-nice-his/stage-6 23 March 2010 dead dmy-all Some big-name riders made the escape on this stage. A group of 23 formed early on, including Levi Leipheimer, Damiano Cunego, and Sylvain Chavanel. Mountains classification leader Amaël Moinard was also in the break, and took top points on five of the stage's climbs to give himself an unassailable lead in those standings. When the advantage of this group reached two minutes, the overall race lead of Alberto Contador was threatened by Chavanel. However, Contador's AST 2010 team got help in pacing the main field from two teams who missed the break, namely GCE 2010 and GRM 2010. On the ascent of the Col de Vence, the only riders remaining from the break were Xavier Tondó, Alexandr Kolobnev, Cyril Gautier, Chavanel, and Cunego. Various attacks and splits out of the peloton eventually absorbed all but Tondó, who soloed to the finish line with a 5-second advantage over the main field, led home by Alejandro Valverde. Only time bonuses won by Valverde and Peter Sagan caused the overall standings to change. http://www.cyclingnews.com/races/68th-paris-nice-his/stage-6/results Tondo scores one for Cervelo 13 March 2010 Cycling News 13 March 2010 https://web.archive.org/web/20100314083415/http://www.cyclingnews.com/races/68th-paris-nice-his/stage-6/results 14 March 2010 dead Stage 6 result CyclistTeamTime 1 Xavier Tondó ESP CTT 2010 5h 01' 39" 2 Alejandro Valverde ESP GCE 2010 + 5" 3 Peter Sagan SVK 20px|Green jersey LIQ 2010 + 5" 4 Samuel Sánchez ESP EUS 2010 + 5" 5 Joaquim Rodríguez ESP KAT 2010 + 5" 6 Leonardo Duque COL COF 2010 + 5" 7 Luis León Sánchez ESP GCE 2010 + 5" 8 Christophe Riblon FRA ALM 2010 + 5" 9 Rein Taaramäe EST COF 2010 + 5" 10 Daniele Righi ITA LAM 2010 + 5" General Classification after Stage 6 CyclistTeamTime1Alberto Contador ESP20px|Yellow jerseyAST 2010 25h 43' 24"2Alejandro Valverde ESPGCE 2010 + 14"3Roman Kreuziger CZE20px|White jerseyLIQ 2010 + 25"4Luis León Sánchez ESPGCE 2010 + 26"5Samuel Sánchez ESPEUS 2010 + 29"6Jens Voigt GERSAX 2010 + 34"7Joaquim Rodríguez ESPKAT 2010 + 36"8Peter Sagan SVK20px|Green jerseyLIQ 2010 + 38"9David Millar GBRGRM 2010 + 1' 02"10Rein Taaramäe ESTCOF 2010 + 1' 06" Stage 7 14 March 2010 — Nice, 119 km on The final stage was short, but it was far from ceremonial, containing three first-category climbs. It started and ended, after a loop, in Nice. The Col de la Porte was probably the most difficult climb in the race, reaching 1068 m on in elevation on a 7.2% grade. After that peak, the riders descended almost to sea level again before scaling La Turbie, which was less steep but a longer climb. The Col d'Eze was the final climb of the Race to the Sun, after which the peloton descended all the way to sea level before finishing the race.http://www.cyclingnews.com/races/68th-paris-nice-his/stage-7 Stage 7: Nice – Nice – 119 km 2 March 2010 Cycling News 9 March 2010 https://web.archive.org/web/20100323222137/http://www.cyclingnews.com/races/68th-paris-nice-his/stage-7 23 March 2010 dead dmy-all The peloton stayed together through the first hour of this stage. When Peter Sagan won the first intermediate sprint, at the 18.5 km 1 on mark, he secured his victory in the points classification over Jens Voigt and Alejandro Valverde. On the ascent of the Col de la Porte, Thomas Voeckler and mountains classification leader Amaël Moinard slipped away and built up a two-minute gap. The chase began in earnest early on such a short stage, but because of the mountainous parcours the two still had a lead of 30 seconds on the descent of the Col d'Eze. Moinard took 28 of 30 possible mountains classification points on the day despite already having an unassailable lead in the classification. In defense of his yellow jersey, Alberto Contador went on the attack to try to reel in Moinard and Voeckler on the ascent of the Col d'Eze, taking with him Luis León Sánchez, Valvede, Rein Taaramäe, and Joaquim Rodríguez. Rodríguez was the aggressor from this group on the climb, gapping them for a time, though he was unable to bridge to the leaders. Samuel Sánchez and Tiago Machado bridged from the peloton to the Contador group, and Machado and Valverde also gapped them, putting in a clear threat to Contador. Contador himself was forced to tap out a pace that brought them back. While Moinard and Voeckler were in view of the Contador group in the final kilometer, they were able to stay away to the finish line. Voeckler thought the group was closer to them than they actually were, and started his sprint for the finish line very early. Moinard easily held his wheel until the final few meters, and came around him for the victory. Valverde claimed bonus seconds for third on the stage, but it was not enough to force Contador from the top step of the final podium. http://www.cyclingnews.com/races/68th-paris-nice-his/stage-7/results Contador passes Paris–Nice tests 14 March 2010 Cycling News 14 March 2010 https://web.archive.org/web/20100317164704/http://www.cyclingnews.com/races/68th-paris-nice-his/stage-7/results 17 March 2010 dead Stage 7 result CyclistTeamTime 1 Amaël Moinard FRA 20px|Polka dot jersey COF 2010 2h 52' 09" 2 Thomas Voeckler FRA BTL 2010 s.t. 3 Alejandro Valverde ESP GCE 2010 + 3" 4 Nicolas Roche IRL20px ALM 2010 + 3" 5 Rein Taaramäe EST COF 2010 + 3" 6 Joaquim Rodríguez ESP KAT 2010 + 3" 7 Jens Voigt GER SAX 2010 + 3" 8 Chris Horner USA RSH 2010 + 3" 9 Janez Brajkovič SLO RSH 2010 + 3" 10 Alberto Contador ESP 20px|Yellow jersey AST 2010 + 3" Final General Classification CyclistTeamTime1Alberto Contador ESP20px|Yellow jerseyAST 2010 28h 35' 35"2Alejandro Valverde ESPGCE 2010 + 11"3Luis León Sánchez ESPGCE 2010 + 25"4Roman Kreuziger CZE20px|White jerseyLIQ 2010 + 26"5Samuel Sánchez ESPEUS 2010 + 30"6Jens Voigt GERSAX 2010 + 35"7Joaquim Rodríguez ESPKAT 2010 + 37"8Rein Taaramäe ESTCOF 2010 + 1' 07"9Jean-Christophe Péraud FRAOLO 2010 + 1' 16"10Jérôme Coppel FRASAU 2010 + 1' 17" Classification leadership progress Stage Winner General Classification25 px Points Classification25 px Mountains Classification25 px Young Rider Classification25 px Team Classification25 px P Lars Boom Lars Boom Lars Boom Lars Boom Lars BoomRSH 2010 1 Greg HendersonGCE 2010 2 William Bonnet Luis León Sánchez Laurent Mangel 3 Peter Sagan Jens Voigt Peter Sagan Peter SaganLIQ 2010 4 Alberto Contador Alberto Contador Roman KreuzigerGCE 2010 5 Peter Sagan Amaël Moinard 6Xavier TondóLIQ 2010 7 Amaël MoinardALM 2010 FinalAlberto ContadorPeter SaganAmaël MoinardRoman KreuzigerALM 2010 Final standings Final General Classification All riders from second place downward promoted by one position due to the retroactive suspension of Alejandro Valverde CyclistTeamTime1Alberto Contador ESP20px|Yellow jerseyAST 2010 28h 35' 35"2Luis León Sánchez ESPGCE 2010 + 25"3Roman Kreuziger CZE20px|White jerseyLIQ 2010 + 26"4Samuel Sánchez ESPEUS 2010 + 30"5Jens Voigt GERSAX 2010 + 35"6Joaquim Rodríguez ESPKAT 2010 + 37"7Rein Taaramäe ESTCOF 2010 + 1' 07"8Jean-Christophe Péraud FRAOLO 2010 + 1' 16"9Jérôme Coppel FRASAU 2010 + 1' 17"10Nicolas Roche IRE20pxALM 2010 + 1' 23" Points Classification Points earned by Alejandro Valverde are subject to removal, and so ranking is subject to revision. CyclistTeamPoints1Peter Sagan SVK 20px|Green jerseyLIQ 2010 1122Alejandro Valverde ESPGCE 2010 1053Jens Voigt GERSAX 2010 1044Alberto Contador ESP20px|Yellow jerseyAST 2010 895Joaquim Rodríguez ESPKAT 2010 826Luis León Sánchez ESPGCE 2010 807Nicolas Roche IRE20pxALM 2010 788Samuel Sánchez ESPEUS 2010 609Mirco Lorenzetto ITALAM 2010 5810Thomas Voeckler FRABBO 2010 52 Mountains Classification Points earned by Alejandro Valverde are subject to removal, and so ranking is subject to revision. CyclistTeamPoints1Amaël Moinard FRA20px|King of the Mountains jerseyCOF 2010 752Thomas Voeckler FRABBO 2010 293Alberto Contador ESP20px|Yellow jerseyAST 2010 244Alejandro Valverde ESPGCE 2010 185Damiano Cunego ITALAM 2010 176Xavier Tondo ESPCTT 2010 167Rein Taaramäe ESTCOF 2010 138Cyril Gautier FRABBO 2010 129Jean Marc Marino FRA Saur-Sojasun 1110Joaquim Rodríguez ESPKAT 2010 11 Notes "nb" References Further reading http://netstorage.lequipe.fr/ASO/cyclisme/paris-nice/2014/guide_historique_fr.pdf Guide Historique 2014 French Historic Guide 2014 L'Equipe 73 https://web.archive.org/web/20140327051041/http://netstorage.lequipe.fr/ASO/cyclisme/paris-nice/2014/guide_historique_fr.pdf 27 March 2014 External links http://www.letour.fr/us/homepage_horscoursePNC.html Official site https://web.archive.org/web/20100304232937/http://www.letour.fr/us/homepage_horscoursePNC.html 4 March 2010 Category:Paris–Nice Paris-Nice Paris-Nice