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| INTRO | REVIEW BY SPORT | GALLERY | VOTE | LEGENDS REMEMBERED | 2001 CALENDAR | |
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 By BBC Sport Online's Chris Russell Cycling's year 2000 was one in which the sport thrilled readers of Europe's sports pages and provided plenty of copy for news reporters more interested in pills and syringes than pedals and wheels. Hope that the war against drugs might one day be won was provided as the aftermath of the 1998 Tour de France scandal was finally sorted out in court. On the road, Lance Armstrong reigned supreme at the Tour de France, while established German pair Erik Zabel and Jan Ullrich starred in the one-day races and at the Olympics. But there were also new names to talk about and a thrilling revival of the sport in Britain to give hope for the future north of the English Channel. January and February is a time for pre-season training ahead of the real start to the season in March at the Milan-San Remo race in Italy. Erik Zabel won the opening event of the World Cup series, for the third time in four years and then hung on to the lead of the series through the Spring Classics. The best story of the early season came over the cobbled farm-tracks of northern France in Paris-Roubaix. Johan Museeuw crossed the finishing line pointing at his knee - a joint that had been smashed and gangrene-ridden after the 1999 event. The Belgian must now repeat this recovery after a motorbike crash later in the year left him once again on the critical list. Three weeks of shocks at May's Giro d'Italia began with Marco Pantani's presence as the riders met the Pope before the start in Rome. The 1998 winner had been thrown off the 1999 event for a failed blood test and had barely raced since. Il Pirata had no expectations of repeating his 1998 win but helped team-mate Stefano Garzelli see off the challenge of 2000's nearly-man, the world No 1 Francesco Casagrande. Later in the year, Garzelli split from a team not big enough for both talents, while Pantani's past caught up with him in an Italian courtroom. The Giro also offered a first result in a brilliant year for British cycling as the Linda McCartney team became the first from the UK to ride the Giro - and then won a stage. But that was eclipsed on day one of the Tour de France as 23-year-old Briton David Millar made a winning debut at the race. Readers of BBC Sport Online's Tour build-up would have known his name, but the whole of British sport was made fully aware on that weekend in July. Millar handed the yellow jersey to Laurent Jalabert, but the experienced Frenchman cracked as the Tour headed for the most eagerly-awaited mountain stage in years - at Mont Ventoux. Throughout it all Lance Armstrong answered his critics to reach Paris as the winner again, despite a terrible day in Alps and a running feud with Pantani. Unusually, the midsummer World Cup races were some of the best of the year with Erik Dekker adding to a hat-trick of Tour stage wins with victory at San Sebastian. Laurent Dufaux's win in Switzerland was one of the year's best races although Gabriele Missaglia's victory in the German round came in a predictably ordinary race in Hamburg. The Tour of Spain enjoyed a new format in 2000, with shorter stages providing faster racing and record television viewing figures. Defending champion Ullrich pulled out to concentrate on Olympic preparations, but the public got over that disappointment as Spaniard Roberto Heras provided them with a home success. And then it was off to Sydney, as track racing came to the fore with an incredible run of British success. Later in the autumn the triumphant British returned home for a superb world championships in Manchester, where Chris Boardman retired with an amazing world record. Ullrich and Armstrong were back in the spotlight during the second week of the Olympics. Many expected the American to match the German's superb ride to victory in the road race when the riders lined up for the time trial. But the Tour winner ended up second best as team-mate and friend Viacheslav Ekimov gave Russia a shock win. The Olympics also offered the sport's women a rare moment in the limelight, with Leontin Zijlaard taking a stunning three gold medals. At the end of the year there was a win for one of the peloton's most popular figures - Andrea Tafi at Paris-Tours. Zabel took a deserved World Cup series win at the Tour of Lombardy, with Raimondas Rumsas of Lithuania continuing what had been a fine end of the year for Eastern European riders. The previous weekend, Romans Vainsteins gave Latvia a first road race world champion in front of an enthusiastic crowd in Brittany. But it was events elsewhere in France in autumn that might provide a more lasting legacy. Controversial Richard Virenque escaped punishment at the trial, which followed the 1998 scandal. But his tearful confession and the events of the past two years will surely mean that the sport will never again be so dominated by the spectre of drugs. back to top |
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