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You are in: Special Events: 2001: Tour de France: Tour moments |
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Sunday, 22 July, 2001, 19:30 GMT 20:30 UK
Brotherton's Tour moment: Stage 14
Armstong and Ullrich show their respect for each other
Throughout the Tour de France, Simon Brotherton is providing daily race reports for BBC Five Live and stage highlights for Sport Online.
Moment of the day in Stage 14 occurred as Jan Ullrich and Lance Armstrong crossed the line at the summit finish of Luz Ardiden, just over a minute behind stage winner Roberto Laiseka. Ullrich held his right hand out behind him and Armstrong grasped it with his left. It was a moment lasting no more than a second or so but it speaks volumes for the respect between the two men.
It was Ullrich's way of acknowledging that Armstrong has proven himself the better man in this year's race. With the mountains finished now, and Ullrich some five minutes behind Armstrong, the German knows that, barring an accident or illness to his rival, the race has been effectively won or lost. Armstrong, too, showed respect by not trying to jump away from Ullrich near the top of the climb and rub his nose into the ground any further. He also chose not to attack when the Olympic champion crashed on Saturday. It's also noticable how not a bad word has been said between these two cycling heavyweights as they've gone head-to-head in this most gruelling of events. With both men at the top of their form, they have provided a memorable spectacle for millions of people. It's just Ullrich's bad luck to come up against a man seemingly on a higher plane.
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