Above image courtesy Graham Watson. Order this image here.
Heinrich Haussler described his win in today's very wet Stage 13 from Vittel > Colmar, 200 km as "perfect" and "like a dream". He said he only realised in the last kilometre that he was going to win it. This despite an incredible 7 minute 20 second lead over the peloton in miserable conditions on glacial-like roads. He took the win about 4 minutes ahead of the next rider.
Not surprisingly, Heinrich Haussler, who speaks fluent English [with an Aussie twang] knows these hunting grounds very well. He lives and trains 20km away from Colmar so he has trained in this very area because he lives fairly nearby.
It was fascinating to hear that he loves the wet weather. He considers it ideal. It's a mindset. He says he can't stand hot weather. “I’m from Australia but I hate 30 degrees temperatures,” said Haussler. He led a 197-km breakaway in the cold and wet."Today was perfect," said Haussler. "I only live about 30km from here so you could say it's my training area and also this weather, I love the rain and the cold.
"At the beginning it was difficult because there are a lot of good riders in the group and the peloton behind were chasing the whole time.
"They didn't let us go so I just tried to split it up a bit because there were too many good hill climbers there.
"I knew as the day would go on I would get stronger and the others would get weaker because I just love this type of weather and it's really good for me."
The sprinter used his knowledge of the terrain to break on his own and add the most prestigious victory to his professional record.
“I’ve lived less than 20 kilometres from here. It was pretty much my training area. I knew it was a stage I could win. It’s really good to win here,” said Haussler of his victory in Colmar, close to the German border.
One of the commentators also mentioned the level of sacrifice the young man has made. 7 months without a drop of alcohol.
It showed when he crossed the line. His face a picture of tearful emotion as the sacrifice paid off, as the realisation hit home.
It's a big, big day for me," said Haussler. "I was lucky in spite of the bad weather or perhaps because of it.
"When I realised in the last kilometre I was going to win, I told myself 'don't crash'. It was lots of emotions."
Above image courtesy Graham Watson. Order this image here.
QUOTES OF THE DAY: "Yes, you want the controls, yes, you want a clean event, but it's the hardest sporting event in the world. You can't go and pull guys out of their bed on the day of a mountain stage at 6am." Lance Armstrong hits back at claims Astana have deliberately delayed doping controls.
SHOOT: I feel for Lance. Imagine being woken up unnecessarily early every damn morning. They areprobably trying to irritate him so that they can get into the newspapers.
“I’m convinced I would never have won this had it been hot.” -Heinrich Haussler
SHOOT: Unlucky 13 for Leipheimer. I feel his pain.
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