Patricia Schwager
Patricia Schwager, the Swiss rider for Faren-Kuota, took over the GC Point d’Appui of the Giro Rosa, finishing at the middle of the pack after Stage 7. The final stage of the race, a time trial, will be Sunday.
She’s 54 minutes and 29 seconds behind the race leader, Mara Abbott, and an hour and 36 minutes ahead of the Lanterne Rouge, Alessia Martini of Vaiano Fondriest.
On the stage, Valentina Carretta of MCipollini Giordana won the Point d’Appui.
Vasil Kiryienka
Vasil Kiryienka of Sky Procycling, the winner of the grey jersey during the 2012 Tour de France, has finagled his way into the Point d’Appui on general classification after Stage 6.
Kiryienka finished in 109th place after Stage 5 and managed to move up in the standings to gain the middle spot. There were four abandons — two who did not start and two who did not finish the day — that made the climb in standings even more difficult for the Belorussian rider. Kiryienka is 14 minutes and 12 seconds behind the race leader, Daryl Impey, and 32 minutes and 6 seconds ahead of the Lanterne Rouge, Tom Veelers of Team Argos-Shimano. The rider with the median speed at the end of Stage 6 is David Lopez Garcia of Sky Procycling.
Jan Bakelants of RadioShack Leopard was on the fulcrum for the stage.
Stage 5 of the 2013 Giro Rosa produced changes at all levels of the race: Jessie MacLean of Orica-AIS took over the Point d’Appui; Mara Abbott of the USA National Team sped into the maglia rosa; and Alessia Martini of Vaiano Fondriest became the new Lanterne Rouge.
MacLean is 40 minutes behind the race leader and 1 hour and 16 minutes ahead of the caboose.
On the stage, Anna Bianca Schnitzmeier of Wiggle-Honda won the Point d’Appui.
Sergey Lagutin of Vacansoleil-DCM rolled in with the post-crash autobus to finish 181st on the stage, good enough to drop him in the general classification to the Point d’Appui at the end of Stage 5. A large crash with about 15 kilometers left in the race put many riders off the main run-in, including Lagutin.
Lagutin, the national road race champion of Uzbekistan for eight of the last ten years, won the under-23 World Road Race Championship in 2003 and placed fifth in the 2012 Olympic road race.
Steve Morabito of BMC Racing Team took the fulcrum position on the stage.
Stage 3 of the 2013 Giro Rosa finished with an even number of riders and, so, no fulcrum. Seven abandons on Stage 4, however, brought the Point d’Appui back into play, and the Lanterne Rouge after the first stage, Giorgia Bronzini of Wiggle-Honda, has moved into the general classification fulcrum.
Bronzini, the team leader, is 20 minutes and 20 seconds behind the Giro Rosa leader, Marianne Vos, and 1 hour and 25 minutes ahead of the current Lanterne Rouge, Jasmine Dotti of Servetto Footon.
On the stage, Martine Bras of Boels Dolmans Cycling took the Point d’Appui.
Judges for the Tour de France refused to reverse course on their decision that Eddie King would be dropped from the race, leaving the tour with its first odd number of racers to come home. Pavel Brutt of Katusha proved to be the rider at the center of the pack.
It’s a bad way to crown the first Point d’Appui of the 100th edition of the Tour de France, but we live with what we are given. Team Katusha finished in 10th place on the team time trial, just enough ahead of Radioshack Leopard to pull Brutt into the fulcrum position.
During the first three stages, an even number of riders came home each day. The Cuspides on each stage:
For the second day in a row, the leader for the Point d’Appui has finished with the peloton. Dorleta Eskamendi of Bizkaia-Durango took over the general classification fulcrum on Stage 2 of the 2013 Giro Rosa. The winner of the Point d’Appui on the first stage, Anastasyia Chulkov, improved her standings significantly, leaving open the fulcrum position. Eskamendi moved up in the standings as well and into the exact center of the peloton.
American Ally Stacher of Specialized-Lululemon is the new Lanterne Rouge.
The opening stage of the 2013 Giro Rosa saw two abandons, which left an odd number of riders to come home and the race’s first Point d’Appui. Anastasiya Chulkova of RusVelo finished at the middle of the peloton to pick up Stage 1 honors.
She and most of the racers hung together throughout the stage, with the winner of the stage, Kirsten Wild, decided on the line and the leader of the race, Marianne Vos, decided by points accumulated out on the course. Chulkova’s official time, as a result, is exactly the same as that of Wild and Vos.
The Lanterne Rouge for this first stage was Giorgia Bronzini of Wiggle-Honda.
The 2013 Giro d’Italia ended with an even number of riders coming home, so no Point d’Appui could be awarded. Les Cuspides on the final stage were Danilo Wyss of BMC Racing and Pablo Lastras Garcia of Movistar, both of whom held the fulcrum at different stages during the race.
An even number of mushers and their teams finished the 2013 Iditarod, the last team arriving Sunday afternoon. As a result, there is no Point d’Appui for 2013. Les Cuspides are shared by two mushers, each of whom had held the Point d’Appui at intermediate stages of the race, Curt Perano and Matt Failor.
Perano finished one day and slightly less than six hours behind the winner, Mitch Seavey, and about three days and nine hours ahead of the final musher, No. 54, the Lanterne Rouge, Christine Roalofs.
The musher with the time closest to the median time for the 998-mile dogsled race was Mike Williams Sr., whose son Mike Williams Jr. also raced the course and held one of the Cuspides after Day 6.
Point d'Appui 