Vuelta a España 1997 - 21 Alcobendas Zülle

Vuelta a España 1997 - 21, Alcobendas - Alcobendas, 43.7 kms
1. Alex Zülle (Switzerland) ONCE 51.35
2. Sergei Gontchar (Ukraine) AKI 0.31
3. Alberto Leanizbarrutia (Spain) ONCE 0.40
4. Laurent Jalabert (France) ONCE 0.51
5. Melchor Mauri (Spain) ONCE 0.56
6. Tony Rominger (Switzerland) Cofidis 1.26
7. Juan Carlos Dominguez (Spain) Kelme 1.30
8. Cristian Salvato (Italy) Refin 2.13
9. Enrico Zaina (Italy) Asics 2.19
10. Fernando Escartin (Spain) Kelme 2.21
11. Jose Vicente Garcia Acosta (Spain) Banesto 2.31
12. Roberto Heras (Spain) Kelme 2.35
13. Laurent Dufaux (Switzerland) Lotus 2.38
14. Sergei Ivanov (Russia) TVM 2.39
15. Francisque Teyssier (France) GAN 2.42
16. Bruno Thibout (France) Cofidis 2.52
17. Jacky Durand (France) Casino 2.56
18. Carlos Contreras (Colombia) Flavia s.t.
19. Gianni Faresin (Italy) Mapei 2.57
GC after Stage 21
1. Alex Zülle (Switzerland) ONCE 87.46.13
2. Fernando Escartin (Spain) Kelme 5.07
3. Laurent Dufaux (Switzerland) Lotus 6.11
4. Enrico Zaina (Italy) Asics 7.24
5. Roberto Heras (Spain) Kelme 8.04
6. Daniel Clavero (Spain) Estepona 10.02
7. Laurent Jalabert (France) ONCE 10.03
8. Marcos Serrano (Spain) Kelme 10.40
9. Gianni Faresin (Italy) Mapei 13.53
10. Yvon Ledanois (France) GAN 15.40
The organization of the Vuelta forgot to arrange permits with the airport of Madrid. The parcours was in the neighbourhood of the airport; so it was not allowed to fly above the whole parcours with helicopters. On Saturday morning they changed the parcours.
It was Zülle's first stage win in the 22-day race which he had started, according to team manager Manolo Saiz, ``overweight and out of shape,'' after a lay-off following injury.
In the final eight kilometres Zülle overhauled Escartin who had started two minutes before him. The Spanish rider was more intent on protecting his second overall position from the threat of another Swiss, Laurent Dufaux.
Escartin finished 17 seconds faster than Dufaux and guaranteed Spain a top three placing which they missed out on last year for the first time since 1987.
It was the fastest of 52 Tours, averaging more than 41 kph.
Eleven years ago Walter Zuelle threatened to sell his son's bicycle which lay dusty and rusting in the cellar of their home.
That 'pushed the button' which was to lift Alex Zuelle, a house painter who enjoyed smoking, to the top floor of professional racing.
Zuelle, 29, bares his racing scars as readily as he wears the yellow jersey. He has been race leader for a record 37 days over three Tours of Spain, and in the Tour de France for 11 days between 1992 and 1996.
His reputation for crashing was born in 1993 when, after 13 days in the leader's yellow jersey in the Tour of Spain, he tumbled on a descent in the mountains of Asturias.
This year he crashed in the Tour of Switzerland in the rain, fracturing his collarbone, while still bearing the marks from a spill a week earlier in France. The fracture required ``complicated surgery'' to fit 12 surgical pins
However, he won the world championship in the rain, three months after winning a rain-drenched prologue time trial in the Tour de France at Hertogenbosch in the Netherlands.
Those victories laid the myth that the bespectacled Zuelle was doomed when it rained. He has poor eyesight but specially designed lenses that do not mist over have helped him overcome any vision problems.
Eleven years ago, his dad was surprised that his son was being sought by their home town club, VC Wil. Alex had impressed the coach by overtaking the club's training group, even though he was wearing basketball boots.
``But he doesn't even know how to change gears,'' Zuelle senior told club coach Guido Amrhein. The bike had to come out of the cellar to stop his father selling it.
Zuelle's career reached a crisis in 1990 when, after twice being turned down for a professional team place, he was on the verge of hanging up his wheels.
Then he was introduced to Manolo Saiz, team chief of Spanish sponsored ONCE, who offered him a three-month contract that was to extend over six years.
Within days of becoming a professional Zuelle repaid Saiz's faith by taking third in the Tour of Catalonia behind Tour de France winners Indurain and Pedro Delgado.
A year later his Tour de France debut was remarkable. He was second to Indurain in the opening time trial, and then spent six days in the yellow jersey.

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Gran Zulle!