THE RACE LIVE

The Discovery Channel team has set the fastest average speed for a team time trial in the Tour de France. The nine riders finished the 67.5km course in one hour, 10 minutes and 39 seconds. The average speed is 57.31km/h - eclipsing the previous best (that of Gewiss-Ballan from 1995 - 54.930km/h).

After four stages of the 92nd Tour de France, the top five in the general classification is:
1. Lance Armstrong (USA - DSC)
2. George Hincapie (USA - DSC) at 55"
3. Jens Voigt (GER) - CSC) at 1’04"
4. Bobby Julich (USA - CSC) at 1’07"
5. Jose Luis Rubiera (ESP - DSC) 1’14"

Dave Zabriskie has lost his yellow jersey in dramatic fashion. It’s hard to say what caused his crash but he has lost a lot of skin because of the accident.
Lance Armstrong will wear the yellow jersey in stage five. He leads George Hincapie by 55" and Jens Voigt by 1’04".

The top five teams in the fourth stage from Tours to Blois is:
1. DISCOVERY CHANNEL TEAM 1h10’39"
2. TEAM CSC at 02"
3. T-MOBILE TEAM at 35"
4. LIBERTY SEGUROS - WÃœRTH TEAM at 53"
5. PHONAK HEARING SYSTEMS at 01’ 31"

The yellow jersey will be worn by Lance Armstrong in the fifth stage. Dave Zabriskie is still limping to the finish line after crashing in the final 1,200m of the stage. His yellow jersey is torn and blood is dropping out of open wounds on his arms and legs.

Seven riders of the CSC team have reached the finish. They are 2" slower than Discovery Channel.

Dave Zabriskie has touched the wheels of one of this team-mates. The yellow jersey is back on his bike but he has lost contact with his team-mates!

There are less than 2,000m to go for Dave Zabriskie and his CSC colleagues. They have set the fastest time at every check today.

With all teams past the 3rd time check, at the 61km mark, the top five is:
1. TEAM CSC 61km in 1h05’10"
2. DISCOVERY CHANNEL TEAM at 02"
3. T-MOBILE TEAM at 26"
4. LIBERTY SEGUROS - WÃœRTH TEAM at 46"
5. PHONAK HEARING SYSTEMS at 01’ 17"

The CSC team is 2" ahead of Discovery’s time at the 61km mark. At the finish, the advantage of the American team over T-Mobile is 35"... only CSC are still racing.

The Discovery Channel team has finished the 67.5km stage with a time of 1h10’40" - an average speed of 57.31km/h! They have the best time with just CSC to finish.

The Discovery team is less than 1,000m from the line. All nine riders are still present.

At the third check the Discovery Channel team has posted a time that’s 24" better than T-Mobile. The new top five (with just CSC to reach the 61km mark) is:
1. DISCOVERY CHANNEL TEAM 01:05:12
2. T-MOBILE TEAM at 24"
3. LIBERTY SEGUROS - WÃœRTH TEAM at 44"
4. PHONAK HEARING SYSTEMS at 01’ 15"
5. CREDIT AGRICOLE at 01’ 30"

At the end of the stage there were just five riders in the Phonak group. Their time in Blois is 1h12’10" - it’s good enough for third place at this stage.

The CSC team is now less than 10km from the finish of the stage. There are now eight riders in Zabriskie’s group. The first CSC recruit to be dropped is the veteran Italian Giovanni Lombardi.

At the 3rd time check, the Phonak team has posted a time of 1h06’27" - it’s enough to put them in 3rd with two teams yet to reach the 61km mark.

The last team to start the fourth stage, CSC, is less than 15km from the finish of the stage. They have the best time of the day at the 1st and 2nd checks. Alain Gallopin, one of the team’s managers, said before the 2005 Tour began that this was the stage that the sponsor really wanted the team to win.

With T-Mobile now at the finish, the top five with four teams yet to reach Blois is:
1. T-MOBILE TEAM 1h11’14"
2. LIBERTY SEGUROS - WÃœRTH TEAM at 18"
3. CREDIT AGRICOLE at 01’ 06"
4. ILLES BALEARS-CAISSE D’EPARGNE at 01’ 30"
5. FASSA BORTOLO at 01’ 44"

There are six riders in the T-Mobile group at the finish. The German squad has posted the best time of the day so far (with an average speed of 56.84km/h). They are 18" faster than Liberty Seguros.

The CSC team has all nine riders present with less than 20km to go. The riders who have set the fastest time of the day at the second check are: Ivan Basso, Kurt-Asle Arvesen, Bobby Julich, Giovanni Lombardi, Luke Roberts, Carlos Sastre, Nicki Sorensen, Jens Voigt and Dave Zabriskie.

With all teams past the second time check, the top five is:
1. TEAM CSC 45.8km in 47’08"
2. DISCOVERY CHANNEL TEAM at 06"
3. T-MOBILE TEAM at 07"
4. LIBERTY SEGUROS - WÃœRTH TEAM at 20"
5. PHONAK HEARING SYSTEMS at 49"

At the 45.8km mark, the CSC team has posted a time of 47’08". It’s 6" better than Discovery. The average speed for CSC is 58.30km/h.

All nine riders from the Discovery Channel team are still together. They have the best time of the day at the 2nd time check and only CSC is yet to reach Onzain.

The Discovery Channel team is 1" ahead of T-Mobile at the second time check.

With Liberty Seguros at the finish, the top five is:
1. LIBERTY SEGUROS - WÃœRTH TEAM 1h11’32"
2. CREDIT AGRICOLE at 48"
3. ILLES BALEARS-CAISSE D’EPARGNE at 01’ 12"
4. LIQUIGAS - BIANCHI at 01’ 33"
5. DAVITAMON - LOTTO at 01’ 39"

The Liberty Seguros team has set the best time of the stage. There were eight riders in the group (with Serrano being dropped with about 15km to go). The team’s average speed is 56.62km/h!
They are 48" better than Credit Agricole.

At the third time check, the Liberty Seguros is 46" ahead of the second-best team.

The average speed for Credit Agricole at the finish is 55.99km/h. Their time was 1h12’20" which is 24" better than Illes Balears. The new top five at the finish is:
1. CREDIT AGRICOLE 1h12’20"
2. ILLES BALEARS-CAISSE D’EPARGNE at 24"
3. LIQUIGAS - BIANCHI at 45"
4. DAVITAMON - LOTTO at 51"
5. RABOBANK at 01’ 07"

At the 61km mark, the Credit Agricole team has set a time of 1h06’02", which is 17" better than Illes Balears.

The average speed for the Illes Balears team in stage four is 55.68km/h. It’s the fastest time for any team. They lead Liquigas-Bianchi by 21".

Tobias Steinhauser has not been able to match the pace of his T-Mobile colleagues. The good friend of Jan Ullrich has dropped out of the German squad’s paceline. There are now eight riders in Ullrich’s group.

The team of Alejandro Valverde has set the best time of the day so far at the 61.0km mark. Illes Balears lead Liquigas-Bianchi by 14" with 6km to go in the stage.

At the second time check, T-Mobile have pushed ahead of Liberty Seguros by 13". The new top five at the 45.8km mark is:
1. T-MOBILE TEAM 47’15"
2. LIBERTY SEGUROS - WÃœRTH TEAM at 13"
3. CREDIT AGRICOLE at 50"
4. LIQUIGAS - BIANCHI at 01’ 05"
5. ILLES BALEARS-CAISSE D’EPARGNE at 01’ 11"

With all teams past the first time check, the top five is:
1. TEAM CSC 25km in 25’36"
2. LIBERTY SEGUROS - WÃœRTH TEAM at 06"
3. DISCOVERY CHANNEL TEAM at 15"
3. T-MOBILE TEAM at 15"
5. CREDIT AGRICOLE at 33"

At the 25km mark, the CSC team has set a time that’s six seconds faster than Liberty Seguros. If they can maintain this pace, Dave Zabriskie will hold onto the yellow jersey after stage four.

With Discovery Channel now past the 25km mark, the top five is:
1. LIBERTY SEGUROS - WÃœRTH TEAM 25km in 25’42"
2. DISCOVERY CHANNEL TEAM at 09"
2. T-MOBILE TEAM at 09"
4. CREDIT AGRICOLE at 27"
5. LIQUIGAS - BIANCHI at 31"

Lance Armstrong’s team is 9" behind Liberty Seguros at the 25km mark. The time for Discovery Channel is just a fraction of a second faster than T-Mobile at the first check.

The Phonak team is 33" behind Liberty Seguros at the first time check.

After Liberty Seguros past the 2nd time check, the top five at the 45.8km mark is:
1. LIBERTY SEGUROS - WÃœRTH TEAM 45.8km in 47’28" (57.89km/h)
2. CREDIT AGRICOLE at 37"
3. LIQUIGAS - BIANCHI at 52"
4. ILLES BALEARS-CAISSE D’EPARGNE at 58"
5. DAVITAMON - LOTTO at 01’ 13"

At the 45.8km mark, the Liberty Seguros team has set an average speed of 57.89km/h. They have the best time of the day so far, 37" ahead of Credit Agricole.

The Illes Balears team has posted a time that’s 6" slower than Liquigas at the 45.8km mark. The Spanish team is currently second at the second time check.

With T-Mobile past the first time check, the top five is:
1. LIBERTY SEGUROS - WÃœRTH TEAM 25’42"
2. T-MOBILE TEAM at 09"
3. CREDIT AGRICOLE at 27"
4. LIQUIGAS - BIANCHI at 31"
5. ILLES BALEARS-CAISSE D’EPARGNE at 45"

The T-Mobile team is past the first time check with a time that’s 9" slower than Liberty Seguros.

The Liquigas-Bianchi team has finished in 1h13’05" - six seconds better than Davitamon-Lotto. The average speed of the leading team is 55.42km/h.

As CSC begin their time trial, the Davitamon boys have reached the finish with the best time of the day so far. The current top five in Blois is:
1. DAVITAMON - LOTTO 67.5km in 1h13’11"
2. EUSKALTEL - EUSKADI at 01’ 27"
3. LAMPRE - CAFFITA at 01’ 37"
4. COFIDIS CREDIT PAR TELEPHONE at 01’ 56"
5. SAUNIER DUVAL - PRODIR at 02’ 34"

The Davitamon-Lotto team has finished with the best time of the day so far; 1h13’12". They set an average speed of 55.33km/h. This is the fastest average for a team time trial stage in the history of the Tour.

The Spanish Liberty Seguros team has the best time of the day at the 25km mark. They lead Credit Agricole by 27" at the first check.

At the 25km mark, the Credit Agricole team has the best time of the day so far. There are two national champion’s jerseys in this group of nine - that of Estonia (Jaan Kirsipuu) and Norway (Thor Hushovd).

Lance Armstrong’s team is about to start the fourth stage. Discovery Channel is the second last to start the race from Tours to Blois. Only CSC is yet to get underway.

The winners of the team time trial stage four years ago Credit Agricole has posted the best time of the day so far. They lead Liquigas by 4" at the 25km mark.

The Phonak team of former world time trial champion Santiago Botero is about to start the fourth stage. The best placed overall from this team before today was Floyd Landis who was in sixth place, 1’02" behind his former team-mate Zabriskie.

So far 14 team has passed the 25km check. The current top five is:
1. LIQUIGAS - BIANCHI 25km in 26’13"
2. ILLES BALEARS-CAISSE D’EPARGNE at 14"
3. DOMINA VACANZE at 18"
4. DAVITAMON - LOTTO at 23"
5. RABOBANK at 32"

The Bouyges Telecom team has the 3rd best time at the 45.8km mark. The nine riders are all together and their time is 50" slower than Liquigas.

The Rabobank team is the 12th team to start the stage. The squad is currently fourth at the 25km mark, 32" behind Liquigas.

The Liquigas team has the best time so far today at both the 1st and 2nd checks. The Italian team is 21" ahead of Davitamon at the 45.8km mark.

The T-Mobile team of last year’s runner-up Andreas Kloden is the last squad to start stage four. The best-placed in the general classification from the magenta-clad squad before today is Alexandre Vinokourov who was 4th overall 53" behind Zabriskie.

At the 45.8km mark, the current top five is:
1. DAVITAMON - LOTTO 45.8km in 48’41"
2. EUSKALTEL - EUSKADI at 45"
3. LAMPRE - CAFFITA at 01’ 17"
4. COFIDIS CREDIT PAR TELEPHONE at 01’ 23"
5. SAUNIER DUVAL - PRODIR at 02’ 01"

The first team to finish the 4th stage, Euskaltel-Euskadi, has posted a time of 1h14’38".

At the 45.8km mark, the Davitamon-Lotto team has an average speed of 56.45km/h. They have the best time by 45" so far today.

The conditions for today’s team time trial are significantly different to the wet day to Arras in the 2004 Tour. It is warm and dry on the road between Tours and Blois today.
That said, it’s worth have a look at the top five from last year to see who the protagonists were 12 months ago.
1. US POSTAL - BERRY FLOOR 01:12:03:270
2. PHONAK HEARING SYSTEMS at 01’ 07"
3. ILLES BALEARS - B. SANTANDER at 01’ 15"
4. T-MOBILE TEAM at 01’ 19"
5. TEAM CSC at 01’ 46"

With nine teams now past the first time check, the top five is:
1. LIQUIGAS-BIANCHI 25km in 26’13"
2. DAVITAMON - LOTTO at 23"
3. BOUYGUES TELECOM at 36"
4. LAMPRE - CAFFITA at 51"
5. COFIDIS CREDIT PAR TELEPHONE at 58"

The formation which won the team time trial in 2001, Credit Agricole, has just left the start in Tours. The best placed in the general classification from this squad before today’s stage is Laszlo Bodrogi who was third overall, 47" behind Dave Zabriskie.

At the 45.8km mark, the Euskaltel team’s average speed is 55.59km/h. The record average speed for a team time trial in the Tour prior to today was 54.930km/h - set by Gewiss-Ballan in 1995 during the 67km stage from Mayenne to Alencon.

At the 25km mark, Davitamon-Lotto has set a time of 26’36".

The Liquigas team has just posted the best time of the day at the first time check. We await confirmation of the exact time but they are the first squad to beat Euskaltel’s effort.

The former world champion pursuiter, Brad McGee has been taking 45" turns at the front of his FDJ team. Other members from this squad are swapping off after about 30" in the wind.

At the 45.8km mark, the Euskaltel team has posted a time of 49’26".

The two-time world time trial champion Michael Rogers and his Quickstep colleagues has just begin the 4th stage. The Australian in the rainbow jersey has gone straight to the front to set the pace for the squad which also has the green jersey thanks to the two stage wins by Tom Boonen.

With five teams past the first time check the order is as follows:
1. EUSKALTEL - EUSKADI 25km in 26’47"
2. LAMPRE - CAFFITA at17"
3. COFIDIS CREDIT PAR TELEPHONE at 24"
4. AG2R PREVOYANCE at 47"
5. SAUNIER DUVAL - PRODIR at 53"

Serhiy Honchar’s Domina Vacanze team is the latest to start today’s stage. The Ukrainian was the world time trial champion in 2000. He began the day in 41st place in the general classification, 1’48" behind Dave Zabriskie.

Euskaltel-Euskadi continues to lead at the first time check. The fourth squad at the 25km mark was Saunier Duval, which was 53" behind with a time of 27’40".

There are two riders from the Australian team which won the gold medal in the 4,000m team pursuit at the Athens Olympics in this year’s Tour de France.
Brad McGee of the Francaise des Jeux team and Luke Roberts from CSC. Both riders also lined up for the semi-final in Athens last year, when they broke the world record.

At the first time check, the only wild-card invitee to the 92nd Tour de France, AG2R Preyovance, has posted a time that’s 47" slower than Euskaltel-Euskadi at the 25km mark.

The Belgian rider on the Francaise des Jeux team, Philippe Gilbert, celebrates his 23rd birthday today. He is on the start line with his eight colleagues and is scheduled to begin the team time trial at 3.00pm.

The second team to start has posted a time that’s 17" slower than Euskaltel at the first check. Lampre-Caffita’s best-placed rider in the general classification is Gorazd Stangelj in 90th position.

Sylvain Chavanel of the Cofidis team gets to wear the ’tricolore’ jersey today because he’s the French time trial champion.

The first team to start, Euskaltel-Euskadi, has posted a time of 26’47" at the 25km mark. This is the first of three intermediate time checks. (The others are in Onzain at 45.8km and the outskirts of Blois at 61.5km.)

Most of the riders have opted to use a disc wheel on the rear for today’s team time trial. So far six teams have started the stage and almost every bike has the same wheel set-up: spokes and a deep-dish rim up front and disc on the rear.

The sixth team to start the fourth stage is Davitamon-Lotto. Although the name has changed, this is essentially the same squad that had the yellow jersey during the team time trial stage last year. Robbie McEwen wore the leader’s jersey for one day 12 months ago.

The weather bureau has reported that the temperature at the start of stage four is 21 degrees Celsius in the air and 38 degrees at road level. There is a light breeze blowing at the back of the riders.

AG2R has just begun the team time trial. There are now three teams on the road between Tours and Blois.

Alex Zulle, the Swiss rider who was the runner-up in the Tour de France in both 1995 and 1999 turns 37 today. He retired from racing at the end of last year.

Here is a summary of the maximum time losses a team can incur during today’s stage.
2nd place - 20"
3rd - 30"
4th - 40"
5th - 50"
6th - 1’00"
7th - 1’10"
8th - 1’20"
9th - 1’30"
10th - 1’40"
11th - 1’50"
12th - 2’00"
13th - 2’10"
14th - 2’20"
15th - 2’30"
16th - 2’35"
17th - 2’40"
18th - 2’45"
19th - 2’50"
20th - 2’55"
21st - 3’00"

The first formation to start the team time trial is Euskaltel-Euskadi. This Basque-based squad began the 67.5km stage from Tours to Blois at 2.20pm.

Last year the Tour organizers created a new rule that restricts the time losses of weaker teams in the collective test. The maximum time gain from the winning team over last place is 3’00".

In today’s stage, the time for the team is taken from the fifth rider of each formation across the finish line.

There are three intermediate time checks during the fourth stage. You will be able to follow the progression of the team time trial at 25.0km, 45.8km and 61.5km.
The complete starting order of the teams is:
2.20pm - Euskaltel-Euskadi (ESP - EUS)
2.25pm - Lampre-Caffita (ITA - LAM)
2.30pm - AG2R Preyovance (FRA - A2R)
2.35pm - Saunier Duval-Prodir (ESP - SDV)
2.40pm - Cofidis (FRA - COF)
2.45pm - Davitamon-Lotto (BEL - DVL)
2.50pm - Liquigas-Bianchi (ITA - LIQ)
2.55pm - Bouyges Telecom (FRA - BTL)
3.00pm - Francaise des Jeux (FRA - FDJ)
3.05pm - Domina Vacanze (ITA - DOM)
3.10pm - Quickstep-Innergetic (BEL - QST)
3.15pm - Rabobank (NED - RAB)
3.20pm - Illes Balears-Caisse d’Espagne (ESP - IBA)
3.25pm - Credit Agricole (FRA - C.A)
3.30pm - Liberty Seguros-Wurth (ESP - LWT)
3.35pm - Fassa Bortolo (ITA - FAS)
3.40pm - T-Mobile (GER - TMO)
3.45pm - Gerolsteiner (GER - GST)
3.50pm - Phonak Hearing Systems (SUI - PHO)
3.55pm - Discovery Channel (USA - DSC)
4.00pm - Team CSC (DEN - CSC)

Cycling’s governing body, the UCI, conducted blood tests of 45 riders from five teams earlier today. The squads involved were Cofidis, Illes Balears, Liquigas-Bianchi, Saunier Duval-Prodir and T-Mobile. No abnormalities were found in the doping control and all riders were clear to contest the fourth stage of the 2005 Tour de France.

The 67.5km team time trial stage of the 92nd Tour de France is scheduled to begin at 2.20pm. The first squad to start will be Euskaltel-Euskadi followed by Lampre-Caffita and AG2R Preyovance.
The teams leave Tours at intervals of five minutes and the order of departure is the reverse of the team classification standings. Currently Dave Zabriskie’s CSC team leads this category. The Danish-registered formation is scheduled to start the stage at 4.00pm.