Aussie Evans in the riding for history-making glory

PAU, France: The yellow jersey hopes of Australia's Cadel Evans soared on Thursday just hours after race leader Michael Rasmussen was ousted from the race by his Rabobank team.

The 33-year-old Danish climbing specialist has been at the centre of doping speculation since it was revealed last week he had missed four random controls in the past 18 months.

After a week of suspicion being, his Dutch outfit finally cracked after learning Rasmussen had been in Italy in June, and not in Mexico, where he sometimes lives with his Mexican wife, as he had claimed.

In the wake of Rasmussen's exit, Discovery Channel's 24-year-old Spanish climber Alberto Contador, one of the few riders able to keep pace with him in the mountains, will take over the race lead.

Evans will move up to second overall, at 1min 53secs behind Contador, ahead of Saturday's decisive time trial over 55.5km from Cognac to Angouleme.

And if he manages to close the gap on a course that suits him better than his Spanish rival he would become the first Australian winner of the world's biggest race.

Before Wednesday's late events Rasmussen had taken a significant step towards winning the yellow jersey after another speedy performance which gave him his second mountains stage victory of the race.

On the third and final stage in the Pyrenees, a five-climb killer which finished on the legendary Col d'Aubisque, he finished 26secs ahead of American Levi Leipheimer, 35 ahead of Contador and 43 ahead of Evans to extend his overnight lead of 2min 23sec to 3:10 ahead of Thursday's undulating 17th stage from Pau to Castelsarrasin.

However he will no longer take part in the race, and Rabobank is mulling over whether to pull the whole team out.

"It's a very complicated situation right now. The riders are discussing whether they should continue the race," team spokesman Jacob Bergsma said.

If the Dutch team decide to pull out, the Tour would go into Thursday's 17th stage from Pau to Castelsarrasin without a wearer of the yellow jersey, and in the absence of three teams who started the prologue in London on July 7.

Rasmussen's absence meanwhile means Evans, who scored an Australian best last year by finishing fifth overall, will surely secure a podium place at the very least.

Evans finished second in the race's first time trial in Albi, won by Vinokourov but who tested positive after his victory.

In last week's time trial, which was a lot more hilly than the upcoming one, Evans was second, 1:14 behind Vinokourov.

Germany's Andreas Kloden was third at 1:39, while his Astana teammate Andrey Kashechkin was fourth at 1:44.

Contador, who is noted mainly for his climbing abilities, was seventh at 2:18 behind Vinokourov.

The flatter nature of Saturday's race may favour the Aussie star less than last week's race against the clock.

AFP

(China Daily 07/27/2007 page24)