The Tour of the two brothers was won by an Australian. For dad Schleck, Grenoble was the time trial that the Tour should never have run. In 42 and a half kilometers old Johny, also a rider in Luis Ocana's Bic in the seventies, saw the great combination, first and second place, of Andy in yellow and Frank in the place of honor fade in one fell swoop. Both Luxembourg brothers will climb the podium of the Tour today but Cadel Evans, 34, will be on the top step, the first time for an Australian to triumph in the Grande Boucle. A great victory in the stage at the Mur de Bretagne but never a feat that remains in the memory of the Tour, in exchange for a pressing regularity in always being present in the key moments of the race with the addition of a gift that does not belong to the two Schlecks: that of being an excellent time trialist. So finishing second just 7 seconds behind the German Tony Martln, Evans, with a perfect race, inflicted about three minutes of gap on Andy by taking off the yellow jersey. Behind him came Alberto Contador in the race against time, the great loser of this Tour. He was aiming for a fourth success in Paris but right from the first stage, thanks to a fall that immediately slowed him down, it became clear that in France he had not that power of watts released at the Giro d'Italia. But as the proud champion that he is, Contador tried to give his all in the Alpe d'Huez stage. He failed but won back the hearts of the crowd. And in yesterday's time trial he lived up to his fame again. He finishes the Tour in fifth position preceded not only by Evans and the two Schlecks, but also by Thomas Vockler, the Frenchman who was able to defend the yellow jersey up to Alpe d'Huez with a grit and a mask of fatigue that recalled the Raymond Poulidor of the many Tours dominated by Anquetil. Of the Italians better than Ivan Basso, who almost never arrived, was Cunego, despite the disastrous time trial in Grenoble which dropped him to seventh place in the standings.
So Cadel Evans won after arriving in Paris twice already second. Wearing the record jersey with emotion, he was the portrait of happiness. A running mastiff, an exquisite gentleman who has just got off his bike who loves to dwell on the microphones with his amusing multilingualism learned racing all over the world, Evans adds the success of the Tour to a palmarés already rich in a world title, some classics in line . Andy Schleck finished second for the third time. But unlike 2009 and 2010, it's a placement that's terribly tight for him today. He had to be more daring in the Pyrenees. In the mountains he is the strongest with Contador. He didn't do it and, predictably, paid for his modest aptitude for races against the clock. He then faced yesterday's one in the yellow jersey but with his legs weighed down by the two alpine stages he ran brilliantly. His flight over the Galibier will remain in the annals of the Tour. The registry office is on his side. The class as well. For papa Johny there is only to wait. Sooner or later surely a son, Andy more than Frank, will take home the yellow jersey that this year was from Luxembourg for just the space of a day.
