ROANOKE TIMES
Copyright (c) 1996, Roanoke Times
DATE: Friday, May 10, 1996 TAG: 9605100051
SECTION: SPORTS PAGE: B-1 EDITION: METRO
DATELINE: CHARLOTTE, N.C.
SOURCE: Knight-Ridder/Tribune
On a 94-degree day highlighted by a heated sprint finish, Lance Armstrong coolly took another step toward a second straight overall victory in the Tour DuPont on Thursday.
Armstrong retained the yellow jersey that designates the overall leader in the 12-day, 1,225-mile race, but lost his sponsor when Motorola announced it would not renew its sponsorship of the team after the 1997 season.
Team director Jim Ochowicz said he was negotiating with a several U.S.-based corporations and is hopeful to announce a new sponsorship during the Tour de France in July.
The ninth stage of the Tour - a 105-mile road race on a relatively flat course that ended with three finishing circuits of 3.2 miles each - was a speedsters' affair. It averaged 32 mph through its first 90 minutes and saw cyclists hitting an early descent on Route 321 at 62 mph. (Results in Scoreboard. B4)
With a frenzied late rush launched in the final 180 meters, Sven Teutenberg of the U.S. Postal Service won the race when he got to the finish line six feet in front of his friend and rival, Marcel Wust of the Spanish team, MX-Onda.
``He was just better than me today,'' said Wust, who edged Teutenberg by half a bike-length a week earlier at Raleigh, N.C. ``We're friends, and if anyone but me was going to win today, I wanted it to be him.''
Leon van Bon, another accomplished sprinter who won Stage 4, was third.
The first 32 finishers, including Armstrong and Pascal Herve of Festina, were awarded the same time as Teutenberg. Herve is in second place overall.
Tony Rominger of Mapei, the Swiss cyclist who was supposed to challenge Armstrong for the title, lost another nine seconds in the overall standings and trails by 5:08.
Teutenberg may be the fastest Postal Service hire since the days of the pony express. A 23-year-old German, he won the stage that ended in Charlotte two years ago as an amateur riding for the German national team.
He averaged a swift 27.72 mph for Thursday's 3-hour, 47-minute and 15-second ride and won $12,000. Stage 9 was the richest of the Tour.
With three stages remaining, Armstrong knows he has much to lose in a race that ends with the danger of finishing circuits.
``Bad streets, oil on the road and 110 guys going for big money,'' Armstrong said. ``There's a lot of chance for accidents. For me, it's nerve-wracking. I just have to stay out of trouble.''
LENGTH: Medium: 56 lines ILLUSTRATION: PHOTO: AP. Lance Armstrong works to maintain his overall leadby CNBThursday during Stage 9 of the Tour DuPont near Brookford, N.C.
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