Alejandro Valverde will find out on Sunday whether his recent Tour of Spain triumph costs him the chance to finally be crowned world champion. The Spaniard begins the blue riband event of the world road race championships, a 262.2km race around Mendrisio near the Italian border, among the big favourites for cycling's prestigious rainbow jersey. But despite having two runner-up and one third place finishes in the past five years, he still has a fight on his hands if he is to succeed Italian Alessandro Ballan. Controversially prevented from racing the 2009 Tour de France by the Italian authorities, who handed him a two-year ... Read Full Story

Spain's Alejandro Valverde was on course to win the Tour of Spain after keeping his overall lead in Saturday's 20th and penultimate stage, a time-trial won by Britain's David Millar. The Caisse d'Epargne rider finished in seventh position in the 27.8-kilometre stage in the central city of Toledo, 36 seconds behind Millar. He is now 55 seconds ahead of countryman Samuel Sanchez, who finished second behind Millar Saturday, in the overall standings. And barring disaster, Valverde, but who has never won a major Tour, should take the event when it concludes in Madrid on Sunday at the end of the final stage, a 110-kilometre ... Read Full Story

The French state is likely to take a 20-percent stake in a major bank to be formed from the fusion of lenders Caisse d'Epargne and Banque Populaire, a source in the president's office said on Tuesday. The state will "probably" take 20 percent of the company initially in the form of so-called preference shares which may be converted into regular shares later, the source said. Preference shares are stocks which pay a fixed dividend and take precedence over those held by regular shareholders, but which do not give the holder voting rights in the company. The French state will "put up money, get repaid ... Read Full Story

Caisse d'Epargne suffered a big loss today in the Tour de France. Spanish rider Xabier Zandio of Caisse d'Epargne had to drop out of the Tour de France because of a crash in the fourth stage of the race. Zandio crashed barely 70km into the 193km stage. Team manager Jose-Luis Jaimerena said: "He's broken his right collarbone, it's impossible for him to carry on." "But it's a big loss for the team. He's a rider who can work really hard for us no matter what the terrain." Sorry to hear this news.  Best wishes to Xabier for a speedy recovery. Read Full Story

Valverde rode a smart Stage 8.  He drafted up most of the hills, and then hammered the finish in order to take 3rd in the stage.  His general classification now puts him in 4th overall. But Rasmussen is the rider to beat. He's got a solid lead and, more importantly, is riding well. He looks confident. General Classification after Stage 8 1 Michael Rasmussen (Den) Rabobank at 15.37.42 2 Linus Gerdemann (Ger) T-Mobile Team at +0.43 3 Iban Mayo (Spa) Saunier Duval - Prodir at +2.39 4 Alejandro Valverde (Spa) Caisse d'Epargne at +2.51 Read Full Story