Stage 21 Review
By Paul Sherwen

Every Tour has a different flavour and a different "raison d'être". This one will be remembered by the comeback of one of the greatest Tour riders of all time Lance Armstrong. It is a big gamble making a comeback of any kind but when you have the pedigree of the Texan you probably have more to loose than to gain.

Finishing on the podium four years after winning the Tour in 2005 is a very special feat and confirms that this comeback was no joke. One must ask how would it have been if Armstrong and Contador had not been on the same team.

As a "Brit" it was a special Tour for me because of the confirmation of a new British sprinter who was born last year but came of age this year with six stage wins including a dominating win on the Champs Elysees on the last day. In the space of two years he set up a new British record for stage wins with a total of ten- and that's only his opening account.

This Tour will probably be remembered for the mountain top finish on the last weekend with the ascent of the Mont Ventoux and the penultimate day.
Although it may not have created the gaps that were expected it did make for a very exciting battle for the final podium positions.

The organizers had tried to build a Tour that would keep the suspense right till the very end. In a way it did as we didn't know until Saturday night who was going to stand on the podium alongside Alberto Contador.