Denis Menchov
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| Personal information | |
|---|---|
| Full name | Denis Nikolayevich Menchov |
| Date of birth | January 25, 1978 |
| Country |  Russia |
| Height | 1.80 m (5 ft 11 in) |
| Weight | 65 kg (140 lb/10.2 st) |
| Team information | |
| Current team | Rabobank |
| Discipline | Road |
| Role | Rider |
| Rider type | All-rounder |
| Professional team(s) | |
| 2000–2004 2005–present |
Banesto Rabobank |
| Major wins | |
 Vuelta a España (2005, 2007), 4 stagesTour de France, 1 stage Vuelta al País Vasco (2004) |
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| Infobox last updated on: | |
| September 26, 2007 | |
Denis Nikolayevich Menchov (Russian: Денис Николаевич Меньшов; born 25 January 1978 in Oryol) is a professional Russian road bicycle racer. Menchov is a good climber and a man for the General Classification. In 2007 he has won the Vuelta a España for the second time.
Menchov started his professional career in 2000, when he signed for the Banesto team of José Miguel Echevarri. His first success came in 2001, when he won the Tour de l'Avenir, a stage race for professional youth riders. The year after he won a stage and the King of the Mountains in the Dauphiné Liberé. In 2003, Menchov had his big breakthrough when he finished 11th in the Tour de France, and won the youth competition (maillot blanc). 2004 was the last year he rode at Banesto, and it was to be his most successful. He won Vuelta al País Vasco, a stage in Vuelta a Aragon, a stage in Paris-Nice and stage five in the 2004 Vuelta a España, from Zaragoza to Morella.
As Menchov's contract ran out in September 2004, he made a switch to Dutch team Rabobank on a 2 year contract. Here he became the team captain following Levi Leipheimer's departure from the team. He was Rabobank's main contender for the 2005 Tour de France, but due to a cold, he finished in 85th place, 2 hours 35 minutes behind Lance Armstrong[1]. His run in the 2005 Vuelta was in contrast much more successful. Menchov won the stage one (time trial) to Granada and the stage nine time trial to Lloret de Mar, and wore the leader's jersey (golden jersey) for a time. On the 15th stage, though, he lost sight of Roberto Heras on a climb, and ended the race at 2nd overall behind Heras. Roberto Heras was later disqualified for doping[2], and Menchov received the official win of the 2005 Vuelta. He also captured the event's Combined Classification.[3]
In the 2006 Tour de France Menchov won the 11th stage of the race and second mountain stage of the year's tour (Tarbes to Val d'Aran-Pla-de-Beret). He won the stage after a hard-fought sprint with Americans Levi Leipheimer and Floyd Landis of Team Gerolsteiner and Phonak Hearing Systems respectively. He had good prospect of ending on the podium, but in the final week, the Tour took its toll on Menchov and he dropped from 3rd to 6th place in the Alps.
In the 2007 Tour de France, Menchov abandoned the race on the stage 17, on the day after his teammate Michael Rasmussen was fired from the Rabobank team[4]. Later that year, he won the Vuelta a España after wearing the Golden Jersey during the second half of the race. He also won a stage, the Mountains Classification and the Combination Classification.
In 2008, Menchov has decided not to defend his Vuelta title, but to target for the 2008 Tour de France.[5]
[edit] Palmares
- 1997
- Volta a Lleida
- 2001
- Overall, Tour de l'Avenir
- 2002
- Stage 2, Critérium du Dauphiné Libéré
- 2003
White jersey in Tour de France- Clásica a los Puertos de Guadarrama
- 2004
- Overall, Vuelta al País Vasco (and Stage 4 win)
- Stage 5, Vuelta a España
- Stage 6, Paris-Nice
- Stage 1, Vuelta a Aragón
- 2005
- Overall, Vuelta a España (and Stage 1 and 9 wins)
- 2006
- Tour de France:
- 6th Overall
- Winner stage 11
- Critérium du Dauphiné Libéré: winner stage 4 and 6th Overall
- 2007
- 2nd Overall, Volta a Catalunya
- 1st, Points classification
- 1st, Stage 5
- Vuelta a España:
- Overall, Vuelta a España
- 1st, Mountains classification
- 1st, Combination classificaion
- 2nd, Points classification
- Winner stage 10
- 2008
- 4th Overall, Tour de Romandie
- 5th Overall, Giro d'Italia
[edit] References
- ^ 2005 Tour de France final overall standings. cyclingnews.com.
- ^ Hernan Alvarez (February 9, 2006). Heras banned for two years. www.cyclingnews.com. Retrieved on 2008-03-26.
- ^ La Vuelta a Espana 2005 Overall Allround. www.lavuelta.com (February 9, 2006).
- ^ Tour de France - Menchov quits as Rasmussen hits back. Eurosport (July 26, 2007). Retrieved on 2008-03-26.
- ^ Simon Baskett (February 19, 2008). Menchov targets Tour rather than Vuelta defense. Reuters. Retrieved on 2008-03-26.
[edit] External links
| Sporting positions | ||
|---|---|---|
| Preceded by Roberto Heras |
Winner of the Vuelta a España 2005 |
Succeeded by Alexandre Vinokourov |
| Preceded by Alexandre Vinokourov |
Winner of the Vuelta a España 2007 |
Succeeded by Incumbent |
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| Persondata | |
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| NAME | Menchov, Denis |
| ALTERNATIVE NAMES | Menchov, Denis Nikolayevich ; Меньшов, Денис ; Меньшов, Денис Николаевич ; Menschow, Denis Nikolajewitsch ; Mienszow, Denis ; Mensjov, Denis |
| SHORT DESCRIPTION | Road bicycle racer |
| DATE OF BIRTH | 1978-01-25 |
| PLACE OF BIRTH | Oryol, Russia |
| DATE OF DEATH | |
| PLACE OF DEATH | |
