Armstrong Starts Tour With Strong Message

Lance Armstrong pedaled with such ferocity that his right foot slipped off the pedal before he’d barely pushed himself out of the starting gate.

Armstrong muttered something, hunched his shoulders and slammed ahead, moving with a single purpose.

To send a message.

Aiming to win an unprecedented seventh consecutive Tour de France in this retirement race, Armstrong finished two seconds behind the unlikely stage winner, David Zabriskie, in Saturday’s 11.8-mile first-stage time trial at the Tour.

Zabriskie, 26, of Salt Lake City, making his first Tour appearance, set a speedy pace then watched nervously on a television while the race favorites -- Armstrong, Jan Ullrich, Ivan Basso, Alexandre Vinokourov -- and the time-trial specialists went slower.

But it was Armstrong’s decisive advantage over his top challengers that made the biggest impression. After the first of 21 stages, Armstrong is nearly a minute or more ahead of the best Tour riders.

Armstrong’s fast start may have been born of anger. Tour officials confirmed that Armstrong had been the single rider chosen for a supposedly random drug test Friday afternoon at the Discovery Channel team hotel in Nantes.

Although the entire field had undergone blood and urine drug testing Thursday, Armstrong was the only rider visited by doctors Friday.

Although he didn’t speak about the episode after Saturday’s stage, he told the Austin American-Statesman that Friday’s was his sixth out-of-competition doping test this season.

An on-line cycling site had reported Armstrong’s second test was conducted by the French Ministry for Youth and Sports, but French Sports Minister Jean-Francois Lamour denied that Saturday to French news agencies.

“There is an agreement between Tour organizers ... the International Cycling Union and the ministry for random testing and the decision to test a rider is made by a medical commission,” Lamour said.

The extra testing seemed to motivate Armstrong.

With nearly two miles to go, Armstrong rocketed past Ullrich, the five-time runner-up, who had started the time trial a minute ahead of Armstrong. Ullrich could barely give a weary shrug as Armstrong left the German behind.

“I gave it everything I could,” Ullrich said, “but of course I didn’t expect to be caught by Lance. This has never happened to me before, and it’s not great for my morale.”

Ullrich had crashed in a training ride Friday but wouldn’t use his bruised neck as an excuse.

At the end of the gray, windy day, Zabriskie, who rides for Team CSC, a Danish squad led by Basso, had posted a time of 20 minutes 51 seconds -- an average of 33.98 mph. That was two seconds faster than Armstrong, two seconds that were easily accounted for with the slip off the pedal and a healthy tailwind that had helped Zabriskie but changed for the late starters.

There were four Americans in the top six of the time trial and six in the top 14. Armstrong’s teammate George Hincapie was fourth; Floyd Landis, leader of the Swiss Phonak team, was sixth; Zabriskie’s teammate Bobby Julich was 11th; and Gerolsteiner leader Levi Leipheimer was 14th.

Among the men considered the biggest threats to Armstrong, Vinokourov was third, 53 seconds behind Zabriskie and 51 behind Armstrong; Ullrich was 12th and more than a minute behind Armstrong; and Basso, the Italian who pushed hard at Armstrong through the mountains last year, was 20th.

Armstrong was quick to discourage anyone who thought the six-time champion might have eased up to let a fellow American have a moment of glory and a day in the yellow jersey. “I wanted to win,” Armstrong said. “I didn’t want to finish second.”

But his second-place ride was a warning to those who wondered about Armstrong’s fitness when he didn’t win a race or even a stage this season.

Zabriskie had started 19th in the field of 170 and has made a name for himself as a tough time-trial rider. Two years ago, Zabriskie suffered near-fatal injuries when he and his bike collided with an SUV on a road in Utah.

The winner wasn’t confident his early lead would hold up as Armstrong burst out of the start box.

“It was very stressful, the waiting,” Zabriskie said, “and I’m glad it worked out. The feeling is amazing.”

Julich made a feisty pronouncement about his young teammate.

“We’ve just witnessed the birth of a real champion for the time-trial event,” he said. “Dave just creamed everybody. I think some day we’ll be seeing him on the podium here.”

Probably not this year. Zabriskie must help pull Basso up from behind. When Armstrong won his record-setting sixth Tour last year, he finished second in the first stage while making a defiant statement after he had struggled to a 61-second victory in the 2003 race.

“It’s unbelievable what he did,” said Johan Bruyneel, Discovery Channel’s sports director. “The time Lance got today is very, very good. It will count for a lot at the end.”

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Tour de France

Lance Armstrong began his quest for a seventh Tour title with a second-place finish in Saturday’s individual time trial (11.8 miles):

*--* Top Three Finishers (Stage 1) David Zabriskie 20:51 Lance Armstrong :02 behind Alexandre Vinokourov :53 behind

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The first stage of the 92nd Tour de France:

STAGE 1 AT A GLANCE

* Stage: An 11.8-mile time trial from Fromentine to Noirmoutier-en-l’Ile on the Atlantic coast.

* Winner: David Zabriskie, U.S., Team CSC, 20 minutes 51 seconds.

* How others fared: Lance Armstrong, United States, Discovery Channel, 2 seconds behind in second place; Jan Ullrich, Germany, T-Mobile, 1:08 behind in 12th spot.

* On the web: For more information on the Tour de France, including Diane Pucin’s blog, photo galleries and up-to-the-minute standings, please visit latimes.com/tour.

STAGE 1 RESULTS

1. David Zabriskie, U.S. 20:51

2. Lance Armstrong, U.S. :02 behind

3. A. Vinokourov, Kazakhstan :53 behind

4. George Hincapie, U.S. 57 behind