SKT FIXING

yes mate, like Formula One but when Ferrari stopped barrichello to let Schumacher go year ago  was a big scandal and ANTI FAIR competition; SKY need to know that there are bets on their racing and Froome could have easy won the stage without poor Higgins begging not to go......

Some seriously seething pocket talking going on here

No mate not bets for me in Cycling due to the Doping issue Ican show you all my last YEAR bet  adn you wont find any in Cycling for sure. But I dont like the falsity of English always ready to point the finger italians, french ect and than they do exactly the same!

There are some bitter individuals on here. Cycling is a team sport, and the team is selected to do a job. Fact is, Sky have the best team this year and the three outstanding individuals in the team are English, which is something for we English to celebrate, not pick apart.
There are people on here saying Bradley Wiggins is an unworthy winner because he has had so much help, and there is no doubt Chris Froome would be closer to him overall, but whether he would have taken 3.5 - 4 minutes out of him is debatable....being the current gap plus the 1-2 minutes Wiggins will take out of him today.
But then Indurain or Armstrong would not have won a single tour if they had raced as individuals. Similarly Cavendish or Greipl would win far fewer stages if they raced alone, but they dont, and they are part of a team and they are paid to do specific jobs.
I think the whole Sky team has been brilliant this year, that Bradley Wiggins is the best ridr and deserves this tour, and that Chris Froome will win one or more in the next few years. the team spirit and ethic at Sky is immense. What other team would have its star sprinter fetching drinks for the others, or the team leader putting himself at risk leading out the sprinter.
All Hail Team Sky and a great British victory

buddeliea ... correct me if I am wrong, but no one is making you watch.... just switch off.

Richardson - there is a famous quote (Oscar Wilde maybe) about staying quiet so people thinking you might be ignorant rather than opening your mouth and removing all doubt .... look it up!

I did: 'It is wiser to remain silent and be thought ignorant than to speak and remove all doubt'

lol

never shy from good advice

cheers

what I am saying is that when Ferrari (years ago) stopped Barrichello at last turn to let Schumacher win was a big scandal; at the Tour the France  is TEAM SPORT and they can do it.....PLLLLEEEEEASSSSEEEEEE!!!!  Y

Agreed buddeliea.

One thing that appears to be getting overlooked is the incident between Valverde and Nibali when Nibali joined the original breakaway.  Valverde appeared to be telling Nibali, “get the f**k out of my break”.  Had Nibali not finally agreed to do so, presumably Sky would have kept the hammer down and brought the break back.  What would have happened thereafter, we’ll never know, but the race would have developed differently from that point. 

The success, or otherwise, of breakaways is frequently at the discretion of the main peleton.  If we were to accuse the peleton of cheating, and costing disgruntled punters money every time it failed or chose not to shut down a breakaway, there’d be nothing left to call sport.

One bit of the team/individual dichotomy I don't get is why the team of the winner does not get official recognition for their efforts; that all goes to the one who scores the goal.

Team recognition is confined to the team classification. In this Tour, Radioshack-Nissan win that but the Sky troops get nowt - even when they do exactly what is expected of a team and in exemplary fashion!