This year’s Tour de France has been a real crapshoot. There was no clear champion like Lance
Armstrong to watch. Last year’s winner,
Floyd Landis, is still under a cloud of suspicion and was not allowed to
race. Then from the very beginning,
there was major attrition among the racers caused by crashes and injuries
(Robbie McEwen, most notably), and competitors and entire teams were either
expelled or dropped because of positive testing for drugs, testosterone or doping—Vinokourov,
Michael Rasmussen, the whole Astana and Cofidis teams. Big names from the past like Ullrich and
Basso are no longer competing.
What that leaves us is a few big names making a last bid to
win as they reach or pass their peaks and a whole field of young newcomers.
The biggest upset was the withdrawal of Rasmussen by
his own Rabobank team, and the complete turnaround of the lineup. Enter the newcomer—Alberto Contador of
Discovery Channel Team, which is now owned in part by Lance Armstrong and still
contains a number of his own former teammates. It was Contador’s first Tour and at that point he already held the white
jersey as the best young rider. Suddenly he was in contention to actually win the Tour, but it would be
extremely close since he held only several minutes’ lead over the second- and
third-place riders, Cadel Evans and Levi Leipheimer.
Now, obviously Bob Roll is the “color” commentator since he
is well-known for his jokes, animated hand gestures and stories from personal
experiences during his own racing career. In spite of his buffoon act, over the years I’ve been watching the Tour I
have come to appreciate his analysis of race stages and tactics and his sharp
wit. But one thing you don’t expect out
of Bob Roll is a statement arising from deep wisdom.
On Saturday in the closing analysis at the end of an
incredible time trial stage won by Levi Leipheimer, commentators Bob Roll and
Al Trautwig were discussing the field of contenders for the yellow jersey and
the likelihood of Contador being able to maintain his lead to the end of the
Tour. With only 31 seconds between the
first- and third-place racers in the standings and over seven minutes to the
fourth-place racer, Carlos Sastre, the Tour could have been won by any of the
top three.
Bob Roll then made the most profound statement I’ve ever
heard him make: “The yellow jersey will
ultimately find its rightful owner.”
Such a simple yet striking statement—the acknowledgment
that the yellow jersey would be taken by the rider with the right combination
of skill and stamina, fierce competitive spirit, and sometimes just good luck. And yet his statement personified the yellow
jersey by endowing it with the human qualities of thought and choice.
Is “destiny” what happens to us through a combination of unforeseen
circumstances? Or do mystical or
magical forces exist that put all of those elements into play?
A similar analogy can be found in Harry Potter: “The wand chooses the wizard.”
