The 2003 Paris–Nice was the 61st edition of the Paris–Nice cycle race and was held from 9 March to 16 March 2003. The race started in Issy-les-Moulineaux and finished in Nice.[2] The race was won by Alexander Vinokourov of the Telekom team.

2003 Paris–Nice
Race details
Dates9–16 March 2003
Stages7 + Prologue
Distance901.8[1] km (560.4 mi)
Winning time23h 30' 04"
Results
Winner  Alexander Vinokourov (KAZ) (Team Telekom)
  Second  Mikel Zarrabeitia (ESP) (ONCE–Eroski)
  Third  Davide Rebellin (ITA) (Gerolsteiner)
← 2002
2004 →

Andrey Kivilev (Cofidis), fourth in the 2001 Tour de France, crashed heavily during stage 2. He was taken to hospital with severe head injuries and placed in a coma. An emergency surgery was conducted the same night, but Kivilev died in the early morning of 12 March 2003. Following his death, calls to make the wearing of crash helmets compulsory in professional cycling increased.[3] Less than a month later, the sport's governing body, the Union Cycliste Internationale, declared helmets mandatory for all UCI-sanctioned events.[4]

Teams

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Twenty teams, containing a total of 158 riders, participated in the race:[2][5]

Route

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Stage characteristics and winners[2]
Stage Date Course Distance Type Winner
P 9 March Issy-les-Moulineaux 4.8 km (3.0 mi)   Individual time trial   Nico Mattan (BEL)
1 10 March Auxerre to Paray-le-Monial 191 km (119 mi)   Alessandro Petacchi (ITA)
2 11 March La Clayette to Saint-Étienne 182.5 km (113.4 mi)   Davide Rebellin (ITA)
3 12 March Le Puy-en-Velay to Pont du Gard 192.5 km (119.6 mi) Stage neutralised
4 13 March Vergèze to Vergèze 16.5 km (10.3 mi)   Individual time trial   Dario Frigo (ITA)
5 14 March Aix-en-Provence to Mont Faron 152.5 km (94.8 mi)   Alexander Vinokourov (KAZ)
6 15 March Toulon to Cannes 194.5 km (120.9 mi)   Joaquim Rodríguez (ESP)
7 16 March Nice to Nice 160 km (99 mi)   David Bernabeu (ESP)

General classification

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Final general classification[2][6]
Rank Rider Team Time
1   Alexander Vinokourov (KAZ) Team Telekom 23h 30' 04"
2   Mikel Zarrabeitia (ESP) ONCE–Eroski + 43"
3   Davide Rebellin (ITA) Gerolsteiner + 54"
4   Jörg Jaksche (GER) ONCE–Eroski + 55"
5   Sylvain Chavanel (FRA) Brioches La Boulangère + 1' 24"
6   David Bernabeu (ESP) Milaneza–MSS + 1' 28"
7   Claus Michael Møller (DEN) Milaneza–MSS + 1' 30"
8   Volodymyr Gustov (UKR) Fassa Bortolo + 1' 41"
9   Samuel Sánchez (ESP) Euskaltel–Euskadi + 1' 48"
10   Óscar Pereiro (ESP) Phonak + 2' 04"

References

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  1. ^ "Paris-Nice (Pro Tour-Historic)". BikeRaceInfo. Retrieved 19 November 2017.
  2. ^ a b c d "61ème Paris-Nice 2003". Memoire du cyclisme. Archived from the original on 18 August 2004.
  3. ^ Fotheringham, William (13 March 2003). "Safety call as Kivilev dies". The Guardian. Retrieved 14 April 2020.
  4. ^ "UCI will make helmets mandatory". VeloNews.com. 4 April 2003. Retrieved 14 April 2020.
  5. ^ "Start list". Cycling News. Retrieved 25 August 2024.
  6. ^ "2003 Paris - Nice". First Cycling. Retrieved 19 November 2017.

Further reading

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