Contador had to find a new team. In January 2007, he joined the Discovery Channel team, and won the famous Paris-Nice race in March. In the Tour de France, he won the 14th stage, and was second in the race to Michael Rasmussen. Rasmussen had to leave the race because he had not been honest about where he was training before the race. Because of this, Contador wore the yellow jersey, meaning he was in first place in the race, from stage 18. In stage 19, a time trial, he did not lose too much time, and started the last stage with a 23 seconds lead over Cadel Evans in second place. Evans and Contador finished with the same time, so Contador won the 2007 Tour de France.
The Discovery Channel Team stopped racing at the end of 2007, and Contador joined the Astana Team. This was the same team he had worked for in 2005, but with a new name and new people managing it. However, the group running the Tour de France decided that Astana could not join the 2008 Tour de France. One week before the 2008 Giro d'Italia, the group running it invited the Astana team to join. The team did not have much time to prepare (get ready), but Contador became the leader of the race on the 15th stage. He wore the maglia rosa (pink leader's jersey) until the finish in Milan. This meant that Contador had won his second grand tour.
Dinara Safina
Dinara Mikhailovna Safina (), born April 27, 1986) is a Russian professional tennis player of Tatar ethnicity. She was born in Moscow, Russia. She is the younger sister of former world number one men's player, Marat Safin.
She was coached by Glen Schaap, former trainer of Nadia Petrova. Her new coach is Željko Krajan. Her mother, Rauza Islanova used to be her trainer when she was younger and still gives advice to Dinara. Dinara Safina's father is director of the Spartak tennis club in Moscow. She has won one Grand Slam title, the women's double title at the 2007 U.S. Open with her partner Nathalie Dechy. She also reached the final of the French Open in 2008, losing to current World No. 1 Ana Ivanović.
Alejandro Valverde
Alejandro Valverde Belmonte (born April 25, 1980) is a Spanish road racing cyclist. He rides for the Caisse d'Epargne team. Valverde won the Liège-Bastogne-Liège race in 2006 and 2008. He was second in the 2006 Vuelta a España and sixth in the 2007 Tour de France. He won the 2008 Critérium du Dauphiné Libéré, an important race before the 2008 Tour de France. This means that many people think he will do well in the Tour.
Valverde is a strong climber, sprinter and time trialist.
All results were voided from 31 May, because of the suspension backdated to 1 January.
Grand Tour general classification results timeline:
WD = Withdrew; In Progress = IP
This table shows Valverde's classics results.
Time trial
In many racing sports an athlete will compete (take part) in a time trial. This is when the athlete races over a course as fast as he can. In cross country skiing and biathlon competitions, a skier will start every 30 to 60 seconds. These are called interval starts. In cycling a time trial (TT) can be a single track race, or an individual time trial on the road. Time trials are often a part of a stage race, for example the Tour de France.
In a team time trial in cycling, a team of riders will race together. A group can ride faster than just one rider because riders following the leader are sheltered from the wind.
In rowing, time trial races, where the boats start every 10 to 20 seconds, are usually called "head races".
Markhor
The markhor ("Capra falconeri") is a large goat. It is found in woodland in Central Asia, Karakoram and the Western Himalayas, this is the National Animal of Pakistan.
Markhor are 65 to 115 centimetres tall at the shoulder. They usually weigh from 40 to 110 kilograms. Females are a tan colour with a white underbelly and a pattern of black and white on the legs. Males are a lighter tan colour with the same white underbelly and pattern on the legs. Males also have a black face and lots of long white fur on their neck and chest which can grow down to their knees. Both males and females have corkscrew-shaped horns which can grow up to 160 cm / 64 inches long in males, and up to 25 cm / 10 inches in females.
Markhor live in places 500 to 3500 metres (1,500 to 11,000 feet) high, where they eat grass, leaves. Markhor often stand on their back legs to reach the top leaves of trees. Markhor are active (move around more) in the early morning and late afternoon. Females gather in herds (groups) of up to nine animals. Males usually live alone.
The markhor is the National animal of Pakistan. The word "Markhor" is Persian for "Snake Eater". They mostly live in the Northern Areas of Pakistan especially in the Chitral, Ghizar and Hunza regions. There are about 2000 - 4000 Markhor in the wild.
She's So Unusual
She's So Unusual is the first solo album by the famous American 1980s pop singer Cyndi Lauper. It was released in 1983. It included the popular single, "Girls Just Want to Have Fun".
Betta
Betta is a genus of fish. The Siamese fighting fish is a fish in this genus. Some species of betta like the Betta Splendens are very brightly coloured and can be purchased in a local pet store. Other species of betta are more rare. The males often express their aggression at other males as well as females by flaring at one another. They are surface breathers, and and breathe air from the surface to make bubble nest which attracts the female for breeding. Betta fishes are found in little water bodies, full of fallen leaf litter and peat thereby providing lots of hiding places. There are various species of Betta, most popular being Betta splendens, Betta smaragdina , Betta mahachaiensis, Betta coccina, Betta albimarginata, Betta imbellis, etc.
Lichtenstein, Saxony
Lichtenstein is a small town in Saxony. It is between Zwickau and Chemnitz. Lichtenstein has the second name "Stadt im grünen" (engl. "town in green"). Lichtenstein has several sights. There are 7 museums, 2 theaters, 1 castle and 7 nature parcs. The most famous museum of Lichtenstein is the "Miniwelt". There are many world sights in small, for example the statue of Liberty. As of December 2011, 12,613 people live there.
Lichtenstein consists of 3 parts the main town, Lichtenstein and the two small villages "Heinrichsort" and "Rödlitz".
Neighbour towns are Bernsdorf, Glauchau, St. Egidien, Mülsen, Hohndorf and Oelsnitz.
Lichtenstein was founded in 1212. The church of St. Laurentius, one of two churches, was build in 1261. In the 12th century was built the castle of Lichtenstein. The "Schönburgs" live there until 1945.
The council consists of 22 councillors and the mayor.
Wolgang Sedner is the mayor of Lichtenstein, since 1990. He won the last vote in June 2008 in the second ballot.
Otogizōshi
Otogizōshi are a group of short stories with pictures, written in Japan, mostly in the period between 1392 and 1573. There are about 350 of these stories. They are about many different things: love, religion, fighting, humor, and other things. The "otogizōshi" were often read to an audience.
Salem, Massachusetts
Salem is a city in Essex County, in Massachusetts. It was home of the Salem Witch Trials of 1692.
Deval Patrick
Deval Laurdine Patrick (born July 31, 1956) is an American politician. He was elected to be the governor of Massachusetts in 2006. He is the first African-American to be elected governor of that state. He is only the third African-American to be elected a governor of any state in the United States. Patrick ran as a Democrat.
He was born in Chicago, Illinois on 31 July 1956, is a lawyer, and holds two degrees from Harvard University.
On November 11, 2019, "The New York Times" reported that Patrick was thinking of a 2020 presidential candidacy. He announced his candidacy three days later on November 14. He ended his campaign on February 12, 2020 a day after the New Hampshire primary.
Structure of the Earth