Press conference after yesterday's stage:

It has been a difficult 24 hours for T-Mobile captain Jan Ullrich, but the
former Tour winner was, nevertheless, in relaxed and optimistic mood when he
sat down to field the journalists questions at a rearranged press conference
on Monday afternoon. Yesterday, in the Voges, Ullrich crashed into a ditch,
injuring his ribs, then, on Sunday evening his transfer flight to Grenoble
was delayed an hour and a half.

T-Mobile captain defies pressure
Finally, on arrival at his hotel near Grenoble, Ullrich underwent a
treatment session on his injuries, which lasted until one in the morning.
Then, early on Monday, Ullrich travelled to a Grenoble clinic for tests and
x-rays, before rejoining his team mates for a training ride around the
foothills of the Alps. The press conference was next on the agenda, but the
T-Mobile captain, despite all the pressure, still looked at ease as he
forced his way through the assembled journalists before taking his seat
behind a dozen microphones.

The first question was simple and direct: Jan, how are you feeling after
your crash? "Much better this morning. I had difficulty moving last night. I
feared the worst and thought it might be more painful today, but it feels
OK. At least it is on the right track. The ribs still hurt, but that
shouldn't slow me down."

The Tour starts for the GC riders
With the mountains looming large in the background, the journalists were
keen to know, if Ullrich was ready for the Alpine challenge. "Let's see how
it goes tomorrow. These are the first big climbs in the Tour. Tactics will
take a back seat, it will come down to legs. But I have trained hard for
this, so I am optimistic about the coming stages."

"Tomorrow, the Tour really starts for the GC riders. The groups are going to
be smaller and our legs are going to feel the pain, but that's why we are
here and that's what we train for. Courchevel is a long and tough climb, and
the climbs before it don't make it any easier, but I am looking forward to i
t."

Another ambush on Armstrong?
Lance Armstrong's splendid isolation on the Col de la Schlucht, following
Alexander Vinokourov's relentless attacks, has caused much speculation ever
since. Could it happen again in the Alps? "Unfortunately, I don't know the
answer to that. Vino's attacks were hard-core. And when Klödi attacked,
Lance made a tactical decision not to follow. I understand that. Lance can't
react to every attack. He has to keep his focus."

Asked about his own role in T-Mobile's three-pronged team ambush on
Armstrong, Ullrich continued: "I didn't attack, because Lance was still
looking very strong, despite being isolated, and I knew that he would follow
me."

"Lance is still the man to beat"
Would the team tactics be similar in the Alps? "It's going to be a tough
battle, as a lot of time can be won or lost in the Alps. I will try to
follow Lance. He has consistently been the strongest climber in the Tour and
he is still the man to beat. I won't be able to follow every rider's
attacks, but with Vino and Klödi also on stand-by, we should have every
attack covered."

Ullrich, his team's designated captain, was also at pains to point out that
the Tour would be more than just a battle between Armstrong and T-Mobile:
"I'm not so sure that it is just going to come down to a straightforward
duel between Lance and T-Mobile. We can expect attacks from riders like
Mayo, Valverde and Basso. They were all riding strongly in the Vosges, so
let's see how they go in the Alps." We will know by Tuesday evening, when
the Alps are sure to reshuffle the Tour GC.