Zirbel places fourth in cycling world championships

Fri September 25 2009
Posted Sep 25, 2009
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MENDRISIO, Switzerland (AP) — Fabian Cancellara dominated his rivals and won the time trial Thursday at the road world championships. The Olympic champion from Switzerland beat his 65 opponents by 1 minute, 27 seconds and delighted fans on the Swiss- Italian border. Cancellara's third world title was never in doubt as he finished in 57:55.74 over the 31-mile course. Gustav Larsson of Sweden took silver, and Tony Martin of Germany trailed by 2:30 to earn bronze. Tom Zirbel of Boulder, Colo., was fourth. Zirbel is a 1997 graduate of Clear Lake high school. Cancellara is the second Beijing gold medalist to become the world time trial champion this year. Kristin Armstrong of Boise, Idaho, won the time trial on Wednesday. Cancellara began celebrating long before the finish line, applauding his fans and patting the Swiss flag on his jersey. The race marked the return of two Kazakhstan riders. Alexandre Vinokourov, a bronze medalist in 2004 and 2006, and Andrei Kashechkin entered after completing two-year bans for blood doping. The 36-year-old Vinokourov, who returned to the Astana team after Lance Armstrong's departure to form his own squad, had fans chanting his name at the start gate and finished eighth. But the loudest applause was for Cancellara, born in Switzerland to Italian parents.