Andy & Fränk - Simply The Best

Impressions

2010-07-26T12:52:00.004+02:00

Some impressions from Paris...

...thankfully both of our favourite brothers were there and also the Grand Duke couldn't resist to come, as well as most of Luxembourg's famous politicians.
While Papa Schleck, Mama Schleck, Martine and little Leea were in Paris to celebrate with Uncle Andy the oldest of the Schleck brothers Steve was in Luxembourg, to be precise, he was in the RTL-studios as a commentator for the last day of the Tour de France - here's the Journal du Tour from yesterday.

http://tele.rtl.lu/waatleeft/replay/v/20100725/0/23309/

RTL.lu VideoArchiv: Tour de France: E Bl�ck op den Andy Schleck

2010-07-22T14:06:00.000+02:00

RTL.lu VideoArchiv: Tour de France: E Bl�ck op den Andy Schleck

A nation in yellow

2010-07-19T14:01:00.002+02:00

Pretty much from the day Andy got the yellow yersey his little homecountry Luxembourg went crazy. They are crazy about cycling since like forever but after some not so good years during the 80's and 90's both Andy and Fränk as well as Kim Kirchen are very famous (remember more than 95% of people there know them!).
A lot of newspapers say " Mir si giel" - "We are yellow" and congratulate Andy. Rtl.lu - the country's biggest TV-station even got the following background on their website :)

Two very different people

2010-07-16T18:09:00.002+02:00

Don't know if all of you heard about what Laurent Fignon said about Andy getting the bottles for his teammates - to say it shortly he wasn't too happy about it.

Our favourite TdF-rider just answered that it wasn't the first time him and Fignon had different opinions and that he already was in the back part of the peloton so he just decided to get the bottles because he had the shortest way. Not too sure if he actually had the shortest way but anyway it's nice he did it. The Saxoboys are working for him all day long and so he paid them back by bringing them something to drink.

Pretty obvious Fignon and the younger Schleck bro are quite different people - pretty sure not just in this way... You can guess the other one ;)

A sheep for Andy

2010-07-16T17:48:00.003+02:00

Okay, to be honest, Andy didn't get a sheep from anyone, at least as far as I know but can someone tell my why he did have to take a photo with one of the little creatures while waiting for the start of the 11th stage?!

I mean the little lamb didn't seem too pleased while Andy's gorgeous smile looks a bit like he is asking himself what the heck the people who brought the sheep there are thinking. And I'm asking myself pretty much the same. I know that French people sometimes are a little crazy, they always want to take their roosters to soccer matches of their National Team. Well... At least I knew the reason for that one but I didn't know that sheeps seem to stand for cyclists. I know there are some black sheeps... Thank goodness it was a white sheep - otherwise the German media probably would have made a big fuss out of it - they still aren't over Zabel and Ullrich... But thankfully they're getting better :)

Btw, maybe Andy didn't get a sheep but instead he got a little gift from Lance Armstrong. With the words "It fits your jersey perfectly" he gave puppy Schleck one of his yellow LIVESTRONG wristbands. Andy was very happy and actually emphasized during the interview that he didn't have to pay for it.
Dear Andy, that is the meaning of a gift...

Knock, knock

2010-07-14T23:44:00.004+02:00

Unbelievable but true... It seems like I'm still alive and still think that Andy and Fränk are simply the best. It's been a long time since I posted anything, hope that someone interested is still out there but I won't make any promises because I know that I couldn't keep my promise last time. But I'll do my very best...

Last time I wrote something about my favourite cyclists, Andy had just won Liège - Bastogne - Lièg, I was still an ordinary student preparing for exams and life was pretty good.Today life is still pretty good, to be honest even better - I'm back from Australia, an amazing country where I spent my gap-year (but please don't expect me to spell the words correctly even after a year down under, I can't spell to save my life in either language I know...) and Andy wears the colour that suits him best - YELLOW!!!

Unfortunately the Tour wasn't too kind to Fränk but at least now he can spend more time with his little baby girl Leea and his wife and I'm sure that when Andy comes to Paris in his yellow jersey, we will see a damn proud older brother there. When I came back to the blog I actually smiled a bit when I saw that I wrote more than a year ago that Fränkie would make a great daddy. Maybe he's listening to me... If you do Fränk - get well very soon! :)

I hope that I'll find a couple of good pictures, videos and stories during the upcoming weeks until life gets busy again when uni starts! To start off I would have loved to show you a video I saw some days ago on German televisions about Andy.
Just to sum it up: 95% of the people in Luxembourg know our lovely Schlecks and often call them heros - even if it's almost impossible for me to like Andy even more, I do now because of what he said "I don't like when the people say that I'm a hero, I'm not a hero at all. People who save lifes are heros. I just do the sport I love and do my best, when people are happy about that I'm happy but to say that I'm a hero - no, not at all - that's such a big word."
I think it's great that Andy is so down to earth. The rest of the little report why Andy is so successful was about the family and where they live. Papa Schleck thinks the biggest reason why all their sons are still living in Mondorf is because Mama Schleck is a really great cook - they always come to have some of her food. Lovely boys...

About the best brothers' future Papa Schleck didn't say anything new at all, just that he once told them to always ride for the same team so they don't have to ride against each other. We'll see.
And I see you. Hopefully. :)

Andy, you're THE star

2009-04-27T17:48:00.003+02:00

Maybe you remember I video I posted some month ago made by a friend of mine. I asked her to make a second one and thankfully she agreed. So here it is: Andy, You're A Star!

About yesterday's victory...

Jean-Claude Juncker (Prime Minister and Financial Minister): A phenomenal performance

Jean Asselborn (Deputy Prime Minister and Minister for Foreign Affairs and immigration): Congratulations and I am pretty sure that it wasn't your last win.

Andy himself: I'm pretty proud on myself because this race is one of my favourites. Unfortunately there is also a negative side of it, next year I won't be able to show a better performance.

Johny Schleck: It is incredible what all happened during just one week. First Fränk's accident, then the wonderful second place of Andy at Fléche Wallone and now the victory. Liège - Bastogne - Liège has a very high standing in our whole family. For us it is the most important one day race during the whole season, you could call it our favourite. We like it so much because the race takes place near our home and so there are always a lot of fans from Luxembourg.

Kim Andersen: Amazing! Sensational! At the moment it is an absolutely crazy feeling I have. What Andy did today is something you can't put in words. I knew before that he is in a good shape but today was far better than every expectation.

Fränk: I just can take off my hat. Today Andy showed the world's elite their the maximum potential and he was even better. I always believed in him and I knew that he will take the victory. This moment is far more emotional and beautiful than standing on the podium after my own victory. And impossible to explain all the feelings and emotions I have right now. Right now I'm just enjoying the time here but truly realizing what happend? Maybe next week. At the moment I'm just very proud on Andy.

Christian Prudhomme: That was an extraordinary victory, a truly great win. Andy was simply the best today and he showed to rest what they can do and what he did. I'm sure that in the future we will have a lot of fun while watching Andy and seeing him win.

Daddy Fränky

2009-04-27T17:12:00.006+02:00

After not being able to overcome Andy's new hairstyle (I don't like it and want the old one back) I decided to look for some more photos of yesterday evening. Until now I haven't been successful but instead I found some nice other pics of Schleck the elder.

And the pics show that Fränkie would be a good daddy... Seems like he loves kids...

The only available pic of cutie Schleck is this one. Please recognize the guy on the far left and his look on the screen. Wonder what he is thinking.

And... I don't want to create sadness or destroy dreams - just keep on dreaming but here are some other photos I found from yesterday.

Brothers in arms

2009-04-27T12:16:00.006+02:00

Maybe you have already seen the video on youtube but I thought that I post it anyway because I just love this two brothers and their relationship. Of course you can find some more videos/interviews of the Schlecks on rtl.lu (some links 1, 2, 3) Additionally I found a photo from yesterday's celebration. Andy's hair looks really different, more serious I would say. I prefer the other look.

And some more photos from after the race, the happy brothers and the happy family.

And even when the Daddy-Schleck-darkred-shirt-mystery isn't solved yet maybe there is nothing to solve anymore. The weekend he wore black/blue clothes. Probably just because Skoda or which sponsor ever changed his colour.

More to come soon...

Andy's week

2009-04-26T17:03:00.008+02:00

Watch the prelimary report on rtl.lu with Schleck interviews.
And an interview (just audio) with Fränk after the race.

Olé, olé, olé, olé, olé, olé, olé, olé, olé, olé, olé...

Just a few minutes ago Andy won Liège - Bastogne - Liège (or Léck-Baaschtnech-Léck how the Luxembourgians call it). I only watched the last 15 kilometers but I just loved what I saw. I have to admit that I not only loved to see Andy win but the whole thing that started about two kilometers before they reached the finish.

Everytime the camera showed Fränkie, he smiled like he would attend the smiling world championships and turned his thumb up. Additionally it was very touching to see how the fall into the others arms after the race.

Btw the German commentators told a cute story from last year when Fränkie finished third and Andy fourth at Liège - Bastogne - Liège. The two wanted to congratulate eachother for the great race but they were in different areas and a policeman wanted to stop Fränkie to change to areas to meet Andy and then they had great arguments. They almost started a fist fight until another policeman told that it is okay to change the areas...

I just love the brotherly love between the Schlecks!

But today's win wasn't the only great thing happened during this week for the the best cycling brothers on earth. Surely the beginning of the week was a bit suboptimal with Fränkies fall but after seeing him on the bicycle again, I'm pretty sure that it didn't affect him to much and that he had again enough blessing in disguise.

Instead of starting at the Flèche Wallone he took a short break and made a great race today. Catching every guy who just had the idea of attacking puppy Schleck's victory ;) And I think that I don't have to talk about how amazing the week were for Andy. Second at Flèche Wallone, First at Liège - Bastogne - Liège.

Life could go on like that...

Blessing in disguise and wanna see them dance

2009-04-21T13:59:00.013+02:00

In know, I know, I know... Like the last time it again has taken too long to write a new entry in my Andy & Fränk - Simply The Best- Blog, even if they are still simply the best riders on this world (and I doubt that there is another one).

To say the truth I didn't follow the season very much and I can't really explain why. Maybe it is because I have a lot of work at the moment because of some upcoming exams and when I had time there wasn't a lot new about my favourite brothers.

Anyway... On last sunday I had a bit of free time and I did some channel-hopping on TV and suddenly I saw Bjarne Riis standing next to a cyclist who had an accident when I switched on Eurosport. At first I didn't pay so much attention to it but then some seconds later I realized that the rider who was in a sorry state wears a jersey which reminded me a lot of the jersey the Luxembourgian champion wears.

As you can imagine I was kind of shocked and thought 'no, not again'... Sometimes it seems a bit like Fränkie is hunted by bad luck because I already fell so often within this and last season (just don't want to see the accident from Tour de Suisse again). But then again I have to think about how much luck he always has because the things could turn out a lot more worse.

Surely he has a lot of pain at the moment (he won't take part at Fléche Wallone) but he never get injured heavily. Seems like the lucky charm he got by his mother, helps!

I don't know if you follow puppy Schlecks diary on cyclingnews.com but I do so and when I read his last entry I asked myself how it looked like when these eight 'gangly' guys danced through the Sexy Bank Bus and performed parts of Step Up 2: The Streets.

Which moves out of this did they exactly tried to reproduce?!?!?!

The season is starting...

2009-02-06T21:44:00.002+01:00

I know, I know... I did not posted anything for quite a long time, I feel sorry for that and because there is no real excuse I won't try ;)
Hopefully you all had a good time and possibly you are as excited as me that the new season has already started. I just can hope that it will be a successful one for my two favorite cyclists - Andy & Fränk because they are simply the best!

I hope nobody had posted that "diary" of Andy before... In any case I will do it and if anyone did it before, sorry ;)

Andy Schleck diary

Andy Schleck shreds the peloton in the 2008 Tour
Photo ©: Roberto Bettini

Now just 23 years of age, Andy Schleck made a name for himself during the 2007 Giro d'Italia when he won the best young rider classification. The Luxembourger continued to impress in 2008, when he took the same jersey at the Tour de France while helping his squad to win the teams and general classification.

Schleck is the younger brother of Saxo Bank teammate Fränk. The pair's father, Johnny, also contested some of the world's largest cycling races including the Tour de France and Vuelta a España between 1965 and 1974.

**The cycling world is expecting more big things from Schleck in 2009, and he'll be keeping you informed of his progress throughout the year on Cyclingnews.com.**

February 5, 2009

The calm before the storm

As I write I'm sitting by a warm, crackling fire at my parents' home in Luxembourg. I've been here for a week but in the morning my season starts for real when I fly to the US. Gazing out of the window, everything is still, like the calm before the storm. I know that once I hit the US it's going to be non-stop and manic for the next ten months. From California to France for Paris-Nice and then Liège, before I know it I'll be back here at my folks' writing about the upcoming season in 2010.

The Schleck brothers
Photo ©: Roberto Bettini

But as this is my first diary for Cyclingnews, let's go back a few weeks to the beginning of the year. It got off got to the perfect start when Karsten Kroon, Fränk, his girlfriend and I flew to New York for a few days. It was all totally last-minute and unprepared but we managed to see one of my favourite Dutch DJs play. We spent the whole night dancing and it was an incredible experience. I spoke to Bjarne Riis when I was back and he didn't have any clue I was even out there. He didn't mind though – I don't have to check in with the boss every minute of the day but I did have to tell the whereabouts programme.

I get asked about its benefits and hang-ups a lot. I accept it; I know that cycling has its problems and that we cyclists have no one to blame but ourselves for the current condition of the sport. Sometimes it can be hard though. If I want to go out with friends I have to declare it, but I'm young and I don't plan every occasion. It must be worse for some of the older guys who have training and family commitments to juggle. Like I said, I accept that these measures have to happen, I just wonder if the authorities have gone too far.

Things have been quiet since I've been home. I've been putting the finishing touches to my new apartment, which is being constructed now. I've been picking out bathroom tiles and things like that. Picking out tiles? Yeah, I know it sounds goofy but I'm really excited about having my own place. It is only a few hundred yards from my parents and my brother Fränk.

"In a sport that's won and lost on the smallest of margins, knowing your teammates inside-out can make the difference. "

- Andy Schleck explains why the team's unique training camp is important.

Right now I have good morale though. Unfortunately I picked up a tendonitis in my right ankle during Saxo's training camp in Portugal and I'll need to take up to three days of rest. It's frustrating, but it's not a huge concern at this point in the season – my objectives come much later. At camp we spent time measuring up our new Specialized bikes and I kept swapping in and out of different cleats on all the rides. That's when I picked up the niggle. I just have to be patient and get back up to speed during the training camp in the US. I'll be a little bit behind when I get there but it's not a big deal.

Training camps are always a good experience. You may have seen the pictures of me firing guns and jumping into lakes from our first camp of the year in Denmark. The team spent a lot of time in the woods, which I really liked. I'm used to spending a lot of time with nature because when I'm home, my father and I hunt and fish. So for me the camping and outdoors weren't so much of a struggle. The only bit I didn't like was jumping into the ice-cold water at the end. It all helps to build team morale and help us bond.

Andy Schleck at the survival camp
Photo ©: Roberto Bettini

Speaking to some of the more experienced guys on the team, it's a million miles away from how teams used to get together but it helps you get to know everyone really well and with that you learn how each person reacts to different pressures. In a sport that's won and lost on the smallest of margins, knowing your teammates inside-out can make the difference. During races, tensions run high and riders can do things that frustrate and anger you – sometimes even your own teammates – so you need to understand these things and learn to adapt and deal with them. If you can do that then your team is going to be far more united when your backs are against the wall.

There are a few new, young riders on the team this year. With that I've come to realise that I'm not one of youngest anymore. When I first started at CSC I had lot of help from the older guys and I'm trying to move myself into a similar role for a few of these kids. It's my fifth year as a professional - and although I most certainly don't know it all, I try to help the new riders as much as possible. When I saw them at the camp it reminded me how I was at that age: full of energy, always trying to impress and never showing weakness. These youngsters want to be with the top guys on all climbs, when they should just be concentrating on their training programmes and what they need to focus on.

One new rider was pretty sick and you could see that on the rides. I was saying to him, "Go home, this won't do you any good. Head back, get some rest and then come and show us what you can do when you're 100 per cent." They don't have to prove anything. I think they appreciate what I say and I hope I can carry on helping them.

We tried the new bikes in Majorca, too. We were only on them for a few hours but they felt really comfortable. They provide better handling than Cervelo and on descents they're really smooth. I can't say what they're like on the big climbs as we've not been able to test them on that terrain. But the training bikes we've had so far have been good.

Back to the here and now: the fire is starting to die out - a sure sign that I have to start packing and that my season is about to get underway. I'm excited. I hope you are too....

From cyclingnews.com

A natural consequence??

2008-12-13T19:37:00.002+01:00

Kirchen says that it is a natural consequence that he became sportsman of the year because this year was his best year... I don't want to doubt that it was his best year but I can't believe that it was a natural consequence of it!

Anyway... Like I said before, enjoy it, Kimie! It will be the last time!

Second place for Andy

2008-12-12T14:42:00.005+01:00

Yesterday evening was the official presentation of the Luxembourgian sportman of the year and Puppy Schleck finished runner-up to... Kim Kirchen. Fränk came in fourth place behind tennis player Gilles Müller.
The winner was elected by journalists: Kim got 433 points, Andy 306 and Fränkie 156.

And I'm sure that -if fans were allowed to vote- another guy had won ;) All the fangirls on this earth would have made it sure.

But anyway I grant it Kim - because it'll be his last victory! After a Schleck victory at next year's Tour he won't have any chance...

Another pic of Andy... Unfortunately I can't find one with Fränkie. Maybe he wasn't there? I'm not sure if you can perceive it but I think Andy's hair are growing longer and longer =)

They should have listen to us...

2008-12-10T18:19:00.002+01:00

... since yesterday evening it is proved that Frankie is totally innocent and never did anything wrong (okay, except climbing the community antenna). Even if I (and all of us) knew that before, I'm happy that the ALAD didn't find him guilty.
If they would have listen to us they would have saved a lot of time... But anyway, I'm happy and now Frankie can fully concentrate on the next season. A victory in California would be a great start ;)

That is the press information by the ALAD

Communiqué de presse
09.12.2008

L'ALAD a pris une décision dans le dossier Frank Schleck

Il est rappelé que l'Agence luxembourgeoise antidopage (ALAD) a procédé à une instruction dans le cadre d'un virement que le coureur cycliste Frank Schleck a fait en mars 2006, au profit d'un compte en Suisse établi au nom d'une société, dont le médecin espagnol Dr. Eufemiano Fuentes a été identifié comme propriétaire aux termes d'une enquête judiciaire ultérieure. Cette instruction a eu pour objet de déterminer si des faits, susceptibles de constituer une violation d'une règle antidopage, pouvaient être établis.

Parmi les cas de violation d'une règle antidopage énumérés à l'article 4 du Code antidopage de l'ALAD, les faits connus sont avant tout à considérer par rapport à l'hypothèse de « l'usage ou (de) la tentative d'usage d'une substance ou d'une méthode interdite », telle que prévue à l'article 4.2.

Lors d'une audition en date du 1er octobre 2008, Frank Schleck a donné des explications quant au virement litigieux. Il a par ailleurs rendu ces explications publiques dans un communiqué de presse datant du 3 octobre 2008.

L'ALAD, lors de sa réunion du 7 octobre 2008, a décidé de diligenter un complément d'instruction par des démarches auprès d'instances et de personnes diverses susceptibles de livrer des éléments nouveaux ou des éclaircissements, dont notamment le procureur d'État à Luxembourg, les autorités judiciaires et gouvernementales espagnoles et l'Union cycliste internationale (UCI).

Réunie en date de ce 9 décembre 2008 au terme d'un délai qu'elle s'était impartie pour l'instruction complémentaire, l'ALAD constate que, hormis le fait connu du virement, aucun autre enseignement n'est ressorti des investigations, si ce n'est une information en provenance de l'UCI constatant l'absence d'éléments permettant d'établir de prétendus contacts de Frank Schleck avec le Dr. Fuentes.

Aucun usage d'une substance ou méthode interdite n'a été constaté, ni même allégué.

Il est par ailleurs constaté que le seul fait connu du virement litigieux ne peut pas être considéré comme une tentative punissable au sens de l'article 4.2. du Code antidopage.

Devant l'absence de faits pouvant constituer une infraction au Code antidopage, le conseil d'administration de l'ALAD a décidé dans sa réunion de ce jour qu'il n'y a pas lieu de poursuivre et en conséquence de ne pas saisir l'instance juridictionnelle, le Conseil de discipline contre le dopage (CDD). L'affaire est dès lors classée sans suites.

(Communiqué par l'Agence luxembourgeoise antidopage)

Here you can find a video of it!

Andy and Fränk's schedule

2008-12-09T17:40:00.003+01:00

While looking for some information about the meeting of the ALAD tonight ( at CET 7 p.m. ), I found some information in which races Andy and Fränk will participate next year. Maybe you already know but for me it was new ;)

15. - 22. February -- Tour of California
11. - 17. March -- Tirreno-Adriatico
21. March -- Milan-San Remo

Mäi Munneref

2008-11-25T19:02:00.004+01:00

And here is the translation of the Revue article about Fränk. Unfortunately it is just an excerpt and we can find more in the edition 27/07 of this magazine. So if someone his this one please let me know ;)

The only problem I have with the translation is the headline... Unfortunately I can't speak Luxembourgian but nevertheless I would say that 'Mäi Munneref' must be "My Mondorf' in English... Anyway, here is the translation

My Mondorf

To Fränk Schleck his hometown means more than just the place he comes back to after a hard race and refuel his energy tank. Mondorf is he personel retreat.

Two strong guys: Fränk poses with the stature of John Grün which stands near his home.

"There are some anecdotes which must be told for this story.", says Fränk and and sits down comfortably. One of them is the anecdote of the 'Rousebierg'. This is a mountain near the home of young Fränk and it was the first mountain he tried to ride on when he was young. "At first I never reached the top of the mountain. I always had to dismount and walk the bike."

But then someday the 'Rousebierg' was just a snap anymore. That was the time when Fränk and his younger brother Andy put the fear of God into the boys of their neighbourhood. "Weorganized races just for fun. We always had our nose in front and won.", remembers Fränk. Both were such bundles of energy, that some of their mates flagges and went home tired while the brothers went on.

Since decembre of 1984 the family Schleck lives in spa Bad Mondorf. At this time Fränk was four and a half years old. He can still remember his school days. In the school yard the old chestnut trees are still standing, while the building are renovated.

Lovely relic: The little French-Luxemburgish costumhouse is a true eyecatcher

Also Charlotte Strasser is kept in good memory. The mother of famous footballer Jeff Strasser was Fränks teacher. "I really liked her. She was always nice." Like most of the boys during that age Fränk did a lot of sports. His parents made a point doing that. Football and table tennis. But to play football in the team of US Mondorf was never his great passion. Others were better in it. He also was an acolyte. "I've always been a good boy.", says he and smiles.

But there was trouble one time when he aimed high and climbed on the community antenna. When they were young he and his brothers had a lot of nonsense on their heads. They always needed action. Thankfully there is a big forest in and around Mondorf which were meant to play in it.

"We lived in close touch with the nature and went for walks with our dog often." Fränk is still in close touch with the nature. In his free time he likes to go hunting.

Unfortunately the articles stops at this moment. I would love to read the rest... Anyway, hope you enjoy it.

Reanimation

2008-11-25T18:09:00.007+01:00

First of all a biiiiiig thank you to Marit for both of the links ;) I will post a short translation of the article about Fränk later (as a little excuse that I didn't post anything for quite a long time)...
It's been a a long time since the last new pics of the Schlecks but here are some from the survival camp in Danmark...

Andy, set your sights on ...

... and shot ...

... won??

Hopefully! Because I just can hope that this ... erm ... let's call it yeti-wig ... was the award for the best shooter. I personally prefer yellow and/or white jerseys.

Why isn't Fränkie wearing a uniform like Andy??

Especially for Rina (and all other Andy-addicts).

Goodbye! Hope for more pics in the future ;)

With a little help from my friend...

2008-11-09T19:20:00.002+01:00

I asked a friend of mine to make a little video about Andy and Fränk because she often makes fanvideos (mostly about tennisplayers and figure skaters). I thought that there are to less videos about them and to my great joy she did it, I hope you will enjoy it.

(Almost) Everything we wanted

2008-11-02T12:02:00.006+01:00

And the winner is Andy Schleck

43% of the fangirls wanted puppy-Schleck to win the Amstel Curacao Race and he fulfilled the wish of the majority. Well done! It's great to fulfil fangirls dreams ;)

Unfortunately I don't know in which place Fränkie came but he fulfilled the fangirls dreams with a lot of semi-naked pics of himself. Even if he upseted us a bit (--> Martine), that is a good redress.

Reminds me a bit of baywatch ;) But hey, which girl wouldn't like to be saved by sexy-Schleck?!

The overall classements or at least the top 3 because I can't find more ;)

1. Andy Schleck (yippie, yippie, yeah)
2. Stijn Devolder
3. Theo Bos

More men and dolphin... Even if I would love to see more of their bodies. Sure, there are some great pics of Fränkie (see above) but I'm still waiting for some hot Andy pics! So, way to go Tim de Waele - my god of cycling photos ;)

At last a bit Schleck art. Janni already said everything what should be said. I'm totally going with her that Fränkie should stick to drawing bicycles and I'm sure that Martine also agrees with us because she really looks sceptical ;) So that's it for the moment, maybe more later...

The men, the dolphin and the girlfriend - I need your account number, Rina

2008-10-31T23:13:00.009+01:00

The cumulative Schleck cute- and sexyness is now on Curacao.

Typically Fränkie ;)

I know, it's not a good pic, on which you can see much but that's Fränk and his girlfriend. So they're back together again, maybe they've never been off??

*sigh* Hard for all of us... But the main thing is that our man is happy ;)
Nevertheless I need the account number of RINDY-inc because I need a lot of hugs of Andy! Are there a limited time for every hug or can I do it as long as I want? ;) Because if I there's a time limit, you'll get a lot of money just from me...

More pic of course on CorVospro.

YES

2008-10-30T14:45:00.004+01:00

No problem! When do you have time?
I can go to the airport to come to Curacao within half an hour. But we have to be quick because the are surely a lot of other fangirls, who would like to help you undress ;)

Btw- thanks again to Kimberley who posted the link to the pics on Janni's blog ;)

The man, the fish and the family portrait

2008-10-30T14:00:00.007+01:00

Finally the long time of waiting has an end. The boys are on Curacao and there are some pics (at least of Fränkie). Just two days until the race and, for sure, more new and hopefully hot pictures.

Self catched?? ;)

Hopefully he can relax a little bit and forget all the trouble of the last weeks. And then prepare for the new season because I'm sure that all the fangirls would like to see more Schleck-victories and as I already said before, yellow suits him incredibly well ;)

I tried to decode the Papa-Schleck-darkred-shirts-mystery... There really are a lot of pics of him wearing red shirts and to be honest, I just found one pic of him not wearing darkred shirts. Maybe it's just his favorite colour because I also can't find an overprint of Skoda or any other company on the shirts.

And the is the only pic I could find. A family portrait ;) But maybe TdW told them all to wear white/grey clothes, so it's the only reason why Johny doesn't wear red.

The perfect world

2008-10-28T20:22:00.003+01:00

Actually I should write an essay at the moment about the perfect world... But I really don't have an idea how the perfect world looks like.
Sure, there should be a lot of damn hot cyclists in it and my favourites are ought to win all important races without suspected to have cheated but I think my teacher prefers to hear something about social equity like what is more important:
- the happiness of the individual or
- the harmony and stability of society as a whole.
I can say you, it's definitely not easy to create a perfect world, there are so much things you have to consider. Everytime I write down one thing, I'm not sure if something else could be better for one part of the humankind. There is no possibility to make everyone happy, so there is no perfect world but I have to create one...

Back to the real important things of life ;D
Just four days until the Curacao Race and some hot pics of the guys...

Thanks to anonymous for the link ;) I like their shoes, especially Fränkies... I have to admit that he has the better taste for shoes (on that day). And their dad was with them ;)

The phenomenon

2008-10-26T11:11:00.002+01:00

The phenomenon

He came, he saw and almost conquered the Giro d’Italia. Andy Schleck just needed about three weeks to rise from a nobody to a superstar.

The first one who called Andy was Jean Asselborn. The Foreign Minister didn’t let anything stop himself from congratulating the 21 year old on last Saturday afternoon. He congratulated the young Luxembourgian on his sixth place at the final time trial and the second place in the overall classement of the Giro d’Italia, the second most important race after the Tour de France.

The next one was Andy’s masseur. He had to leave for family reasons at short notice. After that Andy called his older brother Fränk by himself. I did that every day. At this moment there were just some minutes bygone since he had finished the 43 kilometers from Bardolino to Verona. With no help. Alone, just against the clock. Alone in the pouring rain.

Now he enjoys to stand in the focus of attention and being celebrated, here in front of the arena of Verona.

In advance the expert weren’t sure if Baby-Schleck, how the pink-coloured Gazzetta dello Sport called him, won’t come unstuck during this stage. But also at the day before the last day of the race the boy from Mondorf showed himself from his best side. He took away 29 seconds from the winner of the Giro Danilo di Luca.

“I still can’t believe it.”, says Andy later. “I came in sixth place. About two years ago I would have lost up to one minute or more to di Luca on 10 kilometers.” Time changed.

From now on they will call the name Andy Schleck in the same breath like greats such as Danilo di Luca, Gilberto Simoni or Damiano Cunego. The official ceremony of the winners is followed by uncountable questions by journalists. All want to have an interview with the phenomenon, like they call him. Also in front of the microphones and cameras the young profi appears serene.

His answers are short and objective. But he smiles more the one time. A nice and warm smile, a bit roguish. And he is flirting with a famous young female reporter of the Italian television. When the whole media business was over, Andy went to the fans who stayed there the whole time.

They call is name. He is shaking hands, writing autographs, carrying a young child so that his father can take some pictures. The Italian public adore him. The tifosi are completely over the moon so they found a new fanclub. Andy Schleck is a touchable star with no star-like behaviour. He understood that the contact with fans is one of the most important things in the world of sport.

Two hour laters in the hotel Antico Termine near Lugagnano, the whole strain falls apart from Andy. He had a shower and now wears jeans. He goes to the mechanics, who are currently preparing the cycles for the last stage. “I learned to share my success. Maybe I rode during the last three weeks in the spotlight, but without my team, I’m a nobody. I try to give them something back.”, he says serene and takes a sip of beer.

Then starts to tell. Tell about the ravenous attacks he has nearly every night, so he always has something eatable next to his bed. About the two kilos he lost during the last weeks although he ate as much as he could.

About the psychological warfare of di Luca especially during the mountains, when he looked into his eyes to see how much power was left. “Some time I realized that he can keep up with him. And I did it.” Since this moment his self-confidence grew up. Since that moment the third place at the frightening climb to Monte Zoncolan was possible and of course the second place overall.

He never forgets to mention Charly Gaul. “I know that he was the last Luxembourgian to stand on the podium at such an important race. And I also know that it was 47 years ago.” This is what make himself proud. To follow those footsteps and writing history with it. Like his brother did one year ago when he won the Amstel Gold Race and the important stage to Alpe d’Huez and amazed the cyclingworld.

From time to time the conversation is interrupted by the manager of the hotel to congratulate Andy, by the employees, who ask him for a autograph and pictures. At the end Andy look forward on the next day. The final stage to Mailand, where nobody won’t attack the leader because of an unwritten law.

And of course to the Tour de France. If Andy could decide it would ride the most important race next year.

Around 6 p.m. the next day, Andy crosses the finish line at the Corso Venezia. A group of a hundred Luxembourgian, just came here because Andy finished in second place, want to celebrate him. They all wear pink shirts “Bravo, Andy”. Some have tears in their eyes. They all are proud, touched, pleased. Happy that a Luxembourgian is again on the top of this sport. The sport which brought the greatest success to the little nation.

But one thing is for sure: It’s not the last time that a Schleck – Andy or Fränk – makes headlines. After the younger of them got from a nobody to a star over night, their father Johny says that “everything is now possible”.

Maybe Andy will win the Tour some day. Maybe today is just the beginning of a glorious career like Eddie Merckx had. He won the Giro and the Tour five times. The future will show. But first Andy has to realize what he achieved during the last days. Until now he didn’t had the time for it.

Translation of the article 'Das Phänomen' by Laurent Graaff (Revue)

More from: Fränk the summiteer

2008-10-24T16:37:00.006+02:00

Unfortunately no new news... I think the ALAD should make a faster decision :(

Anyway, that is an older article after his victory at Alpe d'Huez from Revue. They have some real good article about the Schleck brother, currently working on a translation of Andy Schleck - The phenomenon ;)

Roller coaster ride of a summiteer

Weakened Fränk Schleck set off for riding his first Tour de France. Now he comes home with the certainty that he will become a great one of his sport.

It’s July, the 18^th. It’s the evening after Fränk Schleck glorious performance during the stage from Gap to Alpe d’Huez. Jens Voigt lie down on a bench to let himself massage. He’s watching the summary of the stage on Eurosport. He sees Schleck celebrating. “This is the future of cycling.”, he says quiet. Voigt is the one, who is known as the breakaway king and one of the most important helpers.

You can see how Schleck closes his jersey shortly before he crosses the finish line to celebrate and enjoy this historical moment. He shouts for joy. Fourty years the grand duchy had waited for that moment. Almost exact on the same day – Edi Schütz won on July, 10^th 1966 at Chamonix – a Luxembourgian is winning a stage of the Grande Boucle.

Schleck is the 13^th rider in a row Luxemburgish winners, who won altogether 64. Two years ago Kim Kirchen almost won a stage. But Thor Hushovd didn’t know any pity and ruined all hopes.

At that time there also shouted someone. But that were oaths and curses. “Fränk rode a great Tour. He won the hardest stage and finished a unique 11^thplace overall”, balances Bjarne Riis. It’s been five days since Schleck conquered the 1.850m high summit and ride off Italy’s cycling hope number one Damiano Cunego and let him almost standing there about two kilometres before the finish.

Today it’s Sunday. Shortly after 6 p.m. the breath of a Danish man smells like champagne. In the bus of the team CSC, which is parked on the Place de la Concorde, there is a lot of celebration. Schleck and his teammates freshen themselves up for the lap of honour on the Champs d’Élysée.

When someone asks him what he expects of Schleck in the future you can see a little smile around his lips. “A lot.”, is the answer. “He still has some weaknesses but we will work on them. Hard training. That he has talent he already showed the world.” Finally it isn’t natural that someone finishes in 11^th place at his first Tour de France.

The adventure of the 26 year old cyclist didn’t have an auspicious start. Some weeks before the National Championships – the last test one week before the TdF – Schleck crashes during his training. He broke his nose, lost some teeth. The lips had to have stitches. Furthermore he had some injuries at his chin and neck.

The nation stopped breathing, but the all-clear came fast. Schleck will start in Straßbourg. In the capital of the Alsace the sport fade into the background. Ivan Basso and Jan Ullrich, two of the supposed protagonists of the doping scandal, were suspended. CSC lost its leader.

What Fränk Schleck thought during that moments maybe will stay a secret forever. Original he had planed two help Basso to win the Tour. Without own demands. But things never turn out the way you think they will. And that is good because this conditions hold incredible chances: In absence of the leader of the time, he can ride in the spotlight.

But until that moment Schleck made acquaintance with the asphalt again. During the fifth stage from Beauvais to Caen got involved in a crash and lost two minutes and seven seconds. How you can accept when you seem to be dogged by bad luck? “The Tour...”, answers Schleck. “is like a roller coaster. Ups and downs are normal. Especially emotional. You have to believe in yourself. If that doesn’t help, there are your teammates who build you up. And your family and friends who give you morality. Without them that wouldn’t have been possible.”, added the man from Mondorf.

The performance of Schleck went upwards, when the Tour went uphill. Since the stage to Bourdeaux his position in the overall classement got better. From the 10^th stage on, he retried the field from the back. On the stage from Tarbes to Val d’Aran about 206,5km, when he finished 8^th, he came from 65^th to 20^th place in the overall.

It never had been a secret that Schleck is a good climber but that he could stay in touch with the favourites believed just the greatest optimists. He also showed the potential to win the Tour during the next years and follow in the footsteps of Charly Gaul, the man they called the Angel of the Mountains, who now can rest in peace.

Whether Ullrich, Armstrong, Pantani or Riis: All the winners of the Tour of the last decade were divinely gifted climbers. Just the ones who have extraordinary qualities in the mountains, have the chance to win the Tour. Floyd Landis, the winner of this year’s TdF, isn’t a, exception.

But also the 30 year old guy from California experienced ups and downs. After his bad day on stage 16^th, when he lost the yellow jersey to Pereiro, some people had written him off. But we all know that persons who are declared dead live longer (don’t know if that’s the right translation but that is a German proverb, so difficult to translate. Just means that people who showed a bad performance and you think that they give up, will show a much stronger performance than everybody else.). The domination of US-American cyclists continued in the year after Lance Armstrong.

From the european point of view this is extremly unpleasant, comments Marcel Gilles, the Luxemburgian pope of cycling and expert of TV-cannel RTL. How does he judge the performance of Fränk Schleck, on whose career he had much influence? Because it owes also to Gilles good contacts that Schleck signed for CSC three years ago.

“I believed Fränk is capable of winning a stage. But that he chosed the most important stage is incredibly great for Luxembourg.” Long since cycling is the number one sport in Luxembourg, says Gilles. But we have to wait how that will develop.

He adds, that it’s a shame that the Gala Tour de France had to be abolished due to financial reasons, because now the Luxembourgian cyclists are better than a lot of years before. And what message Fränk Schleck has? “My name now is written down in one of the 21 hairpin bends up to Alpe d’Huez. That’s for the eternity. But next year I will come back and see.”

Anyhow that sounds like a threat but maybe it is just a recommendation to Maggy Nagel, the mayor of Bad Mondorf, to include money for a memorial for the brothers Schleck in the next year’s budget. Because what these two guys showed during the last days – Andy won two stages at the Tour of Saxony – just sounds like the beginning of a story full of success.

Wanted: More cuteness!

2008-10-22T22:57:00.008+02:00

I'm quiet disappointed about today... Yes, I'm totally happy because the next years course of the TdF fit for the Schlecks absolutely (and at the moment you all go with me as I can see) but I waited for today because I wanted to see new pics of cutie-Andy...
Why the hell are there so less photos from today out there? And I surely don't wanna see McQuaid, Prudhomme and Prince Albert.

That's all I found of cute Andy...

Too much Cadel in it!

That's okay but the guy in the middle doesn't go with the sexyness of the other two.

Interesting face expression, Andy! But what that should express? Sadness??? I will come and hug you -and yes, I will bring Rina with me ;)

Too much others in it...

There are rumours that there should some people out there who love to see these guys smile so I just want to cheer you up.
And there is also a little, little, little bit Andy in it ;)

Andy sur le Tour

2008-10-22T14:02:00.005+02:00

I found a short statement of Andy about the course of the next TdF

Andy Schleck (CSC/Maillot blanc 2008) : « A première vue, c'est un Tour qui convient aux grimpeurs. Cela me convient. La première semaine sera sélective avec des étapes piégeuses et le retour du contre-la-montre par équipes où l'équipe CSC a les moyens de bien faire. Cette année, j'ai gagné le maillot blanc malgré une journée très difficile. L'année prochaine, je reviendrai en leader avec mon frère. »

Translation: "At first glance it seems like this is a tour for climbers. That's great for me. The first week is very selective with difficult stages and the comeback of the time trials for the teams but there is a chance for the team CSC. This year I won the white jersey even if I had a bad day. The next year I will come here as one of the leaders of the team, together with my brother."

I think Andy is right. All climbers will have a good chance but I hope especially the climbers from Luxembourg ;) It will be a bit strange because now the time trialists will try to take time from the climbers before the last stages. It always been the other way round but I think it'll be fun and good for Andy and Fränk.

Why the hell I can't find just one pic of Andy at the presentation of the course?? Everytime I search I just get pictures of Prudhomme and Prince Albert... So I decided to post another pic:
The Schlecks fighting for the Maillot jaune ;)

Tour de France

2008-10-22T12:47:00.003+02:00

Voilà c'est le parcours du Tour de France 2009.
I just can hope that my french teacher will never read these words ;)

It's from the french newspaper L'Équipe and the copyright owner is the A.S.O

Hopefully Andy is at the presentation of the course today. At the moment there are no news about it but additionally to the Luxemburgian newspaper (thanks Rina) I read something in a french one... So there's a big chance ;)

Fränk the summiteer

2008-10-21T23:27:00.007+02:00

This is the translation of the article from the Revue. It's a bit older but I already said something about it and anonymous asked me to translate it.
It took a long time and I'm sure there are a lot of mistakes in it ;) So, please be soft on me...

His dad, former girlfriend, dog, mum and little brother ;)

The people who win a a classical race are part of the cycling history, forever. But the career of Fränk Schleck also shows how brutal this sport can be and how difficult the way to the top is.

There is a big crush in front of the bus of the Danish CSC-team.Three television crews with their cameras are waiting for the cyclists. The boss Bjarne Riis is giving interviews indefatigable. In about 30 minutes the race Fléche Wallone will start – the second classical race of this year. Today it’s Wednesday, 19^th of april. Three days since Fränk Schleck won the Amstel Gold Race and wrote Luxembourgian sportshistory.

Today the will ride from Charleroi to Huy. The man from Mondorf is one of the last, who gets out of the bus. In the next second a lot of journalists and fans are around the cyclist. The 26 year old appears relaxed and tells that now he is happy because he doesn’t have to hunt for an important victory anymore. “In the future I will take everything as it comes. I won’t worry.”

The pressure of success is away. A fan shows him a picture. It shows Fränk in his red-blue-white jersey, how he celebrated his victory at the Cauberg. He never had to give so much interviews and write so much autographs like in the last few days.

A short time ago he was just one of the pack. Although he made headlines at 2006 Paris-Nice, came in second at Züri-Metzgete, in third at the Giro di Lombardia and fourth at the Tour de Suisse. In the world of cycling there is only one star – the winner, the second is the first loser. Who - excluded a few hardcore fans – knows the second or third of the Tour de France when Armstrong won this tour. “I enjoy the situation. A great feeling, especially because I didn’t know it before.”

Though the spokesman of CSC tried to coordinate everything, the hours after his victory were very demanding. He hadn’t time to enjoy everything what happend in his life yet, also it changed it completely. Yesterday he gave interviews to seven TV or radio stations. Today he came in fourth place and realized how fast everything changes. “That’s just crazy, how fast everything goes away. In one moment they lavish every kind of care and attention on you and in the next you become nearly anonymous.” For him this is an interesting experience.

Schlecks career started at the ACC Contern. But what means started? Actual Fränk just continued what his older brother Steve began – cycling. And Steve just continued what his father began.

Johny Schleck rode the Tour de France eight times and reached the finish on the Champs d’Élysée seven times. The talent for Johny got right into his cradle, because his father and his uncle were also cyclists. The family Schleck is definetlely what we call a dynasty of cyclists. Moreover there is Andy, Fränks younger brother and also a rider of the team CSC.

At the age of eleven Fränk won his first race near Saarbrücken (a German town near the border to Luxembourg). Followed by riding for the teams SAF Cessingen and LC Tétingen. Later he became espoir at the Italian team De Nardi. There was no reason why he shouldn’t become a professional cyclist because this team is known as a good springboard into the world of cycling.

“If I hadn’t have a contract until my 23^rd birthday, I would have stopped cycling and started to study. Also it wouldn’t have been easy for me.” Probably forestry because Fränk is a person in tune with the nature. Fishing, hunting, climbing – these are his hobbies. In his private life he is a home-loving guy.

“The family is the most important thing for him. They provide him with security, especially when there are bad times in his career.”, tells his girlfriend Martine. Since 1999, with a short break, she and Fränk are a couple. Shortly before christmas they moved together in an own house with a big garden.

In the career of Fränk Schleck there are a lot of ups and downs. After riding for De Nardi he got a contract from Festina but short time after there weren’t a team Festina anymore and Fränk had no contract. That was in 2002. “That was one of the hardest times of my life because most of the teams already finished their planning for the new season and didn’t want new riders. I often doubt whether I’m a good cyclist but I never gave up.”

Then he found shelter in Châteauroux. But in France they fail to recognize his talent and said that there are a million of cyclists like him. Then Bjarne Riis saw him and gave him unique chance. Today Fränk is the new star of cycling in Luxembourg. It’s not hard to imagine how satisfied he must have felt when the french manager pat him on the shoulder after his victory and wave with the money. But for Schleck there is no chance to change the team. “I ride for the best time in the world and want to achieve much more with this team.”

Later Riis honoured him “Fränk has the potential to come under the top 10 at the Tour de France.” This increased the expectations of the “Munnerefer Stuff” even higher. (Munneref is the Luxemburgian name of Mondorf and Munnerefer Stuff is a pub there.) Here are the meetings of the Fanclub of Fränk Schleck, which already has about 700 members.

Some of them regard him as a future winner of the Tour de France. They go into a state of euphoria which doesn’t know any limits.

Last weekend Fränk rode the last of the three classical races of the spring and came in seventh. His next race will be the Tour de Luxembourg at home. There he wants to achieve something great. Then he will go to Switzerland and later to France for the Tour.

But one thing is already certain: After the Grande Boucle took place in Luxembourg, Mondorf will be like a ghost town. The fanclub of Fränk organize a journey to the Alpes to support Fränk, when he helps his teammate Ivan Basso to follow in Armstrong’s footsteps. “My task will be helping Ivan. If I would win a stage, it would be great – if not, it would also be great.”

This is Fränk. He is so selfless that he first thinks of the others. A typical altruist. “It’s the way my parents bring me up.”, Fränk simply says. Educated to respect hierarchy. Even if he is on the way to confuse the hierarchy of the team CSC.

Until now this philosophy helps him to get by easily. So there are no reasons why he should change it.

Nothing left in the tank

2008-10-19T00:27:00.003+02:00

Just a little quote from Fränk about Andy's bad day at Hautacam.

"Andy didn't have a good day on Monday. That's because we're like twins: Andy gave all his energy to me and he had nothing left in the tank."

Two winners, no losers

2008-10-18T13:12:00.005+02:00

The official poll about who is our favorite Schleck ended with no clear result. Ten persons voted for cute-Andy, ten for sexy-Fränk and two can't decide ;) I have to say that I'm not unhappy with that result because it's the greatest when both Schleck triumph!

Still two weeks until Amstel Curacao Race - I'm waiting ;)

Btw- great side, Anke ;)

In memoriam

2008-10-16T22:36:00.005+02:00

First the two principal German publicity owned channels ARD and ZDF decided that they won't show the Tour de France (and every other cycling event) next year. Because they don't want to use the money of the taxpayers to support cheaters :(
First of all not all cyclists are cheaters and moreover I would be happy if they use my money to support this "cheaters"!

Later today the organizers of the Deutschland tour announced that the 2009 edition will be canceled, following the doping cases that were revealed because they can't find any interested sponsors. -Thank you Mr Schumacher, Mr Kohl and all the others like "The pressure was incredibly strong. I'm only human and in this exceptional situation I showed weakness".

I really liked the Deutschland Tour because it is the reason why I became a fan of cycling ;) Last year the city where my uncle lives was destination of one stage and it was the first time I saw cute Andy when he got the jersey of the best young rider... I didn't watch cycling at that time just a bit of TdF or some years ago when everyone here in Germany did it (and nobody talked about doping) but after that day I started watching ;)

In the end some pics of the previous Curacao Races to cheer me up after that bad news...

Rina- get your gun ;)

Allez Andy

2008-10-14T10:56:00.000+02:00

Nothing more to say ;)

I can hardly stand it!

2008-10-13T23:10:00.004+02:00

Andy is the cuter Schleck, Andy is the cuter Schleck, Andy is the cuter Schleck...

... I've ever thought that. Since I first saw them I thought that Andy is the cuter brother but now...

... I found this picture of Fränkie and I'm torn. I don't know what this photo does with me but ...*sigh*... I knew before that I love his eyes but now I love them even more. And he looks so innocent. It remembers me a bit of Andy - I want to hug him as well :D

Who gets the jersey?

2008-10-13T22:15:00.005+02:00

After Stefan Schumacher the next cyclist of the Gerolsteiner team was tested positive for CERA... Austrian Bernhard Kohl won the polka dot jersey at this year's TdF.

Now I read that Carlos Sastre will get the jersey of the king of the mountains. Sastre had 80 points but Fränk had also 80 points... Does someone know why? I read somewhere because Sastre won the stage to Alpe d'Huez but that wouldn't be fair, I think.
Both should get the jersey ;) Additionally (if the second test is also positive) Fränk would become 5th in the general classification and Andy 11th. But I think they would prefer to stay as 6th/12th if there would be no new doping case... and me too.

And Fränkie?? Does someone know what goes on in Luxembourg?

Bon appetit!

2008-10-13T13:19:00.004+02:00

Two new pics of our favorite cycling-brothers ;) Probably you already know them but for me they are new... I found some while looking for an older article about them in a German newspaper. I didn't find it but instead these pictures ;)

Funny who concentrated Andy looks while putting ketchuo on his... whatever. And Fränk pays with a 50€-bill ;)

Does someone know who is the guy in the middle?

Your favorite Schleck

2008-10-12T17:09:00.004+02:00

Yesterday I started a poll with the number one question

Who's your favorite Schleck

I know that it is no easy to decide and I'm happy that I don't have to ;)

You already know the reason why I love both of them. And btw I found a new one to love both...
I read an older interview of them in a German newspaper and Fränk told that his brother is bit chaotic. He has difficulties to pack his bag. Andy said that when he is at home he never finds the things he wants to put in his bag.
So Fränk gives him advice how to pack his bag without creating chaos. Then at the Tour de Suisse this year he was very impressed by Andy because during the first days there was no chaos. He was very proud on Andy but after he said that to him the chaos became bigger than ever before ;)

Back to my question... It's really hard to chose one of this lovely brothers! For me Fränk is the one to have fun and make party with and Andy is the hug-me one =) Aspecially when he has this special face expression he had after the Olympics e.g.

Ten new Olympic sports ...

2008-10-10T15:26:00.002+02:00

Because my fellow countryman and member of the International Olympic Comitee Thomas Bach said that they must should about to remove cycling from the Olympic Games, I thought I have to think about some new very interesting and exciting sports, because we have to remove all other sports like yachting (read here why), walking (why?), athletics (why?), horseriding (there were five horses doped), shooting (why?), gymnastics (why?), swimming (why?) and so on and on and on...

1. Fly fishing (Or is it possible to feed the flies with ...erm... don't know what fishs like to eat?)

2. Extreme ironing

3. Tea bag throwing (Don't know if someone knows it. I played it in the kindergarten ;) You put the little paper of the tea bag between your teeth and try to throw it as far as possible - very bad explanation, I know)

4. Mobile phone throwing (There are already World Championships for this lovely sport)

5. Wok racing (For all who don't know German television here is the wikipedia article, wonder that there is one in English about it)

6. Power shopping (I would be a gold medal candidate)

7. High heel race (minimum of the heel 10 cm)

8. Table football

9. Caber toss

10. Sack race

Wet Fränkie

2008-10-10T14:35:00.008+02:00

While posing on a bridge for a photoshooting Fränkie gets lost ...

... because he falls in the pool ...

... he paddles to the pool edge ...

... but now he needs to dry off ...

... and the only thing he does is smiling ...

... and posing again ;)

Photos by Richard Baybutt

Here you can find some vids of Andy & Fränk. Just click on the pictures

When Andy is caviar what is Fränk??

2008-10-09T14:31:00.013+02:00

Ten reason why you must love

Fränk Schleck

In 1980 the second of three sons of the Schleck-family was born. His proud parents named their little boy Fränk. When he was grown-up he followed his fathers footsteeps and became a professional cyclist.

1) His unfathomable blue eyes. You just can get lost in them. Additionally the fact that he can speak with his eyes what support everything he says makes them so incredible. The gestures and facial expressions he makes when he speaks are so lovely.

2) Yellow suits him incredibly well and he even sleeps with his yellow jersey. That shows how much it means to him. His whole life he dreamt to wear. Maybe Andy has more talent but Fränk worked hard so he totally deserved to get it.

3) His brotherly love. Fränk would do everything for his little brother and he says that Andy is not only his brother but also his best friend. They live together, share a room at the races and it makes him feel good when Andy is at his back wheel. He knows that he can trust his brother and his brother can trust him.

Andy names Fränk as his idol and his is definitely a good one. Fränk shows no prima donna behaviour. He would never allow Andy to become a diva or that he feels as someting better as the others. He sticks Andy to the facts would never allow him to lose touch with the real world or to take drugs. Fränk is definitely a great big brother ;)

To thank Andy what all he had done for him Fränk gave his first yellow jersey to his little brother. He also says that Andy is much more talented and that he will win some big races. Fränk isn’t jealous, he is delighted that Andy has had and will have this success and support him troughout his career. He even says that he is happier when Andy wins then when he wins.

Same applies to Andy. In 2006 he heard after his race at Sachsentour that his older brother has a good chance to win the stage to Alpe d’Huez and so he said to his manager that he will find the hotel on his own and looked for a pub where they show the broadcast of the TdF and he found one ;)

4) The fact that he is obviously innocent and that he would do everything to prove his innocence. He offered the ALAD that they can have his DNA for a comparison with the blood from the Operacion Puerto and that they can check his bank account for more money transfers to Fuentes. Fränk doesn’t want to blacken the name of the guy who offered him the contact to Fuentes’ company. This is very comradely because he knows that it was his mistake and doesn’t want to find an excuse for what he had done.

5) It seems like Fränk hasn’t any enemies in the peloton. Nearly everyone liked Fränk and to say the truth there is no reason why you should dislike him. He is just a lovely guy and it seems that he is a friendly person. He has a lot of friends in the peloton and I’ve never heard that another cyclist tells something bad about him.

In my opinion the dispute between Fränk and Kim Kirchen is a story by the media. They know each other since they were very young and Kim told in an interview that Fränks father also had a big influence in his career. They trained together in their youth and maybe Kim with a bit annoyed at this years TdF but I don’t think they really have trouble with each other.

6) The crash at the Tour de Swiss. It’s unbelievable that he fall over the crash barriere into the ravine. Then he stands up, climbs over the crash barriere back on the street, looks around and goes on. And it was lovely how he kissed the pendant he got from his mother when he crossed the finish line.

7) He won the hardest stage of the Tour de France two years ago and I’m sure that he could have won a stage this year but he focussed on the general classement. Moreover he sacrificed himself for his teammate. Fränk knew that Sastre had a better chance to win the tour because he is a better time trialist.

8) His first bike was a bike for girls ;) He got it when he was five and went to school with it. Additionally he had a little flag on the bike (I had one, too, when I was about six or seven and it was pink. It was the same colour like the small doll-carrier seat =) ).

9) He loves his homecountry and never forgets to say that he does. Everytime he wins he tells how proud he is to be a Luxemburgian and thank all the people who support him.

10) He knows how to party! Of all the pictures I’ve seen from the final stage of Tour de France or the CSC-party after it seems that Fränk really knows what party means. I was the one who drenched Bjarne Riis with champagne on the Champs d’Élysées.

And finally the vital point: When Andy is cycling caviar (btw Andy is way better looking then caviar) what is Fränk?

I read that you should eat cabiar with vodka or champagne. So maybe Fränk is the drink. What's a good meal without something good to drink?! One Schleck doesn't go without the other one ;)

But when I must chose what he is (vodka or champagne) he would say vodka. Or to say it with Andy's words "Champagne is for girls".

Any other suggestions what Fränk is?

Baby-Schleck

2008-10-09T11:41:00.005+02:00

Some new pictures. Okay... It's not Baby-Schleck but a very young Fränk Schleck. The photos are from the homepage of their Luxembourgian home-team ACC Contern and were taken on Mallorca in 1994 so he must be 13 or 14 ;)
Unfortunately Andy didn't raced for the same team when he was younger so there are no pictures of him...

And I think you all know who the other guy is ;)
Exactly Kim Kirchen

Another pic of the talented young riders

And the last one is the whole CARRERA Jeans team.
From left to right Kim, Fränk, Erny (Kim's father), Steve (Fränk & Andy's older brother) and some other team members

Andy Schleck. Or, roughly translated, cycling caviar.

2008-10-08T23:37:00.014+02:00

The title is not by me. I found it here and what shall I say? It's the truth so again: Andy Schleck. Or, roughly translated, cycling caviar.

Ten reasons why you must love

Andy Schleck

On June, 10^th 1985 a little boy named Andy was born in the city of Luxembourg to proud parents Gaby and Johny Schleck. Just 21 years later this little boy rushed into the world of cycling like a comet.

1) First of all you have to love him because of his smile. The younger Schleck brother has one of the cutest smile on this earth. Together with his lovely face it really make it hard to dislike him. To be true there is no chance to dislike him. When he is sad you just want to hug him and also when he is happy ;)

2) His enormous talent he showed since his first appearance at the international cycling stage. At his first grand tour he finished second just 1:55 minutes behind the winner Di Luca and won the white jersey for the best young rider at 2007 Giro d’Italia. Because of that success there was no chance for a CSC Saxo Bank-Team for the Tour de France 2008 without Andy.

At this years TdF he was definitely one of the best riders. If he wouldn’t had his bad day in Hautacam he would have finished much higher than 12^th in the general classement and not only won the white jersey. During the hardest stage to Alpe d’Huez he showed us his gorgeous smile and just stayed together in one group with the favorites because it was CSC’s tactics. So without any doubt you can say that he is the future of cycling.

3) Andy stands for a new clean generation of cyclists. His cycling-experienced family would never allow him to take drugs and his older brother is taking care of him. His father is a former pro-cyclist and who should be a better adviser than a former professional rider. And when Andy says he didn’t take drugs you have to believe him because his eyes can’t lie.

4) His loyality. At this years TdF he put aside his own claims to help his older brother getting the yellow jersey and his teammate Carlos Sastre winning the tour. Andy knows that his time will come and that he can take the things easy.

5) The love for his brother. Andy names Fränk as his hero, model and idol. Fränk says that they are more than just brothers. They are also best friends and that they are riding together in one team makes it much, much easier. When they are at the same race they share a room and Andy says that it makes him feel comfortable during a course when his brother is by his side.

During his brothers hardest time he stands by Fränks side and accompanied him to Switzerland and Danmark. During the Tour de France he helped his brother to get the yellow jersey and stayed with him on the way to Alpe d’Huez even if his potential at this stage was much higher.

Maybe it it bot true but after Fränks crash during the Tour de Swiss I read that when Andy saw his brothers bike lie down on the street he couldn’t go on. Cancellara had to push him ownwards.

6) Fränk has nothing to do with the fact that they ride in the same team. In 2004 Bjarne Riis saw a young Luxemburgian at a race where also the Danish young national team participated. He was surprised to hear that his name is Schleck. Then he asked Fränk if he has a brother who is also a cyclist and he confirmed that he has a younger one who still goes to school. Later this year he became stagiaire for CSC.

7) Andy knows that cycling (how beautiful this sport is) is not all on this earth. He first wanted to finish school because there is also a life after this sport. Additionally he and his brother support young Luxemburgian riders on their way to the top.

8) When a journalist asked him after the last stage of TdF in Paris if he would celebrate with beer or champagne he answered “champagne is for girls”. This is so true ;) A real man drinks no champagne. Even if I also prefer beer, I would agree with him and you have to drink beer out of a bottle.

9) The fact that he is unexperienced makes him even more likeable. The stage to Hautacam must have been the hell for him but that he didn’t give up and fighted was so great. Imagine what all could have happend if he hadn’t that day. Maybe –with a little help from his brother and the other teammates- he could have finished on the podium.

10) The last one is his taste for fashion and furnishing. I saw some private photos of him and I have to see that I really like his clothes. He has a lot of shirts from Dolce & Gabbana and they just look nice. And I’m sure that yellow, pink and gold will suit him very well ;) I saw a picture of his room and I like the red walls and the piece of furniture ;)

My original plan was to find ten reason why you have to love Andy and I’m sure that there are much more reasons. I can’t write them all down but there is an 11^th reason I want to tell you and probably nobody knows it.

I love to hear interviews of Andy in German. Of course he can speak German because it is one of the official languages in Luxembourg. And the reason why I love to hear him is that he as such an indescribable cute French-sounding accent which makes me smile everytime.

Btw I hate German TV stations. Because Schumacher is tested positive they are thinking about not to show the Tour (and every other race) next year. They say the sport didn't take his chance! Sounds like it would be better if there aren't any positive tests so maybe they should stop testing cyclists, then German TV would show the races.

Luckily there is Eurosport... And the commentators there are much funnier ;)

Once upon a time...

2008-10-08T18:31:00.007+02:00

Some days ago I found this vid and I thought that I have to share it. Maybe you already know it but anyway... It's about ten years old and I really think that Andy would laugh when he hears his comment. I mean he not only rides 180km races, he is one of the best riders on this earth.

Am I the only one who thinks that at that time Fränk looks a bit like Andy today?! I really don't know why but it came to my mind when I watched the video for the first time.

Last but not least a short update about Fränks situation.
Like Rina already told us, Andy won't race this year anymore because he has no motivation. I can truly understand him. I think this team is not easy for him and the whole Schleckfamily.
Some Luxemburgian media speculated what the ALAD would do next. The main speculations were that they order a reconcilation of his DNA and the blood in Madrid. Another one is that they want to examine his account for more (or no) money transfers to Fuentes.
Maybe I already said it a hundred times but it's obviously that Fränk didn't do anything wrong. Sure, he transfered money to Fuentes but if he would have given his blood to Fuentes he won't give his DNA for a test on his accord. Same thing for the bank account... Fränk said that I wouldn't be a problem if they want to examine his account.
It really seems like nic80 said. There wasn't anything exciting like that in Luxembourg and the members of ALAD want to do something for the money they earn ;) But I do some research and found that there is a second doping case in little (but wonderful; truly, I was there - about five years ago and for one day ;) ) Luxembourg. 16-years-old swimmer Raphaël Stacchiotti. He was the Luxemburgian flag bearer in Beijing.

Yeah Maggie, in some days we all will know why Andy & Fränk are "fighting" in the picture...

Black sheeps

2008-10-08T14:06:00.006+02:00

Why this world is so damn unfair? When I read some articles about doping in cycling or statements of Thomas Bach it sounds like this sport is full of cheaters. But there are only black sheeps. The UCI does a lot to convict them.

And other sports... The IAAF praise the athletics as a clean sport because there are no (or just less) positive tests. But they didn't use the newest ones like this CERA-test at TdF. And I remember that right before the Olympic Games in Beijing there were about five or more Russian walkers tested positive. But nobody says "No more athletics at the Olympic Games"
And what can the other cyclists can do against stupid idiots like Schumacher or Piepoli?! It seems like there is no chance for young cyclists such as Andy to do this sport without the accusation that they have taken drugs.

By the way... Is there a Swiss version of Dancing On Ice? I would know a good contestant.

The waiting ends and still continues

2008-10-07T22:07:00.001+02:00

Some minutes ago the Luxemburgish newspaper wort published the decision of the ALAD. But the problem is: there is no decision. They will look for new evidences and it is not sure yet when they will make a decision. The just said that they will work fast and strict. Whatever that means...

For all who know french
"Suite à l’audition de Fränk Schleck en date du 1er octobre 2008, le conseil d’administration de l’ALAD s’est livré à une analyse approfondie de la déposition. Il a été retenu de procéder à des compléments d’instruction à différents niveaux.
L’ALAD entend agir de manière conséquente et avec la célérité indiquée. Dès l’obtention des résultats de l’enquête supplémentaire, l’ALAD se réunira à nouveau pour en délibérer."
Because my french is so not very well I won't translate it today but (if you want) tomorrow.

What's that?!

2008-10-07T21:33:00.000+02:00

While waiting for some news I looked at some more photos of the Curacao Race and found that one. Then I saw something in the left corner and I asked myself what is that?

I looked closer and realized that it is a scar. And it looks like it must have hurt a lot! Does someone know why Andy has this scar? Was it an accident with the bike? I asked google but I got no answer... Maybe someone can help me? =)

And because I feel so bored I will post some more photos from this beautiful island and of course the beautiful cyclists ;) Additionally to the 2006 pics I found some from last year and the homepage of the race which says that Fränk and Andy will participate at the end of this month. Hopefully...

Underwater world

I'm going crazy

2008-10-07T19:58:00.000+02:00

I'm going totally crazy and I'm checking the news every five minutes because I want to know what the ALAD decided. It's been over two hours since the beginning of the meeting and they should come to a final conclusion...

I read in a newspaper that there are three possibilities for the ALAD
1. They decide that he is guilty and punish him.
2. They decide that there are not enough evidences and believe him.
3. They decide that they can't make a decision because there are not enough evidences but they also don't believe Fränk. That would mean that the waiting would go on.
But I can't wait anymore! I want to know what their decision is hopefully tonight. If I would have to wait until tomorrow I would go crazy. At the moment my feelings go up and down like a rollercoaster because I don't know if it's good or bad that it takes such a long time. Maybe I should look for some sedative ;)
Let's hope for the second possibilty and that as fast as possible.

Love to see them smile

2008-10-07T16:36:00.000+02:00

Today was an awfully boring day...

So I decided to create my own blog for the two greatest cyclist of the world the Luxemburgians Fränk & Andy Schleck (and I don't care what the media says about them aspecially Fränk)!
Maybe I will also write something about my other favs, we will see ;-)
And I don't want to talk about what happend during the last days (maybe tomorrow or in some days) because it is so sad :-(
I'm just hoping that everything will become fine again and that they can smile again :-)
Because I love to see them smile.

Back to the beginning... As you already know I felt bored and I looked for some new pics of my two great favorites and I found some really great ones. I really, really love them. They are taken at Amstel Curacao Race 2006 (c) Tim De Waele

My absolutely favorite pic of Andy. This smile...

Seems like Fränk loves speed...

Andy too... But he tries it with dolphinpower ;)