Contador secures second Giro as Millar wins time trial

Spain’s Alberto Contador, of the Saxo Bank team, secured his second Giro d’Italia title yesterday, after Scot David Millar, of Garmin, won the final stage time trial in Milan.

Contador, who came into the race in the shadow of a doping controversy regarding last year’s Tour de France, has dominated the event, spending the bulk of the 94th edition in the leader’s pink jersey.

Although Millar took the plaudits with his swashbuckling showing in the 26km final stage, the headlines will belong to Contador, who will now seek to add a fourth Tour de France to his glittering record.

Victory in the most prestigious of the three Grand Tours would make Contador the first man to achieve a Giro-Tour double since late Italian racer Marco Pantani in 1998.

With three Grand Tour successes the 28-year-old has made it a round half dozen successes in the sport’s showpiece stage races.

He has to add a further five to equal the record of legendary Belgian Eddy Merckx, however, but is only one behind Lance Armstrong.

For now he can bask in the moment, even though he could yet have his aura punctured if the CAS finds against him in his ongoing doping saga.

The case concerning Contador was due to be heard in Lausanne from June 6-8.

But CAS announced last Thursday that it had postponed the hearing indefinitely to allow further preparation and to help guarantee the participation in person of witnesses and experts.

Home racer Michele Scarponi took second place in the overall standings, more than 5min behind Contador after a gruelling 3,265km since the race started in Turin on May 7. Another Italian, Vincenzo Nibali, was third overall.

Millar, whose participation for Malta at the Liechtenstein GSSE this week is still in doubt, at least had the consolation of signing off with a win as he edged out Dane Alex Rasmussen, of HTC, by seven seconds to win in 30min 13sec.

The Scot, who was born in Malta, spent a brief moment in pink himself but the day was darkened by tragedy after Belgian Wouter Weylandt died following a crash on stage three.