2009 Georgia Tech Yellow Jackets football team, Game summaries, Florida State
It gave up 550 yards of total offense, 408 coming in the first half. Christian Ponder had a career day, throwing for five touchdowns. FSU punted once all game, Tech never punted. Paul Johnson and his spread option offense posted its third 400 plus yard rushing performance at Georgia Tech. The other two came in Johnson's first season at Tech, against Miami (FL) in Atlanta and Georgia in Athens.


2009 Georgia Tech Yellow Jackets football team, Game summaries, Virginia Tech
Josh Nesbitt scored three touchdowns and Georgia Tech ran for 306 yards to upset #4 Virginia Tech on a cold, memorable night in Atlanta. For the second straight week, head coach Paul Johnson led the #19 Yellow Jacket squad to a victory, earning a win that ended a 17-game losing skid to top five opponents played at Bobby Dodd Stadium since 1962. Jason Peters batted down and intercepted Tyrod Taylor in the 1st quarter.


2009 Georgia Tech Yellow Jackets football team, Game summaries, Virginia Tech
Josh Nesbitt ran in a couple scores from inside the five, and Sophomore Marcus Wright scored from 13 yards out in the third quarter to increase the Tech lead to 11. The Georgia Tech Defense played effectively, limiting an elusive Tyrod Taylor and the Virginia Tech offense to only 342 yards of total offense. Taylor scored on a 3rd quarter scamper. However, on 3rd and 7 with 3:02 remaining in the final quarter, Josh Nesbitt had a 33-yard game icing stiff arm and score to increase the Tech lead to 28–16.


2009 Georgia Tech Yellow Jackets football team, Game summaries, Virginia Tech
Following the announcement of a 28–23 final tally, Grant Field was swarmed. Steven Sylvester and Derrick Morgan each recorded a sack. Jonathan Dwyer and Anthony Allen combined for 150 yards on the ground to set up Josh Nesbitt and the Georgia Tech offense. The win over Frank Beamer's #4 Hokies improved Paul Johnson's record to 10–1 at home.


2009 Georgia Tech Yellow Jackets football team, Game summaries, Virginia Tech
"...with the caliber of players they have – Nesbitt is unbelievable, they've got Dwyer – it's just exhausting." - Torrian Gray


2009 Georgia Tech Yellow Jackets football team, Game summaries, Virginia
Georgia Tech defeated Virginia in Charlottesville, Virginia for the first time since 1990 by a score of 34–9. Tech had two 100 yard rushers in the game. Jonathan Dwyer led the team with 125 yards while Anthony Allen followed with 111 yards and two touchdowns. Josh Nesbitt ran in two touchdowns from inside the five. Redshirt Freshman Malcolm Munroe forced a fumble by Virginia punt returner Chase Minnifield. The Tech offense accumulated 447 yards of total offense. The Tech Defense held Virginia to 198 yards. ...


2009 Georgia Tech Yellow Jackets football team, Game summaries, Virginia
Tech's time of possession today was the highest in at least 20 years; the next closest in the last 20 years was 42:10 vs. Wake Forest on September 14, 1996 and 42:06 vs. North Carolina earlier this season... Tech had two 100-yard rushers in a game for the second time this season... Tech had over 400 yards total offense for the sixth time this season... Tech rushed for more than 300 yards for the sixth time this season... Georgia Tech has outscored opponents 79–31 in the first quarter this season...


2009 Georgia Tech Yellow Jackets football team, Game summaries, Virginia
When Tech's fake punt in the first quarter failed, it ended a streak of six consecutive fourth-down conversions; it was the Jackets' first failed fourth-down attempt since September 17 (vs. Clemson)... Georgia Tech attempted its first field goal since September 26 (vs. North Carolina)... 139 consecutive games without returning a kickoff for a touchdown... 27 consecutive starts by senior guard Cord Howard... back-up DT Jason Peters (r-So.) did not travel to Virginia (sick)


2009 Georgia Tech Yellow Jackets football team, Game summaries, Vanderbilt
Paul Johnson and his #11 ranked Georgia Tech Yellow Jackets will travel to Nashville, Tenn. to compete against Vanderbilt University on Halloween night, 2009. Tech leads the series with the Commodores 18–15–3 in 36 contests. Tech comes in averaging nearly 295 yards on the ground. Tech holds a #11 ranking in the AP, Coaches', and BCS polls, its highest mark since 1998. A win over Bobby Johnson and the Commodores could mean Tech's highest ranking since 2001.


2009 Georgia Tech Yellow Jackets football team, Game summaries, Vanderbilt
Jonathan Dwyer rushed for a career-high 186 yards and three touchdowns while Josh Nesbitt added 2 touchdowns on the ground and 2 in the air as Georgia Tech routed Vanderbilt 56–31 in Nashville, Tenn. Vanderbilt led 31–28 with twelve minutes left in the 3rd quarter, but a series of turnovers allowed Georgia Tech's high powered offense to score four more touchdowns. Josh Nesbitt threw an 87-yard touchdown to sophomore Embry Peeples in the 4th quarter to increase the Tech lead to 18 at 49–31. The win marked Tech's fourth victory on the road, its most since 2000. It also elevated the Jackets to a #10 BCS ranking, its highest ranking in November since 1990. Paul Johnson posted his fifth 400 plus yard rushing attack at Georgia Tech, as the Yellow Jackets ran up and down Nashville, Tenn. for 404 yards.


2009 Georgia Tech Yellow Jackets football team, Game summaries, Vanderbilt
"There is no way to figure it out." – Bobby Johnson


2009 Georgia Tech Yellow Jackets football team, Game summaries, Wake Forest
The Yellow Jackets, ranked in the Top 10 for the first time since 1999, hosted the Demon Deacons in Atlanta. The game got off to a quick start as Tech jumped out to a quick 10–0 lead helped by Preston Lyons first career TD. But the Deacons controlled the rest of the first half scoring 17 unanswered points. The Yellow Jackets kept committing penalties, contributing to all of Wake Forest's points.


2009 Georgia Tech Yellow Jackets football team, Game summaries, Wake Forest
The offense also had its share of mistakes, getting called three times for chop blocks as the officials seemed to pay close attention to the interior line after opponents complained of dirty blocking tactics. After trailing 17–10 at the half, Tech's Jonathan Dwyer broke off a 59-yard TD run on Georgia Tech's first offensive snap of the second half, tying the game at 17. Wake Forest managed only one first down on its four possessions after halftime, and Georgia Tech went ahead 24–17 when Josh Nesbitt scored on a 12-yard run with 8:19 left in regulation.


2009 Georgia Tech Yellow Jackets football team, Game summaries, Wake Forest
Wake Forest QB Riley Skinner drove the Deacons down late in the 4th quarter and threw an 11-yard touchdown pass to Devon Brown with 4:27 remaining. After Georgia Tech was stopped again on fourth down, Wake Forest appeared to be driving into range for a winning field-goal attempt. But Skinner was sacked by Derrick Morgan on third-and-7 from the Georgia Tech 35, and Wake Forest decided to punt it away and settle for OT.


2009 Georgia Tech Yellow Jackets football team, Game summaries, Wake Forest
In the first period of OT, the Yellow Jacket defense was able to hold Wake Forest to a field goal helped by a Derrick Morgan sack on Riley Skinner on a 3rd and seven. On the Jacket's OT possession, Georgia Tech drove to the 5 where it faced fourth-and-less-than-a-yard. The Yellow Jackets initially tried to draw Wake offsides, but was forced to burn a timeout when that didn't work. Deciding to go for the first instead of kicking a field goal, Josh Nesbitt got the first down on a QB sneak.


2009 Georgia Tech Yellow Jackets football team, Game summaries, Wake Forest
On the very next play, the Jackets were able to get into the endzone thanks to another Josh Nesbitt sneak and was able to seal the victory. The victory lifted Tech to a 9–1 record and dropped the Deacons to 4–6. The Yellow Jacket offense, also known as the Nesbone, rumbled up and down Grant Field for 412 yards, Coach Johnson's sixth 400 plus rushing yard performance in two seasons.


2009 Georgia Tech Yellow Jackets football team, Game summaries, Duke
Georgia Tech surged to the top of the ACC Coastal division behind the performance of All American Tailback Jonathan Dwyer, who carried the ball 14 times for 110 yards and two touchdowns. Josh Nesbitt connected with true Freshman Stephen Hill and veteran Junior Demaryius "BayBay" Thomas for a couple of scores en route to a 49–10 romp of Duke University at Wallace Wade Stadium in Durham, North Carolina The Yellow Jacket defense allowed 10 points early before shutting out the Blue Devil Offense the remainder of the game.


2009 Georgia Tech Yellow Jackets football team, Game summaries, Duke
Junior Defensive Tackle Ben Anderson received ACC Defensive Lineman of the Week honors after his dominating performance in the trenches recording 2 sacks, 3 tackles for loss and 5 tackles. The Yellow Jacket offense was the story of the game after falling behind 10–0 in the first quarter. The high powered triple option offense scored forty nine consecutive points to wrap up the Coastal Division for Paul Johnson and the Yellow Jackets.


2009 Georgia Tech Yellow Jackets football team, Game summaries, Georgia
Georgia Tech was outgained by the Bulldogs both rushing (349–209) and time of possession, which had been key components to the Yellow Jackets' success throughout the season. Georgia tailbacks Washaun Ealey and Caleb King both had breakout performances, running for 183 and 166 yards, respectively, both career highs. Georgia Tech had a chance to take the lead late in the game, but Demaryius Thomas dropped a pass on fourth down which would have resulted in a first down, securing Georgia's 30–24 victory. This game dropped Georgia Tech's record against Georgia coach Mark Richt to 1–8.


2009 Georgia Tech Yellow Jackets football team, Game summaries, ACC Championship Game
Georgia Tech defeated Clemson 39–34 to win the ACC conference championship game.


2009 Georgia Tech Yellow Jackets football team, Game summaries, ACC Championship Game
Georgia Tech was forced to vacate this game and their ACC championship on July 14, 2011 due to NCAA sanctions.


2009 Georgian demonstrations
In 2009, a mass rally by a coalition of opposition parties in took place in Georgia against the government of President Mikheil Saakashvili. Thousands of people demonstrated, mainly in the capital, Tbilisi, starting on 9 April 2009, demanding Saakashvili's resignation. On the first day of demonstrations, up to 40,000 people gathered in Tbilisi. Opposition activists had expected some 100,000 – 150,000 participants. Protests continued for over three months, although fewer people participated as time passed than during the first days. On 26 May 2009, the Georgian Independence Day, 60,000 protesters took part. Although peaceful at first, there were incidents of fighting between the Georgian police and protesters. The daily rallies gradually dwindled and ended, without achieving any tangible results, on 24 July –107 days after they kicked off.


2009 Georgian demonstrations, Opposition plans
On 27 March 2009, 13 opposition parties agreed to hold a joint rally to demand Saakashvili's resignation in an announcement named Manifesto of Unity.


2009 Georgian demonstrations, Opposition plans
It was signed by Alliance for Freedom (uniting Party of Freedom; Party of Women for Justice and Equality; Traditionalists and Party of Future); Conservative Party (leaders – Kakha Kukava and Zviad Dzidziguri); Democratic Movement–United Georgia (led by Nino Burjanadze); Georgia's Way (led by Salome Zourabichvili); Industrialists Party (led by Zurab Tkemaladze and beer magnate Gogi Topadze); Movement for United Georgia (founded by ex-defense minister Irakli Okruashvili); Party of People (led by Koba Davitashvili); and the Alliance for Georgia, uniting New Rights, Republican Party and a political team of Irakli Alasania, who had earlier showed reservations about joining the manifestations. Levan Gachechiladze, a former opposition presidential candidate, has joined the document as an individual politician.


2009 Georgian demonstrations, Opposition plans
According to Eka Beselia, a spokeswoman for the For a United Georgia party, the protest is intended to change power in a constitutional way. "The action will be halted only when the power of Saakashvili comes to an end. We'll force him by a peaceful but nation-wide protest to resign," Beselia said on 13 March. Salome Zourabichvili stressed on 8 April, that the demonstrators will remain on the streets until the president steps down.


2009 Georgian demonstrations, Opposition plans
The date of 9 April 2008, was chosen because it will be the 20-year anniversary of the day when 20 people died as Soviet Red Army troops dispersed a pro-independence rally in Tbilisi.


2009 Georgian demonstrations, Opposition plans
Opposition parties have accused Saakashvili of concentrating power to himself, using riot police to crush opposition rallies in 2007 and for the disaster of the 2008 South Ossetia war. "I don't think that it should be a surprise that after we lost 20% of Georgian territory and have no democracy in the country, we are asking for the resignation of the president," opposition leader Nino Burjanadze said.


2009 Georgian demonstrations, Preparations
On 8 April, the Tbilisi-based pro-opposition Maestro TV aired a brief video, informing the public that the opposition and their supporters will start gathering at three various venues in the capital city – in Avlabari Square, Tbilisi State University and at the public broadcaster's office subsequently to join outside the Parliament in Rustaveli Avenue.


2009 Georgian demonstrations, Preparations
Foreign diplomats have called for a dialogue between the government and opposition, and the Georgian Orthodox Church has urged the opposition, the government and the Georgian army not to resort to force.


2009 Georgian demonstrations, Preparations
On 8 April 2009, Georgian police set up a Monitoring Center to oversee the rallies and invited foreign diplomats to keep a close eye on police and protesters' actions. The office of Georgian public defender Sozar Subari and a group of local non-governmental organizations will also monitor the events. Irakli Alasania, leader of the Alliance for Georgia, said that the opposition was willing to cooperate with the law enforcement agencies to provide security during the rallies.


2009 Georgian demonstrations, Preparations
President Saakashvili has stated there was "no alternative to dialogue" and the government was ready to talk even "with the smallest and the most radical group". The Georgian Interior Minister Vano Merabishvili said that the authorities would show "maximum tolerance" towards the protesters and police would retaliate in case of the opposition attempts at storming the government buildings. Fire crews and hundreds of police in full riot gear were positioned on the courtyard of the parliament in central Tbilisi in early 9 April.


2009 Georgian demonstrations, First day of demonstrations
On the morning of 9 April, the Democratic Movement–United Georgia party claimed that 60 of its members had been arrested in overnight raids. Up to 40,000 people gathered in Tbilisi on 9 April. The protesters gave Saakashvili time until 11:00 GMT on Friday, 10 April to stand day and agree to the demands. A few hundred protesters stayed the night outside the parliament. Opposition leaders asked people to meet again at afternoon next day. Eka Beselia said he did not expect Saakashvili to adhere to the deadline, and that concrete action was planned for Friday.


2009 Georgian demonstrations, Second day of demonstrations
On 10 April, about 20,000 people took part in the rally in Tbilisi. The opposition announced the start of a national disobedience campaign. Major roads in Tbilisi were blocked off for six hours, causing the traffic in the city to paralyze. The opposition said that the same action will be repeated every day.


2009 Georgian demonstrations, Continued protests
The Georgian opposition said on 12 April 2009 it would continue its peaceful protest demanding the resignation of President Mikheil Saakashvili, despite its previous decision to hold a break for a religious holiday.


2009 Georgian demonstrations, Continued protests
On 13 April 2009 the protesters set up camp outside President Saakashvili's office. and the opposition leaders stated they were ready to hold talks with the president but that an election was the only way out of the deadlock.


2009 Georgian demonstrations, Continued protests
Opposition leaders have pledged to keep the protests peaceful but on 6 May 2009 protesters and police clashed near a police base. The Interior Ministry said 22 protesters and six policemen were injured. The opposition said several of its leaders were also treated in hospital. Protesters appeared to have converged on the police base to demand the release of three opposition activists detained over the beating of a journalist on 5 May 2009.


2009 Georgian demonstrations, Continued protests
On 26 May 2009, the Georgian independence day, 60,000 protesters gathered to demand Saakashvili's resignation. The opposition has also forced the government to cancel the annual military parade. Opposition leaders still insisted that protests will continue until Saakashvili resigns. Saakashvili, on his part, reiterated his refusal once again.


2009 Georgian demonstrations, Continued protests
On 28 May 2009, several protesters and five policemen were injured in a clash close to the protest venue outside the Parliament. According to the Georgian government, least one police officer was stabbed and others were beaten. However, the opposition denied the report, saying some 20 plainclothes police attacked its supporters with batons. Television pictures aired by Maestro TV showed dozens of men in civilian clothing clashing with each other on a small street near the Parliament. Opposition leader Kakha Kukava said the clash was "a provocation by a group of policemen who started beating people." Television pictures showed several wounded protesters, one with blood streaming from his head.


2009 Georgian demonstrations, Continued protests
Mid June 2009 Georgian police clashed violently with opposition protesters in Tbilisi.


2009 Georgian demonstrations, International response
At a meeting of the 28 NATO states and their Georgian counterpart in Brussels on 5 May 2009 NATO called for dialogue between Georgia's government and opposition, for reforms to ensure freedom of media and assembly, and for the government to avoid violence against protests.


2009 Georgian demonstrations, Effects on the Georgian economy
On 7 April 2009, Fitch Ratings had warned that Georgia's long-term credit could be downgraded because of the political instability ahead of the planned protests. 9 April 2009 the Prime Minister of Georgia Nika Gilauri warned that political standoff and protest rallies in the country would hit the Georgian economy.


2009 Georgian mutiny
The 2009 Georgian mutiny was a mutiny by a Georgian Army tank battalion based in Mukhrovani, Georgia, 30 kilometres (19 mi) east of the capital Tbilisi on 5 May 2009. It is not yet known how many soldiers took part. Later that day, the Georgian Ministry of Interior announced that the mutineers had surrendered. Some of its leaders, including the battalion's commander, were arrested; others managed to escape. The mutiny broke out after the government announced that it had uncovered what it claimed was a Russian-backed plot to destabilize Georgia and assassinate President Mikheil Saakashvili. Later, Georgian authorities retracted their accusations of an assassination plot and allegations of Russian support.


2009 Georgian mutiny, Background
Georgia has been affected by unrest since the 2008 South Ossetia war.


2009 Georgian mutiny, Background
Since April 2009, protests have called for the resignation of the Georgian president Mikheil Saakashvili. In March, nine members of the political party Democratic Movement – United Georgia were arrested after allegedly purchasing automatic weapons ahead of more anti-government demonstrations, a claim described by its leader as "absurd". Several senior government figures recently defected to the opposition, claiming Saakashvili started an unwinnable war that left the breakaway regions of South Ossetia and Abkhazia further in Russian control. In May 2009, Russia decided to take control of South Ossetia's border with Georgia.


2009 Georgian mutiny, Background
The mutiny took place a day before the planned NATO exercises in Georgia. NATO drills were condemned by Russia, which referred to them as an "attempt to cheer up the Saakashvili regime".


2009 Georgian mutiny, The mutiny
The mutiny erupted on the morning of 5 May, after a Georgian Army tank battalion stationed in Mukhrovani, 30 kilometres (19 mi) from the Georgian capital of Tbilisi, began to disobey orders.


2009 Georgian mutiny, The mutiny
According to the mutineers statement, circulated by local media, they were not planning any military action, and urging for dialogue between the government and the opposition during ongoing political crisis. Colonel Mamuka Gorgishvili, commander of the Mukhrovani Tank Battalion, stated: "Watching the country being torn apart by the current standoff is unbearable. There is a possibility of this standoff turning violent". Police then barred reporters from approaching the base.


2009 Georgian mutiny, The mutiny
According to the Minister of Defense, Vasil Sikharulidze, the plotters' minimum goal was to undermine the NATO military exercises beginning in May 2009. Sikharulidze also mentioned to the Rustavi 2 television that the rebellion was also "an attempt of a military coup." In response to the mutiny, the Georgian Army deployed troops, military police, helicopters, and 30 tanks and armored vehicles, alongside Georgian Police units, some equipped with armored vehicles, to the base. In a televised address, the President of Georgia said the mutineers had been given a deadline to surrender.


2009 Georgian mutiny, The mutiny
Although not specifying when the deadline would expire, he did say that an order "to act appropriately" has been given out to the law enforcement agencies if the negotiations would fail. President Saakashvili also suggested that the mutiny was part of a wider Russian-orchestrated plan to disrupt the upcoming NATO military exercises "Cooperative Longbow - Cooperative Lancer 09" in Georgia, scheduled to start on 6 May and Georgia’s joining with EU's Eastern Partnership. The soldiers at Mukhrovani quickly surrendered after Saakashvili entered the base accompanied by heavily armed bodyguards to negotiate with the mutineers.


2009 Georgian mutiny, The mutiny
21 of the mutiny plotters were put to trial. The trial concluded on 11 January 2010. Colonel Koba Otanadze was given 29 years in prison, while Rangers' Battalion Commander Levan Amiridze was given 28 years, and Tank Battalion Commander Shota Gorgiashvili was given 19 years. All three had been charged with attempting to overthrow the government. National Guard Commander Koba Kobaladze was sentenced to eight months and six days imprisonment for the illegal purchase and possession of weapons. The remaining defendants were tried for various crimes including disobedience and illegal weapons possession, and given sentences ranging from three to fifteen years of imprisonment.


2009 Georgian mutiny, The mutiny, Military coup attempt suspicion
The Georgian Interior Ministry has expressed concerns about a large scale military mutiny that was to be planned in the Georgian Army by some former military officials, who were in coordination with Russia. Shota Utiashvili, head of the information and analytical department of the Georgian Interior Ministry, said that the mutiny seems to be coordinated with Russia and aimed at minimum thwarting NATO military exercises and maximum organizing full-scale military mutiny in the country. Later, Georgian authorities retracted accusations of Russian support.


2009 Georgian mutiny, Aftermath
On May 5, 2009, the Interior Ministry of Georgia released video footage, recorded apparently with a body-worn covert camera and showing a man, purportedly the retired major Gia Gvaladze, talking to several persons whose faces were blurred in tape and naming several former senior military and security officials, including David Tevzadze, Jemal Gakhokidze, Koba Kobaladze, and Gia Karkarashvili as supporters of the planned mutiny. Kobaladze, Gvaladze, and the Mukhrovani battalion commander Lieutenant Colonel Mamuka Gorgiashvili, as well as dozens of military personnel and civilians were arrested by the police "in connection with the Mukhrovani incident". Kharkharashvili and Tevzadze have rejected any links with the plot. Two other former army officers, Koba Otanadze and Zaza Mushkudiani, are wanted.


2009 Georgian mutiny, Aftermath
Later that day Gia Karkarashvili released video footage showing him talking with Koba Melikidze who allegedly was trying to persuade him to take part in the mutiny. The Georgian Ministry of Internal Affairs expressed its gratitude to Karkarashvili for information provided by him as it helped to arrest Melikidze and prevent an assassination attempt on Vano Merabishvili.


2009 Georgian mutiny, Aftermath
On May, 6, Georgian authorities stepped back from accusations of an assassination plot against Mikheil Saakashvili and allegations of Russian support of the mutiny. At this stage, Georgian authorities claimed the army mutiny was mainly aimed at disrupting NATO exercises starting on May 6, 2009. Saakashvili's official site states the mutiny was inspired by a group of disgruntled Georgian army officers.


2009 Georgian mutiny, Aftermath
The principal suspects – Gia Krialashvili, Koba Otanadze, and Levan Amiridze – remained at large after the Mukhrovani incident. On May 20, 2009, Krialashvili was killed, and Otanadze and Amiridze were wounded and delivered to hospital in a shootout with police at the outskirts of Tbilisi.


2009 German Athletics Championships
The 2009 German Athletics Championships were held at the Donaustadion in Ulm on 4–5 July 2009.


2009 German Figure Skating Championships
The 2009 German Figure Skating Championships (German: Deutsche Meisterschaften im Eiskunstlaufen) took place on December 18–21, 2008 at the Eissportzentrum Oberstdorf in Oberstdorf. Skaters competed in the disciplines of men's singles, ladies' singles, pair skating, ice dancing, and synchronized skating on the senior, junior, and novice levels.


2009 German Formula Three Championship
The 2009 ATS F3 Cup was the seventh edition of the German F3 Cup. It commenced on 12 April and ended on 18 October. Belgian driver Laurens Vanthoor (Van Amersfoort Racing) won the title with two rounds to spare.


2009 German Formula Three Championship, Calendar
Five rounds were part of the ADAC Master Weekend with rounds supporting 24 Hours Nürburgring in May, FIA GT Oschersleben 2 Hours in June, Rizla Race Day and 1000 km Nürburgring in August. With the exception of round at TT Circuit Assen, all rounds took place on German soil.


2009 German Grand Prix
The 2009 German Grand Prix (officially the Formula 1 Grosser Preis Santander von Deutschland 2009)  was the ninth race of the 2009 Formula One season. It was held on 12 July 2009 at the Nürburgring in Nürburg, Germany; the earliest German Grand Prix on the calendar (a feat since beat by the 2013 race), since 1926.


2009 German Grand Prix
Australian Mark Webber took both his first pole position and his first Grand Prix win, with Sebastian Vettel coming in second, giving Red Bull their third 1-2 of 2009. Championship leader Jenson Button could only manage fifth. This was the last race for Toro Rosso driver Sébastien Bourdais who was dropped in favour of test driver Jaime Alguersuari for the Hungarian Grand Prix.


2009 German Grand Prix, Report, Background
In the lead-up to the race, despite 6th place at the British Grand Prix, Jenson Button maintained a 23-point lead over Brawn GP teammate Rubens Barrichello in the Drivers' Championship. Barrichello was 2 points further in front of Red Bull Racing's Sebastian Vettel, winner of the British Grand Prix. Brawn GP had a sizeable lead of 30.5 points in the Constructors' Championship with Red Bull Racing in second place. Toyota were 30 points behind the Austrian Red Bull team, with only Force India yet to score a point. The three former World Champions in the F1 field, Fernando Alonso, Kimi Räikkönen and Lewis Hamilton were 9th, 10th and 11th in the Championship, with 11, 10 and 9 points respectively.


2009 German Grand Prix, Report, Background
2008 champion Lewis Hamilton won the 2008 German Grand Prix for McLaren-Mercedes, at Hockenheim. Former German Grand Prix winners in the field for 2009 include Fernando Alonso of Renault and Rubens Barrichello of Brawn GP. Barrichello and Alonso have also been successful at the Nürburgring when the circuit hosted the European Grand Prix.


2009 German Grand Prix, Report, Background
The Nürburgring has the unique honour of hosting three different Formula One Grands Prix (see List of races at the Nürburgring): the German Grand Prix on the old track in the 1950s, 60s and 70s as well as on the GP track in 1985 and on the revised circuit in 2009; the European Grand Prix in 1984 and from 1995 to 2007, with the exception of 1997 and 1998, when it was the Luxembourg Grand Prix. Rubens Barrichello, Giancarlo Fisichella and Jarno Trulli have raced all three at the circuit.


2009 German Grand Prix, Report, Practice and Qualifying
Qualifying saw drivers switch strategies to using wet weather tyres due to the rain and wet track. The track was dry as the drivers headed out for the first session. This yielded no surprises as the two Toro Rossos of Sébastien Buemi and Sébastien Bourdais were eliminated along with Giancarlo Fisichella's Force India, and the consistently underperforming Toyota of Timo Glock and BMW Sauber of Robert Kubica. Glock was later given a three place grid drop for blocking Renault's Fernando Alonso, but since he qualified 19th anyway this sent him to the back of the grid.


2009 German Grand Prix, Report, Practice and Qualifying
In the second session, the rain began to fall. This gave us some more interesting results, with both Williams cars going out. Both Nico Rosberg and Kazuki Nakajima said that they would have done better had it not been for the rain. They were joined in elimination by Alonso, Jarno Trulli's Toyota and Nick Heidfeld, who did well to qualify 11th in the other BMW Sauber. The German claimed he could have done even better, but the rain upset his strategy as well.


2009 German Grand Prix, Report, Practice and Qualifying
Nelson Piquet Jr in the other Renault made the final session for the first time in 2009, but only managed 10th as the rain eased off again in the last ten minutes. The Ferraris of Felipe Massa and Kimi Räikkönen were disappointing, only managing 8th and 9th respectively. Räikkönen's race engineer Chris Dyer said that they didn't have any soft tyres left for the last qualifying lap, which cost them very dear. Adrian Sutil did excellently in the Force India to qualify not only in the top 10 for the first time, but ahead of the Ferraris in 7th. The McLarens of Lewis Hamilton and Heikki Kovalainen came 5th and 6th respectively, and both thanked the upgrades to the car for their improved performances.


2009 German Grand Prix, Report, Practice and Qualifying
Then came the fight for pole, which was solely between the four championship contenders - the Brawns of Jenson Button and Rubens Barrichello and the Red Bulls of Sebastian Vettel and Mark Webber. Webber was the first to cross the line in 1:32.230. Then Vettel did well to do 1:32.480, but it was a surprise for him to be beaten by his teammate. This looked to be the order, but Barrichello and Button both crossed the line in the dying seconds to split the Red Bulls, so Webber claimed the first pole position of his career. He described it as a "special day".


2009 German Grand Prix, Report, Race
Mark Webber and Rubens Barrichello were side by side coming to the first corner where Webber clashed wheels with the Brazilian, for which he later received a drive-through penalty. The Brawn driver still managed to jump the Red Bull driver to take the lead. Lewis Hamilton also made a fast start in the McLaren and challenged for the lead, but he made slight contact with Webber at the first corner and received a puncture, ending his chance for points. He lost a lap in the pits, ultimately finishing 18th, still one lap down. Jarno Trulli also collided with Kazuki Nakajima's Williams at the first corner, and the Italian had to pit for a new nosecone for his Toyota, leaving him at the back of the field with Hamilton.


2009 German Grand Prix, Report, Race
Webber retook the lead on lap 15 as Barrichello pitted and soon after pitted but returned in the lead, which was a good job as he pitted again for the drive through penalty soon after that, which dropped him to eighth. This left Felipe Massa in the lead in the Ferrari followed by Barrichello and Kimi Räikkönen.


2009 German Grand Prix, Report, Race
Bourdais retired due to hydraulic problems on his lap 19, in what would ultimately be his final race at Scuderia Toro Rosso. Adrian Sutil in the Force India climbed into second before his first pitstop, but as he emerged from the pits he collided with Räikkönen's Ferrari. The German had to pit again for a new nosecone, and lost several places.


2009 German Grand Prix, Report, Race
Barrichello retook the lead after Massa's pitstop, but lost it again to an impressively recovering Webber in the second stops. Teammate Sebastian Vettel also briefly led before everything settled down with Webber in the lead.


2009 German Grand Prix, Report, Race
Räikkönen retired with a radiator problem on lap 35, briefly promoting Giancarlo Fisichella into the points, but the Italian failed to score his first points for Force India, as his pitstop allowed former teammate Fernando Alonso into the points in his Renault.


2009 German Grand Prix, Report, Race
Alonso made a late charge as Jenson Button and Rubens Barrichello struggled for grip, but he could not find a way past. Despite the drive through penalty for impeding Barrichello on the first lap, Webber came home to claim his maiden victory and become this first Australian winner in almost thirty years. He was followed home by Vettel, who was over nine seconds behind. Massa came home a distant but impressive third, his first and only podium of the year as he was injured during qualifying for the next race and didn't race again for the rest of the season.


2009 German Grand Prix, Report, Race
Jenson Button had managed to jump teammate Barrichello during the second stops and came home fifth with the Brazilian very close behind, and also closely followed by Alonso. The Spaniard had made a charge in the closing stages but was unable to find a way past the Brawns, despite setting the race's faster lap, who were struggling for grip. Heikki Kovalainen occupied the final points paying position in an ultimately disappointing race for McLaren.


2009 German Grand Prix, Report, Race
Webber said it was an "incredible day" for him, and his sentiments were echoed by Red Bull sporting director Christian Horner, who described his team's 1-2 finish as a "brilliant team performance". Webber's win was the first for an Australian driver since 1980 World Champion Alan Jones won the 1981 Caesars Palace Grand Prix.


2009 German Skeleton Championship
The 43rd German Skeleton Championship in 2009 was organized on 15 November 2008 in Winterberg.


2009 German Supercup
The 2009 German Supercup, known as the Volkswagen SuperCup for sponsorship reasons, was an unofficial edition of the German Supercup, a football match contested by the winners of the previous season's Bundesliga and DFB-Pokal competitions.


2009 German Supercup
The match was played at the Volkswagen Arena in Wolfsburg, and was contested by 2008–09 Bundesliga winners VfL Wolfsburg, and 2008–09 DFB-Pokal winners Werder Bremen. Bremen won the match 2–1 to claim the unofficial title.


2009 German federal election
Federal elections took place on 27 September 2009 to elect the members of the 17th Bundestag (parliament) of Germany. Preliminary results showed that the Christian Democratic Union (CDU), its Bavarian sister party, the Christian Social Union (CSU), and the Free Democratic Party (FDP) won the election, and the three parties announced their intention to form a new centre-right government with Angela Merkel as Chancellor. Their main opponent, Frank-Walter Steinmeier's Social Democratic Party (SPD), conceded defeat. The Christian Democrats previously governed in coalition with the FDP in most of the 1949–1966 governments of Konrad Adenauer and Ludwig Erhard and the 1982–1998 governments of Helmut Kohl.


2009 German federal election, Campaign
Since the 2005 election, Chancellor Angela Merkel (CDU) had governed in a grand coalition with the SPD. However, it was her stated goal to win a majority for CDU/CSU and FDP (the CDU/CSU's traditional coalition partner) in 2009.


2009 German federal election, Campaign
Foreign minister and Vice Chancellor Frank-Walter Steinmeier (SPD) was formally nominated as his party's chancellor-candidate at a convention on 18 October 2008. He aimed to form a government in which the SPD was the strongest party, but which also excluded the left-socialist party The Left.


2009 German federal election, Campaign
The election campaign was considered exceptionally boring, which may be attributable to a perceived lack of charisma on the part of the leaders of the CDU and SPD. Another reason pointed to for the sedate campaign is that the CDU and SPD both defended the record of their grand coalition, as well as facing the possibility of having to continue the grand coalition in a friendly manner. Merkel was content with the low-key campaign style, which was largely seen as benefiting her party because of her high approval ratings.


2009 German federal election, Campaign
One of the lighter moments in the campaign came when CDU candidate Vera Lengsfeld released a campaign poster featuring herself and Merkel in a way that emphasised their cleavage. The poster bore the slogan "We have more to offer" (German: "Wir haben mehr zu bieten").


2009 German federal election, Campaign
The federal election was the final and most important election in what is called a Superwahljahr (super election year) in Germany. In addition to the election of a new Bundestag, also scheduled for 2009 were the election to the European Parliament on 7 June, seven local elections on the same day, five state elections and an additional local election in August and September and the election of the President of Germany by the Federal Assembly on 23 May.


2009 German federal election, Opinion polls
The CDU/CSU and FDP, with an average vote share of around 50% in pre-election polling during the weeks before the election, were clearly ahead of the other traditional coalition partners in Germany, SPD and the Greens.


2009 German federal election, Results
The Christian Democratic Union (CDU), the Christian Social Union of Bavaria (CSU), and the Free Democratic Party (FDP) were able to form a centre-right government, with Angela Merkel of the CDU continuing as the Chancellor and the leader of the FDP, Guido Westerwelle, becoming Foreign Minister and Vice-Chancellor.


2009 German federal election, Results
The CDU/CSU received a slightly lower proportion than in the previous election, with the Bavarian CSU receiving its lowest vote share in decades. Overall, the CDU/CSU had their worst vote share in 60 years. In contrast, their preferred coalition partner, the liberal FDP, gained nearly 5% points to give it 14.6% of the vote, the best result of its history.


2009 German federal election, Results
The big loser of the election was the SPD, which received its worst result ever in a federal election, receiving only 23% of the total party vote and suffering the biggest percentage loss of any party in German federal election history in 60 years. The two other parties represented in the Bundestag, the Left and the Greens, both made large gains and received the highest vote share of their respective histories. For the first time, The Left won constituency seats outside its traditional stronghold of East Berlin. As a result of the losses by the SPD and the gains by the FDP, the alliance of the CDU/CSU and FDP received an outright majority of seats, ensuring that Angela Merkel would continue as Chancellor.


2009 German federal election, Results
Had the CDU/CSU and FDP failed to win a majority of seats, possible alternative coalitions may have included a continuation of the grand coalition of CDU/CSU and SPD. A traffic light coalition (SPD–FDP–Greens) was specifically ruled out by FDP leader Guido Westerwelle.


2009 German motorcycle Grand Prix
The 2009 German motorcycle Grand Prix was the ninth round of the 2009 Grand Prix motorcycle racing season. It took place on the weekend of 17–19 July 2009 at the Sachsenring, located in Hohenstein-Ernstthal, Germany.


2009 German motorcycle Grand Prix
The MotoGP race was won by Valentino Rossi who finished ahead of teammate Jorge Lorenzo.


2009 German motorcycle Grand Prix, 250 cc classification
The 250cc race was originally scheduled to run for 29 laps, but due to heavy rain it was red-flagged and then restarted, with the new distance consisting of 19 laps only.


2009 German motorcycle Grand Prix, Championship standings after the race (MotoGP)
Below are the standings for the top five riders and constructors after round nine has concluded.


2009 German presidential election
An indirect presidential election (officially the 13th Federal Convention) was held in Germany on 23 May 2009. The President of Germany is elected by the Federal Convention, which is made up of the members of the Bundestag and an equal number of members elected by the state parliaments.


2009 German presidential election
The incumbent Horst Köhler (supported by CDU/CSU and FDP) stood for reelection and faced Gesine Schwan (supported by SPD and Alliance '90/The Greens).


2009 German presidential election
The Left (successor of the Party of Democratic Socialism) indicated they might be prepared to support Schwan if the SPD agreed to be open to cooperation with the Left on the federal level, but ultimately decided they would present their own candidate. The party nominated party activist and TV actor Peter Sodann on 14 October 2008; and it was left undecided whether the party would support Schwan if Sodann was eliminated after the first round of voting.


2009 German presidential election
Frank Rennicke was nominated as the joint candidate of the far-right parties NPD and DVU.


2009 German presidential election
Following the Hesse state elections in January 2009, which strengthened CDU and FDP, and the Free Voters' promise to support Köhler, his reelection was seen as likely; however, CDU/CSU, FDP and Free Voters only had a slim majority in the Federal Assembly (50.16%), which made the election very competitive. In the end, Köhler was reelected in the first round of voting by 613 votes, which was exactly the minimum number of votes necessary. His nearest rival's, Social Democrat Gesine Schwan, received 503 votes making a second round unnecessary. It has been seen by some as an important indicator for the federal elections in September.


2009 Gerry Weber Open
The 2009 Gerry Weber Open was a men's tennis tournament played on outdoor grass courts. It was the 17th edition of the event known that year as the Gerry Weber Open, and was part of the ATP World Tour 250 series of the 2009 ATP World Tour. It took place at the Gerry Weber Stadion in Halle, North Rhine-Westphalia, Germany, from 6 June through 14 June 2009.


2009 Gerry Weber Open
The singles draw featured Miami, Monte Carlo and Rome finalist, Dubai and Belgrade titlist Novak Djokovic and 2008 Davis Cup winner, Brisbane runner-up Fernando Verdasco. Also seeded were Johannesburg and Marseille winner Jo-Wilfried Tsonga, Munich champion Tomáš Berdych, Dmitry Tursunov, Jürgen Melzer and Rainer Schüttler. Association of Tennis Professionals (ATP) No. 2 Roger Federer, reigning US Open champion, winner of the Madrid Open and runner-up in the 2009 Australian Open, was initially in the draw as the top seed, but pulled out before playing a match, citing fatigue after winning the French Open the previous week.


2009 Gerry Weber Open
The doubles draw was led by 2009 French Open champions, US Open, Rotterdam, and 2008 Halle finalists Lukáš Dlouhý and Leander Paes. Also present were Acapulco winners František Čermák and Michal Mertiňák, Martin Damm and Robert Lindstedt, and Philipp Petzschner and Alexander Peya.


2009 Gerry Weber Open
The singles event was won by German Tommy Haas, who had earned a wildcard entry into the main draw, over Djokovic in three sets. The doubles were won by the unseeded German pair of Christopher Kas and Philipp Kohlschreiber in straight sets over the wildcard pair of German Andreas Beck and Swiss Marco Chiudinelli.


2009 Gerry Weber Open, Finals, Doubles
Christopher Kas /  Philipp Kohlschreiber defeated  Andreas Beck /  Marco Chiudinelli, 6–3, 6–4


2009 Gerry Weber Open – Doubles
Mikhail Youzhny and Mischa Zverev were the defending champions, but Youzhny chose not to participate, and only Zverev competed that year. Zverev partnered with Nicolas Kiefer, but they withdrew before their semifinal match against Andreas Beck and Marco Chiudinelli, due to an abdominal muscle tear for Kiefer.


2009 Gerry Weber Open – Doubles
Christopher Kas and Philipp Kohlschreiber won in the final 6–3, 6–4, against Andreas Beck and Marco Chiudinelli.


2009 Gerry Weber Open – Singles
Roger Federer was the defending champion, but withdrew due to fatigue, after winning the 2009 French Open.


2009 Gerry Weber Open – Singles
Tommy Haas won in the final 6–3, 6–7(4–7), 6–1, against Novak Djokovic.


2009 Geylang United FC season
The 2009 S.League season is Geylang United's 14th season in the top flight of Singapore football and 34th year in existence as a football club.


2009 Gianh River boat accident
The 2009 Gianh River boat accident occurred on 25 January 2009 on the Gianh River near Quảng Hải Village, in the Quảng Trạch District of Quảng Bình Province in Vietnam. A wooden boat sank 20 meters from the shore in strong currents during windy conditions. There were reportedly over 80 people on board, yet the boat was capable of carrying only 20. The accident caused 42 deaths and five people were missing. The Prime Minister of Vietnam sent his condolences to the victims' families. The government of Quảng Bình Province decided to cancel the fireworks supposed to take place at midnight the same day, on the eve of Tết, the New Year Day in Vietnam.


2009 Gianh River boat accident, Background
On January 25, 2009, approximately 40 people drowned when an overloaded ferry sank in the Gianh River early in the morning. According to witnesses, the small ferry was carrying about 80 people, though it was only meant to carry 20. Most of the victims were women and children, including 3 women that were pregnant. At least 36 passengers survived, a few by swimming to shore and others being rescued, but several are still missing.


2009 Gianh River boat accident, Background
According to Luong Ngoc Binh, provincial communist party chief, "The waves on the river were big, the wind was strong and it was cold, so it was very difficult for people to survive." The boat was crowded because people were trying to cross the river to get to the market. They were rushing to buy things for the Lunar New Year festivities.


2009 Gianh River boat accident, Background
The tragedy happened on the eve of the Tet Lunar New Year, the biggest annual festival in Vietnam. It was supposed to reunite families for celebration meals and to pray for good luck in the year ahead. According to Phan Lam Phuong, the governor of Quang Binh, “It’s a tragedy for the province, it should have been time to celebrate the Lunar New Year.”  The provincial government decided to cancel the Lunar New Year fireworks show. It was one of the worst ferry accidents in Quang Binh province.


2009 Gianh River boat accident, Background
According to Vietnamese News Agency, following the event, the Ministry of Transport suggested that the Chairman of Quang Binh region determine who was to blame for the tragedy. Some families of the victims were upset that the construction of a bridge was supposed to be finished two years before the accident. The bridge was to be constructed around one kilometer from the accident site and might have prevented the tragedy. Phan Thanh Ha, provincial police chief of Quang Binh said, “Authorities will give 10 million dong ($600) to the families of each victim.”


2009 Gianh River boat accident, Background
Gianh River is a river located in the Quang Binh region of Vietnam's North Central Coast. It is the biggest river in Quang Binh, so the residents call it the mother river. Gianh River's water can be clear and still, but its average steepness is 19.2%. So, throughout the flood season from September to November, the stream is brutal. According to the magazine Vietnam Heritage, “Quang Binh people say only those who have witnessed the crest of its floods know its power and ferocity.” The river may be dangerous when it comes to flooding, and in 2009, 40 lives were lost due to a boat capsizing.


2009 Gilgit-Baltistan Assembly election
2009 Gilgit-Baltistan Assembly Elections was an election held in the province of Gilgit-Baltistan for the first time to elect the first Assembly of Gilgit-Baltistan. Polling took place in 12 November 2009.


2009 Gilgit-Baltistan Assembly election, Background
The region of Gilgit-Baltistan was formerly known as Northern Areas. The Northern Areas were formed by joining Gilgit Agency and Baltistan regions in 1970 but the Northern Areas were ruled directly from Islamabad. In 2009 the Government of Pakistan passed an Autonomy Order known as Gilgit-Baltistan Empowerment and Self-governance Order, 2009 which was signed by the President of Pakistan Asif Ali Zardari on September 2009.


2009 Gilgit-Baltistan Assembly election, Campaign and Polling
264 candidates out of which 99 from 10 different political parties and 165 independent candidates contested for 24 seats across Gilgit-Baltistan.


2009 Gilgit-Baltistan Assembly election, Campaign and Polling
Voting took place on 12 November 2009 on Morning 9 AM to 4 PM without any break. 1022 polling stations were set up across Gilgit-Baltistan out of which 200 polling stations were considered sensitive. 5000 law enforcement personnel was hired for security.


2009 Gilgit-Baltistan Assembly election, Result
Pakistan People's Party emerged as the largest party in the assembly by winning 20 seats out of 33. The assembly members took oath on 10 December 2009 and Syed Mehdi Shah became the 1st Chief Minister of Gilgit-Baltistan unopposed.


2009 Ginetta G50 Cup
The 2009 Michelin Ginetta G50 Cup was the second Ginetta G50 Cup. The season began at Brands Hatch on 4 April and finished after 28 races over 10 rounds also at Brands Hatch on 4 October, supporting rounds of the British Touring Car Championship.


2009 Ginetta Junior Championship
The 2009 Ginetta Junior Championship was the fifth season of the Ginetta Junior Championship. The season began at Brands Hatch on 4 April 2009 and concluded after 20 races over 10 events also at Brands Hatch on 4 October 2009. This was the last season that the drivers raced Ginetta G20 cars. They were replaced with the G40 in 2010.


2009 Girabola
The 2009 Girabola was the 31st season of top-tier football in Angola. The season ran from 21 February to 25 October 2009. Petro Atlético were the defending champions.


2009 Girabola
The league comprises 14 teams, the bottom three of which will be relegated to the 2010 Gira Angola.


2009 Girabola
Petro Atlético de Luanda were crowned champions,  while Académica do Lobito, Primeiro de Maio and Kabuscorp were relegated. David Magalhães of Petro Luanda finished as top scorer with 19 goals.


2009 Girabola, Changes from 2008 season
Relegated: Benfica do Lubango, Petro do Huambo, Sagrada Esperança Promoted: Académica do Lobito, Académica do Soyo, Recreativo da Caála


2009 Giro d'Italia
The 2009 Giro d'Italia was the 92nd running of the Giro d'Italia, one of cycling's Grand Tours. It was held from 9 to 31 May 2009, and marked the 100th year since the first edition of the race. Starting in Venice and finishing in Rome, 22 teams competed over 21 stages. Four of the top ten finishers in this edition later had their results voided.


2009 Giro d'Italia
The Giro was raced on a unique path through Italy, taking the peloton to some historic cities and towns in Italian cycling. Though the route lacked any well-known, storied climbs, the many intermediate and mountain stages in the second and third weeks of the race proved deceptively difficult. The 10th and the 16th stages were both called the race's queen stage, as both contained multiple difficult mountain climbs.


2009 Giro d'Italia
Riders protested during the ninth stage, a criterium in Milan. This protest was nominally about the overall safety conditions of the stage, and was sparked by life-threatening injuries sustained by Pedro Horrillo the day before. In the protest, riders declined to contest the stage except for a final sprint finish, a decision that proved controversial with race organizers and fans.


2009 Giro d'Italia
Denis Menchov won the race, having taken the lead in a long time trial in stage 12, and defended vigorously against attacks by his closest challenger, Danilo Di Luca, during the mountain stages of the final week. Di Luca came in second, 41 seconds behind the winner, and won the mauve jersey as points classification winner. Subsequent to the Giro, both he and third-place finisher Franco Pellizotti became embroiled in doping scandals, were given bans, and had their results stripped.


2009 Giro d'Italia, Teams
Twenty-two teams were announced for the Giro. These included fifteen ProTour teams, and seven Professional Continental teams. Three ProTour teams did not wish to participate, and were thus not invited: Cofidis, Euskaltel–Euskadi, and Française des Jeux. Conversely, the organizers of the race originally declined to invite Fuji–Servetto, but changed this decision on 23 April, inviting them as the Giro's 22nd and final team. Each team sent a squad of nine riders, so the Giro began with a peloton of 198 cyclists.


2009 Giro d'Italia, Teams
The 22 teams that took part in the race were:


2009 Giro d'Italia, Pre-race favorites
The Astana team did not include 2008 race champion Alberto Contador, who chose not to defend his championship, but did include Lance Armstrong, who had recently returned from retirement. Though his appearance was put in doubt after he crashed out of stage 1 of the Vuelta a Castilla y León and broke his collarbone, Armstrong announced on 16 April that he would start the Giro despite undergoing surgery for his injury.


2009 Giro d'Italia, Pre-race favorites
Silence–Lotto star Cadel Evans was originally announced to be taking part in the Giro, but he publicly announced shortly afterward that he would not ride it, and accused RCS Sport (the organizers of the race) of using his name to promote the event. Contador and Evans both chose to focus on the Tour de France later in the season.


2009 Giro d'Italia, Pre-race favorites
Many riders were named as contenders, including Ivan Basso, Levi Leipheimer, Armstrong, Damiano Cunego, Carlos Sastre, Gilberto Simoni, Danilo Di Luca, Marzio Bruseghin, and Denis Menchov. Before his collarbone injury, Armstrong was considered an overall favorite, and it was also noted that three time trials, including the insertion of an unusually long time trial mid-race, might favor him. Pre -race analysis noted that Armstrong, when on his best form, would be a rider very likely to gain from having such a long race against the clock included in the Giro.


2009 Giro d'Italia, Pre-race favorites
Former winner Stefano Garzelli named Leipheimer as the favorite, as did some American media outlets. Armstrong considered Basso to be the favorite when speaking about the Giro in December 2008. Other news outlets also referred to Basso as the pre-race favorite.


2009 Giro d'Italia, Pre-race favorites
Only a small number of stages were expected to end in a sprint, barring a successful breakaway. Sprinters in the event included Mark Cavendish, Alessandro Petacchi, Allan Davis, Filippo Pozzato, Robert Hunter, Robert Förster, Tyler Farrar, Juan José Haedo, and Oscar Gatto.


2009 Giro d'Italia, Route and stages
The first Giro d'Italia was held in 1909, and the 2009 route was designed to commemorate the 100th anniversary, though interruptions due to World War I and World War II meant this was only the 92nd race. Milan, which had for years been the city in which the Giro concluded, was the site of a ten-lap criterium on the same circuit that began the first Giro d'Italia.


2009 Giro d'Italia, Route and stages
Every city that hosted a stage start or finish in the first Giro was visited in 2009 with the exception of Genoa, although Arenzano (in the province of Genoa) hosted the finish to stage 11. The 11th stage also went over the Passo del Turchino, a climb used every year in the classic cycling race Milan–San Remo.


2009 Giro d'Italia, Route and stages
The tenth stage was planned to mimic stage 17 of the 1949 Giro d'Italia, which was won by Italian cycling legend Fausto Coppi en route to the overall victory. That route originally included the Col d'Izoard, a climb in France which has been featured in the Tour de France numerous times. Race organizers were forced to alter this stage to cover only the Italian side of the Alps rather than also visit France, as there were concerns over radio communication in the area, and the roads stood the risk of landslides. It was subsequently made longer than first planned, with an additional, shorter climb added. Stages 10 and 16, the latter of which went over Monte Petrano and two other first-category climbs, were both called the race's queen stage.


2009 Giro d'Italia, Route and stages
The route received a small amount of criticism for failing to include any well-known and especially difficult climbs such as the Passo del Mortirolo or Monte Zoncolan, instead including stages featuring multiple climbs with lesser ascents. Race director Angelo Zomegnan responded to the criticism by saying, "I won't follow the philosophy that the selection of climbs has to be determined by their names."


2009 Giro d'Italia, Route and stages
The 21 stages of the 2009 Giro d'Italia were divided into five categories: one team time trial, seven flat stages, four intermediate stages, seven mountain stages and two individual time trials. The type of stage together with the average speed of the winner decided how much time each cyclist would be allowed to finish that stage before being eliminated from the race.


2009 Giro d'Italia, Race overview
The Giro began with a team time trial in Lido, a barrier island in the city of Venice. The starting order of the teams was decided by a random draw. Team Columbia–High Road, the first team to take the course, won the stage, giving their star sprinter Mark Cavendish the first pink jersey as leader of the race. Cavendish was defeated in a sprint finish the following day by Italian Alessandro Petacchi, who was riding for the LPR Brakes–Farnese Vini team. Petacchi became the next wearer of the pink jersey, after he won the Stage 3 sprint into Valdobbiadene. Cavendish went on to win three mass-start stages, but Team Columbia–High Road's success was not limited to Cavendish's victories nor the team time trial, as Edvald Boasson Hagen and Kanstantsin Sivtsov also took stage wins.


2009 Giro d'Italia, Race overview
The first two high mountain stages of the Giro revealed the men who would battle for the overall race title. Danilo Di Luca of LPR Brakes–Farnese Vini took the win in Stage 4, and put himself just 2 seconds off the pink jersey. The next day, he claimed the jersey, when he was second to stage winner Denis Menchov at Alpe di Siusi as an elite group of favorites emerged including Menchov, Di Luca, and others who had performed well on the climb and were in high places in the overall standings.


2009 Giro d'Italia, Race overview
Menchov was fifth after Alpe di Siusi, but rose to second before stage 12, the very long and hilly individual time trial in Cinque Terre. There, he claimed a convincing victory; only Levi Leipheimer finished within a minute of Menchov's winning time. Di Luca was nearly two minutes slower than him, finished sixth on the stage, and fell to second overall, with Menchov assuming the race lead. Di Luca tried repeatedly to shed Menchov during the remaining mountain stages to make up the time difference, which was never more than a minute.


2009 Giro d'Italia, Race overview
The two riders were involved in sprints for time bonuses at the finish line in stages 16 and 17, as well as an intermediate sprint in stage 20. Menchov was consistently quicker than Di Luca in these sprints. With his superior time-trial skills providing the difference in the final stage, the Russian was able to emerge as Giro champion, despite a dramatic fall in the final kilometre before the finish line.


2009 Giro d'Italia, Race overview
Stefano Garzelli was the winner of the mountains classification, gaining points for consistent high placings on the summit stage finishes, as well as a brief breakaway on the mountainous stage 10. The points classification was won by Di Luca, after he finished in the top ten in eight of the road stages. The youth classification was won by Kevin Seeldraeyers, who remained consistent after Thomas Lövkvist lost nearly 25 minutes on stage 16. Lövkvist had, for one day earlier in the race, led not just the youth but also the general classification.


2009 Giro d'Italia, Race overview
Controversy arose during the ten-lap Milan criterium of the ninth stage, when the riders staged a protest over what they viewed as unsafe riding conditions in that stage and those that preceded it. The most visible cause for the protest was Rabobank rider Pedro Horrillo's accident during the eighth stage; Horrillo sustained numerous fractures and head injuries after tumbling over a barricade on the roadside while descending the Culmine di San Pietro. Horrillo fell more than 60 m (200 ft), and nearly died as a result of his injuries. After spending five weeks in hospitals in both Italy and his native Spain, Horrillo eventually recovered, though the day on the Culmine di San Pietro was his last as a professional cyclist, as he retired before the 2010 season began.


2009 Giro d'Italia, Race overview
The protest at first only involved the criterium being neutralized – that is, the race director agreed that each rider would receive the same finishing time as the stage winner regardless of when they actually crossed the line. After the riders rode a lap of the course, they decided instead not to contest the stage at all, riding the first six circuits 20 km/h (12 mph) slower than previous stages. After four laps, they stopped altogether as race leader Di Luca addressed the unhappy crowd to explain their actions.


2009 Giro d'Italia, Race overview
The times for the stage did not count, and there was no aggressive riding until a final sprint finish. Along with Di Luca, Lance Armstrong was considered the principal voice speaking for the peloton on this day. Although the protest was referred to by some as "unanimous," cyclists such as Filippo Pozzato, who was himself bearing injuries sustained in a crash that would later force him to leave the race, said the riders had been too hasty in their decision, and that it should have been made conclusively before the stage began. Armstrong apologized to the fans for the effect the protest had on what was supposed to be a grand spectacle, but also contended that it was the correct decision for the peloton to make.


2009 Giro d'Italia, Race overview
Success in stages was limited to a few teams. Though there were nearly as many stages (21) as teams in the event (22), only eight teams ultimately came away with stage victories. Six different riders won multiple stages – Cavendish, Petacchi, Menchov, Di Luca, Carlos Sastre, and Michele Scarponi. Teammates of Sastre, Scarponi and Cavendish were also stage winners; Sastre's Cervélo TestTeam provided the winners to stages 14 (Simon Gerrans) and 21 (Ignatas Konovalovas), and Scarponi's teammate Leonardo Bertagnolli was the winner of stage 15.


2009 Giro d'Italia, Race overview
The only teams to be single stage winners were Liquigas with Franco Pellizotti in stage 17, and Silence–Lotto with classics specialist Philippe Gilbert three days later in a stage thought to resemble a classic. Pellizotti was also the third-place overall finisher. With wins for Quick Step's Seeldraeyers in the youth classification, Garzelli of Acqua & Sapone in the climbers' competition, and Astana in the Trofeo Fast Team ranking, 11 teams – half of the total entries – won significant prizes during the race.


2009 Giro d'Italia, Race overview, Aftermath
About two months after the event concluded, on 22 July, it was announced that second place overall finisher and points classification winner Di Luca had given two positive tests for continuous erythropoietin receptor activator (CERA, an erythropoietin derivative) on 20 and 28 May, before the Cinque Terre time trial and the Mount Vesuvius stage in the race's final week. He was provisionally suspended with immediate effect by the Union Cycliste Internationale (UCI), cycling's governing body.


2009 Giro d'Italia, Race overview, Aftermath
It was announced on 8 August that the analyses of the B-samples from those controls confirmed the initial results, making it likely that Di Luca will be stripped of some or all of his results from the race. LPR Brakes–Farnese Vini fired him on 13 August. Di Luca at first maintained his innocence and claimed a conspiracy against him by the labs handling the tests. A period of legal maneuvering between Di Luca and the Italian National Olympic Committee (CONI) followed.


2009 Giro d'Italia, Race overview, Aftermath
CONI officials asked their anti-doping tribunal (TNA) to suspend Di Luca for three years – while two years is a customary ban for a doping positive, CONI prosecutors sought a third year for recidivism, stemming from Di Luca's previous doping incident two years earlier. He was given a two-year suspension, retroactive to July 2009, and indicated that he would appeal it to the Court of Arbitration for Sport. In October 2010, Di Luca was reinstated to active status by CONI, due to his cooperation with several ongoing doping investigations, though his results were indeed stricken from the record. On 10 January 2011, he signed with Team Katusha and indicated that he would return to the Giro in 2011 to support Katusha team leader Joaquim Rodríguez.


2009 Giro d'Italia, Race overview, Aftermath
Five days before the start of the 2010 Giro d'Italia, 2009 podium finisher Pellizotti was identified as a rider of interest to the UCI's biological passport program due to irregular blood values. He was removed from his team's start list for the Giro and provisionally suspended. The UCI asked that CONI open disciplinary proceedings against him, which had no resolution until after the 2010 season finished. TNA cleared him on 21 October and declared him free to race, at which time the Liquigas team intended to re-sign him.


2009 Giro d'Italia, Race overview, Aftermath
The UCI decided in January 2011 to appeal his case to the CAS. The hearing was held in March, and Pellizotti asked for a quick resolution, with plans to return with Movistar Team in the 2011 Tirreno–Adriatico if he were cleared. The court reached its decision after five days, upholding the UCI's appeal, handing Pellizotti a two-year ban, and stripping all his results from this Giro and the 2009 Tour de France. Consequently, Pellizotti has said he is quitting the sport.


2009 Giro d'Italia, Classification leadership
In the 2009 Giro d'Italia, four different jerseys were awarded. For the general classification, calculated by adding each cyclist's finishing times on each stage, and allowing time bonuses for the first three finishers on mass-start stages, the leader received a pink jersey. This classification is considered the most important of the Giro d'Italia, and the winner is considered the winner of the Giro.


2009 Giro d'Italia, Classification leadership
Additionally, there was a points classification, which awarded a mauve jersey. In the points classification, cyclists got points for finishing in the top 15 in a stage. The stage win awarded 25 points, second place awarded 20 points, third 16, fourth 14, fifth 12, sixth 10, and one point fewer per place down the line, to a single point for 15th. In addition, points could be won in intermediate sprints.


2009 Giro d'Italia, Classification leadership
There was also a mountains classification, which awarded a green jersey. In the mountains classifications, points were won by reaching the top of a mountain before other cyclists. Each climb was categorized as either first, second, or third category, with more points available for the higher-categorized climbs. The highest point in the Giro (called the Cima Coppi), which in 2009 was Sestrière in stage 10, afforded more points than the other first-category climbs.


2009 Giro d'Italia, Classification leadership
The fourth jersey represented the young rider classification, which awarded a white jersey. This was decided the same way as the general classification, but only riders born after 1 January 1984 were eligible.


2009 Giro d'Italia, Classification leadership
There were also two classifications for teams. The first was the Trofeo Fast Team. In this classification, the times of the best three cyclists per team on each stage were added; the leading team was the team with the lowest total time. The Trofeo Super Team was a team points classification, with the top 20 placed riders on each stage earning points (20 for first place, 19 for second place and so on, down to a single point for 20th) for their team.


2009 Giro d'Italia, Classification leadership
The rows in the following table correspond to the jerseys awarded after that stage was run.


2009 Giro d'Italia, Final standings, Minor classifications
Other less well-known classifications, whose leaders did not receive a special jersey, were awarded during the Giro. These awards were based on points earned throughout the three weeks of the tour. Each mass-start stage had one intermediate sprint, the Traguardo Volante, or T.V. The T.V. gave bonus seconds towards the general classification, points towards the regular points classification, and also points towards the T.V. classification. This award was known in previous years as the "Intergiro" and the "Expo Milano 2015" classification. It was won by Italian Giovanni Visconti, of ISD.


2009 Giro d'Italia, Final standings, Minor classifications
Other awards included the Combativity classification, which was a compilation of points gained for position on crossing intermediate sprints, mountain passes and stage finishes. Mountains classification winner Stefano Garzelli won this award. The Azzurri d'Italia classification was based on finishing order, but points were awarded only to the top three finishers in each stage.


2009 Giro d'Italia, Final standings, Minor classifications
It was won, like the closely associated points classification, by Danilo Di Luca. Additionally, the Trofeo Fuga Cervelo rewarded riders who took part in a breakaway at the head of the field, each rider in an escape of ten or fewer riders getting one point for each kilometre that the group stayed clear. Quick-Step's Mauro Facci was first in this competition. Teams were given penalty points for minor technical infringements. Silence–Lotto and Quick-Step were most successful in avoiding penalties, and so shared leadership of the Fair Play classification.


2009 Giro d'Italia, Final standings, World Rankings points
The Giro was one of 24 events throughout the season that contributed points towards the 2009 UCI World Ranking. Points were awarded to the top 20 finishers overall, and to the top five finishers in each stage.


2009 Giro d'Italia Femminile
The 2009 Giro d'Italia Femminile, or Giro Donne, was the 20th running of the Giro d'Italia Femminile, one of the premier events of the women's road cycling calendar. It was held over nine stages from 3–12 July 2009, starting in Scarperia and finishing in Grumo Nevano. It was won by Claudia Häusler of Garmin–Cervélo.


2009 Giro d'Italia Femminile, Teams
Eighteen teams were invited to the Giro d'Italia Femminile. These teams were:


2009 Giro d'Italia Femminile, Classification leadership
There were four different jerseys awarded in the 2009 Giro Donne. These followed the same format as those in the men's Giro d'Italia. The leader of the General classification received a pink jersey. This classification was calculated by adding the combined finishing times of the riders from each stage, and the overall winner of this classification is considered the winner of the Giro.


2009 Giro d'Italia Femminile, Classification leadership
Secondly, the points classification awarded the maglia ciclamino, or mauve jersey. Points were awarded for placements at stage finishes as well as at selected intermediate sprint points on the route, and the jersey would be received by the rider with the most overall points to their name.


2009 Giro d'Italia Femminile, Classification leadership
In addition to this, there was a mountains classification, which awarded a green jersey. Points were allocated for the first few riders over selected mountain passes on the route, with more difficult passes paying more points, and the jersey would be received by the rider with the most overall points to their name.


2009 Giro d'Italia Femminile, Classification leadership
Finally, there was the jersey for the Best Young Rider, which was granted to the highest-placed rider on the General classification aged 23 or under. This rider would receive a white jersey.


2009 Giro d'Italia, Stage 1 to Stage 11
The 2009 Giro d'Italia began on 9 May, with Stage 11 occurring on 20 May. The first stage, like it had been since 2007, was a team time trial, a stage where each member of the team raced together against the clock. Like most cycling Grand Tours do, the beginning of the 2009 Giro included a string of flat stages that were contested by sprinters. These stages were contested by Alessandro Petacchi and Mark Cavendish, among others, with Petacchi in victory becoming one of the only riders to defeat Cavendish in a sprint in the 2009 season.


2009 Giro d'Italia, Stage 1 to Stage 11
At the end of the race's first week and beginning of its second were three hilly medium-mountain stages. These stages took the Giro through Austria and Switzerland before returning to Italy. Each of these stages took more than five hours to complete, and the rain that fell each day combined with the difficulties presented by the numerous ascents and descents made the courses potentially unsafe in the riders' opinion. This opinion was perhaps validated by the life-threatening injuries sustained by Pedro Horrillo in the eighth stage after he crashed while descending a mountain.


2009 Giro d'Italia, Stage 1 to Stage 11
While the ninth stage was meant to be a showy criterium in celebration of this being the 100th anniversary of the Giro d'Italia, the riders collectively protested the safety conditions of that stage and the ones before it. This meant it would be neutralized, with every rider receiving the same finishing time as the stage winner regardless of when they finished.


2009 Giro d'Italia, Stage 1 to Stage 11
The tenth stage was the longest of this year's Giro, and one of its most mountainous. It, along with a stage later in the race, were both called the race's queen stage, its most difficult stage. Danilo Di Luca won this stage to pad his overall lead going into the second half of the Giro.


2009 Giro d'Italia, Stage 1 to Stage 11, Stage 1
9 May 2009 — Lido (Venice), 20.5 km (12.7 mi) (team time trial)


2009 Giro d'Italia, Stage 1 to Stage 11, Stage 1
The 2009 Giro began, as it had since 2007, with a team time trial (TTT). The 20.5 km (12.7 mi) ride over a perfectly flat course in Venice decided who would wear the first pink jersey.


2009 Giro d'Italia, Stage 1 to Stage 11, Stage 1
Team Columbia–High Road was the first team to ride the course, and wound up being the stage winners. They all finished together, which is relatively uncommon (especially for a winning team: only Caisse d'Epargne, which took the course nearly a minute slower, managed to also have all nine riders cross the finish line together).


2009 Giro d'Italia, Stage 1 to Stage 11, Stage 1
Garmin–Slipstream, who had said previously it was their goal to replicate their TTT victory from the 2008 Giro d'Italia, finished officially 6 seconds back of Team Columbia–High Road, but they had only the minimum of 5 riders finishing together (the team's time is taken for the fifth rider to cross the line). As the first Team Columbia–High Road rider to cross the line, Mark Cavendish was awarded the first pink jersey as general classification (GC) leader; he was also awarded the white jersey as youth classification leader.


2009 Giro d'Italia, Stage 1 to Stage 11, Stage 2
10 May 2009 — Jesolo to Trieste, 156 km (97 mi)


2009 Giro d'Italia, Stage 1 to Stage 11, Stage 2
This stage was very flat. It had only one categorized climb, at low elevation, near the end. This climb award the first points in the mountains classification and thus, the first green jersey awarded to its leader. The riders took three laps of an 11 km (6.8 mi) finishing circuit in Trieste, with the points for the climb taken on their second time over the hill at Montebello.


2009 Giro d'Italia, Stage 1 to Stage 11, Stage 2
Leonardo Scarselli was free of the main field for most of the stage after escaping early in the morning. The bunch caught him with 31 km (19 mi) to race, though. David García won the climb in Trieste to become the first wearer of the green jersey, and Alessandro Petacchi won the group sprint to the line, narrowly edging out race leader Mark Cavendish.


2009 Giro d'Italia, Stage 1 to Stage 11, Stage 2
A crash on the third pass over the Montebello hill meant the field was broken, with only 51 riders together for the sprint finish. The rest of the peloton finished 13 seconds back, and since this crash occurred outside 3 km (1.9 mi) from the finish line, all time lost stood as lost. Notables among those who lost 13 seconds were Levi Leipheimer and Ivan Basso.


2009 Giro d'Italia, Stage 1 to Stage 11, Stage 3
11 May 2009 — Grado to Valdobbiadene, 198 km (123 mi)


2009 Giro d'Italia, Stage 1 to Stage 11, Stage 3
This stage was also flat, and ended in a mass sprint.


2009 Giro d'Italia, Stage 1 to Stage 11, Stage 3
A five rider breakaway, which had a maximum advantage of seven minutes, took the points at the one intermediate sprint and the one categorised climb of the day, but were caught with some 38 km (24 mi) remaining. A number of crashes occurred starting at the 50 km (31 mi) remaining mark, and a series of attempted breaks meant that the peloton was fragmented, and Alessandro Petacchi took a second successive stage from a depleted group sprint.


2009 Giro d'Italia, Stage 1 to Stage 11, Stage 3
The biggest victim of the repeated crashes was Garmin–Slipstream leader Christian Vande Velde, who had to retire from the Giro with a broken rib and a hairline fracture of his pelvis. The crashes also made it so Mark Cavendish was not with the main peloton as it approached the finish line; he came to within 15 seconds of the group before abandoning the attempt to reach them, and essentially conceding the pink jersey. Petacchi's second straight stage win gave him the race leadership.


2009 Giro d'Italia, Stage 1 to Stage 11, Stage 4
12 May 2009 — Padova to San Martino di Castrozza, 162 km (101 mi)


2009 Giro d'Italia, Stage 1 to Stage 11, Stage 4
This was the first mountain stage of the Giro, with a high climb coming at 123 km (76 mi) and a mountain finish at San Martino di Castrozza.


2009 Giro d'Italia, Stage 1 to Stage 11, Stage 4
A group of 6 riders escaped after just 5 km (3.1 mi). This group comprised Serafin Martinez, Francesco Bellotti, Davide Viganò, Ian Stannard, Francesco De Bonis, and Jens Voigt. They attained a maximum advantage of six and a half minutes, and with a healthy pace of 45 km/h (28 mph) through the stage's first three hours, it appeared possible that one of them would be the stage winner. The pace caught up with the group as they reached the foot of the day's final climb, and only Voigt and Bellotti remained together as the climb began. Two kilometers into the climb, Voigt attacked again and tried to solo to victory over the last 8 km (5.0 mi).


2009 Giro d'Italia, Stage 1 to Stage 11, Stage 4
The top GC men in the peloton and the specialist climbers formed a chase group that overhauled Voigt in the final 3 km (1.9 mi). The attacks of Colombian climber Mauricio Soler had been responsible for driving this group to catch the remnants of the breakaway, and he attacked again in the final 2 km (1.2 mi), quickly getting a gap over the competition and appearing poised for the stage win.


2009 Giro d'Italia, Stage 1 to Stage 11, Stage 4
As Soler had been the one who caused the crash that kept Mark Cavendish from potentially defending the pink jersey the day before, his combativeness on this stage was described as his "redemption". 2007 Giro d'Italia winner Danilo Di Luca timed his sprint to the line just right and overtook Soler for the victory. Sixteen riders finished with the same time as Di Luca, ten more were six seconds back, and a further 26 were inside a minute of his winning time. Thomas Lövkvist, who finished in the same group as Di Luca, took a narrow lead in the overall classification after the stage. However, Di Luca later tested positive for EPO and was stripped of his victory. The stage win was subsequently awarded to Stefano Garzelli, the runner-up.


2009 Giro d'Italia, Stage 1 to Stage 11, Stage 5
13 May 2009 — San Martino di Castrozza to Alpe di Siusi, 125 km (78 mi)


2009 Giro d'Italia, Stage 1 to Stage 11, Stage 5
This was one of the shortest road race stages in the 2009 Giro, but its profile was quite unusual. It saw the riders start where they ended the previous day, on the mountaintop at San Martino di Castrozza, climb some 400 m (1,300 ft) for a categorized climb at Passo Rolle, and then descend over 1,700 m (5,600 ft) before climbing most of that distance right back for another mountaintop finish at Alpe di Siusi.


2009 Giro d'Italia, Stage 1 to Stage 11, Stage 5
A seven-man breakaway was clear over the Passo Rolle climb and took a maximum lead of four and a half minutes in the valley between peaks. Giovanni Visconti was briefly race leader on the road, as he began the stage just under three minutes behind pink jersey wearer Thomas Lövkvist in the General Classification. The peloton, paced by Liquigas, caught them without about 15 km (9.3 mi) left to race, leading the way for Sylwester Szmyd and then Ivan Basso to try to fracture the field before the finish.


2009 Giro d'Italia, Stage 1 to Stage 11, Stage 5
Six riders were able to keep his pace to the finish, with Denis Menchov the first to Alpe di Suisi for the stage win. The other six in the leading group kept close to the stage winner, with only Carlos Sastre losing more than ten seconds. Danilo Di Luca became the new race leader after his second place on the stage.


2009 Giro d'Italia, Stage 1 to Stage 11, Stage 5
Damiano Cunego, Lance Armstrong and Stefano Garzelli, all of whom had been considered as possible favorites for overall victory in the Giro, all lost more than two minutes on this stage, being unable to take Liquigas' pace on the way up to Alpe di Suisi. As they, along with Michael Rogers, had shown weakness on the climb, one report named as the only remaining possibilities for Giro champion Menchov, Di Luca, Lövkvist, Basso, Levi Leipheimer, and Sastre. The victory gave Menchov stage wins in all three Grand Tours for his career, and his team Rabobank its first ever Giro d'Italia stage win.


2009 Giro d'Italia, Stage 1 to Stage 11, Stage 6
14 May 2009 — Brixen to Mayrhofen (Austria), 248 km (154 mi)


2009 Giro d'Italia, Stage 1 to Stage 11, Stage 6
This stage was one of the longest in the 2009 Giro. The first half of the stage was undulating, without a categorized climb. The second half featured two short climbs with a flat 22 km (14 mi) valley in between them. The descent from the second climb, Gerlospass, left a flat 11 km (6.8 mi) to race before the finish in Austria.


2009 Giro d'Italia, Stage 1 to Stage 11, Stage 6
The day's breakaway comprised five riders, and it formed after 55 km (34 mi) in the saddle. Their maximum advantage was just under eight minutes. Michele Scarponi and Vasil Kiryienka shed their mates on the second climb of the day, about 60 km (37 mi) from the finish. Scarponi dropped Kiryienka 50 km (31 mi) later and went it alone for the stage win.


2009 Giro d'Italia, Stage 1 to Stage 11, Stage 6
The pink jersey group absorbed all the other members of the morning breakaway and finished half a minute behind Scarponi, with six from that group gaining four seconds on race leader Danilo Di Luca at the finish. Lance Armstrong lost even more time, finishing 43 seconds behind second place man Edvald Boasson Hagen.


2009 Giro d'Italia, Stage 1 to Stage 11, Stage 7
15 May 2009 — Innsbruck (Austria) to Chiavenna, 244 km (152 mi)


2009 Giro d'Italia, Stage 1 to Stage 11, Stage 7
The race returned to Italy, after also passing through Switzerland, in another long stage. The one climb of the day occurred a little over 200 km (120 mi) into the stage, the Passo Maloja. The entire stage to that point was on a slight increase in elevation, while the finish was on a long and drastic descent into Chiavenna. Its profile made it seem an inviting stage for breakaway attempts.


2009 Giro d'Italia, Stage 1 to Stage 11, Stage 7
This stage saw numerous breakaways get away and stay away for a time. The first of them comprised four riders, coming clear after 24 km (15 mi). This group attained a maximum advantage of over nine minutes, but the peloton was able to catch them before the Passo Maloja. Right at the summit, Alessandro Bertolini attacked and came free for a time. He was able to lengthen his escape somewhat by descending the Passo Maloja in an extremely aerodynamic position, out of the saddle with all his weight over the handlebars.


2009 Giro d'Italia, Stage 1 to Stage 11, Stage 7
A crucial four-man break took place 12 km (7.5 mi) from the finish line, with Bertolini able to stay with them as they caught him, making it a five-man leading group. Andriy Hryvko tried to make his way up to them after they were well away, but could not make it. Despite the presence of more experienced riders and riders noted as sprinters in the break, it was young Norwegian Edvald Boasson Hagen who made it to the line first.


2009 Giro d'Italia, Stage 1 to Stage 11, Stage 7
Controversy had arisen before the Giro when it was revealed that many of Astana's sponsors in Kazakhstan had not paid their full obligations to the team, and that the riders had therefore not been paid their full salaries to that point in the season. In protest, the team wore new jerseys beginning with this stage, that had the names of those underpaying sponsors faded out to the point of being unreadable.


2009 Giro d'Italia, Stage 1 to Stage 11, Stage 8
16 May 2009 — Morbegno to Bergamo, 209 km (130 mi)


2009 Giro d'Italia, Stage 1 to Stage 11, Stage 8
There were two categorized climbs on this course, including a fairly tall and steep one at Culmine di San Pietro after 64 km (40 mi). However, the amount of flat racing after the descent suggested that the type of finish this stage would see was far from certain.


2009 Giro d'Italia, Stage 1 to Stage 11, Stage 8
Between the 30 km (19 mi) and 40 km (25 mi) marks in this stage, a ten-man breakaway slowly formed. Their maximum advantage was just over four minutes as they neared the day's second climb, the Colle del Gallo. A group of GC favorites and domestiques from their teams were first over this climb, with race leader Danilo Di Luca not among them at first, almost a minute back. As the leading group seemed unwilling to work together, Di Luca was able to bridge the gap and make it to them. Kanstantsin Sivtsov made the decisive attack of the day, coming clear some 15 km (9.3 mi) from the line, and though he never held even half a minute's advantage, he managed to stay away for the stage win.


2009 Giro d'Italia, Stage 1 to Stage 11, Stage 8
This stage also saw a dramatic and life-threatening crash from Pedro Horrillo, on the Culmine di San Pietro. His bike skidded on wet leaves during the descent, causing him to lose control of his machine, slide into a guardrail, and tumble head over heels down the mountainside. Horrillo fell 60 m (200 ft) and sustained fractures to his thighbones, kneecaps, and T12 and C3 vertebrae, as well as a punctured lung and internal bleeding. He was airlifted off the mountain and was then taken by ambulance to a nearby hospital.


2009 Giro d'Italia, Stage 1 to Stage 11, Stage 8
Horrillo woke up in the ambulance, but was put in a chemically induced coma to aid his treatment. He was taken out of the coma the next day, with scans revealing no brain damage. The peloton's protest of Stage 9 the next day was largely in reaction to Horrillo's serious injury.


2009 Giro d'Italia, Stage 1 to Stage 11, Stage 8
After spending some five weeks in hospitals both in Italy and his native Spain, Horrillo eventually recovered.


2009 Giro d'Italia, Stage 1 to Stage 11, Stage 9
17 May 2009 — Milan, 165 km (103 mi) (Milano Show 100)


2009 Giro d'Italia, Stage 1 to Stage 11, Stage 9
This stage was a circuit race. The field took 10 laps of a 16 km (9.9 mi) course in Milan (there was a 5 km (3.1 mi) run-in before the circuits began). The course was flat, and the stage figured to be a major sprinters' battle.


2009 Giro d'Italia, Stage 1 to Stage 11, Stage 9
The character of this stage changed drastically after the dramatic injury sustained by Pedro Horrillo the day before brought attention to safety conditions on this and other courses in the Giro. With the course passing over numerous different surfaces, including tram tracks and cobblestones, the peloton collectively protested racing this course, and as such it was neutralized, with everyone receiving the same time as the stage winner and no points were awarded for the points classification as had been planned. There were also parked cars at the side of the road in many places, forcing the riders into narrow tunnels to get through them.


2009 Giro d'Italia, Stage 1 to Stage 11, Stage 9
Originally, the result of the riders' protest was only that the stage times would not count. The peloton rode the first four laps very slowly, about 20 km/h (12 mph) slower than previous stages, and at the end of the fourth lap, the race stopped altogether as race leader Danilo Di Luca took a microphone to address the crowd and explain why they were riding so slowly. Lance Armstrong, who along with Di Luca had been considered the voice of the peloton in the protest, apologized to the fans for the effect it had on what was supposed to be a grand spectacle, but also contended that it was the correct decision for the peloton to make.


2009 Giro d'Italia, Stage 1 to Stage 11, Stage 9
The pace did eventually pick up, on the last lap, and the finish was contested in a bunched sprint, won by Mark Cavendish.


2009 Giro d'Italia, Stage 1 to Stage 11, Stage 10
19 May 2009 — Cuneo to Pinerolo, 262 km (163 mi)


2009 Giro d'Italia, Stage 1 to Stage 11, Stage 10
After the rest day, the riders were faced with the Giro's longest stage, with numerous high mountain climbs along the course and the distinction of being the race's queen stage. It was originally scheduled to include the Col d'Izoard, which has been featured numerous times in the Tour de France as an Hors Categorie climb. Race officials later decided to alter the course, staying on the Italian side of the Alps, believing the stretches that were to take place in France were too remote and that radio communication in the area could not be assured. The course as it originally was designed mimicked exactly a course used in the 1949 Giro d'Italia.


2009 Giro d'Italia, Stage 1 to Stage 11, Stage 10
The resulting alterations caused the course to be even longer than first planned, 262 km (163 mi) rather than 250 km (160 mi), with a small categorized climb just under 10 km (6.2 mi) from the finish. This came after a 50 km (31 mi) long descent from what became the course's principal climb, Sestrière. The race's overall contenders were expected to distinguish themselves on this stage.


2009 Giro d'Italia, Stage 1 to Stage 11, Stage 10
A surprisingly fast beginning to the stage, with a first hour that covered over 50 km (31 mi), managed to keep any breakaways from going clear for over two hours. Twelve eventually came ahead of the peloton, with seven in the lead and five chasing between the leaders and the peloton.


2009 Giro d'Italia, Stage 1 to Stage 11, Stage 10
The third group on the road eventually dwindled to a select contingent of overall favorites, which included race leader Danilo Di Luca. Former Giro champion Stefano Garzelli attacked from this group on the day's first climb and got to the leading group of five before the summit, claiming maximum points on it and on Sestrière to gain leadership of the mountains classification at the end of the day. Garzelli's maximum advantage, at the summit of Sestrière, was just over six minutes.


2009 Giro d'Italia, Stage 1 to Stage 11, Stage 10
A group of most of the top riders in the GC, paced by the race leader himself, caught every one of the twelve initial leaders, and subsequently Garzelli just before the day's last climb, Prà Martino. Di Luca's aggressive descent of Prà Martino gave him a gap over the elite group of riders who had been able to hold his wheel to that point, and the stage win.


2009 Giro d'Italia, Stage 1 to Stage 11, Stage 10
The day saw a big winner in time gains and a big loser: Lance Armstrong finished 29 seconds behind Di Luca in the same group as the man finishing sixth on the stage, gaining seven places in the GC, while Thomas Lövkvist lost over a minute and fell from second to eighth in the GC.


2009 Giro d'Italia, Stage 1 to Stage 11, Stage 11
20 May 2009 — Turin to Arenzano, 214 km (133 mi)


2009 Giro d'Italia, Stage 1 to Stage 11, Stage 11
The Passo del Turchino, famous for its use every year in the classic one-day race Milan–San Remo, was visited 19 km (12 mi) from the end of this stage. The climb is not difficult enough to be at all selective, so pre-stage analysis led to expectations that either a mass sprint would occur or a breakaway of riders deep down in the GC would finish first on this stage.


2009 Giro d'Italia, Stage 1 to Stage 11, Stage 11
Astana rider Chris Horner did not start the stage due to a leg injury sustained in a fall in Stage 10, leaving Levi Leipheimer and Lance Armstrong without their usual support rider. At the 56 km (35 mi) mark, Caisse d'Epargne rider Joaquim Rodríguez dropped out after a 9th-place finish in the previous stage.


2009 Giro d'Italia, Stage 1 to Stage 11, Stage 11
A break formed after 65 km (40 mi), including Gustavo César, Cameron Meyer, Dmytro Grabovskyy and Alessandro Donati. Soon after, Levi Leipheimer crashed, but was unhurt. The break was caught, and a solo break was formed by Vladimir Isaichev. Astana drove the peloton up the Turchino, the day's lone climb, with Armstrong leading the descent and race leader Danilo Di Luca somewhat surprisingly coming forward to hold Armstrong's wheel. Some riders tried to escape for victory on the way into Arenzano, but the sprinters' teams worked to keep the field together, and Mark Cavendish took another bunched sprint win over Tyler Farrar and Alessandro Petacchi.


2009 Giro d'Italia, Stage 1 to Stage 11, Stage 11
It was after this stage, on the eve of the Cinque Terre time trial, that Danilo Di Luca gave his first of two positive tests for continuous erythropoiesis receptor activator (CERA), the results of which became public after the Giro was over.


2009 Giro d'Italia, Stage 12 to Stage 21
Stage 12 of the 2009 Giro d'Italia took place on 21 May; the race concluded with Stage 21 on 31 May. The second half of the Giro began with a long and challenging individual time trial in Cinque Terre. It was in this time trial that Denis Menchov took the overall lead in the race. This was followed by a flat stage, after which most of the sprinters in the Giro withdrew from the race, as they did not figure to be in contention in the hilly and mountainous stages to follow.


2009 Giro d'Italia, Stage 12 to Stage 21
The sixteenth stage was considered to be one of two queen stages, most difficult stages, of this Giro, as it contained many high mountain climbs and the Giro's most difficult summit stage finish. After the second rest day came an unusual stage, one that was very short in terms of sheer distance but on par with previous mountain stages in terms of difficulty. These stages were won by Carlos Sastre and Franco Pellizotti, respectively, who fought for the third step on the Giro's podium behind Menchov and previous race leader Danilo Di Luca. Though Sastre went on to win another stage, to Mount Vesuvius, it was Pellizotti who finished the Giro third overall.


2009 Giro d'Italia, Stage 12 to Stage 21
The Giro concluded, as it had in 2008, with another individual time trial, this time in the city of Rome. Despite a dramatic and much-replayed crash in the stage's final kilometer, Menchov preserved his overall lead through this stage and thus, the conclusion of the Giro, winning his third career Grand Tour.


2009 Giro d'Italia, Stage 12 to Stage 21, Stage 12
21 May 2009 — Sestri Levante to Riomaggiore, 60.6 km (37.7 mi) (individual time trial)


2009 Giro d'Italia, Stage 12 to Stage 21, Stage 12
The first individual time trial (ITT) of the 2009 Giro was a difficult one, long with quite a lot of climbing. There were two categorized climbs on the course, a quick, intense descent between them and no flat stretches at all. Lance Armstrong, who rode the Giro for the first time in 2009, described the ITT as "wicked hard". Reigning Olympic time trial champion Fabian Cancellara called it "crazy" and laughed when asked if he would be a contender for victory. Cancellara was in fact the only rider who was still in the race to this point who did not attempt the time trial, instead abandoning the Giro.