View from the sunflowers: Cycling journalism's patriarch Sam Abt writes on the Tour de France

Like the athletes they folow, sportswriters also retire and then make comebacks. Some reporters are missed more than others, and no one is more missed in Tour de France press rooms than Sam Abt.

Abt was the long-time cycling writer for The New York Times and its global editiion, The International Herald Tribune.

Like many reporters at the top of their craft, Abt found stories in cycling no one else found, and he reported them with a minimalist’s touch. Concise, clear sentences were his forte. And although he liked cycling, he subscribed, unlike some cycling journalists, to a good working theory: Good cycling journalism has nothing to do with having shaved legs just like the pros.

Abt just wrote like every reporter should want to write.

Beyond his writing skills, Abt is unique in myriad ways. He owns what Hollywood might describe as a “character actor’s face.” He wears walking shorts with black socks and dress shoes. He wears over-sized glasses and is nearly bald. He passionately smokes cigarettes and he has a tendency toward crankiness.

Abt has also forgotten more about cycling than most cyclists will ever know. During the 2006 Tour de France, organizers honored him for his 30th year at the event.

Yet Abt has never forgotten he also once was new to cycling. He generously offered help to younger reporters (including me).

But all things must change, particularly in the newspaper world. Someone in the chain of command of The New York Times   decided a different cycling voice was needed. Abt was replaced.

But, alas, he's back. With the presentation of 2009 Tour de France set for Oct. 22, Abt has written a piece for The International Herald Tribune, detailing what could be the most intriguing route announcement in years. Consider Abt’s passage on Lance Armstrong:

“. . . In an unaccustomed role of second banana - a bit old at 37 to be the juvenile lead - will be Lance Armstrong, emerging from a three-year retirement to shoot for his eighth victory in the Tour.

Or maybe not. Armstrong, who enjoys mind games the way most people enjoy a morning cup of coffee, has announced that he will race in selected countries next year to improve knowledge about cancer, which struck him in 1996 . . .”