Van de Velde vying for victory in Paris

Six years on from his Open championship nightmare - and the even bigger nightmare that followed - Jean van de Velde is back in the spotlight.

The 39-year-old, who after two knee operations does not even hold a European tour card at present, shares the lead going into the final round of the French Open at Le Golf National near Paris.

A battling third-round 70 put van de Velde alongside Argentina's Eduardo Romero, at 50 trying to become the oldest winner in the tour's history, and his fellow Frenchman Jean-Francois Remesy, trying to become the first man to make a successful defence of the title since Nick Faldo in 1989.

Both of those are great story-lines, but do not compare to that of van de Velde.

The man who led at Carnoustie by three with one hole to play and then triple-bogeyed it to the amazement of the watching world, did not know he could go on playing less than a year ago when his first surgery did not produce a cure.

"Last August I could not walk 50 metres," he said after posting his nine-under-par total of 204.

"I went to Switzerland to test it and it was total agony. I had to take five to six months off, had another operation and you can't help thinking that might be it.

"But here I am in the last group of the French Open on the last day. What else could I hope for?"

The answer to that, of course, is a victory - his first since the 1993 Rome Masters and one which would put him back on tour full-time until the end of the 2007 season at least.

Van de Velde does not even have to lift the trophy for it to be a weekend he will remember for a long time, though. Second place would almost certainly earn him a place in the coming Open at St Andrews and with £2.5million prize money even fifth place could earn him enough to guarantee him his card for next season.

The former Ryder Cup, in the tournament on a sponsor's invitation, added: "I said to my caddie coming down the 17th that it feels great. I am not in pain and even if my knee could do it all it still lets me play golf."

He had just sunk a putt that looked crucial to his hopes of staying in contention.

After missing the green at the 16th his first chip did not even make the putting surface and his next was skinned 10 feet past the flag.

But he made it coming back for a bogey four and parred in, whereas Remesy and Romero both bogeyed the 470-yard last.

"If I have a chance to put my long nose ahead on the finish line I will try and grab it," stated Van de Velde.

Remesy was the first French winner of the title since 1969 last year, but there are four in the top 10 now.

Qualifying school graduate Francois Delamontagne would have been made it a four-way tie at the top but for double-bogeying the last. It dropped him to joint fifth one behind England's Jonathan Lomas and Dane Soren Hansen, while Gregory Havret is only three behind after matching Remesy's 67.

"It's great for the tournament and great for French golf," commented Remesy. "But of course I hope it's me who wins again."

Romero, who is only three weeks away from his 51st birthday, thought about switching to the seniors tour recently after missing five of his first six cuts this season.

He has earned just £5,500, but the first prize tomorrow is £390,888 and first or second could also spare him the need to qualify for the Open at Sunningdale on Monday.

Romero had been two ahead at halfway after his course record 62, but went in the water on the first and also bogeyed the second. He came back with four birdies, but there were further bogeys at the 11th and 16th as well as the last, where he could not save par from just off the green.

Colin Montgomerie did not drop a stroke, but only one birdie means he will resume seven off the pace.

Lomas, runner-up to Montgomerie five years ago, came back into the picture with an inward 32 for 71.

He is going for his second tour win just a week after making the cut on his US Open debut.