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News :: July 2005

28 July 2005

Jan and Lance, One Last Time

Friends, photo: T-Mobile

Lance Armstrong is now off vacationing in Southern France with Sheryl Crow and his children, but just four days ago it was a farewell party in Paris. At the special gathering was Discovery Channel members, media, past riders, and yes, even Jan Ullrich! Armstrong's major rival over the past seven years showed up to give a nice farewell speech. Armstrong and Ullrich traded stories and kind words for all guests gathered. It was an special occasion on Armstrong's way out of professional cycling.

Tour 2006 for Beloki

Joseba Beloki (Liberty Seguros - Würth) has come along way in the Tour de France. His horrible crash of 2003 left him on the recovery trail for all of 2004. This year he struggled and finished 75th, at 2'26" behind Lance Armstrong. "It was 100% controlled by Discovery," said Beloki post Tour. "Everyone else did everything they wished." The Spaniard was impressed with the 2005 edition, even though it was not the best for him. Beloki added, "I liked this Tour, because it has been good and spectacular, with riders willing to fight."

Beloki will be back for the 93rd Tour de France. The Tour next year should be a more open race without the domination of Lance Armstrong. Beloki added, "I have no doubts: my aim is to return to the Tour in 2006, because I believe that I can do something major ... Without Armstrong there, it will change everything and the race will be particularly interesting." BiciRace.com wishes Beloki the best of luck. (Read pre-Tour Interview)

Enrico Gasparotto Looks Good in Tricolore

Gasparotto in Tricolore, photo: Liquigas-Bianchi

After a training stint at high-altitude in Livigno, Enrico Gasparotto (Liquigas-Bianchi) is back and ready for race action. Last weekend at the Brixia Tour he competed for the first time in his new tricolore jersey. Not only did his jersey have the Italian colors but also his slick bicycle. His Bianchi Freccia Celeste HC was painted in Red, White and Green to honor his achievements. Next on the young Italians race schedule is the HEW-Cyclassics. Gasparotto added, "I'd like to be already competitive in the Hamburg [HEW] Cyclassics to help our captain Danilo Di Luca, the leader of ProTour. Then, I'll take part in Tour of Benelux and then look for a personal success."

Luk Challenge 2-Man TT

This Saturday is the Luk Challenge, a 2-man TT in Bühl. It is a 10.6K course, along the Rhine, that will be covered seven times. Many big names are down on the start list for the race. T-Mobile's Alexander Vinokourov will be pairing up with Italian Daniele Nardello. The double Tour stage winner, Vino, will be on flying form. They will face Giro d'Italia champion, Paolo Savoldelli, who is pairing with Yaroslav Popovych. The Discovery Channel pair is fresh off the Tour de France, where Popo won the white jersey and Il Falco took a stage victory. BiciRace.com has its euro on the heavy favorites, Uwe Peschel and Michael Rich (Gerolsteiner).

List of starters (subject to change):
Crédit Agricole: Moreau Christophe, Wiggins Bradley
Team CSC: Roberts Luke, Schleck Frank
Team CSC: Julich Bobby, Voigt Jens
Davitamon-Lotto: Merckx Axel, Roesems Bert
Discovery Channel: Popovych Yaroslav, Savoldelli Paolo
Gerolsteiner: Fothen Markus, Lang Sebastian
Gerolsteiner: Peschel Uwe, Rich Michael
Quick-Step: Rogers Michael, Sinkewitz Patrik
Rabobank Posthuma Joost, Wauters Marc
T-Mobile: Nardelo Daniele, Vinokourov Alexander

Ullrich Back In HEW

Jan Ullrich will make his return to racing this Sunday in the Hew-Cyclassics. Last Sunday he finished 3rd in the Tour de France, and now heads to race in his home country. Jan will join forces with co-leader, Erik Zabel, for the 250K race. The selection is likely to happen on the Waseberg climb, where Ulle can show his power. It is a narrow and cobbled climb that will be tackled four times by the peloton. If Ulle does not get into the race winning move on the climbs then expect to see fast-man, Zabel, in at the sprint.

Full T-Mobile Roster:
Jan Ullrich, Erik Zabel, Sergey Ivanov, Andreas Klier, Steffen Wesemann, Eric Baumann, André Korff, and Stephan Schreck

Freire Still Sore and Training

3X World Champion, Oscar Freire of Rabobank, is still waiting to return to full training mode. The Spaniard was operated on six weeks ago to remove a benign tumor from his under-side. He is still having problems getting substantial training due to the problems in the saddle. After missing the Tour de France, this continuing problem is now putting his Vuelta a España in doubt. Freire's main goal is to win an unprecedented 4th World road title in Madrid this Fall.

27 July News ...