BiciRace.com :: News :: October 2005

News :: October 2005

29 October 2005

Floyd Landis to Race Giro d'Italia

Landis In Control, photo: Tour of Georgia

Good news for Italian race fans, Floyd Landis (Phonak) will be racing the 2006 edition of the Giro d'Italia. No-Fuss Floyd regards the Giro as a proper way to warm up the legs for the Tour de France one month after. And who knows, if Landis finds himself in a winning position then we could see the first American in pink since the days of Hampsten.

It would be the first time for Landis (30) to compete in the Italian grand tour. This year he approached the Tour de France by racing the Tour of Georgia and then the Critérium du Dauphiné Libéré. He won the Rome TT stage of the Georgia race, finished 11th overall in the Dauphiné and ninth in La Grand Boucle. For the 2006 Tour Floyd hopes to demonstrate his abilities in the two TT's and the stage to L'Alpe d'Huez. Bravo Floyd, good luck in 2006, and we look forward to seeing you on the strade Italiane.

Magnus Backstedt Ready To Rock Hour Record

Magnus Backstedt (Liquigas-Bianchi) will hit the wood today in England. Big Backstedt is going for the derny paced hour record at the Newport Velodrome in Wales. The Swede (30) has to be the current record holder, Dutch Matthé Pronk. Last November in Pronk covered 66.114K, 1.568K more than Belgian Theo Verschueren, who had been the holder since 1970.

"Pronk set an excellent record, but it is beatable," said Backstedt from England. "I'm optimistic because I feel in great form. I've trained close to 30 hours with Paul Spender, my derny pacer, and now we are in perfect harmony." The Swede will crunch a huge gear for the attempt, he will be using a 60x13 gearing. That is an amazingly big front gear, but it is one that is suitable to Backstedt's powerful physical characteristics.

The former Paris-Roubaix winner is getting full support from his Liquigas-Bianchi squadra. The Italian team is sending Dario Cioni, Patrick Calcagni and Marco Milesi, who will take to the track before the record attempt. DS Mario Scirea will be there with the cool green team for support and guidance.

Read: Backstedt Goes For Hour Record, 1 October

Euskaltel-Euskadi Update with Mayoz, Albizuri and Pérez

The Basque squadra, Euskaltel-Euskadi, will bring on three important riders in 2006. The orange team has signed Beñat Albizuri (from Orbea), Rubén Pérez (from Orbea) and Ivan Mayoz (from Relax Fuenlabrada). All three Spaniards are 29 years-old and have signed one-year contracts. The riders from Orbea have been pro since the beginning of this year, while Mayoz, who was competitive in this year's Vuelta Ciclista al Pais Vasco, turned pro in 2004.

Euskaltel-Euskadi, founded in 1994, need to add some strength to their team. Their year was up and down, but with more downs. They really failed to impress in the grand tours, but did win the Critérium du Dauphiné Libéré and Tour de Suisse (with Iñigo Landaluze and Aitor González). An ideal situation for 2006 would be to win one of the Pyrenean stages of the Tour de France.

Riders Joining Euskaltel-Euskadi in 2006:
Aitor Hernández (from Team LPR)
Andoni Aranaga (from Kaiku)
Beñat Albizuri (from Orbea)
Ivan Mayoz (from Relax Fuenlabrada)
Rubén Pérez (from Orbea)
Unai Yus (Bouygues Telecom)

Riders leaving the orange squadra:
Aitor Silloniz (Euskaltel-Euskadi to ??)
Alberto López de Munaín (Euskaltel-Euskadi to ??)
Egoi Martínez (Euskaltel-Euskadi to Discovery Channel)

28 October News ...