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26 August 2006

28 August News ...

A Caisse Vuelta

The 61st Vuelta a España kicks off today in the south of Spain. Teams will line up for the 7.3K team crono this evening in Málaga for the first of 21 stages, departing every four minutes. Caisse d'Epargne-Illes Balears, departing at 20.24, will be one to watch. In their ranks are Alejandro Valverde, ProTour leader who will be racing in all-white, and Oscar Pereiro, probable Tour de France champion.

Valverde, winner of this year's Flèche and Liège, had set his July aims on riding for the GC in the Tour de France, a touch of wheels and a broken collarbone later, the Spaniard had to readjust his season, focusing instead on the Vuelta a España and a run at the World Championships. The Green Bullet will be joined by friend, teammate and [probable] Tour de France champion, Oscar Pereiro. The Spaniard took over team leadership for Caisse in the Tour de France, and it paid off; the 29 year-old is soon to be crowned king of the Tour [following some sticky legal stuff with Landis].

"I feel very much in the same form that I had for the Tour before I retired with a broken collarbone," explained The Green Bullet. "I am dreaming to win this race. The rivals that I will be watching are Menchov, Sastre, Danielson and also Mayo. Zubeldia could possibly be a surprise. Vinokourov is, of course, part of the discussion; he will be very motivated given what happened to his team with the exclusion from the Tour."

One of the other rivals could also be pending Tour de France winner, Pereiro. The Spaniard is committed to working with his Bullet-like teammate and will be given chances of his own depending on how the Vuelta pans out.

"I see Marchante [Saunier Duval-Prodir] as a rival," added Pereiro. "But Alejandro is the strongest of them all. We are not rivals. We are friends. ... The problem for me is that I have not trained much. The problem was the rest, for which the time disappeared very quickly. [Referring to the time between the Tour and Vuelta.] But I feel well and I want to start strong to see what is possible."

Team Crono Start Times
Relax-GAM (ESP) 19:12
Lampre-Fondital (ITA) 19:16
Davitamon-Lotto (BEL) 19:20
Phonak (SUI) 19:24
Française Des Jeux (FRA) 19:28
Crédit Agricole (FRA) 19:32
T-Mobile (GER) 19:36
Bouygues Telecom (FRA) 19:40
Liquigas (ITA) 19:44
Ag2R Prévoyance (FRA) 19:48
Cofidis (FRA) 19:52
Milram (ITA) 19:56
Quick-Step (BEL) 20:00
Gerolsteiner (GER) 20:04
Saunier Duval-Prodir (ESP) 20:08
Euskaltel-Euskadi (ESP) 20:12
Discovery Channel (USA) 20:16
Astaná (KAZ) 20:20
Caisse d'Epargne-Illes Balears (ESP) 20:24
Team CSC (DIN) 20:28
Rabobank (HOL) 20:32

Koldo Gil Stopped - Operación Puerto

Spaniard Koldo Gil (28), winner of the Pistoia stage in the 2005 Giro d'Italia with Liberty Seguros-Würth and four wins this season, has been stopped from participating in the 2006 Vuelta a España at the last moment by his squadra Saunier Duval-Prodir.

Wednesday the UCI had sent the teams the list of riders who were involved in the Operación Puerto investigation and thus, not allowed to race. Something did not seem correct when Thursday all the riders of the Vuelta a España were tested, minus one, Koldo Gil. The Spaniard was replaced at the last minute by José Alberto Benítez.

Yesterday, BiciRace.com reported that Gil's absence was due to under-preparation but in fact his name was found to be on the documents confiscated when the Guardia Civil raided the offices of Doctor Eufemiano Fuentes. In chapter seven of the investigators report, which was sent at the end of June to the UCI and Tour de France, the name Koldo Gil appears. On page 33 there is a comment that refers to EPO (Erythropoietin) use by the Spaniard during last year's season with Manolo Saiz's Liberty Seguros-Würth squadra.

BiciRace.com wondered just how long the UCI was going to wait to send the names to the teams. Could they have waited one more day, moving even closer to the start of the beautiful Vuelta a España, to make this case even more dramatic? Come on UCI! You have had plenty of time to hand these documents over to the teams so that they could make arrangements in their racing schedules and team structure; by doing so at the last minute only further tarnishes cycling's reputation when the eyes of the world are focusing in on a grand race.

T-Mobile Loses Klöden to Astaná

Andreas Klöden (31) will race the 2007 season with Kazakh team Astaná. The German, not wanted by T-Mobile after his friend, Jan Ullrich, was involved in a nasty doping scandal, will form a strong force with his old crony, Alexander Vinokourov.

Reported on Klöden's personal website, the German said, "After much consideration, I took a decision. In the coming season, I will race for Astaná. ... The departure from T-mobile, after so many years, certainly is not easy, but I look to the future and to a new challenge!"

VDB is Back! Naturino-Sapore di Mare Offers Spot

In the wake of the news that Frank Vandenbroucke was racing with a false license in amateur races in Italy, there has been an offer from Naturino-Sapore di Mare to put VDB back in the professional level.

Yesterday, Vincenzo Santoni, Team Manager of Naturino-Sapore di Mare, proposed to Francesco Del Ponte, err Vandenbroucke, a contract for the remainder of 2006 and 2007. Santoni and Vandenbroucke spoke on the phone, and the two are supposed to meet this Monday to make final arrangements. The offer, which would allow VDB to stop thrashing the amateurs at local races, would be a base wage with bonuses for certain race results.

Vandenbroucke, who is discussing the offer with his wife, Sarah, indicated that he was excited by Santoni's proposal, and looking forward to a return to the pro peloton.

Read:
VDB is Back as Boonen, 25 August
Frank Vandenbroucke Confirms with Unibet.com, 2 December 2005
UniBet.com and VDB, 26 October 2005
Mr. Mojo Risin', 8 June 2005
VDB Returns to Battle in Dunkirk, 4 May 2005
VDB: 19th New Beginning, 29 April 2005
Frank Vandenbroucke to Start Paris-Roubaix, 8 April 2005

Unibet.com Goes ProTour

Professional Circuit Team Unibet.com will be stepping up to the top ProTour level for 2007.

In 2006, the Belgian registered squadra changed names from MrBookmaker-Sports Tech to Unibet.com and bumped up their team roster with some solid signings. Unibet.com will make the third Belgian squadra in the ProTour but will likely be registered as a Swedish squadra.

"This is a result of year's hard work," commented Team Manager Terryn Koen. "The work really begins now; we are missing some twenty riders for next season."

It was great news for Unibet.com, who will no longer have to rely on wild card spots to race in cycling's top races.

Antonio Bucciero Returns

Il Napoletano Antonio Bucciero (24) will return to the professional ranks in 2007 with Panaria-Navigare. Already with Claudio Corti' Saeco in 2003 and 2004, Bucciero stopped cycling in the spring of last year.

Re-finding his love for cycling, Bucciero, who bases himself in Brescia, will join the orange squadra of Bruno Reverberi for 2007. The two met yesterday morning to finalize the new contract.

61st Vuelta a España, 26 August - 17 September
Main, Startlist
Stages and Maps, Key Stages, Overall Map
Photos, The Dust Devil's Daily Wrap
2005 Results

25 August News ...