First Edition Cycling News, Tuesday, July 28, 2009

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Date published:

July 28, 2009, 17:00

• Stevens eyes stars and stripes jersey

  

  Article published:

  July 27, 2009, 22:23

  By:

  Cycling News

  Cycling newcomer a contender for US elite women's road championship

  Evelyn Stevens captured her second consecutive National Racing Calendar (NRC) stage race title at the BMC Cascade Cycling Classic, after winning the Fitchburg Longsjo Classic just one week prior. The bike racing newcomer has her eyes set on winning a stars and stripes jersey at the Elite US National Championships held from July 28-August 2 in Bend, Oregon.

  "You never know," Stevens said. "It's going to be a hard race and there are a lot of really strong women out there. It will be based on how you ride it and possibly even having the luck that day. Of course I'm going to give it my best go."

  The national road championship will provide some tough competition including current US national time trial champion, Alison Powers (Team Type 1), and the reigning double national champion in the road race and criterium, Brooke Miller (TIBCO), along with her teammates Amber Rais, Katharine Carroll and Lauren Tamayo. Other strong contenders for the win include Kathryn Mattis (Webcor-Builders), Shelley Olds (Proman Hitsquad), Jessica Phillips (LipSmackers), Kristin McGrath and Chrissy Ruiter (Value Act Capital) among many other standout women.

  Stevens heads into the national championships on good form having won the six-stage Cascade Cycling Classic, while guest riding for the Webcor-Builders team, ahead of power-house Amber Rais (TIBCO) who placed second and US National Time Trial Champion Alison Powers (Team Type 1) who placed third.

  "There were only six of us but it felt like there were 25 Webcor riders out there," said Stevens. "I think we all gave it everything we had to keep me in the jersey and it was super hard. I couldn't have won this race without them, there's no way. Each and every one of those riders gave everything they got. It's awesome... really cool to have won two stage races."

  Stevens grew up in Boston, Massachusetts but now calls New York City her home. She joined the Century Road Club Association's (CRCA) after encouragement from family members. Much of her race preparation is carried out in New York's famed Central Park or across the George Washington Bridge in New Jersey.

  Though she recently guest rode for team LipSmackers and Webcor-Builder, Stevens will race the championships for CRCA. "I decided I wanted to race in my regional team's clothing for nationals," Stevens said. "I think it's a nice way to kind of say goodbye to them."

  Stevens, 26, has taken a break from a career in finance and is trying her hand at bike racing. She upgraded quickly from Cat. 4 to Cat. 1 after wins in Vermont's Green Mountain Stage Race last September and Arizona's Valley of the Sun in February. She went on to compete as a Cat. 1 rider in California's Redlands Bicycle Classic and Minnesota's Nature Valley Grand Prix this summer.

• War of words erupts between Contador, Armstrong

  

  Article published:

  July 28, 2009, 00:04

  By:

  Shane Stokes

  Gloves off after Tour

  The duo may have kept things relatively civil during the Tour de France but now that the race is over, it seems the gloves are off between Alberto Contador and Lance Armstrong, first and third overall at the French Grand Tour. On Monday Contador finally gave his full thoughts on the team situation. During the Tour he had played down talk of conflict, saying that the media was exaggerating the tension between the two race winners and that things were better than rumours suggested.

  However as the finale drew closer, the cracks were definitely starting to appear, with both Armstrong and team boss Johan Bruyneel publicly faulting Contador’s tactics after Wednesday’s stage to Le Grand-Bornand. Then on Saturday Armstrong chose to go for a meal and wine with the sponsors of the new Radioshack team rather than attend the Tour win celebration for Contador.

  On Sunday the chemistry between the two on the podium was notably very cool, with no congratulation of the Spaniard’s win; by Monday, all pretence at diplomacy was ditched by both riders.

  “My relationship with Lance Armstrong is zero," Contador said in a Madrid press conference, according to AFP. “He is a great rider and has completed a great race but it is another thing on a personal level, where I have never had great admiration for him and I never will."

  Armstrong responded via his Twitter feed on Monday evening, and was clearly angry. “Seeing these comments from AC (Alberto Contador). If I were him I’d drop this drivel and start thanking his team. W/o (without) them he doesn’t win.”

  He then followed that up with another message, referring back to comments he made when Contador got the hunger knock in Paris-Nice and lost the race lead.

  “Hey pistolero, there is no ‘I’ in ‘team’. What did I say in March? Lots to learn. Restated,” Tweeted Armstrong.

  While both riders are heading in different directions in 2010, Armstrong to Radioshack and Contador to an as-yet undecided team, both are still contracted to Astana for the remainder of this season. However it now looks highly unlikely that either will compete alongside the other again in 2009.

  Armstrong concluded his ‘gloves-off’ by re-Tweeting a comment by friend and Trek Livestrong director Axel Merckx. “A champion is also measured on how much he respect his teammates and opponents. You can win a race on your own, not a Grand Tour.”

  Contador has not responded as yet, but this could run and run.

• McEwen second on return to racing

  

  Article published:

  July 28, 2009, 02:26

  By:

  Cycling News

  Aussie finishes behind Cavendish in Belgium

  Australian sprinter Robbie McEwen has made a successful return to racing at a post-Tour de France criterium in Aalst, Belgium. McEwen finished second to Tour green jersey runner-up Mark Cavendish (Columbia-HTC).

  “Got second to Cav, felt ok,” McEwen wrote on his Twitter. “Lots more work to do but going right direction. Now work on power plus muscle mass.”

  McEwen’s return in Aalst came one day earlier than expected, with the rider telling Cyclingnews in July today’s criterium in Diksmuide, Belgium would be his return. McEwen suffered a broken leg in an accident during stage two of the Tour of Belgium, his return to racing after being forced to miss the Giro d'Italia through injuries sustained in a crash during the Scheldeprijs Vlaanderen.

  Despite entering the twilight years of a highly decorated career, McEwen has no plans of retiring this season. The sprinter is hopeful of returning to next year’s Tour to challenge the blistering pace demonstrated by Cavendish.

  "I've got a contract until the end of next year; I'll definitely still be going around, for sure,” said McEwen. “And I hope I'm still going around at the front and able to win races. I think that's realistic –

  “I've broken my leg but I haven't snapped it off! I've still got two legs and I'm already riding the bike,” McEwen said in June. “With a lot of hard work I would expect to reach the same level again."

• Rasmussen second on cycling return

  

  Article published:

  July 28, 2009, 03:14

  By:

  Cycling News

  Dane back from two year ban

  Michael Rasmussen has contested a cycling race for the first time since his International Cycling Union (UCI) suspension concluded on July 25. The Dane finished second to Aleksejs Saramotins (Team Designa Køkken) at the Designa Grand Prix in Kjellerup, Denmark.

  While the UCI is pursuing Rasmussen for a fine of one year’s salary in a case that will be heard by the Court of Arbitration for Sport, the governing body hasn’t yet opposed his return to racing. "As Mr Rasmussen has also appealed to the CAS to contest his pledge, the UCI has decided not to oppose Mr Rasmussen's return to competition, pending the CAS's judgment," the UCI told AFP.

  Rasmussen’s return to cycling comes two years and two days after he won the Tour de France’s decisive stage 16, virtually assuring him of victory. That night he was fired by his Rabobank squad and secretly removed from the country as details of lies Rasmussen told over his whereabouts began to emerge.

  

  Italian cycling commentator Davide Cassani, himself a former professional, revealed he has seen Rasmussen training in Italy’s Dolomites on June 13, 2007. Rasmussen’s whereabouts form, which is regularly submitted to the UCI for anti-doping purposes, had Rasmussen in Mexico at this time.

  Rasmussen had appealed a Monaco Cycling Federation decision on July 1, 2008 to ban him for two years. The ban was upheld by CAS in January this year, seeing him banned from the sport for two years since his victory on the Col d’Aubisque.

  See the full results and photos from Rasmussen's return here.

• Gippsland gets 70 percent bigger

  

  Article published:

  July 28, 2009, 07:21

  By:

  Cycling News

  Record field for Australian race

  The fifth Lakes Oil Tour of Gippsland has attracted a record field of 143 cyclists from all Australian states and New Zealand. Tour director John Craven said he was thrilled by the field size, up 70 percent on last year.

  “It’s not only the numbers, it’s the quality which will make this tour a great spectacle,” Craven said.

  World omnium champion Leigh Howard, Beijing Olympian Jack Bobridge, Melbourne Commonwealth Games gold medallist Sean Finning, Victorian road champion David Pell and top New Zealanders Jeremy Yates and Brett Tivers head the entries.

  Geelong’s Leigh Howard, 19, last year went on to triumph in the Scody Cup after winning the Paynesville criterium in the Gippsland tour. He is among the favourites to win the 2009 event.

  “I think people sometimes underestimate how hard these events are,” Howard said. “They come back from overseas expecting to dominate and get a lesson. The intensity of the racing is quite incredible and it will be a very tough challenge to win the Tour of Gippsland.”

  The five-day tour will start on Wednesday, July 29, with a testing 51km stage from Traralgon to Boolarra.

  Start list

  1	Leigh Howard (VIC) Team Jacyo Ais
  2	Jack Bobridge (SA) Team Jacyo Ais
  3	Rohan Dennis (SA) Team Jacyo Ais
  4	Luke Davison (NSW) Team Jacyo Ais
  5	Glenn O’Shea (VIC) Team Jacyo Ais
  6	Michael Matthews (ACT) Team Jacyo Ais
  7	Adam Semple (WA) Team Jacyo Ais
  8	Sean Finning (VIC) Jayco/Vis
  9	James Langedyk (VIC) Jayco/Vis
  10	Johnathan Lovelock (VIC) Jayco/Vis
  11	Michael Gallagher (VIC) Jayco/Vis
  12	Eric Sheppard (VIC) Jayco/Vis
  13	Alexander Smyth (VIC) Jayco/Vis
  14	Trevor Griffiths (VIC) Jayco/Vis
  15	Jeremy Yates (NZ) Oex - Team Enterprise
  16	Eliot Crowther (NZ) Oex - Team Enterprise
  17	Al Dempsey (NZ) Oex - Team Enterprise
  18	Thomas Hanover (NZ) Oex - Team Enterprise
  19	Brett Tivers (NZ) Oex - Team Enterprise
  20	Andrew Ward (NZ) Oex - Team Enterprise
  21	David Pell (VIC) Savings And Loans
  22	Joel Pearson (NSW) Savings And Loans
  23	Timothy Roe (SA) Savings And Loans
  24	Steven Robb (VIC) Savings And Loans
  25	Michael Stallard (SA) Savings And Loans
  26	Jai Crawford (TAS) Savings And Loans
  27	William Dickeson (SA) Savings And Loans
  28	Hayden Brooks (QLD) Fly V Australia
  29	Scott Davis (QLD) Fly V Australia
  30	David Kemp (QLD) Fly V Australia
  31	Chris Pryor (QLD) Fly V Australia
  32	Darren Rolfe (QLD) Fly V Australia
  33	Chris Stack (SA) Team Skins
  34	Russell Gill (SA) Team Skins
  35	Tristan Jones (SA) Team Skins
  36	Lucien Keene (SA) Team Skins
  37	Matthew Benson (SA) Team Skins
  38	Andrew Roe (SA) Team Skins
  39	Nathan Earle (TAS) Praties
  40	Joshua Chugg (TAS) Praties
  41	Jeremy Hills (TAS) Praties
  42	Kyle Marwood (VIC) Praties
  43	Jason Rigg (WA) Praties
  44	William Clarke (TAS) Praties
  45	Ben Mather (TAS) Praties
  46	Brendan Brooks (NSW) Shortis Cycle & Tri-Avanti Plus
  47	Mitchell Pearson (NSW) Shortis Cycle & Tri-Avanti Plus
  48	Daniel Barry (NZ) Shortis Cycle & Tri-Avanti Plus
  49	Mathew Marshall (NZ) Shortis Cycle & Tri-Avanti Plus
  50	Hamish Presbury (NZ) Shortis Cycle & Tri-Avanti Plus
  51	Brendan Schultz (VIC) Titans - Race
  52	Miles Watson (NZ) Titans - Race
  53	James Ibrahim (VIC) Titans - Race
  54	Samuel Witmitz (VIC) Titans - Race
  55	Richard Lang (VIC) Titans - Race
  56	Nathan Elliott (VIC) Titans - Race
  57	Charles Howlett (VIC) Cycle City
  58	Rhys Gillett (VIC) Cycle City
  59	James Mowatt (VIC) Cycle City
  60	Jay Bourke (VIC) Cycle City
  61	Matthew Clarke (VIC) Cycle City
  62	Michael England (NSW) Team Budget Forklifts
  63	Cameron Hughes (QLD) Team Budget Forklifts
  64	Cameron Jennings (QLD) Team Budget Forklifts
  65	Craig McCartney (VIC) Team Budget Forklifts
  66	Peter Ladd (VIC) Team Budget Forklifts
  67	Cody Stevenson (NSW) Team Budget Forklifts
  68	Malcolm Rudolph (QLD) Team Budget Forklifts
  69	Stephen Rossendell (TAS) Champion Systems/Cannondale
  70	Bradley Norton (VIC) Champion Systems/Cannondale
  71	Ben Grieve-Johnson (TAS) Champion Systems/Cannondale
  72	Timothy Walker (TAS) Champion Systems/Cannondale
  73	Luke Ockerby (TAS) Champion Systems/Cannondale
  74	Nick Morgan (TAS) Champion Systems/Cannondale
  75	Danny Pulbrook (TAS) Champion Systems/Cannondale
  76	Nick Aitken (VIC) Team 2Xu - Arc
  77	Silas Fisher (VIC) Team 2Xu - Arc
  78	Kane Walker (VIC) Team 2Xu - Arc
  79	Peter Smith (VIC) Team 2Xu - Arc
  80	Jacob Sutherland (VIC) Total Rush
  81	(TBA) () Total Rush
  82	Damien Turner (VIC) Total Rush
  83	Gary Mueller (VIC) Total Rush
  84	Glen Peterson (VIC) Total Rush
  85	Michael Knoff (VIC) Total Rush
  86	Timothy White (VIC) Total Rush
  87	Christopher Klem (QLD) Dm Drafting
  88	Joel Lewis (QLD) Dm Drafting
  89	Joshua Hislop (QLD) Dm Drafting
  90	Sean Turner (QLD) Dm Drafting
  91	Steven Rankine (QLD) Dm Drafting
  92	Matthew Wood (QLD) Dm Drafting
  93	Evan Corry (QLD) Dixon Homes
  94	Tobias Boylan (QLD) Dixon Homes
  95	Peter Aquilina (QLD) Dixon Homes
  96	Ian Johnston (QLD) Dixon Homes
  97	Harry Rassie (QLD) Dixon Homes
  98	Damian Harris (VIC) Dixon Homes
  99	John Cornish (VIC) Prime Estate Buyers Agents
  100	Reece Stephens (VIC) Prime Estate Buyers Agents
  101	Rob Doyle (VIC) Prime Estate Buyers Agents
  102	Deon Locke (QLD) Prime Estate Buyers Agents
  103	Peter Braunsteins (VIC) Apollo Bicycles
  104	Samuel Beveridge (VIC) Apollo Bicycles
  105	James Henry (VIC) Apollo Bicycles
  106	James Herd (VIC) Apollo Bicycles
  107	Trent Williams (VIC) Apollo Bicycles
  108	Thomas Donald (VIC) Search2Retain
  109	Hugh Forrest (VIC) Search2Retain
  110	Hugh Singleton (VIC) Search2Retain
  111	Edward Bissaker (ACT) Suzuki-Canberra
  112	Sam Genge (ACT) Suzuki-Canberra
  113	Alastair Loutit (ACT) Suzuki-Canberra
  114	Mitchell Fay-Lovelock (ACT) Suzuki-Canberra
  115	Adam Phelan (ACT) Suzuki-Canberra
  116	Marc Williams (ACT) Suzuki-Canberra
  117	David Cripps (TAS) Lawson Homes
  118	Matt McDonagh (TAS) Lawson Homes
  119	Tom Robinson (TAS) Lawson Homes
  120	Will Robinson (TAS) Lawson Homes
  121	Joel Stearnes (TAS) Lawson Homes
  122	Michael Smith (TAS) Lawson Homes
  123	Stuart Payne (VIC) Loy Yang Power
  124	Stuart Grimsey (VIC) Loy Yang Power
  125	Paul Richards (VIC) Loy Yang Power
  126	Neil Van Der Ploeg (VIC) Loy Yang Power
  127	Scott Liston (VIC) Loy Yang Power
  128	Luke Fetch (VIC) Loy Yang Power
  129	Ben Dyball (VIC) Lakes Oil
  130	Daniel Seagar (NZ) Lakes Oil
  131	Kris Johnston (ACT) Lakes Oil
  132	David Melville (QLD) Lakes Oil
  133	Ben Fleming (QLD) Lakes Oil
  134	Andy McNab (NZ) Work Ways
  135	Samuel Rix (VIC) Work Ways
  136	Peter Johnstone (VIC) Work Ways
  137	Tom Benham (TAS) Work Ways
  138	Brodie Talbot (NSW) Work Ways
  139	Angus Harding (TAS) Work Ways
  140	Daniel Braunsteins (VIC) Drapac Porsche
  141	Angus Morton (NSW) Drapac Porsche
  142	Tom Palmer (ACT) Drapac Porsche
  143	Robbie Williams (NSW) Drapac Porsche

   

• Astana top of the Tour de France's money tree

  

  Article published:

  July 28, 2009, 10:23

  By:

  Richard Tyler

  Perfomances of Contador and Armstrong help team to €33,000 per day

  Astana claimed more than a third of the prize money available at this year's Tour de France. The Kazakh squad amassed €697,050 [approx US$995,000] after it finished the Tour with three riders in the top ten on general classification.

   Alberto Contador won his second Tour de France while Lance Armstrong and Andreas Klöden claimed third and sixth, respectively. Astana also claimed the team classification by virtue of the high overall positions of its riders.

  Andy Schleck's second place at the Tour and stage wins for Fabian Cancellara , Frank Schleck and Nicki Sorenson meant that Team Saxo Bank finished with €362,850, ahead of Liquigas, whose win in the mountains classification through Franco Pellizotti helped to net them €156,360.

  Despite Mark Cavendish's six stage wins Columbia-HTC were fifth on the list, bringing in €102,300 over the three week race.

  The lowest earners were Lampre-NGC, who claimed €17,040. The sum earned by the Italian squad equates to about €811 for each of the 21 stages of the race. In comparison, Astana's total means that they earned, on average, a little over €33,000 per day.

  The list below details the prize money earned by each of the teams that participated in the 2009 Tour de France:

   

  Tour de France Prize Money

  1	Astana	€ 697,050
  2	Team Saxo Bank	362,850
  3	Liquigas	156,360
  4	Garmin-Slipstream	151,870
  5	Team Columbia-HTC	102,300
  6	Cervélo TestTeam	86,710
  7	BBox Bouygues Telecom	63,470
  8	AG2R La Mondiale	54,730
  9	Euskaltel-Euskadi	49,820
  10	Cofidis Le Credit en Ligne	40,690
  11	Team Katusha	36,820
  12	Française des Jeux	35,660
  13	Team Milram	32,830
  14	Caisse d'Epargne	31,540
  15	Rabobank	31,310
  16	Agritubel	27,690
  17	Silence-Lotto	22,570
  18	Skil-Shimano	22,530
  19	Quick Step	17,760
  20	Lampre-NGC	17,040

   

• George Hincapie's collar bone was broken in Tour crash

  

  Article published:

  July 28, 2009, 12:16

  By:

  Daniel Benson and Richard Tyler

  X-rays reveal Hincapie rode Tour's final four stages with break

  George Hincapie has confirmed that he suffered a broken collarbone during the Tour de France, after undergoing x-rays on Tuesday.

  Hincapie announced the news through Twitter on Tuesday morning. "Got some bad news this am. X ray confirmed my collarbone is broken," read the post.

  The Columbia-HTC rider suffered the injury in a crash on July 22, during the Tour's stage 17 from Bourg Saint Maurice to Le Grand Bornand. Cyclingnews spoke to Hincapie a day after his crash, prior to his start in the stage 18 individual time trial in Annecy.

  "It’s about survival," he said. "I don't know if can even get down in the time trial position. It’s about survival and to get better in the next few days. I rode the last 70km injured yesterday but I was able to ride, I was in pain but I could get out of the saddle. I'm hoping I can do the same in the next few days."

  In spite of his injuries, Hincapie rode the final four stages of the Grand Tour. The 36-year-old continued his lead out support for team captain, Mark Cavendish, who claimed six stages during the Tour, including stages 18 and 21.

  Hincapie's crash occurred four days after he came within five seconds of the Tour lead on stage 14. He had been part of a day-long breakaway but fell agonisingly close to the yellow jersey at the finish in Besançon.

  "I'm disappointed I didn't get it [yellow]," Hincapie told Cyclingnews in Annecy. "I'm not the sort of person to start wars in the press or anything so I don't want to reflect on who did what or why. I'm just disappointed that I was so close and that it was one of my last opportunities to wear yellow."

  Hincapie missed out on the race leader's jersey after the teams of then leader, Rinaldo Nocentini (AG2R La Mondiale), and Garmin-Slipstream moved to the front of the bunch. At the time Garmin's involvement in the chase provoked an angry response from Columbia team manager, Bob Stapleton. However Hincapie wouldn't be drawn on the strategy employed by rival teams.

  "Maybe there were some questionable decisions made by other teams," said Hincapie afterwards. "In the sense that they had no benefits in keeping me that close so that’s just racing. You can't ever predict or sway other people’s tactics."

  Hincapie completed the Tour de France on Sunday in Paris. He finished in 19th place on general classification. 2009 marked his fourteenth participation in the Tour.
   

• Andy Schleck linked to RadioShack team?

  

  Article published:

  July 28, 2009, 16:03

  By:

  Cycling News

  Negotiations hitched on brother Fränk

  Is Lance Armstrong trying to recruit the one rider who could match Tour de France winner Alberto Contador in the mountains for his new RadioShack team?

  French newspaper L'Equipe seems to think so, and has linked Andy Schleck, who finished the Tour de France one step above Armstrong on the podium, to the nascent squad.

  The report claims that negotiations between the powerful young Luxembourger and the seven-time Tour de France champion are in an advanced stage, but that Armstrong is reluctant to bring Fränk on board because he thinks the elder brother would hinder Andy's progress.

  According to the Saxo Bank team web site, both Schlecks have a contract with the squad of Bjarne Riis through the 2010 season.