First Edition Cycling News for May 29, 2005Edited by Anthony Tan Armstrong on Ullrich: "He's the one who wakes me up early every morning"In an interview on Eurosport during the 17th stage of the Giro d'Italia, six-time Tour de France winner Lance Armstrong lent a few of his thoughts on what he's seen so far, and what he's likely to see come the 2005 Tour. Like most pundits, the 33 year-old Texan said he was pleasantly surprised by his team-mate Paolo Savoldelli's performance: "We viewed him as someone who had a lot of potential and a lot of experience. He was a logical choice as team leader for the Giro," he said. Inevitably, talked turned to the month of July, where Armstrong made clear that Savoldelli will be a key lieutenant for him in his attempt on Tour title #7. And regardless of the outcome, win or lose, he also made clear that 2005 will mark his last appearance as a professional rider at La Grand Boucle. "If you lose one at the age of 34, I don't think you have a great chance of winning one at 35," Armstrong said. "There are no guarantees that I'll win, but I can tell you that I'm more excited than ever to race. For me, to win a final Tour and then be able to stop immediately after is a dream." Despite a resurgent Ivan Basso, and the appearance of a new crop of Grand Tour riders such as Damiano Cunego, Armstrong also said it was 1997 Tour champion Jan Ullrich who presents the biggest obstacle to a seventh Tour de France victory. "Jan is the big threat," said Armstrong. "He's the one who wakes me up early every morning. He says he wants to beat me in the Tour de France. Well, this is his last chance." Voigt a winner, but unlikely to defend title"I think, maybe Jens can win the time trial on Saturday, but of course it's a shame he didn't make the decisive break. Now we're hoping for Linus or Nicki to do a good time trial as well, in order for us to still have a shot at the overall victory," said Team CSC's directeur sportif Kim Andersen after the third stage of the Bayern Rundfahrt. Yesterday in Kulmbach, Germany, Andersen's hopes were realised, as Voigt took out the Stage 4 time trial, beating a class field of riders that included Michael Rich (Gerolsteiner), Alexandre Vinokourov and Andreas Klöden (T-Mobile) and Uwe Peschel (Gerolsteiner). Not only that but their young German signing Linus Gerdemann finished seventh, and is now their best-placed rider in third overall. "Linus continues to impress us and once again demonstrated his vast talent. This is only his second race for Team CSC and he's now third overall and leads the best young rider's classification," Andersen said. "The organizers had made a mistake with the timing, so at first we thought that the Polish rider Bartosz Huzarski sensationally had won the stage," he added. "But the mistake was soon corrected and Jens got his spot on the podium. Piil also did really well today and is definitely on his way to top form ahead of the Tour." With only 31 riders making the cut on Stage 3, who all gained at least 18 minutes on the field, Jens Voigt (Team CSC) will require a minor miracle to defending his title from last year, but as well as Gerdemann, the team also has Nicki Sørensen, who is 2'17 behind the race lead of Gerolsteiner's Michael Rich. Kazakhstan rider Alexandre Vinokourov (T-Mobile) is in second place, 22 seconds behind Rich. The Bayern Rundfahrt concludes today with a 174.4 kilometre road stage from Kulmbach to Neumarkt. Montreal World Cup survives - justCanadian Press reported last Friday that this year's edition of the Montréal World Cup was in danger of being cancelled until a cash injection from two levels of local government came up with an extra $200,000 Canadian dollars to keep the race alive. In addition to its usual $40,000 contribution, Montréal's municipal government chipped in an extra $100,000, with the Québec government also donating $100,000. "It would have been sad if it wasn't held," said local hero Lyne Bessette, who raced alongside countrywoman and now four-time winner Genevieve Jeanson [2001, 2003-05] in yesterday's race. Bessette finished 18th, a minute behind Jeanson. The 2005 edition of the Montréal World Cup was the eighth edition of the race, and the round seven of the 11-race series. It is also the only women's World Cup held in North America. The four-day Le Tour du Grand Montréal stage race follows, starting Monday, May 30, with Nurnberger's Judith Arndt back as defending champion. Liberty Seguros for Llodio and Bicicleta VascaAs the 2005 Giro d'Italia winds its way to its final destination in Milano today, Spanish ProTour team Liberty Seguros-Würth will also be competing in the Gran Premio de Llodio. Directed by Marino Lejarreta, David Etxebarria and Ángel Vicioso will lead a strong line-up that also includes Carlos Barredo, Jesus Hernández, Aaron Kemps, Dani Navarro, Luis León Sanchez and Iván Santos. From next Wednesday, the same team will also be taking part in the Bicicleta Vasca (Euskal Bizikleta) minus Aaron Kemps and Iván Santos, with René Andrle and Giampaolo Caruso will fill their places. After his abandon at the Giro, Koldo Gil will not take part in the race in order to properly recover from tendonitis in his knee. US cyclist banned for two yearsThe United States Anti-Doping Agency (USADA) announced that cyclist Randy Dreyer of Chapel Hill, North Carolina, has accepted a two-year suspension for testing positive to the banned stimulant phentermine. Dreyer, 33, tested positive for the drug at the USCF/USPRO Criterium Championships in Downers Grove, Illinois, on August 22, 2004. Phentermine is a prohibited stimulant under the USADA and Union Cycliste International (UCI) doping protocols. Dreyer's two-year period of ineligibility began on May 23, 2005, the date he accepted the suspension, with credit given from November 1, 2004, the beginning of his provisional suspension. In addition, he forfeits his results and winnings since the test, including his 22nd place finish in the 2004 USCF/USPRO Criterium Championships. USA Cycling, the national governing body for cycling in the United States, will carry out the sanction.
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