Astana appoint Lapage as directeur sportif

Lorenzo Lapage is the newest and final Directeur Sportif to be appointed to the 2010 Astana outfit, the Kazakh ProTour team has announced. The 43 year-old is a former professional with extensive management experience with US-based teams.

The Belgian rode professionally from 1987 to 2002, both on the road and the track, including Six-Day races. After his retirement from riding, he became a Directeur Sportif by US Postal Service and Discovery Channel. Most recently he has worked with Rock Racing Team.

"I am a very happy man that I am finally back in a ProTour team,” he said, according to the Belgian newspaper Het Niuewsblad. “Rock Racing, along with Rudy Pevenage, was a fun adventure, but that's something else. I am not in an unfamiliar world right now because I know many people from my time at Discovery Channel."