Caisse d'Epargne name nine men for Tour

Spain's Caisse d'Epargne confirmed today all nine of its men who will start in the Tour de France Saturday in Monaco. Its roster includes 2007 Tour de France winner Oscar Pereiro.

The nine men are Spaniards David Arroyo, Iván Gutiérrez, Luis Pasamontes, Oscar Pereiro, José Joaquín Rojas, Luis León Sánchez, Portugal's Rui Costa, France's Arnaud Coyot and Colombia's Rigoberto Uran.

Caisse's highest-ranking rider in the 2008 Tour de France was Spain's Alejandro Valverde. A two-year suspension in Italy for his involvement in the 2006 doping investigation, Operación Puerto, prohibits him from racing. The race passes through Italy on stage 16.

Caisse confirmed he would be left off the team last week.

The team has many options for the overall classification. Arroyo rode well last year and finished 30th overall. Sánchez is going well so far this year with overall wins in the Paris-Nice and Tour Méditerranéen stage races.

The three-week stage race starts July 4 and ends Sunday, July 26, in Paris.