Race leader Haimar Zubeldia rides behind a line of RadioShack teammates.(Image credit: Isabelle Duchesne)
Lance Armstrong (Radioshack) in his final Tour(Image credit: Bettini Photo)
Johan Bruyneel ties up a few loose ends before the start of stage one.(Image credit: Stephen McMahon)
Team RadioShack has confirmed 20 riders for the 2011 season, and expects to have a total of 25 to 27 in the team. However team manager Johan Bruyneel has told the Spanish website Biciciclismo that there will be “very few changes” to the team.
19 riders with the team have contracts for 2011: Lance Armstrong, San Bewley, Janez Brajkovic, Matthew Busche, Ben Hermans, Chris Horner, Markel Irizar, Andreas Klöden, Levi Leipheimer, Geoffroy Lequatre, Tiago Machado, Dmitry Muravyev, Sergio Paulinho, Yaroslav Popovych, Gregory Rast, Sebastien Rosseler, Bjorn Selander, Gert Steegmans and Haimar Zubeldia.
Ivan Rovny is expected to renew his contract shortly, making a total of 20 riders.
Bruyneel denied rumours that Horner and Brajkovic would be leaving the team. “Of course they will be with us, they have a contract in force,” Bruyneel said.
The team's contract with Chechu Rubiera ends this year, and the Spaniard has said he would like to stay with the team. However, Bruyneel seems to indicate the team does not feel the same way. “I have yet to hold a conversation with him, so we have not talked about the future,” he told Biciciclismo.
Further signings would probably focus on younger riders. Negotiations with unnamed riders are underway “but for now we cannot announce anything,” Bruyneel said.
The three new young riders could be the team's three stagiares who are riding with the team in the final months of the season: Taylor Phinney, Jesse Sergent and Clinton Avery.
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