Sastre to ride Vuelta

Carlos Sastre is expected to announce today that he will ride the Vuelta a España, reports AS. The Spaniard, who finished one place behind Denis Menchov in last year's race, will join his compatriots Oscar Pereiro and Alejandro Valverde as some of the top stars for the Spanish tour.

Menchov, who is yet to find out whether he was first or second in last year's race pending an appeal by Roberto Heras, will return to defend his placing, while Euskaltel's Haimar Zubeldia and Iban Mayo will also be in the picture.

A number of these riders showed their good form in the Clasica San Sebastian last Saturday, where Menchov, Sastre and Mayo comprised what was nearly the race winning breakaway. But Valverde and his team managed to chase the trio down in the last 5 km, setting things up for a surprise win by Xavier Florencio (Bouygues Telecom).

The Vuelta organisers also announced the prize list for this year's race, which totals €1 million. The winner will receive €220,000.