Alberto Contador leads Astana at Dauphiné

Astana has announced its line-up for the upcoming Dauphiné Libéré, June 7-14. The team's leader, Alberto Contador, will have the support of the following riders in the race preparing for the Tour de France: Alexandr Dyachenko, Jesús Hernández, Benjamín Noval, Sergio Paulinho, Sergey Renev, Tomas Vaitkus and Haimar Zubeldia.

The Dauphiné starts this Sunday with a prologue in Nancy. Contador, winner of the 2007 Tour de France, has never won the event leading up to the Grand Tour. Since his last race, the Vuelta a Pais Vasco in April, the Spaniard has reconnoitred the Tour's mountain stages in the Pyrenees and the Alps.