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Garmin-Sharp to select Tour de France squad at last minute

Vansummeren says riders will gather for tests after nationals

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Johan Vansummeren (Garmin-Sharp)

Johan Vansummeren (Garmin-Sharp) (Image credit: Bettini Photo)
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Cancellara and Vansummeren on the 2011 Paris-Roubaix podium

Cancellara and Vansummeren on the 2011 Paris-Roubaix podium (Image credit: AFP)
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The Garmin-Sharp team had all of the warm up bikes ready for the day

The Garmin-Sharp team had all of the warm up bikes ready for the day (Image credit: Jonathan Devich)

The riders of Garmin-Sharp must wait until the last minute to find out if they will be named to ride the Tour de France. The US-based team won't make it's final selection until three days before the race starts, which Johan Vansummeren calls “not a pleasant situation.”

“I'm on a list, but that is very long. The day after the Belgian championship we fly to Girona, where testing will take place,” the 2011 Paris-Roubaix winner told Het Nieuwsblad.

“On the Wednesday before the Tour, the selection will be announced.. You heard it right. Three days before the Tour we know who is going to the Tour. That's not a pleasant situation.”

No one is sure of a spot, not even sprinter Tyler Farrar, Vansummeren said. “I really don't want to have a competition against my colleagues. It should not depend on who rides hardest in a test. Of course I will not win the Tour, but I can play a role for the team.”