Local racer to lead Milram Tour de France favorites in Bavaria

Bavarian racer Sebastian Schwager of Ansbach will wear the blue jersey of Team Milram during the International Bayern Rundfahrt, a 2.HC tour running through his home region from May 28 to June 1. For his second start in the race, Schwager will be joined by two team-mates who won stages in the 2006 edition of the race, Björn Schröder and Ralf Grabsch.

"Of course I am very much looking forward to the Bayern Rundfahrt," said Schwager. "I have trained very well in the last few weeks and even spent two days in the mountains. My form is right and I hope for good results. Plus, the second stage finishes in my new home, Neusäß, and the races ends on Sunday in Erlangen, which is near to my hometown of Ansbach. You can bet that gives me a lot of motivation."

Milram will field a strong team including five racers who hope to contest the Tour de France. In addition to Schröder and Grabsch, Tour pre-selections Christian Knees, Martin Müller and Dutch youngster Niki Terpstra will be racing in Bavaria under the guidance of Directeur Sportif Jochen Hahn. In addition, Artur Gajek will return to racing after a long break due to injury. In the middle of April, in the Tour of Turkey, he suffered a painful bruise on his bottom.

Team Milram for Bayern Rundfahrt: Artur Gajek, Christian Knees, Björn Schröder, Martin Müller, Ralf Grabsch, Sebastian Schwager , Niki Terpstra.