Unibet left out of Vuelta

Organizers announced Wednesday the complete list of 21 teams invited to the Vuelta España for the 2007 edition.

Invitees included Astana, winners of the 2006 edition, the 18 original ProTour teams per the announced Grand Tour team selection criteria of mid-December, and two additional teams, Andalucia Caja Sur and Karpin Galicia, selected from a pool of candidates who applied for the remaining spots.

Notably absent from the list was Unibet.com, which has been caught up in the ongoing dispute between the UCI and the promoters of the three Grand Tours. Unibet.com is the only ProTour team not invited to the Vuelta.

The Vuelta is scheduled for September 1 to 23. In 2006, Alexandre Vinokourov (Astana) finished ahead of Alejandro Valverde (Caisse d'Epargne-Illes Balears) and Andrey Kashechkin (Astana).

Teams for 2007 Vuelta: Astana, AG2r Prévoyance, Bouygues Telecom, Caisse d'Epargne-Illes Balears, Cofidis Le Crédit Par Telephone, Crédit Agricole, Discovery Channel, Euskaltel-Euskadi, Française des Jeux, Gerolsteiner, Lampre-Fondital, Liquigas, Predictor-Lotto, Quickstep-Innergetic, Rabobank, Saunier Duval-Prodir, T Mobile Team, Team CSC, Team Milram., Andalucía Caja Sur, Karpin Galicia.