Team Talk 10 - updates

Last time all thights were on the Tour of Flanders, but now we switch to the probably the most infmaous of the Spring Classics, Paris Roubaix. In the world of cycling, or even sport in general can offer up such a sporting spectacle as this 'Queen of Races'. The cobbles, (Pave sectors) made for pragmatic purposes are now being saved for the purpose of sport and tradition. Milram and Astana also talk 'Turkey'. Plus a jail sentence for a doper.

We have found the voting of who would win the race fascinating - Fabian Cancellera has jumped ahead,

Paolo Bettini is having an unlucky period. The World Champion, protagonist during the first stages of the Vuelta al Pais Vasco, was forced to pull-out of the race after a terrible fall during a downhill section 60 kilometres into the race.

“It had just started to rain – Bettini explains – in order not to run any risks I backed off from the group a little to get my rain jacket passed to me from the team car. For a second I had to take my hands off the handle bars whilst I put the rain jacket on. In that instant Alexandre Botcharov came speeding past me hitting my front wheel which sent me flying into the air. We were doing about 60 kilometres per hour downhill!”

After picking himself up, Bettini got back on his bike and rode for a further 20 kilometres but in the end was forced to stop because of the pain he was in. “I just wasn’t able to stay on my bike any longer” – the World Champion added.

Paolo Bettini was submitted for x-rays at the General Hospital of Cecina (Li). The checks have excluded any fractures to his left hip, but have underlined the fracture of his 8th left rib. "I have suffered a lot this past couple of days. I hurt all over but today I am a little more optimistic. Last year I rode more than two weeks at the Giro with a cracked rib," said Bettini in a statement, promising to get back in the saddle as soon as possible.

Meanwhile at the GP Cerami, Giovanni Visconti gained today an excellent 2nd place behind Swiss athlete Patrick Calcagni (Team Barloworld) at the end of a very impressive race that saw him a main player and protagonist.

“I am pleased with today’s result – Visconti said - with this his last race before the Amstel Gold Race. Things are looking good ready for the classic Ardennes races. I am also happy with how my program has gone leading me up to the Classic races. Last year I took part in the Vuelta al Pais Vasco during which I fell ill. This year things are going a lot better”.

The Quickstep team for Paris Roubaix are: Tom Boonen, Wilfried Cretskens, Steven De Jongh, Stijn Devolder, Kevin Hulsmans, Matteo Tosatto, Wouter Weylandt and Maarten Wynants. D.S.: Wilfried Peeters.

Milram's Classics specialists will take on the challenge of the "Hell of the North“. Led by Ralf Grabsch, the Team will ride the 106th edition of the famous one-day Classic Paris-Roubaix. Directeur Sportif Antonio Bevilaqua will also look to Germans Christian Knees, Enrico Poitschke, Markus Eichler and Martin Müller, as well as Fabio Sabatini (Italy), Martin Velits (Slovakia) and Netherlands youngster Niki Terpstra.

"We have a number of options, depending on how the race develops, to be at the front in the final,“ said MILRAM's General Manager Gerry van Gerwen."Last year Ralf Grabsch showed that he can do well in a race like this. Niki Terpstra is in outstanding form right now. Overall our team is doing well. Basically, every one of our riders is good for a surprise on Sunday, if we build on our performance in Gent-Wevelgem and continue to work together as a team.“

Roubaix team is: Christian Knees (GER/Euskirchen), Enrico Poitschke (GER/Gera), Fabio Sabatini (ITA/Monsummano Terme), Markus Eichler (GER/Mönchengladbach), Martin Müller (GER/Berlin), Martin Velits (SVK/Riemst;BEL), Niki Terpstra (NED/Krommenie), Ralf Grabsch (GER/Hürth). DS: Antonio Bevilaqua (ITA)

U-23 World Champion Peter Velits sprinted for a stage win on the Vuelta al Pais Vasco and has been harrying race leader Alberto Contador, throughout. "That was another strong team performance“, said Milram's Directeur Sportif Oscar Pellicioli. "The guys were once again very concentrated all day and in the front at the right time. Of course we will try to keep Peter in the top ten. That will be the assignment for the next days.“

Looking more like hios old slef, Igor Astarloa has scored some good stage finishes at Pais Vasco, on this climbers race.

Erik Zabel just missed the podium in a close finale in the 70th Gent-Wevelgem. The 37 year-old sprinter put in a great performance in a race run under the best conditions. "I am very satisfied with the performance of our team,“ said Gerry van Gerwen, Milram's general manager. "Of course it is too bad, to just miss the podium, but the manner in which we presented ourselves today was very positive."

The second climb up the Kemmelberg broke the peloton into two large groups. About 25 km before the finish line, the escapees were overtaken and the finale, which was marked by numerous attacks, was opened."Then we really had to work hard to hold the field together so that we Erik could hit the final sprint,“ said Milram's Martin Müller.

Alessandro Petacchi leads Milram in Turkey
The Team starts its Giro preparations with Turkish stage race

Alessandro Petacchi will lead Team Milram in the 44th Presidential Cycling Classic in Turkey. The team will use the more than 1000 kilometers from Istanbul to Alanya as the first step in its preparation for the upcoming Giro d'Italia (May 10-June 1). "I feel better and could train properly again in the last few days“, said Alessandro Petacchi. "The race in Turkey is a good place for us to get ready for the Giro.“

The stages 2008:
13.04. Criterium: Istanbul (76,2 km)
14.04. 1st Stage: Izmir - Kuþadasý (132,7 km)
15.04. 2nd Stage: Kuþadasý - Bodrum (165,9 km)
16.04. 3rd Stage: Bodrum - Marmaris (166,8 km)
17.04. 4th Stage: Marmaris - Ölüdeniz (177,7 km)
18.04. 5th Stage: Kalkan - Finike (100,1 km)
19.04. 6th Stage: Finike - Antalya (115,8 km)
20.04. 7th Stage: Antalya - Alanya (136,6 km)
Total length: 1071,8 km

Team: Alberto Ongarato (ITA/ Servazzano), Alessandro Petacchi (ITA/ Lido di Camaiore), Artur Gajek (GER/Bergisch Gladbach), Christian Kux (GER/Chemnitz), Elia Rigotto (ITA/Creazzo), Marco Velo (ITA/Mazzano)

Team Barloworld show Paris-Roubaix form as Calcagni wins the GP Cerami in a sprint.

The Team Barloworld riders currently based in northern Europe showed they are ready for Sunday’s prestigious Paris-Roubaix classic, with Patrick Calcagni winning the 43rd edition of the GP Pino Cerami race in Wasmuel, Belgium.

Team Barloworld’s Baden Cooke has been thinking about Paris-Roubaix for at least a year and has always found extra motivation for the spring classics in northern Europe. His goal is to be in the thick of the action on Sunday, knowing that a great ride will lead to a great result. Cooke is convinced he can do well and Team Barloworld believes in him while also having at least three other riders who can do well on the pave.

On Thursday morning, just as the team was leaving for the GP Pino Cerami race, Baden Cooke told directeur sportif Valerio Tebaldi that he preferred not to race so that he could train alone and focus on Paris-Roubaix. Tebaldi is an experienced directeur sportif who knows how to understand and trust his riders. He told Cooke: “Baden, if you feel this is the best thing for you, I’ve no problem about you missing the race.”

“We saw two very different performances from Baden in the Tour of Flanders,” team manager Claudio Corti explains. “Until the 200 km point, Cooke looked good and was always in the right place at the right time. Then suddenly the lights went out and Baden didn’t get the result he deserved and we’d all hoped for.”

The reasons for the disappointment include a bike change during the race and a back problem. “There are definitely some improvements to be made to Baden’s position on the bike,” Corti explains. “We’ve already started to work on it and things are getting better. I think the biggest problem at the Tour of the Flanders was that Cooke didn’t eat enough and ate at the wrong time. When he ran out of energy and tried to resolve the situation, it was far too late.”

Hopefully the lessons learnt will be useful at Paris-Roubaix: on the cobbles it is important to keep the bike under control and eating can often be a problem.

Patrick Calcagni boosted everybody’s moral by winning the GP Pino Cerami “I don’t win a lot and who knows when
it’ll happen again, so please take a lot of photographs,” Calcagni joked to the photographers at the finish. “I have to admit that I’ve felt good recently and I’m happy to have won for both myself and for the team. I’m convinced we can do well at Paris-Roubaix.”

Rob Hunter is hoping Calcagni is right. He has struggled in recent weeks but was strong at the GP Pino Cerami and was in the long breakaway that helped set up Calcagni for his victory. “Rob has been a bit ill recently,” explains Tebaldi. “He had a temperature before coming to Belgium and has had some stomach problems here. However he’s been working hard and we’re convinced he’ll be in form soon. Perhaps he already is…”

Team Barloworld’s fourth rider for the cobbles is Paolo Longo Borghini. He was the best rider in the Tour of Flanders and impressed at both Ghent-Wevelgem and the GP Pino Cerami. “My role is to help the team leaders but when I’m on form I know I can also try and stay with the leaders,” the Italian said.

Chris Froome, Daryl Impey, Carlo Scognamiglio and Marco Corti complete the Team Barloworld line-up for Paris-Roubaix. The team is motivated to do well after winning two races during their long stay in northern Europe and are quietly hoping for a prestigious third win.

Lampre have been riding the toughest cobblestones parts over the few days of the Paris-Roubaix route, starting from the 8th one (De Querenaing a Maing) to the 19th one (Mons en Pevele) for more or less 70 kms (Arenberg included).

Lampre’s riders will use special bikes. Baldato and Ballan will have carbonium frame, while the other blue-fucsia cyclists will use iron ones: Murro and Bandiera will have cyclocross frames. Forks will be in carbonium, special Vittoria tyres of 27”. Mechanics give the chance to the riders to use an additional frame set on the handlebar. After training, riders will choose the gears they’ll use during the race.

Sunday Paris-Roubaix will be probably the last one for Baldato and Fornaciari (they both stop to race at the end of the season). “I will give my best, I will save no energies – Fornaciari said – In my 12th Roubaix I want to realize an outstanding performance for me and for the team”.

Fourteen participations in the Hello of North. This is Fabio Baldato, that approaches his last Roubaix with grind: “I’m in a very good fit, I will run at the top: Sunday will be an emotional day”.

AFP report: Danish oufit CSC will be fired up to make amends for their debacle on the cobble of the snow-hit Flanders last week when they line up two former champions at Paris-Roubaix this Sunday.

CSC go into the 259.5km cobblestoned classic, known ominously as the 'Hell of the North', as big favourites having won the past two years through Swiss Fabian Cancellara and Australian Stuart O'Grady.

A rare hat-trick of wins is credible, and will be further boosted by their bid to banish the demons of last week's Tour of Flanders where they were decimated by crashes and punctures.

However CSC, and every other team lining up for the second of the cycling season's one-day 'monuments' - after Milan-SanRemo - are aware the race has a flavour all of its own that can leave even the best prepared, and most determined teams with a painful aftertaste.

It was in dry and sunny conditions last year that O'Grady rode off the front to become Australia's first winner in Roubaix. But after years of being chewed up by the tough northern classics, he knows the ride into 'Hell' - which this year could be hit by cold and rain - can be frought with danger, and tough opponents.

"We'll be one of the teams to beat. But there's a lot of good riders and a lot of good teams out there," O'Grady told AFP after he failed to finish in Flanders last Sunday. "To win these big classics it takes a lot more than a lot of good luck. Everything has to fall in your favour on the day."

Luck becomes arguably the number one factor in Paris-Roubaix, which this year includes 28 sectors of cobblestones totalling 52.8 of the race's total. The ever-present likelihood of punctures is the reason most of the peloton try to ride on the side of the road where the rugged cobblestones are flatter.

But even with the possibility of being handed a replacement wheel or bike from a team car, the reduced chances - in the event of disaster - of catching runaway rivals makes puncturing or crashing something everyone wants to avoid.

It's exactly what happened to former three-time Tour of Flanders runner-up Leif Hoste when, despite being given a new bike by his team car after his gears broke, he was left playing catch-up for the remainder of Sunday's race.

Hoste, who also has a solid record in Roubaix but has yet to win, knows good fortune plays a major role. "The most important thing I can do is hang with the best. Winning depends on the details," he told Sporza.be.

Predicted rain and cold temperatures will also be giving the peloton cause for concern and will barely hearten O'Grady, who suffered in the chill of Flanders last week. The Australian is still searching for full form following the serious crash at last year's Tour de France which has compromised his early season, and so CSC are likely to ask Kurt-Asle Arvesen, Lars Bak and Matti Breschel to do their best to support Cancellara.

The Milan-SanRemo champion will still have to fight off the threat of Belgium's 2005 champion Tom Boonen, and a handful of other contenders.

Boonen is possibly still smarting after his Quick Step teammate Stijn Devolder rode away with 26km to go to claim victory in Flanders last week, and victory Sunday would more than make amends for what has been a comparably mediocre season so far for the former world champion.

Rabobank's Juan Anotonio Flecha is another contender, and he could give Spain their first win on the race having finished second behind O'Grady last year and placing third last week in Flanders."You never win Paris-Roubaix by luck alone, but you can't just go on the rampage on the cobblestones without keeping your wits about you. In this race, anything can happen."

American George Hincapie will be backed by a confident High Road team that will be dedicated to grinding out a win - if they get luck on their side. "All we need is a bit of luck because luck is a key factor in Roubaix," said team manager Brian Holm. "I always spend the whole of the race with my fingers crossed, hoping that nobody will puncture at the wrong moment or crash."

Boonen said he is determined to make amends for his mediocre season so far by winning the prestigious Paris-Roubaix one-day classic. The 'Hell of the North' takes place Sunday over 259.5 km, almost 53 of which are ridden over 28 sectors of rugged, and often treacherous cobblestones.

Boonen won the race for the first time in 2005, and goes into Sunday's epic knowing it could be his last chance to save his season after being upstaged by Quick Step teammate Stijn Devolder at the Tour of Flanders last week. "I'm not saying I'm going to be the definite winner, but on my side everything is as ready as it will ever be for me to be the champion," said Boonen, the former world champion. "Now we just have to see how the race unfolds. In Paris-Roubaix, the circumstances are usually a lot more important than the condition of the riders."

Danish oufit CSC will also be fired up to make amends for their debacle on the cobble of the snow-hit Flanders last week when they line up two former champions Sunday. Swiss Fabian Cancellara won in 2006 and Australian Stuart O'Grady claimed victory last year.

However CSC, and every other team lining up for the second of the cycling season's one-day 'monuments' - after Milan-SanRemo - are aware the race has a flavour all of its own that can leave even the best prepared, and most determined teams with a painful aftertaste. "To win these big classics it takes a lot more than a lot of good luck.
Everything has to fall in your favour on the day," warned O'Grady.

Luck becomes arguably the number one factor in Paris-Roubaix, where the ever-present likelihood of punctures and crashes makes the race one mostly of attrition. Boonen believes he is on better form than last week but is wary of a bunch of fellow favourites, with Sweden's former winner Magnus Backstedt his number one rival.

"I was in good form last week for Flanders, but I'm in even better shape now after the training sessions we've done this week," added Boonen. "The favourites will be the same as in Flanders, but I think Magnus Backstedt is a serious contender. From what I can gather he's been preparing for Roubaix pretty seriously."

"If I win tomorrow, it will be a miracle," said Stuart O'Grady, whose bid will be further compromised by his dislike of the forecasted rain and cold temperatures that threaten to make the pave sectors even more treacherous.

However the veteran Aussie will be key among an apparently solid team dedicated to taking Cancellara past as many of those sectors as possible before he launches a trademark burst for the finish line. CSC manager Scott Sunderland points to 2005 winner Tom Boonen, his fellow Belgian Leif Hoste and Spaniard Juan Antonio Flecha as their main rivals.
But he believes his outfit, on paper, have the recipe for success.

"Fabian will be our undisputed team leader, but we also have a few other cards to play in the race," said Sunderland, who has experience on the race both as a winning manager, and as a member of the Alessio team when Sweden's Magnus Backstedt won in 2004. "They're well-drilled, communicate well and they have so much experience of racing together. They know what needs to be done."

Cancellara has waved away the significance of his 23rd place finish at last week's much hillier Tour of Flanders, which led to some, including Boonen, to suggest the Swiss had lost some of the early season form which brought him success at Milan-SanRemo. "It doesn't matter what some people think about what kind of form I have after Flanders," said Cancellara.

"I am feeling 100 percent more confident than last week, and I'm more than ready for Paris-Roubaix."
Cancellara's words carry even more weight as, physically, he is more suited to Roubaix than Flanders, where lighter riders who can climb and also handle the cobbles usually come out on top.

As Boonen continues his search for that first elusive big win of the season, Cancellara reminded the Belgian: "This is the last chance in these kind of classics for a lot of big riders, the pressure is on them." With rain and cold temperatures set to make an unwelcome appearance, the race to the Roubaix velodrome could become one of attrition that could annul the pre-race hopes of even the strongest.

"If it's wet on Sunday, it will be a totally different race, a different sport even," said O'Grady, who abandoned in Flanders when cold, rain, snow and a couple of punctures took their toll on the sun-loving Aussie.
Even more difficult cobblestones, of which there are 28 sectors on the road to Roubaix totalling 52.8 km, from the ones in Flanders will be the contenders' biggest enemy.

More from Stuart O'Grady.
But despite an admitted lack of form the Aussie is determined to play a key role in his CSC team's bid for a third victory in the world's toughest one-day bike race.

"We're going there to win, and we're going to have to take risks," said O'Grady, who is primed to work for team leader Fabian Cancellara as he estimates his own form to be only "85 percent".

"If Fabian has a bad day then one of us can go up the road and take his place. That's the strength of our team."

That is exactly what O'Grady did last year when 2006 winner Cancellara felt he didn't have the legs to go all the way, and promptly told his Aussie teammate to go for broke over 20km from the finish line.

This year O'Grady is hoping the big German-speaking Swiss keeps to his pledge to bring CSC their third consecutive crown. Indeed for the Australian, going over the 52.8km of cobblestones on the 259.5km 'Hell of the North' - albeit in possible rain and cold conditions - will prove another major step on his long road to full rehabilitation.
O'Grady was left anxious over his career after a spectacular crash at last year's Tour de France which left him with multiple fractures.

It took him weeks to even move, never mind think about getting back on a bike to go for a simple training ride.
"I lay in bed for six weeks and for the first four weeks I couldn't move a thing," said the Adelaider.
"Eventually I decided I was going to go on the bike (home trainer). My wife thought I was mad, but I did 20 minutes and it was a huge relief."

Hitting the roads near his home in Monaco proved an even bigger challenge, which O'Grady overcame and then celebrated in the simplest of fashions. "The first time I decided to finally go out and ride on the road it took me an hour to leave the house!" he added. "I had all the gear on, but hung around washing my bike and just generally wasting time. I think in the back of my mind I was too scared of going out and injuring my back hitting a pothole.

"In the end I rode all the way to SanRemo. When I got there I was so happy I sat down and had coffee for about an hour." O'Grady admits it would "be a miracle" if was to emerge victorious in the Roubaix velodrome on Sunday, when the likes of Tom Boonen, Juan Antonio Flecha and a handful of other favourites will be battling CSC for the prestigious cobblestone trophy.

He added: "It's not just luck you need in this race. You need to be more than 100 percent, and I'm below that, maybe about 80 to 85 percent. "But we're going into the race with no pressure. Some teams haven't won classics (Cancellara at Milan-SanRemo) and semi-classics like we have. "It'd be a dream come true if we won for a third time here."

Andreas Klöden and his Astana Cycling Team mates will participate in the Tour of Turkey. The 44th Presidential Tour of Turkey will run from Sunday April 13th to Sunday April 20th, consisting of 1 Grand Prix in Istanbul and 7 Stages.

It was Astana Team Director Alain Gallopin who made the choice to ride this race. "I can tell you that my goal is to discover new horizons for cycling. I have noticed that the conditions in Turkey are ideal for the teams with an early start for the criterium and a small transfer to Izmir. From there, we’ll be staying in the start-finish town every day, we’ll be able to enjoy a magnificent landscape and the riders will benefit from a maximum of recovery time. It’s really appealing. We also want to do our best to thank the organizers who accepted us to race this year. So I can promise a great race from April 13 to 20. It is a pity that, due to a dental operation, we cannot count on our sprinter Tomas Vaitkus, but our team will not pass unnoticed in the coming week."

The team line-up Presidential Tour of Turkey: Assan Bazayev, Koen de Kort, Benoît Joachim, Andreas Klöden, Gregory Rast and Andrej Zeits D.S.: Alain Gallopin

AFP report: A French court on Friday handed down an 18-month custodial jail term to Bernard Sainz, a homeopathic practitioner, after he was found guilty of administering doping products to athletes and practising medicine without a licence.

Sainz, nicknamed Docteur Mabuse after the character created by writer Norbert Jacques, received a three-year sentence overall following a March 26 and 27 trial and must serve 18 months behind bars. His lawyer said he would appeal.

The squad for Paris Roubaix are: Pavel Brutt, Ilya Chernetsky, Nikita Eskov, Alexander Gottfried, Mihkail Ignatyev, Alberto Loddo, Bernardo Riccio e Alexander Serov.

TEAM CSC (CSC) - Sporting Manager : SUNDERLAND Scott
001 O’GRADY Stuart
002 ARVESEN Kurt-Asle
003 BAK Lars
004 BRESCHEL Matti
005 CANCELLARA Fabian
006 JOHANSEN Allan
007 KLOSTERGAARD Kasper
008 LJUNGQVIST Marcus

RABOBANK (RAB) - Sporting Manager : VAN HOUWELINGEN Adri
011 FLECHA Juan Antonio
012 BOVEN Jan
013 FLENS Rick
014 HAYMAN Mathew
015 HORRILLO Pedro
016 LANGEVELD Sebastian
017 LEEZER Tom
018 POSTHUMA Joost

CYCLE COLLSTROP (COS) - Sporting Manager : VAN DER SCHUEREN Hilaire
021 WESEMANN Steffen
022 BOZIC Borut
023 GILING Bas
024 GOLAS Michal
025 KOPP David
026 MARCATO Marco
027 PRONK Matthé
028 SMITH Raynold

SILENCE - LOTTO (SIL) - Sporting Manager : REDANT Hendrik
031 HOSTE Leif
032 DE VOCHT Wim
033 ROELANDTS Jürgen
034 SENTJENS Roy
035 TJALLINGII Maarten
036 VAN AVERMAET Greg
037 VAN SUMMEREN Johan
038 VANSEVENANT Wim

LIQUIGAS (LIQ) - Sporting Manager : SCIREA Mario
041 POZZATO Filippo
042 BODNAR Maciej
043 CHICCHI Francesco
044 FISCHER Murilo Antoniobil
045 FRANZOI Enrico
046 KUSCHYNSKI Aleksandr
047 QUINZIATO Manuel
048 WILLEMS Frederik

QUICK STEP (QST) - Sporting Manager : PEETERS Wilfried
051 BOONEN Tom
052 CRETSKENS Wilfried
053 DE JONGH Steven
054 DEVOLDER Stijn
055 HULSMANS Kevin
056 TOSATTO Matteo
057 WEYLANDT Wouter
058 WYNANTS Maarten

HIGH ROAD (THR) - Sporting Manager : HOFFMAN Tristan
061 HINCAPIE George
062 EISEL Bernhard
063 GRABSCH Bert
064 HAMMOND Roger
065 KLIER Andreas
066 KNAVEN Servais
067 REYNES Vicente
068 SIEBERG Marcel

LAMPRE (LAM) - Sporting Manager : BONTEMPI Fabrizio
071 BALLAN Alessandro
072 BALDATO Fabio
073 BANDIERA Marco
074 BOSSONI Paolo
075 FORNACIARI Paolo
076 MORI Massimiliano
077 MURRO Christian
078 NAPOLITANO Danilo

GEROLSTEINER (GST) - Sporting Manager : HOLCZER Hans-Michael
081 FOTHEN Thomas
082 GATTO Oscar
083 HAUSSLER Heinrich
084 KRAUSS Sven
085 LANG Sebastian
086 SCHRECK Stephan
087 WESTPHAL Carlo
088 WROLICH Peter

TEAM MILRAM (MRM) - Sporting Manager : BEVILACQUA Antonio
091 GRABSCH Ralf
092 EICHLER Markus
093 HAUEISEN Dennis
094 KNEES Christian
095 MÜLLER Martin
096 POITSCHKE Enrico
097 SABATINI Fabio
098 TERPSTRA Niki

COFIDIS CREDIT PAR TELEPHONE (COF) - Sporting Manager : DELOEUIL Alain
101 NUYENS Nick
102 DE WEERT Kevin
103 DUCLOS-LASSALLE Hervé
104 HEIJBOER Mathieu
105 HOJ Frank
106 MINARD Sébastien
107 SCHEIRLINCKX Staf
108 VALENTIN Tristan

AG2R-LA MONDIALE (ALM) - Sporting Manager : LAVENU Vincent
111 ELMIGER Martin
112 DION Renaud
113 KRIVTSOV Yuriy
114 MANGEL Laurent
115 MONDORY Lloyd
116 NAZON Jean-Patrick
117 POULHIES Stéphane
118 VANDENBERGH Styn

FRANCAISE DES JEUX (FDJ) - Sporting Manager : MADIOT Marc
121 GUESDON Frédéric
122 CHAVANEL Sébastien
123 DELAGE Mickaël
124 GERARD Arnaud
125 GUDSELL Timothy
126 LADAGNOUS Matthieu
127 MENGIN Christophe
128 OFFREDO Yoann

CAISSE D’EPARGNE (GCE) - Sporting Manager : LEDANOIS Yvon
131 COYOT Arnaud
132 DRUJON Mathieu
133 ERVITI Imanol
134 GARCIA ACOSTA Vicente
135 GUTIERREZ José Ivan
136 PASAMONTES Luis
137 PORTAL Nicolas
138 ROJAS Jose Joaquin

SKIL-SHIMANO (SKS) - Sporting Manager : IMANISHI Hisalumi
141 LHOTELLERIE Clément
142 CURVERS ROY
143 DEN BAKKER Maarten
144 DEROO David
145 GOESINNEN Floris
146 SIEDLER Sebastian
147 VEELERS Tom
148 WAGNER Robert

TOPSPORT VLAANDEREN (TSV) - Sporting Manager : PLANCKAERT Walter
151 EECKHOUT Nico
152 BARBE Koen
153 DE HAES Kenny
154 GHYLLEBERT Pieter
155 GODDAERT Kristof
156 HOVELYNCK Kurt
157 NEYENS Maarten
158 VANSPEYBROUCK Pieter

AGRITUBEL (AGR) - Sporting Manager : HUBERT Emmanuel
161 CASPER Jimmy
162 BERGES Emilien-Benoît
163 CAETHOVEN Steven
164 COUTOULY Cédric
165 GAZTANAGA Mikel
166 ISTA Kevin
167 LEQUATRE Geoffroy
168 SINNER Benoit

LANDBOUWKREDIET - TÖNISSTEINER (LAN) - Sporting Manager : VERHASSELT Gino
171 STEELS Tom
172 BELLEMAKERS Dirk
173 BOUCHER David
174 KUYCKX Jan
175 MEIRHAEGHE Filip
176 NEYRINCK Kevin
177 STANNARD Ian
178 VAN MECHELEN Wouter

CREDIT AGRICOLE (C.A) - Sporting Manager : BEUCHERIE Serge
181 HUSHOVD Thor
182 BODROGI Laszlo
183 ENGOULVENT Jimmy
184 HINAULT Sébastien
185 HUNT Jérémy
186 RASCH Gabriel
187 RENSHAW Mark
188 TALABARDON Yannick

BOUYGUES TELECOM (BTL) - Sporting Manager : ARNOULD Dominique
191 CLERC Aurélien
192 GENE Yohann
193 LABBE Arnaud
194 MARTIAS Rony
195 PICHOT Alexandre
196 PÜTSEP Erki
197 RENIER Franck
198 TURGOT Sébastien

SAUNIER DUVAL - SCOTT (SDV) - Sporting Manager : ALGERI Pietro
201 ALARCON GARCIA Raul
202 BELOHVOSCIKS Raivis
203 CAPELLI Ermanno
204 DEL NERO Jesus
205 FLAHAUT Denis
206 GOMEZ Angel
207 PAGLIARINI Luciano
208 PASSERON Aurélien

EUSKALTEL - EUSKADI (EUS) - Sporting Manager : CARBAYEDA Xavier
211 AGIRRE ASEGINOLAZA Josu
212 ALBIZURI Benat
213 APERRIBAY Lander
214 ARAMENDIA Javier
215 FERNANDEZ DE LARREA Koldo
216 IRIZAR Markel
217 OROZ Juan José
218 PEREZ Alan

TINKOFF CREDIT SYSTEMS (TCS) - Sporting Manager : MAINI Orlando
221 IGNATIEV Mikhail
222 BRUTT Pavel
223 CHERNETSKIY Ilya
224 ESKOV Nikita
225 GOTTFRIED Alexander
226 LODDO Alberto
227 RICCIO Bernardo
228 SEROV Alexander

BARLOWORLD (BAR) - Sporting Manager : CORTI Claudio
231 HUNTER Robert
232 CALCAGNI Patrick
233 COOKE Baden
234 CORTI Marco
235 FROOME Christopher
236 IMPEY Daryl
237 LONGO BORGHINI Paolo
238 SCOGNAMIGLIO Carlo

SLIPSTREAM CHIPOTLE (TSL) - Sporting Manager : MARIE Lionel
241 BACKSTEDT Magnus
242 DEAN Julian
243 FARRAR Tyler
244 FRIEDMAN Michael
245 FRISCHKORN William
246 LAURENT Christophe
247 MAASKANT Martijn
248 SUTTON Christopher

Jan Ullrich

AFP report: Disgraced former Tour de France winner Jan Ullrich is to pay out a million euro fine to end a fraud case which German prosecutors have been investigating, Focus news magazine reported on its website Saturday.

Prosecutors accused the 1997 Tour de France winner of taking performance-enhancing drugs, leading under German law to fraud charges against the 34-year-old on the basis he deceived the public, sponsors and his team.

Under German law, Ullrich, who retired early last year, had the option to settle the matter out of court if he paid the million euros, which Focus reported he had agreed to do.

German law does not recognise doping as such, hence the charge of fraud. The former leader of the T-Mobile team always denied doping although in April last year German officials indicated that DNA tests had suggested blood samples uncovered in the wake of the Puerto investigation in Spain were from Ullrich.