Road

Suspended Vuelta a España champion Roberto Heras has had an initial attempt to file civil proceedings against a two-year doping ban rejected, his lawyer Jose Maria Buxeda told AFP on Monday. The Spaniard won his fourth Vuelta last September but was later stripped of his record-breaking title after testing positive for blood-booster EPO following the penultimate stage time-trial. Buxeda said a court had rejected a bid to start civil proceedings, arguing it was "premature,” since the government-backed Spanish Committee for Sports Discipline had till the end of May to make a decision on his

Alejandro Valverde has been uncharacteristically quiet so far this season, winning just one stage at the Vuelta a Murcia back in March. Instead, the usually prolific Illes Balears rider has been diligently preparing for the Ardennes classics and the Tour de France, his two major goals for the first half of the 2006 season. Monday’s opening stage of the Vuelta al País Vasco presented a nice testing ground for both challenges. With a bumpy 130km four-climb stage to open hostilities in the six-day race across northern Spain’s Basque Country, including the Cat. 1 Alto de Jaizkibel – an old

Last week, we gave you the word regarding Shimano’s redesign of XTR; today, you get the pictures. And if you’re traveling to the Sea Otter Classic this week, you’ll be able to see the revamped components first-hand adorning the bikes ridden by Adam Craig, Walker Ferguson, Marie-Hélène Prémont, Bart Brentjens and Roel Paulissen. The new Dual Release triggers look extremely adjustable, and the WH-M975 wheelset is sure to be a competitor in the high-end-wheel game. The biggest surprise may be the new Dual Control disc lever, which appears to have a radial master cylinder like the one used by

Proving once again that he thrives under pressure, Belgian superstar Tom Boonen shouldered the hopes of Belgium’s cycling fans and delivered a win for the home team. With the world champion’s rainbow stripes wrapped around his chest, and a real live rainbow arching in the sky overhead, Boonen beat the odds on Sunday to become the first man to win the Tour of Flanders two times in a row since Eric Leman did it in 1972 and ’73.

A year ago, Danilo Di Luca stormed through the month of April, winning the Vuelta al Pais Vasco, Fleche Wallone and Amstel Gold Race that laid the foundation for his overall ProTour title. As the Liquigas rider lines up for Saturday’s GP Miguel Indurain in Spain, Di Luca says his priorities have changed. Don’t expect to see him winning many races until May, when he’ll target the overall crown at the Giro d’Italia. “I’ve changed my preparation this season, so I don’t expect much at Pais Vasco because I am there more for training for the Giro,” Di Luca told VeloNews. “I might try to go for a

It didn’t take nearly as long as some expected for Belgium’s rabid cycling fans to find a new hero to cheer in the wake of Johan Museeuw’s exit from the sport. Here in northern Belgium, known until recently as Lion of Flanders country, one need only witness the support banners and newsstand racks to see the new face of Belgian cycling. Gracing the cover of L’Equipe magazine, which comes with the Saturday edition of the French sports daily, is Tom Boonen, a cycling star with enough wattage to make people forget about the doping controversies that have surrounded Museeuw’s retirement. On the

Despite claims to the contrary, it’s pretty rare these days that a magazine or website will get an exclusive look at a new product. “Sneak previews,” and “spy photos,” tend to be just so much manipulation handed out to us hacks by some cagey character in the PR department, whose giving out the same “exclusive” shots to some other hack, with another magazine’s logo on his pile vest. So we were especially pleased to have an honest-to-gawd exclusive look at the latest creation from an old friend. VeloNews technical writer Lennard Zinn and wheel guru Steve Hed go back quite a few years and it

Tom Boonen can rest easy this weekend knowing that his Quick Step-Innergetic teammates will be backing him 100 percent as he enters Sunday’s Tour of Flanders as the heavy favorite. The defending Flanders champion – who didn’t race the final stage at Three Days of De Panne on Thursday to avoid a crash – will count on support from teammates Paolo Bettini and Filippo Pozzato to protect him in the hectic Flanders finale. “I’m in better condition this year as opposed to the same time last year,” Boonen said in a team release. “Last year I fell during the De Panne, injuring my hand. This year

Most of the rabid cycling fans lining the Halsesteenweg at Meerbeke, Belgium, this coming Sunday afternoon, will be hoping for a repeat of the 2005 Tour of Flanders result: a win for favorite son Tom Boonen. Those fans know that Quick Step-Innergetic’s Boonen’s not a shoo-in because the 258km course that faces the likely 200 starters is full of potential pitfalls: diabolical pavé stretches like the Paddestraat, steep hills like the 400-meter, 12.5-percent Paterberg, and countless off-camber blind turns that guide the riders through a maze of narrow back roads through the lush green

Tom Boonen is the new leading light of cycling. The strapping world champion seems to be the sparkle in everyone’s eye, from salty old cycling fans to Belgian beauties who swoon at the very sight of him in his rainbow jersey. At 24, Boonen has replaced the retired Lance Armstrong as the top draw among fans, at least if crowds outside team buses at spring races are any fair barometer of riders’ magnetism. Boonen-mania seems to be in full flight and there’s no sign of it abating anytime soon. Dubbed a Merckx for a new century, Boonen is poised to defend his double Flanders-Roubaix titles

Belgium's Leif Hoste (Discovery Channel) won the Three Days of De Panne Thursday after claiming victory in the fourth and final stage. Hoste dominated the final leg of the race, an 11km individual time trial, finishing ahead of teammates George Hincapie and Stijn Devolver, who crossed 14 and 18 seconds slower, respectively. Austria's Bernhard Eisel (Française des Jeux) took second overall at 30 seconds back with Luis Leo Sanchez Gil (Liberty Seguros) third at 1:05. —Agence France Presse Stage1. Leif Hoste (B), Discovery Channel, 14:17:992. George Hincapie (USA), Discovery Channel,

Bernhard Eisel (FDJeux) made a ferocious sprint Wednesday to win the 227km second stage at the Three Days of De Panne and grabbed the overall lead for the effort. Eisel – who finished second in Tuesday’s opener -- came around Baden Cooke (Unibet.com) and out-kicked Danilo Napolitano (Lampre) to score the emphatic victory and nudged into the leader’s jersey thanks to time bonuses. A three-man break dominated most of the day’s action with Discovery Channel glued at the front of the peloton to protect the jersey for overnight leader Leif Hoste. Lampre, Quick Step and Davitamon-Lotto surged to

T-Mobile’s Tour de France hopeful Jan Ullrich has had to delay the start to his 2006 season as a knee problem has forced him to withdraw from the circuit de la Sarthe in France on April 4. T-Mobile team doctor Andreas Schmid confirmed Wednesday that Ullrich had irritated an old injury to his right knee sustained in early March and was not fit to race at Sarthe. "I was really looking forward to competitive racing," said a disappointed Ullrich. "From now on I will pay more attention to ensure the irritation is fully healed, then I can progressively increase the training load,” he said. "When

Dear readers, Back at Christmas, I threw in a letter from a reader claiming that rotating weight makes almost no difference on a wheel – that it takes negligible energy to bring it up to speed, and that the only thing that really matters when climbing is the overall weight of the bike, not how it’s distributed. Since then, I have gottena lot of mail about this, and a trip to France last week piqued my interest in this subject again. Perhaps some of you remember when I did a test in VeloNews seven years ago (in the 6/28/99 issue) of wheel inertia by building a rotational pendulumin my garage.

Shimano has taken a back seat to the competition’s barrage of buzz this winter. Eerily quiet until recently, declining to release any 2007 product information, Shimano began testing its new E-Dura-Ace group right as the ProTour season kicked into full swing. Now, less than two weeks away from the Sea Otter Classic, which traditionally opens the domestic mountain-bike season, Shimano has announced preliminary details of its redesigned ’07 XTR group. Though images of the complete group are unavailable (scroll down for photos of other new Shimano goodies), a trained eye can spot bits and pieces

Leif Hoste (Discovery Channel) shot to victory in Tuesday’s opener at the Three Days of De Panne with a late burst to win a three-up sprint after a 50km breakaway held off the peloton. Hoste sprang with just about 75 meters to go to come around the hard-charging Austrian Berhnard Deisel (FDJeux) and Gert Steegmans (Davitamon-Lotto) to win the 194km stage from Middelkerke to Zottegem under sunny skies that saw many riders in short sleeves. "It was nice to win today after all the second and third places," Hoste told Belgian journalists. "It was very windy today and I’m not yet thinking about

Ivan Basso’s emphatic victory in this weekend’s Criterium International left no doubt that the Italian is right on target for more important goals later in the season. With the win, Basso joins a growing list of contenders fighting for bragging rights with impressive early season victories. For Basso, his real challenges come in May’s Giro d’Italia and July’s Tour de France, but his win at Criterium International gives clear notice to his rivals that he’ll be ready. “I know that I’m in good shape and it’s very important for my preparation before the Giro and the Tour de France,” Basso said.

At the Redlands Bicycle Classic road race Sunday, Amber Neben (SC Velo), Health Net-Maxxis and Toyota-United demonstrated three of the myriad ways to win. In the 100km women’s race, Neben launched a solo attack on the second of nine technical laps and never looked back. In the 148km men’s competition, Health Net-Maxxis used its full team to successfully defend Nathan O’Neill overall lead. And Toyota-United’s Juan Jose Haedo — well, he just sprinted like hell. Scroll down for a gallery of Casey Gibson photos The road race began on Saturday’s criterium course, then climbed up out of

Ivan Basso (CSC) grabbed his first victories of the 2006 season with an impressive display in this weekend’s Criterium International, winning Sunday’s morning road race and sewing up the overall title with a strong afternoon time trial. Only Alberto Martinez (Agritubel) could best Basso in the 8.3km time trial to conclude the three-stage, two-day test under cloudy skies in northern France. For Basso, one of the favorites for July’s Tour de France, the victory is a positive shot of morale going into larger goals coming this season. “I know that I’m in good shape and it’s very important for

Tour de France hopeful Floyd Landis has ruled out competing in the Giro d'Italia as part of his preparation to bid for the yellow jersey in July. Recent Paris-Nice winner Landis, who finished ninth overall on the Tour de France last year, had planned to compete in the three-week Giro (May 6-28) to fine tune his form. Phonak team manager John Lelangue said Sunday there had been a change of plans for July's big race. "Floyd has had a great start to the season so it's better that he has a more relaxed approach to the Tour," said Lelangue, who affirmed however that Phonak would not

Dutch veteran Erik Dekker rekindled his acquaintance with victory by winning the first of the three stages that make up the Critérium International Saturday in Charleville-Mezieres. The Rabobank stalwart, who has struggled for form of late due to injury, outsprinted Italy's Tour de France hopeful Ivan Basso (CSC) and Ukrainian Andriy Grivko (Milram) — both of whom had been earlier breakaway companions — after Spaniard Igor Astarloa (Barloworld) lost control and crashed on the slippery conditions home straight. Astarloa was credited with the same time as the lead group. Basso, the

World road champion Tom Boonen (Quick Step-Innergetic) outsprinted breakaway companion Alessandro Ballan (Lampre-Fondital) to win his third consecutive E3 Prijs Vlaanderen Saturday in Harelbeke , Belgium. Boonen, 25, claimed his 11th victory of the season a little over a week before he will bid to claim his second consecutive Tour of Flanders crown. He thus becomes just the third rider, after Belgian great Rik Van Looy and Dutch great Jan Raas, to win the Harelbeke race three times in a row. Since his stock went sky high last season, Boonen has often been unstoppable when it comes to

Health Net-Maxxis successfully defended Nathan O’Neill’s lead in the Redlands Bicycle Classic criterium Saturday, taking the stage and the sprinter’s jersey in the process. With four competitors less than 30 seconds behind O’Neill after Friday’s time trial — and 44 seconds of bonuses up for grabs — Health Net-Maxxis had one objective in the 90-minute competition: defend. And defend the team did, riding as a compact eight-man unit at or near the front for nearly the entire race, taking most of the inter-race time bonuses and handily reeling in all attacks. And once the defensive objective

Alexandre Vinokourov’s road to the Tour de France won’t be going through Georgia this year. Vinokourov’s Liberty Seguros team isn’t making the trek next month for the Tour de Georgia, and Vinokourov – who won the final stage and the overall at the Vuelta a Castilla y León - will instead defend his title at Liège-Bastogne-Liège. “This year I am preparing everything for the Tour and we are planning to have no pressure before that,” Vinokourov told VeloNews in an interview this week. “I think I can return to the Tour podium.” The battling Kazakh – third overall in the 2003 Tour and fifth last

Australia's women are poised to take over where their all-conquering men left off when the two road racing events are run through Melbourne's picturesque Botanic Gardens on Sunday. But the men's competition remains open with South Africa, New Zealand, Canada and the British riders all in with a chance of usurping the host nation. Even the Isle of Man could spring a surprise. The Australian men crushed their rivals at the 2002 Commonwealth Games in Manchester when European-based professionals Stuart O'Grady, Cadel Evans and Baden Cooke allowed their opponents to take the lead

Belgian police raided the homes of a dozen professional racers Thursday, turning up such banned doping products as EPO, clenbuterol, nandrolone and a mix of human growth hormones and insulin. Police refused to release the names of the riders whose homes were searched, but the Belgian daily Gazet van Antwerpen printed the names of pros from such teams as Unibet.com, Rabobank, Fidea, Skil-Shimano and Palmans. Officials from Unibet.com later confirmed that team rider Geert Omloop, the Belgian national champion in 2003, was among those who received an unscheduled visit from Belgian

Despite having a good excuse for a bad ride, Health Net-Maxxis’s Nathan O’Neill put in the day’s best performance in the opening 5km time trial of the Redlands Bicycle Classic. Fresh off a plane from Australia, where he won the Commonwealth Games time trial, O’Neill smoked the opening section of the 680-vertical-foot course and kept a big gear going over the steeper final part for the winning time of 9:17.82. It may have been California, but it wasn’t exactly a day at the beach — not after that long flight from Oz, right after winning a 40km time trial. "I got off the bike 10 meters after

USPRO national road champion Chris Wherry and Christine Thorburn, winners of the 2005 Redlands Bicycle Classic, will take the start Friday as the 22nd edition of the California NRC race gets under way. Last year, both riders won the opening 1200-vertical-foot, 5km Mt. Rubidoux time trial and barely held onto their leads through the four-stage event. This year, the race consists of the 680-vertical-feet, 5km Centennial Bank time trial, a circuit road race and a criterium in downtown Redlands. Having won last year’s event for Health Net-Maxxis by just seven seconds over Trent Lowe (Jittery

No one really expected Alexandre Vinokourov (Liberty Seguros) to forfeit his leader’s jersey in Thursday’s challenging climbing stage in the Vuelta a Castilla y León. While Marco Fertonani was chasing the second straight stage win for Illes Balears, 29 seconds ahead of Manuel Beltrán (Discovery Channel), Vinokourov shot away from the lead group of favorites to actually extend his lead with just one stage to go. "I felt good and I made my work relaxed. I was on the wheel all day and I attacked in the final kilometer," Vinokourov said. "I feel that I am good looking ahead to the Tour. Today

What a difference a year makes for the Vuelta a Castilla y Leon. In 2005, not one ProTour team lined up in May because of commitments to the Vuelta a Cataluyna and Giro d’Italia. With Setmana Catalana postponed this year, Castilla y Leon was bumped up into its slot in April and now the race is enjoying its best action ever. Witness Wednesday’s exciting 181km march south across Spain’s rolling meseta from Zamora to Salamanca. Wind, attacks, breakaways and tricky finish made for a top-flight day at the races. Spanish veteran Chente García Acosta (Illes Balears) attacked with 800m to go in

Nathan O'Neill and Oenone Wood led Australia to a gold and silver medals sweep of the cycling individual time trials on the oceanside road course Tuesday at the Commonwealth Games in Melbourne, Australia. The seven-time Australian time trial champion, O'Neill finished the 40km course in 48 minutes, 37.29 seconds. Teammate Ben Day was second, 24.38 seconds behind, and New Zealander Gordon McCauley took the bronze. Wood covered the 29km out-and-back course in 37 minutes, 40.87 seconds, 15.2 seconds clear of Kathryn Watt, who won the 1992 Olympic road race for Australia. Their teammate

John Lelangue is a very happy camper these days. A yearago, the former Tour de France official took over the reins at the troubled Phonak team reeling after a string of doping scandals and an overhaul of the team management. Lelangue stepped in along with sport director Juan Fernández to help steer the team through the uncertain 2005 season. A year later, instead of talking about past problems, Lelangue is optimistically looking ahead to the Tour and the promise of team captain Floyd Landis. Following back-to-back victories in the Tour of California and Paris-Nice, Landis and Phonak

Discovery Channel’s Yaroslav Popovych and Jason McCartney went one-two in Tuesday’s 11km individual time trial in the Vuelta al Castilla y Leon, but Alexandre Vinokourov (Liberty Seguros) grabbed the overall lead. Heavy cross- and tailwinds prompted many of the big guns to ride with 55 rings for the mostly flat course across northern Spain’s windswept meseta. McCartney set an early fast time, only to be bested by Popovych by 1.45 seconds. The win marks the first for Discovery Channel in Europe this season to go along with George Hincapie’s two victories in the Tour of California. The

Charles Bradley Huff (TIAA-CREF) won Stage 1 of the 26th Tour de Normandie on Tuesday, outsprinting Spain’s Vidal Celis (Orbea) and France’s Saïd Haddou (Auber 93). "I started my sprint with 300 meters to go, which is way, way too long. But I got it anyway," said Huff. "We were all over the place, as the sprint was nuts, but somehow everyone contributed and it worked well." The 211km stage from Mondeville to Forges les Eaux was long, cold and buffeted with cross winds. Rabobank was ever present at the front of the race, protecting the lead of defending Tour of Normandie champion Kai Reus,

The organizer of the Vuelta a España has decided to defer presenting the golden jersey from the 2005 Vuelta to runner-up Denis Menchov after the rider who won the race and was subsequently suspended for doping, Spaniard Roberto Heras, launched a legal challenge to the sanction. Roberto Heras, who had won a record fourth Vuelta in 2005 while riding for Liberty Seguros, tested positive for EPO after the 20th stage. He drew a two-year suspension from the Spanish cycling federation, which also stripped him of the 2005 title and awarded the victory to Menchov. But a presentation ceremony to a

Spaniard Angel Edo (Paul Versan) won the first stage of the 21st Vuelta Ciclista Castilla y Leon Monday. Edo outsprinted Luis Leon Sanchez and Egoi Martinez to win the 155km stage around Valladolid. Top five1. Angel Edo (Sp), Paul Versan, 155km in 3:45:312. Luis Leon Sanchez (Sp), Liberty Seguros, same time3. Egoi Martinez (Sp), Discovery Channel, s.t.4. Carlos Torrent (Sp), Viña Magna-Cropu, s.t.5. Alexandre Vinokourov (Kaz), Liberty Seguros, s.t. Reus takes Normandie kickoffNetherlander Kai Reus (Rabobank) won the 5.8km prologue of the Tour de Normandie on Monday in

Melbourne, Australia, (AFP) - The Isle of Man claimed just their third gold medal in Commonwealth history in Melbourne Sunday and the man responsible immediately dedicated his stunning win to the father of a promising youngster killed in a freak cycling accident. In an emotion-packed night at Melbourne's Multi-Purpose Venue velodrome, the team from the tiny island in the Irish sea celebrated alongside their near neighbors Scotland as the two comparative minnows smashed Australia and England's golden grip in track cycling. First it was the Scots who raised the roof at the venue,

In a case that could have major implications in the fight against doping in sport, a Swiss civil court late last week under-cut a two-year ban against German rider Danilo Hondo and ruled to allow him to resume racing while the court considers the case. The case is believed to be the first time a civil court has over-ruled a decision by the Court of Arbitration for Sport, a non-governing body charged with settling doping disputes in sport. “There’s never been a ruling like this, when an ordinary court suspends a decision by (CAS),” attorney Michael Lehner told AFP. “It’s a true victory for

Alessandro Petacchi and Tom Boonen lined up as the five-star favorites for Saturday’s 97th running of Milan-San Remo, but it was Boonen’s Quick Step-Innergetic teammate Filippo Pozzato sneaking away as the surprise winner. Pozzato marked an attack by Alessandro Ballan (Lampre-Fondital) near the top of the decisive Poggio climb with about 7km to go and then rode the coattails of a six-man lead group to hold off the fast-charging peloton.

If the cobbles belong to the Belgians, then the Via Roma finishing straight at Milan-San Remo belongs to the Italians. The current king of “La Classicissima” is Alessandro Petacchi, who returns as the heavy favorite and all the pressure that comes with it. His win in the final stage at Tirreno-Adriatico revealed “Ale-Jet” is right on target. “If everything goes right, I know I can win Milan-San Remo for a second time,” Petacchi told reporters. “The final Poggio climb will be the key to the race. If I can get over it with the leaders and with a couple of teammates, I’ll have a great chance

Milan-San Remo - Start List1. Alessandro Petacchi (I), Team Milram2. Erik Zabel (G), Team Milram3. Mirko Celestino (I), Team Milram4. Alessandro Cortinovis (I), Team Milram5. Maarten Den Bakker (Nl), Team Milram6. Fabio Sacchi (I), Team Milram7. Christian Knees (G), Team Milram8. Marco Velo (I), Team Milram11. Alexandr Arekeev (Rus), Acqua & Sapone12. Alessandro Donati (I), Acqua & Sapone13. Rinaldo Nocentini (I), Acqua & Sapone14. Giuseppe Palumbo (I), Acqua & Sapone15. Andrea Rossi (I), Acqua & Sapone16. Ondrej Sosenka (Cz), Acqua & Sapone17. Mauricio Soler (Col), Acqua & Sapone18. Andrea

After a solid effort at Tirreno-Adriatico with eighth-place overall, GeorgeHincapie has decided to bypass this weekend’s Milan-San Remo. “I just had a little cold during Tirreno, so I was not feeling 100 percent,”Hincapie told VeloNews. “I prefer to just rest and recover.”Hincapie is scheduled to race next at Three Days of De Panne, whichhe won in 2004, before ramping up for his run at the spring classics. Secondoverall last year at Paris-Rouabix, he’s hoping to step up on higher onthe podium.Discovery Channel will line up with a solid team looking to throw somecurveballs at the marquee

The season’s first UCI ProTour classic, Milan-San Remo, which takes place this Saturday for the 97th time, is nowadays regarded as a sprinters’ race. That’s because in the past nine years a mass sprint finish has been avoided only twice. In 1999, an inspired Andreï Tchmil made a solo, final-kilometer attack to hold off a 68-strong pack by less than a second. And in 2003, Paolo Bettini held tough with breakaway partners Mirko Celestino and Luca Paolini to win, 11 seconds ahead of a chasing 68-man peloton. The past two years, Oscar Freire and Alessandro Petacchi scored their sprint victories

What a difference a year makes for Chris Horner. Twelve months ago, he was making an uncertain return to Europe. Flash forward to 2006 and Horner is a very happy camper at Davitamon-Lotto, secure in a two-year contract and a place in this year’s Tour de France. “I’m on the list. Unless I take myself out of it with an injury or illness, I’m going,” Horner told VeloNews. “It’s better that than the position I was in last year, when I didn’t know if I was going or not.” Last year, riding with Saunier Duval-Prodir, Horner didn’t secure his Tour ticket until he proved himself with a dramatic

Don’t expect to see Floyd Landis ripping through any races in the coming months. Fresh off impressive back-to-back wins at Tour of California and Paris-Nice, the Phonak captain said races such as the Giro d’Italia will strictly be for preparation for July’s Tour de France. “My plan is to do the Giro, but primarily as training and nothing else. So don’t expect to see much of me at the Giro,” Landis said at a post-race press conference. Landis also has Criterium International penciled into his schedule at the end of this month. If the past few years are any indication, anyone coming out

Dutchman Thomas Dekker (Rabobank) won the 41st Tirreno-Adriatico on Tuesday, as Italian Alessandro Petacchi (Milram) sprinted to victory in the seventh and final stage. Petacchi won the 166km finale in San Benedetto del Tronto ahead of Australian Robbie McEwen (Davitamon-Lotto), Italian Paride Grillo (Ceramica Panaria-Navigare) and Norwegian Thor Hushvod (Crédit Agricole). "I didn't want to finish without a stage win," said Petacchi. "My teammates worked well in the final kilometers and carried me until the final 180 meters. I preferred to leave the sprint until as late as possible as

Steve Hed was one of the first to build carbon fiber wheels – solid carbon discs – way back in the era of Francesco Moser’s hour records. At the time Hed was a partner in Grand Performance, a Minneapolis bike shop, but his interest in wheels and aerodynamics prompted him to sell his share and pursue work in carbon on a full time basis. For many years, Steve and his wife, Anne, ran Hed Wheels out of their house in White Bear Lake, Minnesota. Eventually, though, the business literally drove them out of house and home. Indeed, as the business grew, the Heds gave up and bought a new house,

Tour de France hopeful Jan Ullrich hopes to begin his season next month after deciding to take a pass on the upcoming one-day spring classics. The T-Mobile team leader's first competitive race will be the Circuit Cycliste Sarthe, which starts on April 4. "It is a good Tour to start with as it is not too demanding," said Ullrich. Winning this year's Tour de France, running from July 1-23, is the main target for Ullrich who has finished second on six occasions. Ullrich finished third last year but with seven-time champion Lance Armstrong not taking part this time around the

Italian Leonardo Bertagnolli (Cofidis) on Monday won Stage 6 of Tirreno-Adriatico. The Cofidis rider attacked 800 meters from the line to win the 179km run between San Benedetto del Tronto and Torricella. Alessandro Petacchi (Milram) took second with Riccardo Riccò (Saunier Duval) third. Dutch rider Thomas Dekker (Rabobank) retained the overall lead as Rabobank controlled the peloton during a day marked by a succession of attacks, crashes and abandonments. Tirreno-Adriatico concludes Tuesday with a 166km stage from Campli to San Benedetto del Tronto.

Floyd Landis won more than Paris-Nice on Sunday. He secured the trust and confidence of his Phonak teammates as they look confidently toward this summer’s Tour de France. His teammates rallied around Landis to preserve his slender nine-second margin in Sunday’s nervous, four-climb finale to win his second major stage race inside a month. And in the process, the team and Landis promoted themselves as one of the favorites for July. "The most important thing was the confidence of the team and their ability to stay focused on the race," Landis said. "As far as confidence for the Tour, this is

Swiss rider Fabian Cancellara (Team CSC) won the fifth stage of Tirreno-Adriatico on Sunday. Cancellara turned a time of 27 minutes and 37 seconds to win the 20km individual time trial at Servigliano ahead of Belgian Leif Hoste (Discovery Channel) and Dutch rider Thomas Dekker (Rabobank), whose third-place finish was good enough to displace Spain’s Oscar Freire (Rabobank) as overall leader. Meanwhile, the weather has forced organizers to modify Monday's sixth stage, which will now end in Torricella Sicura instead of the hilltop village of San Giacomo. The race concludes Tuesday. Top

Paris-Nice leader Floyd Landis was quick to tip his hat to his Phonak teammates after keeping the lid on a dangerous 19-man breakaway in Saturday’s potentially explosive eight-climb stage across sunny Provence. Critics had begun to grumble that Phonak – down to just five riders – wouldn’t be strong enough to control the final bumpy weekend. Landis was left isolated without teammates in Friday’s final Cat. 1 climb, providing more fuel for the doubters. But on a spectacular spring day, Landis and his boys in lime green were pinned at the front of the main bunch all day. They limited winner

Reality sucks at times. Things come crashing down (figuratively and literally) to earth and it’s in times like this that a guy can really look around and see things quite clearly. The little things you take for granted, like opening a door, being able to take a back pack off, washing your hair, eating food that was cooked the same day, seeing the sun, suddenly disappear when you have a broken collarbone and happen to be racing in Paris-Nice. When you crash you’re thankful for many things, mainly your health, and the fact that it wasn't worse, because it could've been worse, it

Christine Thorburn (Webcor) and Heath Blackgrove (Toyota-United) won the weather-altered opener to the Central Valley Classic on Friday. The omnium, the third event on the U.S. Cycling Federation’s National Racing Calendar, runs through Sunday in and around Fresno, California. The CVC was intended to open with the Tollhouse Time Trial, a 6.5-mile (10.46km) hill-climb time trial starting in the small foothill town of Tollhouse and gaining more than 2600 feet of elevation before the finish line south of Pineridge. But severe weather, including ice and snow that rendered the upper portion of

Thor Hushovd (Crédit Agricole) sprinted to victory in stage 4 of Tirreno-Adriatico on Saturday. The Norwegian beat Italian Alessandro Petacchi (Milram) and Spain’s Oscar Freire (Rabobank) in the finale to the 219km stage from Paglieta to Civitanova Marche. Freire retained the overall race lead. Sunday's fifth stage is a 20km individual time trial around Servigliano.

They came at him just as they promised in Friday’s 201.5km fifth stage, but Floyd Landis (Phonak) withstood a barrage of attacks to retain the race leader’s jersey with just two days left in the 64th Paris-Nice. Team CSC’s Frank Schleck was the day’s main aggressor, attacking three times on the 8km Cat. 1 Col du Corobin, which came 16.5km from the finish in Digne-les-Bains, but strong headwinds and Landis’s steady legs carried the day. Scroll down for photos and complete results "I went hard three times, but Floyd is too strong," shrugged Schleck, who remained tied for fourth at 1:23 back.

Chris Horner was a little hectic Friday morning in a desperate search for his cycling cleats before the start of the 201.5km fifth stage at Paris-Nice. The Davitamon-Lotto rider eventually found them tucked inside the team bus and he had the chance to reflect on the final three stages of Paris-Nice before heading for the start. “I’m going to sit back and relax wait for the final climb. Hopefully the legs I had the other day will be appear again,” Horner told VeloNews. “I’m kind of surprised how good I’m going this early in the season.” Going into Friday’s stage, Horner was poised quietly

Three-time world champion Oscar Freire Gomez (Rabobank) sprinted to victory and claimed the overall lead during the third stage of Tirreno-Adriatico on Friday. The Spaniard donned the leader’s jersey thanks to a 10-second time bonus and the abandonment of race leader Paolo Bettini (Quick Step), who was taken to hospital following a crash and may miss the start of the classics season. The day began in controversial circumstances as organizers refused to shorten the undulating, 183km course as requested by team managers and riders, who were concerned about the cold, wet and windy

There were plenty of reasons for Floyd Landis to smile Thursday after enjoying his first full day in the yellow jersey in the 193km fourth stage at Paris-Nice. The weather had improved nicely, Tom Boonen sprinted to his third win in four days and Landis’s Phonak team didn’t have to work too hard when Quick Step-Innergetic took control late to reel in a breakaway to set up the mass gallop. "Today was no problem at all," Landis said as he strode onto the podium to don the race leader’s yellow jersey. "It’s treating me good." There were no major shake-ups in the overall standings, with Landis

As VeloNews first reported in its current print issue (see issue 4, March 13, "Shimano Tests Electric Dura-Ace in ProTour"), Shimano recently put battery-powered Dura-Ace drivetrains underneath nine ProTour riders. The wired systems feature LCD screens on the top of each STI hood, which otherwise look similar to 2006 cable-actuated Dura-Ace shifters. A battery pack is mounted on the downtube by the electric front derailleur. The system is still in early testing, and would not be available for sale until at least 2008, if at all. But Shimano, no stranger to electric shifting with its commuter

Italy's Paolo Bettini (Quick Step) made it two in a row on Thursday, winning the second stage of Tirreno-Adriatico. The Olympic champion, who also won Wednesday's first stage, took Thursday's 171km race between Tivoli and Frascati ahead of Germany's Erik Zabel (Milram) and Ukraine's Mikhaylo Khalilov to consolidate his overall race lead. Top 101. Paolo Bettini (I), Quick Step-Innergetic, 4:03:192. Erik Zabel (G), Team Milram, same time3. Mikhaylo Khalilov (Ukr), Team LPR, s.t.4. Alessandro Ballan (I) Lampre-Fondital, s.t.5. Thor Hushovd (Nor), Credit Agricole, s.t.6.

Day two at the Taipei Cycle show and visitors continue to get intriguingpeeks at upcoming product that will likely appear in bike shops in nearfuture. Highlighting my trip through the hall today were a host of new tire options, some very economical pedals from CrankBrothers, FSA’scontinued progress toward creating a complete group and Aero guru, JohnCobb’s company, Blackwell Research, and its embrace of Taiwanese production. HutchinsonFrench tire manufacturer Hutchinson offered a little more insight toits tubeless road program, which should start making tires available thisfall. The line

Levi Leipheimer has opted to start his season a little differently than originally planned and will be at the starting line when Tirreno Adriatico kicks off in Italy Wednesday. Leipheimer, who had originally planned to kick off his European campaign at the Settimana Internazionale (March 21-26) decided that after the Tour of California his form was good enough to start the season a little early. "Levi is hot right now and wants to ride," said Gerolsteiner director Christian Henn. "It doesn’t make sense for him to stay in Santa Rosa (California) and wait around to start racing and hope that

Italy's Paolo Bettini (Quick Step) sprinted to victory in the first stage of the 41st Tirreno-Adriatico on Wednesday. Bettini, who won the 2004 edition of the race, outsped Germany's Erik Zabel (Milram) and Norway's Thor Hushovd (Crédit Agricole) to take the opener, a 167km stage around the Tivoli region. "Last year I suffered in this race because I'd had a lot of health problems. This year my form is much better, and I've shown it," Bettini said afterward. "I have to thank my teammates because they did a great job helping me on the climb to the finish. "Winning is

Floyd Landis (Phonak) ground just about everyone into the asphalt in Wednesday’s hilly 168.5km third stage to capture the overall leader’s jersey at Paris-Nice in an impressive display. Just in case the Euros hadn’t noticed that Landis came flying out of the gates this season with a big win in the debut Amgen Tour of California, he provided a wake-up call dropping everyone except Spain’s Patxi Vila (Lampre) to surge into the yellow jersey and position himself as the favorite to win Europe’s first major stage-race of the year. "I knew I had good legs after my victory in the Tour of

The 19th Taipei International Cycle Show opened March 8 in Taiwan, giving product managers four days to put the finishing touches on the 2007 model year, just two months and change into 2006. The show’s first day produced a number of new items; here are some of the highlights. SRAMSRAM has been doling out bits of information regarding its new road group of late, but that doesn’t mean the company has been neglecting the rest of its line. SRAM "leaked" some dirt on its X.9 mountain-bike derailleur and shifters last week, and while we can’t tell you much more now (expect details to be released

In its 19th year the Taipei International Cycle Show opened on Wednesday, offering product managers from around the globe a four-day opportunity to put the finishing touches on their 2007 product lines. Held in the Taipei World Trade Center, the show’s first day offered many of us a look at some interesting new items. Here are some of the highlights. SRAMThough the SRAM PR machine has been carefully doling out bits of information regarding its new road group, it seems SRAM has been using the new group’s release to divert attention from the rest of the line. The mountain components appear

Three-time world champion Oscar Freire (Rabobank) headlines an all-star field for Tirreno-Adriatico set to begin Wednesday in Tivoli along Italy’s western coast. The race of “due mari” pushes east across the middle of the Italian peninsula and serves as an ideal proving ground for contenders for Milan-San Remo. Among the former MSR winners taking the start include Freire, Alessandro Petacchi and Erik Zabel (Milram) and Paolo Bettini (Quick Step). Other big names include Michael Boogerd and Erik Dekker (Rabobank), 2003 world champ Igor Astarloa (Barloworld), last year's Tour green jersey

Editor’s note: A report in the Australian newspaper The Daily Telegraph, also posted at VeloNews.com on March 2 (see "UCI: No sanction for Armstrong over EPO charges"), requires clarification regarding the UCI’s handling of doping control forms that were obtained by L’Equipe and published in an August 23 story under the headline "The Armstrong Lie." A UCI official pointed out that while the forms obtained by L’Equipe were copies of UCI doping control forms from the 1999 Tour de France, they were not copies of positive test results. Below is a corrected version of the report: While the UCI

Christian Vande Velde (CSC) was forced to abandon the 64th Paris-Nice after crashing hard on his left shoulder in a tumble in Tuesday’s hilly second stage. X-rays later showed that there was no break in his clavicle and Vande Velde was optimistic that he could be back on the bike in time to start his next scheduled race, Criterium International, at the end of March. "There’s nothing broken, that’s the good news," Vande Velde told VeloNews via telephone. "It hurts pretty bad, though. When you get to know your body pretty well, you know when something’s not right." Vande Velde said he

No offense to Allan Davis or anyone else in Tuesday’s finish line dash, but it’s going to take more than a good try to stop Tom Boonen. The reigning world champion sprang to his second consecutive victory in Paris-Nice in Tuesday’s hilly 200km second stage and widened his lead to 17 seconds over prologue winner Bobby Julich (CSC). The Quick Step-Innergetic train did nice work to set up the mass gallop after reeling in a long breakaway by French rider Nicolas Crosbie (Agritubel). Boonen made easy work of relegating Davis to a consecutive second-place and earned his ninth win on the 2006

I just returned to a very snow-covered Zürich after spending the last week at training camp in Italy. Luckily we rode loads of kilometers while in Italy, otherwise I think I’d be freaking out with this weather. It’s currently minus-4 Celsius with a 16kph wind and snowing. We were really lucky with the weather in Italy. It wasn’t exactly California, but for Europe in the end of February, it wasn’t bad at all. We only rode in the rain on the first day. Luckily, the only objective during that ride was to flush our legs from the long drive. The next day was when the kilometers started stacking

Bobby Julich is one-for-one in Europe so far in the 2006 season, ripping to a narrow victory in Sunday’s opening prologue of the 64th Paris-Nice. “I simply had killer legs,” he recounted on the team’s web page. “The route suited me perfectly and I really had the feeling that I was fast. It was a special feeling to start as the last one and be able to keep everyone behind me. It's always a great feeling to win and it's quite a good statistic to kick off my European season: one start – one win!” Julich expressed surprise at his condition in a race where he didn’t expect to challenge

The rainbow jersey curse has yet to strike Tom Boonen so far this year. The reigning world champion put down a textbook-perfect sprint to win Monday’s first stage of Paris-Nice and snatch the yellow jersey away from Bobby Julich (CSC) thanks to time bonuses. It was Boonen’s eighth win in the young 2006 season, and the Belgian was already looking ahead to the spring classics moments after slamming the door shut on Allan Davis (Liberty Seguros). "It’s good to have won the stage because now I can take it easy until the end of Paris-Nice," Boonen told reporters. "For me, this race is ideal

Olympic pursuit champion Sarah Ulmer produced a stunning solo ride to demolish a class international field in the second round of the women's World Cup road cycling series Sunday. Ulmer, who switched to road racing less than a year ago, proved peerless against a field containing riders with numerous Olympic and world titles. Among those left in her wake were the world's top three road riders in 2005 - Australia's Oenone Wood, Sweden's Susanne Ljungskog and Germany's Judith Arndt. Ulmer clocked three hours 16 minutes 45 seconds for the 124-kilometer race on an inner-city

Mike Jones (Health Net-Maxxis) and Laura Charameda (McGuire Cycling) won the McLane Pacific Cycling Classic Downtown Grand Prix on Saturday. The race was run on a flat, fast, 0.8-mile loop in downtown Merced, California. In the men’s race, Jones soloed to victory ahead of Jackson Stewart (Kodakgallery.com-Sierra Nevada) and Mark McCormack (Colavita Olive Oil-Sutter Home). It was a good day for Health Net, which put four riders into the top 10, including last year’s winner, Gord Fraser. The new Toyota-United Pro squad was right behind them, with three of the top 10, including Juan Jose

Santos González (3 Molinas) sewed up his first career stage-racevictory Sunday after finishing safely in the bunch in the final stage ofthe five-day Vuelta a Murcia.German wunderkind Heinrich Haussler (Gerolsteiner) out-kicked ArielRicheze (Panaria) to claim his second stage of the Spanish race in a masssprint despite heavy winds that forced race organizers to neutralize partof the course.New Discovery Channel rider Egoi Martínez featured in a five-manescape that pulled away at 22km to build up a 2:30 lead at 80km. The movewas neutralized at 112km, just before heavy winds

Defending champion Bobby Julich (Team CSC) roared to victory Sunday in the 4.8km opening prologue of the 64th Paris-Nice on a day he didn’t expect to win. Julich – who enjoyed his best season last year with wins at Paris-Nice, Criterium International and the Tour of Benelux – said earlier this year he wouldn’t be chasing the smaller races, but that could change very quickly. “This is a surprise win for me today because this was not among my main goals this season,” Julich told reporters. “I only came here to gear up for other objectives later in the year.” Emboldened by the sensations of

Carlos Garcia Quesada (Unibet.com) won the fourth stage of the Vuelta a Murcia on Saturday as Santos González (3 Molinos Resort) seized the overall lead from Jose Iván Gutiérrez (Caisse d'Epargne-Illes Balears) with just one stage remaining. Garcia Quesada edged Italian Damiano Cunego (Lampre) in the final meters of the 146.6km stage from Caravaca to Collado Bermejo, which featured a trio of Category 1 climbs. Gutiérrez, who assumed the leader’s yellow jersey after winning the Stage 3 individual time trial, could not counter the attacks from the climbers despite the help of teammates

Tom Boonen has been enjoying some quality training sessions around his new home in Monaco and hopes to roll into Sunday’s start of Paris-Nice ready to pop for a win or two during the eight-day “Race to the Sun.” “The weather is great and the area in and around Monaco is perfect for this important training as there are some good up hill sections,” Boonen said in a Quick Step-Innergetic release. “My teammates Kevin Hulsmans, Kevin Van Impe and Steven De Jongh have also joined me here in Monaco. It’s certainly more fun and stimulating training together.” The reigning world champion will head