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The first major reform of professional cycling became a reality here Thursday when the sport's ruling body announced dates for the all-new Pro Tour circuit. As of next year 28 of Europe's most popular races - from the one-day Paris-Roubaix classic to the three-week Tour de France - will become part of a circuit that aims to solidify competition by obliging all major teams, licensed by the Union Cycliste Internationale, to take part. "Our aim is to begin a more realistic project," said Alain Rumpf, the president of the Professional Cycling Council who announced the news here ahead of

On the same day that Jan Ullrich announced that he had opted out of Sunday’s Liège-Bastogne-Liège World Cup, Dodge Tour de Georgia crowd favorite Lance Armstrong fired a warning shot to his Tour de France rival when he won the stage 3 field sprint into Rome, finishing ahead of Ivan Dominguez (Colavita Olive Oil) and Ben Brooks (Jelly Belly).

Laguna Beach, CA (April 22, 2004) - As the cycling season begins to heat up, Interbike is pleased to announce its advocacy and association support program for 2004, an annual effort that provides necessary funding for a broad collection of advocacy and industry organizations at the local and national level. Based on merit and overall impact, Interbike had chosen to provide financialsupport to the following advocacy organizations and industry associations: € Bikes Belong Coalition€ League of American Bicyclists€ International Mountain Bicycling Association (IMBA)€ Junior Development ­ USA

Drew Miller (Landis-Trek-VW) will be on hand to defend his title at the 26th La Vuelta de Bisbee this weekend, beginning with Friday’s Mule Pass Individual Time Trial. The 36-year-old Flagstaff racer says both he and his team are somewhat weaker than they’d like to be going into the four-stage National Race Calendar event – Miller is recovering from a bout of flu, while teammate Scott Price had a nasty crash at the Redlands Bicycle Classic. “My form and fitness were good earlier this spring,” Miller said. “Redlands started well, but I ended it with the flu. I've taken a couple steps back

With 11 mountain bike races in four days, it’s a sizable challenge to keep up with all the comings and goings at the Sea Otter Classic. It’s also next to impossible to fit every little tidbit you pick up along the way into the magazine, but that’s the great thing about the old Internet — unlimited space. So… go grab your cup of coffee, this is a long one. Let’s start this ode with young Walker Ferguson. Back in 2000 the Colorado-native was the toast of American mountain biking after he won the junior cross-country title at the world championships in Sierra Nevada, Spain. Four years later,

It really hasn’t been all that long since an elite cyclist won two UCI-sanctioned races on the same day: seven weeks, to be precise. The rider was CSC’s Jens Voigt, and the event was the two-day, three stage French Critérium International. Voigt took the overall on March 28 by winning the 98.5km morning climbing stage in a three-up sprint, and followed up with a win in the final 8.3km time trial, besting U.S. Postal-Berry Floor’s Lance Armstrong by four seconds on the stage and 14 seconds overall.

Not his finest moment

Rumpf

Leblanc and Saiz

Armstrong surprised them at the line

OFoto's Stewart on a long break

Sciandri gets a shoe change

Armstrong and Pavel Padrnos

Cruising through the woods of Georgia

A satisfied stage winner

Drew Miller's Landis-Trek-VW team will have its work cut out for it in Bisbee this weekend

Ferguson had a tough go at Sea Otter.

Respect the rainbow.

Lots of fight left.

Maybe a full-face for this race?

Frischy shares a moment with Bob Roll.

Blatter wasn't her usual self.

The next Cadel?

Platt proved he was in for the short haul.

Meet Mark Weir: Fastest PR guy you know.

Voigt is solidly in second

Only three of the one-day European classics have summit finishes: the Amstel Gold Race, the Flèche Wallonne and Liège-Bastogne-Liège. After winning the first two of these races in the past four days, Italy’s Davide Rebellin is uncannily confident that he can win the third of these hilly events this coming Sunday.

Just in case anyone thought Tuesday's victory was a fluke, Italian Damiano Cunego (Saeco) won Wednesday's demanding five-climb second stage to secure his hold on the leader's jersey in the Giro di Trentino. Cunego, the 1999 junior world champion, shot off alone to win the 171km second stage to win in 4 hours, 50 minutes, 23 seconds. The 22-year-old finished 34 seconds ahead of Saeco team captain and Trentino defending champion Gilberto Simoni. The four-stage Giro di Trentino continues Thursday with the 165km third stage from Roncone Breguzzo to Fiavè. Giro di Trentino (ITA 2.2), Stage 21.

Veltec Sports and Look Cycles has unveiled a blockbuster pedal trade-inprogram - deemed “Step Into Carbon”.  The program has been designedto bring added visibility to its CX-6 pedal line and provide consumersa limited opportunity to purchase these 100% carbon bodied pedals at agreat discount.The trade-in program is currently underway and will run through May31, 2004.  It’s a simple program that provides the consumer with aninstant credit of $50 at the register, when trading in their current pedals(regardless of their condition) towards the purchase of a new pair of CX-6’spedals.For a list of

TORRINGTON, CT (April 15, 2004) - Situated in scenic northwesternConnecticut, Lime Rock Park is recognized and revered for its scenic beautyand its place in motor-sports history.  As of May 20th, at 12:00 noon,professional cyclists will descend on this hallowed racing ground and itmay never be the same again.Lime Rock Park will host the 2nd leg of the second annual Tour of Connecticutwith a 50K circuit race on the 1.53 Miles (2.45 K) road racing course. An international field of professional cyclists and invited Category 1&2 cyclists will compete in a fast a furious race.  Cyclists will takea

When Italian superstar “Super Mario” Cipollini failed to contest the opening sprint stage of the Dodge Tour de Georgia on Monday, the sport’s cognoscenti immediately questioned what might be amiss with 2002 world champion. Was it the criterium-style finishing circuits that slowed down his Domina Vacanze lead-out train? Was he out of sorts in the near 90-degree heat? Perhaps he had simply arrived in the U.S. out of shape, or maybe, some supposed, the realities of age had finally caught up with the 37-year-old sprinter.

Like an annual rite of spring, the Sea Otter is not only the first major outing of both domestic and international-caliber mountain and road teams, but it’s also one of the best opportunities to see next year’s product now. Here’s a quick look at an assortment of mountain bike related goodies spotted while we roamed the pits. Photo #1 The most significant question of the day for the pro racers competing in the super XC was tire selection. Choices ranged from traditional size 26x2.0 knobby and semi-slick tires to 700x32c cyclo-cross tires. On of the race’s favorites, Trek/VW’s Sue Haywood

The reigning French national women’s champion Sonia Huguet scored her first international victory at Wednesday’s Flèche Wallonne, but it was the fight for the 2004 UCI World Cup that held center stage at the hilly 97.5km event. And that brought added success to Australia’s Oenone Wood, who extended her overall lead by 20 points on Russia’s Zulfia Zabirova. So after five of the year’s nine World Cup races, Wood has 202 points to Zabirova’s 154, while Mirjam Melchers of the Netherlands remained in third with 115 despite finishing outside the points Wednesday. After Wood, 23, crossed the line

Rebellin stayed with Di Luca

Postal's Devolder tries an escape

Hamilton: Ready for Sunday?

On the Mur

Dekker shook things up with 16km to go

Vino' tries his legs

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Photo 3

Photo 4

Photo 5

The day's first break had some horsepower

Health Net leads the chase

Pate and Fraser at work

Julich and ther climbers are looking forward to the hills

Fraser gets a big kiss from his sis'

Defending Dodge Tour de Georgia champion Chris Horner made a bold pre-race press conference statement Monday when he announced he would not be content with anything less than overall victory. “My form is very good,” said Horner, who is fresh off an overall win at the Sea Otter Classic to add to his stage race wins at Redlands, Pomona Valley and just about every other domestic stage race he has chosen over the past two years. “I’ve got the legs and I’m here to win. Anything less and I won’t be satisfied.” It’s not the first time Horner has predicted victory. Last September, on the eve of the

April 13, 2004 (Steamboat Springs, Colo.) – EN-R-G Foods, Inc., makersof Honey Stinger energy bars and gels, announced today that it has becomethe official bar and gel supplier to the elite Subaru-Gary Fisher mountainbike race team. Boasting several of the world’s best mountain bike racers,the Subaru-Gary Fisher Team includes:· Ryder Hesjedal – reigning NORBA NCS XC champion andSilver Medalist at both the 2003 Elite World Championships and 2003 CanadianNational Championships. He will race in Europe this spring with the USPostal Service cycling team then focus on the World Cup and Olympics

Dear Lennard,The question is simple enough: What is the quickest/best way to change/fixa tubeless tire? While I love the ride characteristics and generally betterflat resistance of tubeless, fixing a flat--when it eventually does happen-orsimply swapping tires for another tread pattern is nothing short of anordeal. Skinned knuckles, broken tire levers (which you're not supposedto use anyway) and at least a half-hour's worth mano-a-rubber WWF styleaction seem to be the minimum commitment. On a recent ride, a friend who used a tubeless sealant nicked his sidewallon a sharp rock, adding a

Former junior world champion Damiano Cunego (Saeco) delivered his first big victory as a pro in the opening stage of the four-day Giro di Trentino in northern Italy. The 22-year-old, who won the junior world title in 1999, attacked late in the 168km opening stage and held off Jure Golcer (Formaggi Pinzolo Fiave) to take the stage. Vaunted as one of the future grand tour hopes in Italy, Cunego is a keen climber eager to show his stuff in the next month’s Giro d’Italia. Two-time Giro champion Gilberto Simoni (Saeco) came to life under the Italian (not Tuscan) sun and finished sixth in the

20 April  – Pozzoleone, Italy – Fi’zi:k, the elite hand-madeItalian saddle manufacturer is releasing limited edition Team Replica Arionesaddles.  In honor of Italian fi’zi:k sponsored teams participatingin the 2004 Giro d’Italia, the company is producing a limited number ofcustom team replica Saeco Macchine per Café, Alessio-Bianchi andVini Caldirola-Nobili Rubinetterie Arione saddles.The limited edition Arione team replica saddles retailing for $139,will be available in late May and will be distributed in the US throughfi’zi:k’s exclusive US distributor, BikeMine (www.bikemine.com –

Canadian veteran Gord Fraser (Health Net-Maxxis) took the opening stage of the 2004 Dodge Tour de Georgia Tuesday, beating sprint specialist Ivan Dominguez (Colavita Olive Oil) and last month’s Criterium International winner Jens Voigt (CSC) to the finish line in front of an enthusiastic downtown Macon crowd. Fraser’s lead-out man Greg Henderson finished fourth, with Landbouwkredit-Colnago’s Ukrainian sprinter Yuri Metlushenko in fifth.

Horner gets his time trial bike dialed in for Thursday's double-day

Julich, Wohlberg and Baldwin listen as Horner gives yet another animated answer

Cipollini brings a new quality to racing in Georgia

Horner in Georgia: “I’m here to win”

Horner in Georgia: “I’m here to win”

Race announcer Dave Towle hams it up with Jacky Durand

Fraser put it all on the line

Getting in TV time

Cipo' was there with a lap to go, but faded on the last climb

Julich, waiting for the big climbs later in the week, was happy to have finished in the main field...

... as was Armstrong.

Fraser's happy no matter what

Armstrong: I'm happy

Gilberto Simoni admitted he’s not on the same form as he was this time last year after stumbling through a lackluster string of performances in Spain. The defending Giro d’Italia champion said cold, rainy weather during the Tour of the Basque Country and the Tour of Aragon were not to his liking. He abandoned both races while arch-rival Stefano Garzelli (Vini Caldirola) took victory in Aragon on final-day time bonuses. "I know I’m not in the same form as I was last year and I know that Garzelli is definitely riding better than me at the moment,” Simoni said on the team’s web page. “However,

Last Saturday Primo Life Club entertained the latest selection of the beauty contest binds to the 2004 Road Cycling World Championships. Few votes between the three finalists: the first place has gone to Elisa Basso, 22 years old from Varese (Lombardy), the second to Eleonora Sorato and the third to Elisa Prando, both are 18 years old and from Veneto region. On Friday 30th April the Hollywood Dance Club in Bardolino will entertain the final evening. The six winners will prize the champion of the World’s, scheduled from 27th September to 3rd October in Verona and Bardolino. The five

Joe and Dirk answer questions on rowing for cyclists and customizing a second peak

Pro racers from across the U.S. and Europe trickled in to the town of Macon,Georgia, over the weekend as organizers of the country’s richest stagerace, the Dodge Tour de Georgia, made final preparations to commence racingTuesday, April 20. In only its second year, the event received a huge boost with the Januaryannouncement that five-time Tour de France champion Lance Armstrong wouldbring his U.S. Postal Service-Berry Floor team to the event and use therace as preparation for a sixth consecutive Tour win. Shortly thereafter,2003 title-sponsor Dodge renewed its commitment for 2004, and a more

The Mail Bag is a regular feature on VeloNews.com, appearing each Monday, Wednesday and Friday. If you have a comment, an opinion or observation regarding anything you have seen in cycling, in VeloNews magazine or on VeloNews.com, write to WebLetters@InsideInc.com. Please include your full name and home town. Letters may be edited for length and clarity.OLN's bait-and-switch?Editor,Well, I see it's beginning to happen to OLN's coverage of bike racing. They suck you in with promises, good coverage, plans to show all the stuffyou want and then cancel it all so they can show more motor sports

HARRISBURG, PENNSYLVANIA (April 19, 2004)- Sportsbook.com, oneof the world’s largest retail-focused Internet sports bookmakers, formallyannounced today that it will become the new title sponsor for the erstwhileworlddiff.com Women’s Cycling team, one of America’s best developmentalprograms.Founded in 1997, Sportsbook.com had amassed a database of nearly 350,000customers from about 150 countries when it was purchased in 2001 by Sportingbet.com,a British company traded on the London Stock Exchange that processed morethan $900 million in bets last year. Today, Sportsbook.com is