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Left out of the SuperCup cyclo-cross series for the past two years, the West Coast is striking out on its own for 2002 with the three-race Redline Cup of Cyclo-cross series, according to Redline’s Tim Rutledge. The inaugural series of UCI-approved Category 3 races begins October 20 in Tacoma, Washington, the day after a UCI Cat. 3 event scheduled in Portland, Oregon. It continues November 23 in Salt Lake City, Utah, and concludes December 8 in Napa, California, where Rick Sutton and GaleForce Sports Marketing — who promoted the 1999 U.S. national championships at the Presidio in San

Mercury swept Sunday's closing stage at the 24th Vuelta de Bisbee in southeast Arizona, keeping Scott Moninger and Chris Wherry untouchable in the top two spots on general classification. Meanwhile, Jeannie Longo (Vitalli) won the women's finale to leap past Katrina Berger (Team T-Mobile) on GC and steal the overall victory. Reprising their performances of the previous double-stage day, Moninger and Wherry crossed one-two in the 62.5-mile Sulphur Springs Road Race, finishing in 2:27:19. Twenty-four seconds later, teammate Phil Zajicek outkicked Andrew Miller Landis-Trek) for third. When the

Telekom’s Jan Ullrich will start his European season on May 22 in the Tour of Bavaria after difficult spring season punctuated by a nagging knee injury. According to a Telekom statement released Monday, Ullrich will not race at the Giro d’Italia (May 11 to June 3), but will begin his season with the Bavarian race and then go on to the week-long Tour of Germany which begins on June 3. “We have opted for caution," said Telekom team doctor Lothar Heinrich, who said that competing in the Giro might compromise Ullrich’s chances in the Tour de France later in the year. The 1997 Tour de France

VeloNews.com welcomes your letters. If you run across something in thepages of VeloNews magazine or see something on VeloNews.com thatcauses you to want to write us, dropus a  line.Please include your full name and home town. By submitting mail to this address, you are consenting to the publication of your letter.Hoping to see DaveI've heard worse...In reference to Patrick O'Grady's recent OLN rant (see "Friday'sFoaming Rant: Indoor living with Outdoor Life"), I'd have to agreeand add that the only thing worse than having to listen to Eurosport'scommonwealth

Try as he might, Lance Armstrong just can't win Amstel Gold. Second here in 1999 and 2001, Armstrong finished fourth behind born-again Italian Michele Bartoli in an exciting, attack-riddled race Sunday in the Limburg region of Holland. It's not as if he isn't trying. Once again, Armstrong was among the main protagonists in the 37th edition of this unofficial finale of the spring classics. Armstrong, along with longtime nemesis Michael Boogerd of Rabobank, made the decisive attack on the Eyserbosweg climb 40 kilometers from the finish in the 254km circuit race.

Though it is no longer the "green wave" of yesteryear, the Mercury squad returned to its old tricks in Georgia Saturday night, washing over the front of the Athens Twilight Criterium with five laps to go and giving Canadian Gord Fraser a picture-perfect leadout for his second win under the streetlights. While Fraser served as closer for the squad, Australian powerhouse Henk Vogels put his nose in the wind all evening long to help the team control the race from the front. "Henk rides like a bull in a china shop," was Fraser’s simple summation of his teammates’ work for the evening. In a

Mercury put the hammer down on Saturday – then picked it up and slammed it right back down during a double-stage day in the 24th La Vuelta de Bisbee in southeastern Arizona. Mercury teammates Chris Wherry and Scott Moninger crossed one-two in the 86.4-mile Hereford Circuit Race, held on a 14.4-mile circuit with 442 feet of climbing per lap. Tucson’s Todd Wells (Mongoose-Hyundai) was third, 21 seconds back. In the afternoon’s 10.6-mile Warren Time Trial, it was the same top two, but in reverse order, with Moninger winning in 18:56, crossing 15 seconds faster than Wherry and setting a new

Bartoli continued Italy's hot streak at the classics.

Bartoli leads the final group on the Cauberg

Armstrong was there in the end but outmatched by Fassa Bortolo

Mercury drove a shaft that the other guys will have a tough time digging their way out of in the old mining town of Bisbee, Arizona, placing five riders in the top 10 as the 24th La Vuelta de Bisbee got under way Friday afternoon. Scott Moninger (Mercury) posted the fastest time in the 2.7-mile Mule Pass Time Trial, which gained 831 feet of vertical in just 2.7 miles, crossing the line in 9:50, just one second ahead of teammate Phil Zajicek. Third went to Scott Price (Landis-Trek), at 9:57.“The afternoon had a red-flag wind alert, but the times were still good,” said race director Albert

Year - Winner -- Average speed2001 - Erik Dekker  (Nl), 38.265 (kph)2000- Erik Zabel  (G), 41.304 (kph)1999- Michael Boogerd  (Nl), 38.547 (kph)1998- Rolf Järmann  (Swi), 38.276 (kph)1997- Bjarne Riis  (Dk), 41.851 (kph)1996- Stefano Zanini (I), 42.688 (kph)1995- Mauro Gianetti  (Swi), 38.509 (kph)1994- Johan Museeuw  (B), 37.261 (kph)1993- Rolf Järmann  (Swi), 37.344 (kph)1992- Olaf Ludwig  (G), 38.323 (kph)1991- Frans Maassen  (Nl), 40.135 (kph)1990- Adrie van der Poel  (Nl), 39.599 (kph)1989- Eric van Lancker  (B), 40.354 (kph)1988- Jelle Nijdam  (Nl), 37.383 (kph)1987- Joop Zoetemelk 

David (Duffield) is a really nice guy, but he's losing it. Apartfrom pointing out Lance Armstrong after 10 minutes or so, we learned nothingof the (Liège-Bastogne-Liège) participants until Eurosport put up a caption naming the breakaway riders. We had, however, a lecture on mussels, Hotel Mercur, sprockets and past winners of the race. – Julie Jones, on the newsgroup rec.bicycles.racing Hey, now wait a minute! Remember the bad old days of televised cycling coverage in the United States? Of course you do. Our demographic is composed almost entirely of forty-something masters racers, USA

Fassa Bortolo’s Francesco Casagrande did his Giro d’Italia ambitions the world of good here Friday by winning the hilly second stage of the Tour of Trentino to take a convincing overall lead. In a race that is regarded as a warm-up for next month's Giro d'Italia, Casagrande held off former Giro champions Gilberto Simoni, of Lampre, and Mapei rider Stefano Garzelli to finish the 166km stage between Arco and Velloi in 4:04:47. Mexican Julio Alberto Perez Cuapio, who was left behind in the final three kilometers as Casagrande launched attack after attack, finished second 23sec behind while

The spring-classics season comes to an end on Sunday with the Amstel Gold Race, a 254.4km war of attrition on a 33-hill course that VeloNews editorial director John Wilcockson says is “by far the most difficult” in the race’s 36-year history. The Amstel Gold takes place in the hilly Limburg region of the southeast Netherlands, beginning and ending in the city of Maastricht, and its final 47km include no fewer than eight hills, mostly on narrow farm roads. The steepest, the Eyserbosweg (900 meters of 11.5-percent grade), comes with 39km to go. Next comes the longest , the Fromberg (1.6km at 5

Amstel: Gold for Armstrong?

Ángel Casero could have a very busy summer, especially if thingsgo well for his Team Coast. The 2001 Vuelta a España champion isalready planning to race in the Giro d’Italia in May and the Vuelta a España in September and might even go to the Tour de France in July if his team earns a wild-card bid in May. “I will race in the Giro, because I have focused my preparation on thisrace. If we are invited to the Tour, I will also have to go. Of course,I want to defend my title at the Vuelta,” Casero told the Spanish sportsdaily AS. “It’s obvious that you cannot race all three at the highest

Turns out the U.S. track team didn’t get all dressed up for nothing after all. Rewind to the final day of competition at World Cup No. 1 in Monterrey, Mexico last Sunday. Following the final individual awards ceremony, a fully-uniformed U.S. team headed up to towards the podium for what they thought would be the presentation of the top-team award. But race officials stopped the Americans short, saying they’d recalculated some numbers and that the Germans were in fact the winners of the team award. The Americans briefly argued the point, but then relented. The German team was given the

Fassa Bortolo's Marco Zanotti won Thursday's opening stageof the Tour de Trentino, a traditional Giro d'Italia warm-up. Zanotti thus takes the overall lead of the race after coming in ahead of team-mate Denis Zanette with Belarussian Alexandre Usov finishing third. On a day when many of the bigger names took it easy in anticipationof upcoming mountain stages, former Giro d'Italia champion Stefano Garzelli(Mapei) was the highest placed, coming in 12th as Zanotti enjoyed his momentin the spotlight. "I owe it all to the team-mates who formed a train and stayed with meright until the last

VeloNews technical writer Lennard Zinn is a frame builder, a formerU.S. national team rider and author of several books on bikes and bikemantenance. This marks the beginning of Zinn's weekly VeloNews.com columndevoted to addressing readers' technical questions about bikes, their careand feeding and how we as riders can use them as comfortably and efficientlyas possible. Readers can send brief technical questions directlyto Zinn. We'll try to print a representative sample of questions eachThursday.Question: Do you have any advice for correcting leg lengthdiscrepancies?  I have undergone an

Casero may be on that bike a lot this summer

The Domo-Farm Frites team has pulled out of the Giro d'Italia and will be replaced by the Colpack-Astro outfit, race director Carmine Castellano announced Tuesday.The line-up of 22 teams will be: Acqua Sapone (I), Alessio (I),Panaria (I), Selle Italia (Col), Colpack (I), Fassa Bortolo (I), Gerolsteiner(G), Alexia (I), Kelme (Sp), Lampre (I), Colnago (B), Lotto (B), Mapei (I), Mercatone Uno (I), Mobilvetta(I), Phonak (Swi), Rabobank (Nl), Saeco (I), Tacconi (I), Team Coast(G), CSC-Tiscali (Dk), Deutsche Telekom (G).Kelme, the only Spanish lineup committed to the Giro, will have Aitor

Jan Ullrich, the 1997 Tour de France winner, was cleared of doping allegations stemming from police raids conducted during last year's Giro d'Italia by the German cycling federation (BDR). Ullrich was among a number of riders and team members who fell under suspicion following a police raid on the Tour of Italy last June where a number of illegal but also medicinal substances were seized. However the majority of the cases have led to little in the way of what could be classified real doping. The BDR's decision on Wednesday follows that of the Union Cycliste Internationale

VeloNews.com welcomes your letters. If you run across something in thepages of VeloNews magazine or see something on VeloNews.com thatcauses you to want to write us, drop us a line at WebLetters@7Dogs.com.Please include your full name and home town. By submitting mail to thisaddress, you are consenting to the publication of your letter.Listen to the numbersI recognize that your polls are not scientific, but with such a disparitybetween road and mountain enthusiasts, why do you keep putting mountainbiking on your covers?  Maybe you should just have a section insidefor mountain stuff and leave

Joe Friel is author of the successful "Training Bible" series ofbooks, a regular columnist for VeloNews and Inside Triathlonand the founder of www.ultrafit.com.Friel also offers answers to a selection of questions in this weekly columnhere on VeloNews.com. Readers can send questions to Friel in care of VeloNews.comat WebLetters@7Dogs.com. (Besure to include "Friel" in the subject line.)Question: I'm a 41 year old former Cat II rider.  I'vetaken most of the last 3 seasons off to concentrate on life, work, andother things.  I realize that I miss racing and training and wantto know the best way

Lotto’s Aussie sprinter Robbie McEwen held off Tom Steels and Dutchman Stefan Van Dijck to win the 90th Grand Prix de l'Escaut in Schoten, Belgium, Wednesday. It was the 10th win of the season for 29-year-old McEwen, who said he's ready for more. "After Milan-San Remo (World Cup classic), I rested up for a while," said McEwen, winner of two stages in the Paris-Nice stage race in March. "It gave me a boost because my start to the season was pretty busy. But now I fell really motivated to win some more during the rest of the season." The Italian Mapei team was at the front of the peloton

Training Bible Studies with Joe Friel

VeloNews.com welcomes your letters. If you run across something inthe pages of VeloNews magazine or see something on VeloNews.comthat causes you to want to write us, drop us a line at WebLetters@7Dogs.com. Please include your full name and home town. By submitting mail to thisaddress, you are consenting to the publication of your letter. Of Sandbaggers and Cherry Pickers I was fortunate to witness this year's little Indy 500 in BloomingtonIN. The controversy surrounding Josh Weirs eligibility (see "Finishline: April 22") was well known by every person I spoke with in thecommunity.

It’s hard to believe Thomas Frischknecht is only 32 years old. That might seem ancient to young upstarts, but Frischknecht has been a leading figure in mountain biking since he showed up at the very first mountain bike worlds back in Durango in 1990. Since then, he’s done just about everything a mountain bike racer could accomplish. Like many big-name stars, Frischknecht now has his own team where he will he will act as coach and racer. VeloNews’ Andrew Hood caught up with Frischknecht last week as he prepares for the 2002 racing season. VeloNews: How are you feeling coming into the

The Spring Classics are winding down following the Italian sweep at Liege-Bastogne-Liege.Sunday’s Amstel Gold is the final stop of a month-long fest of epic one-dayraces across northern France, Belgium and Holland.The winners came from surprising corners, with veterans such as MarioCipollini (Ghent-Wevelgem), Johan Museeuw (Paris-Roubaix) andAndrea Tafi (Tour of Flanders) proving that experience counts. LanceArmstrong offered his hand to U.S. Postal Service teammates GeorgeHincapie and the young Tom Boonen, who surprised the cyclingworld with an impressive third-place at his Paris-Roubaix

Got results? Send them to POGrady@7Dogs.comby Monday morning and we’ll post them here on Monday afternoon. Word, RFTor plain-text attachments only, please, or paste the info into the bodyof your e-mail. You are welcome to include results as far as you got 'emand we'll post pictures, too (as long as you send them in JPG format andcredit the photographer). Racing replaces ranting as Little 500 gets on trackBy VeloNews Interactive Overshadowed for weeks by a controversy regarding whether an African-Americanathlete was eligible to compete, Indiana University’s 52nd Little 500 bike race,

Thirteen Italian cyclists have been effectively cleared to compete in the Giro d'Italia after the Italian Cycling Federation (FCI) disciplinary commission decided not to impose bans that would prevent them from taking part, Italy’s ANSA news agency reported Monday. All 13 riders were among those implicated in last year's Giro doping scandal but only Giuseppe Di Grande was suspended, earning a six-month ban but one that is academic as the rider had already served that term. Five riders have had the cases dismissed while the disciplinary commission has asked for more information

Paolinetti calculates his chances

11:30 a.m. Good morning. Welcome to VeloNews.com’s coverage ofthe 2002 edition of Liège-Bastogne-Liège. For the first timeduring this year’s Ardennes classics, the weather is cooperating and 197starters left Liege under sunny and windless skies today… just about90 minutes ago. One race note for those of you checking out the startlist we've posted. The U.S. Postal team has made a last-minute changein their roster. Number 105 Floyd Landis is on his way home after findinghis recovery from crashes in Paris-Roubaix a little harder than expected.The roster now shows that 109 - David Zabriskie has

It seems the Italians have gotten it together. With a savvy one-two punch by Paolo Bettini and Stefano Garzelli of the Mapei-Quick Step machine at Liège-Bastogne-Liège on Sunday, Italy, which struggled slightly in the World Cup and one-day classics last year, made a smashing return to the top on the back of the 5-foot 6-inch Italian powerhouse. Inspired by the Italian flags flying in Saint-Nicolas, a tough Italian-flavored neighborhood overlooking the ancient city of Liège, Bettini put the icing on the cake, joining his teammate Garzelli in an attack with less than 10km to go in the 258.5km

It was a tough morning for the American sprinters on the final day of racing at track World Cup No. 1 in Monterrey, Mexico. All three of the U.S. riders – Jeff LaBauve, Tanya Lindenmuth and Tammy Thomas – were beaten 2-0 in the best of three semifinal round, meaning bronze is the best they can now hope for. On the men’s side, LaBauve fell to German Rene Wollf, the event’s top qualifier. The Texan will now face Matthias John in Sunday evening’s bronze medal match. John (Germany) was also swept out of the semis, losing two straight to Cuba’s Julio Herrera. “The legs were felling a little

Regina Schleicher (Michela Fanini) upset Petra Rossner (Saturn) in the fifth stop of the women’s World Cup when Schleicher out-muscled the favored Rossner on a steep finish of 115-km race in Valladolid, Spain, Sunday. Rossner, however, finished ahead of third-place Mirjam Melchers (Farm Frites) to regain the overall World Cup lead she lost last week at Fleche Wallone. “I really wanted to win today but Regina was just stronger than me. We were so close over the final 100 meters but I just couldn’t get past her,” Rossner said. “Of course I wanted to win, but she was stronger. My team did

As she lay on the bed in the medical tent overcome by exhaustion, Belem Guerrero said she’d never been so tired in her life. The blistering heat of the midday Mexico sun and the sizzling pace of the women’s points race had taken their toll. But it was a price Guerrero would gladly pay again, as the reward was a gold medal earned in front of her home-country fans on the final day of track World Cup No. 1 in Monterrey, Mexico. Guerrero nipped China’s Limei Yang 16 points to 13 in a race that wasn’t decided until the last of the 75 laps around the 333-meter concrete Nuevo Leon Velodromo on

1892 HOUA (Bel) Amateur1893 HOUA (Bel) Amateur1894 HOUA (Bel) Amateur  [The route was Liège- Bastogne - Spa]1898 TROUSSELIER (Fra) Amateur1899 FASTRE (Bel) Amateur1911 VAN DAELE (Bel) Independent LEKEUX (Bel) Amateur1912 VERSCHOORE (Bel) ROSSIUS & GAUTHY (Bel) Independent1913 MORITZ (Bel) Independent1919 DEVOS (Bel)1920 SCIEUR (Bel)1921 MOTTIAT (Bel)1922 MOTTIAT (Bel)1923 VERMANDEL (Bel)1924 VERMANDEL (Bel)1925 RONSSE (Bel) Independent1926 SMETS (Bel) Independent1927 RAES (Bel) Independent1928 MOTTARD (Bel) Independent1929 SCHEPERS (Bel) Independent1930 BUSE (Ger)1931 SCHEPERS (Bel)1932

Rossner, Schleicher, Melchers

At the start

One-two Mapei

Reason for concern: Bettini and Garzelli were in the day's most dangerous break.

Salanson and Kloden were off for more than 200km

Heavy traffic: the scene on the Cote St. Roche

Fast times in Little Italy: Garzelli and Bettini thrilled a partisan crowd

Belem shows off her two medals from Monterrey.

Arnaud Tournant

Josiah Ng

Thomas leads Lindenmuth in the 3-4 sprint final.

Mirabella

Pearce and Carney take on the Madison

Lance Armstrong arrived in Liège, Belgium, Saturday afternoon as one of 10 Americans scheduled to race cycling’s oldest classic, Liège-Bastogne-Liège, on Sunday. Armstrong was whisked into the Palace des Princes Evêques, a giant stone structure in central Liège just in time to join his teammates at the presentation ceremony on the eve of the 88th edition of the demanding 258km race. Armstrong, who has twice finished second at Liège (1994, ’96), has marked this event, also round 4 of the UCI World Cup series, as one he’s been gunning for this year. A large crowd was packed into a tent

Start List for Liege-Bastogne-Liege - As of Friday at 4:00 p.m.DOMO - FARM FRITES001 - MUSEEUW Johan (B);002 - BRUYLANDTS Dave (B);003 - DE WOLF Steve (B);004 - KASHECHKIN Andrey (Kz);005 - KONECNY Tomas (Cz);006 - MERCKX Axel (B);007 - RODRIGUEZ Fred (USA);008 - TANKINK Bram (Nl);LOTTO - ADECCO011 - AERTS Mario (B);012 - BAGUET Serge (B);013 - BRANDT Christophe (B);014 - DETILLOUX Christophe (B);015 - MIKHAILOV Guennadi (Rus);016 - VAN LANCKER Kurt (B);017 - VAN PETEGEM Peter (B);018 - VERBRUGGHE Rik (B);MAPEI - QUICK STEP021 - FREIRE Oscar (Sp);022 - BETTINI Paolo (I);023

Americans Tanya Lindenmuth, Tammy Thomas and Jeff LaBauve all took care of business Saturday morning, moving out of the qualifying rounds of the match sprint. Also getting through was San Diego resident Josiah Ng (Malaysia), who has already won a bronze medal in the keirin here at the opening round of the UCI track World Cup in Monterrey, Mexico. On the men’s side, LaBauve was the fourth fastest qualifier, posting a 10.779 on the 333.33-meter concrete track at the Nuevo Leon Velodromo. Germany’s Rene Wollf was the fastest man in the morning, clocking a 10.593. Fellow German Mathias John

Saturday night marked the debut of the scratch race at the World Cup level and it’s safe to say Erin Mirabella likes the new addition. The blonde Californian slipped away from the field on the final lap of the 30-lap affair, then held off the late charge of Canadian Mandy Poitras to land the first gold medal for the U.S. at the three-day event in Monterrey, Mexico. “I had an opening and I just went for it,” said Mirabella of her winning move. “I knew there were some strong sprinters in the field, so I didn’t want to take any chances.” It’s the second World Cup win for Mirabella. She won the

Merckx, aggressive in Wednesday's Fleche Wallonne, drew the biggest cheers in Liège Saturday.

Casagrande is one of the Italians favored to be in the mix at the end of the 258km L-B-L.....

... Pantani is not.

Carney

Belarus powered to a team pursuit win

Lindenmuth

Josiah Ng: a diamond in the rough?

It’s been six years since Lance Armstrong last rode Liège-Bastogne-Liège, in the days when he was a little heavier and focused on the one-day classics instead of the three-week Tour. Liège-Bastogne-Liège was then his favorite event, and he delighted in the Belgian race’s frequent climbs and its challenging distance. In 1994, Armstrong placed second, trapped in a Gewiss team sandwich between winner Eugeni Berzin and third-placed Giorgio Furlan. The following year, the Texan came in sixth, after dropping off the winning break on the last hill. And in 1996, he was outfoxed in a three-up sprint

An appeal by Belgian rider Franck Vandenbroucke was rejected by the Court of Arbitration for Sport in Lausanne, Switzerland, Friday leaving the disgraced former Domo team rider with a six-month ban from cycling and few options ahead of him. Vandenbroucke was banned by the Belgian cycling federation and sanctioned 10,000 Swiss francs ($6000) after police discovered banned products, including EPO (erythropoietin), anabolic steroid clenbuterol and morphine, at his home following a raid in February. The raid came a day after his French physiotherapist Bernard Sainz, known ominously in the

Judging by the staggering popularity of our new online letters page, many of you have questions about the direction VeloNews is taking, especially since the debut of this “Friday’s Foaming Rant” column. “What the hell do you idiots think you’re doing?” is a frequent query, and one that is easily answered. We don’t know. I’m not kidding. We’re making it up as we go along, just like USA Cycling, except we’re still involved to some degree with bicycle racing. With the Euro’ peloton cranking out more positive dope tests than Robert Downey Jr., and the UCI’s off-road World Cup down to a single

Europe seems to be treating the Navigators very well indeed. The teamreports its heading back to the Continent following its recent trip, when the team won two races and several other podium finishes and numerous top-10 finishes. The team reports after a quick trip home, the Navigators willhead back to Europe for five races during a two-week period. Theculmination of the racing junket will be the Four Days of Dunkirk, oneof the top spring races in France. The team will resume its domestic racing schedule on May 19th with the Housatonic Classic in Danbury,Conn.Here are the events added to the

On a warm, hazy Friday morning, competition got underway in round 1 of the UCI track World Cup in Monterrey, Mexico. Among the early success stories were Americans Tanya Lindenmuth and Erin Mirabella, who both earned the top spots in their respective qualifying rounds. Mirabella posted a 3:46.776 in the 3km individual time trial qualifier, easily besting Colombia’s Luisa Calle, and finishing ahead of second-place qualifier Emma Davies (Great Britain). Mirabella will face Davies in Friday evening’s final. Meanwhile, Lindenmuth won her keirin heat with a time of 12.618, moving her into the

It’s called the World Class Performance Program, and it’s a name that was well deserved after the first day of racing at the opening track World Cup of the 2002 season in Monterrey, Mexico on Friday. Great Britain’s Paul Manning and Emma Davies each earned gold medals in the individual pursuit, proving at least for a day that the WCPP — the UK’s competitive cycling program — is in fact world class. After placing second in the qualifying round, Manning outgunned Spain’s Sergi Escobar (Spain) 4:31.629 to 4:32.269 to win the first World Cup of his career. Switzerland’s Franco Marvulli earned

Friday’s foaming rant: You can’t get there from here

Sergi Escobar

Erin Mirabella

Mike Tillman

LIÈGE -BASTOGNE-LIÈGE: An epic in the offing?

Lopes and the 3-man sprint squad