News

22nd March 2007

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Van Bon wins the Nokere Koerse

Rabobank's Leon Van Bon has won yesterday's 197 kilometer UCI category 1.1 Nokere Koerse race in Belgium, beating Skil-Shimano  rider Aart Vierhouten into third with Predictor-Lotto's Geert Steurs taking the final spot on the podium in third.

With attacks and regrouping's coming throughout the race it wasn't to 55 kilometers from the end of the race when the decisive break went clear. Among the leading group Predictor-Lotto had three of their riders present, experienced ex-Belgian champion Tom Steels and neo-pros Greg Van Avermaet and Steurs.

With two laps remaining Steurs launched an attack and was quickly joined by Van Bon and Vierhouten. Together the trio worked together to keep their lead over a chasing group of ten riders but on the last lap young Steurs lost contact with his two break away companions.

Together Van Bon and Vierhouten continued towards the line where the Rabobank professional won by 0'18" from the Skil-Shimano rider with Steurs crossing the line 0'35" behind.

The sprint for fourth place was won by Greg Van Avermaet, the Predictor-Lotto teammate of Steurs who won the 160.5 kilometer fifth stage of the Tour of Qatar on the 1st of February from Al Zubarah to Mesaieed.

Results :

1. Leon Van Bon (Ned) Rabobank
2. Aart Vierhouten (Ned) Skil-Shimano at 18"
3. Geert Steurs (Bel) Predictor-Lotto at 35"
4. Greg Van Avermaet (Bel) Predictor-Lotto at 37"
5. Markus Eichler (Ger) Unibet.com
6. Geert Omloop (Bel) Jartazi-Promo Fashion
7. Konstantin Schubert (Ger) Team Regiostrom-Senges
8. James Vanlandschoot (Bel) Landbouwkrediet-Tönissteiner
9. Roy Curvers (Ned) Time-Van Hemert
10. Maarten Tjallingii (Ned) Skil-Shimano at 55"

Milram confirm strong lineup for the 'Primavera'

Determined for a strong performance at the Milan-Sanremo on Saturday Italy's Alessandro Petacchi will lead a strong Milram team that, as reported yesterday on ProCycleNews, will also include German Erik Zabel, himself a four time winner of the Italian classic.

Once again Zabel and Petacchi, the winner in 2005, will both be among the favorites for the race.

They will be supported by ex-world champion Igor Astarloa (Spa), Mirko Celestino (Ita), Alberto Ongarato (Ita), Fabio Sacchi (Ita), Marco Velo (Ita) and Christian Knees (Ger) - sporting directors will be: Gianluigi Stanga (Ita) and Antonio Bevilacqua (Ita).

Unibet change name and jersey for French races

The Unibet.com team will have a different look both this weekend and other French races throughout the year. No longer will they lineup in their 'neutral' jerseys. Instead they will be wearing a new orange and black jersey with the name Canyon.com on it, Canyon being the team's bike sponsor.

The new jersey will only be worn by the team during races on French soil. In all other races the team will continue to race under the Unibet.com name and in their normal trade jersey's.

So far this season the team that is registered in Sweden has been forced to wear 'neutral' jersey's [as pictured] without the name and logo of their main sponsor, Unibet.com. Why? Because French law prohibit's prohibits advertising of foreign lottery and betting institutions. So will this mean they will be invited to the Tour de France by the ASO who organize the French Grand Tour?

T-Mobile and Astana announce their rosters for the Milan-Sanremo this weekend

Second at the Tirreno-Adriatico that finished only a couple of days ago, the champion of Luxembourg, Kim Kirchen, will lead the T-Mobile assault on the Milan-Sanremo classic this coming Saturday in Italy.

T-Mobile sporting director says, "Kim is very much in form at the moment." Indeed the Tirreno-Adriatico stage race is considered a traditional warm-up for the Italian classic, the longest one-day race of the season.

Lorenzo Bernucci, Andreas Klier, Jakob Piil, Roger Hammond and Bert Grabsch will also be part of the strong German lineup that will be completed by sprinters Bernhard Eisel and Gerald Ciolek.

20 year-old Ciolek will be making his debut at the 294 kilometer race, often decided on the Cipressa after 272 kilometers and the Poggio which comes 288 kilometers into the race. Piva continues, "For Gerald, this race will be first and foremost about gaining experience."

Astana will be led by experienced classics riders Matthias Kessler from Germany and Russian Sergueï Ivanov. Austrian rider René Haselbacher has also been named on the squad for Saturday's race. The team will be completed by Dutch rider Koen De Kort, Australian Aaron Kemps, Russian Gennady Mikhailov, Kazakh Dimitri Muravyev and Gregory Rast from Switzerland.

Indeed De Kort, Haselbacher, Ivanov, Kessler and Rast were all members of the Astana team that supported German Andreas Klöden on the way to his overall win at the Tirreno-Adriatico.

The complete T-Mobile lineup will be: Lorenzo Bernucci (Ita), Gerald Ciolek (Ger), Bernhard Eisel (Aut), Bert Grabsch (Ger), Roger Hammond (GBr), Kim Kirchen (Lux), Andreas Klier (Ger) and Jakob Piil (Den) - sporting director: Valerio Piva (Ita).

The Astana roster will be:

Koen De Kort (Ned), René Haselbacher (Aut), Sergueï Ivanov (Rus), Aaron Kemps (Aus), Matthias Kessler (Ger), Gennady Mikhailov (Rus), Dimitri Muravyev (Kaz) and Gregory Rast (Swi).

Unibet.com confirm their lineup for the Milan-Sanremo as Matteo Carrara is forced to pull out with stomach problems

Matteo Carrara will not be riding the Milan-Sanremo classic this weekend even though he finished in 10th place last year. The Italian rider is suffering from stomach problems and instead his place on the Unibet.com team will be filled by Polish rider Michal Golas.

Golas will join teammates Jimmy Casper (Fra), Arnaud Coyot (Fra), Baden Cooke (Aus), Jeremy Hunt (GBr) [pictured winning the Grand Prix la Marseillaise in February], Gorik Gardeyn (Bel), Laurens ten Dam (Ned) and Marco Zanotti (Ita) in the team that will be guided by sporting directors Michel Lafis (Swe) and Jacques Hanegraaf (Ned).

Lampre-Fondital, Liquigas and Gerolsteiner confirm for the Milan-Sanremo