Cycling News Roundup - 27 June 2008
Team News, Time Trial Champs: Gusev - Russia, Tanel Kangert - Estonia, Lars Bak - Denmark,  Raivis Belohvosciks. Skil/Shimano Extends Sponsorship,  Martin Elmiger, Aussie Olympic picks, The Battle of North Valley's Hills '08

Lampre - National Championships
David Loosli & Simon Spilak Confirmed
On Sunday David Loosli will take part in Suisse championship, that will take place in Gansingen: Lampre's athlete is in a good form, as shown recently in Tour de Suisse during which Loosli wore the KoM jersey for several stages.

In Slovenia, in Mirna Pec, Simon Spilak will race in the national championship. The young Slovenian cyclist has realized impressive performances in the first part of the season, especially in Paris-Nice and in the Northern Classics (9th place in Tour de Flandres) and in addition he rode in Giro d'Italia.

Tanel Kangert Crowned Time Trial Champion of Estonia
Ag2r la Mondiale rider Tanel Kangert won the national time trial championships by over one minute today.

21 years old, Tanel Kangert carries out its first professional year within the training of Vincent Lavenu. The Estonian rider had a difficult beginning of season because of a knee injury; but his motivation and talent enabled him to obtain excellent results since the beginning of June. Indeed the youngster finished in 4th place . But its motivation and its talent enabled him to obtain excellent results since the beginning of June. Indeed, it finishes 4th place of the Boucles de l’Aulne and took a beautiful 14th place at the tour of Switzerland.

Vital Statistics:
* 21 years old born: 11.03.1987 in Vändra (Estonia)
* Resides in Chambéry (Savoy)
* Height/weight: 1m78/65kg
* Age he began cycling: 11
* Club: Roue d’or St Amandoise
* Professionnel Since 2008 - Ag2r la Mondiale

Vladimir Gusev Time Trial Champion Russia
For the second day in a row, Astana Cycling Team, takes a golden medal on the national championships time trial. Vladimir Gusev was the fastest rider on the difficult circuit of Krylatskoe (Moscow). Young talented rider Timofey Kritskiy (Team Katyusha) was second, Vladimir Karpets (Caisse d’Epargne) third.

Vladimir Gusev  photo courtesy of Astana Cycling Team

For Vladimir Gusev it is his third gold in the event (2003, 2007, 2008), his first for the Kazakh based Astana Cycling Team. Because of a a broken collar bone in the Tour of California, he could not really defend his chances in the April classics. After a strong Giro d’Italia, in support of overall winner Alberto Contador, he clearly hits his top form.

“I am very glad with this victory. It is always an honour to wear the national jersey. I want to thank my Team Director and former Olympic Time Trial Champion Viatcheslav Ekimov for his advice today. I hope that we can return on Sunday from Russia with two national jerseys. It is a nice reward for our Kazakh sponsors who give so much to our sport,” commented the champion.

The Russian Road Championship will be held on Sunday, June 29th, in Krylatskoe as well. Viatcheslav Ekimov will direct a small, but strong duo: Vladimir Gusev and Sergey Ivanov.

Result National Championship Russia Time Trial
Krylatskoe, 39 K
1. Vladimir Gusev 54.58
2. Timofey Kritskiy (KATYUSHA) 01.30
3. Vladimir Karpets (CAISSE D’EPARGNE) 2.00

Belohvosciks, Latvian ITT Champion,
Claims 6th victory of the season for Saunier Duval/Scott.
Raivis Belohvosciks has basked in Saunier Duval/Scott's 6th triumph this season, as he won the Latvian National ITT Championship in Smiltene. Belohvosciks dominated the race all throughout, covering its 40 kilometres in 51´41", that is, almost 3´ faster than the second best rider, Olegs Melehs (Dynatek-Latvia). In this way, Belohvosciks defended his title, since he also won last year´s championship. In fact, this is his 8th national time-trial title.

Meanwhile, Rubens Bertogliati came in 2nd in the Swiss National ITT Championship, which unfolded in Messen last Wednesday (45.4 kilometres). He was only overpowered by World Champion Fabian Cancellara (CSC).

Road Championships
Belohvosciks and Bertogliati will take part in the corresponding National Road Race Championships, while Aurélien Passeron and Denis Flahaut will do the same in France (Semur-en-Auxois, 239 kilometres, starting at 10:45), Riccardo Riccò and Ermanno Capelli in Italy (Bergamo, 254 kilometres, starting at 10:00), and Juanjo Cobo, David de la Fuente, Rubén Lobato, Josep Jufré, Beñat Intxausti, Raúl Alarcón, José A. Benítez, Javier Megías, Jesús del Nero, Alberto Durán, Alberto Fernández de la Puebla, "Litu" Gómez and Héctor González in Spain (Talavera de la Reina, 202 kilometres, starting at 9:30). Tomorrow, Juanjo Cobo, Arkaitz Durán and Jesús del Nero will be fighting to clock the best time for Saunier Duval/Scott in the Spanish National ITT Championship (28 kilometres, starting at 10:25).

Latvian National Championships ITT (Smiltene, 40 kilometres.):
1. Raivis Belohvosciks (Saunier Duval/Scott) 51:41
2. Olegs Melehs (Dynatek-Latvia) at 2:52
3. Vitalijs Kornilovs (Rietumu Banka-Riga) at 4:23

Swiss National Championships ITT (Messen, 45.4 kilometres):
1. Fabian Cancellara (CSC) 56:55
2. Rubens Bertogliati (Saunier Duval/Scott) at 1:37
3. Andreas Dietziker (Team Volksbank) at 2:10

Mauricio Soler rides without wrist brace & begins his final build-up to the Tour de France
Mauricio Soler arrived back in Europe on Thursday, fully recovered from his injuries and optimistic about his form as he gets ready for the Tour de France.

Soler spent several weeks in Colombia, recovering from his injuries after his crash during stage two of the Giro d’Italia. He bravely carried on in the race but was forced to pull out on May 21 in Cesena because of the pain in his left wrist.

X-rays showed a minor fracture and so Team Barloworld preferred to avoid taking any risks in the build-up to the Tour de France. The French race is the biggest goal of the season for the Colombian climber after winning the mountain stage to Briançon and the special polka-dot jersey awarded to the best climber in the race.

Soler has recovered quickly while at home in Colombia and was able to take off the wrist brace so that he could train for the Tour de France with out any problems. He still feels slight pain but this normal and is due to the healing of the bone.

Soler arrived on Thursday afternoon at Malpensa airport near Milan after a 12-hour flight via Madrid. Team Barloworld directeur sportif Alberto Volpi picked him and took him to the team’s base in Adro near Brescia. Soler rode his bike for a couple of hours on Friday as he recovers from jet-lag but will begin more intense on Saturday, with race-speed training behind a motorbike.

"We can’t rush things but we know there are never any problems with Mauricio,” Alberto Volpi said. “The most important thing is that he recovers from his long flight, then on Saturday we’ll begin some more specific training and gradually extend the distance. He’ll ride at speed, to get used to racing again, with rides on both his road and time trial bikes.”

Gino Bartali Museum Website

Museo del Ciclismo Gino Bartali
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Ag2r la Mondiale
Martin Elmiger Prolongs Contract
Swiss rider Martin Elmiger signed for another year with Ag2r la Mondiale. Elmiger signed with  the team in 2007. With two victories in his first season (Tour Down Under and GP of Isbergues), he established himself as an essential member of the team.

Since the beginning of the season 2008, the Swiss rider obtained excellent results; in particular winning a  stage in the Tour de Picardie and a stage 2 Tour du Canton d’Argovie

Vital Statistics:
29 years - born 23.09.1978 in Zug
Réside at Zug (Swiss)
Height/Weight: 1m81/72kg
Club: ZG Oberwil
Professional  since 2001 - Ag2r la Mondiale since 2007
Pro Teams: Post Swiss Team (2001), Phonak (2002/2006)
Number of victories pro: 8

Team CSC Saxo Bank
Lars Bak Reclaims Danish ITT Title
On Thursday evening Lars Bak reclaimed the title as Danish National Time Trial Champion after having finished 55 seconds ahead of Frank Høj (Cofidis) in second place. Michael Blaudzun took the Bronze medal one minute and 28 seconds behind his teammate and Lasse Bøchman also did great with a fifth place.

"Of course we're very happy with this result even though we would've liked to have taken all the medals of course. Frank Høj took us by surprise so we'll have to keep an eye on him this Sunday. A strong effort by him and we're really happy and proud of the Gold and Bronze medals," said sports director Dan Frost, while Lars Bak was celebrated on the podium in the background.

"I've felt my form to be on the up lately and I've had a good feeling in training so I believed it was possible today. When I got some of my intermediate times from Lars (Michaelsen) out on the route I knew I was on my way," said Lars Bak, who caught up to Brian Vandborg (Team GLS Pakke Shop), who had been named one of the biggest rivals to the Team CSC Saxo Bank riders and who is also representing Denmark at the Olympics this summer.

"At the first intermediate time I was actually behind compared to Blaudzun, but I still managed to catch up to Vandborg about half way through, so I realized he wasn't the one I should be focusing on. It was especially towards the end that I felt really strong and I was told that Frank Høj had been very fast for the final six kilometers, but hey – so was I!" laughed Lars Bak, who will now be focusing on the Danish Road Race Championship on Sunday.

"The most important thing this Sunday is that the winner is someone from Team CSC Saxo Bank. We're doing this as a team because the National Jersey belongs to a ProTour team for sure. But there are a lot of other strong contenders as well," concluded Bak, who won the Danish Road Race Championship himself in 2005.

Skil/Shimano Team Sponsor Contracts Extended 3 Years
Cycling Team Continues to Build with Skil & Shimano
The current title sponsors of Skil-Shimano professional cycling team, Skil Europe BV and Shimano Inc, have reached agreement with the team’s general manager Iwan Spekenbrink on an extension to the sponsorship contract. The team and the sponsors are now looking forward with even greater ambition.

Shimano Inc., the Japanese producer of innovative cycle parts and global market leader in the industry, has concluded a sponsorship agreement with the team for a new four-year Olympic phase. Skil Europe BV, a producer of high-quality electrical hand tools for DIY enthusiasts and professional users alike, also renews its 3-year commitment as main sponsor, on the basis of a clear long-term cycling sponsorship vision.

In its recognizable red, white and blue outfit, the team has made an impact in many races this season, based on its attacking style of riding, international presence (participation in many prestigious races in which the team’s riders made an impression), a string of fine performances producing some exciting victories, and many promising youngsters that have ridden at the front this year.

Apropos of the renewed sponsoring deal, Gerhard Kobesen, president of Skil Europe BV, says: “The team has clearly proven its value as one of our most important communication tools in Europe. A tool that has generated a great deal of goodwill among our customers and increased and strengthened the appeal of the Skil brand. We trust without reservation the team’s philosophy and aspirations, the people that make it up and the solid, ambitious way Iwan Spekenbrink runs it.”

Marc van Rooy, general manager of Shimano Europe Holding BV, justifies Shimano Inc’s renewed sponsorship as follows: “Shimano champions cycling, which is why we are delighted to invest in the sport and, specifically, this team, which puts such great efforts into developing young cyclists. The development of a select group of talented young cyclists from China and Japan, who will ride a European programme to work towards the 2012 London Olympics, is also important to Shimano and that is in good hands in this team. We realize, too, that the team needs to be given peace of mind about the future at the earliest opportunity, so that it can develop in its own time. That is why we wanted to generate clarity at an early stage by confirming our desire to develop the team in the coming years.”

Ethical &  Responsible Cycling
The renewed partnerships with Skil and Shimano enable the Skil-Shimano cycling team to strengthen the squad and add races to the programme. One of the ambitions is participating in a three-week tour, which may be feasible within the new sponsorship term. The team’s international orientation, focused first and foremost on France, the Benelux and Germany, and the principles of ethical and responsible cycling clearly continue to be essential components in this policy. Says general manager Iwan Spekenbrink: “We are naturally delighted that these two attractive multinationals have displayed so much confidence in our organisation and enable us to pursue our policy and new ambitions. The confidence displayed by Skil and Shimano is also a good signal for cycling.”

For more information about the Skil-Shimano cycling team, Skil Europe BV and Shimano Inc, visit www.skilcyclingteam.com and www.skil-shimano.jp - www.skileurope.com - www.shimano.com

Cycling Australia Nominations for the 2008 Olympic Games
Cycling Australia today named the 28 cyclists it intends to nominate to the Australian Olympic Committee for selection in the Australian team for the 2008 Olympic Games to contest the road, track, mountain bike and BMX cycling events in Beijing.

Track Sprint
* Ryan Bayley OAM (Alexander Heights, WA 09.03.1982)
* Daniel Ellis (Ngunnawal, ACT 07.10.1988)
* Mark French (Elwood, VIC 13.10.1984)
* Shane Kelly OAM (Ararat, VIC 07.01.1972)
* Anna Meares OAM (Gracemere, QLD 21.09.1983)

Track Endurance
* Jack Bobridge (Mt Pleasant, SA 13.07.1989)
* Graeme Brown OAM (Menai, NSW 09.04.1979)
* Mark Jamieson (Acacia Hills, TAS 04.05.1984)
* Brett Lancaster OAM (Shepparton, VIC 15.11.79)
* Katie Mactier (St Kilda, VIC 23.03.1975)
* Bradley McGee OAM (Wentworthville, NSW 24.02.1976)
* Cameron Meyer (Helena Valley, WA 11.01.1988)
* Luke Roberts OAM (Walkerville, SA 25.01.1977)

Road
* Katherine Bates (Northmead, NSW 18.05.1982)
* Sara Carrigan OAM (Nerang, QLD 07.09.1980)
* Cadel Evans (Barwon Heads, VIC 14.02.1977)
* Simon Gerrans (Jamieson, VIC 16.05.1980)
* Matthew Lloyd (Brighton, VIC 24.05.1983)
* Stuart O'Grady OAM (Unley Park, SA 06.08.1973)
* Michael Rogers (Garren, ACT 20.12.1979)
* Oenone Wood (Watson, ACT 24.09.1980)

BMX
* Tanya Bailey (Mariginiup, WA 15.03.1981)
* Nicole Callisto (Beechboro, WA 12.11.1987)
* Jared Graves (Toowoomba, Qld 16.12.1982)
* Kamakazi (Jimboomba, QLD 08.03.1981)
* Luke Madill (Cranebrook, NSW 28.05.1980)

Mountain Bike
* Daniel McConnell (Bruthen, VIC 09.08.1985)
* Dellys Starr (Smith's Gully, VIC 02.10.1976)

The nominations have been endorsed by Cycling Australia's High Performance Management Committee (HPMC). The nominees have qualified for nomination as per the 2008 Australian Olympic Team Nomination Criteria but selection of the Olympic Team will be conducted solely by the Australian Olympic Committee (AOC). Selection may also be contingent on the outcome of any appeals lodged against non-nomination.

The timeline for Cycling Australia's nomination process is below:
* 23 June 2008 - Monday (5pm AEST) Deadline for recording a performance and/or times and submission of information pertaining to results and performances.
* 25 June 2008 - Wednesday (5pm AEST) Deadline for National Selectors to lodge final nominations for the Olympic Team with the Cycling Australia CEO
* 26 June 2008 - Thursday (5pm AEST) Deadline for HPMC to review and endorse the nominations of the CA National Selection Committees
* 27 June 2008 - Friday (10am AEST) CA to commence advising Shadow Team members of the nominations (day of public release of full list of nominees)
* 1 July 2008 - Tuesday (5pm AEST) Closing date for athletes to lodge an appeal against non-nomination
* 2 July 2008 - Wednesday (5pm AEST) CA will nominate athletes to the AOC for selection in the 2008 Australian Olympic Team, including nominations subject to an appeal
* 4 July 2008 - Friday (10am AEST) Final date for nomination of athletes to the AOC. AOC will formally confirm team selections within 48 hours, subject to outstanding appeals

The Cycling Australia and Australian Olympic Committee nomination criteria for the 2008 Olympic Games can be downloaded in pdf format from the Selection Policies section of the Cycling Australia website: www.cycling.org.au

The Battle of North Valley's Hills '08
September 18-22, 2008 Town Park Strasburg, Virginia
Come join us as we traverse the foothills of the famous Shenandoah Valley that lies comfortably between the majestic Massanutten and Blue Ridge Mountains of Virginia.

Options for Family Rides, 30, 60, & 100 mile recreational road rides, hikes, guided walking tours, and optional MTB tours will carry you on a journey through history and focus on some of the Civil War's most famous battles... such as Fisher's Hill, Tom's Brook, New Market, Cedar Creek, and Hupp's Hill.

Part of the ride will carry you across one of Virginia's most charming scenic byways as well as part of the Civil War Trail... the rest will keep you pumping and coasting, pumping and coasting, & pumping and coasting through the rolling hills of some of the most breathtaking, back-road scenery you've ever beheld.

Three days of events will include: 2 Metrics and a Century, a Bike Rodeo & Activities for Children, Youth and Families, Great Food, & Memorable Rest Stops! Register for one or all three days!
Visit www.forba.org for details and more information!
This ride is a benefit for Strasburg Youth in Arts
FestiVELO de Charleston: The Holiday Festival of Bicycles for Families. December 3 through December 8. Registration opens July 4th.

Discuss this race and the sport with other cycling fans from around the world on the Daily Peloton.com Forums and Chat Room.  Sponsor the daily peloton & advertise your product or service to cyclists and cycling fans on www.dailypeloton.com - contact us.