Liege-Bastogne-Liege Team Preview
A Deep Field Promises an Exciting, Wide-Open race!
Liège-Bastogne-Liège, is the oldest Classic on the calendar. It's considered a climber's race, running through the scenic, hilly region of the Ardennes, and features a number of steep climbs, and not much flat road. The race favors a strong all-around rider, and past winners have often been strong Grand Tour contenders.
The main absentees are: Erik Dekker (Ned), Jan Ullrich (Ger), Laurent Jalabert(Fra),Gilberto Simoni (Ita) and last years winner Oscar Camenzind (Swi)
In the 87 editions raced so far 61 wins have gone to
Belgium, 9 to Italy, 6 for Switzerland and 5 to France
The field is deep this year, with 25 teams taking part.
DOMO - FARM FRITES :
Johan Museeuw is always dangerous, though he may not be the man for Liege. He is none the worse for wear at 36, as his dramatic win in Roubaix last week and second in Flanders indicate. Axel Merckx looked strong last week placing sixth and playing a prominent part in forming the decisive breakaway. Fred Rodriguez has had good form all year, and should hang in well. If he does, he’s a good bet in a sprint.
001 - MUSEEUW Johan BEL
002 - BRUYLANDTS Dave BEL
003 - DE WOLF Steve BEL
004 - KASHECHKIN Andrey KAZ
005 - KONECNY Tomas CZE
006 - MERCKX Axel BEL
007 - RODRIGUEZ Fred USA
008 - TANKINK Bram HOL
LOTTO - ADECCO :
Mario Aerts is coming off a big win in Fleche-Wallonne, but reports are that before that race, teammate Rik Verbrugghe told Aerts he would win in Wallonne while Verbrugghe himself claimed that his victory would come in Liege. We’ll see if his prediction come true on Sunday. Peter Van Petegem has shown good form this season, taking third in Flanders and winning the overall in de Panne. Serge Baguet will be one to watch, as well.
011 - AERTS Mario BEL
012 - BAGUET Serge BEL
013 - BRANDT Christophe BEL
014 - DETILLOUX Christophe BEL
015 - MIKHAILOV Guennadi RUS
016 - VAN LANCKER Kurt BEL
017 - VAN PETEGEM Peter BEL
018 - VERBRUGGHE Rik BEL
MAPEI - QUICK STEP :
Oscar Freire is always a power, but Liege in not generally a sprinter’s race. Daniele Nardello was a protagonist in the winning break at Flanders and should show strength, but an in form Paolo Bettini 2000 L-B-L winner is probably Mapei’s best bet here. Andrea Noe, who rode to fifth in Fleche-Wallonne, will no doubt provide ample support. Cadel Evans is one to watch as well, and with his mountain biking background, should be comfortable on the climbs.
021 - FREIRE Oscar SPA
022 - BETTINI Paolo ITA
023 - FORNCIARI Paolo ITA
024 - EVANS Cadel AUS
025 - GARZELLI Stefano ITA
026 - NARDELLO Daniele ITA
027 - NOE Andrea ITA
028 - PAOLINI Luca ITA
RABOBANK :
Michaël Boogerd was strong at La Fleche, and finished Liege second to Vandenbroucke in 1999. He rides with a strong team including Levi Leipheimer, who should be at home on this terrain and motivated to test his legs against his old teammates on USPS. The Zberg brothers are always dangerous, too, and were near the front in Wallonne.
061 - BOOGERD Michaël HOL
062 - BOVEN Jan HOL
063 - DE GROOT Bram HOL
064 - LEIPHEIMER Levy USA
065 - LOTZ Marc HOL
066 - VERHEYEN Geert BEL
067 - ZBERG Beat SWI
068 - ZBERG Markus SWI
US POSTAL SERVICE :
Lance Armstrong is riding into good form in the early season this year, and if he is out for the win here in Liege, he will be a force to be reckoned with; though he may be looking towards Amstel. George Hincapie is riding Liege for the first time, but should show strength if he has recovered sufficiently from Roubaix; and maybe he has an axe to grind after so many near misses this season. Christian Vandevelde finished in the top 20 in La Fleche and should be ready with some strong back-up, along with teammates. Chechu Rubiera has had a victory this season, and he is always strong support.
101 - ARMSTRONG Lance USA
102 - CLINGER David USA
103 - HINCAPIE George USA
104 - KJAERGAARD Steffen NOR
105 - LANDIS Floyd USA
106 - PADRNOS Pavel CZE
107 - RUBIERA José Luis SPA
108 - VANDEVELDE Christian USA
EUSKALTEL - EUSKADI :
Both of the Etxebarrias finished in the top ten at La Fleche; Unai in second place. David was third in L-B-L last year, and second the year before, he wants to win this one, and has the form and the team to have a serious go at it.
111 - ETXEBARRIA David SPA
112 - ETXEBARRIA Unai VEN
113 - FLORES Igor SPA
114 - ISASI Iñaki SPA
115 - MARTINEZ Egoi SPA
116 - MARTINEZ Alberto SPA
117 - SANCHEZ Samuel SPA
118 - SOLAUN César SPA
FASSA BORTOLO :
Michele Bartoli knows this race well, and has won it twice. He took third in La Fleche, and while some say he is not quite back to his top form after coming back from injury, he appears to be pretty darned close. He’s got some good support on his team, with Belli and Basso, and Casagrande is a podium threat as well.
121 - BARTOLI Michele ITA
122 - BASSO Ivan ITA
123 - BELLI Wladimir ITA
124 - CASAGRANDE Francesco ITA
125 - GUSTOV Volodomir UKR
126 - IVANOV Serguei RUS
127 - STANGELJ Gorazd SLO
128 - VELO Marco ITA
GEROLSTEINER :
Gerolsteiner features Davide Rebellin and his merry men. He finished eleventh at La Fleche, only a few seconds behind the winner. He was second in last year’s Liege, and stands a good chance of making the podium this year.
181 - REBELLIN Davide ITA
182 - CONTRINI Daniele ITA
183 - FARESIN Gianni ITA
184 - HASELBACHER Rene AUT
185 - RASTELLI Ellis ITA
186 - SCHMIDT Torsten GER
187 - STRAUSS Marcel SWI
188 - WROLICH Peter AUT
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