The Key Men
Francisco Mancebo Pérez
Born: 9 March 1976 (thirty years old), Spain
Role: Team captain/climber

Francisco Mancebo has a fine record in the Tour de France, only bettered by perhaps Ivan Basso and Jan Ullrich. In six finishes (out of six starts), the likeable Spaniard has finished in the top ten five times: his lowest finish was 13th in 2001. It is particularly promising that the man from Madrid’s best result came last year, with fourth place between the big-name triumvirate. He supported solid climbing – only he, Rasmussen and Valverde could keep with Lance Armstrong on the climb to Courchevel – with similarly consistent time-trials. Mancebo is almost forgotten in naming contenders for the Tour, as he tends to hide in wheels rather than attack, but he is certainly likely to finish in the top six.
Climbing: 9/10 –You ertainly know when he’s suffering, with the left-head-bob becoming as iconic as Moreau’s tonge-out. But the former white jersey winner certainly can climb with the best - his results speak for themselves - and many don’t give him enough credit for his many good finishes.
Time-trialing: 6/10 – Solid but unspectacular. A better time-trialist than some think, he can limit his losses to 2-3 minutes, but in a Tour with over 100km of time-trial, his overall position could suffer.
Tactics: 5/10 – Simple but effective. Attacks rarely, when feeling good, but is painted more as a man who suffers in wheels till he can no longer. Considering his conservative tactics, it’s not surprising that he doesn’t win much, though he did take a Vuelta stage at Arcalis last September. He bases his Tour on consistency rather than all-out attacks. The fact that he has only finished on the podium once in a Grand Tour (fourth in the 2004 Vuelta) also suggests he’ll finish just off the roster again.
Form: 7/10 - Fifth in the Dauphiné suggests that all is fine and dandy with his Tour preparation.
Predicted finish: Between fourth and sixth; he will just miss the podium again.

Christophe Moreau
Born: 12 April 1971 (thirty-five years old), France
Role: Captain/polka-dot pursuer

French cycling finds itself in a spot of bother, with few good results on the continent. Christophe Moreau is perhaps the last remaining man from the Jalabert/Virenque/Brochard generation. Although now 35, he shows few signs of slowing down. The Alsacian has seemed rejuvenated with a move to Ag2r and at the recent Dauphiné, we saw his best form for years – possibly since winning the same race in 2001 - in finishing second, as he danced on the pedals at the head of the race with the best riders. Also third at the Volta a Catalunya, Moreau may have hit good form a bit too early, but even if this is so, he is likely to be a contender for the Mountains jersey. The best French finisher in the Tour since 2003, it is probable that, barring injury, the Belfort boy will be the best of the home crop, but he could finish higher than ever. An assault on the polka-dot jersey will see his overall position suffer, but like Jalabert and Virenque before him, it would perhaps be a fitting way for Moreau to finish his final Tour.
Climbing: 7/10 – The image of Moreau suffering up mountains with his tongue out can probably be summoned with just the mention of his name. It is difficult to see him flying sprightly up the Tour’s climbs this year: he is a sound climber but in recent years has not been able to stay with the best.
Time-trialing: 7/10 – The 2001 prologue winner has lost some of his zip but he can still perform well against the clock. In a Tour with so many kilometres of chrono, he could make some gains on some of the better climbers.
Tactics: 6/10 - It was refreshing to see him forcing the pace and attacking at the recent Dauphiné. Moreau certainly likes a good attack, and it’s likely we’ll see him up the road going for polka-dot points, though he is perhaps not the most calculated rider. Still, calculated and careful riding never wins you the polka-dot jersey...
He should probably win more than he does – three second places this year. The fire is still there though, and it was painful to see the veteran campaigner miss out by mere inches on the Ventoux.
Form: 9/10 – If anything too good: podium finishes in the Dauphiné and the Volta a Catalunya suggest he could have overstretched himself and peaked too soon. On the other hand, he can fall back on these good results if the Tour doesn't go to plan.
Predicted finish: Just out of the top ten with the polka-dot jersey on his shoulders in Paris.

Sylvain Calzati
Born: 1 July 1979 (twenty-seven), France
Role: Attacker/domestique
Sylvain Calzati clinched the ninth and last spot on the Ag2r Tour team after showing some good form in June, with eighteenth overall at the Tour de Suisse and then fifth in the French national road race. Although he is perhaps as not a good climber as several of his teammates, Calzati won the Tour de l’Avenir in 2004 and has raced cycling’s biggest event twice before. Calzati (who celebrates his birthday on the day of the Prologue) may be jaded from the Giro, where he finished just inside the top eighty, but he will be a valued team member for Mancebo and Moreau, as another competent climber thrown into the mix.

Stéphane Goubert
Born: 13 March 1970 (thirty-six), France
Role: Mountain lieutenant/climber
Goubert is almost unfailingly always on the fringes of the action when the race hits the mountains: in the last five editions of the Tour he has finished between 17th and 34th. Though, as the oldest rider in the Ag2r squad, he is getting on in years, it is likely he will continue this record. The team will also be hoping he can offer basic support for Mancebo and Moreau when the going gets steep. Remarkably, in his thirteenth year as a pro, Goubert has never won a UCI-accredited race. It’s likely he won’t rectify that in this year's Tour de France, of all races, though the stage on Bastille Day is well-suited to his capabilities.

Mikel Astarloza
Born: 17 Novemeber 1979 (twenty-six), Spain
Role: All-rounder/domestique
Another former Tour Down Under winner in the Ag2r ranks (along with Simon Gerrans), Astarloza achieved his best Tour de France finish last year, finishing 27th. While he is also a competent time-trialist, the Spaniard may have to curb his attacking instincts in order to protect countryman Francisco Mancebo. With a host of good climbers – Ag2r have four who have finished in the Tour top 30 before, with Dessel another possibility – the squad could support a good finish for Mancebo or Moreau with a high ranking in the teams classification come Paris, if men like Astarloza can repeat previous performances. He's still young though, and could yet blossom into a rider of top-10 overall quality.

Cyril Dessel
Born: 29 Novemember 1974 (thirty-one), France
Role: Climber/domestique
Similar to Stephane Goubert, Cyril Dessel is a climber who can be relied upon for help in the mountains if need be. Though his last Tour de France appearance was in 2002 with Jean Delatour where he finished outside of the top 100, it’s likely Dessel will do much better this time round. He won a stage and the overall at the Tour of the Med in Febuary. Dessel, who can lay claim to being the only deaf rider in the pro peloton, will be looking to support his leaders, but also to get up the road.

Samuel Dumoulin
Born: 20 August 1980 (twenty-five), France
Role: Sprinter/attacker
Although just twenty-five, this will be Samuel Dumoulin’s fourth Tour de France start. The diminutive Dumoulin has found niches in his teams in a role of a versatile opportunist with a deadly sprint. His one victory this year, in the Route Adelie, came from a breakaway, though he also recently finished second in two Dauphiné sprint stages. Some may remember his stage win from a breakaway in the Grenoble-based race in 2005 too. Although he will be expected to get in a break or two, either on transition stages or in the first week, Dumoulin is also a solid sprinter who has popped up in the top ten in bunch sprints in recent years. His results on the domestic scene mark him as one of the most talented French riders around, but he has not transformed this into good performances at the Tour. Is it his year to win a stage?

Simon Gerrans
Born: 16 May 1980 (twenty-six), Australia
Role: Attacker/domestique
As increasing numbers of Australians are doing, Simon Gerrans has made the transition into the European elite peloton almost seamlessly: he was one of the only neo-pros to ride the Tour de France last year and took third on a tough transition stage to Revel. The four wins he took that year confirmed his promise, and Gerrans has also taken the Tour Down Under early this season. The Aussie showed his climbing promise in the recent Tour de Suisse, only overhauled in the final kilometres on the road to the summit of La Punt after a daylong breakaway. Gerrans could be in contention again in a breakaway this year, while his contribution as a domestique will also valued: his 112th finish in his first Tour last year belies his climbing ability.

Jose Luis Arrieta
Born: 15 June 1971 (thirty-five), Spain
Role: Road captain/domestique
Having spent thirteen years with Banesto and its various guises, Jose Luis Arrieta made a bold move in following friend, fellow Spaniard and team leader Francisco Mancebo to Ag2r Prevoyance. He is a rider of vast experience, having ridden in service of Miguel Indurain (in 1996), Alex Zulle and Abraham Olano in his lengthy career, and will be key in positioning and protecting Mancebo in the flat, fast first week. Once a competent climber, Arrieta has lost some of that ability in the mountains, but has a canny knack for picking the right transition stage breakaway; he could well be up there again this year. Arrieta has never ridden into Paris in service of a Tour winner, and this could be his last chance to do so.

Ag2r Prevoyance for the 2006 Tour de France
Francisco Mancebo (Esp)
Christophe Moreau (Fra)
Alexandre Usov (Blr)
Stephane Goubert (Fra)
Simon Gerrans (Aus)
Samuel Dumoulin (Fra)
Cyril Dessel (Fra)
Mikel Astarloza (Spa)
Jose Luis Arrieta (Spa)