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News for January 12, 2002

Edited by Jeff Jones

Cofidis presents its team for 2002

The number one French team, Cofidis, has presented its 30 rider squad in Paris. The team has reduced in number to 26 road riders and 4 track riders, but is certainly still one of the largest professional teams in the peloton. Eight riders have left the team, with just three new signings, reflecting the UCI's across-the-board policy to reduce teams to 25 riders by 2003.

Cofidis enjoyed its best ever season in 2001, with 25 victories on the road. Track rider Arnaud Tournant also contributed with three world championship titles and the world record in the 1,000 metre time trial. Tournant is one of the four track riders who are staying, the others being Laurent Gané, Mickaël Bourgain and Arnaud Dublé. Madison specialist Damien Pommereau's departure leave a gap that will be filled by new signing Jérôme Neuville (ex-Credit Agricole).

The team's top road riders, Nico Mattan, Andrei Kivilev and David Millar will once again lead Cofidis in 2002, with the promising climber David Moncoutié starting to realise his potential. Spaniards Daniel Atienza and Iñigo Cuesta will be joined by Basque climber Bingen Fernandez, who has been signed to help Andrei Kivilev in the mountains.

As a classics team, Cofidis has enough strength to pull off a win one one of the early season World Cups. Belgian Nico Mattan leads the way with support from Chris Peers, Jo Planckaert and Philippe Gaumont, who is returning this year after an injury in the 2001 Paris-Roubaix. Gaumont fractured his right femur after he fell at the beginning of the Arenberg Forest last year, and spent most of 2001 off his bike.

He has done 2800 kilometres in training recently, but does not know yet whether he will ride Paris-Roubaix 2002 or concentrate on the track. "I am not hundred percent sure if I will ride it, because I will not be at full strength. I respect this race...I am psychologically reinforced [by my accident]," Gaumont said at the team launch.

Kazakh climber Andrei Kivilev will once again aim for the smaller stage races. Perhaps he will be able to repeat his performance in the 2001 Tour de France where he finished fourth after getting into the right breakaway.

Finally, the team's top ranked rider, David Millar, will also aim for the Tour de France, where he won the first stage in 2000. Millar's 2001 Tour was a disaster after a fall in the prologue, but he came back to win two stages in the Vuelta España and a silver medal in the World Time Trial Championships. 2001 was a great year for Millar and he will be hoping to better that in 2002.

Cofidis will sponsor the team for at least the next two years.

Full team roster and sponsors.

Coppi case: more denials

The argument over whether Italy's greatest cyclist, Fausto Coppi, died of malaria or was poisoned by a rival continues. The case started after a Burkina Faso monk told Mino Caudullo, the administrator of the Italian Olympic Committee (CONI), that Coppi was murdered. He was supposedly poisoned because of a grudge, but so far, there are few facts to support this claim.

The president of the Burkina Faso Cycling Federation, Adama Diallo, today said that Coppi was not poisoned in 1960 after going on safari in Africa. Diallo cited the testimony of Paul Ilboudo, former Secretary General of the territorial committee of Upper Volta (Burkina Faso), saying that "We are surprised by the reappearance of this subject because poisoning is not a custom in western Africa."

Diallo commented that "a monk could make himself more interesting by telling stories. That can be simply boastfulness."

Despite several other gaps in the monk's story, Italian magistrates have opened an investigation into Coppi's death.

Dorland signs for Powerplate-Bik

Corine Dorland signed a contract on Thursday with the Italian/Dutch women's cycling team Powerplate-Bik. Dorland, who is an off-road specialist, will also ride as part of the team's road squad. When competing in mountain bike events she will ride in her Vredestein/Be One jersey.

The leader of the Powerplate-Bik team is dual world champion Alessandra Cappellotto.

Italian elite women get together

Italian national coach Antonio Fusi is organising a women's training camp in Pozzolengo (Brescia) from January 14-17. Present will be Giorgia Bronzini (GS Top Girls), Noemi Cantele (Acca Due O Lorena), Vera Carrara (Carpe Diem-Itera), Serena Cavicchi (Team Aliverti), Anna Giusmini (Team Alfa Lum) and Barbara Lancioni (Carpe Diem-Itera), in addition to technical staff Rosario Fina, Paolo Slongo, Proetizio Testa and Giuseppe Maffioletti.

French cyclo-cross championships program

Parcours: 2561 metre circuit in Sarrebourg (Moselle)

Day 1 - January 12

13:30: Cadets (born 1986 and 1987) - 30 minutes
15:00: Elite Men - 60 minutes

Day 2 - January 13

11:00: Juniors (born 1984 and 1985) - 40 minutes
13:30: Women - 40 minutes
15:00: U23/Espoir Men - 50 minutes

Junior field for Belgian cyclo-cross championship

Saturday's Belgian junior cyclo-cross championships will be held in Koksijde, one day before the elite men's. A strong field of 47 riders is listed, with the biggest favourite being Kevin Pauwels. The winner of the Vlaamse Juniorentrofee in Kalmthout and the current leader of the junior Superprestige series, Pauwels will be tough to beat.

Challengers include Jan Soetens (Oost Vlaanderen) who has won 18 races this season, the most of any rider; Nick Sels, winner of the provincial championship in Burcht last week; and Mike Thielemans, the son of four time champion Rudy Thielemans.

Start list

1 Bart Blanckaert
2 Jonas Coopman
3 Pieter De Beule
4 Jef De Boeck
5 Ward Demets
6 Merijn Devos
7 Tom Dumortier
8 Sebastien Durieu
9 Nils Ferlin
10 Wim Hendriks
11 Peter Heremans
12 Frederik Herpol
13 Maarten Himpens
14 Pierre Hustin
15 Nic Ingels
16 Dieter Jacobs
17 Aloïs Lievens
18 Jonas Messelier
19 Tim Milis
20 Andy Pauwels
21 Kevin Pauwels
22 Vincent Rosseel
23 Giovanni Saman
24 Nick Sels
25 Steven Sluyts
26 Jan Soetens
27 Jeroen Thielemans
28 Mike Thielemans
29 Gerald Uyttersprot
30 Tom Vandenbosch
31 Kay Van den brande
32 Steffen Vanderhoydonck
33 Kevin Van lierde
34 Jeremy Van Parijs
35 Dieter Vanthourenhout
36 Dimitri Verstichelen
37 Roel Volckaerts
38 Joeri Wannijn
39 Wouter Weylandt
40 Joris Wijnen
41 Bert Debruyne
42 Bart Veyt
43 Joeri Calleeuw
44 Clement De Freyne
45 Davy Deleener
46 Sam Vanoutryve
47 Bjorn Traen

NCCA All-American squads

USA Cycling has announced that 56 cyclists have been selected as part of the 2001 National Collegiate Cycling Association (NCCA) All-American squads.

Four athletes were named in two categories, after demonstrating high levels of skill in the different disciplines: Jed Schneider in the mountain bike and cyclo-cross categories, after taking the championship title at cyclo-cross nationals, as well as third and fourth place finishes at mountain bike nationals. Also Kate Maher, Alice Pennington and Mary Rudy were all named to the road and mountain bike squads.

Nine athletes were named to the All-American team for the second consecutive year. Abigail Brearton, Ian Dille, Lara Kroepsch, Bobby Lea, Jessica Piel, Mary Rudy, Zach Shriver and Janine Verstraeten took the honors again in 2001. Schneider was awarded for the third year in a row.

The top five men and women overall from the disciplines of mountain bike, road and track championships are named to the squads.

The NCCA All-American teams are chosen annually at the conclusion of the national collegiate championships. USAFA led all schools with six occupied spots on the various All-American squads.

2001 NCCA All-American Team

Road

Men's Division I Omnium

Peter Knudsen (UC-San Diego)
Jeff Angermann (UC Davis)
Ian Dille (Univ. of Texas)
Mark Ernsting (Midwestern State)
Jeff Johnston (Texas A&M )

Men's Division II Omnium

Sam Troge (USAFA)
Robert Gannini (Emory University)
Aric Hareland (North Dakota State)
Bradley Ames (USAFA)
Robert King (Colorado College )

Women's Division I Omnium

Carolyn Donnelly (Univ. of New Mexico)
Lara Kroepsch (University of Colorado)
Karen Bockel (Colorado State Univ.)
Alice Pennington (Oregon State Univ.)
Kate Maher (UC-Berkeley )

Women's Division II Omnium

Sarah Konrad (Univ of Wyoming)
Kate Sherwin (Dartmouth College)
Alison McNulty (Univ. of Washington)
Mary Rudy (USAFA)
Bridget Sullivan-Stevens (Colorado College )

Track

Men's Omnium

Bobby Lea (Penn State University)
Todd Yzefski (Dartmouth College)
Mike Freidman (Penn State University)
David Wenger (Miami University (OH))
Eric DeGolier (Univ. of Wisconsin )

Women's Omnium

Jenn Wangerin (Indiana University)
Karen Wooten (San Diego State Univ.)
Rebecca Hart (Marion College)
Janine Verstraeten (Marion College)
Abigail Brearton (Marion College )

Mountain Bike

Men's Division I Omnium

Adam Craig (University of Maine)
Thomas Danielson (Fort Lewis College)
Jed Schneider (University of Kansas)
Zachary Shriver (Fort Lewis College)
Nate Dills (University of Colorado )

Men's Division II Omnium

Ben Vickers (USAFA)
Ben Phillips (Union College)
Jeff Dickey (Washington & Lee)
Tyler Wren (Princeton University)
Brian Kenney (University of Akron )

Women's Division I Omnium

Katherine Maher (UC-Berkeley)
Nichole Marcillac (Cal Poly)
Tarrah MacBeth (Lindsey Wilson College)
Alice Pennington (Oregon State University)
Leah Trapp (Colorado State University )
Women's Division II Omnium
Katelyn Wells (Western Kentucky University)
Mary Rudy (USAFA)
Olga Milenkaya (Warren Wilson)
Samantha Jennings (Warren Wilson)
Melanie Barnes (USAFA )

Cyclo-Cross

Men

Jed Schneider (Univ. of Kansas)
Andy Jacques-Maynes (UC-Berkeley)
Kirt Fitzpatrick (Univ. of New Hampshire)
Toby Swanson (Lindsey Wilson College)
Barry Wicks (Oregon State University )

Women

Alicia Genest (Boston University)
Sarah Uhl (Univ. of Vermont)
Courtney Bollman (Miami University (OH))
Megan Elliott (University of Iowa)
Jessica Piel (William & Mary)