Jack and Jones Report

Bjarne Riis and Michael Blaudzun from Team Deutsche Telekom will be at Lanzarote for the next 10 days trying to recover from their injuries. Riis has a broken hand and Blaudzun a broken collarbone. Riis has given up on the spring classics due to his injury and will focus 100% on the Tour, while Blaudzun still hopes to be in shape for the last part of the spring classics.

Also Rolf Sorensen will be back at the Het Volk and Kuurne-Bruxelles-Kuurne. He withdraw from the Trofeo Luis Puig as he had the Flu. Started his training in Toscana Tuesday 24th.

How to get into a race - Belgian style

Qantas Cup, Northcote Velodrome, February 28

Eadie's coach, former World Champion Gary Sutton was reported on the local radio as saying: "Sean is a very dedicated athlete - he's really come along and I see him racing a lot smarter than this time last year. He won the keirin in the first two rounds of the Qantas Cup and he's obviously a lot more focussed. I'm not sure how fit Gary Neiwand is at the moment, but if he's not 100 per cent next month then Sean will give him a run for his money at the nationals."

What happens to ex-cyclists

Toni Rominger, who visited Bilbao yesterday to accompany Etxabe in the presentation of Banaka, continues to be linked to cycling through public relations.

The man who was prevented by Miguel Indurain from being the number one cyclist of his generation, is no longer a cyclist. Toni Rominger allows himself to be treated as an ex-cyclist, but prefers to be treated as a public relations person - his new profession. The Swiss Rominger, winner of three Vueltas and one Giro, now charges people who want to exploit his image. Yesterday he did that in Bilbao. This time he came for free. He did it because of friendship, because of the years that he shared jerseys at Clas and Mapei with Etxabe. Rominger explained: "I came for Fede, one of the men who has worked the hardest for me in the peloton. Rominger was at the presentation of amateur team Banaka, the venture which has launched Etxabe back into competition, this time as a sport's director.

Rominger's visit was only for publicity purposes, but surprisingly he was able to get together with some of the ex-cyclists from his former team, Clas. His old director Juan Fernández and his friends Etxabe, Jon Unzaga, Iñaki Gastón and Arsenio González. González is the only one who is still riding. They all made him make a promise. Rominger explained: "I have made the promise. Every year I will come back and have a reunion to remember the old times." This is from a person who ended up hating the bicycle after completing 12 seasons as a professional and who says that he doesn't miss riding at all. He is still submerged in the cycling universe, but in a suit and neck tie.

He attends all the important races. His function is to represent IMG, one of the big companies that is involved with sport matters. At the same time, he also looks after the interests of the telephone credit company, Cofidis, for whom he rode last season. He works as a consultant for cyclists in time trials, directs studies on new materials and planning systems and even organizes trips in the Spanish coasts for affluent Swiss cyclo tourists. That's why even though his residence is in Montecarlo, he spends part of his time in Spain.

His bond with cycling allows him to give opinions about the current riders. He says that "Ullrich is the best" and adds that the German "has the capacity to win five or six Tours, although maybe his health and motivation will prevent him". He also says that only Olano and Zulle could interrupt the dictatorship of the winner of the Tour'97. Rominger explained: "With all my heart I would like for Abraham to be able to do it, but on the business side, I'm more interested in Alex doing it." Then he indicated that Virenque and Pantani are far down in his forecasts.

He confesses that since mid-September he had already declared his cycling career as finished. He has only ridden his bike three times, all of them lately. "I was fed up with it. I was more interested in athletics, I thought about participating in a few marathons, with my wife Brigitte, who is very passionate about 'foot racing' and my ex-masseur Marcelino Torrontegui." His debut in the 42.195 km race was planned for Barcelona, but it looks like his plans will have to be delayed. "I'm so immersed in the world of public relations that I haven't been able to train. I'll have to leave it for later."

Steels out of Tour of Flanders

Starting List - Redlands Classic, March 3-8

Navigators: Scott Moninger; Todd Littlehales; Paul Martin; Adam Laurent; Skip Spangenberg; Patrick Eyk; Trent Klasna

Trek-VW: Andy Bishop; Peter Webber; Travis Brown: Kirk Molday; Rishi Grewal.

Shaklee: Eric Wohlberg; Olin Bakke; Kent Bostick; Derek Bouchard-Hall; Dylan Casey; Sean van Court; Steve Hegg

Colorado Cyclist: Jim Copeland; Clark Sheehan; Colby Pearce; Randy Whicker; Danny Pate

GT: Raul Alcala; David Baker; Marc Gullickson; Jerome Chiotti; Greg Randolph; Josh Thornton; Brad Aucutt

Saturn: Bart Bowen; Chris Wherry; Scott Fortner; Mark McCormack; Mike McCarthy; Levi Leipheimer; Mariano Friedick

Mercury: Thurlow Rodgers; Roy Knickman; Julian Dean; Kirk Willett; John Peters; Gord Fraser; David Clinger

Volvo-Cannondale: Cadel Evans; Jean-Christophe Savignoni; Alessio Di Basco; Andreas Hestler

Oilme: Eddy Gragus; Chad Gerlach; Roberto Gaggioli; Dirk Friel; Chris Fisher

Team Dirt: John Toamc; Bob Roll; Steve Larsen; Roland Green; Thomas Frischknecht; Tim Gould; Ryah Radomski

Atlanta Cox Velo: Adam Payne; John Walrod; Richard Rickie; Craig McLaughlin; Steve Hogan; Ben Sharpe; Brian Whitcomb

Ikon-Lexus: Joseph Lontscharisch; Dirk Copeland; Kirk O'Bee; Zack Conrad; Ernie Lechuga; Steve Klasne; Derrick Wilkerson