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Edited by Paul Goldsmith
US Postal star Lance Armstrong has been leading the team in a series of 4 hour rides around Austin, Texas as a lead-in to the 2002 season. The rides have been starting from the Barton creek Country Club and take in courses around the hill country. ""It's not a huge pack going out. It's 10 to 12 riders. Lance takes them on the back roads and into the Hill Country," said Dan Osipow, the team spokesman.
As well as the rides, the team has been bonding with a number of dinners. "It's the intangibles that end up being pluses. It gives the team a head start," added trainer Chris Carmichael.
In-between the riding and eating the team will also do some training in the workout rooms at Barton Creek and do lots of planning for the coming season.
The training camp finishes December 11
French rider Pascal Lino has decided to retire after 13 years as a pro. The 35 year old Lino is perhaps best known for leading the 1992 Tour de France for 11 days and winning a stage in the race.
Lino rode for Roslotto, Festina, Le Groupement and Big Mat, competing in this years Tour with Festina. Lino will take his experience as a rider into his new career as manager of the Valves velodrome in France.
A new event has surfaced in Queensland Australia. Known as the "Criterium Queensland Carnival" the inaugural event, will make its debut from February 1 to February 3.
The field has been restricted to 68 riders with racing taking place on short, tight technical courses. The criterium series will be made of three 75 minute criteriums held consecutively over a Friday, Saturday and Sunday. The event will take in most of South East Queensland with race one kicking the series off in Mundubbera. Regarded as Queensland's main citrus growing area, the first race is aptly named the 'Citrus Capital Criterium'.
Cyclists then have a short journey to the east, where Childers will be the host for race two. Childers lies 50km out of Bundaberg, home of what many repute to be the best rum (Bundy Rum) in the world. Race three will be in Nanango, the fourth oldest town in Queensland. Nanango has the largest population of the three venues, with just 4000 people. Despite this organisers in conjunction with local councils have been campaigning this event for a long time and both parties are anticipating crowds of between 1500 and 2500 at each race.
Riders will be racing for $10 000, the best money on offer in Queensland road cycling apart from the Barkly Challenge.
Former Junior World Champion in the "kilo", Jeff Hopkins, is one of the names to watch for in the series, as a member of the Marconi squad. New Zealander Matthew Yates, winner of the 2000 Tour of Japan sprinters jersey will definitely be a favourite, coming off two stage wins in the recent Tour of Southland. Queensland has contributed some big names with the likes of Mapei rider Scott Davis who finished third overall in the 2000 Tour of Japan, National track champions Aaron Kemps and Ashley Hutchinson, and former National Road Series Champion Ben Day.
Organisers have also put together a mini street carnival to support the feature race in each town. It will consist of a 'dash for cash', buskers, a locals only race and other novelty events.
More information can be picked up from www.challengeqld.webcentral.com.au
South African pro cycling received a major boost with the announcement of Astrolabe joining forces with Omega to boast a fully-fledged pro team in 2002. The team to be known as Astrolabe Omega and will have a budget in excess of R1.2 million. And in what is a very promising sign, bugjet increases rather than decreses have been mooted. "We might even make more money available to the team depending on their performances throughout the year," said Gavin Coutts, CEO of the Astrolabe Technologies Group.
Former Rapport Tour champion Gary Beneke will captain the team. New riders in the squad include talented Pretoria youngster Isak Maree, however rumours are circulationg of a number of imminent new signings. But with the late announcement of the dual sponsorship deal, there just aren't that many riders left for Astrolabe Omega to chose from. Microsoft, Minolta, EDS and HSBC have already confirmed their line-ups for 2002.
Unfortunately the good news doesn't extend to the Women's team which will be disbanded. Omega will continue the individual sponsorship of Annet Loubser and Ronel van Wyk.
The Omega under 16 team will still exist in their first year as juniors.
Jose Luis Rebollo has signed with Spanish division two team, Colchon-Relax Fuenlabrada. The ex-Festina rider has signed a two year contract. Rebello won the 11th stage of this year's Volta a Portugal and is considered to be strong racer.
French team BigMat-Auber continues to amass the bad news this off-season. Manager Stéphane Javalet has been struggling to find a rider with enough UCI points to lift the team into first divison, whilst the team has had it's budget cut. With the uncertainty about the teams involvement in the Tour de France, main sponsor building products company, BigMat has reduced the team's budget from 27 to 20 million francs.
Javalet is anxiously awaiting the December 15 deadline to find out if BigMat will make the thirty team cut for next year's division one teams. On current projections Javalet and BigMat should make the top grade, however the next week will be pretty tense within the team.
Former South Africian world championship track medallist, Jean-Pierre van Zyl has signed with the new EDS road team under the management of Jannie van den Berg next year. Although Van Zyl is committed to the team on the road it won't interfere with his track commitments that include numerous Six Day events and World Cup track meetings.
Van Zyl finished second behind Robert Hunter in the SA Pick 'n Pay Hyper to Hyper this year and with the Hyper the first race on the local calendar in the New Year EDS is looking to start the season on a high point.
Van Zyl was suspended in 1999 for a drugs offence, after he tested positive to Androgenic anabolic steroid.
Other riders that have been confirmed with EDS include climber Alwyn Scheepers, Jacque le Roux and sprinter Ross Grant.
By Tommy Campbell, Irish Independent/Evening Herald/Sunday Independent
The Mars Challenge is set to go on the road again. This time there will be a name change and the event will be run in aid of a charity by a select group of volunteers. The Challenge developed into a major event run, organised for the ordinary cyclist who wanted to participate over the course which was used the following Sunday when the tour entourage came to Ireland in July of 1998.
The event had the backing of the Irish Sports Council and the generous sponsorship of Mars. There was in excess of a 1000 cyclists who took up the Challenge and they have the certification to prove it.
All going well the Challenge will be organised over the May Bank Holiday weekend. It will be run over the course that the Tour de France used in 1998. A smaller loop course is also being evaluated.
Unfortunately from a organisational viewpoint it will be necessary to attempt to get the participants on the road around the seven o'clock mark whereas those who want to do the more leisurely cycle will be able to go off up to mid-day. This will undoubtedly appeal to a greater variety of participant. The start venues will more than likely be in the suburbs but the main thrust will be over route that the top cyclists in the world battled for the supremacy of the yellow jersey.
Leisure cycling has now become a focal point and the numbers that go out in each weekend who have no affiliation to any organisation is on the increase. Cycling in Ireland, like a lot of other sports has suffered this year with the Foot and Mouth disease outbreak.
New Phonak director Alvaro Pino has finished his first training camp with the Swiss Division two team.
The team takes on Spanish flavour with the introduction of Pino, as well as Oscar Camenzind will lead the team, Spanish riders Juan Carlos Dominguez, Oscar Pereiro and Iker Camaño.
Swiss Team Manager / Sport Director, Jacques Jolidon has announced that his new team Jura - JaJo Sport will be a division 3 team. Jolidon is a former pro rider.
Confirmed riders are;
Pierre Ackermann, (Swi), ex Post Swiss Team
David Chassot, (Swi), ex Ficonseils
Ribolzi Guiseppe, (Ita), neo
Stephan Szekeres, (Swi), neo
Olivier Wirz, (Swi), neo
Four more riders will be confirmed by the end of the year.
With two training camps scheduled for January the South African cycling team should be sharper than ever for the Tour de Langkawi in February.
The squad of twelve will be trimmed down to seven after the Lowveld training stints. Douglas Ryder will lead the team in the 10-stage event in Malaysia, which kicks off on 1 February.
Besides Ryder, his Microsoft teammate Simon Kessler should play a significant part in the team while Tiaan Kannemeyer (Minolta) is a general classification chance. Jacques Fullard (Minolta) and Jamie Ball (Microsoft) are likely to be the sprinters in the team, with Daniel Spence (HSBC) going as the climber. HSBC's Jeremy Maartens, a former Australian road champion, will likely make up the balance of the team. His early season form took him to a stage victory in the Irish Milk Ras this year.
Major Races and Events
September 7-29, 2002: Vuelta
a España (GT) - Preview, stage list
May 11-June 2, 2002: Giro
d'Italia (GT) - Preview, stage list, photos
July 6-28, 2002: Tour
de France (GT) - Full preview & official route details
December 8: Superprestige
Rd 5 (Cat. 1) - Erwin Vervecken
November 29-December 4: Six
Days of Noumea (6D) - Sassone/Neuville victorious
November 26-December 1: Six
Days of Zurich (6D) - Day
6 - McGrory/Gilmore/Schnider win
December 1: Melbourne
Cup on Wheels (IM) - Scott Moller, Keirin,
Sprint, Support
races
December 2: Cyclo-cross
World Cup #2 (CDM) - Sven Nijs again
November 24-December 3: Juegos
Deportivos Centroamericanos (JR) - Final results
December 8-9: Frankfurter
Rad-Cross (Cat. 2) - Alex Mudroch, UK
National Trophy Series #4 (Cat. 3) - Roger Hammond, Grote
Prijs Industrie Bosduin - Kalmthout (Cat. 1) - Bart Wellens, Int.
Radquer Obergösgen (Cat. 2) - Björn Rondelez, Trofeo
Mamma e Papa Guerciotti (Cat. 3) - Enrico Franzoi, Premio
Egondo (Cat 3) - David Seco, Irish
cyclo-cross championships - Robin Seymour
Results: local racing
Australia - CycleWest
Promotions Omnium Series #2, Eastern
Suburbs Summer Criterium Series, Carnegie
Caulfield Tuesday criterium, Southern
Cross Junior Track Open & Madison Cup, Manly
Warringah CC, George
Town Track Carnival, Carnegie
Caulfield CC, Randwick
Botany CC, Gold
Coast CATS CC, Caesar's
Illawarra CC, Caesar's
Illawarra (track)
Denmark - Danish
cyclo-cross Post Cup #3
Italy - Gran
Premio Città di Bassano
Luxembourg - GP
De Kopstal
New Zealand - Cyco
Criterium series
Spain - Elorrio
cyclo-cross
USA - Georgia
Cross Series Championship, Chimborazo
Grand Prix cyclo-cross, Boulder
Cross Rd 6, New
Mexico State Cyclo-x Champs, Sorrento
Cyclo-x & California State Champ's, Boulder
Cross Rd 5, Verge
New England series, Northampton
CC Cyclo-cross Championships, Chris
Cross International CycloCross
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