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Jan Ullrich is already starting on his plans to dethrone Lance Armstrong in the 2002 Tour de France. This is by no means a straightforward task, as evidenced by this year's race. However, 27 year old Ullrich believes that he is up to the task.
There will be no more indulgent winters for the Man from Merdingen, as he starts his training on November 10 at home in Germany. The entire Telekom team will get together at the end of November for a preliminary training camp followed by some cross-country skiing for a week. Ullrich will then travel to South Africa where he will start road training up until Christmas. The team will gather again after Christmas in Mallorca for a short period, but Ullrich will then probably go back to South Africa for the early months of next year.
Ullrich hasn't decided yet whether he will race the Giro d'Italia in 2002 as preparation for the Tour. The alternative, which would be popular back home, is to race the Tours of Germany and Switzerland before heading to Luxembourg for the July 6 Tour start.
Marco Pantani has just about finalised his Mercatone Uno team for next season, which he will both ride in and manage. The team gathered in Montecatini Terme today to meet and discuss its strategy for 2002. For Pantani, next season can hardly be worse than 2001, where he failed to win a race and showed nothing of his former brilliance.
Mercatone Uno has acquired the services of Telekom's Roberto Sgambelluri (28) and Saeco's Francesco Secchiari (29) for next year, the latter who was also involved in the fateful 1995 Milan-Turin accident along with Pantani. Also arriving are Marco Della Vedova (Lampre), Marco Fincato and Luca Mazzanti (Fassa Bortolo), Valentino Fois (Colpack), and a Spanish rider.
The team will keep Simone Borgheresi, Ermanno Brignoli, Riccardo Forconi, Fabiano Fontanelli, Marcello Siboni, Roberto Savoldi, Luca De Angeli, Gian Mario Ortenzi, Massimo Cigana and Daniel Clavero. Departing are Igor Astarloa, Daniele De Paoli, Cristian Moreni, Marco Velo and Massimo Podenzana (who is retiring to become Mercatone Uno's directeur sportif).
The loss of riders like Velo, Astarloa and Moreni will weaken the team in the classics, but the main aim will be the Giro d'Italia and Tour de France. First of all, Mercatone Uno will have to obtain one of the five wild cards to be handed out by the Tour. This means that Pantani will be in action early in the season, in order to try and get some results on the board.
By Alessandro Gretter
Late on Sunday morning, Italian student Alessandro Forni (born in Trento 4.1.1980 and a member of the L'Arcobaleno Carraro Team) covered the distance of 767 kilometres in a 24 hour period. He beat the former endurance record of Michele Astegiano (759.1 km in 1997).
Alessandro is used to this kind of adventure: exactly one year ago (in an horrible weather with rain, snow, etc.) climbed Mt. Bondone 21 times reaching the new record (now in the Guinness Book of records) of height gain in 24 hours: over 16,000 metres!
This year's attempt was very difficult too: low temperatures (during the night it was -5° C), and few fans to cheer him on. But at the end, and with 6 minutes to spare, Alessandro reached his minimum target with an overall average of approximately 32 km/h.
The UCI will help to implement more out of competition doping controls next season, in order to increase its action against illegal drug use in the peloton. Out of competition testing for drugs such as EPO has proved successful this year after a number of riders were caught with the new test. To carry out the non-competition testing, the UCI will work with the World Anti-Doping Association to inform them where teams are likely to be on their training camps.
The correctional court in Brugge has given Belgian cyclist Michel Vanhaecke and his 66 year old father a one month suspended sentence and a fine of 135 euro for forgery and attempting to deceive. On January 24, 2001, Vanhaecke was found in possession of a blank doctor's certificate which he was trying to make three copies of. His father was trying to obtain the growth hormone deficiency aid, Humotrope, from a chemist. He put the name of Vanhaecke's nephew on the prescription.
Thijs Al has signed a one year contract with Bankgiroloterij-Batavus. The Dutch mountain biker from Wormer (North) has chosen a career on the road, however he will be allowed the freedom to compete in some MTB events this season. He rode for the Be One team this year, but now becomes the 12th and final rider in Arend Scheppink's Bankgiroloterij-Batavus team.
The 21 year old turned a few heads last June when he placed second to Arno Wallaard in the Dutch Road Championships for U23 riders.
One of the most successful women's teams in the peloton is Farm Frites-Hartol, managed by Michael Zijlaard, and also known as the "Team Van Moorsel" after its star rider. This season has seen the Dutch squad rack up an impressive 79 victories, with cyclo-cross rider Daphny van den Brand winning in Sint Michielsgestel on Sunday.
Although choosing to concentrate on the track this year, Leontien van Moorsel still managed to win 35 races, meaning that the team could surpass its 2000 tally of 78 wins. Farm Frites-Hartol started in 1999 when it won 72 races.
Australian Margaret Hemsley has signed for the new look Nürnberger German Women's Professional Team. After a strong start to the season including a win in the Inaugural Vuelta Ciclistica a Castilla y Leon Feminas and third in the Tour de Snowy, she crashed badly in mid-June fracturing her right collarbone and right acetabulum. After intensive rehabilitation in Germany, she returned for the end of the season but had not the time to achieve full fitness. She leaves Farm Frites-Hartol, after what has been an unlucky - but still successful - year for the team all around. Farm Frites Hartol is choosing to reduce numbers for next season.
Hemsley's race program has yet to be confirmed but she is looking forward to racing the big women's tours and World Cups with the team, which should be a force to be reckoned with in the women's peloton next year.
Team Nürnberger has a bigger budget for 2002 and a new Director Sportif, Jens Zemke. This is his first year as a team director and working with women's cycling, but he brings over a decade of experience of racing in the professional peloton. He retired this year from his own professional cycling career, his last team being the men's Nürnberger professional team.
Jens is familiar with Australia having competed three times in the Commonwealth Bank Cycle Classic in the mid 1990's, finishing second one year and winning the mountains jersey another. He is a four time German Bergmeister and a winner of the Hessen Rundfahrt. Herbert Oppelt and his son Alex remain in their managerial roles, with Sylvia Knoll acting as assistant director to Jens Zemke.
Along with Hanka Kupfernagel; Vera Hohlfeld, who left Italian team Acca Due for a team closer to home, and Tanja Hennes, winner of this year's German Bundesliga National Series, join the team. Other new signings include Yvonne Schroeder and Dutch rider Sandra Rombouts. The team will retain Kirsten Scheitle, Kirsten Forstner, Birgit Soellner, Andrea Purner, Conny Cyrus, Patricia Hempel and strong Swedish rider Jenny Algelid from last year.
The principle sponsor remains the Nürnberger Insurance company. The team will be riding Campagnolo equipped German made Mondello frames. The new look team will be wearing a revamped uniform in orange and black in line with the colouring of the bike frames.
The dates for the 2002 British National MTB Series are as follows:
Cross-Country 1 - 6/7 April
Downhill 1 - 20/21 April
Cross-Country 2 - 11/12 May
Downhill 2 - 25/26 May
Cross-Country 3 - 8/9 June
National Champs (Cross-Country/Downhill) - 20/21 July (Venue: Hopton Woods,
Ludlow)
Cross-Country 4 - 10/11 August
Downhill 3 - 17/18 August
Downhill 4 - 14/15 September
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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