News for August 19, 1997

Transfer Updates

- Casagrande changed: now to Cofidis. After agreement with Mercatone-Uno (with Marco Pantani) Frances Casagrande (Saeco) choose the money and will ride for Cofidis (France) with team boss Cyrille Guimard. Casagrande has had inserted in his contract clauses which give him a personal helper: Massimiliano Lelli. Guimard has to look to new leaders in his team.

- Tony Rominger will retire.

- Maurizio Fondriest will retire or will go to an Italian team and it's still not sure what will happen with Lance Armstrong.

- Cofidis made an offer to Johan Museeuw and his Belgian teammates in Mapei/GB. The co-sponsor from Belgium (GB - the supermarket in Belgium) decides about their future in professional cycling in the coming month.

- Team leader Parick Lefevere thinks there is only a slight chance that Museeuw, Vandenbroucke, Steels, Leysen, Peeters and Mattan will go to France. The Belgian riders are contracted to Mapei until the end of the year.

- Claudio Chiappucci has to look to another team. Manager Davide Boifava of Asics said to 'Il Diabolo' that there is no place at Asics for him next year. Boifava wants Michele Bartoli as successor for Chiappucci.

- The British cycle-magazine Cycle Sport wrote that the Rabobank-team is interested in the Australians Stuart O'Grady and Henk Vogels of GAN There is interest for Vogels (who holds and Australian and a Dutch passport - courtesy of his Dutch parents) from Festina and TVM also.

- There will be no place for Stéphane Petilleau with TVM in 1998.

- Three amateurs from Rabobank will now ride for the Professional Rabobank team. Rabobank's Cycleplan of bringing amateurs into the professional ranks is finally yielding results. Johan Bruinsma, Bert Hiemstra and Marc Lotz signed a contract for two years with Jan Raas.

- Eugenio Berzin will leave Emanuele Bombini's Team Batik-Del Monte. For 1998 the Russian has reached an agreement with Francaise des Jeux. His next season objective is the attempt of the hour record, which he will try in September. Some of the tracks considered are Manchester & Bordeuax and also in Colombia, Bogota & Cali.

- Gan (insurance company) has decided to get out of cycling at the end of the year. But Roger Legeay's group which includes Chris Boardman and Frederic Moncassin will continue with a new sponsor.

Tafi

The winner of the Rochester Classic Andrea Tafi, 31 years old, born in Fucecchio, province of Firenze. Now lives in Lamporecchio (Pistoia) with his wife Gloria and children Tommaso (7) & Greta (1). He rides for Mapei-GB and has been a Pro since 1989, having won 16 races. This year he's won two stages at the Tour of Malasya and finished second at the Amstel Gold Race.

Andrea Tafi has transformed from a domestique (gregario) to a rider who has won important races, when in the space of a month he won the Trofeo Melinda, Paris-Bruxelles, the Coppa Placci and the Giro di Lombardia. Martini promoted him to captain for the World Championships in Lugano '96 and he finished in sixth place.

He's a big fan of the Juventus (Soccer team?), his hobby if gardening. The Tuscan is 1.87 meters tall and weighs 71kg (4 percent fat). His resting heart rate is 36 beats per minute and his maximum is 186. His main characteristic is his power, which at his best can hit 570 watts at anaerobic effort.

Criteriums

Dun-Le-Pastel, France, 9 August 1997

  1. Christophe Agnolutto (Fra) Casino  99 km. in 2.16.37 (43,479 km/h)
  2. Pascal Lino (Fra) Big Mat                 + 0.09
  3. Nicolas Jalabert (Fra) Cofidis            + 0.16
  4. Jean-Francois Anti (Fra) Mutuelle         + 0.18
  5. Bodeau (Fra) elite

Saint-Martin-de-Landelles, France

  1. Richard Virenque (Fra) Festina
  2. Frederic Guesdon (Fra) Francaise
  3. Cedric Vasseur (Fra) Gan
  4. Stephane Heulot (Fra) Francaise

Emmen, Netherlands, 12 August 1997
  1. Jan Ullrich (Ger) Telekom 80 km. in 1.45.10 (45,642 km/h)
  2. Leon Van Bon (Ned) Rabobank
  3. Servais Knaven (Ned) TVM
  4. Godert De Leeuw (Ned) Foreldorado        + 0.10
  5. Tristan Hoffman (Ned) TVM
  6. Maarten Den Bakker (Ned) TVM
  7. John Talen (Ned) Foreldorado
  8. Erik Breukink (Ned) Rabobank
  9. Adri Van der Poel (Ned) Rabobank
 10. Marcel Luppes (Ned) Rabobank

Steenwijk, Netherlands, 13 August 1997

  1. Servais Knaven (Ned) TVM 100 km. in 2.14.56 (44,466 km/h)
  2. Michael Boogerd (Ned) Rabobank
  3. Gerrit De Vries (Ned) Team Polti
  4. Jan Ullrich (Ger) Telekom                + 0.10
  5. Bart Voskamp (Ned) TVM
  6. Aart Vierhouten (Ned) Rabobank
  7. Michel Cornelisse (Ned) Foreldorado
  8. Godert De Leeuw (Ned) Foreldorado
  9. Tonnie Teuben (Ned) elite
 10. Arjen Vinke (Ned) elite

US Postal Service at Rochester

The United States Postal Service Pro Cycling Team's George Hincapie came through with the team's second highest placing in a World Cup race this season by finishing 20th overall in yesterday's Rochester Classic in England. Hincapie placed in the middle of a 32-rider group that finished 55 seconds back of race winner Andrea Tafi of Mapei in the 242 kilometer race. The USPS' Jean-Cyril Robin was also in the chase group, finishing in the same time as Hincapie, in 33rd place. Sven Teutenberg was next for the U.S. Postal Service, leading in a group of four riders in 47th place at 3:29.

Hincapie's placing was the highest finish for a USPS rider in a World Cup event since Viatcheslav Ekimov placed 10th overall at the Tour of Flanders back of April 6. It was also Hincapie's second top-25 finish, as he placed 25th at the Tour of Flanders.

From the start in Rochester - the race's fourth home in its eight-year existence - the USPS team was very aggressive. Scott Mercier, Teutenberg and Pascal Derame were all very active at the front of the 140-rider peloton, trying to forge a breakaway. However, it was Robin - 15th overall at the Tour de France - that made the right move at the right time. With just under 75 kilometers remaining, Robin moved up the road with six riders - Tafi, Roslotto's Andrea Ferrigato (defending race champion), Festina's Gianluca Bortolami (1994 race winner), La Francaise des Jeux's Stephane Heulot, Scrigno's Andrea Vatteroni and Casino's Stephane Barthe. The seven riders worked well together and maintained a lead of just under a minute. However, Robin, along with Barthe, fell off the pace before the race re-entered Rochester for three eight-kilometer finishing circuits. Tafi then attacked the lead group with under two circuits remaining and soloed to victory in 6 hours, 7 minutes and 42 seconds. Ferrigato led the four chasers to the line 43 seconds back of Tafi. Following a solo Max Sciandri of Francaise des Jeux in sixth place - at 49 seconds - Roberto Petito of Saeco led in Hincapie and Robin's group six seconds later.

Ice-speedskater Veldkamp wins Belgian cycle-race

Bart Veldkamp (from The Hague/Netherlands) won the GP Cafe Reedijk (120 km) in Merchtem/Belgium) for elite riders without contract.

Veldkamp is training for the Olympic Wintergames in Nagano/Japan as ice-speedskater. He will represent Belgium and owns in the meantime all the Belgian skate-records on 500m, 1500m, 5000m and 10000meters. The cyclingsports is an important part for his preparation on the Olympics.