Stijn Devolder on the Kapelmuur in 2009. (Image credit: Bettini Photo)
Tour of Flanders organisers have announced a 25 team roster for the cobbled Spring Classic, with all 18 current ProTour teams included on the list in addition to seven wildcard teams.
BMC heads the list of the Professional Continental squads, with 2007 winner Alessandro Ballan expected to lead the team in de Ronde with Classics specialists George Hincapie and Marcus Burghardt.
Other additions are the Cervélo TestTeam of 2005 runner-up Andreas Klier, Belgian teams Landbouwkrediet and Topsport Vlaanderen-Mercator, Dutch squads Skil-Shimano and Vacansoleil and French team Bbox Bouygues Telecom.
Not included amongst the wildcards is the Cofidis team, which dropped from the ProTour to Professional Continental ranks this year. Team director Eric Boyer told Cyclingnews that the team had requested an invite to the race, but "unfortunately, to my great regret, we are not invited."
Double champion Stijn Devolder will be back to defend his title with the Quick Step team alongside 2005 and '06 winner Tom Boonen, while Saxo Bank's Fabian Cancellara and Katusha's Filippo Pozzato have also announced their ambitions for the Belgian race.
Team RadioShack has stated that Lance Armstrong will captain its team for the Tour of Flanders in order to prepare for the cobbles that he will face at the Tour de France in July. Stage three of the Tour covers 207 kilometres from Wanze, Belgium, to Arenburg Porte du Hainaut, France.
While Astana is on the list of invited teams, two-time Tour de France winner Alberto Contador did not list the Ronde van Vlaanderen amongst his races for April, choosing instead to race the Ardennes Classics La Flèche Wallonne and Liège - Bastogne - Liège.
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Teams for the 2010 Tour of Flanders
Quick Step Omega Pharma-Lotto Caisse d'Epargne Euskaltel-Euskadi AG2R La Mondiale Française des Jeux Liquigas-Doimo Astana Team HTC-Columbia Team RadioShack Footon-Servetto Lampre - Farnese Vini Rabobank Sky Pro Cycling Team Garmin-Transitions Team Katusha Team Milram Team Saxo Bank
Pro Continental Teams
BBox Bouygues Telecom BMC Racing Team Cervélo TestTeam Landbouwkrediet Skil - Shimano Topsport Vlaanderen - Mercator Vacansoleil Pro Cycling Team
Laura Weislo has been with Cyclingnews since 2006 after making a switch from a career in science. As Managing Editor, she coordinates coverage for North American events and global news. As former elite-level road racer who dabbled in cyclo-cross and track, Laura has a passion for all three disciplines. When not working she likes to go camping and explore lesser traveled roads, paths and gravel tracks. Laura specialises in covering doping, anti-doping, UCI governance and performing data analysis.
