BMC pleased to be riding in California in May

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BMC Racing Team was happy to be one of the teams included in the 2010 Amgen Tour of California. “Competing in America's biggest and best bike race is important for the team,” president Jim Ochowicz said. “It allows us to compete with the best teams in the world on American soil.”

The Tour of California announced the 16 teams which would ride in this year's edition of the race on Wednesday. The race has a new position on the calendar this year, from May 16 to 23.

The US-based team promised to bring a strong team to the West Coast, featuring US national champion George Hincapie, Marcus Burghardt and Karsten Kroon. At the same time world champion Cadel Evans and Alessandro Ballan will ride the Giro d'Italia.

Directeur sportif John Lelangue praised the race's course this year. “The fact that the race is becoming more difficult makes it more interesting to us. It’s maybe not a ProTour race this year, but it remains one of the only stage races on the UCI America calendar. It’s also a good last step in the preparation for some of the guys going to the Tour de France in July.”

Sponsor BMC was also pleased with the selection. “It is not only a great opportunity for our U.S. riders around George Hincapie to present themselves to the U.S. cycling fans, but also a fantastic showcase for us to promote our brand and products on the highest possible level,” Mike Hürlimann, Chief Executive Officer of BMC said. “The U.S. market is a key growth market for BMC, where we have just recently established our own organisation to serve our customers.”