Discovery Channel teammates Lance Armstrong and George Hincapie have made a strong return to racing, after both suffered illness in recent weeks. The pair were part of the Discovery team in today's Brabantse Pijl, which was won by World Champion Oscar Freire. Hincapie missed the final three man break with Freire, Axel Merckx and Marc Lotz, but did manage to finish 6th in the small group sprint behind them. Armstrong played more of a support role, riding near the front of the peloton to ensure that the break with Hincapie in it would stay away, eventually finishing 43rd, but it was clear he was in better form than in Paris-Nice a few weeks ago.
An upbeat Armstrong spoke to Canvas TV before the start of the race, and was asked by reporter Renate Schotte what he'd been up to since Paris-Nice. "Nothing, I've just been partying, drinking beer, eating pizza, reading all the onzin [nonsense] in the paper," joked Armstrong, before adding: "No. I've been training in the Canary Islands and trained hard and tried to focus on some longer efforts, longer climbs."
