The new Astana team will gather for its second pre-season training camp in Albuquerque, New Mexico,...
Huge crowds greet Contador (Image credit: AFP)
Astana in New Mexico and Down Under
The new Astana team will gather for its second pre-season training camp in Albuquerque, New Mexico, USA, from January 23 to February 4. Team manager Johan Bruyneel and sports director Alain Gallopin have "scheduled a busy programme" for the team, which is led by Alberto Contador, Levi Leipheimer and Andreas Klöden.
The team presentation will be held on January 31 at the National Hispanic Cultural Center in Albuquerque. The public is invited to attend, with proceeds going to the American Diabetes Association and the National Multiple Sclerosis Society. Tickets can be obtained at ticketmaster.com and range from US $25-$500.
Seven riders will not be in attendance, as they will be riding in the season's first ProTour race, the Tour Down Under in Australia, which starts on January 22. Koen de Koert, René Haselbacher, Benoit Joachim, Aaron Kemps, Julien Mazet, Steve Morabito and Jose Luis Rubiera will race in Australia under the guidance of directeur sportif Sean Yates.
Silence-Lotto in Australia and Portugal
Team Silence-Lotto is sending four Belgians and three Australians to the Tour Down Under, while the rest of the riders will be preparing for the season at a training camp in Europe.
Wim Vansevenant, Mario Aerts, Olivier Kaisen and Pieter Jacobs will fly from Amsterdam to Adelaide on January 10. They will be joined at the Tour Down Under by directeur sportif Hendrik Redant and Australians Robbie McEwen, Matthew Lloyd and Nick Gates. These three riders will also take part in the national championships on January 13 in Ballarat.
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The rest of the squad will meet at a training camp in Albufeira, Portugal, from January 8 to 17.
Lampre to TdU and Qatar
The blue and fuchsia team of Lampre will depart from its native Italy on January 13th for Adelaide, South Australia, where for the first ProTour event of the season, the Tour Down Under. The Lampre team will consist of Fabio Baldato, Emanuele Bindi, Paolo Fornaciari, Mirco Lorenzetto, Massimiliano Mori and Christian Murro, under director Bruno Vicino.
Seven other riders will leave their European base and head to the Middle East for the Tour of Qatar, which begins January 27. The Lampre team for Qatar will be Marco Bandiera, Matteo Bono, Paolo Bossoni, Roberto Longo, Danilo Napolitano, Daniele Righi and Mauro Santambrogio under director Fabrizio Bontempi.
The other nine riders on the Team Lampre roster will be at a training camp in Riva degli Etruschi (San Vincenzo) from January 21 - 31, including 2007 Tour of Flanders winner Alessandro Ballan.
