The French team Saur-Sojasun, debuting its Pro-Continental status in 2010, has announced its roster for next year. Team manager Stephane Heulot has released the names of the 19 French riders set to join the team set to fill the hole left by the former French Agritubel squad.
Among the names is Frenchman Jimmy Casper, who rode for the continental team this past season. Casper will be looking to lead the team alongside former Francaise Des Jeux riders Jerôme Coppel and Sebastien Joly. Skil Shimano riders Jonathan Hivert and Cyril Lemoine are two other prominent French names joining Saur-Sojasun next year, making the team a strong contender for a wildcard spot in the 2010 Tour de France set to start in Rotterdam, The Netherlands.
Almost all of the riders from former Pro-Continental team Agritubel have found a new team for 2010. Eduardo Ramirez Gonzalo was the latest to sign, joining the continental formation Bretgane-Schuller. Only three riders are left without a contract including Nicolas Vogondy, Christophe Laurent and Emilien-Benoit Berges. The Belgian Steven Caethoven has been linked to Landbouwkrediet but his signature is still missing on the contract.
Former Agritubel riders situation:
Maxime Bouet (Fra) > Ag2r La Mondiale
David Le Lay (Fra) > Ag2r La Mondiale
Anthony Ravard (Fra) > Ag2r La Mondiale
Freddy Bichot (Fra) > Bbox Bouygues Telecom
Christophe Moreau (Fra) > Caisse d'Epargne
Rémi Cusin (Fra) > Cofidis
Kevyn Ista (Bel) > Cofidis
Brice Feillu (Fra) > Vacansoleil
Romain Feillu (Fra) > Vacansoleil
Geoffroy Lequatre (Fra) > Team RadioShack
Sylvain Calzati (Fra) > Team Sky
Steven Caethoven (Bel) > Landbouwkrediet (?)
Yann Huguet (Fra) > Skil-Shimano
Nicolas Jalabert (Fra) > retiring
Yoann Le Boulanger (Fra) > retiring
Eduardo Gonzalo (Spa) > Bretagne-Schuller
Emilien Benoît-Bergés (Fra) >
Christophe Laurent (Fra) >
Nicolas Vogondy (Fra) >