The new USA Pro Cycling Challenge race has received a significant boost with the news that Tour de France champion Cadel Evans has confirmed that he will indeed take part in this year’s event.
The Australian will lead the BMC Racing Team in the new stage race, which will cover 833 kilometres between August 22nd and 28th. The news comes eight days after Evans won the Tour de France; his presence is consequently certain to generate additional interest for the event, both from spectators and media.
“I'm looking forward to competing in the U.S. in one more stage race before I close out what has been a dream season,” he stated, confirming that it would be his final race of the year. “I've heard good things about the race in Colorado and I know it won't be easy. But I'm up for one more challenge.”
The race will mark his first competitive result since he took seventh overall in the 2006 edition of the Amgen Tour of California.
Before then, he will contest one more race in Europe. Evans will ride a post-Tour criterium in Amsterdam tomorrow, then prepare for the American event.
Although the title sponsor of his team, BMC Racing, is a Swiss company, the squad is registered in the USA and has big interests there. His status as Tour winner guarantees big exposure for that backer.
Directeur sportif John Lelangue said that Evans looked at the remaining calendar and decided not to continue on until September. "With the worlds in Copenhagen this year being more for sprinters, Cadel wasn't expecting to go to the worlds,” the Belgian stated. “Colorado has nice mountains, we are an American team, and it's a good opportunity for him to race in the U.S. He couldn't race in California in May due to his pre-Tour de France training camps.”
Evans’ decision to end his season early means that Philippe Gilbert has a better chance of ending the year as world number one. Evans currently holds that position, but the Omega Pharma Lotto rider’s victory in the Clasica San Sebastian saw him move closer. The Australian currently has 574 points, with Gilbert on 482.
“I’m now in second place, 92 points behind Cadel Evans,” Gilbert said to Het Nieuwsblad. “After the Eneco Tour, I still have Hamburg [Vattenfall Cyclassics – ed], Plouay [GP Ouest-France – ed], the two World Tour events in Canada [Québec and Montréal – ed], and Lombardy; that should be enough…”
Evans may ultimately be passed in those rankings, but he is already a big winner courtesy of his Tour success. So too the USA Pro Cycling Challenge, which now has confirmation that the world’s hottest name will take part in the inaugural event.