World road race champion Mark Cavendish has been confirmed as one of the top names for the upcoming Paris-Tour Classic, which will be held on October 9th. The race will give him a strong opportunity to secure what could be his first victory in the rainbow jersey.
The British HTC Highroad rider triumphed in Sunday’s road race championships and will be a major draw for race organisers ASO, who confirmed the teams and some of the top riders today.
Amongst the others in the lineup are former winners Alessandro Petacchi (Lampre ISD, 2007), world number one Philippe Gilbert (Omega Pharma Lotto, 2008 and 2009), and last year’s champion Oscar Freire (Rabobank), plus the 2007 champion. The line will feature four current and past world champions, namely Cavendish, Freire, Thor Hushovd (Garmin-Cervélo) and Alessandro Ballan (BMC Racing Team). The latter team also includes last year’s world under 23 time trial champ Taylor Phinney.
The general public and those watching on television will have plenty of others to look out for, with the lineup being a strong one for an event so late in the year. Other standout riders are home favourites Sylvain Chavanel (Quick Step) and Thomas Voecker (Europcar), world championship silver medallist Matt Goss (HTC Highroad), Robbie McEwen (RadioShack), Bradley Wiggins and Juan Antonio Flecha (Sky Procycling), Danile Bennati and Stuart O’Grady (Leopard Trek), plus French sprinter Romain Feillu (Vacansoleil DCM).
Also confirmed is Bennati’s team-mate Jens Voigt, who will make his return after crashing out of the Tour of Britain and suffering a broken finger.
A total of 25 teams will compete in the race, with the balance split between fourteen UCI ProTeams and eleven wildcards. The latter group includes six French teams, Bretagne-Schuller, Cofidis, le Crédit en ligne, FDJ, Saur-Sojasun, Team Europcar and BigMat Auber 93, the Belgian squads Landbouwkrediet, Topsport Vlaanderen - Mercator and Veranda’s Willems – Accent, Team Type 1 (USA) and Skil-Shimano (Netherlands).
Cavendish’s chances of winning will depend on how he and his team handle the attacks of his rivals, and also how he fares on a shortened finishing straight. It is now just 660 metres in length, making it crucial to be in the right position before the final gallop begins.
Paris –Tours – confirmed teams and riders as of September 27th:
Belgium:
Omega Pharma-Lotto (OLO): Gilbert, Van de Walle, Vanendert (Bel)
Quickstep Cycling Team (QST): Sy.Chavanel (Fra), Steegmans (Bel)
Landbouwkrediet (LAN): De Waele (Bel)
Topsport Vlaanderen - Mercator (TSV): Neirynck (Bel)
Veranda’s Willems - Accent (VWA): Scheirlinckx (Bel)
Denmark: Saxo Bank Sungard (SBS): Cooke (Aus), Larsson (Swe)
Spain: Euskaltel-Euskadi (EUS): Isasi (Spa)
USA:
BMC Racing Team (BMC): Ballan (Ita), Phinney (USA), Van Avermaet (Bel)
HTC-Highroad (THR): Cavendish (GBr), Degenkolb (Ger), Goss (Aus), Eisel (Aut)
Team Garmin-Cervélo (GRM): Hushovd (Nor), Dean (Nzl)
Team RadioShack (RSH): Hunter (SAf), McEwen (Aus)
Team Type 1 (TT1): Bodrogi (Fra), A.Efimkin (Rus)
France
AG2R La Mondiale (ALM): Ravard (Fra), Elmiger (Swi)
Bretagne-Schuller (BSC): Dion, Le Bon (Fra)
Cofidis, le Crédit en ligne (COF): Dumoulin, Gallopin (Fra), Duque (Col)
FDJ (FDJ): Guesdon, Geslin, Offredo (Fra), Hutarovich (Blr)
Saur-Sojasun (SAU): Engoulvent, Hivert (Fra)
Team Europcar (EUC) : Arashiro (Jap), Seb.Chavanel, Voeckler (Fra)
BigMat Auber 93 (AUB) : Bacquet (Fra)
Great Britain : Sky Procycling (SKY) : Flecha (Esp), Wiggins (Gbr)
Italy : Lampre-ISD (LAM) : Bole (Slo), Petacchi (Ita)
Luxembourg : Team Leopard-Trek (LEO) : Bennati (Ita), O’Grady (Aus), Voigt (All)
The Netherlands:
Rabobank Cycling Team (RAB) : Freire (Esp), Tjallingii (Hol)
Vacansoleil-DCM Pro Cycling Team (VCD) : Feillu (Fra), Devolder (Bel)
Skil-Shimano (SKS) : Sprick (Fra), Kluge (All), Veelers (Hol)