Photo Georges Luechinger BMC Racing Team Media Service

Having just completed their first race of the new season, the UCI ProContinental BMC Racing Team has proved it has what it takes to compete at the highest level. Their appearance at the Tour Down Under drew rave reviews from all sides. To top off the event, the “Red Devils” played a very active role in the final stage which was eventually won by Australian Chris Sutton in a spectacular mass sprint.

The Chief Directeur Sportif John Lelangue and his team travelled to the race with two principle purposes: to unite together as a cohesive group and to make use of every chance to be noticed as a force in the event. “We not only achieved but exceeded each goal. During the races and at the hotel, our time in Australia was very well spent and the experience will continue to be very helpful to us,” Lelangue explained. From a sporting point of view, the team united around Cadel Evans and provided quite a few race highlights. First to ignite the team efforts, Martin Kohler joined the most important breakaway of the first stage, and won the lead in the Sprint and Best Young Rider competitions. In the final tally, Cadel Evans finished sixth overall in his first race with his new squad, the BMC Racing Team. Andre Greipel repeated his victory from two years ago and proved he is a sprinter for January.

“Cadel Mania” wherever you look

Danilo Wyss added to the BMC results with two top 10 stage finishes while in the race’s queen stage, World Champion Cadel Evans attacked and ..Continue reading..

Greipel stage 2 Tour Down Under CJFoto.com

The second stage of the 2010 Tour Down Under finished in another sprint finale. And similarly to yesterday, the German Andre Greipel snagged the stage win. BMC’s best finisher for the second day in a row was Danilo Wyss who sprinted his way to seventh place.

The 133.5 kilometer stage from Gawler to Handorf started off in the same way as the first stage. The stage kicked off first with another three-man breakaway. As with Tuesday’s stage, their escape efforts would be squashed by the sprinters’ teams who seemed to control the escapees at will. “The speed in the field was not too extreme but the legs are already a little heavy after yesterday’s efforts,” Martin Kohler revealed, who rode the stage in the Sprint Leader’s Jersey. The young Swiss sprinter retained his lead in the classification and so will race the third stage in the blue sprint leader’s jersey. World Champion Cadel Evans was also content with the way the stage unfolded. “The day went pretty well. I am feeling better and better every day,” the Australian World Champion explained. Danilo Wyss again had good legs after his fourth place in stage one, though he was not completely satisfied with his placing in the final sprint. “I was directly on the wheel of Greipel

when Graeme Brown came at me from the left and forced me off my perfect line. If that hadn’t happened, I certainly would have finished higher up,” BMC’s sprinter said. Wyss currently sits in sixth place overall, making him the best-placed BMC rider.

Rihs leaves the race contented in his team

After visiting with his team at the Tour Down Under, BMC owner and primary team sponsor Andy Rihs left the race on Wednesday. The passionate cyclist has convinced himself first hand that his team is the best organized, highest quality team possible. “It is absolutely fantastic how well our team works together after only a few days of racing together at the highest ProTour level. And the appearance of World Champion Cadel Evans as a prime BMC ambassador has greatly impressed me. I am convinced that the BMC Racing team will create many new fans this season,” Rihs gushed after his short visit to Adelaide. On his way home, the Swiss entrepreneur will use the opportunity to visit his wine estate in New Zealand.

Andre Greipel

Germany’s Andre Greipel avoids a huge pileup to win the opening stage of the Tour Down Under.

The BMC Racing Team had an encouraging start to the season with their stage 1 performance at the Tour Down Under.  The “Red Devils” immediately ensured a lot of attention would be paid to the team after their stage 1 showing.   During the post-race award ceremony in Tanunda, the team had two reasons to celebrate.

In the presence of BMC owner Andy Rihs, Martin Kohler provided the team with the stage highlights having garnered the best sprinters and best young riders leader’s jerseys after having spent over 100 kilometers in a three- man break.  The team’s top sprinter Danilo Wyss then picked up where he left off last year and made a dash for the line among the best sprinters in the world, snagging fourth place in the process.  German Andre Greipel lived up to his “favourite” status by grabbing the first ProTour victory of the season, taking the lead in the Tour Down Under as a result.  Wyss finihsed the stage in fourth place in front of such renowned fast-men as Robbie McEwen and Baden Cooke.

First Classification leader’s jerseys of his career

After the stage, Martin Kohler was especially ebullient.  With two other companions, he jumped into the right breakaway group which split off from the main field after about 20 kilometers of racing.  “Actually, the stage unfolded exactly as we expected.  In the pre-race briefing, we talked of the chance of an early escape, and I was to try and nail this group,” Kohler said.   The BMC professional was well rewarded for his efforts.  Though the escape group was caught 20 kilometers from the finish, Kohler has already won two sprint bonifications in the course of the stage, giving him the advantage for the sprint and young rider classifications.  “After the second sprint bonification I was quietly hoping that I would get the Best Young Rider jersey, but I also gained enough points for the Sprints Jersey, which means I have both.  That is of course fantastic for me.”  This marks the first time in Kohler’s career that he has worn a leader’s jersey in competition, which is of course a great satisfaction for the young rider.

BMC Racing Team

Throughout training camp, the BMC Racing Team will doing more than just riding their BMC bicycles for hours.

In between the meals, massages and meetings are opportunities to learn about the team’s sponsors. This personal interaction with company representatives provides the athletes, staff and management the chance to learn more about the products they will be using during the 2010 season. On Monday night, the first of many sponsor presentations kicked off with First Endurance, the team’s nutritional sponsor.

Innovative Racing Nutrients

First Endurance produces a variety of premium sports nutrition products that are designed to work together to help maximize endurance and performance. Throughout the season – during racing and training – riders on the BMC Racing Team will utilize the Endurance MultiV (a daily multi-nutrient vitamin), the PreRace (a flavor-free powder), EFS (advanced endurance drink mix with the highest electrolyte content available), EFS Liquid Shots (energy concentrate), Ultragen recovery drink and First Endurance energy bars. As First Endurance Owner Robert Kunz explained during a 35-minute presentation, the BMC Racing Team will be providing valuable feedback for the company to stay at the forefront of endurance performance.

A Rainy Ride

Monday’s first group training ride of the two-week camp was a wet one for the BMC Racing Team. A planned four-hour ride was nearly cut short by a torrential downpour before the team’s 18 riders even left the outskirts of Santa Rosa, California. But Assistant Director Sportif Mike Sayers said a brief sign of the sun and some additional warmth kept the original training ride plan in place. The squad was split into two groups: riders who will be racing the Tour of Qatar and those who will not. “The Qatar guys definitely have a little bit more pressure to get ready quickly, so it was good to split the group,” Sayers said. “Ultimately, everyone did what they were asked to do.”

Team Sky win down under

First road victory of the season for the Elite colours thanks to the new Team Sky, that uses the water bottles and the bottle cages from the Fontaniva (PD) brand.

A magic double win with Greg Handerson (Nzl) in first and his teammate Christopher Sutton (Aus) in second place in the final sprint at the Cancer Council Helpline Classic of Adelaide, special prologue of the Tour Down Under the Australian stage races scheduled from 19th to 24th January.

bmc for tour down under

BMC Racing for 2010 Tour Down Under – January 19 – 24 January

Riders
Cadel Evans (Aus), George Hincapie (USA), Karsten Kroon (Ned), Danilo Wyss (Swi), Martin Kohler (Swi), Mauro Santambrogio (Ita) and Thomas Frei (Swi)

Thanks to its prominent new signing, the Australian world champion Cadel Evans, the organiser of the first race of the Pro Tour series have taken notice of the BMC Racing Team.

The Tour Down Under in January is the opening race of the Pro Tour series where numerous prominent riders, mainly members of Pro Tour Teams, will participate. The climatic conditions in the southern hemisphere suit well to the drivers who perform there the first kilometres in competition conditions. With the new signing of the prominent Australian rider Cadel Evans, winning gold at the last world championships in Mendrisio last September, the American-Swiss BMC Racing Teams, presents the ideal candidate for the organizers of the Australian stage race. Thus, the BMC Racing Team got a Wildcard for the first Pro Tour race in the new year.

AG2R LA MONDIALE have announced their team for the Tour Down Under.

COUREURS

·         Cyril DESSEL

·         Martin ELMIGER

·         Blel KADRI

·         Yuriy KRIVTSOV

·         René MANDRI

·         Anthony RAVARD

·         Ludovic TURPIN

DIRECTEUR SPORTIF

·         Laurent BIONDI

Here’s a sneak preview of a working prototype of the jersey the guys will be riding in in 2010. While the final Jersey is expected to look very similar, it will be officially unveiled in Australia in January during the Tour Down Under. It was our goal this year to create something visually distinctive and a look that was symbolic of what we feel Team RadioShack is all about: cutting edge technology, speed, strength, determination and a global message to LIVESTRONG. The experts at Nike and our partners at RadioShack helped to create this fast form-fitting design using various textures and patterns symbolizing the themes of new technology, global connectivity and community. We think it looks pretty damn cool.

The guys are gearing up at training camp this week and will be riding in team colors for the first time. Stay tuned for more news and updates from the team as we get ready for the season kick off just a few weeks at the Tour Down Under!

Australian sprinter Robbie McEwen is to make his comeback to professional cycling at the Tour Down Under in January.

A three-time winner of the Tour de France’s sprinters’ green jersey, McEwen was out for most of 2009 after crashing heavily at Belgium in May.

The 37-year-old had to abort a comeback in July to undergo more surgery but told race officials he wants to resume racing for his Katusha team at the Tour Down Under from January 17-24.

American Lance Armstrong and Australia’s road race world champion Cadel Evans will also be competing in the race.

“McEwen has won 12 stages Tour Down Under stages, more than anyone else in the race’s history,” race director Mike Turtur said in a statement.

“It wouldn’t be the Tour Down Under without Robbie. He is fast, competitive and always ready to put on a show in front of a home crowd.”

Former winner Martin Elmiger will lead French team Ag2r La Mondiale at Australia’s Tour Down Under in January.

The French UCI Pro Tour team has an impressive record down under having produced the most overall winners in the Australian event with Gilles Maignan (2000), Mikel Astarloza (2003), Simon Gerrans (2006) and Elmiger (2007).

The team is Elmiger, Cyril Dessel (France), Blel Kadri (France), Yuriy Krivtsov (Ukraine), Rene Mandri (Estonia), Anthony Ravard (France) and Ludovic Turpin (France).

The Tour Down Under will be staged around Adelaide from January 17-24 and is headlined by seven-time Tour de France champion Lance Armstrong and Australia’s world road cycling champion Cadel Evans.