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Thursday, June 25, 2009

Astana names Tour team: Contador & Armstrong to lead

Astana names Tour team: Contador & Armstrong to lead

By:
Susan Westemeyer
Published:
June 25, 17:15,
Updated:
June 25, 16:55
Race:
Tour de France
Alberto Contador (Astana)

Alberto Contador (Astana)

"The New French Revolution"

Alberto Contador and Lance Armstrong will lead Team Astana at the Tour de France, starting July 4 in Monaco. The team announced its Tour line-up Thursday with a video release on its website, introducing “The New French Revolution”, as “9 Riders join forces to take over France.”

Contador, who won the Tour in 2007, and Armstrong, who won in 1999-2005, will be primarily supported by Andreas Klöden, who finished second in the Tour in 2004 and 2006, and Levi Leipheimer, who was third in the Tour in 2007.

Team manager Johan Bruyneel said that Contador “has worked very hard, earning the right to represent our team as the leader this July.” He added that Armstrong “is extremely motivated for the Tour de France.”

The squad also includes Yaroslav Popovych, Haimar Zubeldia, Sergio Paulinho, and Gregory Rast. Kazakh rider Dimitriy Muravyey completes the line up and will be making his Tour debut.

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