| National Development Team ready for Le Tour de L'Avenir |
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| Written by USA Cycling |
| Friday, 05 September 2008 15:26 |
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Challette-sur-Loing, France (September 4, 2008)—The future of American cycling will be on display in France as some of the world’s top developmental athletes and aspiring professionals ready themselves for Le Tour de L’Avenir, September 5-14. Easily considered the most prestigious multi-day race for riders under the age of 23, Le Tour de L’Avenir, which translates to ‘Tour of the Future’, will feature six Americans who will be racing for USA Cycling’s National Development Team.
Taking the start for the United States will be Tejay Van Garderen (Fort Collins, Colo.), Chris Barton (Ojai, Calif.), Chad Beyer (Anthem, Ariz.), Kirk Carlsen (Sandown, N.H.), Thomas Peterson (Snowqualmie, Wash.) and Peter Stetina (Boulder, Colo.). The sextet will contest 10 stages over 10 days in a race that also doubles as the finale of the 2008 UCI Nations Cup series, the premier international calendar for U23 cyclists. The race kicks off with a 7.5-kilometer prologue time trial in Challette-sur-Loing on Friday before continuing with five consecutive road stages ranging from 131 to 212 kilometers. Stage six will be another race against the clock with a 21-kilometer time trial in Blaye-les-Mines before the final three road stages will bring the race to a close on Sept. 14. This year, the USA Cycling National Development Team will look to secure victory by an American – a feat accomplished only once in the race’s 47-year history by Greg LeMond in 1982. Most recently, Craig Lewis (Spartanburg, S.C.) gave the U.S. a top-ten finish with a seventh-place effort in 2007. For many, Le Tour de l’Avenir provides an opportunity for young riders to showcase their talents to the watchful eyes of pro team scouts. A solid result in France this week can go a long way towards securing a roster spot with a UCI ProTour squad – an accomplishment nine National Development Team athletes have already achieved – or one of many domestic-based professional teams in the United States. For example, a 20th-place overall effort by Van Garderen in 2007 helped land him a contract with Rabobank’s farm team, a feeder system that complements the Netherlands-based ProTour squad. Other recent stories of American success at Le Tour de l’Avenir include Tyler Farrar (Wenatchee, Wash.), who claimed stage wins in 2004 and 2005, leading to a contract with the French ProTour team Cofidis, and Saul Raisin (Dalton, Ga.), who’s King of the Mountains title in 2005 helped earn him a deal with another French ProTour squad in Credit Agricole. For more information on the USA Cycling National Development Team, CLICK HERE.
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