BIG BEAR LAKE, Calif. May 7, 2010 –The world-class roster of teams and cyclists* scheduled to participate in the 2010 Amgen Tour of California has been announced by race presenter AEG.  An internationally sanctioned, professional cycling road race, the 2010 Amgen Tour of California will host 16 teams, comprised of 127 riders, from 23 countries for the fifth-annual race taking place May 16-23.

The 2010 Amgen Tour of California will bring an exceptional concentration of cycling talent to compete across more than 800 miles of the state of California from Nevada City to Thousand Oaks, home of race sponsor Amgen.  Attracting an unprecedented field of riders from around the world, cyclists hail from countries as far away as Belgium, Finland, Spain, France, Germany, New Zealand and Sweden.

“We are proud of the powerful and talented group of international and domestic cyclists set to participate in the 2010 Amgen Tour of California,” said Andrew Messick, president of AEG Sports.  “From Tour de France champions to Olympic medalists and world champions, this field is one of the best that has ever competed on American soil.  The growing reputation of the Amgen Tour of California has resulted in a very accomplished field of cyclists, which should make for a great race.”

The field will include riders from well-known teams such as Team RadioShack, Team HTC-Columbia, Quick Step, Team Saxo Bank and Garmin-Transitions, who will all be competing to take the title in the overall team competition.  Some of the notable riders planned to begin the race in Nevada City, Calif. on May 16 include:

*Team rosters are subject to change

Tour de France Overall Podium Finishers

• Lance Armstrong (USA), Team RadioShack; first 1999-2005, third 2009
• Andy Schleck (LUX), Team Saxo Bank; second 2009
• Levi Leipheimer (USA) Team RadioShack; third 2007

Tour de France Stage Winners

• Lance Armstrong (USA), Team RadioShack (22)
• Mark Cavendish (GBR), Team HTC-Columbia (10)
• Tom Boonen (BEL), Quick Step (6)
• Fabian Cancellara (SUI), Team Saxo Bank (5)
• Stuart O’Grady (AUS), Team Saxo Bank (3)
• Yaroslav Popovych (UKR), Team RadioShack (3)
• Jens Voigt (GER), Team Saxo Bank (3)
• Heinrich Haussler (GER), Cervélo TestTeam (1)
• David Zabriskie (USA), Garmin-Transitions (1)

World Champions

• Lance Armstrong (USA), Team RadioShack
• Lars Boom (NED), Rabobank
• Tom Boonen (BEL), Quick Step
• Janez Brajkovic (SLO), Team RadioShack
• Fabian Cancellara (SUI), Team Saxo Bank
• Mark Cavendish (GBR), Team HTC-Columbia
• Tom Leezer (NED), Rabobank
• Yaroslav Popovych (UKR), Team RadioShack
• Michael Rogers (AUS), Team Columbia-Highroad

Olympic Medalists

• Lance Armstrong (USA), Team RadioShack
• Theo Bos (NED), Cervélo TestTeam
• Fabian Cancellara (SUI), Team Saxo Bank
• Levi Leipheimer (USA), Team RadioShack
• Bret Lancaster (AUS), Cervélo TestTeam
• Stuart O’Grady (AUS), Team Saxo Bank
• Hayden Roulston (NZL), Team HTC Columbia

Current National Champions (by country)

• Michael Rogers (AUS), Team Columbia-Highroad, Time Trial
• Tom Boonen (BEL), Quick Step, Road Race
• Matti Breschel (DEN), Team Saxo Bank, Road Race
• Lars Ytting Bak (DEN), Team HTC-Columbia, Time Trial
• Andy Schleck (LUX), Team Saxo Bank, Road Race
• Stef Clement (NED), Rabobank, Time Trial
• Jeremy Vennell (NZL), Bissell, Time Trial
• Janez Brajkovic (SLO), Team RadioShack, Time Trial
• Fabian Cancellara (SUI), Team Saxo Bank, Road Race
• George Hincapie (USA), BMC Racing Team, Road Race
• David Zabriskie (USA), Garmin-Transitions, Time Trial

American Stage Race Champions

• Levi Leipheimer (Team RadioShack), 2007-2009 Amgen Tour of California
• David Zabriskie (Garmin-Transitions), 2009 Tour of Missouri
• George Hincapie (BMC Racing Team), 2007 Tour of Missouri
• Janez Brajkovic (Team RadioShack), 2007 Tour de Georgia
• Tom Danielson (Garmin-Transitions), 2005 Tour de Georgia
• Lance Armstrong (Team RadioShack), 2004 Tour de Georgia
• Chris Horner (Team RadioShack), 2003 Tour de Georgia

The 2010 Amgen Tour of California roster includes the following 16 professional cycling teams.  The seven ProTour teams compete regularly on the UCI’s ProTour race calendar, including the Grand Tours of Europe – Tour de France, Giro d’Italia and Vuelta a España.

Pro Tour Teams

1.) Garmin-Transitions (USA)

Steven Cozza (USA)

Thomas Danielson (USA)

Ryder Hesjedal (CAN)

Robbie Hunter (RSA)

Thomas Peterson (USA)

Peter Stetina (USA)

Matthew Wilson (AUS)

David Zabriskie (USA)

2.) Liquigas-Doimo (ITA)

Francesco Bellotti (ITA)

Francesco Chicchi (ITA)

Davide Cimolai (ITA)

Manuel Quinziato (ITA)

Peter Sagan (SVK)

Ivan Santaromita (ITA)

Brian Vandborg (DEN)

Elia Viviani (ITA)

3.) Quick Step (BEL)

Carlos Barredo Llamazales (ESP)

Tom Boonen (BEL)

Kurt Hovelynck (BEL)

Kevin Hulsmans (BEL)

Nikolas Maes (BEL)

Andreas Stauff (GER)

Jurgen Van De Walle (BEL)

Maarten Wynants (BEL)

4.) Rabobank (NED)

Lars Boom (NED)

Stef Clement (NED)

Steven Kruijswijk (NED)

Sebastian Langeveld (NED)

Thomas Leezer (NED)

Paul Martens (GER)

Grischa Niermann (GER)

Maarten Tjallingii (NED)

5.) Team HTC-Columbia (USA)

Lars Ytting Bak (DEN)

Mark Cavendish (GBR)

Bernhard Eisel (AUT)

Tony Martin (GER)

Mark Renshaw (AUS)

Michael Rogers (AUS)

Hayden Roulston (NZL)

Tejay Van Garderen (USA)

6.) Team RadioShack (USA)

Lance Armstrong (USA)

Janez Brajkovic (SLO)

Christopher Horner (USA)

Levi Leipheimer (USA)

Jason McCartney (USA)

Dmitriy Muravyev (KAZ)

Yaroslav Popovych (UKR)

José Luis Rubiera Vigil (ESP)

7.) Team Saxo Bank (DEN)

Matti Breschel (DEN)

Fabian Cancellara (SUI)

Jakob Fuglsang (DEN)

Juan José Haedo (ARG)

Stuart O’Grady (AUS)

Andy Schleck (LUX)

Andre Steensen (DEN)

Jens Voigt (GER)

Pro Continental Teams

8.) BMC Racing Team (USA)

Chad Beyer (USA)

Marcus Burghart (GER)

Chris Butler (USA)

Mathias Frank (SUI)

George Hincapie (USA)

Alexander Kristoff (NOR)

Jackson Stewart (USA)

Simon Zahner (SUI)

9.) Cervélo TestTeam (SUI)

Theo Bos (NED)

Joao Correia (POR)

Philip Deignan (IRL)

Heinrich Haussler (GER)

Jeremy Hunt (GBR)

Brett Lancaster (AUS)

Oscar Pujol Munoz (ESP)

Dominique Rollin (CAN)

Continental Teams

10.) Bissell (USA)

Rob Britton (CAN)

Daniel Holloway (USA)

Andy Jacques-Maynes (USA)

Ben Jacques-Maynes (USA)

Peer Latham (NZL)

Paul Mach (USA)

Jeremy Vennell (NZL)

Kyle Wamsley (USA)

11.) Fly V Australia (AUS)

Jonathan Cantwell (AUS)

Jai Crawford (AUS)

Benjamin Day (AUS)

Charles Dionne (CAN)

Aaron Kemps (AUS)

Bernard Sulzberger (AUS)

Jay Robert Thomson (RSA)

Phil Zajicek (USA)

12.) Jelly Belly Presented by Kenda (USA)

Jonathan Chordoff (USA)

William Dicknson (AUS)

Michael Friedman (USA)

Charles Bradley Huff (USA)

Jeremy Powers (USA)

Kiel Reijnen (USA)

Will Routley (CAN)

Bernard Van Ulden (USA)

13.) Kelly Benefit Strategies (USA)

Ryan Anderson (CAN)

Jesse Anthony (USA)

Dan Bowman (USA)

Alex Candelario (USA)

Reid Mumford (USA)

Neil Shirley (USA)

David Veilleux (CAN)

Scott Zwizanski (USA)

14.) SpiderTech Powered by Planet Energy (CAN)

David Boily (CAN)

Guillaume Boivin (CAN)

Lucas Euser (USA)

Martin Gilbert (CAN)

Kevin Lacombe (CAN)

Bruno Langlois (CAN)

Francois Parisien (CAN)

Andrew Randell (CAN)

15.) Team Type 1 (USA)

Davide Frattini  (ITA)

Ken Hanson (USA)

Aldo Ino Ilesic (SLO)

Christopher Jones (USA)

Valery Kobzarenko (UKR)

Javier Megias Leal (ESP)

Thomas Rabou (NED)

Scott Stewart (USA)

16.) UnitedHealthcare Presented by Maxxis (USA)

Christopher Baldwin (USA)

Matthew Crane (USA)

Marc De Maar (NED)

Max Jenkins (USA)

Karl Menzies (AUS)

Andrew Pinfold (CAN)

Rory Sutherland (AUS)

Bradley White (USA)

Stages for the 2010 Amgen Tour of California include:

• Stage 1: Sunday, May 16 – Nevada City to Sacramento
• Stage 2: Monday, May 17 – Davis to Santa Rosa
• Stage 3: Tuesday, May 18 – San Francisco to Santa Cruz
• Stage 4: Wednesday, May 19 – San Jose to Modesto
• Stage 5: Thursday, May 20 – Visalia to Bakersfield
• Stage 6: Friday, May 21 – Palmdale to Big Beak Lake
• Stage 7: Saturday, May 22 – Los Angeles Individual Time Trial
• Stage 8: Sunday, May 23 – Thousand Oaks/Westlake Village/Agoura Hills

For more information about the Amgen Tour of California, please visit www.amgentourofcalifornia.com.

BIG BEAR LAKE, Calif. April 30, 2010 – AEG, with the support of Amgen and the U.S. Anti-Doping Agency (USADA), today announced additional testing protocols for the fifth annual Amgen Tour of California as part of the race’s comprehensive anti-doping initiatives.

Designed to supplement the Union Cycliste Internationale’s (UCI) Biological Passport, a groundbreaking anti-doping tool based on the ongoing monitoring of a rider’s blood and urine, the race’s 2010 anti-doping program will include the following elements:

• UCI in-competition testing – Each day, testing will be conducted with the stage winner, current leader of the general classification and three other riders (chosen from the general field)
• Pre-race testing – Riders will have blood and urine samples collected prior to the race.  For teams not involved in the UCI Biological Passport program, USADA is conducting pre-event, out-of-competition testing in the weeks leading up to the race; these tests have already begun
• USADA Registered Testing Pool (RTP) – Conducted by USADA, riders in the RTP are tested throughout the year, in the out-of-competition program, including the weeks leading up to the event

• Prohibited List – Samples will be screened for substances and methods included on the World Anti-Doping Agency Prohibited List, such as steroids, hormones (e.g. EPO), stimulants and various masking agents
• Testing – Sample collections may include both urine and blood, and samples will be tested for the presence of prohibited substances such as steroids, hormones (including EPO) and various masking agents, as well as indications of blood manipulation.  Certain samples will include special analysis, such as the CIR test for synthetic testosterone and will be tested for CERA and hGH
• Storage – A number of urine and blood samples collected will be stored for up to eight years so that, in the event of new testing methods, samples can be reevaluated
• All participating teams are required to ensure that all team members, including coaches, trainers and support staff, are clear of any pending doping investigations at the time of the 2010 Amgen Tour of California.  The roster of riders will be provided by the participating team and will then be submitted to USA Cycling and UCI to confirm that there are no open investigations prior to the race

“We are grateful for our partnership with USADA and the UCI to ensure that we are doing all we can to guarantee a fair competition for the athletes,” said Andrew Messick, president of AEG Sports, the race owner and organizer.  “We are committed to continuing to explore additional ways to ensure a clean race.”

“USADA commends the Amgen Tour of California for taking a proactive and comprehensive approach to its anti-doping efforts at this event,” said USADA CEO Travis T. Tygart.  “We are committed to protecting clean athletes and preserving a level playing field for those who want to compete fairly and healthy, and are pleased to work with the event management to do our utmost to ensure this.”

”Amgen appreciates and shares AEG’s interest in running a clean race,” said Dr. Steve Elliott, Amgen scientific executive director.  “We are pleased with the steps AEG has taken, in collaboration with USADA and UCI, to continue to strengthen the Amgen Tour of California’s anti-doping program.”

About the US Anti-Doping Agency

USADA is the non-profit, independent and non-governmental entity responsible for the testing and results management process in the U.S. for athletes in the Olympic and Paralympic Movement, upholding the Olympic ideal of fair play, and representing the interests of athletes. USADA is dedicated to preserving the integrity of sport through research initiatives and educational programs. The agency manages a drug reference phone hotline as well as the Global Drug Reference Online at www.GlobalDRO.org, conducts educational sessions with National Governing Bodies and their athletes, and proactively distributes a multitude of educational materials, such as curriculums, themed brochures and nutrition and dietary guides, easy-reference wallet cards for the prohibited substance list, periodic newsletters, and protocol and policy reference publications, all of which can be found at www.USADA.org.

Additional Resources;

• New Images of Pro Cycling Manager/Tour De France 2010 … – Prepare for a big cycling season! Discover now a new series of images of Pro Cycling Manager/Tour de France 2010.
• Pro Cycling Photography | Blacknell.net – I’m in the process of trying to re-organize some of the online galleries of the pro cycling races I’ve shot over the past few years. I’ve occasionally linked.

BIG BEAR LAKE, Calif. April 16, 2010 – One of the strongest and most talented fields ever assembled for a U.S. cycling race has been invited to the upcoming 2010 Amgen Tour of California. The 16-team field is comprised of the world’s best international professional cycling teams and a selection of top North American-based teams have there sights set to win Stage 6, which is the most challenging stage of the 2010 Amgen Tour of California eight-day event. The Queen Stage finishes in Big Bear Lake May 21, 2010.

Getting to the finish line in Big Bear Lake is no easy task. The grueling route consists of 135 miles and more than 12,000 feet of climbing through mountain passes. Stage 6, penned as “The Big Bear Climb,” should have a significant impact on the overall standings of the 2010 Amgen Tour of California.

The compelling set of teams invited to the fifth-annual race will be led by prominent UCI ProTour and Pro Continental teams, such as the three-time defending champion Levi Leipheimer and seven-time Tour de France champion Lance Armstrong’s team RadioShack; 2009’s No. 1-ranked Team HTC-Columbia, featuring sprint sensation Mark Cavendish; powerhouse Team Saxo Bank, featuring Tour of Flanders winner Fabian Cancellara and Tour de France runner-up Andy Schleck; Liquigas-Doimo, an exceptionally promising young Italian team; Colorado-based Garmin-Transitions; and BMC Racing Team, featuring current U.S. Pro champion George Hincapie.  The more than 800-mile, eight-day stage race, modeled after the Tour de France, will take the world’s top professional cycling teams from Nevada City to Thousand Oaks/Westlake Village/Agoura Hills from May 16-23.

The 2010 Amgen Tour of California roster includes the following 16 professional cycling teams:

• Bissell (USA)
• BMC Racing Team (USA)
• Cervélo TestTeam (SUI)
• Fly V Australia (AUS)
• Garmin-Transitions (USA)
• Jelly Belly Presented by Kenda (USA)
• Kelly Benefit Strategies (USA)
• Liquigas-Doimo (ITA)
• Quick Step (BEL)
• Rabobank (NED)
• SpiderTech Powered by Planet Energy (CAN)
• Team HTC-Columbia (USA)
• Team RadioShack (USA)
• Team Saxo Bank (DEN)
• Team Type 1 (USA)
• UnitedHealthcare Presented by Maxxis (USA)

“These teams, with the riders we expect to compete, represent the one of the strongest fields we have had at the Amgen Tour of California.  Our move to May means that we will have Tour de France contenders in prime form racing here in the Golden State,” said Andrew Messick, president of AEG Sports, presenter of the race.  “We also are pleased to have a selection of top North American-based Continental teams, who will have a chance to compete with some of the world’s best riders.”

Split between teams who compete on the UCI ProTour and those who race predominately in the United States, the field of 128 athletes will be one of the most diverse, accomplished groups of cyclists ever assembled for a stage race in the United States.

“In a few short years the Amgen Tour of California has become America’s Grand Tour, one of our country’s premier sporting events, and a showcase for the demanding and dramatic California landscape,” said Bob Stapleton, owner of Team HTC-Columbia.  “Team HTC-Columbia will contend for both the General Classification and stage wins with top riders Michael Rogers, Mark Cavendish and an exceptional supporting cast of athletes.”

Along with ProTour and Pro Continental teams, the domestic teams will be represented by return competitors Bissell, BMC Racing Team, Cervélo TestTeam, Fly V Australia, Jelly Belly Presented by Kenda, Kelly Benefit Strategies, Team Type 1, UnitedHealthcare Presented by Maxxis, and new competitor, Canada’s SpiderTech Powered by Planet Energy.

“The entire Fly V Australia team is looking forward to going head-to-head with the best teams and riders in the world in the 2010 Amgen Tour of California,” said Chris White, team director of Fly V Australia.  “This is the biggest race of the year for our team and a great test for our riders.”