ROGERS RETURNS TO RACING IN CATALONIA

Publiceret af: danny 2008-05-17

Former World Time Trial Champion Michael Rogers returns to racing in the Tour of Catalonia after a long period of illness this spring. High Road rider Rogers fell foul of the Epstein-Barr virus earlier this year but will finally be back action in the tough seven-day stage race.
“It’s going to be very difficult for Mick in Catalonia, but he has to start somewhere if he wants to be at a good level for the summer,” Sports director Allan Peiper said.
“Really there aren’t any other options apart from Catalonia and it would be even worse if we started him off in the Dauphine Libere. Having said that, he’s been training well, doing four to five hours a day and is feeling good. He’s positive and upbeat about his chances.”
Apart from Rogers, George Hincapie and Thomas Lovkvist are both contenders for High Road in the opening individual time trial of 3.7 kilometres in Lloret de Mar. Neither are strangers to success in short individual races against the clock: Hincapie won a prologue in the Dauphine Libere a few years back and Lovkvist, prior to joining High Road, won the time trial of the Criterium International in 2007   - before finishing 11th overall in Catalonia.
“John Devine and Craig Lewis are two of our talented young guys who should be on the look out for breakaways, and Eisel and Reynes should be up there in the sprints.” Peiper continued.
“I know Michael Barry is very keen to ride in the Tour de France, and Catalonia is a great chance for him to prove whether he is up to being there in July, too.”
As for what the riders can expect in the seven-day race, Peiper points out “Catalonia this year has a very strange race route. On paper it’s much tougher at the start of the course than at the finish.”
“There are a lot of hard mountain stages early on and then it’ll be a question of controlling the race in the hillier second half.”

HIGH ROAD FOR THE TOUR OF CATALONIA:-Michael Barry (Can); John Devine (USA);  Bernhard Eisel (Aut); George Hincapie (USA); Craig Lewis (USA);  Thomas Lovkvist (Swe); Michael Rogers (Aus); Vicente Reynes (Spa).