April 17, 2006 – The Ford Tour of Georgia returns for a fourth year with a new sponsor and new challengers. This year marks a start line without Lance Armstrong, but as part of his legacy, there are several American challengers that should light the race on fire. Discovery’s Tom Danielson, Armstrong’s heir apparent, is back to defend his title – and it will be tough. With Phonak’s Floyd Landis having a great spring with wins at Paris-Nice and the Tour of California, it should be a battle between two of the top Americans climbers in the world.

There will be a Canadian presence at Georgia, with Health Net’s Gord Fraser ready to steal some sprint stages, Kodak’s Dom Perras ready to roll away in some long moves, and Dustin MacBurnie flying the TargetTraining colours.
Polish Canadian Peter Mazur (Saunier Duval) set to place in the top-10, perhaps, on G.C. Charles Dionne (Saunier Duval) will not be riding in Georgia due to recurring leg problems.

The six-stage race begins in Augusta on Tuesday, April 18 and will run until Sunday, April 23.

Start List:

provided by www.tourofgeorgia.com

ProTour Teams

Discover Channel Pro Cycling Team (USA) – Ranked No. 1
The Discovery Channel Pro Cycling Team, the only U.S. based ProTour team and ranked No. 8 in the world in 2005, will return in 2006 with defending Tour de Georgia champion Tom Danielson. Danielson enters his third year of professional racing, including an eighth place finish in the 2005 Vuelta a Espana. Other members of the Discovery team to watch are Trent Lowe (AUS), winner of the GE Best Young Rider jersey at the 2005 Tour de Georgia while riding for Jittery Joe’s , Yaroslav Popovych (UKR ) winner of the Best Young Rider award at the 2005 Tour de France, and Viatcheslav Ekimov (RUS), the 2000 Olympic Games time trial gold medalist and 14-time veteran of the Tour de France.


– Danielson, Tom(USA)
– Popovych, Yaroslav(UKR)
– Noval, Benjamin(ESP)
– Brajkovic, Janez(SLO)
– Ekimov, Viacheslav(RUS)
– Lowe, Trent(AUS)
– Martinez, Egoi(ESP)
– McCartney, Jason(USA)


Team CSC (Denmark) – Ranked No. 3
Team CSC was the top-ranked UCI ProTour team in 2005 and brings a strong team to Georgia for the third consecutive year. This Danish team will bring American David Zabriskie to Georgia, a General Classification contender who wore the yellow jersey in the 2005 Tour de France and won the Stage 8 individual time trial in the Giro d’Italia. Danish teammate Brian Vandborg returns to try for another stage win at the Ford Tour de Georgia.


– Johansen, Allan(DEN)
-Vandborg, Brian(DEN)
– Michaelsen, Lars(DEN)
– Zabriskie, David(USA)
– Piil, Jakob(DEN)
– Klostergaard, Kasper(DEN)
– Lopez, Inigo(ESP)
– Pedersen, Martin(DEN)


Phonak Hearing Systems (Switzerland) – Ranked No. 4
The Swiss-based Phonak Hearing Systems team, ranked No. 2 overall in 2005 on the ProTour, features American Floyd Landis. Landis has hit form early this year winning both Paris-Nice and the inaugural Amgen Tour of California. He finished third overall in the 2005 Tour de Georgia, including a win in the individual time trial.


РClerc, Aur̩lien(SUI)
– Gutierrez, Ignacio(ESP)
– Hunter, Robert(RSA)
– Landis, Floyd(USA)
– Oliveira, Luis(ESP)
– Stadler, Florian(SUI)
– Tschopp, Johann(SUI)
– Gutierrez, Jose Enrique(ESP)


Quickstep-Innergetic (Belgium) – Ranked No. 7
Belgian giant Team Quick Step-Innergetic came away with at least one stage win in all three of the Grand Tours and five of the Classics last year, and also has the current world champion titles for time trial and road racing. Quick Step has sponsored professional cycling teams in Europe for years, and its teams have competed in the Tour de France for six consecutive years. The Ford Tour de Georgia marks the first big race on American soil for the Quick Step team. The Quick Step USA brand is now part of Mohawk Industries, the official flooring sponsor of the Ford Tour de Georgia.


– Bramati, Davide(ITA)
– Chicchi, Francesco(ITA)
– Rosseler, Sebastien(BEL)
– Scarselli, Leonardo(ITA)
– Tosatto, Matteo(ITA)
– Van De Walle, Jurgen(BEL)
– Verheyen, Geert(BEL)
– Wielinga, Remmert(NED)


Davitamon-Lotto (Belgium) – Ranked No. 9
Ranked No. 4 on the ProTour last year, Davitamon-Lotto is a new team to the Ford Tour de Georgia. The Belgium-based team will showcase speed at this year’s Tour, having Australian Robbie McEwen leading the way. McEwen is in his 11th professional season and has won 16 Grand Tour stages. Also look for American sprinter Fred Rodriguez, returning for what promises to be an exciting follow-up to his 2003 Tour de Georgia visit where he won two stages. The team also has Australian Henk Vogels, who also won a stage in 2003 while riding for an opposing team.


– Gates, Nick(AUS)
– Kuyckx, Jan(BEL)
– Rodriguez, Fred(USA)
– Van Hecke, Preben(BEL)
– Vogels, Henk(AUS)
-Ingels, Nic(BEL)
-Kaisen, Olivier(BEL)
– Mertens, Pieter(BEL)


Prodir-Saunier Duval (Spain) – Ranked No. 17
This strong Spanish team finished the 2005 campaign ranked No. 7 on the ProTour. Prodir-Saunier Duval will bring two newcomers to their roster this year, American Aaron Olson, and Charles Dionne, the Canadian National Champion and two-time winner of the San Francisco Gran Prix.

– Olson, Aaron(USA)
– Pagliarini, Luciano(BRA)
– Pinotti, Marco(ITA)
– Mazur, Peter(POL)
– Ventoso, Francisco(ESP)
– Rinero, Christophe(FRA)
– Fernandez, Alberto(ESP)


UCI Professional Continental Teams
Health Net presented by Maxxis (USA)
Health Net presented by Maxxis has been one of the top squads in the U.S. with a Professional Continental ranking and will return to showcase their strong talent again this year. Health Net brings leader Gord Fraser of Canada, who is a multiple stage winner at the Tour de Georgia, and New Zealand’s Greg Henderson, who won last year’s Maxxis Sprint leader’s jersey. New to Health Net for 2006 is Nathan O’Neill, multiple Australian time trial champion and third-place podium finisher at the 2003 Tour de Georgia.


– Fraser, Gordon(CAN)
– Sayers, Michael(USA)
– Louder, Jeffry(USA)
– Menzies, Karl(AUS)
– O’Bee, Kirk(USA)
– Ollerenshaw, Doug(USA)
– O’Neill, Nathan(AUS)
– Johnson, Tim(USA)


Navigators Insurance Cycling Team (USA)
The Navigators Insurance Cycling Team has been affiliated with the UCI and the U.S. Professional Racing Organization since 1994, and is another Professional Continental team based in the U.S.. Navigators returns with a different look in 2006, and its roster includes Ben Brooks, former Euro pro and second-place finisher in last year’s Stage Two sprint finish, and Cesar Grajales, the world-class climbing talent who beat Lance Armstrong on the ascent up Brasstown Bald in 2004.

– Brooks, Ben(AUS)
– Swindlehurst, Burke(AUS)
– Davidenko, Vassili(RUS)
– Grajales, Cesar(COL)
– Grichkine, Oleg(RUS)
– Kobzarenko, Valeriy(UKR)
– Lagutin, Sergey(UZB)
– Zajicek, Phil(USA)


Colavita Olive Oil – Sutter Homes Wines Cycling Team (USA)
This is the fourth year for a pro team from Colavita. The team features 2004 USPRO Champion Mark McCormack and the team has signed five new riders.


– McCormack, Mark(USA)
– Rapinski, Viktor(BLR)
– Frattini, Davide(ITA)
– Artacho, Gustavo(ARG)
– Herriott, Todd(USA)
– Page, Jonathan(USA)
– Wren, Tyler(USA)
– Wamsley, Kyle(USA)


Jelly Belly Cycling Team (USA)
One of the mainstays for American cycling for the past seven years has been Jelly Belly. The team will be lead by veterans Dave McCook, Kirk Albers, and Alex Candelario.


– Candelario, Alex(USA)
– Albers, Kirk(USA)
– Bajadali, Andrew(USA)
– Jones, Brice(USA)
– Reistad, Nick(USA)
– Jensen, Brian(DEN)
– Rice, Matty(AUS)
– Manion, Caleb(AUS)


Jittery Joe’s -Zero Gravity Cycling Team (USA)
Georgia’s own Jittery Joe’s -Zero Gravity Pro Cycling Team returns and has many new faces on a familiar team. Two Australians on the squad are Trent Wilson and Peter Hatton. Wilson is a climber who has finished the last two Giro d’Italia races, riding last year for Colombia-Selle Italia, and Hatton was a KOM winner at the 2005 Herald Sun Tour.


-Hopkins, Jeffery(AUS)
– Wilson, Trent(AUS)
– Hatton, Peter(AUS)
– Elken, Evan(USA)
– King, Austin(USA)
– Shirley, Neil(USA)
– Wong, Philip(USA)
– Wilcox, Craig(USA)


Kodakgallery.com – Sierra Nevada Pro Cycling Team (USA)
In its second year of racing, this team has six team members returning from the 2005 campaign, and has added six newcomers. Veteran climber and former Canadian National Champion, Dominique Perras and Ben Jacques-Maynes, a former collegiate national champion and overall winner at the Nature Valley Grand Prix in 2004, headline the returning riders.


– Anthony, Jesse(USA)
-Dietrich, Michael(USA)
-Jacques-Maynes, Ben(USA)
-Lopinto, Peter(USA)
-Perras, Dominique(CAN)
-Schmatz, Dan(USA)
-Stewart, Jackson(USA)
-Zwizanski, Scott(USA)


TARGETRAINING (USA)
TARGETRAINING is a new U.S. Continental team for 2006. TARGETRAINING will focus on the U.S. national race calendar circuit and brings an experienced roster of racers to Georgia. The team has climbing specialist Anthony Colby and sprinter Alejandro (aka Ale-jet) Acton of Argentina.


-Greenfield, Daniel(USA)
– Colby, Anthony(USA)
– Pipp, Frank(USA)
– Acton, Alejandro(ARG)
– Wells, Todd(USA)
– Blickem, Ryan(USA)
-Hartman, Wesley(USA)
–MacBurnie, Dustin(CAN)


Team TIAA-CREF (USA)
Now in its third year, Team TIAA-CREF is America’s Youngest Professional cycling team, and with an average age of 23, Team TIAA-CREF is actually the youngest professional cycling team in the world. The 2006 team roster includes 2001 World Champion Danny Pate, formerly of Team Jelly Belly; Ian MacGregor, 2-time U23 National Champion; and powerhouse Craig Lewis.


-Peterson, Thomas(USA)
-Lange, Michael(USA)
-Euser, Lucas(USA)
-Bowman, Dan(USA)
-Pate, Danny(USA)
-Frischkorn, William(USA)
-Lewis, Craig(USA)
– MacGregor, Ian(USA)


Toyota-United Pro Cycling Team (USA)
Toyota-United Pro exploded on the cycling scene during the 2006 Amgen Tour of California when Juan Jose Haedo of Argentina sprinted for two stage wins and a second-place finish within a single short week. Other big names on that new team are Ivan Dominguez, who wore the yellow jersey in the 2004 Tour de Georgia, current USPRO National Road Champion Chris Wherry, and strongman Antonio Cruz.


-Baldwin, Chris(USA)
– Dominguez, Ivan(CUB)
– Blackgrove, Heath(NZL)
– Cruz, Antonio(USA)
– Haedo, Juan(ARG)
– Friedick, Mariano(USA)
– England, Justin(USA)
– Sullivan, Sean(AUS)