August 25, 2010 (Québec City, QC) – The main objective—ensure that a peloton of the highest calibre will compete in the North American premiere editions of the prestigious ProTour circuit—has been achieved. A total of 176 riders representing the 18 ProTour teams, the three Continental Pro teams and the Canadian national team are entered in the Québec City and Montréal Grands Prix Cyclistes.

Following the UCI registration procedure, each team was required to register, 20 days prior to each race, a group of 8 racers plus a maximum of 4 substitutes. Teams will have until 72 hours prior to each race to confirm the name of 8 racers and 2 substitutes. The field includes nine reigning national road race champions as well as the top climber and five stage winners from the 2010 Tour de France.

“We have a high-quality peloton that will be racing on two diffcult, up-and-down courses, with repeated hill climbs that will favour climber-puncheur riders and allrounders,” said Charly Mottet, Sport Manager, Grand Prix Cycliste ProTour Québec – Montréal, who offcially sanctioned the two Québec courses on behalf of the International Cycling Union (UCI). A road racing legend in France, Mottet finished third at the Grand Prix des Amériques in 1989, on the Mount Royal course in Montréal.

“I am very happy with the positive response from the teams. Each has entered riders who will be a great match for the two racecourses we have prepared for them,” noted Serge Arsenault, President, Grand Prix Cycliste ProTour Québec – Montréal. “This is the first time that the ProTour has come to North America since its inception, and this great response is proof of their commitment to the globalization of cycling. The welcome we will extend to them will be worthy of their performances,” he concluded.

– Quebec City ProTour Provisional Rider list here.
– Montreal ProTour Provisional Rider list here.

See complete list of teams and riders below.

Teams and Riders to Watch

– Garmin-Transitions – Ryder Hesjedal (Can)
– Euskaltel-Euskadi – Samuel Sanchez (Spa)
– Rabobank – Robert Gesink (Ned)
– Team RadioShack – Levi Leipheimer (USA), Christopher Horner (USA), Janez Brajkovic (Slo), Sergio Paulinho (Por)
– Liquigas-Doimo – Ivan Basso (Ita), Peter Sagan (Svk)
– Quick Step – Sylvain Chavanel (Fra), Jérôme Pineau (Fra)
– Team Sky – Edvald Boasson Hagen (Nor)
– Française des Jeux – Sandy Casar (Fra)
– Team Saxo Bank – Jens Voigt (Ger)
– Team Katusha – Alexander Botcharov (Rus), Evgeny Petrov (Rus)
– AG2R La Mondiale – Martin Elminger (Ger), Cyril Dessel (Fra), John Gadret (Fra)
– Lampre-Farnese Vini – Damiano Cunego (Ita)
– Team HTC-Columbia – Maxime Montfort (Fra)
– Caisse d’Épargne – José Ivan Gutierrez (Spa), Pablo Lastras (Spa)
– Team Milram – Gerald Ciolek (Ger), Niki Terpstra (Ned)
– Astana – Paolo Tiralongo (Ita)
– Omega Pharma-Lotto – Matthew Lloyd (Aus)
– Bbox Bouygues Telecom – Thomas Voeckler (Fra), Pierrick Fedrigo (Fra), Anthony Charteau (Fra)
– BMC Racing Team – Alessandro Ballan (Ita), George Hincapie (USA)
– Cofidis – Damien Monier (Fra), Amaël Moinard (Fra), Stéphane Auger (Fra)
– Canada – Dominique Rollin (Can)

An innovative demonstration event
The organizers will be taking advantage of the presence of the ProTour teams and UCI officials to mount a demonstration of a spectacular new event in the hopes that it may be added to the official UCI disciplines. The Challenge Sprint, showcasing 16 top-level Canadian sprinters, is a series of sprint races featuring four racers each in a single-elimination format, and promises explosive, head-to-head duels.

The Challenge Sprint will be presented starting at 5 pm on September 9, along the final kilometre of the Grand Prix Cycliste de Québec course, on Rue St-Louis. This one-of-a-kind event was designed in close collaboration with the Canadian Cycling Association (CCA) and the Fédération québécoise des sports cyclistes.

Canadian ProTours Provisional Team Rider List

Team Garmin-Transitions (USA)
1. Ryder Hesjedal (Can)
2. Kirk Carlsen (USA)
3. Steven Cozza (USA)
4. Timmy Duggan (USA)
5. Murilo Fischer (Bra)
6. Martijn Maaskant (Ned)
7. Danny Pate (USA)
8. Svein Tuft (Can)
Director: Jonathan Vaughters (USA)

Euskaltel-Euskadi (Esp)
11. Samuel Sanchez (Esp)
12. Javier Aramendia (Esp)
13. Jorge Azanza (Esp)
14. Jonathan Castroviejo (Esp)
15. Gorka Izagirre (Esp)
16. Miguel Minguez (Esp)
17. Alan Perez (Esp)
18. Ruben Perez (Esp)
Director: Josu Larrazabal (Esp)

Rabobank (Ned)
21. Robert Gesink (Ned)
22. Steven Kruijswijk (Ned)
23. Tom Leezer (Ned)
24. Joost Posthuma (Ned)
25. Tom Stamsnijder (Ned)
26. Bram Tankink (Ned)
27. Maarten Tjallingii (Ned)
28. Dennis Van Winden (Ned)
Director: Erik Dekker (Ned)

Team Radioshack (USA)
31. Levi Leipheimer (USA)
32. Janez Brajkovic (Slo)
33. Markel Irizar (Esp)
34. Christopher Horner (USA)
35. Yaroslav Popovych (Ukr)
36. Tiago Machado (Por)
37. Haimar Zubeldia (Esp)
38. Sergio Paulinho (Por)
Director: Viatcheslav Ekimov (Rus)

Liquigas-Doimo (Ita)
41. Ivan Basso (Ita)
42. Valerio Agnoli (Ita)
43. Davide Cimolai (Ita)
44. Kristijan Koren (Slo)
45. Daniel Oss (Ita)
46. Peter Sagan (Skv)
47. Brian Vandborg (Den)
48. Elia Viviani (Ita)
Director: Alberto Volpi (Ita)

Team Quick Step (Bel)
51. Sylvain Chavanel (Fra)
52. Dries Devenyns (Bel)
53. Mauro Facci (Ita)
54. Kevin Hulsmans (Bel)
55. Jérôme Pineau (Fra)
56. Francesco Reda (Ita)
57. Kevin Seeldraeyers (Bel)
58. Jurgen Van De Walle (Bel)
Director: Davide Bramati (Ita)

Team Sky (Gbr)
61. Edvald Boasson Hagen (Nor)
62. Kurt Arvesen (Nor)
63. Michael Barry (Can)
64. Dario Cioni (Ita)
65. Serge Pauwels (Bel)
66. Morris Possoni (Ita)
67. Christopher Sutton (Aus)
68. Davide Vigano (Ita)
Director: Carsten Jeppesen (Gbr)

FDJ (Fra)
71. Sandy Casar (Fra)
72. Rémy Di Gregorio (Fra)
73. Anthony Geslin (Fra)
74. Thibaut Pinot (Fra)
75. Anthony Roux (Fra)
76. Jérémy Roy (Fra)
77. Wesley Sulzberger (Aus)
78. Jussi Veikkanen (Fin)
Director: Yvon Madiot (Fra)

Team Saxo Bank (Den)
81. Jens Voigt (Ger)
82. Matti Breschel (Den)
83. Jakob Fuglsang (Den)
84. Kasper Klostergaard (Den)
85. Michael Morkov (Den)
86. Chris Anker Sorensen (Den)
87. Nicki Sorensen (Den)
88. André Steensen (Den)
Director: Bobby Julich (Aus)

Team Katusha (Rus)
91. Alexander Botcharov (Rus)
92. Marco Bandiera (Ita)
93. Laszlo Bodrogi (Fra)
94. Nikita Eskov (Rus)
95. Mykhaylo Khalilov (Ukr)
96. Luca Mazzanti (Ita)
97. Evgueny Petrov (Rus)
98. Eduard Vorganov (Rus)
Director: Serge Parsani (Ita)

AG2R-La Mondiale (Fra)
101. Martin Elmiger (Sui)
102. Maxime Bouet (Fra)
103. Dimitri Champion (Fra)
104. Cyril Dessel (Fra)
105. John Gadret (Fra)
106. Ben Lux Gastauer
107. Sébastien Hinault (Fra)
108. David Le Lay (Fra)
Director: Gilles Mas (Fra)

Lampre – Farnese Vini (Ita)
111. Damiano Cunego (Ita)
112. Alfredo Balloni (Ita)
113. Mattéo Bono (Ita)
114. Francesco Gavazzi (Ita)
115. Enrico Magazzini (Ita)
116. Simone Ponzi (Ita)
117. Simon Spilak (Slo)
118. Diego Ulissi (Ita)
Director: Valerio Tebaldi (Ita)

Team HTC – Columbia (USA)
121. Maxime Monfort (Bel)
122. Michael Albasini (Sui)
123. Gert Dockx (Bel)
124. Patrick Gretsch (Ger)
125. Adam Hansen (Aus)
126. Craig Lewis (USA)
127. Frantisek Rabon (Cze)
128. Vicente Reynes (Esp)
Director: Valerio Piva (Ita)

Caisse D’epargne (Esp)
131. Pablo Lastras (Esp)
132. Arnaud Coyot (Fra)
133. Mathieu Drujon (Fra)
134. José Ivan Gutierrez (Esp)
135. Angel Madrazo (Esp)
136. Francisco Perez (Esp)
137. Mathieu Perget (Fra)
138. José Joaquim Rojas (Esp)
Director: Neil Stephens (Aus)

Team Milram (Ger)
141. Gerald Ciolek (Ger)
142. Johannes Fröhlinger (Ger)
143. Linus Gerdemann (Ger)
144. Dominik Nerz (Ger)
145. Luke Roberts (Aus)
146. Thomas Rohregger (Aut)
147. Niki Terpstra (Ned)
148. Fabian Wegmann (Ger)
Director: Raoul Liebregts (Ger)

Astana Cycling Team (Kaz)
151. Paolo Tiralongo (Ita)
152. Scott Davis (Aus)
153. Valeriy Dmitriyev (Kaz)
154. Maxim Gourov (Kaz)
155. David De La Fuente (Esp)
156. Andriy Grivko (Ukr)
157. Mirko Selvaggi (Ita)
158. Gorazd Stangelj (Slo)
Director: Laurenzo Lapage (Bel)

Omega Pharma-Lotto (Bel)
171. Matthew Lloyd (Aus)
172. Mario Aerts (Bel)
173. Francis De Greef (Bel)
174. Michiel Elijzen (Ned)
175. Sébastian Lang (Ger)
176. Jonas Ljungblad (Swe)
177. Daniel Moreno (Esp)
178. Charles Wegelius (Gbr)
Director: Roberto Damiani (Ita)

Footon-Servetto-Fuji (Esp)
171. Martin Pedersen (Den)
172. Matthias Brandle (Aut)
173. Ermanno Capelli (Ita)
174. Marco Corti (Ita)
175. Marcus Eibegger (Ita)
176. Fabio Felline (Ita)
177. Noé Gianetti (Sui)
178. Johnnie Walker (Aus)
Director: Stefano Zanini (Ita)

Bbox Bouygues Telecom (Fra)
181. Thomas Voeckler (Fra)
182. Yukiya Arashiro (Jap)
183. Anthony Charteau (Fra)
184. Pierrick Fedrigo (Fra)
185. Patrick Gautier (Fra)
186. Laurent Lefevre (Fra)
187. Yohann Gene (Fra)
188. Sébastien Turgot (Fra)
Director: Didier Rous (Fra)

BMC Racing Team (USA)
191. Alessandro Ballan (Ita)
192. Brent Bookwalter (USA)
193. Marcus Burghardt (Ger)
194. George Hincapie (USA)
195. Karsten Kroon (Ned)
196. Jeff Louder (USA)
197. Mauro Santambrogio (Ita)
198. Danilo Wyss (Sui)
Director: Mike Sayers (USA)

Cofidis (Fra)
201. Damien Monier (Fra)
202. Stéphane Auge (Fra)
203. Mickaël Buffaz (Fra)
204. Rémi Cusin (Fra)
205. Leonardo Duque (Col)
206. Julien Elfares (Fra)
207. Sébastien Minard (Fra)
208. Amaël Moinard (Fra)
Director: Bernard Quilfen (Fra)

Canada (Can)
211. Dominique Rollin (Can)
212. Ryan Anderson (Can)
213. David Boily (Can)
214. Guillaume Boivin (Can)
215. Bruno Langlois (Can) / Rob Britton (Can)
216. François Parisien (Can)
217. Will Routley (Can)
218. David Veilleux (Can)
Director: Steve Bauer (Can)