SA team for Tour de France
Brad Morgan
31 May 2007
When Team Barloworld was formed five years ago, one of its goals was to become the first South African-sponsored team in the Tour de France. That dream has now become reality, with the team being handed a wildcard into cycling's most prestigious race.
Their form in 2007 has been strong, and they currently lead the UCI Professional Continental rankings. So, along with Agritubel and Astana, Team Barloworld has become one of only three non-Pro Tour Series teams to be invited to participate in the Tour de France.
One Pro Tour Series team has not received an invite. Unibet has been barred from competing in France because of a ban on the advertising of betting. The irony of that decision is Unibet won a place on the Pro Tour ahead of Barloworld.
'A great team effort'
"Team Barloworld's success in being invited to compete in the Tour de France is thanks to both a great team effort, as well as representation from
Claudio Corti, the highly respected Italian team manager," said Chris Fisher, head of Corporate Marketing, Barloworld.
After receiving the good news from ASO, the organisers of the Tour, Corti commented: "Obviously we're very happy with ASO's decision and very thankful that they've recognized the qualities of our team and our professionalism.
"The project we've been working on for two years has everything in place to take to the highest level. From an organizational point of view, I believe we've already shown that we work to the highest standards. We've always kept our standards very high and focused on quality young riders that are showing their worth, and on more experienced riders who have already obtained impressive results.
Sponsor
"It's important to talk about our sponsor. Barloworld is a South African multi-national company that is present in numerous European and world wide markets, and is a extraordinary resource for
cycling in a difficult moment. I'm very proud to have brought an African sponsor into the highest level of cycling."
A team of nine riders must be selected for the race. South Africa's Robbie Hunter, who has been in fine form, and recently won the overall title in the Tour de Picardie in France, as well as winning the first stage, is sure of his spot.
He has previous experience in the Tour de France, but this time around he'll be entered as his team's featured sprinter. It's the kind of challenge he has been waiting for his whole career.
Hunter has already ridden with four other teams in the Tour de France and last year was part of the Phonak team which helped Floyd Landis to a victory in Paris that is still being disputed.
Shot at the team
One other South African appears to be in with a shout at making the nine-man line-up. John-Lee Augustyn has shown excellent form in recent races in Spain and should be a strong contender for a
place in the race.
Barloworld will likely include Colombia's Felix Cardenas. He has previous Tour de France experience and in 2001 won a mountain stage in the race.
With South African sponsors, but registered in Britain, and based in Italy, Team Barloworld, especially as an underdog non-Pro Tour outfit, has plenty of reasons to appeal to cycling fans from all over the world.
Preparation
The challenge for the team is to give fans a reason to get excited. Hunter reckons hearing about Barloworld's acceptance into the Tour a little more than a month in advance is not ideal preparation; the announcement of the teams had been expected to be made at an earlier stage.
He says Team Barloworld needs to do a lot of racing in the weeks leading up to the Tour de France.
Route
This year's route covers 3 553.9 kilometres, with the longest stage being the third one, measuring 236.5 kilometres, from
Waregem to Compiègne.
There are 11 flat stages, six mountain stages, one medium mountain stage, and two individual time trials.
The race begins with the Prologue in London on Saturday, 7 July, and finishes with the traditional 20th and final stage into Paris and onto the Champs-Élysées on Sunday, 29 July.
| 
