[teoteoteo]

WOW......I can't wait. I expected Tyler and Beloki but not Cipo. I don't care if people think he's "washed up" or not he brings a certain flare to the race.


Wildcard selections:
Ag2r-Prévoyance
Brioches la Boulangère
Crédit Agricole
Domina Vacanze
Lotto*Domo
Phonak Hearing Systems
RAGT Semences*MG Rover






http://www.cyclingnews.com/news.php?id=news/2004/feb04/feb27news3

 

[Coolhand]

Tyler! Tyler! Tyler!

 

[Spiderman]

I thought Domina was a Div II team, and Div. II teams aren't invited to the tour. I am confused.

 

[Coolhand]

I thought Domina was a Div II team, and Div. II teams aren't invited to the tour. I am confused.

From the linked story:

Most notable, perhaps, is the decision this year to invite Cipollini's Domina Vacanze team. Even forgetting the great debate which surrounded the team's non-invitation to the centenary Tour in 2003, the fact that Domina Vacanze dropped to Division II this year offered little hope of a selection in what is almost certainly Cipollini's final year as a professional. The Tour de France has typically been reserved for Division I teams, but clearly Jean-Marie Leblanc and his colleagues have decided to tip their hat to Cipollini by inviting the team. This will be Cipo's first Tour since 1999.

 

[JohnL]

You're correct, but based on the above article, it looks like they want Cipo back one more time before he supposedly retires after this year.

 

[Spunout]

There is one more wildcard left:

I vote for Kelme. Valverde is a very serious contender in the sprints, and can win in the mountains. He, and his team, will be sorely missed if they don't get in.

 

[Spunout]

Petacchi will totally smoke Cipo anyways,

if people think he's "washed up" or not he brings a certain flare to the race.

12345

 

[Asiago]

Valverde was not to contest the Tour...

There is one more wildcard left:

I vote for Kelme. Valverde is a very serious contender in the sprints, and can win in the mountains. He, and his team, will be sorely missed if they don't get in.

As stated by Kelme this season.

 

[innergel]

Isn't it a little early to give out wildcards bids?

Not that I'm complaining, but it would seem like the TdF committee would want to see what teams are riding best approaching the Tour before they gave out bids. I mean there's less than two months of the season gone and five months before the race starts.

 

[Spunout]

Well, last year they left it too late and royally fcuked everyone's training plans. The TdF takes a bit more than one month in advance to train for, plus changing the previous two months programs to assemble a team.

 

[orange_julius]

Depends on their financial situation...

This is from the same cyclingnews article:

Along the same lines, the Comunidad Valenciana-Kelme team may be forced to sit out the Tour this year, as it too was downgraded to Division II this season. Despite a strong start to the season, with several victories already in the bag for Alejandro Valverde, Kelme did not claim a place next to Domina Vacanze. But Leblanc did leave the door open.

"It was our intent to count on Kelme, a historic team that has always done well in the Tour, but we will wait until it fixes its administrative situation," Leblanc told Marca. "In any case, we have reserved a place for them." Kelme will require an additional sponsor, "which is going give it the necessary cash to expand its budget, because at the moment it's not sufficient to start in the Tour."

 

[werdna]

Which teams did not make it? I cannot find a list.
Thanks,
Andrew

 

[spookyload]

Atleast all the wild card teams aren't French this year. I guess LeBlanc gave up on trying to force a French team to win by only inviting French wildcard teams. As for Div II teams, weren't there 2 French Div II teams last year??