Giro ranks swell with top teams

Next month's Cape Argus Pick 'n Pay Giro del Capo is set to be the biggest and promises to be the best in the event's 16-year history.

Team numbers are up from around the usual 22 mark to 29, by far the highest, while each team will be increased from five to six cyclists.

The split between local and overseas teams is more or less 50-50, with Barloworld, who are licensed in England and boast a number of top European cyclists, evening matters out with their four South African riders.

And Barloworld's new signing Robert Hunter is likely to be among those upping the profile of this year's Giro.

At the same time, 2006 winner Peter Velits will be back to defend his title, but this time in the colours of Wiesenhof Felt, the German team he joined from Konica Minolta. Cape Town's David George, second behind Velits a year ago and a former three-time winner of the Giro, is without a team and a doubtful starter.

"At the moment I won't be there, I've spoken with a few teams (local and overseas)... I'm looking for something a bit more than they've offered," said George, who completed last year's Tour of Spain riding for that country's Team Relax.

While George's career seems to have stalled, Hunter was quick to get back in the saddle after things took a dip after last year's Tour de France where he helped Phonak team-mate Floyd Landis to that controversial win.

After Landis tested positive for testosterone following his victory, the sponsors pulled out, leaving Hunter and the rest of the Phonak team unemployed.

Barloworld snapped up the 29-year-old who is the first, and to date only, South African to have ridden the Tour de France. He has also clocked numerous wins in European Classics since turning professional in 1999. In fact Hunter celebrated his new career by winning the first stage of the Tour of Spain that year, rounding off winning the sprinters jersey and coming second in the points section.

Not bad for a rookie in a Grand Tour that is ranked third behind the TDF and Giro d'Italia.

Next month will be Johannesburg-born Hunter's first Giro del Capo appearance in more than 10 years and according to his manager Tony Harding, the Cape race has come at just the right time.

"Robert is riding in Portugal at the moment, but the ProTour in Europe is in a shambles and the guys are not getting the races they normally would," said Harding. "They still have to race and the Giro will give them five good days racing in their legs... it also looks to be one of the strongest fields ever."

Barloworld recently just missed out on a wild card entry for this year's Giro d'Italia, a decision that left team manager Claudio Corti fuming that a new team such as Tinkoff Credit Systems was given the nod.

"I don't understand that a small team like Tinkoff can start and Barloworld can't. Could it be because they are supported by a huge nation like Russia and we have the support of South Africa?" asked Corti, whose indignation was echoed around most of the cycling world.

Team Tinkoff, who are based in Italy, was only launched early in January at a lavish function laid on in Rome by wealthy Russian businessman Oleg Tinkov. And adding insult to injury to Corti and his team, Tinkov paraded some of the sport's more infamous names as their new signings. Tyler Hamilton, Danilo Hondo, Salvatore Commesso and Ruggero Marzoli have all either been suspended for, or implicated in, drug-related offences.

The respected cycling4all website commented: "The choice of this team (Tinkoff) is incredible, a new team with some 'highly debatable' riders; were there no other teams available, or was it (again) the money which caused this decision?"

Word in Europe now is that Barloworld could well be given a wild card entry for the Tour de France, though Harding is not getting excited just yet.

"They're in with a chance, and it would be awesome for the team but it's very early days. If they get in, they'd go for stage wins and not general classification," said Harding.

Making Hunter and his new team early favourites for next month's Giro is the inclusion of the likes of Fabrizio Guidi, Enrico Degano, Felix Cardenas and Alexandre Efimkin for the Cape race while another South African Ryan Cox is likely to make up the six.