Silence-lotto Not So Golden As Mcewen Rides Off

Sydney Morning Herald

Tuesday July 29, 2008

Rupert Guinness

AUSTRALIAN sprinter Robbie McEwen will leave the Belgian Silence-Lotto team for which he has won the Tour de France green jersey three times.

McEwen confirmed that he had signed with another team after placing fourth in the 21st and final stage of the 3560-kilometre tour from Etampes to the Champs Elysees in Paris.

The stage was won by his former teammate at Silence-Lotto, Belgian Gert Steegmans (Quick Step), from German Gerald Ciolek (Columbia) and Spaniard Oscar Freier (Rabobank).

Freier made it a double celebration for Spain by also winning the green points jersey as best sprinter to go with the yellow that was claimed by Carlos Sastre (CSC).

McEwen, 36, would not say what team he will join, but it is believed that he will race for the mega-rich Russian Tinkoff team.

"I have signed with a new team for next year, but I will wait until later in the year for any announcements about what I am doing and let the new team announce it," McEwen said.

Asked if Tinkoff was the team, he said: "Whatever team it is, I will let them announce it."

The Tinkoff team is also understood to be interested in McEwen's Australian teammate, two-times Tour runner-up Cadel Evans, who has a year on his deal but has a buy-out clause in it. Speculation that Evans may look elsewhere follows this year's Tour in which he was left without any Silence-Lotto teammates in the mountains, isolated with his rivals.

The departure from Silence-Lotto by McEwen, who has won 12 Tour stages since turning professional with the Dutch Rabobank team in 1996, ends an eight-year spell with the team but this year's tour was light on for results for him.

© 2008 Sydney Morning Herald

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