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AVIGNON, France, June 7, 2008 (AFP) - The respective form of some of this
year’s Tour de France contenders, notably Australia’s Cadel Evans, will come
under close scrutiny at the Dauphine Libere which begins here Sunday.

However at the week-long stage race which usually serves as an appetiser to
next month’s Tour de France, a bitter aftertaste of last year’s yellow jersey
battle will be lingering.

Evans, the Silence-Lotto team’s ace all-rounder, has become the logical
heir to last year’s Tour de France champion Alberto Contador for at least two
reasons.

The Aussie finished an agonizing 23 seconds behind the Spaniard in 2007,
and this year Contador and his entire Astana team have been controversially
left off the three-week epic’s invitation list.

Despite undergoing a management overhaul, Tour bosses decided not to invite
Astana because of their exclusion from the race last year after team leader
Alexandre Vinokourov, who has since been sacked, tested positive for blood
doping.

The Dauphine, which is keen, unlike the Tour, to keep hold of its Pro Tour
status, has welcomed Astana with open arms. And while recently-crowned Tour of
Italy champion Contador will not be racing, American Levi Leipheimer, who came
third on the Tour last year, will be their man to watch.

Often referred to as a Tour de France in miniature, the Dauphine is sure to
give the yellow jersey contenders an insight into Evans’ real form, and
whether his yellow jersey preparations could be scuppered by knee problems
following reports he is suffering from tendinitis in a knee.

On paper, Spaniards Alejandro Valverde (Caisse d’Epargne) and Carlos Sastre
(CSC) are, along with Evans, the big names to look out for in the Dauphine,
which kicks off with a 5.6km prologue Sunday from Le Pontet to Avignon.

In 2007 Frenchman Christophe Moreau, absent this year following his new
team’s failure to benefit from an invite, claimed overall victory ahead of
Evans by just 14 seconds.

Astana will look to Leipheimer, who will be on form having recently
completed the three-week Giro d’Italia, to take the challenge to Evans and co.
having already claimed victory here in 2006.

The last four days of the Dauphine will put the climbing talents of
Leipheimer, Evans, Valverde and Sastre to the test with the biggest test the
penultimate stage which goes over the difficult Croix-de-Fer alpine climb
before finishing at La Toussuire.

Spanish, American and Australian eyes will also be keen to see how Michael
Rogers, the High Road team’s big-name Australian, fares in his first big stage
race since his recovery from mononucleosis.

Stage victories on the Dauphine don’t go cheaply, and so the likes of Dutch
upstart Robert Gesink, the Rabobank team’s revelation of the Paris-Nice in
March, will be among the ones to watch.

Stages
June 8: Le Pontet - Avignon, 5.6 km time trial prologue
June 9: 1st stage Avignon - Privas, 194 km
June 10: 2nd stage Bourg-Saint-Andeol - Vienne, 184 km
June 11: 3rd stage Saint-Paul-en-Jarez, 31 km (individual time trial)
June 12: 4th stage Vienne - Annemasse, 193 km
June 13: 5th stage Ville-la-Grand - Morzine, 125 km
June 14: 6th stage Morzine - La Toussuire, 233 km
June 15: 7th stage Saint-Jean-de-Maurienne - Grenoble, 128 km