PARIS, Feb 11, 2011 – Former Paris-Roubaix champion Peter Van Petegem
has been appointed as a short-term advisor to Garmin-Cervelo as the American
outfit look to triumph in the tough northern classics.

Now retired, Belgian Van Petegem was regarded as one of the men to fear in
the grueling one-day classic races which are held from March to April in
northern Europe.

Garmin-Cervelo have several potential winners on their roster, including
Thor Hushovd, Heinrich Haussler, Martijn Maaskant, Andreas Klier and Tyler
Farrar.

Hushovd, the reigning world road race champion, has finished on the podium
of Paris-Roubaix twice, finishing third in 2009 and runner-up in 2010 while
racing for the Cervelo Test Team.

Garmin-Cervelo’s chief executive Jonathan Vaughters believes Van Petegem
could provide the key ingredient to help his riders triumph.

“We’ve said all along that we’ve wanted to become stronger in the classics
and now we’re coming into 2011 with one of the strongest classics line-ups in
the peloton, with one of the best advisors,” said Vaughters.

“Having never ridden the cobbled classics myself, I thought it was
important to have someone else in the car with that experience. Van Petegem’s
expertise on the roads, the tactics, the equipment and classics strategy will
be invaluable for us as a group.”

Van Petegem, one of only 10 men to win Paris-Roubaix and the Tour of
Flanders in the same year, having won the latter twice in total, retired from
cycling in 2007.

He said: “I am very excited to work with such a talented group of riders. I
am sure that our combined expertise will strengthen the team and I can’t wait
to get back on the road with Team Garmin-Cervelo.”