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Alberto Contador. AP Image/Patrick Herzog
Alberto Contador of Spain, the reigning and two-time winner of the Tour de France for the Kazakhstan-financed team Astana, plans to leave the squad at the end of the season, according to a report in the French daily sports newspaper, L'Equipe.
Contador has one year left on his contract with the team, but he has rejected a four-year extension to ride for four million Euros per year.
The offer would have given Contador sole leadership of the team, despite the pending return of Alexander Vinokourov.
Contador declined the proposal, according to his brother and manager Francisco Javier because “Alberto's future wasn't about money only," according an article on CyclingNews.com.
Contador's teammate Lance Armstrong, who finished third in the Tour de France, announced during the waning stages of the race he will leave Astana and form his new team, RadioShack, for the 2010 season.
Sports director Johan Bruyneel and several other current Astana riders, including Levi Leipheimer and Chris Horner, are expected to be employed by RadioShack.
In addition to winning this year's Tour de France, Contador won the 2007 event as well as the 2008 Tour of Italy and Tour of Spain while riding for Astana.
Comments
Setting the record straight -- Contador didn't win the 2007 Tour de France, he was awarded the winners title by default.
Randall,
Your statement is incorrect. Contador was on the podium as the recognized winner in 2007. In the middle of the event he took ownership of the yellow jersey when the leader, Michael Rasmussen was kicked out. It was the prior year when Floyd Landis was stripped of his title after the fact that the winner got the title after the fact.
He should be able to get out of his 2010 contract due to the hostile environment in his work place. Road Bike action translated part of the El Pais interview, and had Radio Shack VIP's ad Armstrong family members riding in Astana support vehicles while Contador was stranded at the hotel before the TT. AS has more as well. It's gonna get ugly if some reporter puts in the work
Randall's comment illuminates why doping is so pervasive in sport: as long as you cross the line first, idiots consider you the winner, even if you're later shown to be a cheater.
Looking forward to Leadville in a couple weeks. Can Lance find a way to beat the race's usual winner this time?
whatever: Is there *any* evidence that Rasmussen doped?
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