Cycling: Basso using Armstrong example

PARIS - Ivan Basso has much in common with Lance Armstrong, suggesting the Italian climber could well succeed the American in the Tour de France's cycling roll of honour.

Basso, last year's runner-up, outclassed his rivals to ride to an impressive victory in this year's Giro d'Italia and will have a whole team dedicated to his cause in the French classic starting on Sunday.

"Ivan will be the exclusive leader and the full team will work for him," CSC team manager Bjarne Riis said this month.

Riis, the surprise winner of the tour 10 years ago, decided to omit Paris-Roubaix winner Fabian Cancellara from the squad.

"I chose Christian Vandevelde because his form is there. The choice was to focus on the mountains and I had to sacrifice Fabian Cancellara for a guy who can climb," he said.

"Frank Schleck will be riding his first tour this year and he proved in Switzerland that his form is coming. Giovanni Lombardi will make sure that Ivan is not getting one centimetre of wind on his nose on the flat stages," he added.

"We know David Zabriskie can do a good time trial but that's not why he is in the team.

"He is ready and I am 100 per cent sure that he will be able to climb well this year. If we need it, he will be an important worker in the mountains."

The CSC strategy harks back to Armstrong's time, when the winner of seven tours enjoyed the privilege of having a team built entirely around him.

Basso made an early start to his season to be ready for the Giro, which he won with the biggest margin since 1965.

Armstrong's techniques have inspired the Italian's preparation for the tour, where he hopes to become the first Italian and the first genuine climber to win since compatriot Marco Pantani in 1998.

"We saw that Armstrong rode small gears and was very agile on the climbs and that uses your muscles differently and allows you to change pace more easily," Riis said.

"We know that Jan Ullrich can't do that because he pushes big gears and so we are convinced that he will struggle to stay with Ivan when he accelerates on the climbs in the Tour de France."

Basso will, however, have to improve in the time trials if he wants to hold off German Jan Ullrich's challenge.

The 1997 winner, also a five-time runner-up, pulled out two days before the end of the Giro d'Italia but used his power to clinch the Tour of Switzerland on June 18.

- REUTERS