Cycling: Dean backs troublesome knee for Tour de France

Top New Zealand road cyclist Julian Dean, gunning for a Tour de France starting spot, feels he has passed his first test in his return to competitive cycling from a niggling knee injury.

Dean, whose Tour de France buildup was shattered by the injury eight weeks ago, rides for the French Credit Agricole team, for whom he played a starring role in the 2004 tour.

He had targeted last week's Tour of Luxembourg and the Tour of Switzerland, both five-day stage races, to prove his fitness to his team.

Having finished 50th on general classification in the Luxembourg tour, Dean says his condition is "good enough to be ready in time for the tour". The Tour de France begins on July 1.

"I'm not sure how I am in general," said Dean in his website diary. "I seem to be good one day and bad the next.

"For me, the condition is good enough now to be ready in time for the Tour de France.

"I am still a little nervous about my knee and after the final stage [of the Luxembourg tour] it has been giving me some grief, although not the same sensations as before.

"I think it's ... just the process of the body getting used to time and effort on the bike again.

"Getting through this is the most important thing for me right now. The rest, I know, will fall into place.

"I'm at the point of reaching my peaking cycle and if I can continue to be injury free, I'll be away.

"I've just got to hope the niggles I have are only those that come with the territory of returning to racing."

Dean, ninth at last September's world championships road race in Spain, missed the 2005 Tour de France after breaking his right elbow in a crash in the Tour of Italy.

Dean earned the label the "best leadout rider on the planet", following his exploits with Credit Agricole in the 2004 Tour de France.

- NZPA