Mallorca Challenge draws top stars to open Spanish calendar
- By Andrew Hood
- Published Jan. 19, 2010
- Updated Aug. 15, 2010 at 9:02 PM EDT
With racing underway in Australia and South America, it’s only a matter of days before the 2010 calendar clicks into gear in Europe.
The first official races on the European continent will be the Giro di Regio Calabria in Italy on Jan. 30 and the GP de Ouverture La Marsellaise on Jan. 31 in France.
Spain’s 2010 racing calendar begins with the traditional five-day kickoff at the Mallorca Challenge, Feb. 7-11.
Some big stars are lining up for the event, including the Schleck brothers (Saxo Bank), Alejandro Valverde (Caisse d’Epargne), Óscar Freire (Rabobank), Robbie McEwen (Katusha), Andre Greipel (HTC-Columbia) and Slyvain Chavanel (Quick Step).
The race is a favorite among the top pros because of the mild weather and excellent training roads on Spain’s Mallorca island.
The races are a series of individual, one-day events, so riders can start as many as they want during the week. There’s also an unofficial classification for riders who partake in all five stages.
Stages for 19th Mallorca Challenge, Feb. 7-11
Sunday, Feb. 7: Palma-Palma, 116km
Monday, Feb. 8: Cala Millor, 173.5km
Tuesday, Feb. 9: Inca Trophy, 157.2km
Wednesday, Feb. 10: Deià Trophy, 143km
Thursday, Feb. 11: Magaluf to Palmanova, 158.5km
Teams
Caisse d’Epargne
Eusaktel-Euskadi
Saxo Bank
Rabobank
Quick Step
Milram
Columbia-HTC
Footon-Servetto
Omega Pharma-Lotto
Cofidis
Katusha
Andalucia-CajaSur
Xacobeo-Galicia
Skil-Shimano
PSK Whirlpool-Author
Team Net App
Burgos Monumental
Orbea
Van Vliet-EBH Elshof
Spanish national track team
FILED UNDER: News TAGS: Mallorca Challenge
Andrew Hood
Hood cut his journalistic teeth at Colorado dailies before the web boom opened the door to European cycling in the mid-1990s. Hood's covered every Tour since 1996 and has been VeloNews' European correspondent since 2002. He lives in Leon, Spain, when he's not chasing bike races.