Wiggins and Downing set for Tour of Britain, say race organisers
Bradley Wiggins will not race again until the Tour of Britain but he will lead Team Sky in the national stage race in September.
The Tour of Britain organisers have revealed a provisional Team Sky line-up for the race, which starts in Rochdale on September 11 and lasts eight days.
It will be Wiggins's only major race for the remainder of the year - he has already confirmed he will take a break after gruelling Tour de France and will not ride the Commonwealth Games in Delhi or World Championships in Melbourne in October. It remains to be seen whether he defends his national time trial title the week before the Tour of Britain.
Wiggins is listed on the Team Sky website in the team for the Tour du Limousin in France from August 17 to 20 - however, he has already stated his only major race this year will be the Tour of Britain.
Wiggins will not ride either of the ProTour stage races in August - the Tour of Poland or the Eneco Tour in Belgium and Holland. The Eneco Tour which, with its hilly route, prologue and final time trial could offer a chance of overall success. Last year Wiggins did ride the Eneco Tour but failed to finish the final time trial. After setting a good time at the first time check, it began to rain and Wiggins eased up to avoid risking a crash on roads littered with speed humps and raised kerbs. However, his decision to ride off down the deviation road near the finish - intended for the following cars not the riders - instead of cross the line and record a time annoyed his Garmin team director Matt White.
Russell Downing has been named in the Tour of Britain team - which indicates he will not get to ride the Vuelta a Espana because the two races overlap. National champion Geraint Thomas, Steve Cummings, Mat Hayman and Greg Henderson are the other riders in the provisional line-up, which is subject to change. Chris Froome and Chris Sutton are named as reserves.
Meanwhile, Team Sky has announced its line-ups for all the races leading up to the Vuelta a Espana at the end of next month.
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Two of Sky's Tour de France team - Juan Antonio Flecha and Serge Pauwels - return to action at the San Sebastian Classic in the Basque Country on Saturday. Russell Downing, who won the final stage and overall classification at the Tour de Wallonie earlier this week has also been drafted in for the one-day classic.
TEAM SKY LINE-UPS FOR FORTHCOMING RACES
San Sebastian Classic Spain
July 31
John-Lee Augustyn, Sylvain Calzati, Dario Cioni, Russell Downing, Juan Antonio Flecha, Serge Pauwels, Nicolas Portal, Morris Possoni (Manager - Sean Yates)
Tour of Poland
August 1-7
Kjell Carlstrom, Mathew Hayman, Greg Henderson, Peter Kennaugh, Lars-Petter Nordhaug, Ian Stannard, Chris Sutton, Ben Swift (Managers - Marcus Ljungqvist, Dan Hunt)
Vuelta a Burgos Spain
August 4-8
Kurt-Asle Arvesen, Augustyn, Calzati, Cioni, Chris Froome, Portal, Possoni, Davide Vigano (Manager - Shane Sutton)
Dutch Food Valley Classic Netherlands
August 13
Arvesen, Downing, Edvald Boasson Hagen, Hayman, Nordhaug, Stannard, Sutton, Vigano (Manager - Rod Ellingworth)
Vattenfalls Classic Germany
August 15
Flecha, Boasson Hagen, Hayman, Henderson, Stannard, Sutton, Swift, Thomas (Manager - Ellingworth)
Eneco Tour Belgium/Netherlands
August 17-24
Arvesen, Michael Barry, Boasson Hagen, Hayman, Henderson, Sutton, Thomas, Vigano (Manager - Steven de Jongh)
Tour du Limousin France
August 17-20
Carlstrom, Cioni, Froome, Simon Gerrans, Thomas Löfkvist, Pauwels, Possoni, Wiggins* (Managers - Dan Hunt, Carsten Jeppesen)
* Wiggins listed by Team Sky but has said he will take a break in August
GP Ouest France Plouay
August 22
Augustyn, Calzati, Cummings, Froome, Gerrans, Pauwels, Portal, Possoni (Manager - Ljungqvist)
Related links
Tour of Britain 2010: Route revealed
Downing to ride San Sebastian after Wallonie win
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