Ag2R hope to step up a gear

Cycling: Ag2R-Prévoyance directeur sportif Vincent Lavenu is hopeful his team will get a place in the ProTour next season.

The UCI passed over the French team for a licence in cycling's new top division this year, but Lavenu hopes some high-profile signings made this summer, plus their place as leaders of the European Continental Tour, will be enough to earn them the nod when the UCI makes its decision in November.

Irish riders Mark Scanlon and Philip Deignan competed with the team this season and have been confirmed for 2006. The Spaniard Francisco Mancebo and Frenchman Christophe Moreau are transferring to the squad, with their fourth and 11th places in this year's Tour de France proving the team has some big hitters for the coming season.

These are important additions; in 2004, Jan Kirsipuu and Jean Patrick Nazon each won stages in the Tour, but when Kirsipuu and Laurent Brochard moved on this year, Ag2R's profile diminished. The squad's chances of posting some big results was further affected by the fact that they missed out on many of the ProTour races.

Scanlon recently talked about the difficulty of motivating himself for smaller French events. "It was very hard mentally this year, as we were back riding against amateurs in some races," he stated.

But the team did take two big results in ProTour competitions, Samuel Dumoulin winning stage two of the Dauphiné Libéré in June and Alexandre Usov sprinting home second in the GP Ouest France two months later.

Lavenu and the Irish riders are keen to step up a division and into all of the big events. "While we don't know yet what the UCI's decision will be, we think we are worthy of a place alongside the other squads," said Lavenu.

There is likely to be just one team slot to be filled for 2006. Other candidates are the Italian Ceramica Panaria-Navigarre team and the Spanish Comunidad Valenciana squad, who are second and third behind Ag2R in the Continental standings.

But the biggest challenge is likely to come from the new team being set up by Giancarlo Ferretti, who this year directed the crack Fassa Bortolo outfit. It is rumoured that it will be backed by Sony-Erikkson and feature riders of the calibre of double Tour of Italy champion Gilberto Simoni and Tour de France stage winner Stuart O'Grady.

FIXTURES: Sunday: Munster DH League round 7, White Horse, Waterford. Starts noon; Ulster XC League round 6, Rostrevor. Starts noon; Connacht MTB/Cyclo Cross league round 1, Moorehall Woods, Carnacon, Co Mayo. Starts 1 pm.