Antsy Lance? Armstrong shows up early for Aussie Tour Down Under

ADELAIDE, Australia (AP) -- Lance Armstrong arrived in Australia on Sunday a few hours after his Astana team, and a few days ahead of when Tour Down Under officials indicated he would.

The Astana squad flew in from Europe via Singapore in preparation for the UCI ProTour race, which starts on Jan. 18 and marks the return of seven-time Tour de France winner Armstrong to professional competition four years after he retired.

Armstrong was said by race officials early Sunday to be still training at his base in Hawaii, and that he might not arrive in Australia until midweek.

But Armstrong arrived later Sunday at Sydney international airport, about a 75-minute flight from Adelaide. He was accompanied off his flight by several Australian Federal Police and security guards.

"I believe my form is as good as it ever was for this early in January," Armstrong said. "My fitness is probably ahead of where it would have been other years, but I've been training a lot earlier than the previous years as well.

"I just don't want to get clobbered too bad. That's my main motivation for training hard. I don't have delusions of grandeur. I hope I get in the race and get reacclimatized to the tempo and the speed and what it's like to be around 200 guys and a fast-moving group.

"It's been such a long break. This is the longest break I've had. But ... it's nervousness and excitement."

Cancer survivor Armstrong is using his return to cycling to further the fight against cancer worldwide. While in Adelaide he will appear at two major functions, including one run by the Cancer Council of South Australia.

As well as the Tour Down Under, his race schedule for 2009 will include the Giro d'Italia and an attempt to win an unprecedented eighth Tour de France.

As well as Astana, the Spanish Euskaltel Euskadi team and the French Bouygues team arrived on Sunday while AG2R La Mondiale and Caisse D'Epargne flew in on Saturday.

The six stages of the Tour Down Under run from Jan. 20 to 25, with a criterium in Adelaide scheduled for Jan. 18.

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