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Former aides challenge Armstrong Posted: Monday July 15, 2002 4:30 PMLORIENT, France (Reuters) -- Lance Armstrong's Tour de France success has inspired some of his former U.S. Postal teammates to go it alone. Four of his former right-hand men lining up against their old leader during this year's race, but the decision to leave Armstrong has led to mixed fortunes for Jonathan Vaughters, Tyler Hamilton, Kevin Livingston and Levy Leipheimer. The first to start the trend was Vaughters, who in 1999 won the Dauphine Libere race taking the classic Mount Ventoux stage in the process. One month later, the bespectacled American was helping Armstrong in the mountains, leading the Tour bunch even though it meant sacrificing his own chances in the world's biggest cycling race. Vaughters left for French team Credit Agricole the following season, hoping to be a team leader in his own right. Tyler Hamilton followed exactly the same pattern in 2000, winning the Dauphine Libere and the Ventoux stage before going his own way this season. Livingston was lured by the now defunct McCartney team in 2000 while Leipheimer, third in last year's Tour of Spain for U.S Postal, moved to Dutch team Rabobank this season and won the Route du Sud in impressive fashion. Hamilton, arguably the most gifted of the four, fulfilled his promise by finishing second in this year's Giro d'Italia for Danish outfit CSC-Tiscali. Close friendsDespite his transfer to CSC-Tiscali, Hamilton remains one of Armstrong's closest friends and still lives in the same building as his former leader in Gerona, Spain. Vaughters, by contrast, never proved he was made of the right stuff to become a leader, while Livingston returned to being a teammate this time for German Jan Ullrich at Telekom. "Hamilton proved in the Giro that he had the qualities of a leader," said U.S. Postal team director Johan Bruyneel. "Leipheimer, by finishing third in the Vuelta, also showed he was more than just a second fiddle," he added. But the Belgian team director said he understood their motivations for going. "I could feel that they were choking a little in the team. They needed a little bit of fresh air," he said. And he insisted there had been no hard feelings after their departures. "Quite the opposite actually. I even gave them some advice as to where they should go," he said. This year, Armstrong appears to have decided to stop the trend of departures. The Texan's most promising teammate has been his compatriot Floyd Landis but Armstrong did not let him win the Dauphine Libere, and Landis had to be content with second place. Perhaps a way for the Tour champion to remind him who the boss really is.
Copyright 2003 Reuters Limited. All rights reserved. |
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