Euskaltel-Euskadi

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Euskaltel rider Iban Mayo preparing for stage 11 of the 2006 Tour de France

Euskaltel-Euskadi (UCI Team Code: EUS) is a professional road bicycle racing team. The team is commercially sponsored, but also works as an unofficial Basque national team and is partly funded by the Basque Government. Its riders are either Basque, or at least have grown up in the Basque cycling culture. Its sponsor is Euskaltel, a Basque telecom company. The team is famous for its all-orange uniforms, and it has been known to hand out orange Euskaltel t-shirts and Basque flags to fans when the Tour de France makes a swing into the Basque Country.

After a breakthrough 2003 Tour de France during which both Iban Mayo and Haimar Zubeldia finished in the top-10 of the general classification, with Mayo winning the Alpe d'Huez stage, Euskaltel-Euskadi was considered to be a strong contender for the 2004 Tour de France. Iban Mayo's commanding victory in the Dauphiné Libéré stage race (traditionally seen as one of the tests for Tour de France contenders), including defeating Lance Armstrong in the Mont Ventoux hillclimb individual time trial stage, further fueled the hype. Unfortunately, Mayo was injured in a crash on a pavé section of an early stage of the Tour de France, and abandoned in the first Pyrénées stage. Zubeldia also failed to deliver in the same edition of Tour de France, to the chagrin of Basque fans lining the road. "I wish that our uniform was not so easy to spot," admitted directeur sportif Julian Gorospe.

In the 2005 season the team recruited Aitor González, who won the Tour de Suisse. They again failed to make an impression in the 2005 Tour de France.

Created in 1994, the team has participated in 5 Tours de France with 2 stage wins. As of 2005, the team's sporting director is Julian Gorospe and the team budget is $7.8 million.

1 2006 team
2 2005 Tour de France team
3 Team equipment
4 See also
5 External links

[edit] 2006 team

Samuel Sánchez : 1st, Züri-Metzgete
Iban Mayo : 1st, Overall, Vuelta a Burgos (and Stage 4 win)
Iban Mayo : 1st, Stage 6, Dauphiné Libéré (Briançon - La Toussuire)
Iban Mayo : 1st, Subida a Urkiola

Name	Birthdate	Nationality	2005 Team
Joseba Albizu	06-07-1978	Spain
Beñat Albizuri	17-05-1981	Spain
Igor Antón	02-03-1983	Spain
Andoni Aranaga	01-01-1979	Spain	Kaiku
Iker Camaño	14-03-1979	Spain
Unai Etxebarria	21-11-1972	Venezuela
Koldo Fernandez	13-09-1981	Spain
Iker Flores	28-07-1976	Spain
Gorka Gonzalez	28-09-1977	Spain
Aitor Hernandez	24-01-1982	Spain	Team L.P.R.
David Herrero	18-10-1979	Spain
Iban Iriondo	01-05-1984	Spain	neo-pro
Markel Irizar	05-02-1980	Spain
Iñaki Isasi	20-04-1977	Spain
Roberto Laiseka	17-06-1969	Spain
Inigo Landaluze	09-05-1977	Spain
David Lopez	13-05-1981	Spain
Anton Luengo	17-04-1981	Spain
Iban Mayo	19-08-1977	Spain
Ivan Mayoz	30-09-1981	Spain	Relax Fuenlabrada
Aketza Pena	04-03-1981	Spain
Alan Perez	15-07-1982	Spain
Ruben Perez	30-10-1981	Spain	stagiaire
Samuel Sánchez	05-02-1978	Spain
Josu Silloniz	08-02-1978	Spain
Unai Uribarri	28-02-1984	Spain	neo-pro
Gorka Verdugo	04-11-1978	Spain
Haimar Zubeldia	01-04-1977	Spain
Joseba Zubeldia	19-03-1979	Spain