Impressive field of International and Domestic cyclists announced for 2010 Amgen Tour of California professional cycling road race

Race Draws Top Cyclists, Including Seven-Time Tour de France Champion Lance Armstrong and Three-Time Defending Champion Levi Leipheimer

LOS ANGELES (May 7, 2010) –The world-class roster of teams and cyclists* scheduled to participate in the 2010 Amgen Tour of California has been announced by race presenter AEG. An internationally sanctioned, professional cycling road race, the 2010 Amgen Tour of California will host 16 teams, comprised of 127 riders, from 23 countries for the fifth-annual race taking place May 16-23.

The 2010 Amgen Tour of California will bring an exceptional concentration of cycling talent to compete across more than 800 miles of the state of California from Nevada City to Thousand Oaks, home of race sponsor Amgen. Attracting an unprecedented field of riders from around the world, cyclists hail from countries as far away as Belgium, Finland, Spain, France, Germany, New Zealand and Sweden.

“We are proud of the powerful and talented group of international and domestic cyclists set to participate in the 2010 Amgen Tour of California,” said Andrew Messick, president of AEG Sports. “From Tour de France champions to Olympic medalists and world champions, this field is one of the best that has ever competed on American soil. The growing reputation of the Amgen Tour of California has resulted in a very accomplished field of cyclists, which should make for a great race.”

The field will include riders from well-known teams such as Team RadioShack, Team HTC-Columbia, Quick Step, Team Saxo Bank and Garmin-Transitions, who will all be competing to take the title in the overall team competition. Some of the notable riders planned to begin the race in Nevada City, Calif. on May 16 include:

*Team rosters are subject to change

Tour de France Overall Podium Finishers

Lance Armstrong (USA), Team RadioShack; first 1999-2005, third 2009
Andy Schleck (LUX), Team Saxo Bank; second 2009
Levi Leipheimer (USA) Team RadioShack; third 2007

    Tour de France Stage Winners

    Lance Armstrong (USA), Team RadioShack (22)
    Mark Cavendish (GBR), Team HTC-Columbia (10)
    Tom Boonen (BEL), Quick Step (6)
    Fabian Cancellara (SUI), Team Saxo Bank (5)
    Stuart O’Grady (AUS), Team Saxo Bank (3)
    Yaroslav Popovych (UKR), Team RadioShack (3)
    Jens Voigt (GER), Team Saxo Bank (3)
    Heinrich Haussler (GER), Cervélo TestTeam (1)
    David Zabriskie (USA), Garmin-Transitions (1)

      World Champions

      Lance Armstrong (USA), Team RadioShack
      Lars Boom (NED), Rabobank
      Tom Boonen (BEL), Quick Step
      Janez Brajkovic (SLO), Team RadioShack
      Fabian Cancellara (SUI), Team Saxo Bank
      Mark Cavendish (GBR), Team HTC-Columbia
      Tom Leezer (NED), Rabobank
      Yaroslav Popovych (UKR), Team RadioShack
      Michael Rogers (AUS), Team Columbia-Highroad

        Olympic Medalists

        Lance Armstrong (USA), Team RadioShack
        Theo Bos (NED), Cervélo TestTeam
        Fabian Cancellara (SUI), Team Saxo Bank
        Levi Leipheimer (USA), Team RadioShack
        Bret Lancaster (AUS), Cervélo TestTeam
        Stuart O’Grady (AUS), Team Saxo Bank
        Hayden Roulston (NZL), Team HTC Columbia

          Current National Champions (by country)

          Michael Rogers (AUS), Team Columbia-Highroad, Time Trial
          Tom Boonen (BEL), Quick Step, Road Race
          Matti Breschel (DEN), Team Saxo Bank, Road Race
          Lars Ytting Bak (DEN), Team HTC-Columbia, Time Trial
          Andy Schleck (LUX), Team Saxo Bank, Road Race
          Stef Clement (NED), Rabobank, Time Trial
          Jeremy Vennell (NZL), Bissell, Time Trial
          Janez Brajkovic (SLO), Team RadioShack, Time Trial
          Fabian Cancellara (SUI), Team Saxo Bank, Road Race
          George Hincapie (USA), BMC Racing Team, Road Race
          David Zabriskie (USA), Garmin-Transitions, Time Trial

            American Stage Race Champions

            Levi Leipheimer (Team RadioShack), 2007-2009 Amgen Tour of California
            David Zabriskie (Garmin-Transitions), 2009 Tour of Missouri
            George Hincapie (BMC Racing Team), 2007 Tour of Missouri
            Janez Brajkovic (Team RadioShack), 2007 Tour de Georgia
            Tom Danielson (Garmin-Transitions), 2005 Tour de Georgia
            Lance Armstrong (Team RadioShack), 2004 Tour de Georgia
            Chris Horner (Team RadioShack), 2003 Tour de Georgia

              The 2010 Amgen Tour of California roster includes the following 16 professional cycling teams. The seven ProTour teams compete regularly on the UCI’s ProTour race calendar, including the Grand Tours of Europe – Tour de France, Giro d’Italia and Vuelta a España.

              Pro Tour Teams

              1.) Garmin-Transitions (USA)
              Steven Cozza (USA)
              Thomas Danielson (USA)
              Ryder Hesjedal (CAN)
              Robbie Hunter (RSA)
              Thomas Peterson (USA)
              Peter Stetina (USA)
              Matthew Wilson (AUS)
              David Zabriskie (USA)

              2.) Liquigas-Doimo (ITA)
              Francesco Bellotti (ITA)
              Francesco Chicchi (ITA)
              Davide Cimolai (ITA)
              Manuel Quinziato (ITA)
              Peter Sagan (SVK)
              Ivan Santaromita (ITA)
              Brian Vandborg (DEN)
              Elia Viviani (ITA)

              3.) Quick Step (BEL)
              Carlos Barredo Llamazales (ESP)
              Tom Boonen (BEL
              ) Kurt Hovelynck (BEL)
              Kevin Hulsmans (BEL)
              Nikolas Maes (BEL)
              Andreas Stauff (GER)
              Jurgen Van De Walle (BEL)
              Maarten Wynants (BEL)

              4.) Rabobank (NED)
              Lars Boom (NED)
              Stef Clement (NED)
              Steven Kruijswijk (NED)
              Sebastian Langeveld (NED)
              Thomas Leezer (NED)
              Paul Martens (GER)
              Grischa Niermann (GER)
              Maarten Tjallingii (NED)

              5.) Team HTC-Columbia (USA)
              Lars Ytting Bak (DEN)
              Mark Cavendish (GBR)
              Bernhard Eisel (AUT)
              Tony Martin (GER)
              Mark Renshaw (AUS)
              Michael Rogers (AUS)
              Hayden Roulston (NZL)
              Tejay Van Garderen (USA)

              6.) Team RadioShack (USA)
              Lance Armstrong (USA)
              Janez Brajkovic (SLO)
              Christopher Horner (USA)
              Levi Leipheimer (USA)
              Jason McCartney (USA)
              Dmitriy Muravyev (KAZ)
              Yaroslav Popovych (UKR)
              José Luis Rubiera Vigil (ESP)

              7.) Team Saxo Bank (DEN)
              Matti Breschel (DEN)
              Fabian Cancellara (SUI)
              Jakob Fuglsang (DEN)
              Juan José Haedo (ARG)
              Stuart O’Grady (AUS)
              Andy Schleck (LUX)
              Andre Steensen (DEN)
              Jens Voigt (GER)

              Pro Continental Teams

              8.) BMC Racing Team (USA)
              Chad Beyer (USA)
              Marcus Burghart (GER)
              Chris Butler (USA)
              Mathias Frank (SUI)
              George Hincapie (USA)
              Alexander Kristoff (NOR)
              Jackson Stewart (USA)
              Simon Zahner (SUI)

              9.) Cervélo TestTeam (SUI)
              Theo Bos (NED)
              Joao Correia (POR)
              Philip Deignan (IRL)
              Heinrich Haussler (GER)
              Jeremy Hunt (GBR)
              Brett Lancaster (AUS)
              Oscar Pujol Munoz (ESP)
              Dominique Rollin (CAN)

              Continental Teams

              10.) Bissell (USA)
              Rob Britton (CAN)
              Daniel Holloway (USA)
              Andy Jacques-Maynes (USA)
              Ben Jacques-Maynes (USA)
              Peer Latham (NZL)
              Paul Mach (USA)
              Jeremy Vennell (NZL)
              Kyle Wamsley (USA)

              11.) Fly V Australia (AUS)
              Jonathan Cantwell (AUS)
              Jai Crawford (AUS)
              Benjamin Day (AUS)
              Charles Dionne (CAN)
              Aaron Kemps (AUS)
              Bernard Sulzberger (AUS)
              Jay Robert Thomson (RSA)
              Phil Zajicek (USA)

              12.) Jelly Belly Presented by Kenda (USA)
              Jonathan Chordoff (USA)
              William Dicknson (AUS)
              Michael Friedman (USA)
              Charles Bradley Huff (USA)
              Jeremy Powers (USA)
              Kiel Reijnen (USA)
              Will Routley (CAN)
              Bernard Van Ulden (USA)

              13.) Kelly Benefit Strategies (USA)
              Ryan Anderson (CAN)
              Jesse Anthony (USA)
              Dan Bowman (USA)
              Alex Candelario (USA)
              Reid Mumford (USA)
              Neil Shirley (USA)
              David Veilleux (CAN)
              Scott Zwizanski (USA)

              14.) SpiderTech Powered by Planet Energy (CAN)
              David Boily (CAN)
              Guillaume Boivin (CAN)
              Lucas Euser (USA)
              Martin Gilbert (CAN)
              Kevin Lacombe (CAN)
              Bruno Langlois (CAN)
              Francois Parisien (CAN)
              Andrew Randell (CAN)

              15.) Team Type 1 (USA)
              Davide Frattini (ITA)
              Ken Hanson (USA)
              Aldo Ino Ilesic (SLO)
              Christopher Jones (USA)
              Valery Kobzarenko (UKR)
              Javier Megias Leal (ESP)
              Thomas Rabou (NED)
              Scott Stewart (USA)

              16.) UnitedHealthcare Presented by Maxxis (USA)
              Christopher Baldwin (USA)
              Matthew Crane (USA)
              Marc De Maar (NED)
              Max Jenkins (USA)
              Karl Menzies (AUS)
              Andrew Pinfold (CAN)
              Rory Sutherland (AUS)
              Bradley White (USA)

              Stages for the 2010 Amgen Tour of California include:

              Stage 1: Sunday, May 16 – Nevada City to Sacramento
              Stage 2: Monday, May 17 – Davis to Santa Rosa
              Stage 3: Tuesday, May 18 – San Francisco to Santa Cruz
              Stage 4: Wednesday, May 19 – San Jose to Modesto
              Stage 5: Thursday, May 20 – Visalia to Bakersfield
              Stage 6: Friday, May 21 – Palmdale to Big Beak Lake
              Stage 7: Saturday, May 22 – Los Angeles Individual Time Trial
              Stage 8: Sunday, May 23 – Thousand Oaks/Westlake Village/Agoura Hills

                For more information about the Amgen Tour of California, please visit www.amgentourofcalifornia.com.

                About the Amgen Tour of California

                The largest cycling event in America, the 2010 Amgen Tour of California is a Tour de France-style cycling road race, presented by AEG, that challenges the world’s top professional cycling teams to compete along a demanding course through the state from May 16-23.

                About Amgen

                Amgen discovers, develops, manufactures and delivers innovative human therapeutics. A biotechnology pioneer since 1980, Amgen was one of the first companies to realize the new science’s promise by bringing safe and effective medicines from lab, to manufacturing plant, to patient. Amgen therapeutics have changed the practice of medicine, helping millions of people around the world in the fight against cancer, kidney disease, rheumatoid arthritis, and other serious illnesses. With a broad and deep pipeline of potential new medicines, Amgen remains committed to advancing science to dramatically improve people’s lives. To learn more about Amgen’s pioneering science and vital medicines, visit www.amgen.com. To learn more about Amgen’s Breakaway from Cancer initiative, visit www.breakawayfromcancer.com.

                About AEG

                AEG is one of the leading sports and entertainment presenters in the world. AEG, a wholly owned subsidiary of The Anschutz Company, owns or controls a collection of companies including facilities such as STAPLES Center, The Home Depot Center, Sprint Center, The O2, NOKIA Theatre L.A. LIVE and NOKIA Theatre Times Square; sports franchises including the Los Angeles Kings (NHL), two Major League Soccer franchises, two hockey franchises operated in Europe, management of privately held shares of the Los Angeles Lakers, the ING Bay to Breakers foot race and the Amgen Tour of California cycling road race; AEG LIVE, the organization’s live-entertainment division, is a collection of companies dedicated to all aspects of live contemporary music performance, touring and a variety of programming and multi-media production. For more information, visit AEG today at www.aegworldwide.com.

                Media Contacts:

                AEG
                Michael Roth
                213-742-7155
                mroth@aeg-la.com

                GolinHarris
                Nicole Okoneski
                213-438-8793
                nokoneski@golinharris.com