Click here to view photos of last years race!

Click here to listen to podcasts about the Tour of Missouri

Tour de France Entrants Garmin-Chipotle and Liquigas Head List of Teams Added to Complete the Tour of Missouri Field
All teams now announced for September race

KANSAS CITY, Mo. (August 4, 2008) – Team Garmin-Chipotle of the United States and Team Liquigas of Italy---two top-performing entrants from the recently completed Tour de France---head a list of 13 teams that have been added for the Tour of Missouri world-class cycling event, September 8th – 14th, throughout the Show Me State.

“We will be back to win,” said Jonathan Vaughters, director of the Garmin-Chipotle team, which competed successfully in last year’s race with the team title, second overall finisher (Will Frischkorn), and stage winner (Danny Pate). “This is not an end-of-the-season fun race for us. This is a serious objective for our team. It’s a major event.” The team is expected to bring many riders from their Tour de France team.

HealthNet presented by MAXXIS, the top team on America’s pro circuit the past four years, along with up and coming teams BMC and Rock Racing, head the list of top U.S.-based squads added, along with Bissell, Colavita Sutter Home presented by Cooking Light, Jelly Belly, and Kelly Benefits Strategies-Medifast.

Mexico’s top professional team Tecos and Canada’s best squad Symmetrics, along with top European continental squads from Rabobank of the Netherlands and Sparkasse of Germany will participate. Rabobank is a top European-based club with both a Tour de France-level team and a younger development squad. Their development squad will be represented at Missouri.

All teams join the previously-announced participation of the world’s top team, Columbia, which will be led by the race’s defending-champion George Hincapie; and Toyota-United, which will be led by their star sprinter Ivan Dominguez, who won two stages at last year’s Tour of Missouri, and Dominque Rollin, who placed third overall last year.

“Athletes from around the world will come to race in Missouri,” said Lieutenant Governor Peter Kinder. “Last year, they experienced great weather, great crowds, and were welcomed by big and small cities alike. We look forward to playing host to them all again in September.”

“Without doubt, this is a deeper field than last year,” said Chris Aronhalt, managing partner of event organizers Medalist Sports. “We have three teams that played major roles at the Tour de France this year. We have all the top clubs in North America, and two top European continental teams that will surely be hungry. It is an interesting and talented mix.”

The seven-day race starts in St. Joseph and routes to Missouri’s largest town Kansas City with a relatively flat stage. Stage 2 will be a flat stage from Clinton to Springfield, which saw the decisive breakaway that launched Hincapie into the overall lead, which he kept the remainder of the race. Stage 3 is a decisive individual time trial around the mountains in the tourist mecca of Branson.

Stages 4, 5, and 6 all will be hilly and play a role in the overall outcome of the 623-mile race, according to race director Jim Birrell. Stage 4 will start in Lebanon and route to first-time host city Rolla in central Missouri. The stage, which is on September 11th, will route through Fort Leonard Wood Military Reservation to honor and acknowledge American troops. Stage 5 will go from the wine-country town of St. James to finish in Missouri’s capital of Jefferson City. Stage 6 starts in another wine-country town Hermann and routes to the historic river city of St. Charles. The race will culminate with a circuit race through the urban landscape of St. Louis and finish in front of City Hall in the shadows of the Gateway Arch, the back drop to last year’s finale.

“We have a unique blend of teams,” said Birrell. “The way the course is designed, it will take a very high-caliber athlete to win. We could see a few more lead changes than last year. With three top teams from the Tour de France and all the top teams in North America, there will be a lot of good wheels to follow.”

Organizers will announce the top riders later this month after the Olympic Games in Beijing. Numerous cyclists racing in Beijing will participate at the Tour of Missouri, a unique opportunity for spectators to see Olympic athletes immediately after an Olympic Games.

Last year’s event drew a police-estimated 365,000 spectators over six days and provided $26.2 million of direct and indirect economic benefit for the state and its host cities.

“This event proved, in only its first year, to be hugely successful for all involved, most importantly the great host communities of the Tour,” Lieutenant Governor Kinder, chair of the Tourism Commission of Missouri. “It was very successful for the state as a tourism vehicle as people from 73 countries caught part of the event via live webcasts and people from 21 states came into Missouri to see the event.”

Missouri Tourism is the presenting sponsor of the event. Top level sponsors include Anheuser-Busch (and their Michelob ULTRA brand), Drury Hotels, Emerson, Edward Jones, Missouri Farm Bureau, Missouri Wine and Grape Board, Cerner and Monsanto.


About the Tour of Missouri
After an exceptionally successful inaugural Tour of Missouri in 2007, the Show Me State will again welcome 120 of the world’s elite cyclists on a 623-mile point-to-point race, to be held September 8-14, 2008. The second edition of the Tour will include seven days of racing, from Kansas City to the Ozarks, over the Katy Trail, along Route 66 and the historic Missouri River, with a fantastic finish under the Gateway Arch in St. Louis. The race is sanctioned by the UCI and USA Cycling, the international and national governing bodies for cycling, respectively. It is ranked as a 2.1, second in ranking to only the Tour de Georgia and Amgen Tour of California in North American cycling. The event’s management group is Medalist Sports of Tyrone, Ga., the organizers of both the California and Georgia races. KOM Sports Marketing of Colorado Springs, Colo., is the event’s marketing agency.

For more information: www.tourofmissouri.com
Contacts:
Priscilla Visintine, 314.422.5646
Steve Brunner, 719.322.7022

Course Schedule
STAGE 1 / Monday, Sept. 8
St. Joseph to Kansas City, road race, with 3 finish circuits (90 mi / 144.81 km) / Start: 12:30 pm / Finish: 4:30 pm

STAGE 2 /Tuesday, September 9
Clinton to Springfield, road race, with 3 finish circuits (125 mi / 201.13 km) / Start: 11:00 am / Finish: 3:30 pm

STAGE 3 /Wednesday, September 10
Branson, individual time trial (18 mi / 28.6 km) / Start (first rider): 11:00 am / Finish: 2:00 pm

STAGE 4 /Thursday, September 11
Lebanon to Rolla, road race (105 mi / 168.95 km) / Start: 11:00 am / Finish: 3:15 pm

STAGE 5 / Friday, September 12
St. James to Jefferson City, road race, with 3 three circuits (100 mi / 160.9 km) / Start: 2:00 pm / Finish: 6:30 p.m.

STAGE 6 / Saturday, September 13
Hermann to St. Charles, road race (110 mi / 177 km) / Start: 12:30 pm / Finish: 4:15 pm

STAGE 7 / Sunday, September 14
St. Louis, circuit race, five laps (75 mi / 120.68 km) / Start: 2:00 pm / Finish 4:45 pm

Teams
o Columbia (USA)
o Liquigas (Italy)
o Rabobank (Netherlands)
o Garmin-Chipotle (USA)
o BMC (USA)
o Sparkasse (Germany)
o Tecos (Mexico)
o Symmetrics (Canada)
o HealthNet presented by MAXXIS (USA)
o Toyota-United (USA)
o Rock Racing (USA)
o Colovita Sutter Home presented by Cooking Light (USA)
o Bissell (USA)
o Kelly Benefit Strategies – Medifast (USA)
o Jelly Belly (USA)

Race to Missouri's Capital City Could Be Decisive Leg of Tour of Missouri

Evening finish features steep climb to the tape, adds spice to Stage 5
June 23, 2008 -- Jefferson City, MO A ‘deceivingly tougher’ Tour of Missouri will challenge the field of 120 world-class cyclists from 15 elite professional teams when they line up for the September 8 – 14 bicycle race, organizers announced today in St. Louis.

Stage 5 of the 2008 Tour culminates in Jefferson City around 6:30 p.m., Friday, September 12, after a 2 p.m. start in St. James. It is expected that this 108-mile road race will include one Mich ULTRA King of the Mountain point and two Edward Jones sprint lines in the towns of Bland and Vienna.

Jefferson City, a start city in the 2007 Tour of Missouri, will host a finish line for the first time this year. The evening finish in the capital city is expected to punish riders as they traverse the hilly streets of the city and complete Stage 5 with a 300 meter uphill climb. Described as “a never ending series of small hills,” this challenging stage is expected to produce significant time gaps between riders.

“Again, the great state of Missouri will play host to these world-class athletes from more than 20 countries this September,” said Lt. Governor Peter Kinder. “This year, we’ve made the course more challenging with a few new twists, including new terrain, new cities, homage to our Armed Forces on September 11th and another grand finale in St. Louis.”

Added Jim Birrell, one of the race organizers: “In response to what cyclists told us in surveys after last year’s race, we’ve made the Tour of Missouri route a bit more challenging this year with more hills. While Missouri doesn’t have any major mountains, it is a very hilly state. We have incorporated some of the big rollers within the state and come up with some very good courses. One of our course advisors was Kevin Livingston, originally from Missouri, who rode at a world-class level in Europe for almost a decade and was a great climber. He pointed us in the right direction.”

Jefferson City Stage 5 Finish
A Key Point of the Tour of Missouri

Last year’s inaugural race suited the cycling strengths of Toyota-United’s Ivan Dominguez, who won the opening stage in Kansas City and the closing stage in St. Louis. Dominguez has become a big fan of the Tour of Missouri despite the tougher terrain.

“As a sprinter, I like the flat terrain, so more hills are not necessarily so good for me,” said Dominguez, who won more races on the North American circuit than any racer. “But, there are three good stages for me in Kansas City, Springfield, and St. Louis, so, I am excited. And, it is always a challenge to go up against some of the top sprinters from the European pro teams. Last year’s race was very good for my Toyota-United teammates. There were a lot of spectators, especially for a new race. And, it’s always good to win. Of course, Kansas City and St. Louis are now my new favorite towns.”

The Tour of Missouri is supported principally by Missouri Department of Tourism, Edward Jones, Drury Hotels, Missouri Farm Bureau, Emerson, Anheuser-Bush, and the Missouri Wine and Grape Board. It is a free, public, international event that began in 2007 and attracted an estimated 370,000 spectators over six days. The event is managed and marketed by Medalist Sports, Inc., of Atlanta, Ga., and KOM Sports of Colorado Springs, CO., the leaders in cycling management and marketing in North America.

Stage 5 – Friday, September 12
St. James to Jefferson City / 108 miles / road race / Start: 2:00 p.m. – Est. finish: 6:30 p.m.
The quaint wine country town of St. James will play host for the first time to a stage of the Tour of Missouri. The 2 p.m. send-off is the latest start of this year’s tour. The trek to Missouri’s capital city will end in the early evening hours beneath the shadows of the State Capitol. Jefferson City was a start city in the 2007 race. Now in the limelight as a prime-time finish, the hilly streets of the capital city will undoubtedly put pain into riders’ leg as the last 300 meters of the race finish uphill, which could produce time gaps among leaders of the stage. The race will feature one Mich ULTRA KOM point, and Edward Jones sprint points in the towns of Bland and Vienna. “A never ending series of small hills,” is how one course director described this stage.

PROUDLY SPONSORED BY: