BBC SPORT | Other Sports | Cycling | Armstrong on course for fourth win

Lance Armstrong begins his quest for a fourth consecutive Tour de France title on Saturday with his team boss claiming he is in better shape to win than ever before.

The American US Postal Service team are enjoying a good year, and that is set to continue when the 89th running of the famous race gets underway.

Armstrong has already claimed the Midi Libre and the Dauphine Libere, while team-mate Roberto Heras proved he is a fine rider in his own right by winning the Tour of Catalunya.

US Postal ready to deliver

The return of 36-year-old Russian Viatcheslav Ekimov - the Olympic time trial champion - makes them a formidable formation.

"My impression is that Lance is in the same physical condition as last year," said team director Johan Bruyneel. "But the rest of the team is better than in the past.

"Roberto is back on the level that we expected him to reach. Chechu (Rubeira) will be as solid as always. We know that we can always count on him.

"Floyd (Landis) just finished second in the Dauphine and I have a feeling that we have not seen the best of him yet."

Armstrong's victory hopes have been helped by the absence of his German rival Jan Ullrich, winner in 1997, due to knee problems.

The 28-year-old has finished second on four occasions and has often appeared Armstrong's only serious contender.

Tour de France teams

Armstrong's former team-mate Tyler Hamilton, now riding for CSC Tiscali, recently recorded an impressive third-place finish in the Giro d'Italia.

Germany's Jan Ullrich
Jan Ullrich has been ruled out through injury

But he is unlikely to provide too much resistance to his former employer's dominance.

Spanish team Kelme will be as potent as ever with Oscar Sevilla and Colombian mountain man Santiago Botero leading their challenge.

Dario Frigo, tainted by his expulsion from last year's Giro for using banned drugs, is a talented rider with plenty to prove and Tacconi Sport have built a well-balanced team around him.

Britain's David Millar is a key player for Cofidis and he will be keen to impress, but Kazakh rider Andrei Kivilev is a likelier challenger from the French team.

But the biggest obstacles standing in Armstrong's way are likely to be avoiding illness and injury during the 3,272km race that takes in the Pyrenees and the Alps.

And when the race reaches Paris on 28 July, the 30-year-old Texan is likely to be wearing the yellow jersey once again.


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