Waits for kick-off with the new Luxembourg team
Jens Voigt has joined the Schleck brothers in the new Luxembourg team, all still waiting for details to be made public. The only thing that has emerged so far is that the new squad will be using Mercedes Benz team cars.
But according to Voigt, the wait will be over in the near future. “It probably happens in the next two weeks,” he told German press agency dpa. “They likely want to first secure all the signatures, the jerseys and such.”
Voigt has a one-year contract, but doesn’t exclude prolonging it. “I still have the fire,” the 39-year-old said. Unlike in previous years, he is set to run a preparation program centered in Europe. No travels to the Tour Down Under or the Tour of California are currently in the plan for 2011. He will re-start his training for the upcoming season in November.
Voigt finished in sixth place overall in both Paris-Nice and the Tour of California this year. He also won a stage in the Tour of Catalunya.
His aggressive racing style netted him stage wins, yellow jerseys and even the polka dot in several Tours de France. He also won the Critérium International five times, but did not participate in 2010, due to the race being moved to Corsica. He was thus unable to become the sole record holder of the race, sharing it with Emile Idée (1940, 1942, 1943, 1947, 1949) and Raymond Poulidor (1964, 1966, 1968, 1971, 1972). Voigt won 1999, 2004 and 2007 – 2009.