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Christian Vande Velde

Key Stats

Nationality: American
Born: May 22, 1976
Hometown: Lemont, Illinois
Residence: Girona, Spain
Height: 5-foot-11
Weight: 150 pounds
Strengths: Stage racing, a strong domestique who understands the importance of being a team player.
Turned Pro: 1998

Palmares

Career Highlights:

2009
1st, stage 4, Paris-Nice
3rd Stage 4 Vuelta al Pais Vasco

2008
5th overall, Tour de France
10th overall, Vuelta a Castilla y León
6th, stage 1, Vuelta a Castilla y León
9th, stage 5, Vuelta a Castilla y León

2007
2nd overall, Tour de Georgia
6th overall, Tour of California

2006
1st overall, Tour de Luxembourg
24th overall, Tour de France (3rd stage 14)
6th, stage 9, Tour de Suisse
9th overall, Tour of California

2005
1st, Mountains classification, Eneco Tour of Benelux
12th overall, Tour de Georgia

2002
1st, stage 1 (TTT), Volta a Catalunya

2001
4th overall, Three Days of De Panne
5th overall, Volta a la Comunitat Valenciana

1999
1st, Best young rider, Four days of Dunkirk
1st, World Cup, Individual Pursuit
1st overall, Redlands Classic

Biography

Vande Velde brings years of European road experience to Team Garmin-Chipotle. He turned pro in 1998, riding on U.S. Postal until 2003. He made a one-year jump to Liberty Seguros and left in 2005 for CSC where he rode for three years until moving to Garmin-Chipotle. 2008 saw Vande Velde reach a new level, wearing the Maglia Rosa in the Giro d'Italia and finishing 5th overall in the Tour de France. Vande Velde is a regular contributor to VeloNews.com.