So, will Lance?

[Johan A Marais]

Start his own team...

 

Armstrong's interest in owning a team may mean taking over the Astana squad for which he is racing (sans salary). According to a report by cyclingnews.com, "The team is under real threat of financial collapse and has a week to sort things out before the UCI withdraws the professional license." Astana, named for Kazakhstan's capital, is funded by a consortium of the country's industries. Apparently only one company has paid what it owes while several have said they cannot pay under any circumstances. It's known that rider salaries have been delayed.
 
The VP of Kazakhstan's cycling federation is quoted as saying, "Personally I am almost sure that it won't be possible to rescue the team. Even if the team will be at the start of Giro d'Italia under its own name, in the future Astana will still be disbanded because the debt will only snowball, and there's nowhere to get the money."