Now for the Tour (From Free Press Series)

Now for the Tour

ABERGAVENNY'S Olympic cyclist Julian Winn has revealed a strong performance in Athens could earn him a ride in the Tour de France.

The former British Road Race champion is on cloud nine after last week's Olympic Games selection announcement.

Winn told the Free Press he was in Abergavenny when he received the phone call telling him he had made it into the British squad, and that he would be giving his all when the heat is on in Greece.

"Everyone is excited for me," buzzed Winn. "The Olympics capture everyone's imagination.

"When you are a cyclist the first two things people ask you is have you ridden in the Tour de France and have you been to the Olympics? Now I can say I've been to the one and maybe one day I'll have done both."

That all depends on whether Winn can catch the eye of one of Europe's big pro-teams. He's already ridden as a professional, winning the Grand Prix de Villers last year, but would need another stab at the highest level to have any chance of competing in the Tour de France.

"I would never say never," levelled Winn, the first Welsh cyclist to compete at the Games since Barcelona in 1992.

"A good performance at the Olympics could fuel a contract. You could come out of Athens and catch the eye of someone.

"I'm also hopping that I get selected for the British squad at the World Champ-ionships in Italy at the end of the year.

"I feel pretty complete as an athlete now and satisfied with what I have achieved, but that doesn't mean I want to stop. You never know what is around the next corner."

The 31-year-old got his 2004 season of to a flyer by winning the Welsh Cyclo Cross Championship before finishing a credible fifth in the UAE International Emirates Post Tour, having won four of the seven stages.

A crash in the National Criterium series in April could have thrown Winn's preparations into a spin after he broke his finger, but the Welshman insists he was always quietly confident he had done enough to impress the selectors.

"I was never worried when I broke my finger. It was a disappointment, but I had met the criteria up until then.

I had won races and had the ranking points. Add on top of that my experience, and I felt quietly confident I had a chance, but I was never complacent," said Winn.

The Welsh cyclist has already competed at the Commonwealth Games, but the Olympics will pose his toughest challenge to date.

A medal would be a dream come true for Julian, and he admits that he has the capabilities to win one. Helping the team and its captain Roger Ham-mond, though, is all that is on his mind at this time.

"I am going there as a team member. Roger Hammond is the team leader, and first and foremost, I am at the services of him.

"When you are doing your job in cycling, you can end up winning. "When you're on that last lap, there is al-ways the possibility so you never say never.

"This is more about trying to get the team medals rather than me. "Roger has a proven track record and is a proven team leader. If he and the team wins medals then I am part of the team that has achieved that. It is a joint effort."