George HINCAPIE

Although of Colombian heritage, George Hincapié (usually spelled Hincapie) is an American professional road cyclist who has been known for his work as a domestique for Lance Armstrong's US Postal Service and Discovery teams, and was the only rider alongside Armstrong in all seven of his Tour de France victories. But Hincapie has also won numerous races of his own, based on his strong sprinting ability. He is a three-time US National Champion (1998, 2006, 2009), and won one major classic, the 2001 Gent-Wevelgem. He also has victories in the 2004 Three Days of De Panne and the 2005 Kuurne-Brussels-Kuurne. Hincapie has often focused on the Belgian one-day classics, winning at Gent-Wevelgem, with a second place finish at Paris-Roubaix in 2005 and a third at the 2006 Ronde van Vlaanderen. Despite some difficulties in climbing because of his size (191 cm [6-3]), which has hampered him in major tours, one of his greatest victories came in the 2005 Tour de France on the stage 15 climb to Pla d'Adet.