Name : Linus Gerdemann
Country : Germany
Date of Birth : 16 September, 1982
Weight : 70kg
Height : 1.82m
Turned Pro : 2005
Notable Performances
2005 Bayern-Rundfahrt - 3rd GC
2005 Tour de Suisse - 51st GC (1st in stage 7)
2005 4 Days of Dunkirk - 4th GC (Held leaders jersey after stage 3)
2006 Volta a Catalunya - 6th GC
2006 GP Kanton Aargau - 7th GC
2006 Sachsen Tour - 46th (2nd in stage 5)
2006 Tour de Suisse - 7th GC (2nd in stage 3)
2007 Ruta del Sol - 9th GC
2007 Milano - Torino - 9th GC
2007 Tour de France - 36th GC (1st in stage 7 - Held leaders jersey for 1 stage)
2007 Deutschland Tour - 14th GC (5th in Young Rider Class.)
About Linus
Linus Gerdemann hit most people's radars on Stage 7 of the 2007 Tour de France somewhere between Bourg-en-Bresse and Le Grand Bornand. It was on this stage that he attacked a break away group of 15 riders and then rode solo over the summit of the Col de la Colombière before diving down to his most memorable finish with a coveted yellow jersey, a white (Young Riders) jersey and combativity awards all waiting for him.
But others could see the potential in him long before this day. In fact, it was CSC rider Jens Voigt who tipped team manager Bjarne Riis off about the young 22 year old from Munster. Back then he had ridden for Team Winfix and Team AKUD Arnols Sicherheit before being invited by Riis to a Team CSC training camp and was quickly signed to a 2 year deal.
He began his career strongly with good finishes in the Bayern-Rundfaht and the 4 Days of Dunkirk in which he wore the leaders jersey for a stage. A stage win in the Tour de Suisse also signalled his ability.
Towards the end of the 2005 season he took the opportunity of signing with the T-Mobile Team and has had a number of top 10 finishes. He does his best work when the course goes into the mountains, as illustrated by his most famous win to date in the 2007 Tour de France. He can also Time Trial strongly when he has to which gives him the credentials to challenge in the bigger races on the calendar.
With these attributes I thought it would be an opportune time to throw a little spotlight on the young German rider who was dubbed the "next Jan Ullrich" by Bjarne Riis, a tag I'm sure he'd like to shake off and just concentrate on being the current Linus Gerdemann.
