MILLAR ON TRACK FOR TOUR OF BRITAIN

After a hectic first half of the season, David Millar heads the Garmin-Chipotle team in the Tour of Britain - and he's feeling optimistic about his chances.

?I?m actually in quite good shape physically and my morale?s good - especially considering how tired I was after the Tour,? Millar tells Cycling Weekly as he packed his suitcase on Friday evening after a week at altitude in the Pyrenees.

?I rode the Tour of Ireland, which went pretty well, and now I?ve done some high altitude training. It?s all part of a four and a half week plan culminating in the World Championships.?

In the Tour of Britain Millar leads a strong Garmin-Chipotle squad, which includes talented young Irishman Dan Martin and former Paris-Roubaix winner Magnus Backstedt.

?It?s always a very unpredictable race. It?s tough to tell what will happen and when because of the way the route is structured. It?s going to be very interesting.?

Millar will go on from the Tour of Britain to more altitude training at St. Moritz in Switzerland. He?s then targetting the time trial at the World Championships - for which he is ?seriously motivated?. Then he will be taking part in the men's road-race, the following Sunday.

?I know the course from when we rode there as part of a stage of the Giro in May - it?s basically the same.

Knowing the terrain will be useful, but only up to a point. The road-race always works out the same way - you wait and wait until the break goes on the final lap.?

Asked to comment about Bradley Wiggins signing for the Garmin team in 2009, Millar said he was ?absolutely delighted. I?ve been wanting this to happen for a long time now.

He and Jonathan [Vaughters - Garmin team boss] are both equally obsessed with what goes into the process of winning - all those ?one percent gains? that can make all the difference between failure and success. I think it?ll work out brilliantly?.

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EXTERNAL LINK

Tour of Britain official website: www.tourofbritain.co.uk.