Spain's Joseba Beloki is already basking in his new role as leader of the La Boulangere cycling team - which he hopes will provide him with the ammunition to challenge Lance Armstrong on the Tour de France.

Beloki, who has spent the past four years fighting Armstrong for cycling's main prize as the leader of the ONCE team, created general surprise by signing with the little-known French team on Thursday.

The 30-year-old Basque has claimed three podium finishes in the past four years on the world's biggest bike race, and, with five-time runner-up Jan Ullrich, was one of Armstrong's main rivals this year before a dramatic crash brought an end to his Tour on the road to Gap.

Beloki's two third-place finishes (2000, 2001), and his runner-up spot in 2002 are proof enough of his credentials - and although it remains to be seen how the team responds to his expectations, for the moment Beloki is happy to assume the role.

"You need a leader to win (the Tour), and I'll be the man filling that role," a smiling Beloki said at a team press conference Friday.

Beloki said his crash this year - which most people watching will remember because it sent Armstrong on an impromptu detour through a hayfield - is also in the past. While the Spaniard suffered fractures to his wrist, elbow and thigh bone in the crash, he said he’s had “no problems getting fit again.” Beloki will undergo a medical check Saturday, as will his brother Gorka, who also signed for the team.

"The word from the doctors is that he's made an incredible recovery,” says team manager Philippe Raimbaud.

All that's needed now for Beloki to have any chance of challenging for honors next season is the kind of support that Armstrong and Ullrich enjoy from their U.S. Postal and T-Mobile teams.

"What I've seen so far has confirmed my expectations. I think the team is united, and it feels like the kind of atmosphere that I've been used to," said the Spaniard.

Whether the likes of former French champion Didier Rous and the up-and-coming Sylvain Chavanel have what it takes to provide Beloki with the support needed to win the Tour remains to be seen.

But for Raimbaud - who seems to be looking towards the future rather than immediate successes - Beloki's signing is already a step in the right direction.

"We've got a young and talented team. We're very confident of being able to lead by example in 2005 and 2006," said Raimbaud. "But we needed something that would give us a bit more efficiency in the short term - a winner who is going to do the job for us without forcing us to change any of our fundamental values."

Beloki turned his back on ONCE and its mercurial team manager, Manolo Saiz, when the ONCE organisation pulled out of cycling. Saiz, the man who held Beloki in his arms after his fateful crash in this year's Tour, is now manager of the Liberty team.

But Beloki said he has lost none of the respect he held for the man who signed him from Festina in 1999.

"Manolo is the best team manager in the world, and I've got a lot of respect for him, but there were a few problems with sponsors," explained Beloki, who turned down offers from Italian outfits Stayer and Saeco to sign with La Boulangere.

All that remains now is for Beloki to learn French. Up until now, the La Boulangere team (formerly Bonjour) was 100 percent French. –Copyright 2003/AFP