Rebellin the rebel

He may well have been born in Italy, live in Monaco and race in a German team, but Davide Rebellin, it is believed, has decided to race in this year's World Championships at Verona (on 3 October) for Argentina. Following his non-inclusion at Athens and last years World Championships at Hamilton, the rider claims he has made the decision "so as to avoid a third disillusion".

Despite completing a hat trick of Spring Classic victories (the Amstel, the Flèche-Wallonne and the Liège-Bastogne-Liège), Rebellin has yet again been overlooked by Italian selector Franco Ballerini, which has forced the 33-year old Geroslteiner rider to act.

"Rebellin called me two months back to ask whether it was possible for him to ride for another country. According to the rules, nothing forbids a change of nationality," Vittorio Adorni, President of the professional cycling board, declared.

While his decision has caused outrage in Italy, Rebellin is swift to justify himself. "I am going through a period of rich athletic form, and I want to make the most of it," he said. "At my age, there will probably be no more chances for me to don the rainbow jersey."

For his part, Italian selector has branded the decision as an "unacceptable".

"If everyone acted like him, we'd have to consider the World Championships as a mere farce, and admit that national teams are no longer respectable," thundered Ballerini.

And yet Rebellin's case is not without precedent. The Italian Max Sciandri rode for Great-Britain in the late 1990s, and the Russian Andreï Tchmil turned out for Belgium.