Tyler Hamilton signs with — (fill in the blank)

(Update: Nov. 24, 2006 — Hamilton signs Tinkoff contract with curious statement)

American cyclist Tyler Hamilton confirms that he's signed with a cycling team for 2007, but won't say who it is.

The newly minted Euro cycling team Tinkoff Credit Systems earlier had made overtures to Hamilton. CyclingNews makes the possible connection, but Eurosport flat out reports it as a done deal.

Apparently Oleg Tinkoff, the team's sponsor, spilled the beans to Russian newspaper Sportcom.

I checked the TylerHamilton website, where he posted an interesting report on Sunday's Silverman Ironman Triathlon in Henderson, Nevada. Hamilton rode the 100-mile bicycling leg (finishing first) of the event on a team organized by Howard Jacobs (attorney for Hamilton and Floyd Landis).

The race was his first competition in a while. Hamilton's two-year suspension for blood doping ended Sept. 22. He wrote: “After two years, I think I still have the drive to race and win. You could say I still want to be here.”

Nothing about Tinkoff, although he closed by saying:

“As for everything else in my life, stay tuned…”