In it's long history the TD Bank Philadelphia Championship has served an integral role in developing American cycling into what it is today. And that tradition continues as smaller, development-focused teams are given the chance to race on a big stage with some of the top teams and riders in the world.

At the forefront of this is the Chipotle Development team, which is the 'baseball farm team' equivalent for the ProTour level Garmin-Cervélo squad based in Boulder, Colo. Riders on this team range in age from 18-22 and are top prospects to be the next generation of cycling stars. American Alex Howes is one of the team leaders who had a chance to race with the pro squad at the end of last year as a 'stagere,' a French word meaning 'trainee.' A graduate of this program is Peter Stetina who just completed his first Grand Tour last week when he finished the Giro d'Italia in 21st place.

The typical U.S. domestic team has a mix of young and old, due in large part to rules by the sport's governing body that stipulates a certain percentage of continental teams be younger riders. As such a team like Bissel Pro Cycling will field a team of seasoned veterans as well as first-year pros. One of the younger talents is Eric Young who just graduated from college a few weeks ago and is already posting top results with a third-place at the Tour of Sommerville last week.

Some teams are designed with an older veteran used to mentor younger riders. The Danish National Team has the most-veteran elder in the race with 43 year-old Soren Petersen who was racing when some of the other veterans in the race were still junior racers. The Swedish-American Team CykelCity is another one of these teams with 31 year-old Jimmy Ronn teamed with riders ranging in age from 19-24, including 24 year old Michael Chauner, a local PA rider who will be competing in the race for the first time and the only American on the team. 

The women's race is even more of a developmental opportunity as the Liberty Classic is one of the only races of this caliber for women in North America. The chance for younger racers to compete alongside top riders from around the world is important for the growth of women's cycling. And the women out-do the men in terms of age range, with riders from 18 all the way up to 53!