Andy Schleck is determined to challenge for Tour de France victory next year after an impressive race debut that secured him the white jersey for best young rider.

The 23-year-old from Luxembourg finished his first Tour in 12th position and will be a strong contender for overall victory next year.

"I am very happy with this white jersey but I hope it will change into yellow or pink," he said, referring to the overall leader's jerseys of the Tour de France and the Giro d'Italia.

Despite a bad 10th stage in the Pyrenees, where he lost about nine minutes, Schleck showed that winning the under-25 classification could just be a stepping stone to greater things.

With Tour winner Carlos Sastre's contract with the CSC team running out at the end of the year, Schleck could find himself as team leader.

Schleck joined VC Roubaix cycling club at the age of 19, under the guidance of Cyrille Guimard, a sports director who coached Lucien Van Impe, Bernard Hinault, Laurent Fignon, Greg LeMond, Charly Mottet, Marc Madiot, and even Lance Armstrong.

He was then spotted by CSC manager Bjarne Riis who signed him as a trainee in 2004 after seeing him win the Fleche du Sud.

Schleck burst into the professional limelight at last year's Giro, which he finished in second place behind Italy's Danilo Di Luca.

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