Astana plan return to competition

Andreas Kloeden is in the running to be Astana's new team leader

Team Astana will end their self-imposed exile from competitive cycling in the Grand Prix de Plouay on 2 September.

The team began a one-month break after talisman Alexandre Vinokourov and Andrej Kashechkin failed doping tests in the last six weeks.

Astana had already been banned from competing in the Tour of Spain, which begins in Vigo in September.

The Swiss-based team have not yet revealed which of their riders will compete in Plouay.

Even before Vinokourov and Kashechkin's misdemeanours, Astana rider Matthias Kessler tested positive for elevated levels of testosterone in April.

That was by no means the first time that the team courted controversy.

In its previous guise as Liberty Seguros, the team was strongly linked to the Operation Puerto scandal, and as a result was banned from the 2006 Tour de France.

Vinokourov and Kessler will not compete, as they were both sacked following their respective failed doping tests.