LOS ANGELES (AP) — Lance Armstrong will roll through Bakersfield next spring.

The seven-time Tour de France champion has confirmed he will compete in next year's Tour of California, which will include a stage in Bakersfield for the first time.

The 16 host cities for the May 16-23 road race were announced Thursday via a Twitter exchange between Armstrong, three-time Tour of California champion Levi Leipheimer, Dave Zabriskie and George Hincapie, and Gov. Arnold Schwarzenegger.

The four riders said they will compete in the fifth annual event, with Armstrong beginning the 2010 season with his newly formed Team RadioShack, which includes Leipheimer.

The 750-mile race will begin with a road stage for the first time from Nevada City, Calif., to Sacramento. It will pass through Davis, Santa Rosa, San Francisco, Santa Cruz, San Jose, Modesto, Visalia, Bakersfield, Pasadena, Big Bear Lake, Los Angeles and end in Thousand Oaks, home of title sponsor Amgen.

Stage 7 will be the individual time trial in downtown Los Angeles next to Staples Center.

The race was moved to May from February to avoid the rainy season.

"For the 2010 Amgen Tour of California we had the unique opportunity to move our race to a part of the year when we are almost guaranteed great weather in California," said Andrew Messick, president of AEG Sports. "This timing will help us to better showcase the beautiful features the state of California has to offer, while allowing us to travel to parts of the state that just weren't feasible in previous years."
___

On the Net: www.amgentourofcalifornia.com
___

Eyewitness News staff contributed to this report.