There was a buzz inside Mike's Bikes on Monday after reports circulated on the Internet that Lance Armstrong will come out of retirement, beginning with the 2009 Amgen Tour of California.

If the reports are true, Armstrong's comeback will start in Sacramento, the first stage for the Tour of California on Feb. 14.

"I think everyone will come out and watch this," said Brian Durling, general manager of Mike's Bikes on I Street. "I've never seen him race, so it will be pretty cool to see him in our hometown."

Citing unnamed sources, a prominent online cycling journal, VeloNews, reported on its Web site Monday that Armstrong will compete in five road races – the Tour of California, Paris-Nice, the Tour de Georgia, the Dauphine-Libere and the Tour de France.

VeloNews also reported that Armstrong, 36, a seven-time Tour de France champion, will race for no salary or bonuses and that the news will be confirmed in a Vanity Fair story later this month.

The report was tempered later Monday when his previous cycling team, Astana, denied the report that he would return with them.

Word of Armstrong's possible comeback spread quickly through local bike shops and to officials involved in the Tour of California, which, after Sacramento, heads to Davis, then Santa Rosa.

John McCasey, the Sacramento Sports Commission executive director, said he heard the reports but is waiting for confirmation to officially celebrate.

"Lance Armstrong is an American icon who transcends sport, and the possibility of him starting his comeback in Sacramento will increase interest in the race exponentially," McCasey said. "We thought we'd died and gone to heaven when we got the start of the race, but this would be incredible."

The Tour of California, whose officials declined to comment, has been a popular event in Sacramento during the previous two races. Sacramento served as the finish for the second stage of the race earlier this year and in 2007. However, those stops were held on weekday afternoons downtown, much to the displeasure of commuters.

The 2009 race start will be on a Saturday.

"This race is really taking off with its popularity and everyone's affinity toward it," McCasey said.

But it's still unclear if Armstrong will be a part of it.

VeloNews reported Armstrong would reunite with his former team manager Johan Bruyneel at Team Astana, but team officials denied those rumors.

"He is no part of our team," Astana team press officer Philippe Maertens told the Associated Press in an e-mail. "Team Astana has no plans with him."

Bruyneel, who was with Armstrong for all seven Tour de France wins from 1999-2005, told cyclingnews.com that he was unaware of any plans for an Armstrong comeback.

Maertens said rumors that Armstrong might come out of retirement had been circulating for a few weeks. "I cannot tell you more," Maertens said in the e-mail. "You better ask him."

Armstrong did not immediately respond to a text message or voice mails left by the AP. Mark Higgins, Armstrong's manager, did not respond to voice mails left by the AP.

The U.S. Anti-Doping Agency confirmed Armstrong is part of its out-of-competition testing pool and would be eligible for elite competition on Feb. 1, 2009, just in time for the Tour of California on Feb. 14.

USA Cycling said Armstrong has not applied for an international cycling license, but chief operating officer Sean Petty said Armstrong typically did not request such a license until January or February.

Armstrong, who overcame testicular cancer, has turned his competitive juices to running marathons since he retired from competitive cycling three years ago.

In August he finished second in the Leadville Trail 100, a lung-searing 100-mile mountain bike race through the Colorado Rockies.

"We know that Lance continued training hard after that mountain bike race," Maertens said in the e-mail. "He will do some cyclocross races as well in the USA."

Armstrong would be the lastest in a line of superstar athletes who could not stay retired, joining basketball's Michael Jordan, baseball's Roger Clemens and football's Brett Favre.

"It's obviously big news in the cycling world," Durling of Mike's Bikes said. "It's kind of like Brett Farve coming out of retirement for football. Everyone is excited about it."

Call The Bee's Melody Gutierrez, (916) 326-5521. The Associated Press contributed to this report.