After a turbulent 2014 season, Carlos Betancur is eager to get his career back on track. Having decided to stay with Ag2r, the Colombian will make the Tour de France his big goal in 2015.

It has been a turbulent time for Carlos Betancur. The Colombian recently returned to Colombia after the Worlds in Ponferrada and the Tour of Beijing and received a warm welcome from the locals despite the fact that a virus and several disagreements with his team in the first part of the season left him unable to live up to the lofty promises of 2013 when he finished fifth in the Giro d'Italia and won the white jersey.

Those troubles are now behind him and while he prepares himself to become a father for the first time, he has made the Tour de France his big objective after his teammate Jean-Christophe Peraud finished a surprise second behind Vincenzo Nibali in 2014.

"I have good feelings after my problems and that makes me confident for 2015," the 25-year-old said in an interview with Federacion Colombiana de Ciclismo.

These signs of improvement, a clarification of his future in the team - "In the end, we had a good talk. They wanted to keep me and I think you need to appreciate a team that wants you to stay," he says about his decision to stay with Ag2r-La Mondiale - and his parenthood, have changed the prospects for the Colombian who expects to be a protagonist in the biggest races in 2015.

"With a Tour like next year's, the team and I have of course discussed the idea of doing an very good Tour de France and starting the season well in the classics," the Paris-Nice winner said. He added: "It will be the first and last Tour in the history with only 30km of time trialling (the total is 42km, ed.). We have to exploit it fully and seize this opportunity."

As for the birth of her first child, he said: "It is a great joy. Now I realize why my dad is so happy. To have someone to fight for will make things easier."

Betancur will stay in Medelin until December 10 and then he will travel to Europe and South America for the Tour de San Luis in Argentina.