CyclingQuotes.com Chavanel leads IAM on the Belgian cobbles

Sylvain Chavenel has been signed by IAM to be one of the leaders of the team in the cobbled classics and he will get the chance to show his worth later today when he lines up at the Dwars door Vlaanderen. The team will use the semi-classic to prepare for the later monuments and have included Tirreno stage winner Matteo Pelucchi in the line-up to cover their bases in case of a sprint finish.

Now that Milan – San Remo, the first monument of the season, has been completed in conditions which were difficult for much of the peloton, many of the same riders will now turn their attentions to Belgium to begin a block of Flemish and French classics. IAM Cycling is determined to shine this week at the three races on its program.

Eddy Seigneur, the directeur sportif for the Swiss Pro Continental team, confirmed and explained his plans.

“We come to Flanders with a conquering spirit and with real ambitions. There are three good races to win and they will give us perfect opportunities to test the riders before the big monuments which we will be facing in 15 days’ time.

"We would like to narrow down the squad for our Tour of Flanders and Paris-Roubaix teams. Young riders will have the opportunity to shine alongside Kluge and Hinault, both of whom did a great job working for Sylvain Chavanel at Milan-San Remo.”

Again deprived of the services of Vicente Reynes (prostatitis), IAM Cycling will begin its team offensive in Dwars door Vlaanderen. Eddy Seigneur expects a good result from his riders.

"A guy like Matteo Pelucchi could be our man in case of a sprint. But he’ll have to be able to get over the 15 climbs along the way to be there in with a chance at the finish.

"This is a complicated race where you have to be strong to finish off the job. There are also other interesting alternatives, and everything of course depends on the scenario of the race and how it unfolds.”

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