On the back of a successful Giro d'Italia, Colombia is heading into a very busy week that will see the team in action on two fronts. Fabio Duarte leads a strong roster for the Tour de Slovenie while youngster Edward Diaz and Darwin Pantoja get their chance to see how far they can get in the mountainous Route du Sud.

After the encouraging displays at Skoda Tour de Luxembourg and GP Kanton Aargau, the Escarabajos of Team Colombia are set to face a busy weekend by two races: Tour de Slovénie (June 19th-22nd) and Route du Sud (June 20th-22nd).

The Slovenian race’s schedule consists of 4 stages: after the opening prologue, in the capital city of Ljubljana, the riders will face two medium-mountain stages and one uphill finish on Trije Kralji ascent. Sports Director Oscar Pellicioli will guide a 8-man line-up led by three riders who took part in the Giro a few weeks ago: Fabio Duarte, Jarlinson Pantano and Robinson Chalapud. In the flatter stages, Edwin Avilaand Jeffry Romero will try to show their skills in reduced sprint finishes, whilst Juan Esteban Arango, Duber Quintero and Juan Pablo Valencia will round out the team line-up.

“We head to Slovenia with a strong team, especially for the mountain stages, and we obviously want to pursue some good results”, Pellicioli said. “The uphill finish of the third stage is not extremely hard but it is suited to our climbers Duarte, Pantano and Chalapud. In addition, I expect good performances form Romero, especially in the final stage, that could favour either a sprinter or a finisseur”.

Meanwhile, another 7-man team will travel to Southern France, with Valerio Tebaldi and Oliverio Rincon calling the shots from the Team car at the Route du Sud, taking place in the Pyrenees region. The race features 3 stages, as it will be opened by two uphill finishes, one to Payolle, a village at the Col d’Aspin’s foot, and one to Van Louron, after climbing two mythical ascents, Col du Tourmalet and Col d’Aspin, while a sprint finish is expected at the end of stage 3 in Castres.

After giving some good signs in Switzerland, it will be time for youngsters Edward Diaz and Darwin Pantoja – the latter completely recovered from Gippingen’s crash – to test themselves again on hard terrain and – predictably – hot weather. Rodolfo Torres and Miguel Angel Rubiano are also expected to feature in the uphill drags, whilst veteran Leonardo Duque, Jonathan Paredes and Carlos Julian Quintero will provide their contribution on the flat sections.

“We expect a tough race, with some strong competition, but we are raring to go”, Tebaldi explained.“Diaz and Pantoja have a good condition, and will try to stay in contention, as will Torres and Rubiano, who make their first race after the Giro d’Italia”.
 

Tour de Slovénie (June 19th-22nd)
Line-up: Juan Esteban Arango, Edwin Avila, Robinson Chalapud, Fabio Duarte, Jarlinson Pantano, Duber Quintero, Jeffry Romero, Juan Pablo Valencia
 

Route du Sud (June 20th-22nd)
Line-up: Edward Diaz, Leonardo Duque, Darwin Pantoja, Jonathan Paredes, Carlos Julian Quintero, Miguel Angel Rubiano, Rodolfo Torres