The Arctic Race of Norway, one of the most scenic races of the year, is back for its 4th edition and racing will take place from 11th to 14th of August. The Arctic Race is a favoured event of Team Dimension Data for Qhubeka and it will be the 3rd time the African Team take part in the UCI 2.HC event.

Once again a very open route has been laid out which leaves options for multiple riders. A late climb on stage 1 could see a small group sprint and stage 2's punchy finish could see those with a sharp uphill kick flourish. Stage 3 is where the GC riders will hope to secure the overall general classification with the stage ending at the top of Korgfjellet, a 9km long climb that has an average gradient of 6.4%. The final stage will see the race come to an end with a circuit finish in Bodo, typically suited to the sprinters.

Team Dimension Data for Qhubeka's 6 rider team for the Arctic Race of Norway will be made up by Tyler Farrar, Matt Brammeier, Jay Thomson, Youcef Reguigui, Johann van Zyl and Songezo Jim. With no outright GC contender, being part of the daily action at the front of the race and stage victories will be the priority for the African Team.

Johann van Zyl said:

"This week I am super happy to finally return to racing at the Arctic Race of Norway. This will be my first race since crashing out of the last stage of the Giro d’Italia so you can just imagine how excited and motivated I am. I've raced this beautiful event before so I'm extremely happy to go back and hunt for opportunities. We are definitely not race favourites going into the race but we are going to have fun and take every possible opportunity to achieve a victory."