Rik Verbrugghe, sports manager for IAM Cycling, sets the tone ahead of the start of the second race on the 2016 World Tour calendar after announcing his line-up for the race.

“I saw some great things in Belgium this past weekend.  We have a team that can hold its own.  It is encouraging before Paris-Nice.  We must continue to build our momentum there.  We want to influence the race.  The selection will not come without pain.  Choosing between our riders who are in shape and those who are perhaps lacking a touch but in whom we have confidence was agonizing. I especially want the best riders at the start.”

“We have a sufficiently homogeneous and well balanced team to aim for a stage victory," commented Lionel Marie, who along with Eddy Seigneur will be the team’s directeur sportif for the event.  “There is no lack of strong competition, but with our rouleurs, sprinters and puncheurs, having a shot at a win is not just a figment of our imagination.”

The team's best chance could be the 6.1km prologue, with six corners, that has been traced over the streets of Conflans-Sainte-Honorine. It is a city of 35,000 inhabitants located about twenty kilometers northwest of Paris, bisected by the Seine. Matthias Brändle and Jérôme Coppel will be present for IAM Cycling and ready to play for a top spot.

Line-up

Matthias Brändle (Aut)

Jérôme Coppel (Fr)

Stefan Denifl (Aut)

Dries Devenyns (Bel)

Oliver Naesen (Bel)

Vicente Reynes (Esp)

Vegard Stake Laengen (Nor)

Jonas Van Genechten (Bel)