Tomorrow Team MTN-Qhubeka p/b Samsung will start the Tour of Denmark. The UCI 2.HC race is a 6 stage event run over the course of 5 days, with both a road and short individual time trial stage on the 7th of August.
The African team first took part in the Tour of Denmark last year and Gerald Ciolek sprinting to 2nd place on the 2nd stage was the highlight at the event. With a parcours rather similar to last year’s edition of the race, they head into Denmark's premier cycle race well prepared.
While none of the 5 road stages could be classified as mountainous, none could be termed as outright sprint stages either. Each stage has the makings of a mini classic, with short sharp climbs and narrow roads being the order of play. MTN-Qhubeka p/b Samsung will send a strong team which will contest for stage wins.
Edvald Boasson Hagen, Gerald Ciolek and Kristian Sbaragli are all riders who could feature high up in the stage rankings on a daily basis. Theo Bos resumes his return to racing after injury and Andy Stauff, Nic Dougall and Jaco Venter also all start in Denmark. The final rider to complete the roster is the South African champion, Jacques Janse van Rensburg.
"I am feeling pretty good after the Tour and I still have motivation for the last part of my season. My season started really early with me having really good shape already in January so it is becoming a bit long now. I'll be more of a support rider in Denmark as we have a really strong sprint squad at the race so I would like to give them all the support they will need," van Rensburg said.
"After a successful Tour de France by the team we would like to keep on going and we have a strong team here so we are hoping for some good results in this 5-day tour. I did the race last year and I remember there was a lot of action every day so I'm looking forward to being part of that," Venter said.
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