Team Novo Nordisk is ready to take on the Tour de Pologne when the race kicks off in the Polish capital of Warsaw on Tuesday, July 12th. The seven-day race serves as Team Novo Nordisk’s debut at a World Tour stage race.

“We raced Milan-San Remo for the second consecutive year earlier this season and I think we raced well. Now, we are also fresh off a 14th place finish overall at the Tour of California against many of the teams who will be at the Tour de Pologne,” Team Novo Nordisk Senior Vice President of Athletics Vassili Davidenko said. “We are heading into the race with full confidence in our riders.”

The 73rd edition of the Tour de Pologne features a variety of terrain ranging from long, undulating stages expected to end in bunch sprints, massive climbs through the Tatra Mountains and a grueling circuit around Bukowina Tatrzanska before ending with an individual time trial around the historic city of Krakow. All eighteen World Tour teams will line-up with an additional seven wild card squads totaling 25 teams and 200 riders taking the start.

“Our goal is to show that we are capable of racing a World Tour stage race. The race profile is wide open and definitely fits our team’s strengths,” Davidenko said. “We are going into the race with a day-by-day strategy and primary goal of securing top 10 finishes on stages. If we have a rider in GC-contention by the middle of the race, we will change our strategy accordingly to protect his position.”

Serving as one of Team Novo Nordisk’s sport directors during the race, Davidenko brings his own experiences from racing at the Tour de Pologne. The former Olympian won the opening stage of the Tour de Pologne in 1996 and wore the race leader’s jersey for three days before finishing seventh overall.

“It was an honor to win a stage and wear the yellow jersey at the Tour de Pologne. The race is very unique and has it all – fast sprints, mountains, hilly and flat stages, and an amazing crowd cheering for you,” Davidenko said. “I’ve raced in Poland on many occasions and I will use my experience to help prepare our team strategy for each stage.”

The Tour de Pologne starts on Tuesday, July 12th with a 135-km race beginning in Radzymin before finishing with eight technical laps around downtown Warsaw.

The team will announce its roster later.