Team Dimension Data for Qhubeka will race the GP du canton d'Argovie which takes place on Thursday, 9 June in Gippingen, Switzerland.
The Swiss UCI 1.HC race is an event familiar to the African Team as it will be the 3rd time they participate in this testing 188km race. Last year Kristian Sbaragli had a solid ride in Gippingen and sprinted to a fine 5th place finish. This year Team Dimension Data for Qhubeka will once again look to play a significant role in the race.
Sbaragli will headline the team on Thursday together with Reinardt Janse van Rensburg with a podium result being the immediate goal for the African Team. Natnael Berhane, Merhawi Kudus, Jay Thomson, Adrien Niyonshuti, Matt Brammeier and Mekseb Debesay ensure that have a really strong and well-rounded team in Gippingen.
The race will be run over 10 laps of a 18km course. The main obstacle of the lap presents itself in the first 5km as there is a 2.5km climb with an ever changing gradient. The road then rolls gently downhill toward the finish-line. While last year may have ended in a bunch sprint, the climb which needs to be completed 10 times ensures that it is only the fast men with good climbing ability who will be in contention for the victory.
Sports director Jens Zemke said:
"We come year on year to Gippingen because it is a super nice race with a fantastic atmosphere and the level is very high. This race also suits our team well, last year Kristian Sbaragli was 5th and this has been our best result at the race so far. We are happy to be back at this wonderful race, it also comes just before the Tour de Suisse and so, it serves as a good final test to see where we are standing."
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