Team Sky head into February with a pair of strong squads for Dubai Tour and the Tour of Qatar.
The team will be making their debut in Dubai (February 4-7) at a race which, despite only entering its second edition, has already solidified its place on the cycling calendar.
With flat stages making Dubai very much the domain of the sprinters, Team Sky are sending a squad of fast-finishers to bolster their early-season form and get amongst the bunch kicks
Ben Swift, Elia Viviani and Andy Fenn all know what it feels like to win a bunch sprint, while in Bernhard Eisel and Geraint Thomas the team has two of the best lead-out men in the business. Like Thomas, Salvatore Puccio returns to action following his stint at the Tour Down Under, while Ian Boswell and David Lopez round out the eight-man unit.
Team Sky will also be targeting more success at the Tour of Qatar (8-13 February) as they tackle the race for a sixth year in succession.
Cross-winds and hard racing make the event ideal for classics preparation and the race will see Bradley Wiggins get his 2015 campaign under way.
Luke Rowe, Ian Stannard and Chris Sutton give the line-up a distinct classics feel, as do Eisel and Fenn, who will arrive straight from Dubai. Few riders know more about the cross-winds than Christian Knees and Danny Pate, with the pair adding experience to a powerful team.
Dubai Tour line-up:
Ian Boswell, Bernhard Eisel, Andy Fenn, David Lopez, Salvatore Puccio, Ben Swift, Geraint Thomas, Elia Viviani
Tour of Qatar line-up:
Bernhard Eisel, Andy Fenn, Christian Knees, Danny Pate, Luke Rowe, Ian Stannard, Chris Sutton, Bradley Wiggins
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Sylvain BLANQUEFORT 39 years | today |
Leo Thiago Linos FERREIRA 38 years | today |
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