Grischa Niermann (Rabobank), the Rabobank domestique who has been on the squad since 1999, acknowledged that he will be in for a fight if he wants to maintain his almost-yearly position on the Rabobank Tour de France roster.
The German veteran has ridden nine Tours since 2000 for the Dutch squad, including the last three. Niermann still made the team in 2011 in spite of the signing of then two-time stage winner Luis Leon Sanchez. The Spaniard rewarded the team with his third career Tour de France stage win in his first season with Rabobank.
But in 2012 Niermann will also have to contend with the Australian sprinter Mark Renshaw, who the team signed to take the primary sprinting duties after the departure of Oscar Freire.
“The competition is great, and with the signing of Mark Renshaw, it will be more difficult for me to make the squad,” Niermann admitted to Radsport-News.com.
Along with Renshaw and Sanchez, Dutch rider Steven Kruijswijk is rumoured to have earned a spot on the Rabobank Tour roster. Kruijswijk finished ninth overall at the Giro d’Italia and third at the Tour de Suisse in 2011.
At their team presentation in Fuerteventura, Rabobank introduced four teams, with a stage that could barely hold them all. Along with the men’s professional squad, the women’s team, the Rabobank Continental team, and the off-road squads made for a busy evening.
However in spite of what may be a smaller presence on the team, Niermann maintained a positive outlook on the squad as a whole. “We are a total of 72 riders, now probably the biggest cycling team in the world,” he said.
The German was also complimentary of the continental squad, which he believes should foster the development of riders like the newly added Rick Zabel, son of sprinting icon Erik Zabel.
“They are in very good hands, because I think the Rabobank junior team is the best in the world, and the boys get enough time and opportunities to develop,” he stated.