BMC racing team sporting manager Allan Peiper has outlined ambitious goals for the squad next season, saying that the intention is to step up markedly from the achievements this year.
The lineup for the team was unveiled yesterday at the new Velodrome Suisse, a project constructed by BMC Racing Team owner Andy Rihs close to the company’s headquarters in Grenchen, Switzerland.
There are twenty two riders staying on from last year’s squad were confirmed, along with six new signings for the season ahead.
The team’s Sporting Manager Allan Peiper has listed five impressive objectives for 2014. If the riders achieve all those, it will be a standout season.
“This team won 21 races and the world championship last year and we won thirty races this year in what we call an unsuccessful year,” he stated. “So next year, it would be great and it would be successful if we could have forty wins, win a one-day classic, a Grand Tour, the world championship team time trial and retain our place again in the top three of the UCI teams.”
The returning twenty two riders are former Tour winner Cadel Evans (Australia), last year’s world champion Philippe Gilbert (Belgium), plus two other former world champions, namely Alessandro Ballan (Italy) and the Norwegian Thor Hushovd.
Swiss national road race champion Michael Schär remains on board, as does the strong Belgian Greg Van Avermaet plus the American talents Tejay van Garderen and Taylor Phinney.
Their compatriots Brent Bookwalter and Larry Warbasse also stay put, along with Germans Marcus Burghardt and Dominik Nerz, the Swiss Martin Kohler, Danilo Wyss and Steve Morabito, Belgians Yannick Eijssen and Klaas Lodewyck, Italians Daniel Oss and Manuel Quinziato, the Briton Steve Cummings, Sebastian Lander of Denmark and Frenchman Amaël Moinard.
The six new riders are the talented American Peter Stetina, Colombian climbing talent Darwin Atapuma, Silvan Dillier (Switzerland), Ben Hermans (Belgium), Slovakian time trial champion Peter Velits and Rick Zabel of Germany, who appears to have inherited his father Erik Zabel’s sprinting genes.
BMC Racing Team President/General Manager Jim Ochowicz has said that he is pleased by what has been achieved thus far, but also that more is possible.
“We've won a Tour de France title, a world championship and many other races,” he said. “We have grown each year, we have developed each year, and we continue to grow and develop.
“I'm excited about 2014. We have lofty goals – we need those – but we have a very capable group of riders. All of us together, sport directors, riders and staff will meet those goals and show the peloton again what we are all about.”
“We're looking forward to a really strong season in 2014.”
2014 BMC Racing Team:
Darwin Atapuma (COL), Alessandro Ballan (ITA), Brent Bookwalter (USA), Marcus Burghardt (GER), Steve Cummings (GBR), Silvan Dillier (SUI), Yannick Eijssen (BEL), Cadel Evans (AUS), Philippe Gilbert, Ben Hermans (BEL), Thor Hushovd (NOR), Martin Kohler (SUI), Sebastian Lander (DEN), Klaas Lodewyck (BEL), Amaël Moinard (FRA), Steve Morabito (SUI), Dominik Nerz (GER), Daniel Oss (ITA), Taylor Phinney (USA), Manuel Quinziato (ITA), Michael Schär (SUI), Peter Stetina (USA), Greg Van Avermaet (BEL), Tejay van Garderen (USA), Peter Velits (SVK), Larry Warbasse (USA), Danilo Wyss (SUI), Rick Zabel (GER).
President/General Manager: Jim Ochowicz (USA)
Sponsor: Andy Rihs (SUI)
Sporting Manager: Allan Peiper (AUS)
Sport Directors: Fabio Baldato (ITA), Yvon Ledanois (FRA), Valerio Piva (ITA), Max Sciandri (ITA), Jackson Stewart (USA).