Danilo Hondo will be back in the German National Team outfit after being away from it for five years. Young riders like Dominik Klemme, who made the extended list, were cut from the final selection of nine riders. While Klemme was a bit disappointed, he still has the future ahead of him. For 36-year-old Hondo, it was a good opportunity to make a comeback before time is running out.
Sprinter Hondo has no ambitions for himself. "It could probably be a sprint decision from a bigger group. There, André will be the leader of course," Hondo said to Radsport News. Hondo has what some of the young guns are still lacking - experience. "I already did a few World Championships and have an eye for certain situations. I want to help lead the team. And of course I also want to do a good race."
Hondo knows the job of leading out very well, as he has often fulfilled this task in 2010 for his Lampre teammate Alessandro Petacchi. Hondo sees the Germans in a passive role. "We don't have to make the race hard. Rather, the Spaniards and the Italians will go all out in the last laps. Then we have to be attentive."
Hondo prepares the Worlds by riding the Vuelta a España, a choice that many others are also making. Unlike initial plans, he now wants to finish the Spanish Grand Tour. "The last week is doable from the stage profiles. And then it is still two weeks until the Worlds." He will be able to hone his leadout abilities - if Petacchi gets to ride the Vuelta. "In one stage or another I also want to test myself and try something," said Hondo. This could be Plan B if Petacchi is indeed prevented from racing in Spain.
Klemme disappointed, but has future to work with
A rider starting his first Grand Tour in the Vuelta is Saxo Bank rider Klemme. "I am already excited about it and hope to have some good days," he told Radsport News. "I am a little bit nervous ahead of my first Grand Tour. But somehow I will manage to get through it," Klemme said.
He would have loved to also make this race a preparation for the Worlds, but he was ultimately scratched from the long list of the German Cycling Federation. "Of course I am somewhat disappointed, but it is not a request program." The youngest rider is Tony Martin, age 25. "I think it is a little bit sad that there is no space at all for young riders in the Worlds team." Patrick Gretsch was also left home, in favor of Bert Grabsch.
Klemme is not giving up, though, hoping for a place in the team in 2011. "Next year I just have to try and ride in a way that they have no choice."
The German men's road team for the Worlds:
Marcus Burghardt (BMC Racing Team)
Bert Grabsch (HTC-Columbia)
André Greipel (HTC-Columbia)
Danilo Hondo (Lampre)
Christian Knees (Team Milram)
Sebastian Lang (Omega Pharma-Lotto)
Tony Martin (HTC-Columbia)
Marcel Sieberg (HTC-Columbia)
Fabian Wegmann (Team Milram)