Former Gent-Wevelgem winner and Milano-Sanremo champion to spearhead US team’s classics team
HTC-Highroad will be led in Sunday’s Ronde van Vlaanderen by 2010 Gent-Wevelgem winner Bernhard Eisel and this year’s Milano-Sanremo winner Matt Goss. Both riders have been sick recently, affecting their preparation and performance at Sunday’s Gent-Wevelgem, although Eisel still managed to finish 7th on a nightmare day for the team; both hope to be 100% this coming weekend.
“They were both sick last week, but they've not done any racing so they have both had time to make a full recovery,” said HTC-Highroad sports director Brian Holm.
“Both of them are very clever racers,” he explained, they’re both good at getting in breakaways and reading the moves, rather than waiting for too long, and that's definitely going to be the best tactic in Flanders this year. And, of course, they’re both fast finishers.”
Goss has already proved this season that he is more than ‘just’ a sprinter after being able to stay with the favourites over the Cipressa and Poggio on the way to the finish of Milano-Sanremo.
¨Matt’s already beaten the biggest favourites this year at Sanremo,” explained Holm, “so we know he's in good shape, and Bernie’s always super motivated for the Classics.”
“He already checked out the 2011 Flanders route this week with Mark Cavendish, Gatis Smukulis and Martin Velits, even though it's not so different from last year. He'll be ready for Sunday.”
Should the race finish in a bunch sprint the team also has self-proclaimed “fastest man on two wheels” Mark Cavendish, as well as 22-year-old emerging German sprinter Jon Degenkolb.
HTC-Highroad for the Ronde van Vlaanderen:
Lars Bak, Mark Cavendish, John Degenkolb, Bernhard Eisel, Jan Ghyselinck, Matt Goss, Gatis Smukulis and Martin Velits.