The Team Type 1 - sanofi-aventis team is starting tomorrow's Presidential Cycling Tour of Turkey with an illustrious eight-man team. Aleksandr Efimkin, Rubens Bertogliati, and Laszlo Bodrogi are in the lineup for the big event that is held across two continents. The eight-stage race starts in Istanbul on Sunday, April 24, and reaches Alanya on May 1, after 1387 kilometers.
Team Type 1 is on a roll, having received an invite to the Tour de Suisse. Turkey offers the same quality racing amongst the best professional cycling teams in the world. "The Tour of Turkey is a prestigious and exciting event on our 2011 race calendar," said Team Type 1 - sanofi-aventis CEO and Founder Phil Southerland. "With its UCI 2.HC ranking it will mark the first time that Team Type 1 has started a race of such high caliber in Europe."
For Southerland there is always a little more than just the racing aspect to his cycling project. "We're extremely proud to bring our mission of hope for people with diabetes to Turkey, and we look forward to animating the race and standing on the podium."
The race will cross the Bosphorus Bridge from Europe into Asia for the first time in its 47 year history. The riders won't be noticing it, though, as it's the location of the second intermediate sprint of stage 1, a 114-kilometer trek that starts and finishes in Istanbul.
Stages five and six offer two category-one climbs, and overall contenders need to make sure not to have a bad day then. Stage five is also the longest section in the week-long race, covering 218 kilometers from Denizli to Fethiye.
Defending champion is Giovanni Visconti, but there will be a new winner for sure. In fact, none of the riders on the final 2010 podium are in attendance. Besides Visconti, runner-up Tejay van Garderen is missing as his HTC-Highroad team is not racing in Turkey this year. Third-placed David Moncoutié (Cofidis) opted for a different preparation to his big goal, the Tour de France.
André Greipel (Omega-Pharma Lotto) will try to repeat his sprint jersey win from 12 months ago, but will face strong opposition from Garmin-Cervélo's Tyler Farrar.
Team Type 1 will have one rider on the start list who suffers from diabetes, Dutchman Martijn Verschoor. The team shows that riders are capable to race at a professional level, carrying the message for other sufferers of the condition that a normal life is possible.
Team Type 1 - sanofi-aventis line up for the Presidential Tour of Turkey:
Rubens Bertogliati, Laszlo Bodrogi, Daniele Callegarin, Aleksandr Efimkin, Andrea Grendene, Valeriy Kobzarenko, Jure Kocjan, Martijn Verschoor
Stages:
Stage 1 – Istanbul – Istanbul: 24 April 2011, 114.1 km
Stage 2 – Kusadasi – Turgutreis: 25 April 2011, 178.0 km
Stage 3 – Bodrum – Marmaris: 26 April 2011, 166.0 km
Stage 4 – Marmaris – Pamukkale: 27 April 2011, 207.0 km
Stage 5 – Denizli – Fethiye: 28 April 2011, 218.6 km
Stage 6 – Fethiye – Finike: 29 April 2011, 184.0 km
Stage 7 – Tekirova – Manavgat: 30 April 2011, 138.0 km
Stage 8 – Side – Alanya: 1 May 2011, 157.8 km