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TC Highroad announced its team roster for the Tour de France in one week's time. Sprinters Mark Cavendish and Matt Goss will have the biggest chance for a stage win, guided by lead-out rider Mark Renshaw. Tony Martin and Peter Velits are in with a shot for the overall classification. The backbone of the team is built by Lars Bak, Danny Pate and Tour debutant Tejay Van Garderen. Experienced Austrian Bernhard Eisel will be the captain on the road.
Team Manager Rolf Aldag hopes for a continued success story at the Tour. "As Cav [Mark Cavendish] says, for him it's about winning stages." The British rider wants to add to his amazing victory list of his three Tours de France so far. "He has won 15 Tour de France stages with us since 2008 and our goal is add to this impressive tally. We believe he is the fastest sprinter in the world and will get the support he's used to with Eisel and Renshaw. We continue a winning formula."
The choice for the captain on the road was obvious. "Eisel is our most experienced guy and our road captain," added Aldag. "He is essential to make crucial decisions in the race and to keep everyone relaxed and confident during the Tour with his leadership and spirit"
HTC took along time to decide on the nine riders for this year's Tour. "We have adapted our roster to the specific stages of the 2011 course, which include classic-like stages that may deeply challenge pure sprinters, but play to the strengths of Matt Goss. He has won eight races already this year including Milano-Sanremo and has proven he can win on difficult finishes. He deserves his first start in the Tour de France and will get his chances. He may also be a strong contender for the Green Jersey as the race progresses."
But not the entire team will pull for the sprinters, as the overall is also of interest to the management. "After winning Paris-Nice, Tony Martin is ready to be our GC contender. He has realistic hopes of a top ten position in GC and he'll get the support from the team. He already won on the individual time trial course in Grenoble [during the Critérium du Dauphiné this year. That will be a strong point for him and we will also rely on him to help power us in the pivotal team time trial on stage two."
Martin is young and has the future ahead of him. The same is true for Van Garderen. "Young Tejay Van Garderen will make his first Tour de France start and we're confident he's ready. Having survived the Vuelta last year in good form, he has shown that he is capable of handing a three-week race. He's had an extraordinary season and will be asked to help in the team time trial and to learn as much as he can. His future is in riding GC in Grand Tours, so he'll try to soak up as much experience as he can."
A team is nothing without its domestiques. "Finally we have Lars Bak and Danny Pate. Both of these riders are remarkable on their own, but the success we hope to attain will no doubt come from the endless work that these guys will do during the race. They have proven they can ride on the front forever and do it with a smile on their face. They are a vital part of the team and we are proud to race with them in the Tour De France," Aldag says.
The management had a hard job to do of cutting talented riders. "It took us quite a while to come to our final decisions on the team. We have such a strong, balanced roster overall and it's hard to leave riders like Albasini, Martin Velits, Sivtzov, Rasmussen and Grabsch home."
At least Grabsch wasn't too unhappy. He had said after his time trial victory at the German Championships that he would be happy to help out if needed. But his main goal is the World Championships time trial in Copenhagen this year, so the Vuelta will be the better preparation for him.
HTC Highroad team line-up for 2011 Tour de France:
Bernhard Eisel, Mark Cavendish, Matt Goss, Mark Renshaw, Tony Martin, Peter Velits, Lars Bak, Danny Pate and Tejay Van Garderen. Team Manager Rolf Aldag.
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