Rabobank directeur sportif Erik Dekker has unveiled what is a very strong lineup for the Tour of Beijing, but has said that he considers a newly-crowned world champion to be a big threat to his riders’ chances.
“We can win this tour, but Tony Martin’s (HTC-Highroad) presence makes it more difficult for us. And to me, the time trial looks the most important part of the race,” he warned.
In order to combat Martin’s strength against the clock and the advantage he could gain early on, he and the other management figures have put together an impressive team. They are the time trial specialists Lars Boom, Steve Clement, Jos Van Emden and Dennis van Winden, all of whom will seek to perform as well as possible in the opening time trial, plus the sprinter Theo Bos (pictured).
The team also includes the all rounder Paul Martens, as well as the strong Spaniards Juan Manuel Garate and Luis Leon Sanchez.
Garate is a high-mountain specialist who beat Tony Martin to win on Mont Ventoux during the 2009 Tour de France, while Sanchez has taken three stage wins in the same race and is a past winner of Paris-Nice.
“We expect a big event here,” he confirmed, making it clear that the team isn’t travelling just to fulfil its obligations of riding each WorldTour event. “It’s a very important race and there are lots of points still on offer at the end of the season. As a result we have come with a good team.
“I think we can do a very good job here, maybe even win the race.”
However aside from Martin’s strength against the clock and the desire of the HTC Highroad team to finish out with victory in its final stage race, he said that the timing of the event so soon after the worlds could also complicate things somewhat.
“There are some challenges. Last week was the world championships and no-one was specifically preparing for this race. Five out of our eight riders competed in Copenhagen and the other three had all been preparing to ride there as well.”
Still, providing they all recover from jet lag prior to Wednesday’s start of the race, the quality of the team should see them to the fore when the battles rage. Even if Martin opens a big lead in the 11.3 kilometre time trial, their strength in depth will mean he has a big battle on his hands.
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Tour of Beijing (WorldTour):
Stage one, Wednesday 5th October: Individual Time Trial, Bird’s Nest – Water Cube via Olympic Park circuit, 11.3km
Stage two, Thursday 6th October: Bird’s Nest to Men Tou Gou via North Gate of Summer Palace, 137km
Stage three, Friday 7th October: Men Tou Gou to Yong Ning Town via Thirteen Ming Tombs Reservoir, 162km
Stage four, Saturday 8th October: Yan Qing Gui Chuan Square to Shunyi Olympic Rowing and Canoeing Centre via Mutianyu Great Wall, 189.5km
Stage five, Sunday 9th October: Tian An Men Square to Bird’s Nest Olympic Stadium, 118km