Murad Al Masry (Abu Dhabi)
The Emirates Cycling Team begins its journey with great ambitions, in the Tour de France, which begins on Saturday and continues until next July 21. It is considered the oldest of the three major races in the world of bicycles, and the current edition bears the number 111 in 121 years.
Emirates Cycling is armed with a group of riders who combine experience in this type of very difficult races with rising talents, as part of a work strategy for many years to come.
The world’s attention is directed to Slovenian Tadi Pogacar, who leads the team and is presenting one of his best seasons ever, after he was crowned last month with the Tour of Italy title, and had previously achieved second place in the last edition of the Tour de France in particular.
Alongside Pogacar, there is British Adam Yates, a mountain stage specialist, who this year won the Tour of Oman. In his second season with the team, he gave a remarkable performance in this season’s Tour of Switzerland. Together with his Portuguese teammate Joao Almeida, they were able to dominate the last four stages, taking first and second place respectively, in four consecutive stages. Almeida has a good knowledge of major tours, having won the first stage of the Giro d’Italia last year.
The team includes the talented Spanish cyclist Joan Ayuso, for the first time during his young career in the Tour de France, and he had a strong season this year, winning the Tour of Istolia in the Basque Country.
The German Nils Polite, who is in his first season with Emirates Cycling, along with the Belgian Tim Wellens, who is in his second season with the team, form an organized force for the team to control and control the group, with the aim of thwarting any attacks or attempts to advance from competitors.
Frenchman Pavel Sivakov has enough experience, having participated in 8 Grand Tours during his career, and is heading to the Tour de France in a support role, especially in the long and gradual climbing disciplines.
The Spaniard, Marc Soler, is competing in the Tour de France professionally, and he has extensive experience, having appeared for the 13th time in this type of race.
Tadei Pogacar confirmed his full readiness to compete in the Tour de France, and said, “I am looking forward with great passion to the start, and I see that it is a special start for me, after my victory in the Italian Tour, especially since the Tour also starts in Italy as well. I feel that I have made great progress, and my level has become much better than before.” “I was expecting it, as I did intense training and tests of my strength on the bike.”
“Everyone expects me to win the Tour de France every year, and yet I haven’t won the last two editions,” he said, adding, “The Tour de France is always under a lot of pressure, it’s the biggest race in the world, and that’s why I’m maturing and learning from my experiences and mistakes through the race. I’m constantly improving mentally and physically, and I feel like I’m at a great level now.”
“Winning the Giro d’Italia was an incredible feeling, and one I will cherish for the rest of my life. It was an amazing win, one of my biggest wins so far, and I was so happy to be able to celebrate with the team that had been with me for three weeks, in addition to the training camps that preceded it. I always feel that my team is like a family, they mean a lot to me, so that moment with them was very special, it made me enjoy the wonderful experience in every way,” he added.
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