A strong and confident squad, not lacking options, will take on the 50th edition of the Belgian event.
Coming off the back of an incredible Opening Weekend, Deceuninck – Quick-Step will go fully motivated to Le Samyn, a race won by our team on three occasions since 2009. The 198.4km-long course is stacked with cobblestone sectors and twelve climbs, the last of these featuring with one kilometer to go, thus giving the attackers a final chance to dispatch their opponents and claim a solo win in Dour.
Kasper Asgreen, Rémi Cavagna, Volta ao Algarve KOM winner Tim Declercq, Davide Martinelli, Maximiliano Richeze, Florian Sénéchal – 6th at Kuurne-Brussels-Kuurne – and Pieter Serry will be the seven Deceuninck – Quick-Step riders lining out on Tuesday morning in Quaregnon for the 50th edition of the Belgian one-day race.
“We expect a hectic race, with heavy winds and rain announced for tomorrow. We won’t have a sprinter in the team, but as you could see in Kuurne, we are more than capable of fighting for victory even in these conditions”, said sports director Rik Van Slycke. “The squad is very strong and we’ll rely on such riders as Declercq, who is in a great shape, Sénéchal and Serry, who were very strong last weekend, and even Asgreen, who is discovering the cobbles. The harder the race, the better it will be for us.”
Photo credit: ©Tim De Waele/ Getty Images
