First week of February brings our team’s first outing of the season.
Quick-Step Alpha Vinyl is set to race for the first time in the team’s 20-year history in Saudi Arabia. After a one-year hiatus, the Saudi Tour is back and will take place on a star-shaped course showcasing AlUla, one of the oldest cities in the Arabian Peninsula. Historically located at the crossroads of the Silk Road and the Incense Route, AlUla is also home to Hegra, the first UNESCO Heritage Site in the country.
Consisting of five stages, the second edition of the Saudi Tour will see the sprinters fight for victory on more than one occasion, but despite the numerous opportunities, the general classification will be out of reach for them, and that’s because of the presence of the difficult Harrat Uwayrid climb (4km and a 22% maximum gradient), which will make its appearance inside the final ten kilometers of stage 4.
Andrea Bagioli, Omloop Het Nieuwsblad champion Davide Ballerini, “El Tractor” Tim Declercq, Iljo Keisse – who is starting his final pro season – Vuelta a España stage winner Florian Sénéchal, Jannik Steimle and Bert Van Lerberghe will make up our squad for the five-day race, which starts next week.
“It’s the team’s first race of the year and the first time we are riding this stage. We go there with a strong team, capable of getting good results. Davide is capable of being up there in the bunch sprints, while Andrea can do something on the hard penultimate stage. We won’t hide the fact that we’d like to kick off our season with a victory, but it remains to be seen how things will unfold”, said Quick-Step Alpha Vinyl sports director Wilfried Peeters.
Photo credit: ©Wout Beel
Bert Van Lerberghe