Riyadh (Arabia Saudita), 23 Gennaio 2020
1° Edizione del “Saudi Tour” – 5 tappe dal 4 all’8 Febbraio
Bouhanni e Cavendish tornano a pedalare al Saudi Tour che inizierà il 4 febbraio con partenza della prima tappa di fronte alla sede Saudita del Comitato Olimpico.
Saranno 5 le tappe di questa nuova corsa organizzata per mettere in risalto le prerogative sportive di questa Nazione.
Cinque tappe che si svolgeranno tra i grattacieli e il deserto, con tanta pianura ma anche tappe con salite insomma c’è spazio per tutti dai velocisti ai passisti e gli scalatori.
Oltre a Bouhanni e Cavendish saranno della partita molti altri corridori tra i quali Niki Terpstra, Enrico Gasparotto, Ruy Costa e Angelo Madrazo.
Qui sotto il comunicato stampa in inglese e l’elenco delle squadre invitate con i migliori corridori al via.
Tutte le tappe sono descritte nella loro caratteristica.
Servizio a cura di : Vito Bernardi
BOUHANNI AND CAVENDISH BACK TO WORK ON THE SAUDI TOUR <http://anws.co/bGHHc/{a2c1fb2f-006b-4c61-b3b8-b3b722858943}>
Key points:
Ø The 1st edition of the Saudi Tour, which will take place between 4th and 8th February, offers a programme combining desert scenery and skyscrapers, with five stages around the capital Riyadh.
Ø The alternation between flat profiles and more undulating stages promises for battles between sprinters, interspersed with exploits by punchers or even breakaway specialists.
Ø Among the specialists of the final straight, the Saudi Tour will be hosting the return to business of Mark Cavendish in his new colours of the Bahrein-McLaren team, whilst Nacer Bouhanni will be trying on his Arkea-Samsic jersey for the first time. As regards attacks from far out, a watchful eye will have to be kept on Niki Terpstra, Enrico Gasparotto, Rui Costa or also Angel Madrazo, all of whom will be eager to try their luck.
A new territory is ready to welcome the elite of cycling with the first edition of the Saudi Tour to be held from Tuesday, February 4th until Saturday, February 8th. Over five stages set between the skyscrapers of the capital Riyadh and the Arabian desert, the route aims to highlight the cultural history and the modernity of the Kingdom, outlined by its sporting facilities.
The 1st stage will start in front of the Saudi Arabian Olympic Committee headquarters, where the country’s sports federations are hosted. The riders will get a first taste of the desert while riding on leg-sapping roads leading to an uphill finish in Jaww.
The 2nd stage, the longest, will bring more spectacular views with a start next to Sadus Castle, a first loop on open roads that could lead to echelons and a finish on the modern Riyadh Turky Road.
The 3rd stage, from the King Saud University to Al Bujairi, may be the most challenging with a demanding circuit and a total of nine climbs. The riders will be on the edge again as they ride into the desert the next day and tackle a 5-km climb with a gradient around 5% in Qiddiya, where the 2020 Dakar also finishes. Eventually, the 5th stage will start in front of the Princess Nourah University and finish at the Masmak fort after travelling through Riyadh, in the shadow of the skyscrapers.
Each stage will feature several intermediate sprints, on the flat or atop climbs, and the participants will score points in a single classification rewarding the most aggressive rider of the Saudi Tour. These sprints may also influence the race for the overall victory with time bonuses of 3, 2 and 1 seconds up for grabs in the last intermediate sprint of the day, set inside the last 25 kilometres.
18 TEAMS: THE MAIN PARTICIPANTS
Bahrein Bahrain-McLaren: Cavendish (GB), Bauhaus (Ger)
Belgium Bingoal-Wallonie Bruxelles: Vanendert, Planckaert (Bel)
Circus-Wanty Gobert: Offredo (Fra)
Denmark Riwal Readynez Cycling Team: Havik (NL)
France Arkea-Samsic: Bouhanni (Fra), McLay (GB)
B&B Hotels-Vital Concept: Debusschere
(Bel) Nippo Delko One Provence: Navardauskas (Lit)
Total Direct Energie: Terpstra (NL), Bonifazio (Ita), Gaudin (Fra)
Germany Bike Aid: Carstensen (Ger)
Great Britain Ribble Weldtite Pro Cycling: Lampier (GB)
Kazakhstan Astana Pro Team: De Vreese (Bel)
Malaysia Terengganu Inc. TSG Cycling Team: Reguigui (Alg)
Russia Gazprom-RusVelo: Chernetskii (Rus)
South Africa NTT Pro Cycling: Gasparotto (Swi), Kreuziger (Cz), R.Janse van Rensburg (SAf)
Spain Burgos-BH: Madrazo (Spa)
Caja Rural-Seguros RGA: Malucelli (Ita)
United Arab Emirates UAE-Team Emirates: Costa (Por), Conti (Ita)
USA Rally Cycling: De Vos (Can)
More information about Saudi Tour on www.thesauditour.com/en <http://anws.co/bGHHd/{a2c1fb2f-006b-4c61-b3b8-b3b722858943}>
Press contact
Fabrice Tiano
ftiano@aso.fr <mailto:ftiano@aso.fr>