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[PCT20] Swisslion Cycling Team | Farewell
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| Nemolito |
Posted on 18-03-2021 10:35
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Classics Specialist
Posts: 3367
Joined: 20-04-2020
PCM$: 425.00
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Too bad you didn't score any daily results because of the AI, but decent positioning from Beltran did lead to a nice second place and some good corresponding pprd. I hope he keeps this form in his remaining races!
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| redordead |
Posted on 18-03-2021 17:46
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Grand Tour Specialist
Posts: 4881
Joined: 18-10-2017
PCM$: 200.00
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ivaneurope wrote:
Told you that Beltran will deliver - I am pretty sure you will stay in PCT, which will be unlikely for me though.
We'll see. He needs to keep repeating this sort of results until the end of the season, because all our other scoring options have been pretty much exhausted.
Also we haven't gotten any "lucky" breakaway results like Thurau in the same race for example 
Nemolito wrote:
Too bad you didn't score any daily results because of the AI, but decent positioning from Beltran did lead to a nice second place and some good corresponding pprd. I hope he keeps this form in his remaining races!
He has to keep this form up! Otherwise it's Goodnight Vienna
"I am a cyclist, I may not be the best, but that is what I strive to be. I may never get there, but I will never quit trying." - Tadej Pogačar
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| redordead |
Posted on 19-03-2021 08:15
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Grand Tour Specialist
Posts: 4881
Joined: 18-10-2017
PCM$: 200.00
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| Pos | Last | | Team | Total | RD | PpRD | Proj | | 1 | 1 |  | Farfetch Pro Cycling | 2994 | 106 | 28,25 | 4944 | | 2 | 2 |  | Repsol - Netflix | 2547 | 115 | 22,15 | 3876 | | 3 | 3 |  | Mapei | 2535 | 113 | 22,43 | 3925 | | 4 | 6 |  | Bakkafrost | 2423 | 116 | 20,89 | 3656 | | 5 | 18 |  | MOL | 2366 | 113 | 20,94 | 3665 | | 6 | 4 |  | Team Popo4Ever p/b Nemiroff | 2209 | 121 | 18,26 | 3196 | | 7 | 14 |  | Xero Racing | 2156 | 111 | 19,42 | 3399 | | 8 | 10 |  | Polar | 2106 | 109 | 19,32 | 3381 | | 9 | 8 |  | Duolingo | 1942 | 113 | 17,19 | 3008 | | 10 | 13 |  | Podium Ambition | 1904 | 126 | 15,11 | 2644 | | 11 | 11 |  | Berg Cycles | 1803 | 111 | 16,24 | 2842 | | 12 | 12 |  | Minions | 1781 | 102 | 17,46 | 3056 | | 13 | 20 |  | DK - SVA Zalgiris | 1777 | 113 | 15,73 | 2753 | | 14 | 15 |  | Desigual | 1748 | 99 | 17,66 | 3091 | | 15 | 5 |  | Valio - Viking Genetics | 1746 | 111 | 15,73 | 2753 | | 16 | 7 |  | Lierse SK - Pizza Ullo PCTeam | 1722 | 104 | 16,56 | 2898 | | 17 | 25 |  | Kraftwerk Man Machine | 1579 | 96 | 16,45 | 2879 | | 18 | 9 |  | Andorra Cycling Project | 1547 | 99 | 15,63 | 2735 | | 19 | 23 |  | Fablok - Chocolate Jacques | 1360 | 89 | 15,28 | 2674 | | 20 | 17 |  | Swisslion Cycling Team | 1311 | 114 | 11,5 | 2013 | | 21 | 16 |  | GCN Racing | 1274 | 118 | 10,8 | 1890 | | 22 | 22 |  | Adastra N Hell Energy Cycling | 1238 | 118 | 10,49 | 1836 | | 23 | 24 |  | Azteca - NBCSN | 1222 | 95 | 12,86 | 2251 | | 24 | 26 |  | Nordstrom - CA Technologies | 1221 | 110 | 11,1 | 1943 | | 25 | 21 |  | Aramco DP | 1093 | 106 | 10,31 | 1804 | | 26 | 19 |  | Campari Asahi Procycling | 861 | 98 | 8,79 | 1538 |
It took over 2 months, but the MGUCI announced the 3rd ranking update for the PCT division. We have kept scoring points at the same rate as we had in the last update and as we feared that led us down the wrong path. The team dropped from 17th to 20th, which is exactly where the previous update projected us at. That PpRD rate now sees us projected in 21st place, the last place that still grants PCT status next season. So how did the last period turn out as it did?
The period started in California, the GC results were solid, but the lack of breakaway success given the lineup sent there was underwhelming. Fortunes for the team and more directly sprinter Lahcen Saber changed in the Baltic Chain Tour. With two podium results the Morrocan had his best race in Swisslion colours, placing 2nd in GC. Tour of Pologne followed the theme of California, okay in GC, but no stage results again meant the scoring was not good enough. Same can be said of Corsica. Kris Boeckmans was the sprint favourite, but failed to deliver even a podium result. Cyprus turned out to be the exact opposite. Boeckmans managed two stage podiums, but the GC scoring was non existent, which again left a sour taste in the mouth.
If the recent disappointments weren't enough our highest paid rider Eddy Beltran scored only 2 pts in the GP Wallonie classic. Which was then followed up by Boeckmans placing only 17th in Veenendaal. A disastrous month of April was closed somewhat better in the Lisbon Classic, as Saber finished 5th. The month of May was not as busy as the previous months. Windhoek was a chance for veteran Hugues Mottin to finally show his worth, but one off day in a 2 day event meant the result was again a little underwhelming. Things didn't improve for us in Scandinavia as Beltran still was not performing close to his expected level. An 11th place finish in a top 5 sponsor goal race was quickly forgettable. Lahcen Saber showed again our mistake in thinking he is a competent cobbler, with a 21st place finish in Malopolski Wyscig, his best result on the cobbles this season.
The north of Europe finally proved a happy hunting ground for the team. Yevgeni Nepomnyachsniy scored a decent 16th in GC in the Tour of Norway. Boeckmans added some solid stage results in the sprints to make the race one of the few highlights of the year. Hanko Classic though didn't turn out as well. The combo of Saber and Boeckmans didn't work as well together as they can, only placing 8th and 17th. Another unmitigated disaster that saw us, the management scratching our heads, was the Tour of Japan. Low GC places with no stage results made for a terrible output. We have to hold our hands up and say we made a mistake going to Japan. Last race in the update was Grands Prix Cyclistes. It looked again to be a race going against us, but with a lot of determination and effort we made a success of it. Eddy Beltran finished 2nd on GC that added some much needed pts to our ranking.
We only have a handful appearances left between our two sprinters. With some luck they might reach across the 700 pts mark between both of them. Nepomnyachsniy's season is also close to over with only 3 races remaining. Our supporting riders seemingly can't score the pts necessary and there simply aren't races left on the calendar that would indicate any breakway successes. So all our hopes now lay with our main rider Eduard Alexander Beltran. He has 5 races remaining and we need him to make every single one of them count!
To survive this season, we need to show the determination and attitude we had in the last race!
 Kris Boeckmans | | Swisslion Cycling Team | 383 |  Eduard Alexander Beltran | | Swisslion Cycling Team | 344 |  Lahcen Saber | | Swisslion Cycling Team | 227 |  Yevgeni Nepomnyachsniy | | Swisslion Cycling Team | 165 |  Abolfazl Gilanipoor | | Swisslion Cycling Team | 93 |  Tyron Giogieri | | Swisslion Cycling Team | 27 |  Aberlardo Ablenado | | Swisslion Cycling Team | 25 |  Hugues Mottin | | Swisslion Cycling Team | 22 |  Miha Poljanec | | Swisslion Cycling Team | 12 |  Georgios Stavrakakis | | Swisslion Cycling Team | 6 | | Izidor Penko | | Swisslion Cycling Team | 3 | | Matic Groselj | | Swisslion Cycling Team | 3 |  Michael Christodoulos | | Swisslion Cycling Team | 1 |
Bostjan Mervar,
team representative and general manager of Swisslion Cycling Team
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| redordead |
Posted on 22-03-2021 08:00
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Grand Tour Specialist
Posts: 4881
Joined: 18-10-2017
PCM$: 200.00
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Geneva - In the days before the start of the Tour de Suisse, Swisslion Cycling Team in it's 3rd season in the pro peloton is having another difficult season in the ProContinental (PCT) division. In 2018 the team promoted at the first year of asking and then managed to survive the next year in the higher division. This year was supposed to be a year of strengthening and consolidation. But the season hasn't gone as planned...
Big money signings Lahcen Saber and Yevgeni Nepomnyachsniy have both underperformed. Even smaller outlays like the Pello Bilbao for Aberlardo Ablenado swap and the buy of Hugues Mottin have been complete mishits. Furthermore the star of the team from last year, Colombian Eduard Alexander Beltran has badly regressed in his results despite still being only 30 years old.
So with that we come to the team's finances. After accomplishing only 1/5 sponsor goals last year, looking likely to have already missed 3/5 goals this year and spending close to 2.5 million in transfer fees and other expenses. The rumours around the team is that management has lost the trust of the main sponsor, Swisslion Takovo. Instead of replacing the management, rumour has it that the sponsor would rather jump ship, than trying to salvage what might appear to be a shipwreck. In fact sources claim that Swisslion have always backed the team only on 1-year rolling deals. Meaning that they could walk away anytime they wanted to.
It is believed that with a sponsor that is contemplating leaving, general manager Bostjan Mervar is already on the search for potential new sponsors that could prevent the team from folding. It is a mystery what sponsor would want to take over a team that is uncertain in which division they will race next year. We tried getting in touch with Mervar, but have not gotten a response. The same with Swisslion.
One thing is certain, the team's future seems to be as unpredictable as their current results.
The article is quoted from sports newspaper EkipaSN |
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| ivaneurope |
Posted on 22-03-2021 08:51
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Classics Specialist
Posts: 2933
Joined: 09-05-2011
PCM$: 300.00
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I am sure you will find new backers. Your team is too good to collapse.
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| Ad Bot |
Posted on 22-11-2024 16:51
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| Nemolito |
Posted on 24-03-2021 06:58
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Classics Specialist
Posts: 3367
Joined: 20-04-2020
PCM$: 425.00
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Very interested to hear what Bostjan is looking for or has found already. I suppose the team prefers staying in the Balkan region when looking for their sponsor, but as long as Bostjan is so secretive it's hard to figure out what will happen. Good luck from Belgium, where Los Pollos team manager Nemolito (that's me) is also going through the same process as you know. Hopefully we both find our new sponsor soon, so we can focus on the racing part of our teams again  I'm sure you'll find a sponsor soon though, no Balkan sponsor can refuse the temptation of having Pogacar in their team 
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| redordead |
Posted on 25-03-2021 07:10
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Grand Tour Specialist
Posts: 4881
Joined: 18-10-2017
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ivaneurope wrote:
I am sure you will find new backers. Your team is too good to collapse.
We will see.
Nemolito wrote:
Very interested to hear what Bostjan is looking for or has found already. I suppose the team prefers staying in the Balkan region when looking for their sponsor, but as long as Bostjan is so secretive it's hard to figure out what will happen.
I think Bostjan will take anyone he can find
Nemolito wrote:
I'm sure you'll find a sponsor soon though, no Balkan sponsor can refuse the temptation of having Pogacar in their team
But do Pogacar or some other riders refuse to stay on the team? 
"I am a cyclist, I may not be the best, but that is what I strive to be. I may never get there, but I will never quit trying." - Tadej Pogačar
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| knockout |
Posted on 28-03-2021 10:03
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Grand Tour Champion
Posts: 7735
Joined: 21-12-2010
PCM$: 400.00
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You have some interesting transfer decisions ahead of you no matter how this season ends for you. I wonder whether Beltran will be on the way out as a means to free cap space for new stars or whether you'll try to continue the current direction.
But i cant see you going away from the Slovenian way as you have Pogacar already locked up...
A Big Thank You To All MG Reporters! |
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| redordead |
Posted on 29-03-2021 08:13
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Grand Tour Specialist
Posts: 4881
Joined: 18-10-2017
PCM$: 200.00
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knockout wrote:
You have some interesting transfer decisions ahead of you no matter how this season ends for you. I wonder whether Beltran will be on the way out as a means to free cap space for new stars or whether you'll try to continue the current direction.
But i cant see you going away from the Slovenian way as you have Pogacar already locked up...
Not matter where I end up, I don't see the 7th best PCT puncheur making much of a difference either way
Well Pogacar doesn't really fit the Evonik inspired team that focuses on classics Also the biggest reason I signed Pogacar was because a certain Slovenian team couldn't be bothered to go for him 
"I am a cyclist, I may not be the best, but that is what I strive to be. I may never get there, but I will never quit trying." - Tadej Pogačar
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| knockout |
Posted on 29-03-2021 09:24
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Grand Tour Champion
Posts: 7735
Joined: 21-12-2010
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A Big Thank You To All MG Reporters! |
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| redordead |
Posted on 30-03-2021 07:13
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Grand Tour Specialist
Posts: 4881
Joined: 18-10-2017
PCM$: 200.00
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 Tour de Suisse
| 08.06 - 16.06 | PT | Goals: Breakaway appearance(s) |
| Izidor Penko | Free Role | | Michael Christodoulos | Free Role |  | Dusan Rajovic | Free Role | | Goran Antonijevic | Free Role |  | Matija Mestric | Free Role |  | Ivan Siric | Free Role | | Matic Groselj | Free Role | | Georgios Stavrakakis | Free Role |
After Paris-Nice in the earlier part of the season. Swisslion attended probably the next biggest non-GT stage race, Tour de Suisse. Again it was a great opportunity for the younger riders to gain valuable experience at the highest cycling level. Stage 1 proved to be highlight of the race as Matija Mestric got 6'' through the intermediate sprints to wear the white jersey on the day 2 TTT. The youngsters finished the time-trial 18th as a team. Swisslion then continued to feature in breakaways with Matic Groselj on stages 4 and 7. Izidor Penko on stages 5 and 6, along with Ivan Siric. In total 5 breakaways over the 7 road race stages.
Matija Mestric sprinting for bonus seconds to claim the white jersey on stage 1
Race goals:
| Breakaway appearance(s) | Success | | 5 breakaways |
Race score: N/A
The race report is brought to you by Sijaj,
team media sponsor of Swisslion Cycling Team
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| redordead |
Posted on 01-04-2021 06:49
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Grand Tour Specialist
Posts: 4881
Joined: 18-10-2017
PCM$: 200.00
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| Tyron Giogieri | Co-Leader | | Yuriy Natarov | Domestique | | Abolfazl Gilanipoor | Co-Leader |  | Artur Sowinski | Stagiare | | Ivan Siric | Domestique |  | Kees Duyvesteyn | Stagiare | | Georgios Stavrakakis | Domestique | | Jeremy Bellicaud | Stagiare |
The race preview is brought to you by Sijaj,
team media sponsor of Swisslion Cycling Team
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| redordead |
Posted on 03-04-2021 19:23
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Grand Tour Specialist
Posts: 4881
Joined: 18-10-2017
PCM$: 200.00
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| Tyron Giogieri | Free Role | | Yuriy Natarov | Domestique | | Abolfazl Gilanipoor | Free Role | | Artur Sowinski | Stagiare | | Ivan Siric | Domestique | | Kees Duyvesteyn | Stagiare | | Georgios Stavrakakis | Domestique | | Jeremy Bellicaud | Stagiare |
The race preview is brought to you by Sijaj,
team media sponsor of Swisslion Cycling Team
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| redordead |
Posted on 04-04-2021 19:05
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Grand Tour Specialist
Posts: 4881
Joined: 18-10-2017
PCM$: 200.00
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| Lahcen Saber | Co-Leader | | Dusan Rajovic | Domestique | | Kris Boeckmans | Co-Leader | | Matija Mestric | Domestique |  | Gabriel Marin | Domestique | | Matic Groselj | Domestique | | Miha Poljanec | Domestique | | Michael Christodoulos | Domestique |
The race preview is brought to you by Sijaj,
team media sponsor of Swisslion Cycling Team
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| redordead |
Posted on 05-04-2021 16:16
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Grand Tour Specialist
Posts: 4881
Joined: 18-10-2017
PCM$: 200.00
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| Tyron Giogieri | Co-Leader | | Yuriy Natarov | Domestique | | Abolfazl Gilanipoor | Co-Leader | | Artur Sowinski | Stagiare | | Ivan Siric | Domestique | | Kees Duyvesteyn | Stagiare | | Georgios Stavrakakis | Domestique | | Jeremy Bellicaud | Stagiare |
Race goals:
| Top 15 | Failure | Tyron Giogieri | 19th | | Top 15 | Failure | Abolfazl Gilanipoor | 45th |
Race score: 2/10
The race report is brought to you by Sijaj,
team media sponsor of Swisslion Cycling Team
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| redordead |
Posted on 06-04-2021 10:22
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Grand Tour Specialist
Posts: 4881
Joined: 18-10-2017
PCM$: 200.00
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 Torshavn GP
| 01.07 | C1 | Goals: Top 5; Top 15 |
| Lahcen Saber | Co-Leader |  | Stepan Kurianov | Domestique | | Kris Boeckmans | Co-Leader | | Ivan Siric | Domestique | | Dusan Rajovic | Domestique | | Georgios Stavrakakis | Domestique | | Matic Groselj | Domestique | | Yuriy Natarov | Domestique |
The race preview is brought to you by Sijaj,
team media sponsor of Swisslion Cycling Team
Edited by redordead on 07-04-2021 17:22
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| redordead |
Posted on 07-04-2021 07:49
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Grand Tour Specialist
Posts: 4881
Joined: 18-10-2017
PCM$: 200.00
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| Tyron Giogieri | Free Role | | Yuriy Natarov | Domestique | | Abolfazl Gilanipoor | Free Role | | Artur Sowinski | Stagiare | | Ivan Siric | Domestique | | Kees Duyvesteyn | Stagiare | | Georgios Stavrakakis | Domestique | | Jeremy Bellicaud | Stagiare |
Race goals:
| Top 25 | Failure | Tyron Giogieri | 34th |
Race score: 5/10
The race report is brought to you by Sijaj,
team media sponsor of Swisslion Cycling Team
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| redordead |
Posted on 08-04-2021 10:05
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Grand Tour Specialist
Posts: 4881
Joined: 18-10-2017
PCM$: 200.00
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| Lahcen Saber | Co-Leader | | Dusan Rajovic | Domestique | | Kris Boeckmans | Co-Leader | | Matija Mestric | Domestique | | Gabriel Marin | Domestique | | Matic Groselj | Domestique | | Miha Poljanec | Domestique | | Michael Christodoulos | Domestique |
The last HC sprint classic for Swisslion. The first important race following the recent ranking update. There was a lot of pressure and nerves, as a lot was riding on this result. The team were active from the start in helping chase the breakaway. That effort continued throughout the day. Even as the break was caught and the race was heading into the final kilometres, Swisslion was present at the front. Marin and Saber lead their leader Kris Boeckmans into the last 3 km. Unfortunately they used up their energy a bit too quickly, so Boeckmans had to start his sprint with 1 km to go. He did his best to finish 5th, which was still a good result for us. Saber added a 12th place to boost the team's score. A successful race, but Swisslion will need a lot more of those to climb out of trouble.
Lahcen Saber leading out Kris Boeckmans on route to a 5th place finish
Race goals:
| Top 10 | Success | Kris Boeckmans | 5th | | Top 10 | Failure | Lahcen Saber | 12th |
Race score: 8/10
The race report is brought to you by Sijaj,
team media sponsor of Swisslion Cycling Team
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| redordead |
Posted on 09-04-2021 06:38
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Grand Tour Specialist
Posts: 4881
Joined: 18-10-2017
PCM$: 200.00
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Tour de France
| 03.07 - 23.07 | PTM | Goals: Have fun |
  
| Lahcen Saber | Sprinter | | Matija Mestric | Free Role | | Gabriel Marin | Leadout | | Matic Groselj | Free Role | | Miha Poljanec | Free Role | | Michael Christodoulos | Free Role | | Dusan Rajovic | Free Role | | Goran Antonijevic | Free Role |
The race preview is brought to you by Sijaj,
team media sponsor of Swisslion Cycling Team
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| quadsas |
Posted on 09-04-2021 08:13
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Small Tour Specialist
Posts: 2518
Joined: 18-01-2013
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Saber bout to win the green when it doesn't matter 
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Clasique Pico Basile 
Clasico San Cristobal 
Berlin ProRace 
