As stated on Thursday evening, tastasol had some signings left. It was a very busy Friday for the whole team, but we managed to get the riders we wanted. After a relaxing weekend for the whole managment, the riders were presented Monday evening.
"We didn't have that much money left, so we went for some talents. They all have a big future and I think they are a perfect match for Risa - Ergon," tastasol stated.
"Nathan Haas signed early in the morning. He is a very good rider and he could have been a captain for us in the hills this season. Nathan asked if he could go on a loan to a PT-team, so he could learn from the best riders. Even though he is a brilliant rider at the moment we always want the best for our riders. Therefore we contacted the other Norwegian Team, Aker - MOT, and asked their manager if he had a free space for Nathan. Ember had a free space in the squad and he was thrilled to be able to help a fellow Norwegian. Ember also have Edvald Boasson Hagen in their squad, one of the best hill riders in the peloton. Nathan could learn a lot from Hagen and with that extra experience he will be ready to lead Risa - Ergon in 2014. We wish Nathan good luck in Aker - MOT, and we hope that ember will take good care of him," tastasol said about the young Australian.
"Since Nathan was going out, ember asked us if we wanted to take Kristian Dyrnes on a loan. Kristian is big talent, and since ember took Nathan on loan, we were happy to take the young Norwegian in our team for a season. Kristian is from the same county as Alexander Kristoff and myself so he will certainly enjoy a good spell in a familiar environment," the team manager said.
While Dyrnes is more of an allrounder, the next signing is more of a pure sprinter. "Sondre Holst Enger is maybe the biggest talent in Norway, and we're thrilled to see him in our team. Sondre is already a very strong sprinter and we believe that he can be a superstar in 3-4 years time," tastasol said about the big Norwegian talent.
"Holst Enger is a huge talent, tastasol. Is it even realistic that he will be riding for Risa - Ergon in the coming years?" Per Mandagsfjord asked.
"Sondre is a great rider. If we stay in the continental divison, it will certainly be hard to keep him. A team like Aker - MOT will of course be interested in signing him, but with Sondre on our team we believe that he can take us atleast to the PCT in 3-4 years," tastasol said.
"I heard you mentioned Aker - MOT, tastasol. It's rumoured that they want to buy Sondre already next season. Have you heard anything from ember?"Mandagsfjord asked.
"I've talked a lot with ember lately, because of the two loan deals. Holst Enger has been mentioned, but I've made it clear that he won't be cheap. As long as we don't get an overpriced offer, we will keep him. He can certainly be loaned to for example Aker - MOT to gain experience, but we have absolutely no intentions on selling Sondre," tastasol said.
"We have also signed Ken Sebastian Vassdål. Vassdål is a good TT'er and if he develops even further he will be a great addition to our team. Vassdål wasn't a planned signing, but since he was desperate to move home again, we were glad to have him in our squad," tastasol said.
"Our possibly last signing is Johan Fredrik Ziesler. Ziesler is a good allrounder and will be good in all terrains. We intented to loan him out, but only if a team can split or take his wage. If no teams are interested, Ziesler will be racing for Risa - Ergon in 2013," tastasol said.
Risa - Ergon will return with a report over the whole squad when we feel that we're done with the transfers.
I guess we got one of the best Norweigan talents in Galta, so it will be interesting to see him develop separately from the others.
Good luck btw, like your squad
"Good day and welcome to this press conference," tastasol says. "First of all I want to say sorry to the press. We have been very quiet. Over the past months we have been trying to find a pr-guy and we didn't managed to get someone for the lousy wage we could afford to pay him. You know, as a Continental Team we don't have the biggest budget," tastasol says and introduces the newest employee, Svein Sveiobua, to the audience.
"Hi, Svein. My name is Per Mandagsfjord and I'm the best cyclejourno from Norway," Mandagsfjord says with a huge grin over his face. "What can you say about this season so far?" he asks.
"Even though I haven't been around in the team so long, I have followed the team from the sideline some time and I believe we have had a decent season. We always want to win races when we start so there is always a room for improvement. CJ Sutton has been brilliant in most of his races, but we are looking for some even better sprinters for next year and probably also for the mountains. We lack the big star," Svein says.
"tastasol, do you have any specific riders in sight?" Mandagsfjord asks.
"We have some options, but I definitely don't want to discuss them with you. We like the squad we have now and we already see now that the youngsters are getting better. As Svein said, we want to improve our squad, but just have to wait and see who will be aviable. We will also get Nathan Haas back next year, so that will be like a new signing. We do have to let Kristian Dyrnes go, but that was the deal. He has been pure class this season and I can see why Aker-MOT signed him in the first place, " tastasol says.
"What can you say about the season, tastasol?" Mandagsfjord asks.
"We have performed in many races, but we have really struggled to performe in the most important races, such as Glava Tour and Rogaland GP, two races we really wanted a good performance from. We haven't managed to cope with the goals that we had before the season, but listen. We have a very young squad and all the boys are just happy to be a part of the team," tastasol says.
"Do you fear for your job? With your competence I bet I could do the job better than you," Mandagsfjord states with a proud voice.
"My job? Well, we have really struggled with our goals, but I can't really say that I'm thinking that I could be fired. I have a good relationship with the sponsors and the don't push me to get the results. They know that we will improve over the next years, because I do see myself as the head of Risa - Ergon in many years to come. Hopefully we can the season off with style and look ahead to a new year and new opportunities. That also means one year more for me, something that I will surely benefit from aswell," tastasol says and then go over to individual interviews.
Risa riders help Boasson Hagen to the rainbow jersey
After much racing across the entire world, the management has finally settled down in Norway again. The regular season for the entire team is now over.
"Hi, and welcome to this press conference. As said in the previous press conference, I'm Svein Sveiobua. With me today I have Christer Rake, Johan Fredrik Ziesler, Sondre Holst Enger, Chris Sutton, Brice Feillu and Michael Olsson," Svein said.
"Since the last press conference we held, we have raced all over the world. We're happy with our results this season, but the truth is that we raced stronger in the begining of the season. Still, we have managed to get some decent results in the last half of the season. For instance, Geelong Tour was a good race for us with a stage win, two stage podiums, third and nine in the GC and the U-25 competition. And the U-25 competition is an important keyword for the following season," Svein said.
"For our team I will say that the highlight of the season was the norwegian victory in the World Championship. We had both Christer Rake and Johan Fredrik Ziesler in the norwegian squad and they played a big part in the EBH's victory. For a norwegian team like us, this is just huge. We feel that we have showed for everyone in Norway that cycling is a huge sport, and the norwegian riders are just getting better and better. This should give us a boost among the sponsors," Svein said.
"And now, do we have any questions?" Svein asked.
"We'll start with Per Mandagsfjord," Svein said, after Mandagsfjord waved desperately in the crowd.
"Alright! Firstly, I'll ask a few questions to Sondre Holst Enger," he said.
"Sonde: You have been given 82 race days in the regular season. Are you happy with your own performance this season?" he asked.
"To be honest, I'm very happy with the opportunites. The boss has had a lot of faith in me, and even though I didn't get the results I hoped for, I'm very satisfied. I'm still young and hopefully I will improve a bit the next seasons," Sondre said.
"Edvald Boasson Hagen said to a local newspaper that you are the biggest norwegian talent today, and that he would love be your "teacher". What can you say about that?" Mandagsfjord wondered.
"I haven't heard that before, but if that's true, then I must say that I'm really flattered. For me, he is the best rider in the world. He dominated the Classics and now he is the World Champion. Of course it would be an honor to race with him, but I can't see myself leaving Risa - Ergon in the nearest future. This is where I belong. I know that ember and tastasol have a good relationship. For instance, we had Kristian Dyrnes with us this year on loan from Aker. He told me that the Aker-team was fantastic, but so is Risa! But it's not impossible that tastasol wants me to get some more experience later on - like Nathan Haas, " Sondre said.
"Alright, Sondre. Thank you. It is true that Nathan Haas is coming back the next season. Do you think your role will change because of that, Michael Olsson?" Mandagsfjord asked.
"Well, I have never raced with Nathan before, but I hope that he can add some more quality to the team. I feel that I did a good job this year, being consistent in the top, with the highlight being the GC victory in Tour de Bretagnes, but I do lack that little extra. Hopefully Nathan is that man," Michael said.
"You have been very consistent Michael, but Chris Sutton: Who has been the better this season?" Mandagsfjord asked.
"Wow. I think we both have good seasons to look back on. I feel that I have been able to gather points from most of the races I've raced, but to be fair. Our team is, at the moment, not built for the tough terrains. I think Michael has been outstanding this season. You know that you always can depend on him, cause he's an outstanding fighter. I think he and Brice make a brilliant duo. Brice has had his bit of misfortune this season and they haven't raced much together. But when they have, I see the potential of a brilliant cooperation. Hopefully my fellow countryman can add even more quality to our team going upwards," Sutton said.
"Finally; a question for you Sveiobua: Where do you see Risa - Ergon at the end of next season?" Mandagsfjord asked.
"Hmm. Since we didn't finish this season in perfect style, we missed quite clearly out on our goals. Still, we hope that we can make further improvements in the team. Our goal for the next season will probably be to secure promotion. We have a decent squad already and with a few improvements, we could challenge for that," Sveiobua said.
And that was also the end of the press conference. Who knows when Sveiobua will be ready with some more news?
Risa - Ergon announces goals for the upcoming season:
Risa - Ergon failed to achieve all of their five goals in the 2013 season. Hopefully the management has picked out better goals for the upcoming 2014 season.
"We picked our goals to suit our sponsors in 2013, and 2014 will be no exception. Unfortunately, we can't compete in any race in Norway this year. Last year we had the pleasure to ride in both the Tour of Norway and Rogaland GP and we even had a quite good race in the Tour of Norway. So when we can't race in Norway, we will focus the races in the Nordic region and, of course, Australia(and New Zealand). We still hope that the unknown hill classic in the C2 will be in Norway though," Svein Sveiobua said to the press.
"Our first goal is in the CT overall standing. Last year we ended in 16th place and even though it may be overambitious, we aim to get in the top 5 this season," Svein said.
"Our next goal is to achieve a top 5 result from the Great Ocean Road Classic. The Great Ocean Road Classic will be held in the Australia and is a flat race where we hope that for example Chris Sutton can impress his fellow Aussies," Svein said.
"The third goal will take place in a country were we actually don't have any riders at the moment, namely New Zealand. It's one of the countries that we are searching for riders, so we may see a kiwi participating for our team in this race. The race is the New Zealand Cycle Classic/Tour, where we aim to secure a top 5 result in Generel Classification. The race consists of five stages, where the last four stages are flat. The first is an 20 km long ITT, which will suit a rider like Damien Howson," Svein said.
"The fourth goal sends us back to Europe, more specifically Denmark. Here we will race in a flat classic. Himmerland Rundt is our only win goal and we just have to hope that our Danish riders, especially Jonas Aaen Jørgensen can grab a win like he did in the Swedish classic Boras Runt last season," Svein said.
"Our fifth and final goal is like the last season. A top 5 finish in the Herald Sun Tour. This was a C1 race last season and our best finisher was Anthony Giacoppo(19th place). Then there were five flat stages and a short fight against the clock. This seasons edition is relatively similar, but intestead of five flat stages there are now four flat stages and a hilly stage. If the hilly stage will create gaps, we hope that riders like Nathan Haas and Michael Olsson will play important roles," Svein said.
"Do you think you will achieve those goals, Sveiobua?" Per Mandagsfjord asked.
"I guess, we just have to wait and see. We need to improve in the transfer season and hopefully we can," Svein said.
Risa - Ergon Cycling Team goes into the transfer season with 18 riders in the squad. The Norwegian-Australian team consists of nine Norwegians, five Aussies, two Danes, one Swede and one rider from France. I, Per Mandagsfjord, can reveal that the management intents to go all Nordic and Oceanic.
That should mean that Brice Feillu is in a position where he may be forced out of the team. We in Sykkelproffen.net have found out that tastasol wants to replace the unlucky Frenchman with the Australian Trent Lowe, who is without a team before the season.
Many Australian is searching for a new team, amongst them sprinters like Cameron Meyer and Mitchell Docker. Svein Sveiobua gave a brief statement about their goals for the season earlier today: "We have some high-profile names on our shortlist, but we know that we probably aren't the only ones who have spotted them in the Free Agent-market. Therefore we have searched for riders who can improve our team in the coming years aswell as riders who will make an immediate impact on our team. That being said, we don't want to comment on any riders, either riders who are under contracts and those who are looking for a new team. What we can say is that we will try to renew the contracts with most of our riders, but we aren't 100 % sure at the moment".
Edited by tastasol on 03-03-2014 22:39
The squad for the 2014 season is almost clear and there have been some big changes in the Risa - Ergon squad. Early on in the transfers, Sebastian Lander, Vegard Breen and Sondre Holst Enger got offers from other teams. tastasol had hoped he could loan them out, but the trio wanted a transfer very badly. We didn't want to stand in their way, so we let them go. In return we got some good money(1.1m) and our first signing, Vegard Robinson Bugge.
Bugge is a decent climber and he may even turn out be our main climber. Vegard joined us from the other Norwegian team, Aker - MOT. Vegard will take a 60k wage.
Vegard was quickly joined by another Norwegian climber, Andreas Landa. Landa came from the La Vie Claire team. Although Andreas isn't the strongest in other terrains, he is strong in the mountains. Hopefully he and Bugge can work good together. Landa came for 100k and holds a wage at 75k.
Two talents followed Holst Enger, Lander and Breen, but this time only on loan. Both Damien Howson and Johan Fredrik Ziesler took the trip north to Molde, where they joined up with Sondre Holst Enger and Vegard Breen at Aker - MOT.
Next one out was the Australian sprinter Anthony Giacoppo. Anthony had a decent season in the Risa - Ergon jersey last year, with the stage win in his home race, Geelong Tour, as the highlight. The big Australian team, Oz Cycling Project, were so impressed that they decided to buy him for 150k.
With one sprinter out, the search for another started immediately. We found his "replacement" in a young Aussie, namely Michael Matthews. Mathews is set to be our clear leader in the sprints and hopefully he can deliver. He came for a big fee, 750k, but we think he's worth it. He holds a 65k wage.
That makes our squad look like this before the last pieces will fall together:
William Walker signed from Free Agency on a 65k wage. William is good in most terrain and should be a good asset to our team, primarly as a helper for his fellow Aussie Nathan Haas.
Most important stats: 72 Flat, 69 MO, 74 Hill, 71 TT, 71 Prl.
The next rider in was our first Kiwi, Joseph Cooper. Joseph is on a 50k wage and came for a 100k fee from Simply Red Bull. Cooper isn't very good when the terrain kick upwards, but he could turn out to be a good helper in the leadouts for Michael Matthews, Chris Sutton or Jonas Aaen Jørgensen.
Most important stats: 70 Flat, 70TT, 75 Sprint, 74 Acc, 70 Prl.
The team is still looking for new riders, and several riders have been contacted the last days. Brice Feillu is also on his way out and we have already recieved an offer for the French climber.
While Brice Feillu is on his way out, Risa - Ergon gave a last update on their transfer season. Since last, we have signed four riders. Unfortunately, we had to sign a "foreigner" this year as well. This time it was a cobbler, one of the best in the Continental Division, Kenny De Haes. The Belgium joined for a fee of 410k and will be a guarantor of many points in the cobbled classics. "We had Stake Laengen as our captain in the cobbled classics last year and with this improvement, I think we will be one of the strongest team on the cobbles this season," Svein Sveiobua said to the press.
Main stats: 75 COB, 73 Flat, 68 Hill, 77 Acceleration. Wage: 70k.
Next in was the Danish TT talent Rasmus Sterobo. Sterobo still has an excellent future, but will already this season be a valuable member of the team.
Main stats: 74 TT, 74 PRL. Wage: 50k
Next in was not the biggest signing, but a very important signing. We are over the moon to have the Norwegian champion(RR) in our team, even though it's only on loan(Aker - MOT). Bjørn Tore Hoem will be a decent member of our team, but he won't get much chances for himself. Though, we hope that he can did what he did in the Norwegian Championships, where he won from a breakaway.
Main stats: 72 MO, 68 Hill. Wage:50k, Risa - Ergon is not paying any wage.
Our last and final signing was another national champion. Johan Lindgren is the Swedish TT champion and we hope that he can deliver similar performances in the Risa - Ergon jersey.
Main stats: 72 Flat, 69 Hill, 75 TT, 75 PRL. Wage: 50k
Squad looks great, built upon the foundations from year 1 very well. Risa - Ergon must be an outstanding favourite to take one of the promotion spots from CT with good depth for hilly races and sprints, with some TT and cobbled coverage on top. Look forward to the battles ahead!
Like last year, the team performed good in the Bay Classics, where Nathan Haas and Michael Matthews both won one stage.
Our first race of the season will be the Clasico San Cristobal. It's a hilly race with a total of 24 teams on the start.
We will send this team:
Vegard Robinson Bugge
Michael Olsson
Andreas Landa
Christer Rake
Bjørn Tore Hoem
Calvin Watson
Hakon Frengstad Berger
Bugge will be our captain in his first race for Risa - Ergon. Especially Michael Olsson and Christer Rake should be a good support for Bugge.
We didn't get a wild card for the Down Under Classic this year, but we did get a spot in the Tour Down Under, as the only CT team.
Our team will be like this:
Nathan Haas
William Walker
Christopher Sutton
Bjørn Tore Hoem
Jonas Aaen Jørgensen
Øystein Stake Laengen
Calvin Watson
Unfortunately we couldn't bring Michael Matthews, but we hope that Nathan Haas can deliver on the hilly stages. Last season, CJ Sutton had some decent sprints and Michael Olsson held on for a 22nd place in the GC. We hope to do well here, since we don't race in Norway this season.
The reason why we didn't send Michael Matthews was that he is going to race in the New Zealand Cycle Classic/Tour. The race is a top 5 goal for the team, but starts with a 20 km TT. In case Johan Lindgren can't deliver, we hope that Matthews can get enough bonus seconds to get a top 5 spot.
We bring the following team:
Michael Matthews
Johan Lindgren
Rasmus Sterobo
Josep Cooper
Ken Sebastian Vassdål
Krister Hagen
Alexander Kristoff
Especially stage 2 and 3 should be good for "Bling".
Our last race in January is also Down Under. The Great Ocean Road Classic is held in Australia, and is a flat 201k flat race. Also this race is a top 5 goal for the team.
Our team for the Great Ocean Road Classic will be:
Michael Matthews
Christopher Sutton
Rasmus Sterobo
Josep Cooper
Christer Rake
Bjørn Tore Hoem
Alexander Kristoff
The team will obviously be set up around Michael Matthews and hopefully he can deliever in one of his home races.
Edited by tastasol on 08-04-2014 15:21
It can be more boring to read, so I'll probably do something about it later.
Indeed looking forward to the season, should be many fun battles 
