We now can announce the full calendar for the first season part. Almost all of our race applications were accepted.
Tour Down Under
121
126
Tour of Oman
218
223
Omloop het Nieuwsblad
301
301
Clasica Almeria
302
302
Strade Bianche
308
308
Roma Maxima
309
309
Paris - Nice
309
316
Tirreno - Adriatico
312
318
Milan - San Remo
323
323
Volta a Catalunya
324
330
E3 Harelbeke
328
328
Gent - Wevelgem
330
330
GP Indurain
405
405
Besides the WT races the team will start in one CT stage race and 5 classics.
Second Part of Goals announced
After the full calendar was known, our sponsors decided on 3 further goals, besides the one that were already made public some time ago.
Easy
Stage Win
Tour of Oman
Medium
Top 3
Gent - Wevelgem
Hard
Top 3
Tirreno - Adriatico
Even if classified as easy a stage win at the Tour of Oman could turn out as a difficult task. In the beginning we wanted to take part in this race to give our not so strong stage racers that usually have to do a lot of domestique duties a chance. This will still be done, but on top of that we will send one of our second line sprinters to the race and hope for a surprise. Gent - Wevelgem will be ridden by Alexander Kristoff and a Top 3 is certainly achievable for him. While Kreuziger aims for the podium of Paris - Nice our second strong Stage racer Simon Spilak will go to Italy and try to get on the podium of Tirreno - Adriatico.
The team has gathered in Australia by now for the season opener. Kristoff is there, Milosevic too. I havn't been called up on the team, and instead focus on doing the hard work back in cold Europe.
The training camp has been decent enough. I feel good in my legs and fit for the upcoming challenges. Do I have any goals for this season part? Probably just to make the best of it. Help your captains, help the team, help yourself. Dreaming of win seems far fetched right now, but I know I need to get into breakaways.
Looking at Tour de Gabon result recently, Heimdal Hägg won an entire Tour by winning the first stage and holding on this lead. As a 19-year old lad. If he can do it, so can I.
Meanwhile, I'm wondering about my race schedule of the early season. Any news on that front?
"It’s a little bit scary when Contador attacks." - Tommy V
Already on the second day of racing for Katusha, the team could celebrate the first stage win of the season. After being closely beaten by newcomer Benedikt Weschenbach at the first day of racing in down under Kristoff made it better at the more challenging finish of the second stage.
Aleaxander Kristoff celebrating the first stage win of the season
The Norwegian was not only taking the stage but also the ocher leaders jersey. It will be hard job to keep that jersey till the end but his chances of maintaining in the top 10 are there and if not there is still Giampaolo Caruso who could step up as the leader in the hilly stages to come.
By now, Mr Vodkakov has told me my schedule. Mhm, I think I better write it down to remember it. I don't want to miss my plane or something like that, after all.
Basically, my racing this season part will be for two leaders, but mostly for Alexander Kristoff. Not very equally split but I'm already used to work to Kristoff and I'm proud to be a part of his squad. I'll be riding Omloop Het Nieuwsblad, Clasica Almeria, Milano-San Remo, E3 Harelbeke and Gent-Wevelgem, all for Kristoff. Each of them a One-Day Classic, yeah. Maybe I get some breakaway chances for myself too, especially in the flanders classics I've been very motivated last year. I want to top it even this year, whilst also helping my captain to some nice wins and results.
The other captain is Caruso. I'm excited to ride Strade Bianche, really hope I have a good legs on that particular day since I'd love to get into the breakaway. The day later, I get to race in Roma Maxima, again for Caruso.
I've been also told that Mr. Vodkakov plans with me for the big monuments and the Ardennes classics. I'm very proud of that decision, looks like I've made a good impression last year then, based on my three breakaways in that period. On top of that, I'm in talks about Vuelta a Espana, although I'll have to work on my stage racing for that. Otherwise, I'll probably be a serious let-down in week 3. Some stage racing in Pais Vasco may already help me prepare for racing in Spain. I hope there'll be enough race days remaining then for a return visit to Eneco Tour though.
"It’s a little bit scary when Contador attacks." - Tommy V
The season started with a great result for the team. Norwegian Alexander Kristoff took the GC of the Santos Tour Down Under. Winning a stage and finishing twice short as 2nd also made him win the points jersey. Not among the prerace top favourites Kristoff surprised everyone when just holding on to the top group on top of Willunga hill and thus taking over the leaders jersey from Davide Villella.
We weren't that successful in the other races in which we participated. At Strade Bianche Luis Ángel Maté just missed the top 10 out of a successful break and got 12th in the end. In Oman, where we currently have a squad trying to achieve our stage win goal, nobody managed to get into the top 10 so far with one stage to come.
Next race to come is the Omloop het Nieuwsblad in which we trust on Alexander Kristoff again.
The cold north has already often brought stories about demons or ghosts to us. Some even claim to have seen some of these creatures in the endless seemingly fields of ice and snow. So it is no surprise that the recent bad luck of the Russian cycling team Katusha is quickly connected with rumours about a evil demon putting a curse on the team. We even heard about that the devil himself has his fingers in play.
Considering the actual happenings, the team manager Yury Vodkakov has called in a press conference to talk about the recent bad luck and failures.
The Russian keeps emphasizing that his team is really strong and points out some of the recent successes, which are there, like Alexander Kristoff's GC win in Australia or his stage win in Paris - Nice.
Indeed the team isn't racing bad, it's just a massive amount of bad luck that came our way so far. It seems like a curse on the team. At the end of most races, we had nothing to cheer for, because almost in any race so far we found our captain finishing just short of a place giving much more ranking points, which are so important for us to stay much clear of the relegation positions.
The following statistic shows all our final results in stage and one day races:
X
X
X
X
X
X
X
X
X
X
X
X
X
X
X
X
X
X
1-3
4-7
8-10
11-13
14-17
18-20
21-23
24-27
28-30
It is obvious to see that we fail a lot to get into the next ten of riders. 6 times a rider of Katusha just fell short of the top 10, including two 11th places at two of the biggest races so far: Milano - San Remo and Tirreno - Adriatico. Compared to that we only have finished 4 times in the top 10 and none of that was close with no result in the top third of the first ten.
"That is a really unpleasant state so far, but we have to continue to work hard, if we want overcome our bad luck.", were Vodkakov's words on the matter. Last year the manager of the BMC team had to face similar issues, when also getting a lot of 11th places. Vodkakov pointed out that the American team, now is plessed with a better luck and prognosticates a similar destiny for the Katusha team: "It can't stay this way, that's just impossible, soon we will have some more luck, I can tell you. Then maybe another team will complain about their though luck. The 'curse' goes around.", he said with a smile.
Vodkakov wouldn't let the chance go by to also complain about the EpicUCI, whose scoring system is a big part of the reason for the upset at the Katusha HQ. "The scoring system is crap. It awards luck and not skills or dedication. With a similar jump in ranking points between 9th and 10th and 10th and 11th Katusha would be closer to their deserved amount of points in the rankings. That is already longer known and several managers already complained about it. It's not like we're the first." This is a critique on the fact that the 4th till 10th place get the same amount of points, which is unproportional much compared to the positions close behind.
Even though these known issues, Vodkakov doesn't see changes to happen soon: "We know how the EpicUCI works, changes don't happen often, people can complain as much as they want."
"Maybe we won't see a change until Belkin is hit by the curse.", Vodkakov adds slightly annoyed and considering reports about the MGUci being very close to the Dutch team.
