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Tour of Eritrea Discussion
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| ember |
Posted on 19-06-2013 09:53
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The riders go to Africa for the first ever Tour of Eritrea. It’s a five stages long race, where all stages are short, which should give us some aggressive and intense racing. Stage 1, 3 and 5 should suit the sprinters, eventhough the final stage consists of a circuit including a steep, but short hill.
Stage 2 is the Queen stage of the tour, and it sees the riders climb their way up Asmara. The stage is only 115 kilometers long, but almost half of that distance is climbing. It will definitely go down to a battle between the best climbers in the race, and the stage winner could very well secure the overall win already on the second day in Eritrea.
Stage 4 looks like the only other test for the overall contenders. It’s a hilly ranked stage which ends with an uphill sprint. The penultimate climb comes less than 20 kilometers away from home, meaning some riders could try their luck there and put pressure on the other overall contenders.
Before we take a look at the overall favourites we must take some time to see which home heroes
 Jaguar-Eritel
have decided to bring to their home race. They’re all Eritrean, but it’s unlikely they will be able to fight for the best placings during the race
Dawit
is probably their best bet for a good stage placing in a sprint.
 Abal
is the best climber in the race. Thus he is also the biggest favourite for the overall win. He should get valuable support from a rider like Gil on the mountain stage, and his team desperately needs him to bring home a good result considering the relegation battle.
Just behind Abal there are of course several others good climbers.
 Serpa
 Arroyo
 Marquez
are all some of the best riders in the Continental Tour when the road rises. Evian-Miat has been on a roll recently, and Serpa must look to continue that. Arroyo is the big star of his Dutch team, but the Spaniard hasn’t been able to prove he’s worth all the money the team spent on him so far this season. Marquez, on the opposite, has been doing great this year. He has already won Vuelta al Tachira and Tour of Japan, and he must fancy his chances for another big overall win here in Eritrea.
 Nazaret
 Gomez Marchante
 Cataldo
 Rodrigues
are just like the four riders mentioned outstanding climbers. ING Cycling Project is one of the teams fighting for promotion this season, and an overall win from Gomez Marchante would definitely help them. Nazaret is a pure climber with a nice sprint, which might prove valuable on the Queen stage, where he could sneak away with the victory in a group sprint. Cataldo, on paper, isn’t the same class on the long climbs, but he’s also a good puncheur. That could be the key to an overall podium considering stage 4. Rodrigues is also a decent puncheur considering he’s a climber, but he isn’t a rider you would bet will end on the podium. But definitely a strong contender for a top 5.
 Devolder
 Rodas
 Ndbri
 Soler
can’t be underestimated in such a stage race, but none of them should have the abilities to mix it with the best climbers here. A top 10 is probably all they can hope for, if they’re not trying something special to surprise the biggest favourites during the race.
For the three sprint stages
Davis
 Greipel
stand out as the men to watch, but
Hochmann
Hutarovich
 Nelson
are three of the riders wanting to challenge them for a stage win or three.
Thinking of the hilly stage 4,
Betancur Hollister
looks to be the rider to beat, as he’s the best puncheur participating in the race.
The full start list:
Edited by ember on 19-06-2013 11:16
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| Bjartne |
Posted on 19-06-2013 10:01
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Not even mentioned in the preview, I guess this will be a shitty race for us  |
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| Heine |
Posted on 19-06-2013 10:31
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I believe this race will be won on bonus seconds, looking at the startlist and how stages like this (1 climb stages) have been this season
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| jph27 |
Posted on 19-06-2013 10:49
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Hoping this will be like Langkawi and aiming for a top 5. As long as we gain on our relegation rivals I will be happy though, and the way this month has gone I dare to believe that we can do well  |
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| Mresuperstar |
Posted on 19-06-2013 12:13
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Abal finally is the top favourite! Now don't screw it up. I can feel that first win of the season.
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| CountArach |
Posted on 19-06-2013 13:52
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I don't think this will be super selective but I like Marquez for the win
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| Alakagom |
Posted on 19-06-2013 13:54
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This is a quite important race for us as we need the points for the Africa standings. Startlist is strong though, could range from winning to being in ends of Top 10. Should be fun race 
Thanks Count
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| baggieboys32 |
Posted on 19-06-2013 13:55
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Hopefully Nelson will grab a win somewhere along the way for us here, but given his performances all year, I somewhat doubt it..
Ah well, nice preview anyway, and here's hoping the short stages make for exciting racing
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| FroomeDog99 |
Posted on 19-06-2013 16:46
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Can't see gaps happening on either stage 2 or 4, though I hope I am wrong. Ndbri and Schinker should be able to reach the top 10 a couple of times.
Marquez looks a good bet in my eyes.
Edited by FroomeDog99 on 19-06-2013 17:01
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| Spilak23 |
Posted on 19-06-2013 16:48
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I hope for less bad luck as in Capo. And Lay to be up there in the sprint
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| Alakagom |
Posted on 19-06-2013 16:56
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Dominant win by Davis that was.
Pheww, luckily Marquez finished safely in peleton. Bad luck continues for Arroyo, and well, Serpa's very unlucky too here.
Edited by Alakagom on 19-06-2013 16:56
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| Ad Bot |
Posted on 24-11-2024 11:18
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| cio93 |
Posted on 19-06-2013 16:56
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Ouch for that split...
Bongiorno in the front group though! Go for white
Edited by cio93 on 19-06-2013 16:57
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| Firefly21 |
Posted on 19-06-2013 17:00
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Domestique
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My god Arroyo cant do anything right. Unbelievable
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| Spilak23 |
Posted on 19-06-2013 17:03
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I think the African fans have cursed us.
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| jph27 |
Posted on 19-06-2013 18:27
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Arrrrrrrrrr! |
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| Bjartne |
Posted on 19-06-2013 18:32
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Sohrabi? Podium?? |
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| rycadinho |
Posted on 19-06-2013 18:36
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Marchante has been really solid in his few apperances so far, and I hope he'll continue that trend here.
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| Mresuperstar |
Posted on 19-06-2013 18:43
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No excuse now Abal, after that split I need a victory.
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| Christer |
Posted on 20-06-2013 04:45
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A second place is quite good. Hoping for more, but at least it's going decently. I am a little annoyed that Txurruka lost time, though. I was hoping for a decent GC position for him...
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| jph27 |
Posted on 20-06-2013 09:39
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Serpa deserved that, but stupid AI meant he ended up losing time. If gaps worked properly, that wouldn't have been a sprint and we could have won that. Hopefully we can move into the top 10 on the hilly stage and Kastrantas can take the KoM lead back. Top notch reporting ember |
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