Cycling: Today the team presentation of the Tour de France takes place in Düsseldorf. Time for us to ring in the final act of our team preview. It is about the teams Sky, Sunweb and Quick-Step Floors.
Here is the first part of our team preview for the Tour de France 2017
Here is the second part of our team preview for the Tour de France 2017
Quick-Step Floors: Kittel, Gilbert & Dan Martin
The Quick-Step Floors team can provide a winning candidate in almost every race. At the Tour de France there is only one classification driver missing who could be the overall winner. Although Daniel Martin is strong on steep ramps, he has his problems when things get down to business in the high mountains over a period of three weeks. But the Irishman is still a man for the top ten. Philippe Gilbert is enjoying his resurrection this year. After his victory at the Tour of Flanders, he now wants to cause a sensation at the Tour de France. On undulating terrain he is certainly capable of a stage win. The German sprinter Marcel Kittel doesn't just want to win a section. He wants to dominate the mass sprints and maybe even have a say in the green jersey.
Katusha-Alpecin: Only stage wins & green can be the goal
The Katusha-Alpecin team will compete in the 2017 Tour de France without Ilnur Zakarin. Accordingly, the team will not play an important role in the overall standings. Only Robert Kiserlovski and Tiago Machado feel relatively comfortable in the mountains. The rest of the team will go hunting for stages. Tony Martin in the time trial and Alexander Kristoff in various mass sprints certainly have the best chances of winning a stage. At his first Tour de France, Rick Zabel will actively support his captain Alexander Kristoff as a starter. The German Nils Politt, the Swiss Reto Hollenstein and the Austrian Marco Haller will have a lot of work to do on the flat sections in order to catch the escapees again.
LottoNL-Jumbo: Can Groenewegen, Roglic & Bennett live up to expectations?
Steven Kruijswijk is probably the best ranking driver of the LottoNL-Jumbo team. However, the Dutchman rode the Giro d'Italia and will not be at the start of the Tour de France. Instead, the sports directors rely on the experienced Robert Gesink, the increasingly strong George Bennett and the former ski jumper Primoz Roglic. So LottoNL-Jumbo is an exciting line-up. Especially since Dylan Groenewegen was also nominated. The Dutchman is regarded as a hopeful sprinter talent and will be fully involved in the mass arrivals. The Germans Paul Martens and Robert Wagner are only given a helping role. Jos Van Emden, on the other hand, can dream of swapping his team's jersey for the overall leader's yellow jersey in Düsseldorf.
Sky: Eight helpers for Chris Froome
With Team Sky, goals can be formulated very quickly. Chris Froome is set to win the Tour de France for the fourth time. If the Brit is in top form, he will be hard to beat. However, his performance at the Critérium du Dauphiné raised serious doubts about his current condition. Should Chris Froome actually not be in top form, Sergio Henao, Mikel Landa, Mikel Nieve or Geraint Thomas could step into the breach. Either way, Team Sky is expected to be very dominant as usual. An important role in the mountains will again be played by Vasil Kiryienka, who can lead the peloton over countless kilometers as a locomotive. The German Christian Knees was also nominated for the Tour de France. With his experience and calmness, he is said to keep Chris Froome out of dangerous situations.
Sunweb: A lot of potential - but little guarantee
Of course, there are no guarantees of good results in cycling, but for some teams and riders certain expectations can be made clear even before the start. With Team Sunweb this is almost impossible. After the overall victory in the Giro d'Italia, the team is at least not under any great pressure to succeed in the Tour de France. Tom Dumoulin will not be at the start. The Sunweb team will therefore not be able to play a significant role in the overall standings. Only Warren Barguil has the skills to finish well. Otherwise, the successes are brought in via breakaway groups. The German Simon Geschke can also step into the limelight here. Especially Nikias Arndt and Michael Matthews are hot irons in the fire. In mass arrivals, they will sprint for top positions.
Trek-Segafredo: pure experience with Degenkolb & Contador as captains
Team Trek-Segafredo will enter the Tour de France with a roster of raw experience. The German John Degenkolb is to take on the role of the sprinter. Alberto Contador will be eyeing the general classification, as will Dutchman Bauke Mollema. The three captains will be assisted by Koen De Koert, Fabio Felline, Michael Gogl, Markel Irizar, Jarlinson Pantano and Haimar Zubeldia. Trek-Segafredo will therefore be at the forefront in almost all areas. On no terrain, however, are you superior to the other teams. So despite the strong squad, it will be difficult to get satisfactory results.
UAE Team Emirates: Louis Meintjes wants the white jersey
UAE Team Emirates is Lampre's successor team. Some riders from the Italian team were taken over and are now also at the start of the Tour de France for UAE, including Matteo Bono, Kristijan Durasek, Manuele Mori, Diego Ulissi and Louis Meintjes. The young South African is considered a hot contender in the fight for the white jersey. As probably the best classification driver in his team, he can also count on the support of his teammates. With Darwin Atapuma he also has a real noble helper at his side. We can be curious about the sprint finishes, because with the Norwegian Vegard Stake Laengen, a young sprinter talent was nominated for UAE. Ben Swift can also throw his legs in the ring in a quick finish. All in all, however, it will mainly be about stage wins from a group. Diego Ulissi should have the best chance of success with a wavy arrival.
Wanty-Groupe Gobert: Nine NoNames want to cause a sensation
By far the least known team in the race is the Equipe Wanty-Groupe Gobert. The nine nominated professionals are only known to real cycling connoisseurs. The Belgian Guillaume Van Keirsbulck and the Frenchman Yoann Offredo are certainly the best known. However, their strength lies more in the one-day classics in spring than in a Grand Tour. The Italian Andrea Pasqualon will keep up in a sprint. The young Australian Dion Smith also has really fast legs. Thomas Degand is probably the best climber in the group. Experience has shown that the strengths of all Wanty-Groupe Gobert drivers lie in a long flight. If a stage has just started, the hot phase starts immediately. We'll probably see a Wanty man in flight on almost every flat and bumpy stage. It would be a great success for the second division player to win a part of the Tour de France.
