Tour of Alberta announces first five teams for the 2015 race
The Tour of Alberta revealed five of the teams that will ride in the six-stage, UCI 2.1 race this September. So far four WorldTour teams—Orica-GreenEdge, Cannondale-Garmin, Giant-Alpecin and Katusha—and one pro continental team—Drapac Professional Cycling—have confirmed their attendance.
“With the UCI road world championships being held in North America only two weeks after our race, elite teams see the Tour of Alberta presented by ATB Financial as their last chance to prepare,” says the race’s executive director Duane Vienneau. “The addition of the team time trial and our two-day stop in the Canadian Rockies has definitely contributed to the hype amongst teams this year. We are going to have an unbelievable calibre of teams. All of this makes the 2015 Tour a great year for fans of the sport.”
Both Orica-GreenEdge and Giant-Alpecin (then Giant-Shimano) featured in the 2014 edition of the Tour of Alberta. Tom Dumoulin (Giant) led the race until the final stage in Edmonton, where Daryl Impey took the overall by seconds. “Last year we were close to winning the Tour of Alberta presented by ATB Financial and that has only made us more motivated to chase victory this year again,” says Team Giant-Alpecin director, Aike Visbeek. “We will be sending a strong team. It will be interesting to see how the new course will influence the race. The riders are very motivated to race again in Alberta.”
The Russia-based Katusha team will make its Tour of Alberta debut in 2015. “We plan to bring a competitive team who will be excited to race in front of our North American fans,” says Katusha general manager Viatcheslav Ekimov. “It’s especially important to support these younger races that are still growing in stature and we always want to honour the great sponsors that step up financially for our sport. I know last year there was a big audience of viewers and I’m sure this year will be even better. We’re especially anxious to take part in the team time trial for Stage 1 since it’s only a few weeks from the TTT in the worlds.”
Like Katusha, Drapac also make its first appearance in Alberta. “The Tour of Alberta will be a key event for our team this season,” said Drapac sports director Tom Southam. “Alberta is a significant race for us, as it will allow our riders to once again race against some of the best in the world, while maintaining our focus on the North American cycling calendar for 2015. We will have competed in some big events and we expect the team to be highly competitive throughout the year. We will bring a diverse roster to Alberta and will be looking to showcase our sprint team for stages wins.”
With Cannondale-Garmin confirmed, it’s possible Ryder Hesjedal could return to the race. He rode the inaugural event in 2013, but missed the race in 2014. Last year, Christian Meier of Orica-GreenEdge raced in the Prairies. Meier’s teammate Svein Tuft has yet to race in the Tour of Alberta. The event will likely feature more Canadians, including Ryan Anderson, the best-placed Canuck in 2013 (eighth overall) and 2014 (fifth overall), as more North American teams are announced at a later date. As a 2.1 race, the Tour of Alberta can only have 50 per cent of the field composed of WorldTour teams. The other half will be made of pro continental, continental and national teams.
The third edition of the Tour of Alberta will run from Sept. 2 to 7.
