Matteo Trentin included in the team’s first races of 2021
UAE Team Emirates will kick-off the new year with the Grand Prix Cycliste la Marseillaise [1.1] on 31 January and the Volta a la Comunitat Valenciana [2.Pro] 3-7 February.
After a successful pre-season camp in the UAE, the team has arrived to Europe and are in final preparations for the opening tests of the season. After welcoming four new signings during the off season, Ryan Gibbons and Matteo Trentin are featured in the inaugural rosters of the 2021 season.
Team Manager, Joxean Matxin Fernandez, on the upcoming events: “We had a great team camp in the UAE where we were warmly welcomed and able to prepare well. In terms of training we had weather conditions with 25-28 degrees most days. We had all types of terrain with flatlands as well as the Jebel Hafeet where the riders could really test themselves.
The early season race calendar has had a few disruptions but we are confident we will have a solid programme and be present in the most important races. We start the year later at both GP Marseillaise and Volta Valenciana hungry for the first victory of 2021.”
Matteo Trentin said: “The first impressions with the team have been very good. The atmosphere is really good, and you can also see it with the young riders. I have quickly adjusted to the group dynamic – we came here and we quickly made a team. I’m among the oldest riders in this team – now I belong more to the older group than to the youngsters. My goals, however, are always the same – to win and to help the team win.”
The team for GP Cycliste la Marseillaise will be led by Sports Director Simone Pedrazzini (Swi) :
– Alessandro Covi (Ita)
-Ryan Gibbons (RSA)
-Vegard Stake Laengen (Nor)
-Rui Oliveira (Por)
-Aleksandr Riabushenko (Blr)
-Matteo Trentin (Ita)
-Oliviero Troia (Ita)
Meanwhile the trio of Joxean Matxin Fernandez (Manager) , Aurelio Corral (Spa) and Fabrizio Guidi (Ita) will take the reins for Volta a la Comunitat Valenciana.
– David De La Cruz (Spa)
– Rui Costa (Por)
– Fernando Gaviria (Col)
– Alexander Kristoff (Nor)
– Brandon McNulty (USA)
– Maximiliano Richeze (Arg)
– Matteo Trentin (Ita)
Alexander Kristoff said: “It’s the first race so it’s always hard to know exactly how the shape is. I came out of the camp in UAE feeling good and we all managed to get in some solid training. We have a very strong and balanced team here so we’ll take our chances in the sprints and then also have different options on the hilly days. The main aim is to get the race rhythm back but also go for a win where we can.”
