Groups of Team Type 1-Sanofi riders broke out for the day in the sunny Tucson weather.(Image credit: Jonathan Devich/epicimages.us)
The Team Type 1 kit for 2012(Image credit: Cycling News)
Team Type 1-Sanofi may have missed out on a wild card slot at the 2012 Giro d’Italia but its team director Vassili Davidenko vowed that his team would demonstrate their strength throughout the season, proving that they deserved a slot in the Italian Grand Tour.
It wasn’t all bad news for the team that aims to spread the awareness of diabetes. The squad, founded by Phil Southerland, were awarded a wild card place at this year’s Milan-San Remo.
“Of course I feel disappointed that we’re not in the Giro because I really believe that this team deserves a spot. Last year was our first season at the pro continental status and we won the Tour of Turkey and had a lot of podiums and top tens with a really competitive team,” Davidenko told Cyclingnews.
“This year we invested in a number of high quality riders, riders who are ready for that level. It’s a young team but we also have some good experience and that we’d have been competitive at the giro. We did all we could and we’ve built the team well. I think we’ll have our chances throughout the season so show that we deserved more.”
RCS Sport awarded the four wild card spots for the Giro d'Italia to Team NetApp, Farnese Vini-Selle Italia, Colnago-CSF Inox and Androni Giocattoli and although Davidenko believed that Team Type 1 deserved a slot he did acknowledge the tough decisions the Giro organisers had to make.
“All four teams are pretty strong but I’m surprised that a team like Acqua & Sapone, that had two former winners, was not included but again I think it was a really tough choice for RCS. They were look at several parameters but I don’t want to criticise anyone.”
In terms of a consolation, a place at Milan-San Remo is nothing to be sniffed at. It will mark the team’s first outing at the race and Davidenko is eager to prove the team’s worth.
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“And of course we’re happy to be going to Milan-San Remo and we’ll be try and be competitive there,” he said.
Daniel Benson was the Editor in Chief at Cyclingnews.com between 2008 and 2022. Based in the UK, he joined the Cyclingnews team in 2008 as the site's first UK-based Managing Editor. In that time, he reported on over a dozen editions of the Tour de France, several World Championships, the Tour Down Under, Spring Classics, and the London 2012 Olympic Games. With the help of the excellent editorial team, he ran the coverage on Cyclingnews and has interviewed leading figures in the sport including UCI Presidents and Tour de France winners.
