Video: Gerdemann excited about European return

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A month after returning to cycling with MTN-Qhubeka, Linus Gerdemann made his first appearance on the European circuit at the Mallorca Challenge.

Gerdemann has spent the last year out of the sport, after he found himself without a contract when his RadioShack-Nissan team chose not to offer him one.

The German chose to take a sabbatical and is now raring to get the main part of his season under way. I still have the experience and I’m excited about it,” Gerdemann told Cyclingnews ahead of the Trofeo Muro in Mallorca. “I’m looking forward to race again, especially Europe. We’ll see how it goes, but so far it’s felt quite good.”

After hearing good things from his friend Gerald Ciolek, Gerdemann chose to restart his career with MTN-Qhubeka. The South African squad have been going from strength to strength over the last few years and hoped that they may earn a wildcard at the Giro d’Italia. However, race organisers went for a predominantly Italian selection, leaving the team to look later in the season to get their first grand tour start.

The decision not to include the team meant Gerdemann had to quickly reassess his goals for the season. “I thought that my goal would be May, with the Giro, but we’re not racing the Giro,” he explains.

“So for me, personally, Tirreno-Adriatico and Sanremo are nice races. Now I have to peak a little earlier, we’ll see how it goes, but these are interesting races for me.”