Rogers one of five Tinkoff-Saxo riders tackling both Grand Tours
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Alberto Contador rides the cobbles during stage 4.(Image credit: Courtesy of Polartec-Kometa)
Alberto Contador with the trophy and his Tinkoff-Saxo teammates(Image credit: Tim de Waele/TDWSport.com)
Alberto Contador finishes stage 5 of the Tour de France.(Image credit: Courtesy of Polartec-Kometa)
Michael Rogers (Tinkoff-Saxo)
Alberto Contador is alone among the 'Big Four' of major favourites in tackling both the Giro d’Italia and Tour de France this season, but his attempt at the double is by no means a solo act. All year, a core of Contador’s teammates have followed a similarly tailored programme, with a reduced diet of spring racing, and the end result is that the Tinkoff-Saxo roster at this Tour includes no fewer than five of the team that lined up at the Giro in May.
To put that figure in perspective, just two of Sky’s Giro team, Richie Porte and Leopold König, have made it to the Tour to support Chris Froome, while Tanel Kangert is the lone man to double up for Astana. Nairo Quintana’s Movistar, meanwhile, have had the luxury of fielding entirely different teams for each race.
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Barry Ryan was Head of Features at Cyclingnews. He has covered professional cycling since 2010, reporting from the Tour de France, Giro d’Italia and events from Argentina to Japan. His writing has appeared in The Independent, Procycling and Cycling Plus. He is the author of The Ascent: Sean Kelly, Stephen Roche and the Rise of Irish Cycling’s Golden Generation, published by Gill Books.
