Igor Antón, a stage winner atop Monte Zoncolan at the 2011 Giro, Natnael Berhane, Daniel Teklehaimanot, and Omar Fraile are set to lead the squad in the mountains. Italian Kristian Sbaragli and youngster Ryan Gibbons, who enjoyed a breakthrough Tour de Langkawi this year, winning the overall title and a stage, provide the squad with options in the sprints. A fast-finishing Nathan Haas will be an option for the lumpier days.
"This centenary Giro has a demanding parcours, particularly in the last week where the GC will certainly be decided. Before this tough final week though, there are numerous opportunities for the riders to try to win a stage," said sport director Bingen Fernandez via a press release. "Some of those stages are pure sprint stages but others have that 'little something', typically Italian-style stages which will generate some exciting finales. Our team will fight for these early stage victories but we'll also look to use the experience of Igor Anton, who will start his 18th three-week grand tour, together with Omar Fraile who has proven himself in the last week of a grand tour to achieve a big result."
Dimension Data for the Giro d'Italia: Igor Antón, Natnael Berhane, Omar Fraile, Ryan Gibbons, Nathan Haas, Jacques Janse van Rensburg, Kristian Sbaragli, Daniel Teklehaimanot, Johann Van Zyl.
Nathan Haas will be hunting stages for Dimension Data at the Giro d'Italia (Tim de Waele/TDWSport.com)
Gazprom-Rusvelo announce Giro roster with 2016 stage winner Foliforov leading the way
Foliforov stunned the peloton last year with a time trial victory to Alpe di Siusi on stage 15, where Firsanov impressed as well, finishing fourth. Foliforov will make the start on the heels of winning the mountains classification in last week's Tour of the Alps.
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"I feel great and my preparation for the Giro is complete. Last year I experienced a Grand Tour for the first time and didn't know what to expect," he said via a team release.
"It was incredible to make the debut memorable with a stage win, but this year is a new challenge and we will strive to improve the result."
Savitskiy, 25, delivered a pair of top 10 finishes in the 2016 Giro and will look to build on those results in 2017.
Gazprom-Rusvelo for the Giro d'Italia: Alexander Foliforov, Sergey Firsanov, Ivan Savitskiy, Pavel Brutt, Dmitry Kozonchuk, Sergey Lagutin, Evgeny Shalunov, Alexey Tsatevich and Ivan Rovny.
Rally looking to continue winning ways at Redlands Classic
American Continental team Rally Cycling head into this week's Redlands Bicycle Classic looking to build on its Tour of the Gila success. While Gila overall winner Evan Huffman won't line out at the California race, Rally Cycling are backing in Jesse Anthony, Emerson Oronte, and Tom Soladay to deliver the goods.
"After seeing how well the guys did in the Tour of the Gila, myself and the rest of the squad are motivated to keep the ball rolling," said Oronte. “Training has been going well, and I'm confident I have the form to pull off some great results. With the Oak Glen climb being a bit more selective this year, it suits a rider like myself and I will be hunting for the stage win and the overall victory."
Having recovered from a broken pelvis, Junior World Time Trial Champion Brandon McNulty makes his return to racing with the team's performance director Jonas Carney confident in the squad he has selected.
"We have a solid group of riders focused on Redlands. Emerson and Jesse are coming off a strong ride in Anniston, Alabama, where they ran second and fifth respectively in the road race," said Carney. "Brandon McNulty will start his first race since fracturing his pelvis this spring, and we are excited to have him rejoin the team. Brad, Shane, Curtis and Pierrick are gunning for the criterium and with the form Jesse has been carrying all year, I would not discount his chances at getting a result on any stage."
Rally Cycling for Redlands Bicycle Classic: Jesse Anthony, Brad Huff, Shane Kline, Brandon McNulty, Emerson Oronte, Pierrick Naud, Tom Soladay, and Curtis White.
Cylance earn Tour of Utah invitation
The Continental Cylance team is celebrating its invitation to the UCI 2.HC Tour of Utah (July 31-August 6) for its biggest race yet in 2017. The stage race was first run in 2014 and in 2017 will feature a time trial for the first time.
"It's an honor to have our team invited to the Larry H. Miller Tour of Utah and it feels like a bit of recognition for all of the effort the team has put into making 2017 a special season for us," said Director Sportif Hilton Clarke.
Cylance recently took out the win at the Dana Point GP via Justin Williams and will be aiming to for more success at this week's Redlands Bicycle Classic before turning its attention to the Tour of Utah in the coming weeks.
