Kessiakoff uncertain about future at Garmin-Cervélo
Disappointing 2010 season comes to an end
Fredrik Kessiakoff has brought down the curtain on his 2010 season and may leave Garmin-Transitions at the end of the year.
The Swede signed a two-year deal at the start of the 2010 season, but after a disappointing year he faces the prospect of being shown the exit door after Garmin and Cervélo struck a deal that saw seven Cervélo riders join the American squad.
With 28 riders already on their books, Garmin would be forced to reduce their own roster in order to fit within the UCI's 30-man limit. Svein Tuft, Trent Lowe and Ricardo Van der Velde have already confirmed that they will leave the team, while other riders are also rumoured to be leaving.
"I have a two-year contract with Garmin so I am set but with these changes and these two teams coming in to one has changed things a bit. It's no longer 100 percent certain that I will stay," Kessiakoff told Cyclingnews.
"I don't have more information on that right now. There is a possibility that I might change. That's all I can say out of respect to my current team and to any possible other ones.
"When you have two teams coming together it changes a lot of things. What kind of riders there were with what there will be next year. You're squeezing 50 riders into 30 slots. There are many reasons why a change might happen.
"I'm very, very happy with this team. It's nothing to do with the team it's more to do with how things will be next year. I have no reason to flick Garmin-Transitions, they've been quite supportive."
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The 30-year-old Swede's last race was over two weeks ago but after sitting down with his team both parties decided that he should end his season now. He crashed heavily in the Volta ao Algarve in the spring and was ruled out of the Giro, where he was meant to lead the team's overall ambitions.
However, even before the crash Kessiakoff had felt short of form.
"After the training camp I felt motivated for the season but despite the crash I already felt tired and it's just been more and more obvious. The high amount of racing last year, together with not having sufficient rest and intense winter training, all came together and I've been struggling all year. I've been overtrained and had bad luck," he said.
"It's one of those years when all I've gained is experience. It's shit but that's how it is. Both me and the team are convinced it's overtraining. I need rest, the rest I've not given myself in the past."
Kessiakoff was signed by Jonathan Vaughters after a strong debut season on the road in 2009, where he shone in a number of week-long stage races. In January, Vaughters told Cyclingnews, "Here's a guy who was a pro mountain biker in 2008, and decided to give road cycling a shot in 2009, and was top 10 in the hardest stage of the Tour of Basque country ... that's just a couple little tweaks here and there, a little more support and confidence and he'll be one of the best climbers in the world."
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.