Mavi García is set to lead UAE Team ADQ’s efforts as the newly-rebranded team take aim at the Tour de France Femmes and other key races in 2022.
García, a climber, had a series of impressive results in 2021 with Alé BTC Ljubljana, and is hoping to improve her performance as the team take on the Women’s WorldTour under new UAE ownership.
“My objectives are always going up,” she said. “My career is always getting better. But my principal objective this year is the Tour de France. It’s very important to the team, it’s very important to me, it’s important for everyone.”
Despite the team’s new high-profile owners, and the departure of one of their most successful riders in 2021 Marlen Reusser, García said she is not feeling burdened by extra pressure going into the new season.
“For me, it’s the same,” she said. “This team wants to win races, no? It is bigger than last year. So I will do all I can and then we will see but for me, there’s no pressure, I’m easy.”
Though the inaugural Tour de France Femmes is high in the list of UAE Team ADQ’s priorities, it’s the Giro Donne where García is hoping to make personal improvements.
“This year in the Giro I was fifth, so my goal is to do better than this,” she said. “But it’s always difficult because all the girls are too strong. Being better than the five or ten girls who are at the top is so difficult. But I’ll always fight to be there, and be with the stronger girls.”
Garcíá is a talented climber, but concedes there are parts of her racing she needs to work on in order to back up both her general classification attempts, and her objectives in the spring classics.
“I need to improve on the time trial bike, because my level is always less,” she said. “This year the team is helping me to improve this - my position, the aerodynamics. It’s important for me for the stage races.
“I’m also working on my push and my power. Because this hasn’t been so good for me in races. It’s so important for attacking, and for the final, for the sprint. I’m not a sprinter, but in a small group, I need to have a bit more power.”
Alongside sprinter Marta Bastianelli, García will be one of UAE Team ADQ’s key hopes for success in 2022, but said the likes of Eugenia Bujak, Maike Boogard and new arrivals Sofia Bertizzolo and Erica Magnaldi have made level in the team ‘much better’.
“This year, the team is even stronger than last year. There’s a really good atmosphere in the team. All the girls want to support the team, want to support me, so I feel really good. I think it will be a good year for the team.”
