Tyler Farrar is showing good end-of-season form with Garmin-Sharp at the WorldTour finale Tour of Beijing that kicked off on Friday with stage 1, a 167km race from Chong Li to Zhangjiakou.
The American sprinter will leave his current team Garmin-Sharp at the end of this season and join MTN-Qhubeka for 2015. After a podium finish during the opening stage, he said that he was very motivated to finish his time with Garmin on the right note.
Farrar placed third during the bunch finish behind winner Luka Mezgec (Giant-Shimano) and runner-up Caleb Ewan (Orica-GreenEdge). “The form’s decent so I’ve got to try,” he said. “I thought it was a good one for me today because it was such a hard day and that suits me.”
Farrar also had good performances at the Tour de l’Eurométropole held from October 2 to 5 in Belgium. He placed eighth overall, behind winner Arnaud Démare (FDJ.fr), after finishing twice in the top five and once on the podium during the four days of racing.
Bardiani-CSF aims to continue success in Giro dell’Emilia and GP Beghelli
Bardiani-CSF is aiming to continue its success in Italy with a climbing team at the Giro dell’Emilia on Saturday and with sprinter Sonny Colbrelli at the GP Beghelli on Sunday.
Get The Leadout Newsletter
The latest race content, interviews, features, reviews and expert buying guides, direct to your inbox!
The team for the Giro dell’Emilia will be Enrico Barbin, Enrico Battaglin, Manuel Bongiorno, Stefano Locatelli, Angelo Pagani, Stefano Pirazzi, Simone Sterbini and Edoardo Zardini.
”I always liked Giro dell’Emilia and last year I had a great result," said Zardini, who was sixth last year. "Five times over the San Luca uphill will make a selection but I think the last time up will be decisive for the victory."
Colbrelli will lead the team at the GP Beghelli that also includes Battaglin, Bongiorno, Pagani, Andrea Piechele, Pirazzi, Nicola Ruffoni and Zardini.
Colbrelli recently won the Coppa Sabatini on Thursday and, prior to the UCI Road World Championships in Ponferrada last month, had a series of victories at the Memorial Pantani and the GP Industria & Commercio di Prato, both in Italy.
“Victory in Coppa Sabatini gave me further motivation and now I’m looking to repeat in GP Beghelli,” Colbrelli said. “It has been a really long season but after the World Championships, I didn’t stop and I remained focused because I wanted to reward my team with new positive results. At GP Beghelli, I think our strategy will be make a hard race during the last laps, and bring a selected group to the end, from which I hope to emerge.”
Niemiec signs on for two more years at Lampre-Merida
When Przemyslaw Niemiec claimed victory atop Lagos de Covadonga at the Vuelta a España, the 34-year-old told reporters that he hoped the win might be enough to secure him a contract for 2015. The Pole has duly been rewarded for his efforts and on Friday, Lampre-Merida announced that it had offered him a new two-year deal that will keep him at the team until the end of 2016.
“As a rider, the combination of generosity, grit, professionalism and his talents as a climber make Przemyslaw a rare athlete in world cycling,” Lampre manager Brent Copeland said. “Przemyslaw is also a guy with great human qualities, with an important role alongside the captains and as a reference point for the young riders.”
Niemiec joined Lampre from Miche at the beginning of the 2011 season, going on to finish sixth overall at the 2013 Giro d’Italia, and then winning a stage of the Vuelta and taking third at the Giro del Trentino this year.
On Friday, Lampre-Merida also announced that Mattia Cattaneo has agreed a two-year contract extension with the team. “I'm sure he can still make improvements that will help him to become a top rider,” said Copeland.
Sylvain Georges returns with amateur team
Sylvain Georges’ positive test for heptaminol at last year’s Giro d’Italia triggered an MPCC-mandated self-suspension for the Ag2r-La Mondiale squad and it also cost the Frenchman his job. Despite his protestations that he had used the stimulant unwittingly by taking non-prescription medicine Ginkor Fort to improve circulation in his legs, Georges was eventually handed an 18-month ban.
Georges’ suspension expires on November 9 and Directvelo.com reports that the 30-year-old will race for French amateur squad Team Pro Immo Nicolas Roux next season.
Démare brings sprint to Paris-Tours
French champion Arnaud Démare (FDJ.fr) will bring his strong end-of-season form to the UCI 1.HC Paris-Tours held on Sunday in France.
Démare has won the Kampioenschap van Vlaanderen, the Grand Prix d’Isbergues - Pas de Calais and the recent Tour de l’Eurométropole, with three stage wins along with the overall title.
He hopes his form will be enough to top defending champion John Degenkolb (Giant-Shimano) in a bunch sprint. The German sprinter recently won the Paris-Bourges, won four stages at the Vuelta a España along with the points jersey, and placed ninth at the World Championships, making him a tough rider to beat.
“It would be great, that’s for sure,” Démare said. “I do my utmost to win in all the races but that will also be the main goal for Degenkolb. He did very well in the Vuelta and finished in a very respectable position at the World Championships. It proves that he is on form, but then again, so am I, and I can feel the gap closing. Last year, I finished third and so I wasn’t far off victory. This year, if the team is a bit more present on the finish and I’m feeling good, I think I’ll have a great chance.
