28 February, 2017, Santa Rosa, California (USA)
Tejay van Garderen will line up at Paris-Nice, his first UCI WorldTour stage race of the season, with a well-balanced team to support the American’s General Classification objectives.
Sports Director Fabio Baldato said both van Garderen and the team are motivated for a good result in France.
“Tejay van Garderen is our outright leader at Paris-Nice and after a strong performance at Volta ao Algarve, I think he can produce another good result in France. Having lived in Nice, Tejay is familiar with the climbs on the final two days and he will have good climbing support with Nicolas Roche, Dylan Teuns, and Alessandro de Marchi,” Baldato explained.
“For the flat stages, Jempy Drucker, Simon Gerrans, and Jürgen Roelandts are excellent riders to have around Tejay, so we have a well-balanced team lining up. Tejay put in a strong time trial in Portugal and this will be another important day for a good overall result at Paris-Nice.”
Van Garderen has lined up at Paris-Nice on five occasions and was last at the start line in 2015.
“Volta ao Algarve was a good form builder and confidence booster. To be able to nab a podium result was a good way to start the season as well as a chance to learn what I needed to address in training heading into Paris-Nice. I’ve done some more work on the time trial bike in preparation for stage 4,” van Garderen said.
“The last time I raced Paris-Nice was in 2015 where I had a disastrous day in the cold, so hopefully we can learn from that and correct the mistakes from the past and make a solid push for a high General Classification result. With the strength, experience, and motivation BMC Racing Team is bringing to Paris Nice we shouldn’t be satisfied with anything less than a top result.”
Paris-Nice (4-10 March)
Rider Roster: Alessandro De Marchi (ITA), Jempy Drucker (LUX), Simon Gerrans (AUS), Nicolas Roche (IRL), Jürgen Roelandts (BEL), Dylan Teuns (BEL), Tejay van Garderen (USA).
Sports Directors: Fabio Baldato (ITA), Klaas Lodewyck (BEL).
