Wilco Kelderman to aim for stage wins in Tour de France
Jan 06 2018 08:48 pm CET
Photo of Wilco Kelderman © Team Sunweb
Wilco Kelderman of Sunweb Team will focus on stage victories in this year's Tour de France, after suffering from bad luck in his previous two attempts.
The Dutchman took part in the editions of 2015 and 2016, representing LottoNL-Jumbo on both occasions, but had his possibilities limited by crashes.
In 2017, Kelderman rode the Giro d'Italia in support of the eventual winner Tom Dumoulin, before finishing in fourth place in the Vuelta a España. The Spanish race will once again be the rider's principal GC goal in 2018.
The Tour de France will see Sunweb focus on stage wins, with Kelderman and sprinter Michael Matthews ready to lead the team. There will as such be no pressure for the 26-year-old to perform every day.
"I'm looking forward to the Tour," Kelderman told NUsport at Sunweb's presentation in Berlin. "It may not be the most beautiful race, but it is the biggest. It's nice to be there again.
"The last two attempts didn't work out in the Tour, because of bad luck. It can be a terrible race then. But it's a nice opportunity to be able to ride the Tour again this year."
Riding the Tour before a GC campaign in the Vuelta is not something Kelderman has done before. "It may not be an ideal preparation, but I think we have a good plan and I should be able to be in good shape in the Vuelta."
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