Tony Gallopin leads AG2R La Mondiale at Paris-Nice
Feb 27 2018 08:22 pm CET
SUBSCRIBE TO RSS FEEDSAG2R La Mondiale starts in Paris-Nice with Tony Gallopin as a leader and the support of strong riders like Alexis Vuillermoz.
Before Paris-Nice, the team has had a very good kick-off of 2018. "We can be happy with our start to the season already with six wins and 40 top tens," said team manager Vincent Lavenu. "It is a very beautiful beginning. It allows us to approach Paris-Nice with confidence but also with humility.
"We want to shine in an important UCI WorldTour event, which is the first big stage race of the season."
Gallopin will lead the team in his first appearance in the WorldTour wearing the AG2R La Mondiale colours. "We will have a strong team with Tony Gallopin as our leader, but we can also count on Alexis Vuillermoz and Oliver Naesen," explained Lavenu. "The latter proved at the opening of the classics that his form is very good.
"Tony joined the team over the winter, and he integrated perfectly. He is ambitious, the team is solid, a final place on the podium is definitely possible."
The French team has in the past positioned one rider on each of the steps of the podium: Jean Christophe Peraud was third in 2013, Rinaldo Nocentini was second in 2008 and Carlos Betancur got the overall victory in 2014. "From experience, we know that Paris-Nice is a hard race, and every day has its share of difficulties. This year will be no exception and will be tough right up until the last day in Nice. It's up to us to be animators in this battle," the manager added.
AG2R La Mondiale's line-up for Paris-Nice (4th to 11th of March):
Mikael Cherel
Oliver Naesen
Alexis Vuillermoz
Tony Gallopin
Axel Domont
Cyril Gautier
Stijn Vandenbergh
