Giro d`Italia
05/2010
Today Team Quick Step officially announced the names of the nine athletes representing 5 different countries who will participate in the next Giro d’Italia (May 8-30, 2010).
The team is made up of a group of expert athletes like Matteo Tosatto, winner of the Montebelluna (Tv) stage on the pink roads in 2001, Marco Velo, an athlete from Brescia who’s riding in his 12th Giro d’Italia and Addy Engels, who holds an important record. In fact, Engels holds the record for participation in the Giro by a Dutchman, with 8 races under his belt.
The team’s sprinter will be Belgian Wouter Weylandt, who in 2008 managed to make his mark in a stage in the Vuelta España. After an unfortunate season start marked by a series of falls and physical setbacks, Weylandt will try to make up for lost time on the pink roads. Also at the starting line will be Dario Cataldo, who will try to consolidate good performances from last year and the beginning of 2010; Mauro Facci, leader in a special category dedicated to the rider with most kilometres clocked in breaks in 2009, and Francesco Reda on the hunt for even partial success.
Rounding out the rest of the team are Frenchman Jerome Pineau in his first Giro d’Italia and Belarusian Branislau Samoilau, national time trial champion and fresh off a good performance at the recent Tour de Romandie. The team athletes will be lead by Davide Bramati and Rik Verbrugghe.
“Our team is a mix of expert athletes and young athletes hungry to prove their worth" - explains Davide Bramati - "In the stages dedicated to sprinters the guys will race in support of Wouter Weylandt. In the other stages we will try to attack. The goal of the team is to make the most out of timely opportunities and to try to win a stage.”
Riders for Giro d`Italia
Dario Cataldo
Addy Engels
Mauro Facci
Jerome Pineau
Francesco Reda
Branislau Samoilau
Matteo Tosatto
Marco Velo
Wouter Weylandt
D.S.: Davide Bramati & Rik Verbrugghe