The German cycling team Bora-hansgrohe starts the 109th Tour de France with Nils Politt, Lennard Kämna and Maximilian Schachmann. This was announced by team boss Ralph Denk in the team’s podcast.
In addition to the German trio, the Austrians Felix Großschartner, Patrick Konrad and Marco Haller as well as the Russian Alexander Wlassow and the Dutchman Danny van Poppel were appointed. For the Irish sprinter Sam Bennett, winner of the green jersey in 2020, there was surprisingly no place in the eight-rider squad.
The tour starts on Friday in Copenhagen with an individual time trial. As captain, Wlasow should ensure a strong result in the overall standings. “We’re hoping for the podium, we want to drive offensively and aggressively. A stage win would also be nice. Then I’d be happy in Paris,” said Denk. Wlasow and Schachmann, who were immensely strong this year, had only recently fallen ill with Covid-19, but apparently recovered quickly from it.
Above all, the new German champion Politt and Kämna should ensure stage wins. Kämna already managed to do this in May at the Giro d’Italia, which Bora later surprisingly won with the Australian Jai Hindley.