Cycling, Uae Tour: Evenepoel to beat. ‘I’m happy to be back here’

From our correspondent Ciro Scognamiglio

February 19th
– Al Hudaryat (United Arab Emirates

Here we are, the UAE Tour is ready to get going with its fifth edition. Seven stages, from Monday to Sunday, for the only race in this geographical area of ​​the World Tour. And today on the eve six of the stars at the start met the press in the Colnago shop built in Al Hudayriat, an artificial island in the emirate of Abu Dhabi which is destined to become a hub dedicated to cycling, with the construction of a covered velodrome also in the pipeline. You are among the stars even if the most eagerly awaited is certainly the world champion Remco Evenepoel, sitting in the center among the champions not by chance. From left, here is Pello Bilbao, Spanish climber of Bahrain-Victorious; Mark Cavendish, British player from Astana (161 career victories); Adam Yates (GB, Uae Emirates) winner of the 2020 Uae Tour; precisely Remco Evenepoel (Bel, Soudal-Quick Step), returning from a 2022 studded with Liège-Bastogne-Liege and the World Cup; our Elia Viviani (Ineos-Grenadiers), Olympian and world champion on the track; Dylan Groenewegen (Ola, Jayco), one of the many competitive sprinters here (they will have four chances on paper, then there are two uphill finishes and a team time trial). Groenewegen will aim to win ‘at least one sprint’, Bilbao to “fight to the end for the final victory”. “All the best are there, it will be a great challenge – says Viviani -. With Ineos we have a ‘mixed’ team, men for all terrains. Heiduk and Swift will help me in the sprints”. “This is a very important race for sprinters and I’m happy to be there,” confirms Cavendish. Yates advises: “I usually go fast here and we have a very competitive team.” So Evenepoel: “I came here in my first year as a pro, in 2019, I’m happy to be back. We have Tim Merlier for the sprints, we hope to win at least one stage, then it will be up to me to get the best possible result for the general”.