16 May 2013
IAM Cycling
If the snow at the Bernina pass prevented the eight riders at the IAM Cycling altitude training camp from completing their course, the rain also added spice to the difficulty of the second stage for the riders at the Glava Tour of Norway.
Nevertheless, it did not keep the Norwegian rider Alexander Kristoff (Katusha) from blazing to his second consecutive stage win ahead of his compatriot Edvald Boasson Hagen (Sky).
For IAM Cycling, however, this time, the podium remained out of reach.
After securing 3rd place in the first stage with Sébastien Hinault, IAM Cycling had to settle with Matteo Pelucchis 9th place today.
Directeur Sportif Kjell Carlström explained that todays conditions were out of the ordinary:
The rain followed us throughout the day, and it was cold as well. The organizers even revisited the finishing circuit for fear it would be too dangerous in these conditions. Their efforts unfortunately did not prevent crashes. Luckily, we made it through unscathed, though three of our guys (Aregger, Cusin et Hollenstein) finished in the second group because they had been delayed by one of the crashes. Since the final stretch was compromised by weather conditions, Sébastien Hinault decided to give the go-ahead to Matteo Pelucchi. Unfortunately, our positioning flying under the flamme rouge did not go as planned and Matteo had to settle for 9th place with Sébastien in 14th. But tomorrows third stage finish is tailor-made for our Italian sprinter.
IAM Cycling results on the Glava Tour of Norway
