Santos Tour Down Under – Kjell Carlström: «We didn’t meet our goals at any level»

24 January 2016

IAM Cycling

 

Kjell

THE CONCLUSION

«Our stated objectives have clearly not been achieved», directeur sportif Kjell Carlström admitted. «We were aiming for a stage win and a top-3 overall, and we didn’t meet those goals at any level. Jarlinson Pantano had a jour sans on the third stage which meant that he lost about 1’40” and any hope of a place on the podium. But we must not make the picture out to be totally black for us at this Tour Down Under. In Australia, we did see a group of teammates and strong men work well together on a collective level.»

Tour Down Under 2016

THE EXPLANATION

Disappointed with the overall performance of IAM Cycling over the Australian roads, the team manager Rik Verbrugghe wanted to clarify the situation regarding the physical condition of his riders. «It is not an easy thing to race so far from Europe so early in the season. Everyone may not be 100% yet. For the teams it would be more ideal to have a big training camp in late January. All the teams face this situation. The European riders who win great results at the Tour Down Under must time their peak very early, which necessarily shortens the winter break. In Australia, it is already the full season. On our side, Matteo Pelucchi struggled with the jet lag and the climate. Meanwhile Jarlinson Pantano managed to prove that he is in good condition even if it took him some stages to find his best form. A good performance for this type of race is played out in the small details which have a great importance.»

Rik

Race picture: Graham Watson/BettiniPhoto 2016

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