Sastre in Giro line-up
[01.05 10:35] On Monday Team CSC has selected the nine riders, who will be taking part in this year's Giro d'Italia from the 6th of May. Among the riders, which Bjarne Riis has chosen to help Ivan Basso win the race, is quite surprisingly Carlos Sastre:
Ivan Basso, Carlos Sastre, Bobby Julich, Jens Voigt, Volodymir Gustov, Giovanni Lombardi, Iñigo Cuesta, Michael Blaudzun and Nicki Sørensen.
”We've selected an exceptionally strong team. And there's no doubt it's a team, which is able to provide Ivan with the best possible help in his attempt to win this race. He's in perfect shape for the job and he has the strength and the experience to win his first big stage race. I think everyone will agree that it is nine top motivated riders, who will be starting for Team CSC on the 6th of May. As often before we've had the luxury of several strong riders as potentials for the race, but in the end the decision was a given, and I'm very proud of the team we've chosen for this year's Giro,” determines Bjarne Riis, who has a big surprise in the shape of Carlos Sastre being on the team, which will be meeting in Belgium later this week.
”Carlos himself came up to me and suggested that he should do the Giro, and I have great respect for the thoughts, which lie behind his decision. He's willing to sacrifice himself in the mountains to be there for Ivan, and his help could actually be crucial at that point. The plan is for him to get through the first part of the race as easy as possible in order to be with Ivan in the final week, which will be an extremely tough one. It's a true gift and a privilege to have a rider like Carlos in the Giro, and of course I've only made this decision, because we both agree on the fact that it also makes sense in relation to the rest of his season,” adds Riis.
”I've given a lot of thought to whether it was a good idea to do the Giro, and after having discussed it at great length with both Ivan and Bjarne I was in no doubt. I want to give something back to the team and I know I can make a difference for Ivan in that last week. This way I'll be taking it easy during the first part and then really going for it in the mountains. I can see that Ivan has sacrificed a lot and worked really hard to get ready for the Giro and I respect that. So this is why it was a good decision for me to offer my help to him and the team,” says Carlos Sastre. |
