Canyon SRAM Generation is set for another step in its development journey as it lines up for the UCI 2.1 CIC-Tour Féminin International des Pyrénées in France. The three-day, four-stage race begins tomorrow, Friday 5th August, with a rare double-header – a morning team time trial followed by a short afternoon road race. The squad will be represented by Ricarda Bauernfeind, Agua Marina Espinola Salinas, Valentine Nzayisenga, and Olivia Shililifa.
Sport director Adam Szabó believes the varied terrain is well suited to his riders and is relishing the chance to take on a format rarely seen in the women’s calendar. “The tour has a good mix of terrain that suit the riders, so I am looking forward to the racing. Especially the TTT on the first stage will be exciting as we don’t see these sorts of races very often. I hope it will bring the team closer and encourage each teammate to go deep and give 100% as a team.”
For the young squad, the event will be another valuable learning experience. “With our small team, I aim that we can again learn valuable lessons. It will be the first time we tackle the challenges of a TTT and two stages in one day. On the second day, there is a long, steep hill in the final, and it will be our team’s first experience at a summit finish. I hope to see each rider continuing to give 100% and that we keep building on learning the processes involved in teamwork from race to race.”
Szabó has been encouraged by the team’s progress in its debut season, both on and off the bike. “Overall, I’m very pleased with how Canyon SRAM Generation has performed this season. The fact that we could bring this team to life, especially thanks to the team’s partners, has been fantastic to see and valuable for our sport. It was cool to see how things clicked in our first season and how the team changed the life of each of the athletes. It is inspiring to see how riders are growing daily and how this team and cycling are enriching their lives both on and off the bike.”
The route offers a testing mix of challenges. The first two stages feature rolling roads, before the queen stage on day three – a summit finish on the Col du Soulor after more than 2200 metres of climbing. The final day in Lourdes is a 117km circuit that still packs over 1700 metres of elevation.
While the squad tackles the Pyrenean climbs, teammate Llori Sharpe will be racing in Birmingham, representing Jamaica in the Commonwealth Games road race on Sunday 7th August.
