Israel Start-Up Nation brings an ambitious team to this year’s Tour of the Alps, targeting overall as well as daily success in the mountainous stage race in Italy and Austria.

Leading the team in this five-day climbing fest is Dan Martin. The Irishman is making his debut at this race, as part of his lead-up to the Giro d’Italia next month, and he can count on excellent support in the form of Ben Hermans, Chris Froome, Alessandro De Marchi, Alexander Cataford, Guy Niv and Israeli champion Omer Goldstein.

Sports director, Claudio Cozzi: “I believe we have a very strong team lining up for Tour of the Alps this year. Dan Martin is our leader for the general classification, but we also have other guys who can fight for a good result here. As a team, we will be aiming for both the GC as well as stage wins throughout the race. We have big ambitions for Tour of the Alps, but we need both good luck and good legs.”

Dan Martin:I’m looking forward to doing Tour of the Alps for the first time! It’s also the first time in my career of 14 seasons that I am not at the Ardennes Classics, which is a strange feeling but it’s also very exciting to discover a new race. I’ve been training well and I feel good but racing is always a different game. This is an important week to continue building towards the Giro and I want to see how good my condition really is.

Omer Goldstein: “I did Tour of the Alps in 2018 and it was a really difficult race for me back then. Now, I feel that I’m a much stronger rider and I’m very optimistic heading into the race. I’m arriving directly from an altitude training camp and I’m curious to see how my shape is. I think I’ll be going well.”

While there is only one uphill finish in the race, every stage includes several climbs to overcome, which usually makes for some very aggressive racing. Combined with the beautiful scenery, the TV-viewers at home are truly in for a treat during this week of racing.

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