Team BikeExchange will line-up at the UAE Tour as the defending champions with a mix of experienced sprinters and young climbers for the first WorldTour race of the season.
Newly crowned Australian Criterium champion Kaden Groves and Slovenian sprinter Luka Mezgec will give the squad options for the fast finishes during the seven-day tour, while the experienced Michael Hepburn and Jack Bauer will provide the power on the flat desert roads.
The climbers will also get their opportunities as young Italian Kevin Colleoni makes his debut alongside Herald Sun Tour stage winner Nick Schultz, with Ethiopian Tsgabu Grmay set to provide support as the road begins to climb.
For this year’s edition of the UAE Tour, there will be seven stages including an individual time trial stage for the first time on stage two. Stage three will finish up the steep slopes of the Hatta Dam, before what should be a GC showdown on stage five to Jebel Jais.
Team BikeExchange at the 2021 UAE Tour:
Jack Bauer (NZL, 35)
Kevin Colleoni (ITA, 21)
Tsgabu Grmay (ETH, 29)
Kaden Groves (AUS, 22)
Michael Hepburn (AUS, 29)
Luka Mezgec (SLO, 32)
Nick Schultz (AUS, 26)
Kevin Colleoni:
“I can’t be happier to begin my experience as a Pro rider with Team BikeExchange with a WorldTour race such as UAE Tour. I am really excited, and I have been training a lot for it in the last weeks. I have studied the stages but of course only once we are in the race, we will know how to approach each single day.
“There will not be a selected leader for this race for our Team, for this reason it will be important to see as a team how the first half of the tour will go and then we can adjust our strategy for the second half in order to achieve the best result for our team.
“Everything will be totally new to me, coming to a WorldTour Team for the first time has been already an intense process for me, I still have to grow a lot and to have the opportunity to be part of the line-up in such an important event it will surely be something that will help my development as a rider.”
Andrew Smith – Sport Director:
“We are glad to be back racing after this difficult winter period, and to begin our first WorldTour race it’s really motivating for us at Team BikeExchange. It’s also nice to go in a race where you are defending champion like we are this year at UAE Tour. Last year was a particular race as we all know, but surely our aim is to give our best efforts to obtain a good result.
“We have different objectives this year and options during this year’s event: we will have Kaden Groves and Luka Mezgec for the stages which will most likely finish with sprints, while for the mountain stages and the GC we will give the younger guys, Nick Schultz and Kevin Colleoni the opportunity to show themselves and to experience that side of racing. ”
2021 UAE Tour – Race Details:
From Sunday February 21st to Saturday February 27th
Stage 1: Al Ruwais – Al Mirfa 177km
Stage 2: Hudayriat Island – Hudayriat Island 13km ITT
Stage 3: Al Ain – Jebel Hafeet 162km
Stage 4: Marjan Island – Marjan Island 204km
Stage 5: Fujairah – Jebel Jais 170km
Stage 6: Dubai – Palm Jumeirah 168km
Stage 7: Yas Marina – Abu Dhabi Breakwater 147km
