Philip Deignan will be looking to take his chances when the road climbs in Portugal in the next few days
No fewer than three Irish riders were this morning due to take to the start line at the four-day Volta ao Algarve in Portugal. The race is a UCI 2.1 event meaning Sean Downey, Ronan McLaughlin (An Post-Chainreaction) and Philip Deignan (Unitedhealthcare) face some very tough opposition.
This year the race has been reduced from five stages to four, with the riders completing three road stages and then a final day time trial. Some of the world’s top teams and riders are set to compete and An Post team manager Kurt Bogaerts is looking forward to the first major test of the season.
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“It’s always a tough race, you just need to look at the registered teams each year to see how strong the field is and this year is no different. It’s a great opportunity for our riders to compete against the likes of team Sky and Omega Pharma –Quick Step. The experience they will take from it is invaluable.”
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“The course is hard and hilly in stages but we will be aggressive from the start and hopefully be involved in some of the breakaways. Its great preparation for the season ahead so we are really looking forward to it”, Bogaerts added.
As well as Downey and McLaughlin, the An Post-Chainreaction team for the race also includes British riders Kieran Frend and Mark McNally and the Belgian quartet of Alphonse Vermote, Nicholas Vereecken, Steven Van Vooren and Laurent Vanden Bak.
McLaughlin will be looking to get up the road in breakaways in the next few days while Downey will also be seeking to get some exposure and build his form for later in the year. After a strong showing in the Tour de San Luis in Argentina, Deignan will be looking to see if he can continue in that vein and even pull off a big result, as he has done in the past on such a big stage.
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