Roue Tourangelle

Team Novo Nordisk participated in an eventful edition of La Roue Tourangelle. Sam Brand was part of the day’s breakaway that comprised 5 riders. The quintet was given a maximum gap over just over 5 minutes before the gap was reduced and controlled.

With 50 kilometers to go, the race was neutralized after a massive crash affected the majority of the peloton. Matyas Kopecky continued his fine run of form by sprinting to ninth when the race eventually came down to a bunch sprint.

Head sports director Massimo Podenzana:

“What a race today. It had it all, including pave, several climbs and neutralization. We wanted to be represented in the breakaway and Sam chose the right move. He also won the sprint competition on the day so things were going well for us at that point. Unfortunately we had some bad luck when Nathan and Charles were involved in earlier crashes. We’ll have to assess them and see of they can start the following races this week.”

Matyas Kopecky:

“I knew I had good form and I came here with a positive mindset to do well. Having Sam in the break meant we could relax a little bit. He got the sprint jersey year which is super impressive from him because this was not an easy race. When the chase to bring the break back started properly, you could sense there was a lot of nervousness in the bunch with through the technical parcous. There were so many crashes.”

“I stayed calm in the final and made sure I was always close to the front following the wheels when the attacks and counterattacks took place. I had such good legs on the last climb. Unfortunately I lost some positions in the last corner when things bunched up and I had to dig deep to come from far back in the sprint. It was another good start for us but we’re searching for the podium. In general, we did really well as a team here now it’s time to recover before we go in three days again.”

Sam Brand

“We wanted to have someone represented in the front today. I was happy to force the move and when we went, the peloton was content with our combination. We worked well together. With the small technical roads of today, it was actually less stressful being in the front than being in the peloton. I thought I’d give it a crack in the sprints as I was feeling good. I’m so happy to represent the team on the podium afterwards. With Matyas sneaking in for a top 10, it was a good day for us.”