Dubai Tour

(Photos: ©TDWSport)

Race: Dubai Tour, Stage 1

Start/Finish: Dubai/Palm Jumeirah, UAE

Distance: 181 kilometers

Palm Jumeirah, UAE — Two Team Novo Nordisk neo-pro’s made their professional debuts on Stage 1 of the Dubai Tour: Frenchman Quentin Valognes and Italian Umberto Poli.

From the start, Tuesday’s 181-kilometer race served as the ideal stage for a final bunch sprint. Racing under clear skies, a five-man break escaped early into the stage and built up a maximum gap of 4:23. With 10-km remaining, the escapees were caught and the peloton started to increase its pace leading into the finish on the Palm Jumeirah. Throughout the high-speed, hectic finish, Valognes stayed on the wheel of teammate Charles Planet as they fought for position against 10 World Tour teams. In the finish, Marcel Kittel (Quick-Step Floors) took the win with Planet and Valognes coming in 26^th and 27^th, respectively.

Quentin Valognes

“I learned that we can do it and it’s possible to be up there during a bunch sprint against teams and riders of this caliber. I know we need more experience and I definitely made some mistakes, but my takeaway today is that is possible for me to be there.”

Team Novo Nordisk General Manager Vassili Davidenko

“Year-by-year, it is very noticeable that this team is getting better. They raced today as a team and together fought for top position at the front of the peloton against some very strong riders. They have earned their respect and I am really proud of how today went.”

Team Novo Nordisk continues racing at the Dubai Tour on Wednesday with Stage 2. The flat 186-km race begins at the Dubai International Marine Club and finishes in the Emirate’s capital.

Gallery:

Results: 

• 1^st: Marcel Kittel (Quick-Step Floors): 4:06:33
• 2^nd: Dylan Groenewegen (Team LottoNL-Jumbo): same time as Kittel
• 3^rd: Mark Cavendish (Dimension Data): same time as Kittel

Team Novo Nordisk Results: 

• Charles Planet: 26^th: same time as Kittel
• Quentin Valognes: 27^th: same time as Kittel
• David Lozano: 57^th: same time as Kittel
• Joonas Henttala: 59^th: same time as Kittel
• Stephen Clancy: 68^th: same time as Kittel
• Umberto Poli: 86^th: same time as Kittel
• Chris Williams: 98^th: 1:37 behind Kittel
• Gerd de Keijzer: 99^th: 1:37 behind Kittel

(Photos: ©TDWSport)

(Photos: ©TDWSport)

Race: Dubai Tour, Stage 2

Start/Finish: Dubai/Ras Al Khaimah, UAE

Distance: 186 kilometers

Ras Al Khaimah, UAE — Wednesday’s 186-kilometer Stage 2 of the Dubai Tour was another flat race designed for the sprinters.

A five-man breakaway escaped before the day’s first intermediate sprint with escapee Jempy Drucker (BMC Racing Team) taking top honors through the sprint. The group built a maximum gap of around 4:30 minutes and Drucker took top honors through the second and final intermediate sprint. The Luxembourgish cyclist then dropped back to the peloton, leaving a four-man break off the front. This group was caught inside the final ten kilometers. In a fast run into the finish, which saw World Tour sprint trains battling it out for position, Marcel Kittel (Quick-Step Floors) took top honors for the second consecutive day. Quentin Valognes finished as Team Novo Nordisk’s best-placed rider in 28^th position.

Charles Planet

“We worked for Quentin again today because it is his first race at this level and he’s a good sprinter. We stayed together the whole day and at the end, we were pulling hard well for him. It was really fast at the end and I went full gas when I could find a gap but we ended up getting separated. Tomorrow is another sprint day, so another opportunity for Quentin. It is his first race, and we all know this race is a solid learning opportunity for him.”

Team Novo Nordisk General Manager Vassili Davidenko

“Today wasn’t much different from yesterday–our goal was to protect Quentin. This went well until the end of the race when there was a sharp right and then sharp left turn. This split the guys up and Quentin ended up all alone.

The speed is incredibly high here in Dubai and we are racing against the best sprinters in the world. We are a young team, and we are here to support Quentin. It is his first professional stage race. We know he is a neo-pro and still needs to learn a lot but we are fully behind him as our sprinter. Tomorrow, our goal will be to get a rider into the breakaway.”

Team Novo Nordisk continues racing at the Dubai Tour on Thursday with Stage 3. The 200-km sprint stage begins at the Dubai International Marine Club, runs across the desert between Dubai and Fujairah and finishes in Al Aqah along the Gulf of Oman.

Gallery:

Results: 

• 1^st: Marcel Kittel (Quick-Step Floors): 4:25:33
• 2^nd: Dylan Groenewegen (Team LottoNL-Jumbo): same time as Kittel
• 3^rd: Jakub Mareczko (Wilier Triestina): same time as Kittel

Team Novo Nordisk Results: 

• Quentin Valognes: 28^th: same time as Kittel
• Umberto Poli: 55^th: same time as Kittel
• Chris Williams: 64^th: same time as Kittel
• Charles Planet: 65^th: same time as Kittel
• Joonas Henttala: 66^th: same time as Kittel
• David Lozano: 83^rd: same time as Kittel
• Stephen Clancy: 92^nd: same time as Kittel
• Gerd de Keijzer: 104^th: 0:30 behind Kittel

(Photos: ©TDWSport)

(Photos: ©TDWSport)

Race: Dubai Tour, Stage 3

Start/Finish: Dubai/Al Aqah, UAE

Distance: 200 kilometers

Al Aqah, UAE — Stage 3 of the Dubai Tour appeared to be a simple sprint stage, but strong crosswinds and sandstorms made a more dynamic race than expected. The chaotic day served as a learning experience for Team Novo Nordisk.

From the start of the 200-kilometer race, the winds made it extremely hard for a break to escape. Team Novo Nordisk riders were seen in every attack, but after nearly an hour of trying, the world’s first all-diabetes pro cycling team was boxed in when the successful attack went.

The four-man breakaway quickly gained nearly six minutes when strong side winds created sand storms and caused several crashes throughout the peloton. This triggered multiple echelons to form. The race was briefly neutralized to allow for the winds and sands to calm down and all the groups came back together. The breakaway was caught inside the final four kilometers leading to a fast bunch sprint with John Degenkolb (Trek-Segafredo) taking the win.

Joonas Henttala

“I followed the first attack and we went full gas for five to 10 minutes. I was told the whole peloton was chasing like crazy. Once they brought us back, I wasn’t able to cover any of the other moves because my legs were gassed.

It was a hard day of racing with the crosswinds, sandstorms and then a fast final. The sand started about 50-60 km into the race, and after we had taken a right turn, the crosswinds splintered the peloton into pieces.”

Team Novo Nordisk General Manager Vassili Davidenko

“Today’s race was extremely unique and we’ve never raced in conditions like this before. When the sand and crosswinds hit the race, it blew the peloton apart. Our guys tried to stay together, but it is very challenging to stay together in winds like that.

This is a young team and every day we learn and gain more experience. Overall, the guys handled the chaos well and were able to regroup in time for the finish. The finish had a few hills leading up to it, so it wasn’t ideal for Quentin.

What made the day even more difficult was that our riders were trying to figure out how to handle this unique situation while surrounded by so many more experienced World Tour riders. They fought the whole day; if you aren’t fighting, you aren’t surviving a day like today. This morning, our goals were to get into the break and take on the sprint finish. Neither happened, but I’m still very proud of how we raced today.”

Medical Update—Dr. Peter Lagrou

Stephen Clancy crashed follow the feed zone. He was transported to the hospital as a precaution but all tests were negative and he was released.

Gallery:

Results: 

• 1^st: John Degenkolb (Trek-Segafredo): 4:03:08
• 2^nd: Reinardt Janse Van Rensburg (Dimension Data): same time as Degenkolb
• 3^rd: Sonny Colbrelli (Bahrain Merida Pro Cycling Team): same time as Degenkolb

Team Novo Nordisk Results: 

• Quentin Valognes: 33^rd: same time as Degenkolb
• Charles Planet: 44^th: same time as Degenkolb
• Joonas Henttala: 64^th: same time as Degenkolb
• David Lozano: 68^th: 0:13 behind Degenkolb
• Chris Williams: 102^nd: 1:18 behind Degenkolb
• Gerd de Keijzer: 113^rd: 2:21 behind Degenkolb
• Umberto Poli: 118^th: 3:01 behind Degenkolb
• Stephen Clancy: DNF

(Photo: ©TDWSport)

(Photos: ©TDWSport)

Race: Dubai Tour, Stage 4

Start/Finish: Hatta Stadium/Hatta Dam, Dubai

Distance: 109km

Hatta Dam, Dubai — Heavy winds and poor visibility led race organizers to cancel stage four at the Dubai Tour on Friday, sending Team Novo Nordisk and the rest of the peloton back to their hotels as sandstorms swept across the United Arab Emirates.

After Thursday’s stage three was partly disrupted by extreme weather, organizers RCS met with all team directors in the evening to discuss and agree on a shortened Queen stage to Hatta Dam on Friday in anticipation of the expected heavy winds. On Friday morning riders from all 16 teams met in Dubai to sign on at the race headquarters, but departed for Hatta Stadium in vehicles instead of on their bikes to race an abbreviated 109km with an uphill finish.

Once at the new race start riders, managers and race organizers met with security officials to discuss further changes, as winds in the open desert were gusting steadily at more than 70km per hour. Civil authorities in Dubai updated their weather warning scale from yellow to orange, and all parties involved agreed to invoke the UCI’s extreme weather protocol and cancel stage four of the Dubai Tour.

Team Novo Nordisk wishes to thank the organizers and all race officials for the difficult but correct choice on Friday, and we look forward to Saturday’s fifth and final stage at the Dubai Tour.

Team Novo Nordisk General Manager Vassili Davidenko

“We all wanted to race when we woke up this morning, but there’s no arguing with mother nature. The winds in the desert were so strong, and visibility was so low that it was dangerous for everyone; riders, motorcycles, team cars and the security escorts. Thank you RCS for the open and transparent communication and decision-making process in the last two days, we are grateful for your care and consideration in such a difficult task.”

Gallery:

(Photos: ©TDWSport)

Race: Dubai Tour, Stage 5

Start/Finish: Dubai International Marine Club/Dubai City Walk, UAE

Distance: 124 kilometers 

Dubai, UAE — Saturday’s final stage of the Dubai Tour was a classic route that wove the peloton through the old and new sections of Dubai. A four-man breakaway escaped relatively early into the 124-kilometer stage and built up an ample gap. Team Novo Nordisk was on the front and helped bring back this quartet, which was caught inside the final 10-km. Heading into the finish along Dubai City Walk, the World Tour sprint trains battled it out for position with Marcel Kittel (Quick-Step Floors) winning his third stage of the race and securing the overall race victory.

Quentin Valognes (who was the youngest rider in the 2017 Dubai Tour) finished as Team Novo Nordisk’s best-placed rider on the stage and 11th overall in the Best Young Rider classification, out of nearly 50 riders. Team Novo Nordisk finished 8th in team general classification.

Quentin Valognes

“This is a new kind of cycling for me, so I didn’t know where I would be or how I would do. My first goal in Dubai was to be the best I could be, but on the first day, I saw that without a team it was impossible. So we started working on the train, and day-by-day, step-by-step, we got better. If you watch the race you can see the first day was chaotic, the second day better, the third day a little better still, and today was really great. My teammates did exactly what we planned to do, and I now see how hard it is in the finish and what I can do myself to improve.”

Chris Williams

“We tried to get Quentin to the front before the U-turn at 15km to go because after that there were crosswinds and everyone was trying to move up in the gutter, which is really dangerous. We had six guys together when we came out of that turn. We’re learning to trust each other, not lose wheels and if it doesn’t work out in the end, it doesn’t work out. We leave trusting each other more, learned more and it’ll pay off one day.”

Team Novo Nordisk General Manager Vassili Davidenko

“We definitely learned a lot during this race, especially when it came to racing in the wind. This was a good first race for Quentin, who is the youngest rider in the race, because it was flat and allowed him to learn how to race at these speeds in the peloton. We hoped for a better place, but again, we are a young team. The guys worked on racing together as a team, rode all together throughout the race, protected their sprinter and helped him in the finish of each stage. We are leaving with better knowledge and experience.”

Team Novo Nordisk, the world’s first all-diabetes pro cycling team, returns to racing on February 12^th with the Italian one-day race, Trofeo Laigueglia.

Gallery:

Results: 

• 1^st: Marcel Kittel (Quick-Step Floors): 2:34:12
• 2^nd: Elia Viviani (Team Sky): same time as Kittel
• 3^rd: Riccardo Minali (Astana Pro Team): same time as Kittel

Team Novo Nordisk Results: 

• Quentin Valognes: 34^th: 0:06 behind Kittel
• Charles Planet: 47^th: 0:06 behind Kittel
• Joonas Henttala: 52^nd: 0:06 behind Kittel
• David Lozano: 54^th: 0:06 behind Kittel
• Umberto Poli: 64^th: 0:14 behind Kittel
• Gerd de Keijzer: 96^th: 1:07 behind Kittel
• Chris Williams: 112^nd: 2:16 behind Kittel

(Photos: ©TDWSport)