Polartec-Kometa before the Klasika de Primavera
64th Klasika Primavera
Amorebieta-Amorebieta (171.6 km)
Milan-Sanremo, pure mysticism, is known as ‘La Primavera’ (“The Spring”) because of its location on the calendar and its proximity to the changing seasons. Since 1946 the spanish calendar also has its own ‘Spring’, although it takes place a few weeks later and is based on the first days of April, depending on the desing of the calendar. An event that will be the next challenge of the continental Polartec-Kometa: the Amorebieta Klasika Primavera.
The basque race will be held this Sunday on a demanding 171.6 kilometre track which, as a novelty for 2018, and after the completion of some road works, will recover the triple pass through a final circuit that includes the ascents to Montecalvo (Muniketagane, 380 metres, 2nd category) and Autzagane (3rd, 230 metres), the latter 4.5 kilometres from the finish line. In Amorebieta, Miguel Ángel Ballesteros, Juan Camacho, Isaac Cantón, Awet Habtom, Kevin Inkelaar, Wilson Pena and Diego Pablo Sevilla will race it. The event presents an additional feature for the formation, as several of the squad competing with their teams the day before, Saturday, in the 166km, five sections of cobblestone and seventeen walls (not to mention the Kapelmuur, the Oude Kwaremont or the Paterberg) of the Tour de Flanders U-23. And then, flight to Bilbao, rest and all ready for a scheduled departure around 09:15 (and arrival around 13:30).
Jesús Hernández, director: “The objective of races like Amorebieta or, recently, Estella, is very different from the one that presents events like Normandy where you do have a real chance of success. These are WorldTour team races, with top-level riders like Alejandro Valverde, top-level cyclists where we don’t have the pressure to win. Our objective is to go to learn and enjoy, to let ourselves be seen and to work as a team. In addition, we have the travel handicap that several riders have to do from the Tour of Flanders, which is always an extra effort”.
(automatic translation, sorry for any inaccuracies)
