The Tour de l´Avenir, with four riders forged at the Polartec-Kometa

Tour de l´Avenir (France)
From 17 to 26 August

This Friday begins in a new edition of the Tour del Porvenir, the Tour de France for the youngest riders, where up to four of the Polartec-Kometa squad will start this season with their respective national teams. The Andalusian Juan Pedro López, who is making his debut with the Spanish national team, the Luxembourger Michel Ries, the Austrian Patrick Gamper and the Dutchman Kevin Inkelaar will compete on the French roads in the next few days.

Ries arrives at the French event after starting his period as a stagiaire with the Trek-Segafredo in the recent Tour of Utah, where he finished in twenty-ninth place and in ninth place in the youth classification. I think my form is good after this week’s Tour of Utah. I worked hard for the team, but I might be eligible for some good results. Unfortunately I don’t return to Europe until Tuesday, so I have a few days to recover from the jetlag, altitude and efforts of the American race, as the Tour del Porvenir starts on Friday”.

“I hope to be able to make a good general classification during these ten days in France. Last year I finished nineteenth in this race in my first year as an U23 rider, so I am very motivated to do even better this year and to achieve a good final classification,” said the Luxembourger, who was a brilliant top ten rider in the last edition of the Giro Baby, from American soil.

Patrick Gamper, for his part, has reached the great stage race of the U23 course after an outstanding performance in the Vuelta a Burgos with the Polartec-Kometa. Gamper returns to a race in which he took the lead for two days in 2017 and caressed his success in Ambroise, where he finished second. “Burgos has been a great experience after only competing with my team for a while. I think the Vuelta a Burgos was perfect for the team because of Matteo Moschetti’s victory and the team’s presence in the race. I’m in good shape right now and I’m ready to make an active career and help my team-mates”.

Juan Pedro López, a great climber, will be one of the assets of the Spanish national team against a route that will have its zenith in the foothills of the Col du Glandon (in Sant-Colomban-des-Villards, in particular) after four final days with much prominence of the mountain and a commitment to chained on short routes. The Méribel stage, the first alpine poker stage, will be less than 40 km long. On the last day, the day reigns: a pass through the Col del Iseran (2764 metres), a long descent, the climb to the demanding Chaussy and the arrival at Sant-Colomban.

The Sevillian arrives recovered from his recent fall in Burgos. And with a lot of motivation, as this is his first career with the national team. “I’m really looking forward to doing it right. I’ve never been with the national team and it’s a very nice thing for me. On top of that, making my debut in the best under23 race in the world…. I think I’m in good shape despite the bad day in Burgos. But that’s already forgotten. Now it’s time to do well and, above all, enjoy the race,” said Lebrija.

“I’m looking forward to it,” says Kevin Inkelaar from the Netherlands, second this season in the last Giro d´Aosta. “I am very motivated and I hope to do very well, because it is a very important race and I want to be in front”.

The stages.
17 August: Gran-Champ – Elven (132.5 km).
18 August: Drefféac – Châteaubriant (137.6 km).
19 August: Le Lude – Châteaudu (165.8 km).
20 August: Orléans – Orléans (20.2 km CRE).
21 August: Beaugency – Levroux (130.4 km).
22 August: Le Blanc – Cérilly (183.5 km).
23 August: Moutiers – Meribel (35.3 km).
24 August: Le Bathie – Crest-Voland Cohennoz (106 km).
25 August: Séez – Val d´Isere (89 km).
26 August: Val d´Isere – Saint-Colomban des Villards (150.8 km).

(automatic traslation, sorry for mistakes)