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Q36.5 Pro Cycling Team takes on the Volta a la Comunitat Valenciana
The European racing season is about to kick off for Q36.5 Pro Cycling Team as we line-up for the second year in a row at the Volta a la Comunitat Valenciana. The five-stage battle, commencing on January 31st and concluding on February 4th, promises to be a thrilling week of racing!
29 January 2024.
With a motivated and versatile squad, Q36.5 Pro Cycling Team is ready to make waves in Spain, fight for stage wins and a good overall result.
Newcomers Jannik Steimle and James Whelan will make their debuts in Q36.5 Pro Cycling Team colours and are set to leave their mark, with Whelan expressing his eagerness to hit the Spanish roads for the first time.
“I’m really looking forward to my first European Stage-race with the team,” says Whelan. “I came out of the January training camp in Calpe in great shape and I’m excited to climb with the best in the world next week, in Valencia. Stages 1, 2 and 4 look like potential GC days and these are the ones I will target, specially Stage 4 which we were able to do the recon during our training camp in Spain this month. It’s a really hard final and has all the ingredients of a big GC day. Stages 3 and 5 appear to be more suited to the sprinters. We have a good team with riders healthy and in great condition after the training camp. The hard work has been done, the motivation is high and the opportunity to perform is there. Remarkably it will be my first time racing in Spain and in the Valencia region and I’m very much looking forward to it. This is one of the hardest early season stage races so it will be a great opportunity to see where my legs are at.”
Adding climbing firepower to the team are Carl Fredrik Hagen and Negasi Haylu Abreha, creating a diverse roster completed by Spanish neo-pro Marcel Camprubí and Canadian National Road Champion Nick Zukowsky.
The Volta a la Comunitat Valenciana offers a dynamic route, providing opportunities for climbers, puncheurs, and sprinters to showcase their skills under the Spanish sun. The challenging opening stage, featuring three categorized climbs and a sprinter-shedding summit, sets the tone for an exciting week of racing.
Stage 2, while favorable to sprinters, incorporates a Poggio di Sanremo-like ascent, adding a twist with a technical descent leading to a thrilling finale. Stage 3, the only chance for pure sprinters, promises a regular bunch sprint at Orihuela.
The penultimate day brings the queen stage, concluding at Vall d’Ebo, a familiar location for the pro peloton and for our team who has trained on these roads during the January training camp. With 3600 meters of climbing and a decisive hilltop finish, Stage 4 is sure to create significant differences in the overall standings.
The race organizers have brought back the challenging Stage 5, with a brutal first half featuring a climb of 5 kilometers at 9.3%. Overall classification contenders will be on the attack, navigating a pan-flat second half into Valencia, creating intriguing dynamics.
As Q36.5 Pro Cycling Team takes on this early-season challenge, the squad’s hard work, high motivation, and the opportunity to shine at the Volta a la Comunitat Valenciana awaits.
Q36.5 Pro Cycling Team Roster – Volta a la Comunitat Valenciana:
Negasi Haylu Abreha
Marcel Camprubí
Carl Fredrik Hagen
Jannik Steimle
Nicoló Parisini
James Whelan
Nick Zukowksy
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