Team Argos-Shimano Vuelta a Espa単a Guide 2013
Welcome Iwan Spekenbrink
After winning stages at both the Giro d'Italia and Tour de France, we are of course aiming for further success at the Vuelta a España. We are heading to one of the biggest races of the year with a strong team featuring a balance between experienced riders and young talents. We have worked hard to prepare for this event using our 1t4i approach, which includes full coaching to help the riders train for the race and innovative scientific methods to get the maximum from our team. The development of our young riders is also extremely important. From the very beginning of this team we adopted a strategy of developing riders with intensive support from our coaching staff so they can grow into toplevel professionals. Several of our young talents have developed very well this year and have shown their potential, so they deserve their selection to participate in the Vuelta a España. Their selection is for both the present and the future: they will contribute to the team’s performance, and riding the Vuelta will support their development. Our history in this race gives us confidence that we will complete the last Grand Tour of this season successfully. We hope you will be entertained and inspired by our style of racing. Enjoy!
Race Preview Rudi Kemna
The decision has been made and the nine riders to represent Team Argos-Shimano at the 2013 Vuelta a España have now been chosen. It is a balanced team that includes both young and experienced riders, leaving Team Argos-Shimano ready to tackle all the challenges the 21stages can throw at them. “We will be looking for stage wins in the upcoming Vuelta a España. We head to Spain with a diverse young line-up with different riders who can be successful in both the flat and the hilly or mountainous stages,” said coach Rudi Kemna ahead of the Vuelta. “For the flat stages we have fast guys like Ramon Sinkeldam, Reinardt Janse van Rensburg and Nikias Arndt who recently won a stage in the Arctic Tour of Norway. “This year’s Vuelta parcours is very tough with several uphill finishes and we are prepared for these with talented riders Warren Barguil and Georg Preidler who can handle themselves in these kind of stages. By using an offensive strategy they can show the progress we have made with them this season. "The more experienced riders in the team like Johannes Frohlinger, Tom Peterson, Tom Stamsnijder and Thierry Hupond, are eager to look for chances to get into the breaks or to support the team as best as possible." “We have three young talents with fast legs in the team who will be targeting the flat stages and the undulating ones too.
"Ramon Sinkeldam, who will lead for some of the flat stages, has made huge progress this season, Something he already showed at the beginning of the season in the classics, something reflected in his results in the sprints in Belgium and the Netherlands. Ramon can read the finish perfectly and is of great value to the team. Nikias Arndt will also be a sprinter in the flat stages, but also for hillier stages. He displayed his talent in the Arctic Race of Norway when he beat some top class sprinters to the line and took his first professional victory. Reinardt Janse van Rensburg will sprint in the rolling stages where Nikias will suffer, as he can survive the tough stages and is still able to deliver a strong sprint. He had a difficult start to the season but since the Dauphine he has been back on track. He has won many races at continental level and he will have time to grow during the Vuelta. I expect to see some good things from those three sprinters. “Warren and Georg are our two young climbing talents. Warren has proven in previous years and at the Dauphine and Poland that he can grow into a very good GC rider, but we won’t aiming for a GC place with him as he is still very young and this will be his first Grand Tour. He will receive a free role in the mountain stages to take his chances for success. This Vuelta will be an investment for the future to see what a 21-stage race physically and mentally does to him.
Race Preview Rudi Kemna
“Georg will have the role of being an offensive rider in the mountain stages and will support the team in the sprint finishes. He has had a good season with some strong results so far. His focus is impressive, during a stage race he picks out certain stages where he wants to obtain a top result and nine times out of the ten it works for him; this is a valuable addition to the team and will be his goal during this Vuelta. “Johannes Fröhlinger will have the role as Team Captain during the Vuelta. This will be an important role as a young group needs a lot of guidance. With the help of the coaches he has developed himself in this role over the years and has the respect of all the riders. He can read the race very well and is able to make fast decisions in line with the team’s tactics. His personal goal is to get in a breakaway. “With two of the Tom’s in the team (Tom Stamsnijder and Tom Peterson) we have two very experienced riders. Tom Stamsnijder had a really good start this season but crashed in Dunkirk and was slowed with a broken shoulder. He will be eager to show himself this Vuelta. Tom Peterson is a rider who has a lot experience in Grand Tours, so together with the other experienced guys he will be helping the young riders to develop. But Tom P will also play an important role in the very difficult stages as he can handle these well. Thierry Hupond has also had a good season so far and carries the same value as the Toms.”
Story of Team Argos-Shimano
Since the start of the team in 2008, it has gone through a gradual growing process. Straight from the start the ‘founders’ of the team, Iwan Spekenbrink and Marloes Poelman, had a clear mission: To create a stable and perfect sporting environment for athletes so they can develop themselves and practise their sports with success at the highest level possible. “Already in the first year we worked on this mission through our core values, also known as the 1t4i philosophy,” said Marloes Poelman. “We had our own way of working and were also very focused to do this in a ‘clean’ way, especially as many people talked about doping after the 2008 Puerto Tour.” Iwan Spekenbrink reiterated this; “When we started there was a lot of talk about drugs, we wanted to do it differently, with a mission, vision and core values and according to strict ethical values. That year we recruited many young talents, riders who can develop in our team and want to work with our way of thinking. After all these years this is still the way we work and many of the talents are now riders who were part of the Vuelta success last year but also this year’s Tour de France success.”
2008 - We started the 1t4i project and made all the plans for the future. Scouting was a very important part of this. Some of the people we started with are still working in our organisation, an example is Rudi Kemna. It was a year of development and creating the right culture in our organisation. 2009 - We rode our first ‘Grand Tour’ this year. Receiving an invite felt like a big accomplishment for all the staff and riders. We also hired a professional trainer who trained all our athletes so we could supervise everything and develop the best sporting culture possible for our riders. 2010 - It was a disappointment this year that we didn’t participate in a Grand Tour. But even without riding a Grand Tour, the organisation grew that year, as the other years again, with more experts, staff and riders
Story of Team Argos-Shimano
2012 - During this year we saw that not only the ‘stars’ of the team won races but also other riders in other races. The width of the team has been developed further and also this year we grew as an organisation with more staff, riders and management. The sporting highlights were the five stage wins at the Vuelta with German John Degenkolb and as a result more and more people got to know our team. 2013 - Until now, short before the start of the Vuelta, we can’t complain at all with our breakthrough in not only the cycling world, but also the sporting world with Marcel’s four stage wins in the Tour de France - people are understanding and getting our message. People see our way of working and see that it works and believe in it. That people talk about the 1t4i principles is a great reward after many years of work with ups and downs, but we have always had faith in the way we work. 2011 - In this year we won the first stage in a Grand Tour (Vuelta), that was a very special experience as everybody in the team: staff, riders, management connected with each other whether they were in Spain or watching the race in front of the television. Everybody celebrated. We saw the guys who started in 2008 and had developed themselves through the years from young talents to established riders in the team.
Staff overview
 General Manager
Iwan Spekenbrink
Coaches
Marc Reef Rudi Kemna Jorn Knops
Trainer
Adriaan Helmantel
Medical
Edwin Achterberg Robert Kempers
Physiotherapists & Soigneurs
David Deroo Kevin Pfeifer Baptiste Bidorini Ignacio Rodriguez Michał Szyszkowski
Mechanics
Alex Ritze Tom Spekschoor Marcel van Rossum
Cook
Janneke Pieterson
Communications & Press
Geert Broekhuizen
Technical R&D
Tom Davids
Scientific Expert
Teun van Erp
Nutrition Expert
Rob van de Werf
Nikias Arndt
Sprinter. German. 18 December 1991. 188cm. 77kg. ‘I will be aiming to obtain some strong results and to develop myself into a better rider‘
When he was 12 years old he saw a group of young cyclists meet every Saturday in his village, then one day he decided to ask if he could join them and he never stepped off the bike again. Since then, he has joined Team Argos-Shimano, has discovered some new strengths that he is currently working on with the experts and coaches to develop. He feels good and safe at Team Argos-Shimano; “The most important thing in cycling is to be part of a team you can trust and that the team trusts you. It is important that they give you the possibility and time to develop and concentrate on the strengths of each individual. In our team I have the feeling that they give me the time I need and that they fully support my development.” Riding the Vuelta is already a big achievement for Nikias; “I was really eager to ride the Vuelta, I know it from seeing it on television and I am looking forward to taking part in this years edition. I will be aiming to successfully finishing the Vuelta, to obtain some strong results and to develop myself into a better rider.”
Warren Barguil Climber. French.
28 October 1991. 183cm. 60kg.
‘They give me the time, confidence and support to let me grow as GC rider’
Warren’s roots initially lie in BMXing. When he was a kid he was always riding and doing stunts on his BMX. But when he saw his father going for a ride with his friends, he joined them and never stepped on his BMX again. Warren is one of the most promising General Classification riders in France and has won already the biggest U23 race in the calendar: Tour de L’Avenir. Since 2011 Warren has been in contact with Team Argos-Shimano and has developed a lot: “I have developed both on and off the bike, the team has taught me to live like a professional. They give me the time, confidence and support to let me grow as a General Classification rider. The whole environment of the team is built to help the riders grow.” This will be Warren’s first Grand Tour. He will be aiming shine in the climbing stages and help the team were possible. But also his participant will be an investment in the future, to gain experience and strength, so he can grow as a rider and become a good GC rider in the years to come.
Johannes Fröhlinger Allround. German. 9 June 1985. 172cm. 60kg.
‘Cycling taught me to be structured and disciplined’
Johannes grew up in western Germany, in the Eifel region near the border with Belgium. His life changed quite a bit when he became a professional cyclist, when he learned to be structured and very disciplined. When he joined Team Argos-Shimano he was already quite a well-developed rider with team captaincy skills. The team is helping him to further improve his leadership skills and is supporting him and giving him the confidence he needs to grow into one of the best captains in the peloton. He enjoys the development process of the team, growing week-by-week and year-by-year. The 2007 Vuelta was his first Grand Tour in his career so he has some special memories from this race. This year he is eager to get into one of the successful breakaways and to contests a stage win. In addition to getting in the breaks, he will focus on being a guide for the younger riders and help them develop and to get through these weeks as a team captain.
Thierry Hupond
Allround. French. 10 December 1984. 178cm. 62kg.
‘The team has taught me everything about professional cycling’
Thierry started cycling in order to recover from an ankle injury that he got through playing football. After starting to ride, he couldn’t get enough of it and keep on going. This is his eighth season of being a professional cyclist but he has never won a race. In the Vuelta he hopes to change this and cross the finish line first after being in a successful break. He has been with the team from the start and has seen the development of both the team and himself: “I have seen the team growing through the years into a successful World Tour Team, winning stages in every Grand Tour. I have been part of this development and the team has taught me everything about professional cycling. Through the years I have gained a lot of experience and with the guidance of the team I have developed myself into a big team player.” After being part of the team’s success in last years edition, winning five stages, he hopes to win a stage himself this year.
Reinardt Janse van Rensburg Sprinter. South African. 3 February 1989. 181cm. 74kg.
‘I have improved physically and I am getting stronger and stronger.’
This young talent from South Africa needed to lie about his age to ride his first cycling event when he was 10 years old as he was too young to participate. When he was 13 he got his first real racing bike for Christmas and from then on he was unstoppable. Since he joining Team Argos-Shimano he has learned a lot about working in a lead-out train and how important teamwork is. About his development, he says; “I have already gained a lot of experience that will be useful in the future. Thanks to the specific training plans I have improved physically and I am getting stronger and stronger.” The great results of the South Africans in the Vuelta 2010 and 2011 truly inspired him and gave him a lot of hope to reach the absolute top. For Reinardt, this year the Vuelta will be about finishing and becoming a better rider. If he gets the chance he would like to get a top three result. Winning a stage in the Vuelta, one day, would be a dream come true.
Tom Peterson
Climber.American. 24 December 1986. 180cm. 70kg. ‘I will be aiming to help with the lead-out in the sprints and I will be eager to get in the breaks and contest a stage win’ Tom started his cycling career as mountain biker, but he enjoyed riding on the road more and started racing on his bike. To have a goal in life is why cycling appeals to this born climber. In his free time he still rides his mountain bike or watches cycling races on television. Although he has already been a professional for a long time, he hasn’t won many races and his best performance was a stage victory in the Tour of California. It is his first year with Team ArgosShimano and he has learnt to train using an SRM and he has also learnt some Dutch too. This will be his third participation in the Vuelta and all the younger riders can learn a lot from his experience and knowledge about Spain as he lives there. He will be aiming to help with the lead-out in the sprints and when the race becomes hillier he is eager to get in the breaks and contest a stage win.
Georg Preidler
Climber. Austrian. 17 Juni 1990. 189cm. 69kg.
‘I have learnt a lot of being a cyclist on and off the bike’
His cycling career started in his father’s garage where he found an old road bike. He fixed it, made it rideable and took it out for a couple of rides. He loved it straightaway and joined a local cycling club where started joining the group rides every Sunday. The guys that he rode with were always telling him that he was a good rider and advised him to do some races, and so it begun. He enjoys being in the team: “I have already learnt a lot, not only about training but also about nutrition and other aspects of being a cyclist on and off the bike. In the winter we spent a lot of time at our training base in the Altea Hills where we worked with all the experts to make a balanced training schedule and nutrition schedule to improve my climbing and it has been working out, I am already a lot stronger.” This will be Georg’s first Grand Tour and he expects to have some great memories afterwards. He will be aiming to get in the breakaways that make it to the finish and of course he hopes to cross the finish line in Madrid.
Ramon Sinkeldam
Sprinter. Dutch. 19 Feburary 1989. 193cm. 75kg.
‘I hope to have a chance to show my progress in some of the sprint stages’
Ramon started his cycling career on a mountain bike, riding on Saturday’s with his father after playing football so he could use up all his energy. He started to do some races on the mountain, cross and road bikes and never returned to playing football. After a few years he stopped the MTB and fully focused on the road and with immediate success as he won many races. Ramon joined Team Argos-Shimano in 2012 and the team has taught him that being a cyclist can be both demanding but also very fun at the same time. He came to the team as an all-rounder rider, but through analysis, tests and training plans with the experts and coaches he has become a specialist in both being a sprinter, classic and leadout rider. This will be his first Vuelta and Grand Tour of his career and he is looking forward to it: “I am excited to start and see how I will make it through three weeks of racing, my first goal is to make it to Madrid and be of value to the team. I hope to have a chance to show my progress in some of the sprint stages to set a good result there.”
Tom Stamsnijder
Rouleur. Dutch. 15 May 1985. 191cm. 80kg.
‘I am keen to be very visible in the Vuelta’
Although his dad was a former Cyclocross World Champion, Tom didn’t start cycling straight away when he was younger and it was a knee injury from football that brought him into the sport. Since that day, Tom has made a name for himself in the cycling world. Tom joined Team Argos-Shimano in 2012 after having been a professional cyclist already for five years. His most important lesson since joining the team is the importance of teamwork: “I have learned and seen what teamwork really means and how individuals become better through being a part of the team and riding as a team and can achieve results they never even dreamed of. I have also developed as a person through the 1t4i principles, I understand, believe and live by them.” Tom isn’t unaccustomed to bad luck, having had a bad injury last season that cost him a couple of months. Then this season he broke his shoulder meaning that he was forced to sit on the couch and watch the races from the side-lines. Therefore he is especially keen to be very visible in the Vuelta and support the team during this Grand Tour. He is also one of the most experienced riders and has already finished second in a stage of the Vuelta.
Vuelta a Espana 2013
Race start: 24.08.2013 Race finish: 15.09.2013 Start town: Vilano de Arousa Finish town: Madrid
Route Map Stage
Date
Start & Finish
Distance
1.
24.08.2013
Vilanova de Arousa > Sanxenxo
27
2.
25.08.2013
Pontevedra > Baiona. Alto Do Monte Da Groba
176.8
3.
26.08.2013
Vigo > Mirador de Lobeira / Vilagarcía de Arousa
172.5
4.
27.08.2013
Lalín/a Estrada > Finisterra. Etapa Fin del Mundo
186.4
5.
28.08.2013
Sober > Lago de Sanabria
168.4
6.
29.08.2013
GuiThulo > Cáceres
177.3
7.
30.08.2013
Almendralejo > Mairena de Aljarafe
195.5
8.
31.08.2013
Jerez de la Frontera > Estepona. Alto Peñas Blancas
170
9.
01.09.2013
Antequera > Valdepeñas de Jaén
174.3
10.
02.09.2013
Torredelcampo > Güéjar Sierra. Alto Hazallanas
175.5
11.
04.09.2013
Tarazona > Tarazona
38
12.
05.09.2013
Maella > Tarragona
157
13.
06.09.2013
Valls > Castelldefels
165
14.
07.09.2013
Bagà > Andorra. Collada de la Gallina
164
15.
08.09.2013
Andorra > Peyragudes
232.5
16.
09.09.2013
Graus > Sallent de Gállego. Aramón Formigal
147.7
17.
11.09.2013
Calahorra > Burgos
184.5
18.
12.09.2013
Burgos > Peña Cabarga
186
19.
13.09.2013
S. Vicente Barquera > Oviedo.Alto Naranco
177.5
20.
14.09.2013
Avilés > Alto de L´Angliru
144.1
21.
15.09.2013
Leganés > Madrid
99.1
Victories Team Argos-Shimano 2013 1 x Stage Arctic Race of Norway (2.1) 4x Stage Tour de France (WT) 1x Stage SterZLM Tour (2.1) Garmin Pro Race Berlin (1.1) General Classification Tour de Picardie (2.1) 2x Stage Tour de Picardie (2.1) 1x Stage Giro (WT) 3x Stage Tour of Turkey (2.HC) Scheldeprijs (1.HC) 1x Stage Volta Ciclista a Catalunya (WT) 1x Stage Paris-Nice (WT) 1x Stage Tour of Oman (2.HC) 2012 Grans Prix d’Isbergues (1.1) 5x Stage Vuelta a Espana (WT) 2x Stage Eneco Tour (WT) 1x Prologue Vuelta a Andalucia (2.1) 2x Stage Tour of Hainan (2.HC) Sparkassen Münsterland Giro (1.1) Omloop van het Houtland (1.1) 1x Stage Tour de Pologne (WT) 1x Stage Ster ZLM Toer GP Jan van Heeswijk (2.1) General Classification Tour de Picardie (2.1) 2x Stage Tour de Picardie (2.1) 2x Stage Jours de Dunkerque National Championships Japan - Road Race (NC) Scheldeprijs (1.HC) 1x Stage Driedaagse De Panne-Koksijde (2.HC) 2x Stage Tour Of Oman (2.HC) 1x Stage Etoile de Bessèges (2.1)
2011 4x Stage Tour of Hainan (2.HC) 4x Stage Tour de Pologne (WT) 2 x Stage Jayco Herald Sun Tour (2.1) Sparkassen Münsterland Giro (1.1) 1x Stage Tour de Wallonie Picarde (2.1) Kampioenschap Van Vlaanderen (1.1) 1st Memorial Rik Van Steenbergen (1.1) 1x Stage Vuelta a Espana (WT) 1x Stage -Tour of Austria (2.HC) Halle-ingooigem (1.1) General Classification Delta Tour Zeeland (2.1) 1x Stage Delta Tour Zeeland (2.1) Prorace Berlin (1.1) 4x Stage 4 Jours de Dunkerque (2.HC) 1x Stage Presidential Cycling Tour of Turkey (2.HC) General Classification Ronde van Drenthe (2.1) 2x Stage Ronde van Drenthe (2.1) 1x Stage Critérium International (2.HC) 1x Stage Tour De Langkawi (2.HC)
Victories Team Argos-Shimano 2010 4x Tour Of Hainan (2.HC) 1x 34th Route Du Sud - La Dépêche Du Midi (2.1) 2x Stage Delta Tour Zeeland (2.1) 2x Stage Tour of Belgium (2.HC) 1x Stage 31st Bayern-Rundfahrt (2.HC) 1x Stage 64th Tour De Picardie (2.1) Ronde van Overijssel (1.2) Ronde van Noord-Holland (1.2) Hel van het Mergelland (1.1) 1x Stage Driedaagse van West-Vlaanderen (2.1)
2009 1x Stage Tour Of Qinghai Lake (2.HC) 1x Stage Delta Tour Zeeland (2.1) Tour De Rijke (1.1) Dutch Food Valley Classic (1.HC) Batavus Prorace (1.1) 1x Stage 4 Jours de Dunkerque / Tour du Nordpas-de-Calais (2.HC) Ronde van Overijssel (1.2)
2008 1x Stage Tour de L’Ain (2.1) 1x Stage Delta Tour Zeeland (2.1) 1x Stage Tour de Picardie (2.1) Ronde van Noord-Holland (1.1)
MPCC
Ethics is one of the core values of Team Argos-Shimano. The team is one of the early members of the MPCC (Mouvement pour un Cyclisme Crédible – Movement for Credible Cycling), which was established by a number of French and German ProTour teams during the 2007 Tour de France. Team Argos-Shimano joined in 2008. The MPCC consists of 11 teams, with 6 additional teams on probation. The members dedicate themselves to strict compliance with the ethical code of the MPCC, whose rules are more rigorous than the UCI rules. “The MPCC’s member teams apply stringent internal rules and guidelines to strengthen the credibility of the team and thus also of cycling in general. In doing so we take responsibility ourselves, thus contributing to a clean sport,” says Iwan Spekenbrink, general manager of Team Argos-Shimano and MPCC’s vice president.
1t4i Guidelines
In 2008, team manager and owner Iwan Speken-brink founded Team Argos-Shimano, previous Skil-Shimano. Spekenbrink has a clear vision for the future of the team: ‘To create the best sporting environment for cyclist possible, through the 1t4i mission, vision and core values’. This vision, mission and core values have resulted in a number of guidelines to which we refer as ‘1t4i’ (1 x t and 4 x i). 1t4i stands for Team spirit, Inspiration, Improvement, Integrity and Innovation. We expect our riders and staff to operate in compliance with these guidelines, and also the organisation and the team as a whole are expected to act in line with 1t4i. Next, an important sports-related component improvement. Throughout the year special attention is paid to working (together) optimally – fully aimed at achieving sporting progress and further strengthening the team – and to the way of working and collaboration, including the intentions and attitudes that are displayed. We believe that in doing so we will create a perfect sporting environment with intensive and innovative support in many areas and with internal processes that are entirely aimed at translating far-reaching and innovative expertise into optimal functionality for our athletes, using the technologically most advanced materials and outfit, so that our athletes and staff are supported, motivated and challenged to grow and to play a leading role at the highest level as a team.
Join us!
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Colofon & Contact
 Colofon Editorial
Marit Huisman Tom Copeland
Photography
Cor Vos Team Argos-Shimano
Concept
Geert Broekhuizen Marit Huisman
Graphic Design & Lay-out
Davy Roox Martijn Leenaers
Contact media Marketing & Communications
Geert Broekhuizen +31 6 10122304 Media@1t4i.com
The content of this magazine is the original and copyrighted work of Team Argos-Shimano unless otherwise attributed. No copyright is claimed on non-original or licensed material. Team ArgosShimano has made every effort to give proper credit where necessary. However, if you believe any of this material is yours or is being used inappropriately, please contact us so the situation can be addressed immediately.
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