Tour of Turkey: All eyes on the BORA - hansgrohe sprint train

The Tour of Turkey has traditionally been a favourable race for BORA - hansgrohe. The goal for this year’s edition (April 21st to 28th) is to further improve this record.

One overall victory, a second place, and a total of seven stage wins – that’s the impressive record of BORA - hansgrohe in the last five editions of the Tour of Turkey. The goal for this year’s race is to further improve these statistics. Bernhard Eisel, who is the sports director in Turkey, is optimistic that the WorldTeam from Raubling will put on a strong showing once again. “The race is a test for our sprint train – accordingly, we are well-prepared. And since this year’s route includes several flat stages, we definitely aim to compete for stage victories,” he says.

Among others, BORA - hansgrohe is sending Sam Welsford, one of the strongest sprinters of the current WorldTour season, to the Bosporus. The Australian kicked off the season with three stage wins at the Tour Down Under and recently demonstrated his good form with a seventh-place finish at the Scheldeprijs. Also on the start list is the fast-finishing classics specialist Danny van Poppel (Netherlands), who recently placed third at the one-day race Classic Brugge-De Panne. Supporting these two sprinters will be Ryan Mullen (Ireland), Frederik Wandahl (Denmark), Luis-Joe Lührs (Germany), Alexander Hajek (Austria), and Filip Maciejuk (Poland).

Analysing the stage profiles, at least half of the eight stages of the Tour of Türkiye 2024 are expected to finish with a bunch sprint. For Bernhard Eisel, these are ideal conditions to test the sprint train around Welsford and Van Poppel in race action. “The competition is strong. Nevertheless, we aim to win stages,” says Eisel. However, the Sports Director also emphasises that results are not the only focus in Turkey: “When it comes to the sprint and the sprint preparation, details are crucial. Thus, we plan to use the stages to enhance our fine-tuning,” he mentions, indicating that detailed analyses and meetings will surround the races. Eisel: “We had a good start at the Tour Down Under earlier this year, and we hope to continue that momentum here.”
 

BORA - hansgrohe at the Tour of Turkey 2024

MACIEJUK Filip (Polen)
HAJEK Alexander (Österreich)
WELSFORD Sam (Australien)
LÜHRS Luis-Joe (Deutschland)
MULLEN Ryan (Irland)
VAN POPPEL Danny (Niederlande)
WANDAHL Frederik (Dänemark)

Stages Tour of Turkey 2024

Photos: Sprintcyclingagency