Tour of Oman – Stage 3 – Matteo Pelucchi «I am harvesting the fruits of resistance work I did over the winter»

Flat as a pancake, the third stage of the Tour of Oman was always going to end in a bunch sprint.  For this particular edition, the Norwegian Alexander Kristoff (Katusha) burned everyone in the drag race to the line, including Matteo Pelucchi who grabbed himself another third place finish.  The Italian rider on the IAM Cycling team took a podium position for the fourth time this season, having won two races at the Mallorca Challenge in January to add to his two third places here in Oman.

Fresh off his bike directly after the brutally hot stage, Pelucchi initially expressed frustration before cooling down enough to discuss the root of his strong start to the season. 

“Of course I am back on the podium, but I really wanted the win.  I wanted to get this victory as a way to thank the team and the staff for all the work they have done for me since the beginning of this tour.  Just looking at today, the guys did everything they could to make the task as easy as possible for me.  I was always covered and protected from the wind.

In the final, they brought me up to position and Jonas Van Genechten then gave me a lead out.  Kristoff was really just a cut above everyone today.  I pulled off the wheel and jumped on the right side with the head wind, but I was not able to make up enough ground.  Guardini took Kristoff’s wheel and was pulled into 2^nd place.  That I have been so comfortable since the beginning of the year is thanks to the work I have done since resuming my training.  I had some problems in 2014, but this year everything went well.  The sacrifices have paid off, and I must thank my coach, Marcello Albasini, who has helped me both mentally and physically.  I found the confidence I needed and above all, I am keen to harvest the fruits of the resistance work I did during the winter.”   

Eddy Seigneur, directeur sportif for IAM Cycling, emphasized the excellent work accomplished by his riders.

“We were hoping to win the stage, and started the day with that in mind.  There was not the slightest bump on the profile of the stage, so we knew it was tailor-made for Matteo.  Therefore, we did try to take our responsibilities for the stage seriously and put Mathias Frank and Marcel Aregger on the front to ride with Trek to keep the breakaway within a manageable distance.  Everything went well in spite of the oppressive heat (40°), and ultimately we were missing very little in terms of getting the win.”