Ezequiel Mosquera confirmed for Vacansoleil
After plenty of speculation, Vacansoleil and Ezequiel Mosquera officially announced today that they would be joining forces for the 2011 season. The Belgian team is pursuing a ProTour license and Mosquera
is the latest major contender to be signed to the team in an effort to strengthen their bid for the highest level of cycling.
“We are aiming for the ProTour and Mosquera is an exceptional rider who can achieve top-ten results in grand tours, his results could even improve,” said team manager Daan Luijkx.
The team has already signed Riccardo Ricco and Belgian national champion Stijn Devolder. Vacansoleil Johnny Hoogerland and Borut Bozic were among the leading riders in the Tour of Britain, with the latter
ultimately finish the race in second overall. Mosquera, meanwhile, has proven himself a Grand Tour leader with his second-place finish in the Vuelta a Espana, where he rode with his current team Xacobeo-Galicia.
“I wanted to join a big team where everyone gets his own chance. Vacansoleil impressed in the Vuelta in 2009 and other Spanish races and I took my decision pretty quickly,” said Mosquera. “I am looking
forward to the co-operation and want to get results and share my experience with the young riders.”
Mosquera had declined to confirm his transfer until the end of the Vuelta, which was won by Vincenzo Nibali, though a Galician newspaper had unofficially announced the signing during the final week of
the event and the team announced that they would reveal a “big new rider” coming to the team. Vacansoleil is also expected to announce a new Belgian sponsor this week.
“You can see Mosquera is still getting better and better and his ambition shows by his effort to improve his time trialing,” said Luijkx. “Besides that he will also get us results I believe his role as
a guide in Spanish races will also be very important.”
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