Geox shaping up as a Grand Tour team
Team Geox is continuing its development as a major Grand Tour contender, with today’s announcement of the signing of 21-year-old Marko Kump, the Slovenian winner of this year’s U23 Tour of Flanders and the Burgenland Rundfahrt. The team, known as Footon-Servetto until the sponsorship changes for the 2011 team, has added Kump to the ranks which include Denis Menchov and Carlos Sastre, as well as two of the former’s favourite domestiques from his current team Rabobank, who helped him to his podium finish in the Tour de France.
Kump went pro in 2007 and this season, his final year as a U23 rider, has been his best. He will be going to Melbourne at the end of the season to ride as one of the favourites for the World Championships. Next season, with Goex, Kump will pair with Colombian Fabio Duarte, a former U23 World Champion, as a major duo in shorter races, with Kump’s excellence in Classics and sprints and Duarte’s power in anything uphill.
Denis Menchov announced his split last week from Team Rabobank in favour of Team Geox, following from 2008 Tour de France winner Carlos Sastre switching to the same squad from the Cervelo Test Team.
“I'm confident that Sastre will be able to find new motivation in this new squad,” said Geox team manager Mauro Gianetti. “We chose him not only because of his big palmarès, but also because of the focus he's setting on the upcoming years."
With Mauricio Ardila and Dmitriy Kozontchuk following Menchov from Rabobank to continue to serve as his favourite domestiques, the Russian effectively made up for the end of his partnership with Robert Gesink, who helped him to his podium finish in this year’s Tour.
With Rabobank, Menchov took three Grand Tour victories, two at the Vuelta a Espana and one at the Giro d’Italia. Ardila has supported him since 2006 and through two of his Grand Tour victories. 26-year-old Kozontchuk has spent his entire professional cycling career so far with Rabobank, and also supported Menchov in last year’s victory at the Giro. All three riders are ending their careers at Rabobank at this year’s Vuelta a Espana, starting on August 28, where they will compete against their future teammate Sastre.
“This decision will not alter anything regarding my participation in the Vuelta a España,” said Sastre. “What’s more, it is spurring me on even more to fight it out in a race that I really like and which I feel a lot of respect and fondness for. Now I just hope that the team will give me the chance to race with team mates who, like me, want to fight for this race.”
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