In order to appear in excellent shape at the start of the prologue quite some training has to be performed. Towards the Tour for KiKa the team’s individual and group performance will be tested in the following events:
20 March: JOOP ZOETEMELK CLASSIC
150 km
For many cycling admirers in the Netherlands the Joop Zoetemelk Classic is the season opener. In light of the upcoming Tour of Flanders this is an excellent test for the real thing. The start will take place in Leiden.
03 APRIL: Tour of Flanders
260 km
Famous for its harshness this tour clearly distinguishes the men from the boys. From Bruges to Ninove over ancient roads made for wooden cart wheels instead of fragile tubes. High probability of having to walk the Koppenberg is present.
17 APRIL: AMSTEL GOLD RACE
250 km
Twisting and turning in the hilly country of Limburg. The Amstel Gold Race is the only Dutch classic. After Jan Raas won the race for the fifth time, it was given the nickname of Amstel Gold Raas.
8 May: CLASSICO BORETTI
125 km
After two editions in June the Classico Boretti this year takes place in May due to the start of the Giro d’Italia that starts in Amsterdam in the weekend of 8/9 May. The start and finish of the 3rd version of the Classico Boretti are not in the Olympic Stadium, but in another cycling icon in Amsterdam: the Velodrome. In the afternoon the finish of the prologue of the Giro will be in the Olympic stadium.
13 May: STEVEN ROOKS CLASSIC
160 km
This tour is deservedly named after a former Dutch winner of the Polka Dot Jersey since a significant amount of altimeters have to be tackle. True executioners are the Côte de Drolenval and naturally the infamous Côte de la Redoute.
15 May: WAALSE PIJL
210 km
The Walloon Arrow is the dessert of Ascension weekend. With the lactic acids of the 2 previous days still in the legs, one has to bridle nearly 4,000 altimeters over 210 km through the Walloon Ardennes. Ample 3 times the Tourmalet.
23 May: TILFF - BASTOGNE - TILFF
240 km
This oldest classic has been ridden since 1892. La Doyenne was won by Bernard Hinault in 1980 under extremely harsh conditions.
27 - 30 May: TRAINING WEEKEND GENEVA
On Thursday the 27th of May practically all Tour for KiKa participants will relocate themselves to the Swiss and French Alps for some proper mountain training. Friday the 28th will be the first encounter with the mountains of “La France” after which the bunch on Saturday the 29th will cycle the official stage from Morzine-Avoriaz to Saint-Jean-de-Maurienne, the 9th stage over 204 km. Sunday the 30th will lead via several mountain passes back to Geneva. A true trainings session at altitude and an excellent test for the Tour for KiKa.
06 JUNE: PARIS - ROUBAIX
270 km
The experience of “A Sunday in Hell” is necessity for cyclists who take themselves seriously. Its nickname was established in 1919 when the race passed by areas completely destroyed by World War I. The ravaged roads were fixed with cobblestones. This is how the km long stripes of cobblestones originated like the “Bos of Wallers” and “Carrefour de l’Abre”. Again a perfect training session for the Tour for KiKa as some of these are also included in this Tour de France’s edition.
12 JUNE: JEAN NELISSEN CLASSIC
220 km
Most probably the toughest tour of the Benelux with a total of 4,500 altimeters included in the course from Vianden to Kautenbach and back. The Tour is named after a famous Dutch cycling journalist born and raised in the utmost South part of the Netherlands. He owns a bar-restaurant-hotel in Vianden.
19 JUNE: JAN JANSSEN CLASSIC
200 km
On the 19th of June the team will partake in “The hell of Wageningen” (where the surrender of Germany in 1945 was signed). The axis of this tour is the Posbank right in the back yard of Michiel Teunissen’s childhood home. Surely a competitive advantage… One last training effort after which a 2 week recovery period is scheduled prior to the start of the prologue on the 2nd of July.
