Tour de Pologne 2018 odds
Tour de Pologne 2018
The Tour de Pologne is Poland’s pinnacle cycling event, and part of the UCI World Tour Calendar. Held after the Tour de France but before the Vuelta Espana and the World Championships, it has become a leading stage race held during the Summer and many riders see it as a strategic step to ending their season on a high.
In the 2018 Tour de Pologne, there are seven stages, starting on August 4th and finishing on August 10th. This year will mark the race’s 90 year milestone, as well as the 100 year celebration of Polish independence, so it is expected to be an exciting spectacle.
Czeslaw Lang, General Director for the Tour de Pologne, says: “2018 is an important year for the Tour de Pologne, but especially for Poland and our people. Not only that; I would say that 2018 is important for all of Europe, because for better or for worse, the fate and history of our nation has always been connected to the destiny of the entire continent. This year at the Tour de Pologne we will pedal contemplating the values of independence, freedom, spirit of sacrifice, brotherhood and unity. There will be 7 exciting stages, from the grand depart from Krakow up to the final finish line in Bukovina Tatrzanska, in the heart of the Tatra Mountains. There will be even more mountain stages to make the race even more spectacular and hard-fought. We are also working towards crossing national borders for one of the stages in the Tour de Pologne, as we have in the past.”
The 2018 race and lineup
Starting on the grid will be twenty-two teams of seven riders. These will consist of eighteen World Tour teams, plus four wild card teams (including the Polish national team) - a total of 154 riders. There is a mix of stages, offering something for everyone and opens with a sprint stage around Krakow.
Here are the stages:
Stage 1 - Krakow - Krakow (132 km)
Stage 2 - Tarnowskie Gory - Katowice (156 km)
Stage 3 - Stadion Slaski - Zabrze (140 km)
Stage 4 - Jaworzno - Szczyrk (179 km)
Stage 5 - Kopalnia Soli - Bielsko-Biala (152 km)
Stage 6 - Zakopane - Poprad (180 km)
Stage 7 - Bukowvina Resort - Bukowina Tatrzańska (136 km)
All World Tour teams are expected to name strong lineups, and amongst the big names is expected to be Fabio Aru (UAE-Team Emirates), Michal Kwiatkowski (Team Sky), Nelson Oliveria (Movistar Team), Adam Hansen (Team Lotto Soudal) and Caleb Ewan (Team Mitchelton-Scott).
Previous winners include Peter Sagan, Jon Izagirre, Tim Wellens and the current holder, Dylan Teuns. Teuns (BMC Racing) beat Rafal Majka (Team Bora–Hansgrohe) and Wout Poels (Team Sky) to the title, Diego Rosa (Team Sky) took the King of the Mountains win, Peter Sagan (Team Bora–Hansgrohe) won the sprinters jersey and Team Lotto-Soudal won the team classification.