Two days before the biggest race of the season, Tinkoff-Saxo presents the new jersey for Tour de France featuring a new fluorescent yellow as the most noticeable feature. Thursday the riders wore their new kit for the first time as the team tested it on the British roads on a training ride. Riders and fans of cycling all know the feeling of getting new equipment so naturally the same excitement was present at the parking lot near the team hotel.
Oleg Tinkoff joined his nine team riders on a two hour training ride which passed by part of the route of the first stage.
“I respect cycling and Tour de France a lot, so we made a special kit for the Tour not to conflict with the yellow jersey. Our new jersey is very prominent; it has Cyrillic letters on the shoulders that say “Tinkoff” and a Russian flag to show the nationality of the team”, says team owner Oleg Tinkov.
The jersey was well received by the riders, who got their Tour-kit upon arrival at the team hotel in Leeds. For them it was the first time trying out the team clothing that they’ll wear for the next 21 stages.
“Yesterday the first thing I did, when I arrived at the hotel wasn’t to open my suitcase but the plastic bags on the bed to see how it looked”, Nicolas Roche explains. He’s opinion is shared by fellow teammate Michael Rogers.
“Look at it, you can see it from a mile away. We wanted to do something special, and I actually hope that we use these colors next year”, says the two times stage-winner of this year’s Giro d’Italia.
The excitement and elation ahead of the Tour-start on Saturday is rapidly growing on Tinkoff-Saxo. Oleg Tinkov has looked forward to the start for a long time and he enters the race with great ambitions.
“Alberto is as strong as he has ever been and I really hope we win this year. It would be a big, big pleasure for me. The Tour is a mixture of emotions and I’m excited and nervous at the same time. But that’s exactly why I own this team. That’s way I’m sponsoring cycling – because of all the emotions”, finishes Oleg Tinkov.
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