News: Archibald Set to Race

John Archibald set to start his racing with Eolo-Kometa Cycling Team in the Spanish Mediterranean at the Clásica de Almería on February 14

News: Archibald Set to Race

Sunday 14th February.
34th Clásica de Amería.
Puebla de Vícar-Roquetas de Mar (183.3 km).

Two weeks after the competitive debut for the Eolo-Kometa Cycling Team at the Comunitat Valenciana territory, the riders in the team will be pinning on numbers in the Spanish Mediterranean at the 2021 edition of Clásica de Almería.

Scotland’s John Archibald and six Italian cyclists make up the team that will fight for the victory in Clásica 2021. Seven of them are debutants in the race as they are all set to discover the Almería race for the first time in their career. Manuel Belletti and Luca Pacioni will be the team’s two big guns for the sprint. Davide Bais, Mattia Frapporti, Lorenzo Fortunato, Samuele Rivi and John Archibald complete the squad.

The Andalusian race, in which the professional team of the Contador Foundation competed for the first time in 2020, is a ‘free spirit’ in the Spanish calendar. Since its begining, it has been an ideal race for sprinters and fast men, a stage for exciting battles. Some star names stand out in the Classic’s list of winners. Germany’s Pascal Ackermann has won the last two editions and this year the list of sprinters will once again be very relevant.

The 2021 route will be little different to what has been used in recent years. The first part presents quite a lumpy parcour around the town of Berja, with the summit of Celín, La Alquería and Fuente Marbella as major hilly obstacles. The second part, which includes the climb to Almerimar, offers a more favourable profile with two passes over the finish line before the finish line on the Avenida Juan Carlos I in Roquetas.

“It’s the first race of the season, the first with the new colours… I’m very happy to be able to start this adventure”, says Manuel Belletti. “It’s my first participation in the Clásica de Almería and I hope to achieve a good result for the team from the start. A sprint finish is very possible. We will be ready and united to chase the victory.