One of our favourite teams to welcome down under, Team Sunweb, is set to bring an all-star Aussie cast to the 68th edition of Australia’s oldest stage race.

The German registered team will include local youngsters Jai Hindley, Robert Power and Michael Storer to battle it out in the Aussie heat.

Of their list of local riders, Bendigo’s CHRIS HAMILTON, had been penciled in to ride, but is now extremely doubtful after rupturing a testicle in a small but nasty crash during a recreational ride. He has had surgery and will miss most of the Australian summer and is doubtful as a starter for our Tour.

Perth’s Jai Hindley is looking forward to riding again with teammate and fellow West Australian Robert Power.

The 23 year old explaining “I’m looking forward to racing with Robert on my team, we’ve been mates since our really young junior days and I used to go to all my national trips with him and I’ve been doing a fair bit of training with him leading in, in Perth. It’s going to be fun riding with him as it will be just like old times.”

Hindley has been showing a lot of promise over the last 12-months, taking a second overall at the Tour de Pologne and finishing his first grand tour, the Giro d’Italia. And now, he is going to have a crack at capturing the coveted leader’s jersey at our Tour.

“I am going to try and win it for sure, we’re coming in with a good squad but it’s super young. We are going to be opportunistic and really race hard.” he said.

We’d expect to see the Hindley & Power duo teaming up to target the Mt Buller and Falls Creek stages to try and have an impact on the General Classification, while their sprinters Alberto Dainese and Max Kanter will be looking to grab a stage win, if given the chance.

Coming into his second year with the WorldTour line up, Hindley sang the praises of the positive team culture and atmosphere of Sunweb. “It’s a really good set up, they’re super organised but it’s still a really relaxed atmosphere which I really rate.”

This mix of friendship and the backing of a solid, energised team, could be a winning combination for the Aussie riders and the Sunweb squad to bring it home

RIDERS

• Jai Hindley – A strong climber who’s really started to come into his own in 2019. Had a good showing at the nationals We’re excited to see how this race plays out for the Western Australian.
• Robert Power – Power by name, power by nature, a solid climber and a rider who has matured over the last 12-months. He’ll be sure to turn up the fun for an Aussie crowd and will be one looking to stay it in the mix.
• Alberto Dainese (ITA) – A strong Italian sprinter who’s joined the Sunweb program from SEG academy, we’d expect him to be out here learning the ropes with the team and settling in. Don’t be fooled though, he has a big engine on him and his sprint can’t be underestimated.
• Max Kanter (GER) – This German 22-year-old will be looking to have crack at the the young rider’s classification. Coming up through the Sunweb program as a stagiaire since 2017, he joined the squad proper in 2019. He’s got a solid sprint on him and if he doesn’t get caught in traffic will be able to take a stage win.
• Asbjørn Kragh Andersen – Hailing from Denmark, Asbjørn at just the age of is still young but the 27year old  is one of the older riders in the Sunweb Tour squad. He is a lover of the spring classics.
• Florian Stork (GER) – 2019 saw Florian make the transition from Sunweb’s Development program to the Men’s program, where he quickly found himself competing in some of the biggest World Tour races in the calendar.
• Michael Storer – A New South Welshman, Storer is a now into his third season with the team and will be looking to build on his previous season. 2019 saw him compete in his second Vuelta a España, so he’ll be able to bring his stage racing knowledge down under.
• Casper Pedersen (DEN) – A former U23 European road race champion, 2019 saw him get his first start at the Vuelta a España and put in some very respectable podiums at the Hammer Series and a number of top ten finishes.
• Felix Gall – Joining the team via Sunweb’s development program, Gall will be looking to make a splash in his opening year in the elite men’s peloton.