American rider Sepp Kuss, who is looking forward to his third entry in the Tour de France, is pleased that his road to his eighth Grand Tour appearance hit a major roadblock two weeks ago.
The Jumbo-Visma team withdrew from the Tour de Suisse on June 16. Team management did not disclose which riders or staff members had tested positive for coronavirus, but Kuss admitted the day before the Tour de France that he was one of them.
"I'm fine now; I had symptoms for about four days, but nothing crazy. I was able to resume training. I feel more or less back in rhythm now," he told reporters, including CyclingNews, the day before the Grande Paix in Copenhagen.
"In Switzerland, I was able to ride non-stages. But for me, you don't have to be already in good shape at the beginning of this Tour. And sometimes those things can lead to good results. You always have to think positive."
A week after the COVID fiasco, the Netherlands-based team made its selection for the Tour. Kus was appointed along with Steven Kruijswijk to support the three leaders, Primoš Roglic, Jonas Vingegaard, and Wout van Aert.
"I don't know how much I can help Wout (van Art)," Kuss laughed. But for me it takes some of the pressure off. I just need to find my legs for the second half of the race.
The 27-year-old from Colorado has competed in all three Grand Tours since moving up to the World Tour level with Jumbo in 2018. He showed his climbing talent with three wins in mountain stages at the Larry H. Miller Tour of Utah that same year and went straight to his first Vuelta a España.
In 2021, his first Tour de France appearance, he finished in the top 10 twice on stages in the Alps. Last year, he attacked in the Pyrenees on stage 15 of the Tour and won alone in Andorra.
Although not his strong suit in the high mountains, the opening three days in Denmark will be important for the team, especially with Vingegaard performing on his home turf.
"So far the fans have been incredible. I think it will be a special start. Also for Jonas in the team (it's) really special. Yes, it's really exciting."
Vingegaard is one of nine Danish riders on the 22-team start list. What is his advice?
"It's different from the rest of Europe and France in terms of wind, open spaces, road design. It's different from other places in Europe and France. There are a lot of villages, which complicates things."
"A lot depends on the wind. You have to look for opportunities as well as play the stages safely."
Comments