The field is locked and the stage is set for the most competitive edition yet of the nation’s largest and most prestigious professional cycling race, the 2014 Amgen Tour of California. On Monday, May 12, Folsom will be home to Stage 2 of this exciting event!
In addition to the nine UCI Pro Teams announced previously (http://bit.ly/1f2enIz), race presenter AEG welcomes seven UCI Pro Continental and Continental teams to the ninth annual stage race. Four of the top-10 ranked UCI America Tour teams are amongst the lineup.
Among the American-based Pro Continental teams are top-ranked UnitedHealthcare Pro Cycling Team of Oakland, Calif., and Team Novo Nordisk, the world’s first all-diabetes professional cycling team, of Atlanta, Ga. UnitedHealthcare Pro Cycling Team finished the 2013 Amgen Tour of California third in the team standings, and features top climber and northern California native Lucas Euser and rising star Kiel Reijnen of Boulder, Colorado.
“Ever since I rushed home from the 2006 Amgen Tour of California to take a midterm exam the following morning, I knew the race would always play a special role in my career. This year, I am excited because there are two summit finishes. As a California native and the top climber on a California-based team, I plan to use the home field advantage in giving me the edge I need to succeed,” said Lucas Euser, UnitedHealthcare Pro Cycling Team.
Germany’s Team NetApp-Endura, whose climbing specialist Leopold Koenig won a stage in the Amgen Tour of California and the Vuelta a España last year, rounds out the teams competing as Pro Continental entries.
“The team loves to race in California. We all look forward to the Amgen Tour of California because it has beautiful scenery, it’s warm and also incredibly competitive,” said Czech Republic’s Leopold Koenig, who won the dramatic Queen stage of the 2013 Amgen Tour of California at the summit of Mt. Diablo last year. “We performed really well last year, and I’m definitely hoping to repeat the stage win at the top of Mount Diablo. That was an incredible moment last year.”
The U.S. Continental teams selected for the 2014 race will include Optum Pro Cycling presented by Kelly Benefit Strategies, which features current U.S. National Time Trial Champion Tom Zirbel; Team Jamis-Hagens Berman presented by Sutter Home; Jelly Belly Cycling Team presented by MAXXIS, which features U.S. National Road Race Champion Freddie Rodriguez of Berkeley, CA.; and Bissell Development Team, which will be make their third appearance in the race under new management.
The 2014 Amgen Tour of California, May 11 – 18, will cover more than 740 miles through 12 host cities as the top cyclists in the world compete from Sacramento to Thousand Oaks in front of millions of fans and an international television audience. With full rosters yet to be announced, the race has been America’s biggest showcase of Olympic medalists, Tour de France stage winners and world champions since its inception in 2006.
In addition to the stellar roster of cycling teams, AEG has announced that the 2014 Amgen Tour of California will feature more professional women’s racing than any previous race of its kind on U.S. soil with two days of action-packed competition presented by SRAM. Invitations are now being extended to an elite international roster of female cyclists to compete in a circuit race surrounding the state capitol building in downtown Sacramento when the Amgen Tour of California begins on May 11. The following day, a field of nearly two dozen of the world’s top-ranked women time trialists will race the clock during a time trial in Folsom over the same course the men will ride later that day.
Schedule and route for the 2014 Amgen Tour of California:
- Stage 1: Sunday, May 11 – Sacramento
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Stage 2: Monday, May 12 – Folsom (individual time trial)
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Stage 3: Tuesday, May 13 – San Jose to Mount Diablo State Park
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Stage 4: Wednesday, May 14 – Monterey to Cambria
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Stage 5: Thursday, May 15 – Pismo Beach to Santa Barbara
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Stage 6: Friday, May 16 – Santa Clarita to Mountain High
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Stage 7: Saturday, May 17 – Santa Clarita to Pasadena
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Stage 8: Sunday, May 18 – Thousand Oaks (circuit race)
More information about the 2014 route and other race-related news can be found at
amgentourofcalifornia.com.
Blog Post information and picture courtesy of Amgen Tour of California.
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