Team LottoNL-Jumbo wants to make a flying start in the Tour de Romandie, which begins with a 19-kilometre team time trial on Tuesday.

“We have quite a nice team for the time trial,” Sports Director Erik Dekker said. “Everyone is motivated and together, we want to achieve a good result. We want to shine together!”

Robert Gesink

Robert Gesink is looking forward to the six-day Swiss stage race just as much as his DS.

“It feels good to be back in the peloton again,” Gesink said. “Romandie is the next race in the route that we have mapped out for me. It’s a beautiful race that fits well in my build-up. “I’ll see how it goes and work hard on my shape. I’ll be very happy to have six days of racing at the highest level in my legs without suffering knee problems. And who knows, maybe there will be opportunities.”

Dekker watched how Gesink rode to 25th place in La Flèche Wallonne on Wednesday. The Dutchman’s successful comeback did not surprise Dekker.

“No, Robert is a too good rider for it to be otherwise,” Dekker said. “In Romandie, we’re just hoping that Robert can make the next step. We have to keep seeing things in perspective. Robert needs a good week of racing where his level will hopefully improve from the first to the last day.”

Van Asbroeck’s mission

Dekker has a special mission for sprinter Tom Van Asbroeck.

“All stages are tough, so it could be that at the end of the week, Tom won’t have his chance to sprint. But for Tom, looking ahead to a possible Vuelta a España start, it’s important to gain experience racing in the mountains.”

Team line-up:

Tom van Asbroeck, Brian Bulgac, Laurens ten Dam, Jos van Emden, Rick Flens, Robert Gesink, Bert-Jan Lindeman & Maarten Tjallingii.

Sports Directors:

Erik Dekker & Ken Vanmarcke