"It's not called the Tour of the Alps for nothing" - Geraint Thomas looking for good result in the Alpine mountains

The Tour of the Alps is nearly here. The traditional prelude to the Giro d'Italia, arguably no team will take to the start line with a stronger team than the INEOS Grenadiers and Geraint Thomas is confident the team can pull off a general classification success.

“I want to be at the start as best as possible, and I would really like to participate in the general classification," says the Welshman who was victorious at the Tour of the Alps in 2017. "We will have to see for that. We have a strong team and many options. “These will be five tough race days for me, in the mountains. It's not called the Tour of the Alps for nothing," he concludes.

Alongside Thomas will be the likes of Pavel Sivakov, former Giro winner Tao Geoghegan Hart and young Dutch hope Thymen Arensman. "We are all in good shape, so hopefully we can show something nice," Arensman told WielerFlits. “We have a very strong team and several maps to play. It will come naturally to the legs and then we hope to win the classification here.”

"You always feel the effect of altitude, especially me. I always have a bit more difficulty at altitude, but that is precisely what the altitude training is for," he continues. "Last year was the first time here, then also immediately after an altitude camp. I then finished first and third in the standings together with Romain and we achieved great stage results. Those were beautiful experiences. I hope to repeat that with this team.”