Canadian rider
The 37-year-old from
But Canadian
The 107th edition of the Giro starts Saturday in
Gee finished 22nd in the final general classification standings of last year's Giro and was runner-up to Italy’s
Led by Gee,
Sports director
“We may not have won a stage but the way the team rode was nothing short of inspiring and coming so close to a victory on so many occasions has made us even hungrier this year," Andrle said in a statement. "We have a strong team of opportunists and we will be targeting stage wins once again.”
Woods and Pickrell will be joined at this year's race by
Andrle believes Woods, Clarke and Schultz can all contend for a stage win.
Raisberg, and Vernon join Pickrell in their first Grand Tour event. Hofstetter will be racing in his first Giro.
“Ethan, Hugo and Riley give us multiple cards to play in the sprint stages and I really think we have a team that can win on all terrain," said Andrle.
Woods returns to the Giro after a six-year absence, looking to complete a trifecta of Grand Tour stage victories.
In addition to his success in last year's Tour de France, he won a stage in both the 2018 and 2020 editions of the Spanish Vuelta. Woods' best result at the Giro was runner-up in the fourth stage in 2018.
“I’ve had a tough start to the season with some illness but I feel like that is finally behind me and now it’s time for one of the coolest races on the calendar," said Woods. “My big ambition for the race will be stage-hunting. Particularly with the illness that I’ve had in the last few months, I will aim to have a conservative start and then look for stages later on as the race progresses.
"So hopefully I can find some form in the early stages and then be aggressive and bag a stage win by the end of the race.”
Woods, who has recovered from a virus that ruled him out of the Ardennes Classics earlier in April, has largely focused on the Tour de France and Spanish Vuelta since his last ride in the Giro in 2018.
Head sports director
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This report by The Canadian Press was first published
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