Dubai, UAE, August 02, 2018:  UAE Team Emirates’ Fabio Aru is back in action, this time in Poland as he looks to build on his top 10 General Classification(GC) place at the Tour de Wallonie. The Italian Champion last rode in the Tour of Poland in 2015, achieving a fifth place after seven days of competition. This year, the UCI World Tour stage race forms part of Aru’s preparation for the Vuelta and features favourable parcours for the skilled climber.

 

Joining Aru on the tour will be Italian team mates Valerio Conti, Edward Ravasi and Simone Consonni, alongside former World Champion Rui Costa, Sven Erik Bystrom and Polish rider, Przemyslaw Niemiec. The team will be guided by an Italian duo of Sports Directors, Daniele Righi and Mario Scirea.

 

Commenting ahead of the race, Aru said: “I will arrive in Poland having regained a good racing rhythm in the Tour de Wallonie. The route for the Tour of Poland is well suited to my skills and could help me find an even better pedal stroke. There are four climbing fractions; it would be nice for the team and for me to manage to obtain some significant results. The team line-up features some excellent climbers, so we can aim for some satisfying achievements. This is also an  important event in consideration of the Vuelta; it is a crucial step in preparing for the Spanish race.”

 

As it reaches its landmark 90th edition, the 2018 Tour de Pologne will stick to a tried and tested formula of punchy uphill stages that go deep into the country's southern mountains to decide the seven-day race. The 1,075km event is a long one. With no individual or team time trial - and where the crunch stages are often decided in short, uphill finishes – the Tour of Poland is set to be even more unpredictable and exciting than ever before. It is a race of two halves, with bunch sprint finishes expected in the initial three stages and the GC battle to get contested in the later mountain segments. 

 

The first two stages through the city of Krakow, and then from Tarnowskie Gory to Katowice, are very similar to last year and include the iconic 900m descent to the finish line. The second half of the race heads into the central part of the Carpathian mountains and will culminate in fiercely fought duels on the punchy ramps around the mountain towns of Zakopane and Bukowina. The last day's racing is going to be challanging, featuring an on-going series of short, steep ascents on technical country roads across a 66km circuit. It finishes in a brutal hill-top finish at Bukowina Tatrzanska, where thousands of local cycling fans are likely to line the route and keep the atmosphere charged until the race ends.