Bora-hansgrohe is going into the 2023 Tour de France with a whole handful of goals.
Basically, Emanuel Buchmann is a shy person. On the last weekend in June, the 30-year-old professional cyclist from the Bora-hansgrohe team in Donaueschingen was literally bubbling up. “I’m extremely happy,” beamed “Emu”, as he is called in the driver’s field.
Buchmann – in the championship jersey for the tour
The Ravensburger had just won the German championship title with an impressive solo drive. It was his first victory in a cycling race since 2020, when he crossed the finish line first in Mallorca. “I had a few difficult years in which not much went together. Today I proved that I can still cycle fast,” said Buchmann with a mischievous grin.
With the German championship jersey on his shoulders, Buchmann will be competing for Bora-hansgrohe in the Tour de France – you will be able to recognize him quite well. But what is even more important: Buchmann, who had never really been able to meet the great expectations since his fourth place in the 2019 tour, is going into the most important tour of the year with a whole new self-confidence. Various injuries, illnesses including corona infections had thrown him back again and again in recent years.
Noble helper for Jai Hindley
Now he seems to be in top form at the right moment. “I’ve seen that the form is definitely there. That’s extremely motivating for the tour,” beamed Buchmann.
Nevertheless, the recently honored German title holder will not be the only spearhead of the German Bora-hansgrohe team in the Tour of France. Team boss Ralph Denk’s team decided early on to go into the round with Jai Hindley as the top driver towards the overall standings. Buchmann should support the 27-year-old Australian as best he can.
Emanuel Buchmann drives to the Tour de France in the championship jersey
Hindley and Buchmann as a perfect duo
Buchmann is “absolutely key when it comes to getting Jai Hindley onto the podium in the high mountains,” says Bora’s sporting director Rolf Aldag. Nevertheless, Buchmann does not have to give up his own ambitions entirely: “There will be stages where people say that there are opportunities for him to shine and shine.”
How well the Hindley/Buchmann duo can harmonize was demonstrated in 2022 at the Giro d’Italia, when Hindley surprisingly ended up at the top and “shot” the Tour of Italy. Buchmann finished seventh in the overall standings after his teammate’s surprise victory.
Rating – just “wait and see”
That’s roughly what they want at Bora-hansgrohe for the tour. Although, of course, one knows that the competition in France is far more powerful. Despite Tadej Pogacar’s problems in preparation, the Slovenian together with last year’s winner Jonas Vingegaard seems hard to beat at the moment. Especially since the two in their teams Jumbo-Visma (Vingegaard) and UAE (Pogacar) are provided with pure world class as noble helpers. “Both teams are so strong that they can very easily neutralize the race at the beginning,” believes Bora team boss Denk.
That’s why he’s planning a more defensive approach with his boys: “Like many other teams of our size, we’ll take a look at the race in the first few days,” he announces.
Politt as a stage hunter?
Hindley and Buchmann will presumably keep a low profile for the first few days. And pave the way for a few of her teammates in terms of personal ambition. Nils Politt from Cologne should be the first contender for conspicuous Bora driving. The 29-year-old, who just secured the German time trial championship title in the Black Forest, should have marked several stages in which he could speculate on a day’s success.
Bora-hansgrohe squad for the 2023 Tour Driver Age Nationality Jai Hindley 27 Australia Emanuel Buchmann 30 Germany Nils Politt 29 Germany Marco Haller 32 Austria Bob Jungels 30 Luxembourg Danny van Poppel 29 Netherlands Jordi Meeus 24 Belgium Patrick Konrad 31 Austria
As an extremely powerful and long-suffering all-rounder, Politt could get involved on all those stages that have classic characteristics or a wavy profile. Politt will certainly try again and again to slip into the escape groups of the day.
Kämna, Denz and Schachmann not there
One could have imagined Lennard Kämna in such a role. But after his strong performance at this year’s Giro d’Italia, the 26-year-old tour specialist is ordered to take a break by his team, as are Giro stage winners Nico Denz and Maximilian Schachmann, who has simply lost too much preparation to a corona infection in recent weeks has.
“Of course, the Tour is the biggest cycling event. I would have liked to take part, but I have to admit that the year just didn’t go as I had hoped in December or January,” said Schachmann after the German championships, which he finished third behind Buchmann and Denz.
international experience
All in all, the German team relies above all on international experience: Because the Bora squad is supplemented by Marco Haller (32, Austria), Bob Jungels (30, Luxembourg), Danny van Poppel (29, Netherlands) and Patrick Konrad (31, Austria ), all of which are meant to protect Hindley. They should also pave the way for Jordi Meeus (Belgium) on the flat stages. The 24-year-old sprinter surprisingly got the nod over Sam Bennett, who Bora had been counting on for months for the flat stages.
Sprinter Meeus for Bennett
Bennett was originally scheduled for the tour last year, but didn’t get in shape and wasn’t nominated. At the Vuelta in late summer he was able to win two stages. This season hasn’t been going too well either – the only win of the season comes from January when he won a stage in Argentina. So Meeus gets the chance to prove himself in the field of the fastest people.
Meeus has been convincing in recent months and celebrated his first win of the season at the Circuit de Wallonie in May. Meeus can rely on Danny van Poppel as the last approach in the sprint arrivals. Politt and the Austrian Marco Haller will also work in the sprint preparation for Meeus.