Sagan concerned over 'dangerous' Abu Dhabi Tour temperature

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  • Peter Sagan will debut his world champion’s rainbow kit in UAE.

    Peter Sagan is looking forward to debuting his world champion’s rainbow kit when he takes to the streets of the UAE capital for the inaugural Abu Dhabi Tour tomorrow but has questioned the weather conditions, stating that there is a lack of extreme heat protocols that should protect riders.

    Sagan, who claimed his biggest victory of his career by winning the road race at the World Championships in Richmond, Virginia nine days ago, is one of a host of marquee riders taking part in the new Abu Dhabi showpiece, which represents the season finale for the participating WorldTeams.

    The Slovakian four-time Points Classification champion at the Tour de France is no stranger to the UAE, having competed in the Dubai Tour before but is wary of the desert heat in Abu Dhabi.

    Temperatures are expected to rise to over 40 degrees during stage one tomorrow, which starts at an unforgiving time of 13:00 at Qasr Al Sarab in Liwa desert and Sagan did not shy away from expressing how he felt about the weather here at the moment.

    “Abu Dhabi is a nice city, and I have ridden in the region before, although, after the very crazy week that I have had, it may be a hard race for me, there’ s a long climb on the third stage, and it’s hot, and I don’t like it when it is hot,” the 25-year-old Tinkoff-Saxo rider said in a press conference yesterday at Yas Marina Circuit.

    “I still don’t understand why we don’t have rules for weather conditions. I really don’t understand. I hope the temperature drops; it will be good for everybody.”

    Sagan later elaborated by adding: “We have organisations to protect us but I don’t understand why (they don’t do anything).

    “I think it’s very dangerous when the temperature is above 40. I had a very bad experience with one of my team-mates from Cannondale (Mauro Da Dalto). He had the last climb (at the 2013 Tour of California), it was very hot and he crashed and fell on the asphalt and it was very firing and he had a lot of burns (third degree burns to his backside and required reconstructive surgery) and after he stopped riding on the bike. And I said ‘For what? Is this cycling or what?’”

    Former world champion, Philippe Gilbert of Belgium, also mentioned the weather saying: “The temperature difference from Europe is big, so it will be hard to adjust.”

    Start flag for the inaugural stage will be dropped by Mark Cavendish.

    The UCI tested an extreme weather protocol during the Giro d’Italia although they did not set specific limits on temperature or wind speed. The protocol calls for a compulsory meeting between stakeholders when extreme weather conditions are anticipated prior to a stage. The protocol has been approved and should come into effect from the start of 2016.

    Most of the top riders mentioned heat as one of the main challenges they will face this week especially having just flown from Europe where autumn weather has officially kicked in. But it is not just the European riders who are concerned.

    Hamad Al Marzooqi, Athletes Manager at UAE outfit Skydive Dubai, says he hopes the Abu Dhabi Tour can shift to a more suitable time in the calendar next year to avoid extreme temperatures.

    “We brought our riders early to the UAE on purpose to try and get them to acclimate to the heat,” Al Marzooqi told Sport360. 

    “Our practices usually started at 4pm but then we were surprised that the stages would be starting at 2pm, which means the temperature will be higher.

    “Right now, with the humidity factor, the temperature in Dubai is 36 degrees. But at the start at Liwa, the temperature will be over 40 degrees. So it’ll be tough for everyone.

    “I really hope that the Abu Dhabi Tour proves to be a huge success and we dream that it even gets upgraded to 2.HC. But the timing is difficult. I hope that next year it can move to the start of the season instead of October because right now, it’s still hot in the UAE. I worry that the top teams don’t come in the future because of the timing of the race.”

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