The World Tour goes to England: Prudential Ride London-Surrey Classic

There are many reasons why UAE Team Emirates is paying close attention to the English World Tour date at the Prudential Ride London-Surrey Classic on July 29.
First and foremost there is the competitive aspect, with the Emirati formation led by Mario Scirea (Italy) counting on a couple of sprinters like Simone Consonni and the hometown favourite, Ben Swift: in the last few editions it has been the sprinters who have vied for victory at the impressive finish line on The Mall.

There is also a lot of interest surrounding Rui Costa’s return to the races after having taken a break from competitions since the Tour de Romandie due to problems with his knee.
The new Norwegian Champion Vegard Stake Laengen will also be returning to racing, ready to show off his new National Champion’s jersey.

Here is the complete line up:
– Sven Erik Bystrom (Norway)
– Simone Consonni (Italy)
– Rui Costa (Portugal)
– Filippo Ganna (Italy)
– Vegard Stake Laengen (Norway)
– Ben Swift (United Kingdom)
– Diego Ulissi (Italy)

Ben Swift: “I can’t wait to race in London; the race will coincide with my return to racing after some time off.  It’s a special event for me; I have great memories of all the times I participated on the roads of the English capital.
The aim is to be able to have the necessary readiness in my legs to compete for a decent result. I’ve garnered two podiums in this race during my career, with a second and third place; I wouldn’t mind filling in that last missing step”.

This is how Rui Costa sees things: “I’m finally getting back to the races, leaving a complicated stage behind me. I’d like to thank the team and medical staff for having provided the utmost care to my ongoing knee problem. Now I feel ready to get back into the pack and contribute to the team in this second part of the season. For me the Prudential Ride London-Surrey Classic has become a very important event to verify how my body will react after some time off from competition”.