The Portuguese Rui Costa (Intermarché-Circus-Wanty) will compete for the 11th time in the Tour de France by bicycle, after a year of absence, the team announced today, becoming the first Portuguese confirmed in the 2023 edition.
At 36 years old, the 2013 long-distance world champion returns to compete on the Tour, after last year, still in the United Arab Emirates, he signed up for the Tour of Italy.
Rui Costa has 10 participations in the ‘Grande Boucle’, the last in 2021, when he was 77th, the best result being 18th in 2012, with three stage victories, one in 2011 and two in 2013. This year he won the Calvià Trophy and the Tour of the Valencian Community.
The 110th edition of the Tour de France will take place between July 1 and 23, between Bilbao, Spain, and Paris.
“Our ambition for the 2023 Tour is to win our first stage and manage to finish in the top 10 in the general classification. To achieve this, we have built a strong and experienced group around our leaders Biniam Girmay and Louis Meintjes”, Aike assumed. Visbeek, the team’s director of performance.
In addition to Costa, the Eritrean Biniam Girmay and the South African Louis Meintjes, Intermarché-Circus-Wanty is completed by the French Lilian Calmejane and Adrien Petit, the New Zealander Dion Smith, the Dutchman Mike Teunissen and the German Georg Zimmermann.
Visbeek recalled the results obtained in the 2022 Tour to underpin the objectives of the French race.
“Our absolute leader is Louis Meintjes. With seventh place last year he achieved the first top 10 in our history. He will have our full support to repeat this feat. Biniam Girmay’s mission is to win a sprint stage (…) and finish a three-week race for the first time in his career, ”said the person in charge.
Source: TSF
