Team Novo Nordisk January 2017 Training Camp

All images: ©Team Novo Nordisk / Angus Sung 

Winter Training

Fabio Calabria (Australian): I was lucky and went home to Australia for a month before the team’s January training camp. So I got to escape winter and enjoy some good weather back in Canberra, and it’s always nice to get home and see the family. Canberra has a really good cycling culture, and there is no shortage of bunch rides and people to ride with, which always makes training that much more enjoyable.

David Lozano (Spaniard): This year’s winter training was a bit shorter than usual, but I still put in many miles in the legs. I think I’m only a bit behind on specific work from previous years. I know that a couple of races in, the speed should be back in the legs.

Joonas Henttala (Finn): Winter training has gone well for me. It has changed quite a bit due to my new coach, Tommi Martikainen. We are both happy with how my body has responded to his coaching style. I’ve stayed healthy and feel like I’m making progress every week. Yet I know that numbers are numbers; I can only hope I carry this feeling into the races.

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Training Camp

FC: Training camp went well and was a good opportunity to get everyone together and catch up before the season gets underway. For me, it was a bit of an adjustment coming from Australia to the unseasonably cold and wet weather in Altea, but we made the best of things and were able to get some solid work in before our first races.

DL: Training camps tend to be good for me because I like training with a group and the higher speed is good for me this time of year. For the last week of camp in Altea, the weather was awful, and we had a really hard time getting out to train. It wasn’t the type of training where you enjoy the bike but we all recognized that it’s beneficial to go out and work in difficult weather conditions.

JH: Training camp was a bit challenging due to the sub-optimal weather conditions, but we still got plenty of quality sessions in with the guys. My legs were sore by the end of it, so I guess we did a decent amount of hard work!

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Pre-Season Form

FC: I’m happy with where my form is at for this time of the year, and I have been feeling good on the bike. I’m motivated to get the season rolling and get into a solid block of racing this spring. I’m excited to being back in Europe to race for the year. I’m looking forward to showing the Team Novo Nordisk kit in every race, so I can empower, educate and inspire people affected by diabetes around the world.

DL: To be honest, my form is a big question for me right now because I finished my season early last year due to my wedding. When I stopped, I felt like I was in “tip-top” shape, so now I feel like I’m not quite at that level. Yet, I can see progress compared to this time last year. Now the big question is seeing how it all translates to racing. My goals for this season are to fight more in the races and focus on doing my absolute best. I’m sure the results will come if I give 120% every race. I know this season is extremely important for the team and I’m completely dedicated to giving it my all.

JH: Going into 2017, I feel fit, relaxed and motivated. It’s my fifth year as a pro, so I feel like I finally have experience. I’m hoping that experience will help me achieve some personal success this year. My plan is to still help my teammates as much as possible, but I also want to test my own limits in some races. 

I’m happy to start racing in Dubai; the race is designed mainly for sprinters, so I can still focus on building my form, help the other guys and go on the hunt for breakaways.

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Vassili Davidenko, Team General Manager

The training camp went well despite a few days of bad weather. The team staff did an amazing job assisting the riders with their final preparations before the first races of the season. We always go into camp with a Plan B in case the weather turns bad or doesn't improve. It is essential that the riders do not lose even one day of preparation at this point in the season.

In anticipation of the snow and rain, we had our team cars ready to transport the riders to a different part of Spain so they could still train. In the end, this was not necessary. All our training sessions were carried out according to the pre-camp plan, and the guys were able to head out from the team hotel each day.

For me, it truly is exciting to see how the team makes progress year after year. We achieved all the goals we had set for camp, and I feel the team is ready to start our first races. From there, the riders form will continue to improve.

It is going to be a very busy season with many World Tour events on our racing calendar. All of Team Novo Nordisk is very excited for the upcoming season, and we look forward to competing and racing aggressively in the most visible and important events on the pro cycling calendar.

Team Novo Nordisk - the world's first all-diabetes professional cycling team

Conquista issue 13 - featuring Brian Hodes's portraits of Team Novo Nordisk 

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