The official presentation of Russian professional team Katusha – 2013 was held in Brescian Palazzo della Loggia, Italy.
The presentation was attended by guests of the team, sponsors and partners of the Russian Global Cycling Project, as well as representatives of the Russian and European mass media. Wojciech Walkiewicz, the President of the European Cycling Union was pointed as the honorary guest of the event.
The renewed Katusha Team – 2013, consisted of 30 riders, was presented to the world’s cycling community:
Maxim Belkov, Pavel Brutt, Sergei Chernetckii, Vladimir Gusev, Petr Ignatenko, Mikhail Ignatyev, Vladimir Isaychev, Dmitry Kozonchuk, Alexander Kolobnev, Timofey Kritskiy, Viacheslav Kuznetsov, Denis Menchov, Alexander Porsev, Yuriy Trofimov, Alexey Tsatevich, Eduard Vorganov, Anton Vorobyev (all – Russia); Xavier Florencio, Alberto Losada, Daniel Moreno, Joaquim Rodriguez, Angel Vicioso (all – Spain); Giampaolo Caruso, Luca Paolini (both – Italy); Marco Haller (Austria), Alexander Kristoff (Norway), Aliaksandr Kuchynski (Belarus), Rudiger Selig (Germany), Gatis Smukulis (Latvia) and Simon Spilak (Slovenia).
Viacheslav Ekimov, the general manager of Katusha Team presented not only the rider’s roster, but also team’s sports directors: Valerio Piva, Dmitrii Konyshev, Gennady Mikhaylov, Torsten Schmidt, Claudio Cozzi and Uwe Peschel.
Team Katusha just announced that every application for CT races turned out successfully. Besides the obligated WT races the Russian outfit will take part in the Giro del Trentino, the Tour of Turkey, the Bayern Rundfahrt as well as the Tour of Norway. The full Part 2 Race calendar of Katusha:
WT.1 Ronde van Vlaanderen [31 March] WT.4 Pais Vasco [1-6 April] WT.1 Paris-Roubaix [7 April] WT.2 Amstel Gold Race [14 April] CT.6 Giro del Trentino [16-19 April] WT.2 La Fleche Wallone [17 April] WT.1 Liege-Bastogne-Liege [20 April] CT.5 Tour of Turkey [21-28 April] WT.4 Tour de Romandie [23-28 April] WT.2 Giro d'Italia [2-26 May] CT.6 Tour of Norway [15-19 May] CT.6 Bayern Rundfahrt [22-26 May] WT.3 Criterium du Dauphine [2-9 June] WT.3 Tour de Suisse [8-16 June]
Management announces goals for part 2
Just after getting to know the full race calendar the management of Team Katusha announced their main targets for the second part of the season. These are the following:
Easy - Top 5 Tour of Norway Medium - Top 10 Giro d'Italia Hard - Top 3 Liege-Bastogne-Liege
The sponsors will meet up and will in the following days also announce their three major goals.
Exactly. Because Purito isn't belong the best climbers
I can't focus with all my goals on Rodriguez
Why not?
One problem, which I ran into. Ollfardh doesn't take into account your startlist planning. He doesn't care if you use Kozontchuk and Chernetskiy or Rodriguez and Moreno.
Exactly. Because Purito isn't belong the best climbers
I can't focus with all my goals on Rodriguez
Why not?
One problem, which I ran into. Ollfardh doesn't take into account your startlist planning. He doesn't care if you use Kozontchuk and Chernetskiy or Rodriguez and Moreno.
I know, that's why I set the goals I won't need Purito for
I don't want him at Giro so I set TOP10, so Ollfardh can't make me have to get a better result.
Also I am very content with the countered goals, only TOP 5 Roubaix will be hard to achieve with Kristoff, but it's still doable.
Katusha's management confirms the signing of Austrian youngster Richard Löwenherz. The Tyrolian is the second Austrian besides Marco Haller on the team. Löwenherz will be a valuable helper in sprint stages as well as in cobbled classics. Further he will occassionally try to chase his own success in breakaways.
A Latin saying tells us Nomen est Omen ('name is omen') which can also be applied on Katusha's newest signing. Richard the Lionheart (German: 'Löwenherz') was a legendary and for his braveness known English king. His Austrian namessake has a lot in common with him, as he will also try to push himself over his physical limit to help the team or by trying for a stagewin.
Löwenherz looked a bit distraught at the press conference. Not sure what all of this was for, said his look and one has to remember that this guy basically lived all his life on his bike, on which he was struggling through the mud. According to his own words, Löwenherz had just fought against a blizzard for about a week in his home-region Tyrol when Katusha had called him with the good news of his signing. The reason as to why he chose to train in a blizzard is quite simple: "It's me. I love to race with... and against nature."
He came to the press conference in full winter clothing and his face hidden mostly behind a scarf until he had to talk. He looked at many of the journalists like they are some kind of mythical forest animals, showing everyone thereby that he himself was a woodland creature. Yet only Yuri Vodkakov seemed to have some sort of connection with the new guy on the Katusha Team. President Igor Makarov obviously didn’t quite realize yet himself what a hopeful, future big fish Katusha Team caught here.
Several statements have caught interest during the press conferences, which saw at the end a lash of Russian journalists taking pictures of the new signing with his jersey. For example, Löwenherz replied rather bluntly upon his past encounters with Marco Haller. “Yeah, I know Marco Haller from the amateur road races back then in Austria. He usually wheel sucked and came out of my stream when the time was right. So I suppose we will have a great chemistry, now that he can officially ride take advantage of my racing. Now that we belong to the same team I won’t be mad when he takes the wins from me, but for the team.” “I’m glad that Katusha decided for him me, that they have enough confidence in me to offer me a contract. I want to justify their confidence and I hope I can fulfill the potential they see in me”, he states rather shy and quiet.
There also seems to be some natural love affair between him and Russia. “In the end, I chose Katusha because it’s in Russia. I wanted to live here, breathe in the mentality. Katusha is a formidable, tough team. I like to think of me as a tough rider too. It’s a natural fit and it’s great that they have decided to sign me.” And also his choice of living place might seem odd. “No, I won’t share a flat with Marco. I want to move to Siberia. So I live there and to train there. I fear that Russian drivers will hit me if I live in Moscow. In Siberia I have open, wide, endless roads just for myself. I don’t mind the cold. I’d choose the forest, but I’ll have to talk about logicists first.”
While his opinions on his captains were rather solid and unremarkable, and reduced themselves to a typical string of praise, especially on last year’s World Tour Number One Joaquím Rodríguez (“an unbelieveable rider”), Löwenherz was far more enthusiastic about the upcoming races and his goals. “I want to help the team wherever I can. First and foremost, I think I need to come into shape of course, but I always kept myself fit. So I’d be honoured if I could race the cobblestone classics. These classics are dreams to race for me. I raced them as part of the Skoda Classic Challenge last year, on my cyclo-cross, but it's obviously something entirely different to race it in real competition. I'd love to do that. Except for that, I don’t really have many goals for my first season honestly. I’d like to represent Katusha well, and maybe – well, maybe I could show myself in other races too at some point, races you wouldn't think off by now.”
After around an hour of questions about the current squad and the Katusha team in general, Yuri Vodkakov, Igor Makarov and new signing Löwenherz looked similar relieved. Later on, Löwenherz was caught on photo how he rode out of the company’s area with his bike into the late March snow storm of Moscow.
"It’s a little bit scary when Contador attacks." - Tommy V
Coming down from the coldest places of Tyrol, Richard Loewenherz has an odd name but the English translation of Lionheart holds up to this fighter through and through. He is born with the trademarks of a true racer, a fighter formed and steeled by nature; he will give everything even if the odds are overwhelmingly against him.
Coming from a Cyclo-Cross background, Loewenherz has caused quite a fuss in his young years, when he hailed down like an avalanche on those poor city biker souls. Used to riding in the snow, mud and woods, this guy knows how to handle any kind of terrain. He lives for mud, sweat & gears. The roots of the dangerous road may have broken his chains, but they have also steeled his will. He enjoys the melancholic winter atmosphere as much as the heat breezes of a summer mountain. Eager to show his competitiveness, he participated in some Belgian Cyclocross races, but eventually the traveling took the better of him at this very young age and forced him back home. He endured the hardships, looked already for possible teams in teenage years and is now hopeful that he can achieve some success on the road. He was raised to compete, to not fear the pain. He always feels the burn. He does not need forgiveness thus he will always push just that little harder. He doesn’t care about his pay-check. All he needs is some gear, and when he is packed in, when he breathes into his scarf, he is ready. These are the perks of being raised by some maniac cycling-lovers in a remote village. Racing is everything to this guy. He does it 365 days a year – taking an off-day is for this fanatic rider non-disputable. He will work for his teammates tirelessly. He will go into breakaways more often than you dare to count. And eventually, one day, he will come out on top.
-Stats-
Name:
Loewenherz
Rider type:
Fighter
Country:
Austria
Age:
21
Points availabe:
175
Points left:
0
175
0
161
14
0
Start Stat
Upgrade (1:1)
71-75 (2:1)
76-79 Stat (4:1)
Obtained Upgrades
Total Stats
Flat:
55
15
4
72
Hill:
55
15
2
71
Mnt:
55
10
65
TT:
55
10
65
Prol:
55
5
60
Cob:
55
15
70
Spr:
55
15
70
Acc:
55
13
68
Desc:
55
13
68
End:
55
15
70
Res:
55
10
65
Fight:
55
15
8
74
Rec:
55
10
65
-Races-
List of Races, Season 2013 (Top 25 results are bold)
The cycling season has already started 4 months before this website, about what is going on at Russian team Katusha, was created. In the following we will present you the wins and best moments for Katusha so far this season. The season started well with outstanding preformances in Australia, Argentinia and to a certain degree also in Malaysia and Algarve.
After the excelent start of the season it got very quiet around Katusha with only one more stage win in Catalunya taken by Daniel Moreno.
Best Results
- Stage Wins -
Santos Tour Down Under
Stage 4
Alexander Kristoff
Santos Tour Down Under
Stage 5
Daniel Moreno
Santos Tour Down Under
Stage 6
Alexander Kristoff
Tour of San Luis
Stage 1
Alexander Porsev
Tour of San Luis
Stage 3
Joaquím Rodríguez
Tour of San Luis
Stage 5
Joaquím Rodríguez
Tour de Langkawi
Stage 5
Simon Spilak
Volta ao Algarve
Stage 3
Simon Spilak
Volta a Catalunya
Stage 6
Daniel Moreno
- GC and classification Jersey Jerseys -
Santos Tour Down Under
2nd GC
Daniel Moreno
Santos Tour Down Under
Points
Alexander Kristoff
Santos Tour Down Under
KoM
Daniel Moreno
Tour of San Luis
1st GC
Joaquím Rodríguez
Tour of San Luis
KoM
Joaquím Rodríguez
Tour de Langkawi
2nd GC
Simon Spilak
Tour de Langkawi
KoM
Simon Spilak
Volta ao Algarve
3rd GC
Simon Spilak
- Classics -
Milano - San Remo
5th
Alexander Kristoff
Table of Successes
- Stage Races -
Stages
1st GC
2nd GC
3rd GC
Points
KoM
Alexander Kristoff
2
0
0
0
1
0
Alexander Porsev
1
0
0
0
0
0
Daniel Moreno
2
0
1
1
0
1
Joaquím Rodríguez
2
1
0
0
0
1
Simon Spilak
2
0
1
0
0
1
total:
9
1
2
1
1
3
- Classics -
1st
2nd
3rd
4th
5th
Alexander Kristoff
0
0
0
0
1
total:
0
0
0
0
1
Katusha Riders in the Ranking
1
P. Sagan
1220
2
F. Cancellara
980
3
T. Boonen
874
4
N. Quintana
755
5
A. Greipel
709
6
W. Brouwer
695
7
A. Valverde
662
8
J. Rodriguez
535
9
J. Degenkolb
518
10
A. Contador
517
…
21
A. Kristoff
350
23
S. Spilak
330
26
D. Moreno
316
147
V. Gusev
50
150
L. Paolini
48
158
A. Porsev
42
181
A. Tsatevitch
30
211
M. Ignatiev
24
211
G. Caruso
24
263
V. Kuznetsov
15
274
A. Vicioso
12
274
E. Vorganov
12
320
A. Kolobnev
8
320
R. Selig
8
378
X. Florencio
5
Outstanding Performances
The sponsors decided to award after each part the teams best performances which means the one that gave them the best advertising. The riders that managed to shine with these performances will get a little money bonus. The best, the second best and the third best get awarded.
- 3rd best performance -
The third spot goes to Simon Spilak. The Slovenian is awarded for his performance in the two races Volta ao Algarve and Tour de Langkawi. He got a podium spot in the GC in both races and won a stage in each, despite only having a break of 4 days between them. In Malaysia he additionally took the King of the Mountain classification!
- 2nd best performance -
The second spot is shared by Alexander Kristoff and Daniel Moreno for their outstanding performance in the Tour Down Under. After three stages, it looked like a race to forget for Team Katusha, but then the show started. The Norwegian made the start by winning the 4th stage in a sprint finish. Moreno afterwards took the prestigious win on Old Willunga Hill and Kristoff rounded it off with winning the criterium stage in Adelaide. On top of that Moreno missed the overall win with not even a full second and the King of the Mountain competition. Kristoff also was awarded with the final sprint competition jersey.
- 1st best performance -
The win goes to our captain Joaquím Rodríguez for his win in San Luis that he took in a dominating manner. Rodríguez won two stages and the King of the Mountain Competition and only lost the points jersey on the last day to Peter Sagan. In total Katusha took even three stages in Argentinia, also counting Porsev's sprint win, beating stars like Sagan.
Ronde van Vlaanderen
Pais Vasco
Paris-Roubaix
Amstel Gold Race
La Fleche Wallone
Liege-Bastogne-Liege
Tour de Romandie
Giro d'Italia
Criterium du Dauphine
Tour de Suisse
Trentino
Turkey
Norway
Bayern
One my bosses Vodkakov’s secretaries helped me find a place rather fast in a rural area of Russia. They didn’t allow me to go all the way to Siberia. It’d be too expensive over time considering travel expenses, they said. Since I rarely cared about the price for anything, I thought it to be a lousy excuse. When I checked the time for the trains, I was convinced though. I’d lost too much time training and racing. That was what mattered to most. So I chose a place that might have welcomed even the Siberian bears, but was reachable for any secretaries that may have missed me, or noisy journalists that cared too much for what I was saying. Russia could turn out to be quite a good place to once you accept its nature and turn away from all the decadence of the city.
Vodkakov’s secretary smelled after vodka indeed and she gave me a present and I nearly vomited. I’m not used to alcohol. My body is a temple. It cannot be intoxicated. When I look up at the smog of Moscow, the green filth in the air, I think I should have chosen to stay in the wilderness of my home country or move to Siberia. Damn me. I could have ridden all the way to every race they sent me.
I live now in a nice wood cabin. They assured me there’s snow until spring and it will come back in late autumn. Summers won’t be as hot as in the city. It’s a simple cabin. I have an oven and a bed. Lots of books, no television though. My skis are somewhere in a corner. I’m from Austria, we all do ski. Vodkakov left me with a satellite phone because there’s no mobile phone connection apparently. I have room for clothes and for my bikes. I’m eyeing to get my cyclocross back after all this time, but it’s actually rusted by now. I should get a new cyclocross one of these days. I imagine the snowy, muddy hills to be decent challenges and the icy descents a welcome game of dare with my bike. I also got me a shotgun and a hunting rifle in any case any wild animals… or other creatures, decide to appear and disturb my little calm isolated place. I’m about one and half hour away from the next decent sign of civilization. As soon as the snow rises again, it will be even more.
"It’s a little bit scary when Contador attacks." - Tommy V
Abraham Denisov is the newest signing of Team Katusha. He will replace Kozontchuk, after he was released to Katusha's continental team. Denisov's main part in his first season will be to support sprinter Alexander Kristoff. Besides leading the Norwegian out, he will support him in the cobbled races.
Ronde van Vlaanderen [31 March]
Paris-Roubaix [7 April]
Amstel Gold Race [14 April]
Tour of Turkey [21-28 April]
Tour de Romandie [23-28 April]
