Lotto Dstny rider Andreas Kron is not part of the upcoming Tour de France selection and opens up about why he will not be at the start of his 2nd Tour. “I felt that I wasn’t ready for the Tour”, explains the puncheur, “I am targeting a stage win at La Vuelta.”
After a strong spring campaign with amongst others a fourth place at the Amstel Gold Race, the Tour de France would be the next big goal of the Dane. “But I had to change my plans”, says the Lotto Dstny rider, “I don’t feel ready to participate and together with the team, it was decided to focus on other goals. Don’t get me wrong, I really enjoyed my participation last year, especially with the start in my home country. It was fantastic but I am a sportsman and I don’t want to just ride, I want to get results. This wouldn’t be possible with my actual shape. At the start in Bilbao you have to be 100% and I’m not yet on that level. Now, there are eight Lotto Dstny riders at the start who are all ready to shine in the Tour.”
Kron crashed in Liège-Bastogne-Liège, the final race of his spring campaign. “After that crash and the busy and tough spring campaign, I needed more time off the bike than anticipated”, he explains, “I had to reset both physically and mentally. That hindered me to have the best preparation for the Tour. I am really proud of my Ardennes Classics but it’s not easy to be in top shape every single race, to prepare yourself mentally and keep the focus. This requires a lot of your body not only physically, I needed time to recharge the batteries.”
The Dane stayed off the bike for two weeks after Liège-Bastogne-Liège. “After that I still needed two weeks to get back to a normal training modus. So I didn’t get the best amount of training but I was still hopeful for the Tour. The Tour de Suisse made it clear. I wasn’t ready to start, my shape just wasn’t good enough. It is better to train some more and shift focus towards La Vuelta. This team feels like a family to me and I enjoy coming to the races. I would love to be there in France but it is just not possible”, he stresses, “there wasn’t any pressure from the team and they give me all the time to get back to my best level. I really have to thank Lotto Dstny for their support.”
No Tour but La Vuelta instead. “To be honest, it wasn’t a difficult decision not to participate”, he concluded, “you don’t ride the Tour just for the sake of riding, you are riding the Tour amongst the best riders in the world, you want to be on top level and get results. I’m not able to do that at this moment. I am wishing the team all the best for the Tour and I will go on altitude training camp in Livigno with the other teammates. We are going to work hard, have fun and prepare for new goals. I hope to win in a stage in La Vuelta.”
Image: Maxime Van der Wielen.
