Bourke Kuiper Team Koga Holland

Lars Vierbengen Team Koga Holland

One day after the announcement of four British teams brought the total number of squads for this year’s An Post Rás up to eleven, an additional three more foreign outfits have been confirmed.

The latest to join the expanding lineup for the prestigious Irish event are the Dutch Koga Cycling Team, the Belgian national squad and the Australian Team Subaru-Albion.

Together these mean that fourteen overseas teams will travel for the race, although more squads will be confirmed between now and the May 19th start.

There is a strong track influence in the first two of the teams, with several high achievers amongst them. The Koga Cycling Team’s provisional lineup includes Nick Stopler, who took silver and bronze in the points and madison respectively at the European track championships two years ago.

The squad also includes Bouke Kuiper, who won a stage in the Tour du Faso in 2011 and who was world track championship silver medallist in the points race four years earlier.

The other three riders likely to take part are the 2012 Dutch national omnium champion Roy Eefting, Lars Vierbergen plus the road and mountainbike competitor Lars Vierbergen.

Moreno De Pauw Belgium

“Last year we had some top five and top ten placings in stages,” said Cees Van Der Steen, who is part of the team management. “We were second in the overall team classification. We are going for those again and perhaps will get a stage victory.”

The track theme continues with on the Belgian national team, where multiple Six Days winner and 2012 world madison champion Kenny De Ketele plus Olympic team pursuit rider Jasper De Buyst will lead the charge.

Another team pursuit rider from London 2012, Moreno De Pauw, will also be part of the lineup. He is a double European track championship bronze medallist, while Aimé De Gendt was Belgian national TT champion last season. The lineup is likely to be completed by Jochen Deweer, a past world junior and European championship silver medallist.

“We won’t have specific leaders, but Kenny De Ketele and Jasper De Buyst are the most experienced riders,” said the Belgian cycling federation director Jos Smets. “Leadership will depend of the results of the first stages. Our goals are to win a stage and achieve a top ten in the final ranking.”

The Team Subaru Albion team will be representing Australia in the race. The likely lineup will be Keagan Atkinson, David Early, Chris McLoran, Cam Harrison and Anthony Murray.

Kenny De Ketele Belgium

“The list of foreign teams continues to grow in advance of the race start in less than a month’s time,” said race director Tony Campbell today. “With several accomplished track riders being confirmed today, we are looking forward to the speed and tactics these will bring to the race.”

The 2013 An Post Rás will begin in Dunboyne on Sunday 19th May, the fourth consecutive year it has started there. It will then move counter-clockwise around the country, and includes stage finishes in Longford, Nenagh, Listowel, Killarney, Glengarriff, Mitchelstown, Carlow and Naas, before concluding on Sunday 26th May with the customary finale in Skerries, North County Dublin.

The race will feature 33 categorised climbs, of which four are gruelling category one mountains and twelve are category two ascents.

For further information contact:

Tony Campbell           tonycampbell@anpostras.com

Eddie  Dawson           eddiedawson@anpostras.com

Or log on to              www.anpostras.ie