Talented young Columbia-Highroad rider Tony Martin of Germany will be aiming for an early test of his Tour de France condition when he takes part in the Tour of Romandie in Switzerland, set to begin this Tuesday. “Romandie is good training for me in the event I will be racing in the Tour de France, particularly since there’s a team time trial, my first this year,” the Columbia-Highroad rider comments. “Then I want to do well in the prologue, because it’s 3.1 kilometres long which is a good distance for me. Finally I want to test my condition in the mountains and see if I can improve there.”

The six-day Tour of Romandie also sees British sprinter Mark Cavendish returning to racing after a short break following the Ghent-Wevelgem Classic . Last year Cavendish won the prologue in the Swiss race, and Romandie is his last event before he takes part in the Tour of Italy. “I did Romandie last year, and I like it very much - good roads, good hotels and well- organized. My only complaint is there’s no long individual time trial this year, and it would be better for me if there were. It’s not so mountainous this time, though, as it has been some years, which is a plus. That way if we get a good result in the team time trial, we have a good chance of staying ahead,” added Martin.

“It’s an important race for Mark [Cavendish] because it’s his last before the Giro D’Italia, but there’s no pressure here,” adds team sports director Tristan Hoffman. “If he gets a win, then that’s great. But really we see Romandie as part of his build-up for Italy, one last test before the Giro.”

Columbia-Highroad for Tour of Romandie: Michael Barry (Can); Mark Cavendish (GB); Craig Lewis (USA); Tony Martin (Ger); Marco Pinotti (Ita); Morris Possoni (Ita); Frantisek Rabon (Cze); Konstantin Sivtsov (Byl):