Eritrean history maker Biniam Girmay will lead NSN Cycling Team’s search for stage wins at the Tour de France, a race that takes on added significance this year thanks to its Grand Départ in Barcelona.
The build-up to cycling’s biggest race and its first three stages – which begin on Saturday 4 July – will take place in and around the historic Catalan city, home to the team’s title sponsor.
Biniam will be joined on the start line at the Barcelona Fòrum by British pair Jake Stewart and Lewis Askey, Frenchman Matîs Louvel, and Tom Van Asbroeck, with the Belgian returning to the Tour after a six-year absence. This quartet makes up the core lead-out group for Biniam, who won three stages and the green jersey in the 2024 edition.
Italian Marco Frigo is the only debutant in the team’s roster, while fellow stage hunters George Bennett (the reigning New Zealand road champion) and Latvian Krists Neilands will both compete in their sixth Tour.
“We’ve got a good group of riders for the race, focused predominantly around Bini and the sprints,” says Head Sports Director Sam Bewley.
“But the race is 21 stages. We want to have a purpose and a goal across the entire race, so it’s important to have guys like George, Krists, and Marco in his first Tour there so we can keep NSN in the race across as much of the three weeks as possible.
“We feel confident with the guys we have to be able to deliver some good stage outcomes from breakaways, mountain stages, or how the Tour plays out, in addition to our primary focus of the sprints.”
Unfortunately for Biniam, he will have to wait until the race reaches the southern French city of Pau on stage five for his first shot at glory.
The Tour starts with a 19.6-kilometer team time trial in Barcelona, followed by two potential GC days before the race leaves Spain, however this year’s Grand Départ will be one for the whole team to remember.
Bewley adds: “It’s going to be great to start in Barcelona – selfishly, I wish the race started with a bunch sprint, but it’s going to be so cool beginning the Tour in the home city of NSN. We want to do the jersey proud there, but we know the stages aren’t ideally suited to our group of riders. That doesn’t mean we’re not going to race with great pride – it’s going to be a great occasion for everybody connected to the team.”
Biniam starts the race off the back of a strong performance at the recent Baloise Belgium Tour, where he won a stage and claimed two other top-10s across the five days.
His three victories so far this season are his best return in the first six months of a season since 2022, and also put him ahead of where he was going into his history-making 2024 Tour.
He says: “Everybody who knows me understands how special the Tour de France is to me – but I’m more interested in creating more special moments than looking back on what I’ve achieved in the past.
“I know my form is good, but it’s also great knowing that I have a really committed team around me. We have worked hard since the start of the season to discover the best ways to work together, to build trust in each other, and to score the best results possible.
“I’m going into this year’s race full of confidence and with a real sense of anticipation for the first sprint opportunities.”
While this will be Frigo’s first experience of the Tour, he has previously challenged for stage victories in both the Giro d’Italia and Vuelta a España.
“Any rider’s first Tour de France is special,” says the 26-year-old from Bassano del Grappa. “The 2010 Tour – and the big fight between Contador and Schleck on the Tourmalet – was one of the first races I remember watching on TV and knowing what was going on. To be part of this big event will be amazing.
“To be honest, I think I am yet to realize how big the race is – people around me keep telling me ‘Marco, be prepared, because it is going to be crazy’. I think I am still a bit innocent, but I know I am capable of managing this.
“I am super happy with my level right now – I have done everything I can ahead of the race. I think I can try to fight for a stage, and I want to take all the opportunities I can. A lot depends on the tactics, but already from the first week, there are some good stages that we will try to grab. Then, of course, I will give 100% for Bini on the sprint stages, so I think it’s true to say that there is a lot of food in the dish for us.”
NSN Cycling Team at the Tour de France (Saturday 4 – Sunday 26 July)
Riders: Lewis Askey (GBR), George Bennett (NZL), Marco Frigo (ITA), Biniam Girmay (ERI), Matîs Louvel (FRA), Krists Neilands (LAT), Jake Stewart (GBR), Tom Van Asbroeck (BEL)
Sports Directors: Sam Bewley (NZL), Dror Pekatch (ISR), Rene Mandri (EST)