All set for the fifth edition of the Škoda Titan Desert Almería

It will be a historic year for the Škoda Titan Desert Almeria in its fifth edition. Record participation, with a peloton of 500 Titans, and a series of elite cyclists as rarely remembered in a Titan World Series race.

It will be four days of adventure exploring the wonderful province of Almeria. Each day will exploit one of the numerous scenic offers and sporting challenges that gives the territory. Everything will start in Cabo de Gata, with a stage that runs along the coast and that will serve for the Titans to start warming up their legs.

From there, the race will move to the Tabernas desert, the only one on the European continent. Without leaving the desert, on the third day, the Velefique summit, one of the great giants in Spain, appears on the horizon. The Škoda We Love Cycling stage, the queen of the edition, will be held there.

The race will close with that spectacular passage through the Álvarez de Sotomayor military base in its fourth stage. The Spanish Legion will honor the riders as they pass through and crown them as Titans in their own right.

THE MAIN CONTENDERS SPEAK OUT

Some of the main favorites for the men’s and women’s GCs have already spoken out about the challenge ahead. Tessa Kortekaas, Luis León Sánchez and Peter Sagan took part in the pre-race press conference.

For Luis León Sánchez, winner of the last edition of the Škoda Titan Desert Morocco, the big goal is still “to enjoy”.  “Whatever I have to win or lose I’ve already done in my professional career. Now what I want is to enjoy and, here, in the Titan Desert, I have found an incredible family,” he explained.

Tessa Kortekaas, reigning champion of the Škoda Titan Desert Morocco and the Škoda Titan Desert Almeria, admitted that she feels “better than ever”. “I’ve done a lot of races lately and I’ve been in good shape for a long time, although I have the memory of what happened in Saudi Arabia, when my body told me to stop. The big difference is that now I have a team that helps me with everything.”

And the big star of the edition, the triple world champion, Peter Sagan, highlighted that what he is looking for in Almeria are “new experiences”. “For me it’s a pleasure to be in the race. I’m not in the same condition as when I was racing, so my goal is just to finish the race and have a good time. To enjoy myself with the people who are here.”