Castellón Citrosol - Cycling Team Based Castellón, Spain Founded 2013 Directeur sportif Ivan José Ryabovol Major Sponsors Citrosol Orbea Movistar 2013 Targets Milan-San Remo - Win Volta Ciclista a Catalunya - Win Clásica de San Sebastián - Win Tour of Flanders - Win Vuelta Ciclista al País Vasco - Win Vuelta a España - GC Win/3x Stage Wins Le Tour de France - Green Jersey/Top 10 GC/2x Stage Wins Giro d'Italia - Top 5/2x Stage Wins Roster: Andrey Amador (CRC) Lars Bak (DEN) Carlos Betancur (COL) Lars Boom (NED) Theo Bos (NED) Maxime Bouet (FRA) Matti Breschel (DEN) Damiano Caruso (ITA) Jonathan Castroviejo (ESP) Rui Costa (POR) Fabio Duarte (COL) Luke Durdridge (AUS) Beñat Intxausti (ESP) Leopold König (CZE) Barry Markus (NED) Michael Matthews (AUS) Gianni Meersman (BEL) Javier Moreno (ESP) Ramūnas Navardauskas (LTU) Mikel Nieve (ESP) Taylor Phinney (USA) Jürgen Roelandts (BEL) Peter Sagan (SVK) Luis León Sánchez (ESP) Simon Špilak (SVN) Gert Steegmans (BEL) Zdeněk Štybar (CZE) Alejandro Valverde (ESP) Greg Van Avermaet (BEL) Arthur Vichot (FRA) Lieuwe Westra (NED) Haimar Zubeldia (ESP)
Results Overall palmarès World Tour General Classification victories: 3 World Tour Stage victories: 6 World Tour Other Classification victories: 3 National Road Race victories: National Time Trial victories: 1 (Luke Durdrige, AUS) Other General Classification victories: 6 Other Stage victories: 11 Other Classification victories: 3 January Australian Championships Luke Durdridge - Time Trial Champion Michael Matthews - 7th Road Race Tour Down Under - World Tour, 6 Stages Taylor Phinney - 3rd GC, 2nd YRC, 1st Stage 3 Gert Steegmans - 1st Stage 4 Tour de San Luis - 2.1, 7 Stages Leopold König - GC Winner, 3rd PC, 1st Stage 6 Haimar Zubeldia - 3rd GC, 1st Stage 3 Gianni Meersman - 4th GC Teams Classification Winner February Grand Prix la Marseillaise - 1.1 Ramūnas Navardauskas - 2nd Fabio Duarte - 6th Javier Moreno - 7th Etoile de Besseges - 2.1, 6 Stages Lieuwe Westra - 3rd GC, 1st Stage 6 Gert Steegmans - 4th GC, 1st Stage 1 Gianni Meersmen - 7th GC, 1st Stage 4 Ramūnas Navardauskas - 1st Stage 2 2nd Teams Classification Vuelta a Mallorca Peter Sagan - 1st PC, 5th GC, 1st Stages 1 & 4 Luis León Sánchez - 1st KOTM Carlos Betancur - 4th GC Tour du Haut Var - 2.1, 2 Stages Simon Špilak - 4th GC Rui Costa - 6th GC Vuelta a Andalucia Carlos Betancur - 3rd GC, 2nd PC Haimar Zubeldia - 5th GC Alejandro Valverde - 1st Stage 3 2nd Teams Classification Omloop Het Nieuwsblad - 1.HC Zdeněk Štybar - 10th Tour de Langkawi - 2.HC, 10 Stages Andrey Amador - 3rd GC Gianni Meersman - 1st Stages 1 & 9 Vuelta a la Region de Murcia - 1.1 Carlos Betancur - Winner Alejandro Valverde - 2nd Mikel Nieve - 7th Beñat Intxausti - 10th Clasica de Almeria - 1.1 Michael Matthews - Winner Barry Markus - 2nd Gert Steegmans - 4th Le Samyn - 1.1 Ramūnas Navardauskas - 9th Gert Steegmans - 10th March Strade Bianche - 1.1 Lieuwe Westra - Winner Damiano Caruso - 2nd Zdeněk Štybar - 4th Paris - Nice - World Tour, 8 Stages Alejandro Valverde - GC Winner, 1st PC, 1st Stage 4 Rui Costa - 3rd GC, 4th PC, 1st Stage 7 Luis León Sánchez - 9th GC 1st Teams Classification Tirreno - Adriatico - World Tour, 7 Stages 5th Teams Classification Handzame Classic - 1.1 Barry Markus - Winner Gert Steegmans - 2nd Matti Breschel - 3rd Milan-San Remo - World Tour, Classic Peter Sagan - Winner Luis León Sánchez - 2nd Zdeněk Štybar - 3rd Greg Van Avermaet - 5th Volta Ciclista a Catalunya - World Tour, 7th Stages Mikel Nieve - 4th GC, 5th Stage 6, 6th Stage 4 E3 Harelbeke - World Tour, Cobbled Classic Lars Boom - 8th Peter Sagan - 10th Criterium International - 2.HC, 3 Stages Alejandro Valverde - 4th GC, 3rd Stage 2, 4th Stage 3 Gent - Wevelgem - World Tour, Cobbled Classic Jürgen Roelandts - 7th Peter Sagan - 9th Route Adélie de Vitré - 1.1 Gianni Meersman - Winner Damiano Caruso - 2nd Javier Moreno - 4th Grand Prix Miguel Indurain - 1.1 Damiano Caruso - 3rd Gianni Meersman - 4th Tour of Flanders - World Tour, Cobbled Classic Greg Van Avermaet - 6th Zdeněk Štybar - 7th April Vuelta Ciclista al Pais Vasco - World Tour, 6 Stages Alejandro Valverde - GC Winner, 1st Stages 4 & 5, 2nd PC, 3rd Stage 1, 4th MC Rui Costa - 4th GC, 2nd Stage 5 Luis León Sánchez - MC Winner 2nd Teams Classification Paris - Roubaix - World Tour, Cobbled Classic Peter Sagan - 4th Zdeněk Štybar - 5th Amstel Gold Race - World Tour, Classic Peter Sagan - 10th La Flèche Wallonne - World Tour, Classic Alejandro Valverde - 3rd Simon Špilak - 6th Liège–Bastogne–Liège - World Tour, Classic Alejandro Valverde - 2nd Luis León Sánchez - 6th
Igor Anton (ESP, 30) climber Lars Bak (DEN, 33) fighter Nacer Bouhanni (FRA, 22) sprinter Marcus Burghardt (GER, 29) northern classics Fabian Cancellara (SUI, 32) northern classics Jonathan Castroviejo (ESP, 25) time trial Juan José Cobo (ESP, 32) climber Tony Gallopin (FRA, 25) northern classics Philippe Gilbert (BEL, 30) puncher Jesús Herrada (ESP, 23) stage races Johnny Hoogerland (NED, 29) fighter Beñat Intxausti (ESP, 27) stage races Gorka Izagirre (ESP, 25) fighter Bob Jungels (LUX, 20) time trial Vladamir Karpets (RUS, 32) time trial Michal Kwiatkowski (POL, 23) time trial Pablo Lastras (ESP, 37) fighter Lars Petter Nordhaug (NOR, 28) puncher Nairo Quintana (COL, 23) climber José Joaquín Rojas (ESP, 27) sprinter Luis León Sánchez (ESP, 29) fighter Diego Ulissi (ITA, 23) puncher Alejandro Valverde (ESP, 32) climber Francisco José Ventoso (ESP, 30) sprinter Haimar Zubeldia (ESP, 36) stage races
Castellón Citrosol find early season form Valverde wins maiden Paris-Nice, Costa also on podium Spanish Superstar Alejandro Valverde has headed a successful start to the 2013 Season for Castellón Citrosol claiming his first ever Paris-Nice victory. Valverde and Portuguese Wunderkind Rui Costa each rode a solid opening time trial to finish in the top 10 heading into the sprint stages. It was on stage 4, however, when Valverde properly signaled his intent by making use of the first real climbing test, and escaping with Citrosol team mate Luis León Sánchez (2nd on the stage) along with 3 other riders on the Côte de Mauvagnat, before out-sprinting his fellow escapees to win the Stage. The penultimate stage also proved to be the most important of the tour, as Valverde again escaped the pack on the Col du Ferrier, this time dragging Costa along with him. Rui claimed the stage win, as both riders gained important time over their rivals that would ensure a victory for Valverde & podium finish for Costa barring disaster in the final time trial. Unfortunately, Costa was unable to pull enough time back to claim 2nd overall from the epo using ageless Chris Horner. Numerous other Castellón riders to have tasted early season success including Leopold König, winner at Argentina's Tour de San Luis, Luke Durdridge, the young Australian taking out his national time trial Championships, Taylor Phinney & Gert Steegmans who won stages at Tour Down Under, the first World Tour event of the season, Slovakian Sensation Peter Sagan who won two stages along with the points classification in Mallorca, Lieuwe Westra (Strade Bianche), Michael Matthews Clasica de Almeria), Carlos Betancur (Vuelta a la Region de Murcia), and Gianni Meersman, Haimar Zubeldia & Ramūnas Navardauskas who have claimed several stage wins in smaller tours.
