Three-time winner of Tour de Suisse, Rui Costa, will look for a top five place in the General Classification in the 2017 edition. The Portuguese World Champion will lead UAE Team Emirates during the race which takes place over nine days in Switzerland from 10th to 18th June.

The UAE Team Emirates’ rider, who previously won three editions of the race between 2012 and 2014, said, "This is a race that I really like and returning to it feels like coming home. It is familiar and I’ve got great memories of it. Despite having won this race several times it is quite demanding so it will be necessary to have clear tactics on how to tackle each stage. I need to retain my good form, preserve my energy and be smart to do well in the race. I am hoping to be in the top five of the overall General Classification by the end."

First held in 1933, the 2017 edition of the Tour de Suisse consists of several tough mountain stages in the Swiss Alps, a short individual time trial of 6km on day one as well as a decisive ITT on the final day.

Commenting on the team’s upcoming participation in the race, UAE Team Emirates’ Sports Director, Simone Pedrazzini, said, "We have a strong team line-up and one of the key objectives is to support Rui Costa and help him achieve his goal to be in the top five of the General Classification. This isn’t an easy target given that it is a difficult race and the competition is high. We expect our two younger riders Conti and Petilli, after having just been at the Giro d’Italia, to show their skill in the General Classification. We also have the fast trio, Consonni, Kump and Modolo, that will try to get great results in the sprint stages, while Mohoric will be looking to join a breakaway, and finally, returning back to racing after a crash at Vuelta al Pais Vasco [Tour of the Basque Country], is Atapuma."

Riding alongside Costa at the Tour de Suisse are Darwin Atapuma, Marko Kump, Valerio Conti, Matej Mohoric, Simone Petilli, Sacha Modolo and Simone Consonni.

Source: WAM