In preparation for the biggest Tour in OCM, OCMagazine will make many interviews to the biggest protagonists in the Tour. We’ll start with the sprinters and remember, I never promised any candy to the respondents!
  
  Lean Ahnfeldt-Mollerup, ABK
   How do your legs feel like?
  My legs are always good.
  
  
   Ready to win the SC for the first time?
  Yes I am ready to win the SC but the competition is hard. Dussel is the big favorite but there are several good sprinters and some of the GC contenders might get a lot of points as well.
  
   Will there be a 2nd chance?
  I think I will be back next season. I will keep racing at least until I can't stay in the top ten of the riders ranking.
  
   Is this one of your lifetime goals?
   The SC in GT is one of the few things I haven't won so far and it's also one of the things I really would like to add to my palmares.
  
   Who will be your biggest rival?
  -
  
   Any predictions for the GC?
  I haven’t had a close look at the start list yet, but I think Bauwens will do well in the GC.
  
   Are you getting old?
  No I'm not getting old, I'm getting experienced.
  
  
   Nico Woltelboer, Team Tirilla
   How do your legs feel like?
   My legs feel very good. I have had five victories within the last 90 days and I hope I can improve this record with a good performance in Germany.
  
   You are incredibly alrounded, but do you think you can fight for the win in a flat sprint against the bests?
   To by honest, this tour is a test for me. I have already won a few sprints against the superior sprinters so I'm confident and I believe I can compete with everybody.
  
   Will you aim just to the SC or will you fight for a Top9 GC?
   My first priority is neither SC nor GC but good results in individual stages. I'm not aiming to win the SC but it's possible that I will finish in the top 9 overall.
  
   You and your team are having an amazing season. Why? And wil you keep that way?
   The team has just done very well since guys like Edward (Van Baerlem), Jim (Van Avermaet) and I joined in the end of last season - there is such a good atmosphere and a desire to do well everywhere we race. All of us captains are at a place in our careers where we know how to do well and this is made possible by the excellent support from our team-mates.
  
   Who will be your biggest rival?
   The mountains. If I prevail here, everything is possible.
  
   Any prediction for the YC?
  

Jacob Rachlin looks very determined to take it.
  
  
   Jan-Joost Dussel, peddelen
  How do your legs feel like Dussel?
   Good and fresh but on my age it's only for a short time after a stage I am mostly exhausted and then we have to sprint. Things are not so easy any more.
  
   Ready to fight for the Green again? Will this be your last GT? Future plans?
   Fight for Green I guess everybody expects that with good reason but I really think I will not be the winner under normal circumstances. I kinda have my farwell tour as a captain now I hope to score a stage somewhere. Next season I might be back but only as a lead out for another captain. The plan is to stay part of the team until retirement but current rules don’t allow us to retire anymore unless all other teams get the chance to hire you.
  
   Who scares you the most the younger (Kirk Narramore, Paulis Ronis) or the older (Lean Ahnfeldt-Mollerup, Anton Ugolnikov, Nico Woltelboer)?
  My favorite for the green jersey is Anton Ugolnikov. He won Helsinki GP and seems more consistent than Narramore, though I like Narramore a lot because he’s almost the same type of rider as I am. Ronis is new and new guys often perform well in this race so he will be a contender too but I fear he’s to weak to make it really hard for Ugolnikov and Narramore. Mollerup is a very consistent sprinter always has the same high level only a rider who peaked to a race can beat him and Germany is such race for all the sprinters competing. Wortelboer is not a real sprinter and I think he can’t overcome that in the other stages.
  
   Who do you think will get your SC throne one day?
   Future SC winners who didn’t make the sign up this time are Van Schaik, Roels and of course Kantor, the latter was the best scoring rider last year with a Nederlandse Tour win. Also Yuri has some good (potential) captains not only Sijmonds and Rios but also one of the talents he hired can become future winners of SC.
  
  
   Paulis Ronis, mirabelle
  How do your legs feel like?
  My legs feel very good and I will be in great shape for the tour.
  
   So young, do you think you have a chance against the oldies?
   I’m young and full of confidence, so of course think i can beat the oldies. In Pires i’ve had one of the best mentors in the game and he has teached me a lot.
  
   I imagine you saw Dussel win the SC here in the TV while you were still at home in Latvia. How does it feel to ride against him in his own soil? Do you think you can beat him?
   It’s a honor to race against Dussel and i must say that i’m impressed with his results in Germany, but as i said before, i’m confident in my own abilities and i think i have a chance of beating him.

  
   Who will be your biggest rival?
   I think my biggest rival to the green jersey is Dussel and maybe Ugolnikov. Dussel is getting older, but i think he has more in him.
  
   Tell us a bit about you. What is your lifetime goal inside OCM?
  I hope to compete in the highest level for many years, and my dream goal is to win Germany Tour. Dussel has shown that it can be done by a sprinter, so why not me.
  
   How important is David Pires for your preparation?
   David Pires means everything to me, he has learned me so much and look at him - 34 years and still going strong. He just ended up 4th in Helsinki GP. He has promised to support me through this GT and I’m sure his great experience with help a lot.
  
  
   Who do you think will win the Tour? Who will fight him?
   I have a feeling that Woltelboer will surprise or maybe Dussel will do it again.
  
   Anton Ugalinov, Yuri SuperTeam
  
  How do your legs feel like ?
  Well I just raced Helsinky GP, so as you can imagine I’m tired.
  You look in a great shape. Will that be enough to win the SC?
  Hard to say. That’s the goal, but last season we were great and finished just 3rd.
  Looking at your team everyone thinks you’re unbeatable. How are you leading with the pressure?
  Here in Yuri SuperTeam we don’t like to be considered favorites and handle the pressure. Where is Otto Baier?
  Who is you’re biggest rival?
  No doubt Kirk Narramore! Dussel will be great as usual but Narramore is the future. Will be a hard hard fight!
  Who will win the King stage?
  Sebastião Moura… Why not…
  
  
  Kirk Narramore, Connaught
   We asked him this questions and he answered...
  How do your legs feel like?
  Are you in the form of your life?
   Do you think you have what it takes to take Dussels throne?
   What do you think about the chances from the Beast in this Tour?
   Which is your favourite stage? Will you win it?
   Don't you think you're too young to win a SC in Germany?
  ...this way:
  Narramore has be out since early season injured. His first real race back was the Helsinki classic where he finished 11th. Not good. The conditioning is there, but has the long lay off affected his race sharpness? Time will tell. No where near favourites for sprint jersey going into the tour. Long patch without races, and Helsinki result has knocked the confidence. A few days to prepare and turn it around.
  
  
  [article updated]
  
   Written by Chief Editor Yuri from Yuri SuperTeam to OCMagazine