Written by Joost of Sprintingkings and Finz of NightmareChaos
We are just a few days away from the start of the 5th edition of Fast On Wheels. This 5th division tour will give a lot of teams the possibility to participate in their first tour ever. But there will also be some more experienced teams at the start all aching to take the famous red jersey home. Will this Danish tour finally see a Danish winner? In this analysis we will take a closer look at all the participating teams and their chances at a good result.
 Team CBS:
It is the first tour for this young fully Australian team and with their captain Eric Gallen arriving in top form they will take a shot at a good general classification. Gallen will arrive with the famous green icon behind his name and therefore will be one the riders to watch closely. He is definitely one of the favourites for the sprinting classification and maybe even for the overall win although his time trail abilities are significant less than those of his closest rivals. Gallen has 5 leadouts to support him but the question is if he will survive the hilly stage without any good team mates. If he does and his time trail turns out well he might even win this tour. Due to his young age Gallen also could take a shot at the youth classification so chances for him for all three jerseys.
 Team Wonderdee:
After a long absence of 10 seasons Team Wonderdee is finally back in action. They are probably one the most tour experienced teams contending in Fast on Wheels. The team has no classification ambitions because their captain Hartmann Sadolin lacks any time trail skills. Still they hope to do well at the individual stages, although most of them do not seem to suit Sadolin very well. With some luck he might do well on the king stage Arhus-Velje although he will probably lack the explosivity of a real hiller needed to conquer this steep short climbs. If he can compensate this with his excellent climbing abilities he might get a top 9 on this stage.
 Budapesti VSC:
This Hungarian team brings a very decent sprinting outfit, captain Brice Claridge has the luxury of a lot of good lead outs working for him. Nevertheless Brice will have a hard job hanging on to the peloton in the hilly stages so the question is if he even will be able to sprint for the stage win most of the time. His best chances lay in the second and the last stage because these are the flattest of all. If he manages to get a good result here and surprises in the hills he could be considered a dangerous outsider in the sprinting classification, although he could probably be very happy with a top 9 here. Manager pali might have a little tactical advantage because he knows two of Brices sprinting rivals very well. As the national Hungarian team manager he has worked a lot with sprinters Lipták Aurél (Team Katona) and Détári (Silencio).
 PRS:
The sprinting outfit PRS will bring Ildefonso Avelar as captain. In season 22 Avelar already showed of his qualities in the sprint by finishing 2nd in the Race Of The Minuteman sprinting classification. His tour experience, good support and also some hilling talent makes him a dangerous outsider for the sprinting classification in Fast of Wheels this year.
 Team Albatros:
The Danish team Albatros is competing on their home soil with a Danish rider Udo Grau as captain. The Danish public wants nothing more then finally a Danish winner in their tour and therefore a lot of eyes are looking in Graus direction. Manager adamborch wants to temper the high expectations by the crowd and states he would be very happy with a top 10 finish for Grau. For the objective viewer this seems about right looking at the competition. The team also said some Danish riders might get the possibility to ride for | | their own chances in one or two stages so maybe they can surprise. If not it will probably be an anonymous tour for Team Albatros.
 Borussia Milano:
With Henny Traa Borussia Milano brings a very experienced Fast on Wheels rider. Edition 4 was a bit of a deception for the edition 3 runner up but Traa is back again to take his revenge. He has definitely the best time trail capacities of all the contestants but unfortunately for Traa he will also need a lot of luck to finish high in the 5th stage. If the time trail gods are lenient for him he could ride a very good classification.
 squadra sora:
Dominik van Hecke will lead this team and he will make sure he will score some points here. He is a great sprinter and can ride the tougher stages with ease. He might lack the support to keep going all the way but he will finish high in the overall standings. They have participated in a previous tour, not in Denmark but in America. And the same rider scored well there so, why not here.
Team Katona:
The ambitions of manager Edu are incredible high. He stated he wants to win al of the three classifications. Although that will be an impossible task captain Lipták Aurél will be a serious candidate for the sprinting jersey. He has some good support and rumours say he will have the guidance of a green fairy during FoW. He is one of the favourites for the 2nd and the 6th stage but the question is if Aurél can hang on when we head towards the hillier terrain. Still a top 3 in the sprinting classifications could be possible but only if he manages to beat his rivals on his preferred flat stages.
Storm Sandefjord:
It is the third time Storm Sandefjord will ride Fast on Wheels and after a 4th, 5th and 6th place manager Batlen wants to ride top 3 for a change. And with youngster Bjarte Petersen arriving in top form he has a good chance in achieving that. The 5th time trail stage will be very decisive for Petersen because his biggest rivals seem to be better time trailers, still if he does not succeed in reaching the main podium the youngster will at least do well in the youth classification and has also some good chances for the sprinting jersey due to great lead outs. It looks like a promising tour for the Norwegian outfit and their young rising star.
 jmtoler:
This American team relies on their English do it all ride Lanchbury. This rider already seen the podium in Fast on Wheels last season finishing second in the youth classification. This year he is no longer eligable for the youth classification but now he wants to do good in the general classification. He has the team for it and he probably will score some points and money here. But a top nine is all they can hope for.
Keegan Cycling Team:
A new name in the tour. Who is this team and what riders do they bring. Their captain will be Spanish youngster Roman Cano. A great climber and he must be carefull not to sell him to some shrewed Top Division team for far too little. Cano is a captain and might do good in the Youth Classification. But we fear we will not see him in the top region of the General Classification. But manager Kim Jensen will have a good time in his maiden tour.
Britcycles:
This English squad knows his way in the OCM leagues. He is around for quite some time and was also present in last season's Fast on Wheels. And although he spends his days in the lower leagues, ryant knows how to prepare for something. His captain Hans-Cees Zimmer is in topform and a true favourite for this race. Will this be the
| | kick off team Britcycles has hoped for for soo long. We will see.
Kespe United:
Will Kespe is still having faith in his captain Bud Trigg. Already 35 years old but a veteran with division 1 results behind his name. He is in his fourth season now and delivered some nice wins for Kespe United. Bud Trigg however is getting to old to compete at this level. We believe he might get a result in a stage but he should race the lower leagues for victories and, here he should use his experience to support younger riders. Bud should prove me wrong, he still is a great rider.
 Silencio:
wivii from Puerto Rico is bringing a superb sprinter from Hungary to the start. A future star, and probably a winner of this years' Youth Classification. The manager is having Top Division experience and even delivered a World Champion in season 10. Catalin will give him a great chance to give him another jersey. Silencio is backing his rider with some nice leadouts. Let us hope he can make his team shine again like many seasons ago.
 celtas cortos:
A new team from Spain. Rarely seen in the open but they have some nice riders. Solano will lead their team and manager goyolf is having faith in him. This rider can climb any mountain and in the end still has that little edge so secure a victory in a sprint.
The team is almost Spanish, except for one young Polish rider. But they all work for Solano to secure a great result in their first tour on the OCM calender.
 elmi:
Lesotho returned with their best team for another Fast on Wheels. Phumudzo Cicero is wearing his national jersey with pride and will try to do well there. We believe the team should have picked Curtis Ball as captain but, national pride decided different. Some short finishes can be expected but they will not compete for the overall classification. They have the experience to surprise.
Norwegian:
In topform we see Rasmus Lorentsen. The captain of Norwegian team Norwegian. This team from Norway is new to the multiday racing but they have prepared themselves well. Manager jan might have asked some questions to his fellow Norwegian managers how to prepare himsellf for this. And he listened well. With a rider in topform he is a favourite for a good result and maybe top three.
 EkerSvarvarna:
The team with many seasons of experience may have made a mistake in appointing Clay Leseberg as their captain for this tour. Clay can do a lot but, is already 34 years old and can not do anything really good. He will be hanging on the peloton and probably the favourites on the uphill stage. A top nine finish could be possible but we fear this team goes home empty handed. His experience should have been enough to do better then this.
 Twente Cycling Team:
They have returned. The champions are back and they brought Sten Hallkvist also. But Sten is not the captain he will give his knowledge to new captain Roman Petrescu. A great new asset to this team and he is in topform. He can ride the timetrial and do well on the hilly stage. This rider is ready for defending the teams honour. And a number one for the victory.
Nobodies:
New team Nobodies are not nobodies from Denmark. They ride their home race and they do it with Jimmi Broders. He is a great rider, good in hills and good on flat roads. This will be an advantage over the rest and this rider might suprise us all. These nobodies might be somebodies in the end.
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