Team NetApp-Endura will be focused on the sprints in the Arctic Race of Norway which starts tomorrow. Sam Bennett will lead the team and will be supported by Scott Thwaites, Zak Dempster and Daniel Schorn in the fast finishes.

The second Arctic Race of Norway is due to get underway in the Norwegian town of Hammerfest this Thursday. In total, the tour covers 708 kilometers and, after four stages, ends in Tromsø, the largest town in Northern Norway. Like last year, Team NetApp – Endura will be competing in “The world’s northernmost cycle race” and will be battling to win stages with a team of strong sprinters.

“Following the success at the Tour and in China, the team’s mood is of course better than ever and all riders are very confident. I expect our dynamic trio Sam Bennett, Daniel Schorn and Scott Thwaites to have fairly good chances of success. As far as the riders who also competed in the Tour are concerned, we will have to see how they have come to terms with this enormous strain,” explains Sport Director Christian Pömer.

The first stage starts in Hammerfest and covers some 204 kilometers with three sprints and three mountain classifications to the finishing line at the North Cape – and hence to one of the northernmost points in mainland Europe. The second stage, which is also the longest of the tour, starts in Honningsvåg and ends in Alta located 207 kilometers to the south-west.

This is also the start of the third stage, which will be decided with a summit finish in Kvænangsfjellet, making it the queen’s stage of the 708-km-long tour of the far north. The last one-day stage is no less demanding, and especially the five final laps with the short but steep Tromsø summit will provide the sprinters with a strenuous day.

Line-up:

Jan Barta, Sam Bennett, Zak Dempster, Daniel Schorn, Scott Thwaites, Paul Voß.