2013 was a breakthrough year for Mathias Frank who almost won his big home race, the Tour de Suisse, and finished in the top 4 in the two major North American stage races despite working for teammate Tejay van Garderen. In 2014 he will get the chance to take on a leadership role at IAM and is looking forward to seeing how far he can get in a grand tour.

For four years, Mathias Frank had been the loyal domestique at BMC Racing Team but only rarely had he given any indications that he had the potential to become a leader himself. That all changed in his fifth year with the team, with 2013 being a true breakthrough year for the 27-year-old Swiss.

When Frank lined up for his first race of the season at the Tour de San Luis, his best result was a 6th place in the 2011 Tour de Suisse and in the first part of the year, nothing suggested that things would change in the early part of the season. His fortunes started to turn at the Tour of California where he rode is support of Tejay van Garderen but still managed to finish 4th, missing the podium by jusy 6 seconds.

That set him up for the performance that marked his season. He arrived at his home race, the Tour de Suisse, to again work for van Garderen but while his captain faded on the first mountain stage to Crans-Montana, Frank finished 2nd behind Bauke Mollema. One day later he found himself in the leader's jersey in his national tour.

Frank rode well to defend the lead all the way to the final time trial but had a bad day on the partly uphill stage to Flumserberg. Unable to find the climbing legs of the previous days, he finished 19th and dropped to 5th on GC.

He made up for the disappointment at the Tour of Austria a few weeks later when he won two stages in a row. Later in the year he was back in a support role for van Garderen in the USA Pro Challenge but again got enough freedom to both win a stage and finish 2nd behind his winning teammate.

Naturally, those results suggested to Frank that he can be more than just a domestique. As one of the best Swiss stage racers, it was only natural for him to join the Swiss IAM team which was looking for more firepower in its attempt to gain entry to the grand tours.

And it was the desire to have more freedom which led to jump the ship and sign a contract with his home team.

It is really what I’ve been searching for, as I’m not the youngest anymore," he told Cyclingmole in an interview. "I’m entering my best years and I found out this year that I’m at the right moment in my career to see if I can lead. I think I’ve proven throughout my career that I’ve been a good teammate riding for guys like Tejay, now I have to find out if I can do it.

"IAM Cycling is the perfect team for me, it’s a really familiar team and they are slightly lower in profile, so there isn’t as much pressure," he added. "They are a great bunch of guys and it’s a real chance for me to prove to myself and everyone else, that I can be more than a teammate.

In 2014 IAM hopes to get invited to both the Giro and the Tour. With Sylvain Chavanel now on the roster, the team is an obvious candidate for the world's biggest race and if they receive a wildcard, it will be a natural goal for Frank.

"We are a Swiss team and I am a Swiss rider, so we will be looking to do well in the Tour of Romandie and the Tour de Suisse," he said. "The big goal will be the Tour de France, if we are selected. This will be the main objective for the team and me."

Frank knows that he is not able to win the Tour overall but he hopes to see how far he can get in a three-week race. In 2013 he didn't do a single grand tour and his best result to date is 83rd in the 2012 Giro.

"This is something I really have to see, as we come towards the Tour," he said when asked about his objectives. "It would be great to win a stage but personally I haven’t really tried to go for GC in a 3 week tour. I know I can be consistent for 10 days but I want to see how far I can go for the GC.  Usually the 10th rider on GC is around 20 minutes down, so it would still be possible to get in a breakaway and win a stage.

"My main goal will be to do well in the Tour de Suisse and Tour de France," he added. "I want to improve again in my home race and find out what it’s like to win races like this."

However, it will not be all about Frank on the team. The team has several different cards to play if it is invited to the Tour de France.

We have a very balanced team," he said. "We won’t be going for the win in the Tour but we would love to take the maillot jaune for a few days, win a stage, take the KOM jersey or get a top 10 finish. We are a good team and have a lot of capable riders.

"For myself, I want to go as high as possible on GC. If I say I want to go for the top 10, it won’t be our only goal, as Chavanel can win in the 1st week and Haussler could win a stage. This means that the pressure won’t all be on me."

Reflecting on his performance in the Tour de Suisse, he is still ruing the missed opportunity in the final time trial.

" For sure, it was disappointing not to win," he said. "I had a really bad final day and I really cracked for whatever reason. I had been solid in TTs this year, but in the most important race I didn’t do well, that’s why I was disappointed. In general, I had a really great week and was pleased to lead the race."

Being part of a pro continental team, Frank will be reliant on wildcard invitations and so he can't outline a clear race schedule. However, he has a rough idea about what he wants it to look like.

"I will start in the Tour of Oman and I will also ride Paris-Nice, Romandie, the Tour de Suisse and hopefully the Tour de France," he said.