Bauke Mollema continued his good showing in his first race of the season, the Vuelta a Andalucia, when he finished 7th in today's queen stage. As Laurens Ten Dam also showed growing condition, the team was delighted with the performances of their two climbers at this early point of the season.

Bauke Mollema climbed two spots in the classification of the Ruta del Sol today. The Belkin Pro Cycling TEAM rider ended up seventh in the queen stage, finishing at the Santuario de la Virgen de la Sierra de Cabra.

The Dutchman lost five seconds to overall leader Alejandro Valverde, who triumphed for the third consecutive day. He now sits fifth overall, behind by 44 seconds. 

“We are absolutely delighted,” said Sports Director Merijn Zeeman. “Especially as Laurens ten Dam was able to hold on until the end as well. The pace was high all day long. First we had to catch the break and after that things got serious on the final climb. So certainly at this stage of the season, it is very encouraging to see how well Bauke and Laurens got through it. We expect them to get only better and better.” 

The team’s effort to deliver Mollema and Ten Dam pleased Zeeman.

“Moreno Hofland, Nick van der Lijke and Dennis van Winden assisted very well by bringing them food and bottles. They held Bauke and Laurens in position. They were determined to do so. They made it a team effort. 

“Jonathan Hivert and Lars Petter Nordhaug went all out at the climb to build their form. In addition to getting results, that’s also an important goal this Ruta del Sol.” 

A devoted Laurens ten Dam worked hard for Mollema and Nordhaug in Tuesday’s stage because he wanted to set them up for the explosive finish. Today, with a real summit finish, he wanted to take his own chances to test himself. 

“I was able to hang on until the final kilometre and given my not so fortunate winter, I did well,” said Ten Dam. 

“I’ve missed quite a few training hours due to illness, but I’m on the right track now. I hope to make it into a breakaway the coming days so I can build solid hours on the bike. I return to the hotel by bike after the stage so I can gain extra hours. Now that I’m in Spain I want to take advantage of the good weather.” 
 

Zeeman gives Ten Dam a free pass to attack in tomorrow’s stage.

“Tomorrow’s stage could very well end in a sprint,” Zeeman said. “We have confidence in Moreno sprint but maybe we’ll just attack!" 

You can read our preview of the race here.