Tour of Estonia

Sports Director, Gennady Mikhaylov

“We tried to follow our plans today, if a big group goes then make sure we are there, and Andrea and Declan did that when the first move went. It was just a shame that the collaboration wasn’t great between the other teams. Not long after that move came back, the second group went and unfortunately we missed it and it turned out to be the move that went all the way.”

“The final actually surprised me today, I didn’t expect the cobbles to be so tough and the incline to be so sharp and with that in mind Andrea did very well to finish in the top 20. Tomorrow’s final stage in Tartu will be hard, fast circuits and if a strong group gets away it’s going to be difficult to bring back.”

Andrea Peron (ITA)

“I feel ok to be honest, a little disappointed because Declan and I tried to keep the the first breakaway group going and it was a big, strong group, if there had been more collaboration, we could have gone all the way. So, for that not to work out and the second break be the one to stay away is quite frustrating.”

“We were recovering at that point and they gained a gap really quickly, so we didn’t have much chance to bring the race back together. That was also a strong group and it showed in the final, I wasn’t that far off in the end, 25/30 seconds and I felt surprisingly good on the cobbled climb at the end, But I can do better, and we will try again tomorrow.”

Photo Credit: Adam Illingworth; Tim Lindley

Sport Director, Gennady Mikhaylov

“We knew how hard the climb was because we finished on the top of it on stage one, so I’m not surprised that it really contributed to blow the race up today.

“The repeated ascents really did become a war of attrition and although we were unlucky that Andrea crashed out, Declan and Sam Brand tried their best to hold position in the second group, but dropped off late on.”

Andrea Peron (ITA)

“I banged my knee up pretty badly on the concrete blocks by the side of the road. A guy in front of me lost control of his bike on the cobbles, went down and I couldn’t avoid him.”

“It’s frustrating because we were going quite slowly and if I hadn’t caught my knee on the block then maybe i could have carried on. I’ve had some bad luck with crashes this year, but that’s cycling and sometimes it happens like that. I just hope that’s it for this season, no more crashes!”

Declan Irvine (AUS)

“After we lost Andrea, I just tried to stay up as close to the front as possible, but it was a fast pace and in the beginning the wet roads made for some difficult racing.

“Yes, for sure the cobbled climb made it tough, but also made it exciting and I like that style of racing and it was great having Sam Brand alongside me for those final laps.”