Although the parcours will not be pizza-pan flat, the 2015 Tour Down Under continues with a stage which should, on paper, be contested by the sprinters.
Will Marcel Kittel finally snatch that elusive stage victory? Or will one of his rivals beat the odds to upset the favourite once again?
Beginning in the popular beachside suburb of Glenelg, Stage 4 sends the peloton on a 144.5 kilometre-long scenic detour to Mount Barker.
Never before used by the race organisers as an arrival city (stage finish) before, the Tour Down Under and Mount Barker are set to shake up the race with yet another virgin finish.
Travelling close to the South Australian coastline for the 45 kilometres, the peloton will have to be wary to the threat of crosswinds. Current forecasts suggest a south-westerly wind between 13-16 kilometres per hour will be present in the area, meaning the riders can expect a mild cross-headwind.
Once the riders ascend Sellicks Hill and pass the Category 2 rated king of the mountains point located at the summit they will begin heading eastwards to Strathalbyn. The resulting turn inland should see the peloton sheltered from the wind in the valleys of the surrounding hills.
After reaching Strathalbyn the riders will begin heading northwards towards our finish in Mount Barker, but not before taking a detour westwards to Meadows and Echunga via Macclesfield in the process. En route to Meadows via Macclesfield Road, the peloton could potentially find themselves briefly exposed to crosswinds as they climb upwards and leave the protection of the valley.
The peloton should be relatively protected again once they descend in to Meadows and the riders should reach Echunga without difficulty, although they might desire the assistance a tailwind would give them. After reaching Echunga the riders will climb Church Hill Road and then descend down to Flaxley Road, once again potentially exposing themselves for a short period.
Flaxley Road will bring the peloton along the valley and straight to our finishing line in Mount Barker, where the sprinters can expect to find the perfect finish. The approach to the finishing line will be practically dead straight for the final two to three kilometres, with the road sloping downwards slightly towards the finishing line as well.
Although the German has struggled to win a stage at the Tour Down Under for the past two editions of the race, Giant Alpecin’s Marcel Kittel is still outright favourite for many. Speaking after the conclusion of Stage 3, the German mentioned that Giant Alpecin’s priorities had now turned to protecting Tom Dumoulin’s position (third, 9 seconds down to leader Rohan Dennis) in the general classification; is it a tactic to reduce the expectation thrust on Kittel’s shoulders?
Lined up behind the hulking German will be a number of sprinters eager for a chance at victory. Orica-GreenEDGE could be a major player thanks to their GC ambitions resting on Daryl Impey. While 22 seconds down on race leader Dennis, the South African could improve his position by claiming some of the bonus seconds available during Stage 4.
IAM Cycling have been involved in all three stages through Heinrich Haussler and Jarlinson Pantano. With Pantano arguably too far down the GC to prioritise protecting, the Swiss team will likely look to set up Australian National Champion Haussler for a crack at the stage victory, with the lumpy parcours potentially playing in to his hands.
Similar to Orica-GreenEDGE, Cannondale-Garmin could be motivated to pursue the stage victory and bonus seconds on offer. With their best-placed rider Nathan Haas disappointingly sitting 19th in the GC and the team without a victory so far, Stage 4 presents itself as a decent opportunity for redemption.
As the fastest finisher on Stage 1 behind the surprisingly victorious breakaway, Lampre–Merida’s Bonifazio Niccolo could be a strong contender for the stage victory. The Italian team will have one eye on keeping Ethiopian Grmay Tsgabu’s position (14th, +25) in the GC protected ahead of Old Willunga Hill, but one should rarely pass up a decent chance at claiming the stage honours.
Two sprinters whose teams may, understandably, be preoccupied protecting their GC contenders are Gianni Meersman of Etixx-Quick Step and J.J. Lobato of Team Movistar. With Etixx’s Maxime Bouet and Movistar’s Ruben Fernandez equal on time (+15) with fourth-placed Richie Porte, both sprinters are a threat but may have to fight for the victory without assistance.
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