Hansen enjoying the Vuelta

Adam Hansen of Team Columbia-HTC is having a good time at the Vuelta, enjoying his team's three stage victories so far. The 28-year-old told Cyclingnews that the race went “so far so good" for himself and his squad, which also has sprinter Andre Greipel leading the points classification on top of having scored two stage wins already. 

Hansen said it was the team's ambition to win the jersey. "I hope that Andre can stay in green until Madrid," he said. "That's our goal, or at least mine. I'd like to see him win it. He's had a great year.”

Hansen was one of the few to be ahead of the mass crash shortly before the finish in the Vuelta's fourth stage in Liège, Belgium. The Australian said he wasn't at all aware of what happened behind him.

“I was lucky, in fact I didn't even know it happened,” he continued. Hansen was leading the peloton and helping to set things up for the eventual winner, Greipel. “When I finished my turn, I swung off, waiting for the bunch and saw no one. When I looked back I couldn't see anyone and thought I should have kept going.”

Hansen also applauded New Zealander Greg Henderson's stage win, calling it “super cool. He's a a great sprinter.”

The Vuelta's visit to the Netherlands, Germany and Belgium on its way to Spain appealed to him, despite the great temperature differences. “It's good to have a Grand Tour in many countries for the people to watch. The start at the race track had so many people! It was a great atmosphere.”

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