Nicolas Roche confirms contract with Team Sunweb

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Irishman Nicolas Roche confirmed to AD.nl today that he has signed a contract with Team Sunweb, moving to the Dutch squad from BMC Racing to support Tom Dumoulin's aspirations to win the Tour de France.

It will be the seventh team for the 34-year-old who turned professional in 2004 with Cofidis before moving on to stints with Credit Agricole, AG2R La Mondiale, Tinkoff-Saxo, Team Sky and finally BMC.

"I think it's a very good move for me. It actually fits perfectly with where I am at this point in my career," Roche said to AD.nl. "I'm very excited to go into what looks like a very well organised and well structured team with very big goals."

The main goal is to capture the Tour de France victory with Dumoulin, winner of the 2017 Giro d'Italia. The Dutchman finished second this season in the Giro d'Italia to Chris Froome and went on to again be runner-up in the Tour de France behind Geraint Thomas.

Roche believes Dumoulin has what it takes to win the Tour.

"I believe the last few years he's shown he is progressing year after year into that important win for him. To win the TdF you need everything to go right, it's not just about the legs. I believe he's a real contender for the Tour victory," Roche said.

Roche, currently at the Vuelta a Espana, has raced 20 Grand Tours, twice finishing in the top 10 at the Vuelta, and will head to Sunweb to support Dumoulin and help convey some of his hard-earned knowledge of the sport to the team's newer riders.

"I'll be there to be in support obviously. I think on some races I can still have my chance. I want to be there to share my experience with the young riders."