Peter Sagan confirmed for 2017 Tour of Poland

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The organisers of the Tour of Poland have confirmed the appearance of Peter Sagan (Bora-Hansgrohe) at the 2017 edition of the WorldTour race. The world champion was disqualified from the Tour de France after stage 4 and will make his return to racing at the event he won overall in 2011.

The 2017 Tour of Poland starts July 29 with a stage in Kraków and concludes August 4 in Bukowina Tatrzanska. Team sizes at the race have also been reduced to seven riders for 2017.

"Although six years have passed since my last participation at the Tour de Pologne, I will never forget how I felt in 2011 when I stood on the final podium in Krakow with the yellow jersey," Sagan said. "It was my first overall victory in a major stage race and one of my best moments as a young rider. I'm happy to announce that I will be back for the 2017 edition and I look forward to an exciting week of racing in Poland. See you in Krakow in two weeks."

The stage 3 winner at the Tour de France, Sagan was ejected from the race following an incident with Mark Cavendish in the stage 4 sprint into Vittel. The disqualification ensured the first time since Sagan's 2012 debut at the Tour that he wouldn't arrive in Paris with the sprinter's green jersey on his shoulders.

Since his 2012 Tour debut, Sagan's first after the French Grand Tour has included the Olympic Games, Ride London, Clasica Ciclista San Sebastian, and Vuelta a Espana. 2017 will mark Sagan's second appearance at the Tour of Poland after his 2010 debut and race organiser Czeslaw Lang expressed his delight in securing the world champions appearance.

"I am happy to have Peter Sagan with us once again on the roads of the Tour de Pologne. It's an honour to have the World Champion jersey here in the pack. All the fans still have an indelible memory of Peter's great victory here in Poland in 2011; it was a thrilling edition full of surprises all the way to the final metre, with Marcel Kittel's victories in the sprints and the battle between Peter Sagan and Daniel Martin for the yellow jersey," Lang said.

"All these riders have become major champions, confirming the role that the Tour de Pologne plays in highlighting young talent and helping them emerge. I'm sure that this year, too, with his participation Sagan will contribute to making the race even more compelling and spectacular."

Sagan is expected to then defend his European road title on August 6 before starting the BinckBank Tour, formally known as the Eneco Tour, on August 7. The Slovakian is also expected to race the GP’s Quebec and Montreal in preparation for the September Worlds in Bergen

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