Alaphilippe to start 2020 in Vuelta a San Juan, Tour Colombia

Deceuninck-QuickStep confirmed Julian Alaphilippe's early season plan, with the Frenchman due to repeat his winning formula from 2019 by starting the coming season at the Vuelta a San Juan in Argentina at the end of January and then heading north for the Tour Colombia 2.1 in February.

Last season, Alaphilippe came out swinging with two stage wins and a stint in the race lead in San Juan before winning stage 5 and the points jersey in Colombia.

"This past season I had an excellent start of the year in the Vuelta a San Juan and Tour Colombia. It’s been amazing for me, a great experience, made even more memorable by the fantastic fans over there. I’m really happy I can start my season in these beautiful countries again and I will do my utmost to get some good results", Alaphilippe said.

The Frenchman was awarded the Velo d’Or for his superb 2019 season, which included 12 wins including Strade Bianche, Milan-San Remo, Flèche-Wallonne and two stages of the Tour de France and 14 says in the race lead of the Tour de France and fifth place overall.