Peter Sagan (Bora-Hansgrohe) will mark his 30th birthday on January 26 by tackling his first race day of the 2020 season on the opening stage of the Vuelta a San Juan, which runs until February 2.
It will be Sagan’s second appearance in the Argentinian race after he made his debut a year ago, though on that occasion, he had already raced – and won – at the Tour Down Under in Australia. Sagan has previously competed on three occasions at the Tour de San Luis in Argentina. Sagan’s 2020 calendar sees the Giro d’Italia and Tokyo Olympics added to a programme that, as ever, includes the Classics and the Tour de France, hence the lighter January schedule on this occasion.
“It is a pleasure to return to Argentina and start the new season in the Vuelta a San Juan. It is a race that left me with beautiful memories in 2019," Sagan said in a statement released on Saturday.
A year ago, Sagan was a consistent performer in Argentina but was unable to land a victory, placing third behind Julian Alaphilippe in Punta Negra and second behind Fernando Gaviria at Villa San Agustín.
"I know that the Vuelta a San Juan will once again have an excellent participation list and that the bar will be very high. And I also know that the route is interesting, but the support of the thousands of fans who greet me will make everything a little easier."
The race’s seven stages are broken up by a rest day on January 30, and Sagan will avail of the opportunity to liaise with his fans in Argentina when he participates in the ‘Sagan Fondo’ sportive race in the province of San Juan.
“[The sportive] is the big news for me this year,” Sagan said. “It will be a chance to enjoy a ride with my fans.”
After racing in Argentina, Sagan will train at altitude in February before returning to action at Omloop Het Nieuwsblad. His schedule also features Strade Bianche and Tirreno-Adriatico as he builds towards the first Monument of the campaign at Milan-San Remo.
The 2020 Vuelta a San Juan peloton will include Julian Alaphilippe, Remco Evenepoel (Deceuninck-QuickStep), Guillaume Martin (Cofidis), Fernando Gaviria (UAE Team Emirates) and Filippo Ganna, who will ride for the Italian national team.
