Salt Lake City - Team Type 1 - SANOFI will debut its new race jerseys on home soil this week at the Larry H. Miller Tour of Utah, and bring a team of strong climbers to what is billed as America's toughest race.

Starting Tuesday with an uphill time trial at the site of the 2002 Winter Olympics, the eight riders for Team Type 1 - SANOFI will continue through five stages around Utah, ending in a mountaintop finish on Sunday at the Snowbird Ski and Summer Resort.

The team altered its official name and jersey design slightly on Aug 1 to reflect a name change at its partner Sanofi.

Team Type 1 - SANOFI Larry H. Miller Tour of Utah roster:
Rubens Bertogliati - SUI
Fabio Calabria* - AUS
Will Dugan - USA
Aleksandr Efimkin - RUS
Vladimir Efimkin - RUS
Valeriy Kobzarenko - UKR
Javier Megias* - ESP
Scott Stewart - USA

Team Type 1 - SANOFI General Manager Vassili Davidenko said the Tour of Utah will be a difficult climber's race suited for the Efimkin twins.

"We're very excited to see Vladimir and Aleksandr racing together again and looking forward to some terrific racing in the mountains of Utah. Vlad has won mountain stages in the Tour de France, and Aleks won the Tour of Turkey this year, and we think this is going to be a one-two knock-out punch this week," Davidenko said.

Vladimir Efimkin, who retired from the sport last summer to be with his family in California, said won't know how he feels for certain until the first stage.

"I've been training a lot to get back into race fitness, but it's not the same as racing. Technically I am behind the form and fitness of everyone else, but I think I prepared well and the team will work strongly to provide the right opportunities," Vladimir Efimkin said.

Team Type 1 - Director Sportif Michael Carter said the first two stages will provide the flatland specialists an opportunity to show their late season form, and pointed to riders Valeriy Kobzarenko and Javier Megias for possible stage victories.

"We have Aleks to head for the overall leader's jersey, with his brother chasing stages in the high mountains. Rubens is a time trial specialist and there are two chances for him this week. It's also an opportunity to see Dugan, Stewart and Calabria light up the climbs," Carter said.

Based in Atlanta, Team Type 1 - SANOFI is the men's professional squad of Team Type 1, an organization of more than 120 athletes, professional and amateur, cyclists, runners and triathletes, competing and winning around the world to show that with good control, a life with diabetes can be extraordinary.

Five of the 22 cyclists on the men's professional team have type 1 diabetes, an immune disorder where the pancreas stops producing the natural hormone insulin.

Follow Team Type 1 - SANOFI at the Tour of Utah through their website or Facebook page.

Copenhagen - Team Type 1 - SANOFI rider Alessandro Bazzana used his fine late-season form to slip into the latest of a series of race-long breakaways on Sunday, trading pulls from Hillerod to Copenhagen and a shot at the Best Climber's Jersey, but an unfriendly bike swing by his closest competitor pushed him out of contention in an otherwise exciting final day at the Tour of Denmark.

Bazzana, from Italy, launched into the breakaway early in Sunday's 162km stage, and found himself with a handful of strong riders, including Michael Reihs from Denmark, who was in close competition for the Hill Sprints Jersey, given to the best climber in a surprisingly hilly race. In the time it took for the peloton to head south from the start and make a slight detour inland to ride one lap of September's World Championship course in Naerum, Bazzana and his companions built up a lead of almost four minutes ahead of the 10 finishing circuits in warm, green Copenhagen.

Tens of thousands of spectators lined the streets of Denmark's capital to watch the race. Bazzana won the first two hill sprints and took maximum points, virtually assuring himself of the leader's jersey at the end of the stage. Reihs was second in those sprints, and the third time across the line he deviated into Bazzana's line and forced him to choose between slowing down or slamming into the metal crowd barriers.

"It worked out perfectly until he closed me into the fence and decided to win that way. Taking the KOM jersey was the goal of the day, because I had the points, but whether we got the jersey or not, at least we know there is good form in the legs and we know Team Type 1 is there and getting closer," Bazzana said.

Team Type 1 - SANOFI Director Sportif Massimo Podenzana lodged an official protest with UCI officials after the race, but the issue was judged in favor of the other rider.

Team Type 1 - SANOFI riders Martijn Verschoor and Joe Eldridge, who both have type 1 diabetes and must monitor their blood glucose continuously and periodically take insulin to manage the disease, finished stage six with the same time as stage winner Theo Bos of the Netherlands, helping to lead out teammate Jure Kocjan to a top-20 finish on a flat 300-meter sprint finish in front of around 10,000 fans.

Eldridge said he ate 150 grams of carbohydrates in the three hour and twenty seven minute stage, and started the race with a BG at 155. At the finish his BG was slightly higher at 170.

"I couldn't monitor my BG during the race because my sensor stopped working, but I took what I learned over the last four days of racing here in Denmark and got it right on the BG. It was a good week for us on the bike and with our diabetes outreach. We met a lot of kids and parents who are learning to control and manage their blood sugars, and talking to them was really an inspiration for us," Eldridge said.

Verschoor said his BG at the start was 250 and he finished at 220.

"I had some adjustments to my basal insulin regime over the week, and on the final day there was still some sensitivity. But I feel good, and have strong form heading into the next races," Verschoor said.

Based in Atlanta, Team Type 1 - SANOFI is the men's professional squad of Team Type 1, an organization of more than 120 athletes, professional and amateur, cyclists, runners and triathletes, competing and winning around the world to show that with good control, a life with diabetes can be extraordinary.

Five of the 22 cyclists on the men's professional team have type 1 diabetes, an immune disorder where the pancreas stops producing the natural hormone insulin.

Follow Team Type 1 - SANOFI at the Tour of Denmark on their website and Facebook page.

By Chris Baldwin

Helsingor, Denmark - Team Type 1 - SANOFI riders Martijn Verschoor and Joe Eldridge raced through the hometown of Shakespeare's Hamlet on Saturday, completing the second of two stages on the day in a short, flat time trial along the tranquil coast of the Baltic Sea.

Hamlet, in a short summation of Shakespeare's play, posed this philosophical question: Whether existence was in fact superior to none at all. Eldridge and Verschoor, professional athletes with type 1 diabetes, found no need to argue the point on Saturday, returning from a hot and fast morning stage to spend around 17 minutes in the August evening at full effort in exchange for the satisfaction of sporting achievement.

"I started the morning with a BG at 135, and when the race kicked off I ate some food and it went up to 200. After two hours of racing it was back down to around 190, with 40 grams of carbs taken in. After lunch we rested then came to the time trial, and I started in the 90s because I'm still really sensitive to the insulin. It went up to 133 before the start, and then 179 with the effort of the race," Eldridge said.

"Often the effort in a time trial will make your blood sugar go up, rather than the normal effect of it going down with exercise, because you are going at or above your threshold. Also the adrenaline from the excitement of the race will inflate the BG. This morning's race started off for the first 45 minutes at 50 kilometers an hour before we sat up. After the time trial with no insulin my BG dropped to 142 in about 10 minutes," Eldridge said.

Verschoor said he started the morning stage with a BG at 178.

"It was a fast two hours. I came down to 130-140 and held there. After lunch when we came to the time trial I started at 190 and held there, too. I have gone up before because of adrenaline, but not today. I'm tired and it feels like there's no more adrenaline in me," Verschoor said.

Team Type 1 - SANOFI rider Laszlo Bodrogi was the top finisher for the squad in the time trial. The French specialist in the discipline was 11th in stage five, finishing the 13km in fifteen minutes and fifty two seconds.

Based in Atlanta, Team Type 1 - SANOFI is the men's professional squad of Team Type 1, an organization of more than 120 athletes, professional and amateur, cyclists, runners and triathletes, competing and winning around the world to show that with good control, a life with diabetes can be extraordinary.

Five of the 22 cyclists on the men's professional team have type 1 diabetes, an immune disorder where the pancreas stops producing the natural hormone insulin.

Follow Team Type 1 - SANOFI at the Tour of Denmark on the team's website and Facebook page.

Esbjerg, Denmark - Team Type 1 - sanofi aventis has a slightly new official name following the scheduled rebranding of its main partner and will now be known as Team Type 1 - SANOFI, as riders prepare to race for the first time in newly designed kit this week at the Post Tour of Denmark.

"Team Type 1 - SANOFI is the same great squad of athletes, competing at the hardest bike races in the world to bring a message of hope for people touched by diabetes. In order to reflect the new colors and design of our partners at Sanofi, we changed the clothing used by the men's professional squad from August 1," said Team Type 1 Co-Founder and CEO Phil Southerland.

Eight riders will line up at the six-stage Post Danmark Rundt, which begins Wednesday with a 171km loop around the North Sea port town of Esbjerg.

Team Type 1 - SANOFI General Manager Vassili Davidenko said the flat profile of the course belied a strong field at this years Tour of Denmark, as the race is called in english.

"This is a 2.HC stage race, the highest classification on the European calendar outside of Grand Tours. The caliber of competition here is remarkably good, and each day will be a battle on the road to get out in front of the wind and claim the stage," Davidenko said.

Davidenko pointed to Friday's 181km stage 3 beginning in Arhus, with its three 5.5km finishing circuits on the narrow, cobbled streets of Vejle, and Saturday's 112km fourth stage, with its two long bridge crossings and the 300m "Morkemoesebjerg" wall before the finish in Frederiksvaerk, as the likely deciding factors in the six-stage race.

"The wind and roads will make a huge difference in this race. Jure Kocjan and Aldo Ino Ilesic can show very good results in this kind of punchy, snappy racing, and we will have some surprises in store with Alessandro Bazzana, who has been showing very strong form in the early part of the second half of the season. On Saturday night, don't forget, there is a downtown time trial that starts at 8 p.m. It's 13.2km on a very tricky course and we can see a strong time trialist like Laszlo Bodrogi come on very fast," Davidenko said.

Team Type 1 - SANOFI rider and co-founder Joe Eldridge called the Tour of Denmark "the high-point of the season".

"Our goal from day one has been to show people who have diabetes that with good control, anything is possible. Here in Denmark we will be racing against the top of the teams in the world, with riders who just finished the Tour de France. We're already racing against the best teams and the best riders in the best races, and every day on the bike for us is one step closer to our goal," Eldridge said.

Team Type 1 - Sanofi line up for the 2011 Post Danmark Rundt, UCI 2.HC

Alessandro Bazzana - ITA
Laszlo Bodrogi - FRA
Joe Eldridge* - USA
Andrea Grendene - ITA
Aldo Ino Ilesic - SLO
Ben King - AUS
Jure Kocjan - SLO
Martijn Verschoor* - NED

* - professional cyclist with type 1 diabetes

Study First Step in Filling Research Void for Athletes With Diabetes

Atlanta, GA – In a first step to fill a major void in diabetes sports research, global sports organization Team Type 1, the official parent company of the Team Type 1-sanofi aventis professional men’s cycling team, will launch a clinical study at the Amgen Tour of California. The pioneering study conducted by the TT1 Diabetes Sports Research Institute, will assess blood glucose levels of elite cyclists - both with and without diabetes - with a goal of identifying optimal levels for peak athletic performance. The study will be led by Institute Medical Director, Juan P. Frias, M.D. Dr. Frias is affiliated with the University of California San Diego Department of Medicine, and is the former Chief Medical Officer of Johnson & Johnson, Diabetes Care.

“While there have been several athletes with type 1 diabetes who have competed and succeeded at the professional and Olympic levels, there is very little published clinical data related to optimization of athletic performance in persons with type 1 diabetes,” says Dr. Frias. “We strongly believe our efforts will play an important role in expanding research in this field and in helping other athletes with diabetes manage their glucose to perform safely and optimally.”

Throughout the eight stages of the Tour, which includes grueling climbs and hundreds of miles of racing from Lake Tahoe to Thousand Oaks, Team Type 1-sanofi-aventis athletes who have volunteered to take part in the study will wear continuous glucose monitors, while meters on their bikes measure parameters such as speed, power and energy expenditure.

The study will continue at other cycling events throughout the racing season including the USA Pro Cycling Challenge in Colorado from August 22-28. Additionally, a controlled laboratory component is planned in collaboration with the San Diego State University School of Exercise and Nutritional Sciences.

For Team Type 1 CEO and Founder, Phil Southerland, the study represents a monumental leap forward in the organization’s mission to instill hope and inspiration for people around the world affected by diabetes.

“Diabetes has never held us back,” says Southerland, “We’re paving the road and establishing guidelines for diabetes and exercise so that parents of diabetic kids never have to worry about their children’s safety, and athletes with diabetes have a blueprint for success. We want to be the #1 resource in the world for diabetes and sports.”

Diagnosed with Type 1 diabetes at seven months old, Southerland’s mother was told he would either be blind or dead by the age of 25. At 29, he is alive and thriving, and is a global diabetes ambassador educating patients and medical professionals throughout the world on what is possible with good control.

His memoir, “Not Dead Yet: My Race Against Disease From Diagnosis to Dominance” hits bookshelves on Tuesday, May 10. The first two chapters can be previewed at: www.teamtype1.org/book.

Based in Atlanta, GA, Team Type 1 began as a grassroots initiative to motivate people to take control of their diabetes using cycling as a platform. It grew to become a world-class athletic program for athletes with diabetes, including a professional men's cycling team, poised to compete at the 2012 Tour de France. Today, it is a global sports organization changing the lives of people with diabetes around the world through racing, groundbreaking research, international outreach and philanthropic initiatives in developing countries.

Vitre, France - Team Type 1 - sanofi-aventis continues its European race calendar in full on Friday, with eight riders lining up for the 197km Route Adelie de Vitre in Bretagne.

"Vitre is a tough two-circuit race in rolling hill country. The first six laps are on a 21km loop northwest from Vitre, then we do eight laps of a 9km course to the east of town that is hillier than the first. With winds and a strong peloton, this race will be a good hard test on the road," said Director Sportif Massimo Podenzana.

Team Type 1 - sanofi-aventis rider Valeriy Kobzarenko marks his return to racing at Route Adelie de Vitre, following nearly six weeks away from competition after breaking bones in his hand at the Etolie de Besseges in early February.

"I feel fit and ready to race, but being away from competition is always a challenge. I couldn't hold the handlebars to be able to ride outside for the first weeks. Then as things improved I was able to train normally at home in Crimea, where it was dry and warm," Kobzarenko said.

Team Type 1 - sanofi-aventis riders for the Route Adelie de Vitre (UCI 1.1):
Bodrogi, Lazslo - FRA
Calabria, Fabio* - AUS
Efimkin, Aleksandr - RUS
Grendene, Andrea - ITA
Ilesic, Aldo Ino - SLO
Kobzarenko, Valeriy - UKR
Kocjan, Jure - SLO
Megias, Javier* - ESP

* - rider with type 1 diabetes

Team Type 1 - sanofi-aventis staff and riders have worked in the past week to overcome a devastating theft from their locked team vehicles of all race and time trial bicycles, equipment, spare parts and tools.

"The bike theft was a serious obstacle to work through. We have strong partnerships to get frames, wheels and gruppos, but the hardest loss is the measured fit of those bikes over time. We went to the A2 wind tunnel in December to dial in the time trial bikes, and then riders were making small adjustments as they rode them. The larger data we recorded, but those tiny increments were literally stored on the handlebars and saddles of the bikes," said Podenzana.

To date, there is no substantial news regarding the theft.

Atlanta – Team Type 1 has announced the first of several new rider signings as it pursues pro continental status for the 2011 season.

Rubens Bertogliati becomes the first Swiss rider to join the world's only professional cycling team with riders who have Type 1 diabetes. Bertogliati is best known for his win in Stage 1 of the 2002 Tour de France, where he attacked in the final kilometer and narrowly held off the charging pack in Luxembourg. The victory earned him the race lead and the coveted maillot jaune for two days.

Team Type 1 Founder and CEO Phil Southerland said the 31-year-old is a veteran all-around who will vie for stage wins while helping the team's younger riders learn the ropes in Europe.

"Most importantly, he is a great guy, and is motivated for strong results," Southerland said. "We are excited to have the current (and two-time) Swiss national time trial champion on the team, and hopeful that his victories to come will help spread the message of taking control of your diabetes in Switzerland."

Bertogliati is also a past Swiss national road champion (2009) and a multi-time finisher of the Tour de France and Giro d'Italia. Racing for Team Type 1 presents a new challenge, he said.

"The fact that the team has its goal to show people with diabetes that they can achieve big things gives me additional motivation to get results," Bertogliai said. "I am very happy to be part of a young and highly motivated team. I always wanted to combine my sporting career with a significant social purpose, so I am grateful to Team Type 1 for giving me this possibility."

Southerland will introduce Bertogliati to Team Type 1's title sponsor, sanofi-aventis Diabetes, Thursday night at a presentation in Biel/Bienne, Switzerland.

Team Type 1 Director Sportif Vassili Davidenko said Bertogliati has yet to realize his potential. In this year's Giro, Bertogliati finished second on Stage 6 while primarily riding in support on Michele Scarponi on the Androni Giocattoli-Serramenti PVC Diquigiovanni team.

"On many occasions in his career, he has been riding in the service of someone else," Davidenko said. "But we will be able to provide him with a program where he's the leader on the road. He's a complete rider."

Bertogliati has been a professional since 2000. He has previously ridden for the Lampre (2000-2003), Saunier Duval-Prodir (2004-2007) and Scott-American Beef (2008) squads.

Atlanta – Team Type 1 will send a mix of proven climbers and the most successful rider with Type 1 diabetes in professional cycling to China for the Tour of Qinghai Lake.
King of the Mountains champions Thomas Rabou (Amgen Tour of California) and Davide Frattini (Redlands Bicycle Classic) will be joined by Javier Megias, one of four riders on the Team Type 1 men's professional squad who has Type 1 diabetes. Megias was a top 10 finisher at last month's TD Bank Philadelphia International Championship and placed second on Stage 5 at the Tour de Beauce in Canada.

"Javier's form is getting better and better," Team Type 1 Director Sportif Vassili Davidenko said. "He's beginning to show big progress."

Rounding out the rest of the team's six-man roster for the nine-stage, 724-mile (1,166 kilometers) race are Tour of Maroc stage winner Valeriy Kobzarenko and Scott Stewart and Martin Verschoor. The race begins Saturday with a criterium that does not count toward the overall classification.

Team Type 1 Assistant Director Michael Carter, who will direct the team in China, said as a UCI “2.HC” category event, the Tour of Qinghai Lake is the most important race – outside of the Tour de France – at this time of year. It is also one of the hardest.

"The high altitudes and extreme temperature fluctuations impact the riders like no other race in the world," Carter said. "This is truly a 'tough man’s race,' not just to win, but also just to finish."

Team Type 1 experienced a wealth of success over the weekend in Northern California, with Ken Hanson repeating as champion Saturday at the San Rafael Twilight Criterium and Shawn Milne winning the Lodi Cycle Fest criterium on Sunday.

In China, Team Type 1 will look to Kobzarenko for the overall classification, while also hunting for stage wins.

"We will rely on Frattini, Megias and Rabou to be strong on the long, arduous climbing stages," Carter said. "For the field sprints, we will look to Verschoor and Kobzarenko. However, the team will rally behind whomever shows the best conditioning."

Atlanta — Team Type 1’s Professional Women scored two impressive first place victories at Tour of the Dairyland in Wisconsin, on June 18th and 19th, with Kori Seehafer commanding a solid third place. Crowell’s wins allowed her to take command on the US Crit Series Leaders Jersey as well as the Lap Jersey for the rider who lapped the most number of other riders in the races.

Friday, June 18th saw Team Type 1’s Jacquelyn Crowell and Kori Seehafer take on the Fiddleheads Coffee Criterium, the second race in ten days of the US Crit Series, taking place throughout the southern region of the state of Wisconsin. Crowell took first place with Seehafer edging in right behind her in third place.

The 0.8 mile course was a classic four-corner flat and fast criterium layout for the 60-minute race. With five laps to go, Crowell attacked and the break stuck, allowing her to pull away from the other women and win the race handily. “I just attacked at the right time,” said Crowell of her efforts. “I waited until the field swelled and looked tired, and that’s when I attacked.” Seehafer, not far behind in the final meters, took third behind Crowell’s first place.

“We truly dialed it in yesterday,” said Crowell. “There were at least 50 girls in the race. And it was very aggressive. We had to play our cards right. I feel like we have been improving steadily and it was the first time we communicated during the race, executed our strategy and won the race. It went really well. And we really got it down.’

Saturday, June 19th was the third day of the Tour of the Dairyland with the Giro d'Grafton—an 0.85 mile criterium in downtown Grafton, Wisconsin with six fast turns and a long, flat lead up to a sprint. Morgan Patton controlled field for the first half of the 60-minute criterium, while Kori Seehafer led a break with two others. Crowell bridged up to Seehafer and pulled away solo with 25 minutes to go in the race. Another rider bridged up to Crowell with 10 minutes to go in the race and the pair finished the remaining laps with Crowell biding her time until the finish line was in sight. At 200 meters, the leading women started her sprint. Crowell waited until 150 meters to go and jumped, allowing her to take the stage at the line.

“It ended up being me and another girl off the front for the last six laps,” said Crowell. “When she bridged to me she made me nervous because I was a little tired. But having someone to pace me was really great. I executed to end pretty well. She jumped a little too soon and I was able to
pass her on the right and stay out of the wind right up to the line.”

“It’s great to see the women of Team Type 1 perform so strong and consistently this year,” said Phil Southerland, Founder and CEO of Team Type 1. “My hope is that that by racing their bikes and winning, that they will inspire all women impacted by diabetes to live healthy, happy lives.”

Photo: © Leonard Basobas/LB Photos

Atlanta — “This has been one of the best weeks ever for Team Type 1!” said Phil Southerland, Founder and CEO of Team Type 1. “We had our riders with type 1 diabetes perform famously. Fabio Calabria took 7th at Tour de Beauce, Martijin Veercshoor winning 6th at Nature Valley, Javier placing 2nd at Tour de Beauce and last but not least, Team Type 1 winning RAAM for the 2nd year in a row. Our riders are heros to so many around the world, and I know they are feeding off each others success to see how high we can set the bar. The best part, is that the week isn't over yet!”

Nature Valley Bicycle

Those racing for Team Type 1 at the Nature Valley Grand Prix turned in a performance to rival any the team has seen in its history. Thanks to the fast finishing of Ken Hanson (inset) and Alexy Schmidt, Team Type 1 stood on the top two steps of the podium of stage five’s Menomonie Road Race, which covered 95 hilly miles in the heart of Wisconsin. Thanks to time bonuses, Hanson and Schmidt moved up into the top fifteen overall with just one stage left to run.

Hanson’s stage win capped an impressive day for the Team Type 1 squad, after teammate Dan Holt joined what would become the day’s main breakaway. After spending seventy miles at the front of the race, Holt turned things over to the Team Type 1 spriners, including Hanson, Schmidt and Martijn Verschoor, one of Team Type1’s riders contesting the Nature Valley Grand Prix with type 1 diabetes. The team had two strong cards to play in Schmidt and Hanson, with Hanson eager to improve on his second place finish from the day before, in which he narrowly missed out on victory.

Team Type 1 was content to let other teams lead the charge to the line, with Hanson and Schmidt lurking close to the front as the peloton entered the four difficult finishing circuits in Menomonie. The pack was together as they passed through the day’s final turns, allowing Hanson to unleash his sprint and charge away to victory. Just behind, Schmidt used his improving form to beat third place finisher, Rory Sutherland of UnitedHealthcare presented by Maxxis, thanks to a well timed bike throw. To complete Team Type 1’s extremely impressive day, Verschoor crossed the line in eighth, giving the team its third top ten finish on the day.

“We are pumped for Ken and Alexi!” said Team Type 1 Founder and CEO Phil Southerland. “Those guys have been fighting hard together for a while now, and to see them both on the top 2 steps of the podium is huge. We are thrilled to be racing in Minnesota, and have just formed some collaborative partnerships with the International Diabetes Center to work study our athletes, and their methods for controlling blood sugar. This should truly help all future aspiring athletes with diabetes win the diabetes game en route to victory in their respective sports. Great crowds, great race, and we are glad to finally take a stage win at the Nature Valley Grand Prix!”

Le Tour de Beauce

Stage Five of Canada’s Tour de Beauce welcomed a strong field of riders, among whom was Team Type 1’s Valeriy Kobzarenko, who won the race in 2006, Thomas Rabou, who won the King of the Mountains jersey at the 2010 Amgen Tour of California, Chris Jones, who also had a solid top 20 showing at the Amgen Tour of California, as Javier Megias Leal and Fabio Calabria, two riders with type 1 diabetes.

By the end of the day, Team Type 1 managed the 127 kilometer circuit powerfully with Megias taking 2nd and Kobzarenko claiming 4th on the general classification. But the winning did not come easy. The 11 kilometer highly technical course through downtown Quebec City snaked its way through the city 11 times, with 20% climbs and furious descents across a mixture of asphalt and bricks.

At the outset of the race, the peloton waited for two laps to see who would be the first to attempt a breakaway. By lap three, Team Type 1’s Chris Jones took that challenge and pulled away from the pack. Four chasers bridged up to Jones—Danny Sommerhill (Garmin), Francisco Mancebo (Heraklio Heraclio Mercia), Lucas Euser (Spidertech), and Chad Beyer (BMC). After several more laps, the quintet built their lead to 2:20 until Team Fly V Australia started to bridge the gap and reduce the gap to two minutes. By the final lap, the break had been overwhelmed by the chasers.

But in the final 11-kilometer lap, Valeriy Kobzarenko attacked with two kilometers on a technical 18%-20% gradient climb. “Kobzarenko went full gas,” observed Director Michael Carter, “until Ben Day (FlyV) lead a chase with Mark deMaar and Morgan Schmitt of UHC jumping on his wheel and catching Kobzarenko.” At the same time, Javier Megias was also in the group chasing Kobzarenko. Megias was able to power with deMaar in the final meters, but wasn’t able to bring it back. Megias crossed the line in an impressive second behind deMaar with Schmitt taking third.

“Javier's podium is the first in a UCI stage race for Team Type 1 professional with diabetes,” observes Team Type 1 Founder and CEO Phil Southerland. “Our type 1 guys have really stepped up this year, and Javier is leading the charge. Beauce is a tough, tough race, so for him to pull it off period is impressive. We are actively working on his diabetes management during the races, and trying to perfect that system. Once we have that figured out, everyone will be seeing a lot of Javier on the podium for many years to come. He is arguably the best type 1 athlete in the world, and we will keep working to help him achieve his dream of riding in the Tour de France.”

Beauce concludes Sunday in Saint-Georges, with the traditional closing circuit race, 12 trips around a 12 km course in downtown.