South African Daryl Impey has been included in the 9-man team to race the Tour de France for Orica-Scott GreenEDGE. – By Andre Valentine

Daryl Impey let his fans, and South African cycling enthusiasts, know how ecstatic he was with the news that he’s been included in the team Orica-Scott squad to race the 2017 Tour de France.

Impey Tweeted: “Super excited to be starting the 2017 Tour de France with this awesome squad, see you soon Düsseldorf,” sharing a video of the team’s official Tour de France squad promo.

There were doubt about the current SA Road Time Trial Champion making the 2017 Tour de France squad. This after he broke his collarbone racing Liege-Bastogne-Liege in April. Although he was hopeful of recovering in time for the first Tour de France Dress rehearsal, Criterium du Dauphine, it was feared that he might not get enough racing under his belt to be considered for the Tour de France.

He however showed good form at Dauphine, finishing 72^nd overall, including a 13^th placed finish on an undulating stage 3. This, along with his reputation in the team has cemented his place.

At the Orica-Scott Tour de France team announcement, Sport Director Matt White spoke highly of him saying, “Impey is one of the most versatile riders in our team, he can be used across a variety of stages,” White explained. “He is a great teammate and knows when to pick his opportunities too.”

Orica-Scott will be going all out to support their young climbers Simon Yates and 2016 Giro d’Italia runner up Esteban Chaves. In a recent interview with Bicycling magazine about his involvement at the le Tour, Impey said that maintaining these young riders’ GC hopes will be the team’s biggest challenge, and one he is looking forward to. In 2016 Impey finished 38th overall in the GC standings.

The Tour de France kicks off with an individual time trial on 1 July 2017.

Catch Impey’s full interview in the July/August issue of Bicycling on shelves now!

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