HIGH ACHIEVERS: Ottawa’s Michael Woods named Israel Start-Up Nation’s leader for Tour de France beginning Saturday

By Martin Cleary

Pro cyclist Michael Woods has earned a major promotion. After 10 years, eight teams and 67,113 kilometres of international racing, he’ll be the Main Man for Israel Start-Up Nation at the Tour de France.

When the Tour de France, the world’s premier Grand Tour stage race, begins its 23-day journey on Saturday, Woods will serve as the team leader to chase stage victories and battle hard for a high General Classification overall result.

“I think I can be quite competitive at this race,” Woods said in a press release Wednesday. “I feel I have shown I am one of the strongest climbers in the peloton. I know that time trials are my weakness, but I feel I have improved.

“And my goals are both to do well in the GC and to get stage wins. If I lose too much time in the time trials, I will probably have more opportunities to attack in other stages.”

This is Woods’ first year with Israel Start-up Nation.

Competing in his second Tour de France, the 34-year-old will have a strong support team, which includes four-time Tour champion Chris Froome, who will be the team’s road captain, Dan Martin and fellow Canadian Guillaume Boivin.

There will be two individual time trials in the Tour. The first will be Canada Day, a 27.2-kilometre, leg-burning sprint from Change to Laval Espace Mayenne. The second is Stage 20, the second to last leg, a 30.89-kilometre test from Libourne to Saint-Emilion.

Froome, who suffered a horrible crash in 2019, is positive about his supporting role.

“Usually, the guys have done everything for me; now it is the other way around and I am glad to be able to pay it back a little,” he said.

Rik Verbrugghe, the Israel Start-Up Nation head sports director, allowed Woods to take a leading role in various stage races this season and he has “proved to us that he is, indeed, a natural leader.”

A noted climber, Woods was King of the Mountain at the recent Tour de Suisse, including a second- and third-place result in four top-10 stage results; a stage win in Tour de Romandie; a fourth in La Fleche Wallonne; and a fifth in Liege-Bastogne-Liege.

“I expect him to fight for stage wins and be there in the GC hunt as he did in the Tour de Suisse,” Verbrugghe added. “The team’s primary focus will be to protect Woodsy and provide all the support he will need.”

Woods, who has rebounded from significant injuries in his career, is ready to take on the world. In his first Tour de France in 2019, he was 32nd in the GC, seventh in Stage 18 and sixth in the team time trial with EF Education First.

“I am really excited to represent Israel Start-Up Nation in the Tour de France, especially in a team leader role,” Woods added. “I had an opportunity to lead a team in a Grand Tour, but never at the Tour de France. I am honored to be given this position. We want to do well on the GC, no doubt, (but the) most important thing for me is the stage wins. That’s the main focus.

“I love racing GC. It’s really challenging and doing it on Tour is more challenging, more intense and much more stressful. But the way I am riding these days, I am up to the challenge. I think I’m in a good spot right now. I learned some excellent lessons in the Tour de Suisse … where I was able to fight for stage wins and finished fifth overall.

“I think we’re going to use those lessons going into this Grand Tour. I’m excited about it. I believe there are some excellent opportunities for us, not just for me, but for the team, and I’m looking forward to starting in Bretagne.”