Cofidis rider Rein Taaramae has high hopes for the 2011 season after starting it with a fourth place in the overall classification of Paris-Nice, his "best result ever". Now, Taaramae is fully focused to continue on this streak, firmly believing in♋ his overall chances at the Tour de France in July.

The Estonian made the 'race to the sun' a target, but feared that the 27-kilometre time trial this year would be fatal to him. "Before the race, I was a little nervous, I hoped that I could finish in the top six but I was afraid of the time trial," he told French velochrono. "Usually, I finish between 20th and 30th in the time trials, but there꧂ I got eighth! And in the mountains, I felt really at ease. I'm very happy about my result."

The positive development of his career is a consequence of a variety of factors - a changed diet over the winter, less distraction during races and a certain maturity the 23-year-old has only just started to acquire. "I have much more ꦯexperience and calmness now," he explained. "This week, I didn't respond to phone calls, I stayed calm and concentrated on the race to rest as much as possible. This way, I already feel less tired. And this winter, dietitians discovered that I was allergic to the gluten contained in eggs or milk. We took all of this out of my menus and I felt an enormous difference. They're small things, but this year I feel really good. And I can still improve."

Taaramae, who has already shown that he is able to play a major role in week-long stage races by finishing third in both the and 168澳洲5最新开奖结果:2010 Volta a Catalunya, hopes that this progression will lead him to becoming a contender in the Grand Tours, too. In fact, he believes that "if everyt💦hing goes well, if I'm in good condition and my team is good, t༒hen I really think that I can do a top 10".

The Estonian's next goal is thus the Tour de France, whi🌱ch he had to abandon last year on stage 13. His Cofidis team is confident that he can live up to his expectations and has designed a lighter racing programme for him.

"My next great objective is the Tour," he confirmed. "I'm not doing the Volta a Catalunya this year. On the other racꦍes, it doesn't matter if I don't get great results. I want to get to July less tired, more relaxed. Last year, I performed well in Paris-Nice and in Catalunya and I got to the Tour stressed out. I was under a lot of 🅠strain, the team had made me race too much and I couldn't recover. Besides, I was burned out until the end of the season."