Dubai: Former Tour de France top-10 finisher Jani Brajkovic of Slovenia has trained his sights on the world’s biggest cycling race as part of his ambitions for 2016.
Rattled by a series of injuries following a terrible crash during the 2014 Giro d’Italia that led to a broken and horribly marred left elbow, Brajkovic has had to compromise on his career. At the moment he is just about getting his career back on track following that crash in Italy last year.
But when he heard that the cycling race at the annual Nad Al Sheba Ramadan Sports Tournament attracted a good field, Brajkovic decided to time a visit to Dubai and spend a few days with friends here. “The organisation is one of the best here. But it is the big ones [races] I am missing. I want to get back to racing in a big way after so many months out,” Brajkovic told Gulf News.
During a promising cycling career, Brajkovic was the world under-23 Time Trial champion in Verona, after which he found a place with professional teams such as Team Astana and presently with UCI Pro Continental side Team United Healthcare. Among his achievements, Brajkovic had a ninth place overall at the Tour de France in 2012, and later that year the 31-year-old went on to win his native Tour of Slovenia.
“Since trying to make a comeback racing has not exactly been what I would have expected it to be,” Brajkovic shrugged.
“But I am working hard and I hope to be at the top of my game in time for the 2016 Tour de France,” he said.
