Thomas Löfkvist

Thomas Lövkvist ( born April 4, 1984 in Visby ) is a Swedish racing driver.

Thomas Lövkvist is a highly respected cyclists. Despite his success, he is so far manageable thanks to its smart driving style, his physical condition and his behavior now as champion. Erik Zabel once said that it was agreed in the peloton that Lövkvist is an incoming Tour winner. His former team-mate Mark Renshaw confirmed the workout hard work and ambition of Sweden: " He lives and breathes cycling. "

As a driver, type it must be classified as a round driver / rounder. Of 1.86 m wide and weighing 70 kg Sweden 's greatest strength is the time trial. But even in the high mountains and on short hills he feels comfortable. His sprint abilities are limited.

Lövkvists nickname " Gotland " comes from his home region in which it but now no longer alive. He moved his residence because of better training conditions in Switzerland.

U23

2003, in his first season with the men, he went for the Swedish GS3 - Team Scandinavia Bianchi. The jump in this age group succeeded effortlessly, the successes came quickly. His biggest win of the year was the overall victory at the Circuit des Ardennes. The most important thing for his career result was undoubtedly the 6th overall at the prestigious junior tour Tour de l' Avenir, where he meanwhile was even a day in leadership. Then it undertook in September, the French professional team fdjeux.com. He became the youngest to date professional cyclist Sweden.

Professional career

Lövkvist began his professional career in 2004 with the French team fdjeux.com. Already this season he managed the Circuit Cycliste Sarthe a minor sensation when he decided the final stage and thus the total score for what previously managed only the later Tour de France winner Bernard Hinault and Greg Lemond in his old age. Here, the Swede drove more than 170 km at the top, 150 alone. That same year, he failed by only 41 hundredths of the victory of the Tour de l' Avenir, in which indeed he won the last difficult stage in the French Alps, in the overall standings but Sylvain Calzati had to let go first. On top of the final climb he had on the later overall winner already moved out a minute, but lost in the following descent much of this time again.

2005 Lövkvist was right at the beginning of the year fifth in the well-staffed Mediterranean tour and hit up there at one stage to Mont Faron seasoned professionals like Davide Rebellin. He also showed up a little later for the first time at some of the biggest professional race forward. So he could first complete Paris-Nice as good twelfth before he drove into the second half of the season consistently good results in the Tour of Germany as 14th in the Tour of Poland and fourth at the Zuri- pig roast eighth. He also gave his debut at the Tour de France and finished it the youngest participant at No. 61

His third season as a professional began similar to the previous with a 6th place in the Mediterranean cruise. This time he reached the Mont Faron even in second, coinciding with the winner José Ivan Gutierrez. Also at the Valencia round trip he went on to a respectable 9th place. Subsequently, however, he could not completely fulfill the expectations placed in him. He only won the Swedish championship and was allowed in his country's colors, the Tour de France contest. There he was again recently as a starter in the field the honor of pronouncing the Code of Ethics before the race. In August, he finished in 12th place at the Clasica San Sebastian.

The 2007 season started again for the Swedes with a top 10 ranking on the Mediterranean cruise and a fourth place finish at the heavy GP di Lugano in Switzerland. Then he went in March at Paris- Nice, and long for his first major podium finish, but got out on the crucial final stage of the race. Two weeks later he reported then but impressive comeback by winning the final time trial at the Critérium International and the overall win second behind Jens Voigt just missed.

For the 2008 season, he joined the Team High Road. At the Giro d' Italia 2009, he slipped after the 3rd stage in the Maglia Rosa, but which he had to give back to the 4th stage. In the fifth stage, he attacked again, but it was not returned despite a third place. In the end he ended up in 25th place overall.

From the 2010 season Lövkvist driving for Team Sky. He underwent a 12 overall at the Tour de Suisse and a 17th place in the Tour de France further attention to himself, which he initially started the Tour de France as a helper of his captain Bradley Wiggins and only after the Alps, where the traded as a podium candidate Wiggins could not fulfill the expectations, was allowed to go on " own account ".

Achievements

2004

  • A stage and Circuit Cycliste Sarthe Appreciation
  • A stage in the Tour de l' Avenir
  • Swedish Champion - time trial

2006

  • Swedish Champion - Road Race

2007

  • A stage Critérium International

2008

  • Young Tirreno- Adriatico rating
  • Scoring and junior rating Germany Tour

2009

  • Montepaschi Eroica
  • Young Tirreno- Adriatico rating
  • Team time trial Giro d' Italia
  • A stage Sachsen-Tour

2013

  • General Classification Tour Méditerranéen

Team

  • 2004 FDJeux.com
  • 2005-2007 Française des Jeux
  • 2008 Team Columbia
  • 2009 Team Columbia -HTC
  • 2010 Sky
  • 2011-2012 Sky
  • 2013 IAM Cycling
Tour of California Tarbes Circuit de la Sarthe (cycling) Tour de Pologne Volta a la Comunitat Valenciana Gran Premio di Lugano General classification in the Giro d'Italia 2010 Tour de Suisse 2010 Tour de France 2008 Deutschland Tour Strade Bianche Bernhard Britz Sven Hamrin Bernt Johansson Tommy Prim Michael Andersson (cyclist) Marcus Ljungqvist Jonas Ljungblad
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