The second World Tour stage race of the season kicks off this weekend at the UAE Tour, a week-long event that offers three uphill finishes and a world-class field that gives sprinters several opportunities. Many sprinters have made the trip to the Middle East, including Pascal Ackermann, Dylan Groenewegen, Mark Cavendish, Caleb Yuan, Sam Bennett, Arnaud Demaret, and Fernando Gaviria.

In our first podcast episode from the race, we interviewed Ewan and asked him to talk about leadership, pressure, his season so far, and how sprinting is going as the weeks go on. Ewan is a firm favorite in this race, having won a stage last year.

Presenters Daniel Benson and Sophie Smith also hear from Chris Froome, who has not raced since his crash at the Criterium du Dauphiné in France last year.

Froome has spent the last eight months recovering and rehabbing, but admits that his injuries are not yet healed. In our transcript he talks about his hopes for the next few weeks and his own condition going into the first race of the year.

Finally, we speak with Froome's team director, Matteo Tosatto.

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The latest competition offers a chance to win one of two musettes. One from Katusha Alpecin, filled with goodies and kits from last year, and a similar prize for BMC Racing fans. We recently moved offices and need to make room.

All you need to do to win these great prizes is visit our Itunes page (opens in a new tab), contribute a review, and submit your best 3 kits (boys or girls) for 2020. We will announce the winners within a few weeks.

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