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Top five transfers of this year’s UCI WorldTour off-season

RCUK rounds up five of the biggest transfers as preparations for next year's WorldTour are shaped

It takes a lot in a country as renowned for its climbing specialists as Colombia to get noticed. Nairo Quintana (Movistar), Rigoberto Uran (then Team Sky) and Carlos Bentancur (Ag2r-La Mondiale) all managed it last year though, as did diminutive 25-year-old Darwin Atapuma, racing for Team Colombia. El Puma, at 5’6” and 60kg, is built perfectly for climbing and highlighted his credentials with a superb showing at the Giro d’Italia before bagging his maiden WorldTour victory during stage six of the Tour of Poland.

Darwin Atapuma impressed at the Tour of Poland and Giro d’Italia, and has joined BMC Racing for 2014 (pic: Sirotti)

Atapuma – who at just 20 years old was crowned national road race champion in 2008 – impressed enough to convince BMC Racing to snap him up. With Cadel Evans already confirming he is targeting the Giro d’Italia, Atapuma is likely to be a key lieutenant with a mountainous parcours awaiting. At just 25, the Colombian ace certainly has time on his side to one day become a major Grand Tour contender in his own right too – with an overall 18th place at last year’s Giro highlighting his undoubted potential.

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