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Astana Team in Dubai to Turn a New Leaf


    Kazakhstan’s Astana Pro Cycling Team is hoping to usher in a new era and retain its rightful spot as one of the best teams in the world of cycling, during Dubai tour race.

    During the Astana Pro Cycling Team Presentation (Photo: Business Wire)

    Presided over by former champion and current general manager Aleksandre Vinokurov, the riders of the team were unveiled at a media meet on last Sunday with the goal of claiming its place in the world of cycling.

    The President of the Cycling Federation of Kazakhstan (CFK) is confident cycling will be among the top sports in near future.

    “The Astana Pro Cycling Team has played a key role in popularizing cycling in Kazakhstan. At the moment we are one of the leading cycling teams in the world and our goal is to be number one in cycling this year. The success of Astana Team and the popularity of cycling in Kazakhstan go hand in hand and we want to improve on this,” Darkhan Kaletayev, President, CFK told media.

    Kaletayev, who was vice president for the past few years, replaced Kairat Kelimbetov as CFK president following elections held last week, and one of his tasks is to take cycling on par with other sports played in Kazakhstan. “We have plans to develop cycling in Kazakhstan. I have the experience to grow this sport especially at the amateur levels with the Rio de Janeiro Olympic Games in mind. We are also working on the women’s cycling team and on developing and improving several high-level events.

    “The message we want to give the world is that Astana is a new team from 2015 and there will be no more doping scandals repeated by us,” he vowed.

    At Jumeirah Beach Hotel Dubai, the newly elected president of the Kazakhstan Cycling Federation revealed that disbanding the team entirely had been considered. Instead, it was decided a fresh start with improved and stricter testing procedures was a better direction in which to proceed.

    “I can’t hide the fact that, for a moment maybe, there was a possibility to stop the team,” Darkhan Kaletayev said. “But, at the end of the day, Astana Pro Team is an incredible success project for us in Kazakhstan.”

    *Source: ME NewsWire

     

    Photos/Multimedia Gallery Available: http://www.businesswire.com/multimedia/home/20150203006191/en/