cycling team
A cycling team is a group of cycle sport, cyclists who join a team or are acquired and train together to compete in bicycle racing, bicycle races whether amateur or professional – and the supporting personnel. Cycling teams are most important i ...
from Russia and previously Denmark. It competed in the
UCI World Tour
The UCI WorldTour (2009–2010: ''UCI World Ranking'') is the premier men's elite road cycling tour, sitting above the UCI ProSeries and various regional UCI Continental Circuits. It refers to both the tour of 38 events and, until 2019, an annual ...
. The team was owned by Russian
Oleg Tinkov
Oleg Yuryevich Tinkov (russian: Олег Юрьевич Тиньков; born 25 December 1967) is a Russian-born Cypriot entrepreneur and businessman.
Tinkov is the founder of a network of shops of household appliances ''Technoshock'', frozen f ...
and, from 1999 until March 2015, was managed by former
Tour de France
The Tour de France () is an annual men's multiple-stage bicycle race primarily held in France, while also occasionally passing through nearby countries. Like the other Grand Tours (the Giro d'Italia and the Vuelta a España), it consists ...
winner
Bjarne Riis
Bjarne Lykkegård Riis (; born 3 April 1964), nicknamed ''The Eagle from Herning'' ( da, Ørnen fra Herning), is a Danish former professional road bicycle racer who placed first in the 1996 Tour de France. For many years he was the owner and lat ...
. The team was sponsored by the Russian
Tinkoff Bank
Tinkoff Bank (russian: Тинькофф банк), formerly Tinkoff Credit Systems (russian: Тинькофф Кредитные Системы) is a Russian commercial bank based in Moscow and founded by Oleg Tinkov in 2006. The bank does no ...
, a credit systems company.
Founded in 1998 as home-Jack & Jones, the team started in cycling's second division. In 2000 it moved into the top division, now known as the UCI World Tour. Since 2000, under differing sponsor names (Memory Card-Jack & Jones and CSC-Tiscali), the team rode the Tour de France. It has won the overall classification in all three of the Grand Tours. In the
2008 Tour de France
The 2008 Tour de France was the 95th running of the race. The event took place from 5 to 27 July. Starting in the French city of Brest, the tour entered Italy on the 15th stage and returned to France during the 16th, heading for Paris, its regu ...
,
Carlos Sastre
Carlos Sastre Candil (; born 22 April 1975) is a former Spanish professional road bicycle racer and winner of the 2008 Tour de France. He consistently achieved outstanding results in the Vuelta a España and in the Tour de France. Sastre establi ...
won the
general classification
The general classification (or the GC) in road bicycle racing is the category that tracks overall times for riders in multi-stage races. Each stage will have a stage winner, but the overall winner in the GC is the rider who has the fastest cumulati ...
,
Andy Schleck
Andy Raymond Schleck (; born 10 June 1985) is a Luxembourgish former professional road bicycle racer. He won the 2010 Tour de France, being awarded it retroactively in February 2012 after Alberto Contador's hearing at the Court of Arbitration f ...
won the
young rider classification Young rider classification (french: classement général des jeunes) is a cycling jersey competition in multi-day stage race events, such as the Tour de France, Giro d'Italia and many others, which awards the current leader by overall time for ride ...
, and the team won the overall
team classification The team classification is one of the different rankings for which competitors can compete in a multiple stage cycling race. It differs from the other usual rankings (general classification, points, king of the mountain and best young rider competi ...
, and
Ivan Basso
Ivan Basso (born 26 November 1977) is an Italian former professional road bicycle racer, who rode professionally between 1999 and 2015 for seven different teams. Basso, nicknamed Ivan the Terrible, was considered among the best mountain riders in ...
won the
2006 Giro d'Italia
The 2006 Giro d'Italia was the 89th edition of the Giro d'Italia, one of cycling's Grand Tours. It began in the Belgian city of Seraing with a individual time trial. The race came to a close with a mass-start road stage that stretched from ...
, as well as finishing third and second in the
2004
2004 was designated as an International Year of Rice by the United Nations, and the International Year to Commemorate the Struggle Against Slavery and its Abolition (by UNESCO).
Events January
* January 3 – Flash Airlines Flight 6 ...
and
2005 Tour de France
The 2005 Tour de France was the 92nd edition of the Tour de France, one of cycling's Grand Tours. It took place between 2–24 July, with 21 stages covering a distance . It has no overall winner—although American cyclist Lance Armstrong origin ...
. In addition, the team has won many major classics, including 6 Monuments.
The team won the UCI ProTour's team classification each year from 2005 through 2007, and the team classification in the
2010 UCI World Ranking
The 2010 UCI World Ranking was the second edition of the ranking system launched by the Union Cycliste Internationale (UCI) in 2009; the following year it would be merged with the UCI ProTour to form the UCI World Tour. The series started with the ...
.
In March 2015 the team confirmed that Riis had been removed from active duty due to differences between Riis and Tinkov. Media reports had initially indicated that Riis had been suspended when he did not appear at the 2015 Milan–San Remo as planned, and that this was due to a disappointing start to the season for the team. His departure from the team was officially announced on 29 March.
Philosophy
When Bjarne Riis took over in winter 2000, he hired the former Danish Ranger Corps soldier
B.S. Christiansen
Bjarne Slot Christiansen (mostly known as B. S. Christiansen) (born September 27, 1952) is a former professional soldier from the Danish special force army unit Jægerkorpset, who is currently working with coaching and team building. His many tel ...
as advisor and they gave CSC a distinct philosophy and training methods. The team works with four values: communication, loyalty, commitment and respect, with the aim of improving teamwork. The team rides for the rider in the best shape on the day, and separates the function of team captain (the rider making decisions) and team leader (the rider trying to win) to avoid pressure on a single rider.
The team staff go on yearly
outdoor education
Outdoor education is organized learning that takes place in the outdoors. Outdoor education programs sometimes involve residential or journey wilderness-based experiences in which students participate in a variety of adventurous challenges and out ...
trips, physical challenges under pressure. According to B.S. Christiansen, the camps teach people "that they can achieve their goals by cooperating. They have to perform their very best under the worst possible circumstances, where every action has a consequence". Bobby Julich, one of the riders, said that "those days in the bush bonded us much closer and given icus the strategies to work as a team in any racing situation".
History
The company behind the team, initially named Professional Cycling Denmark, was created in autumn 1996 by former amateur cycling world champion Alex Pedersen, Finn Poulsen (representing
Bestseller
A bestseller is a book or other media noted for its top selling status, with bestseller lists published by newspapers, magazines, and book store chains. Some lists are broken down into classifications and specialties (novel, nonfiction book, cookb ...
), Torben Kølbæk and Johannes Poulsen (from
Herning CK
Herning Cykle Klub (or Herning CK) is an amateur road bicycle racing club, located in Herning, Denmark, and founded April 11, 1937 on initiative by E.V.Johansen, with Poul Schmidt as chairman.
A number of the best Danish professional riders, i ...
), and Bjarne Riis (then a Team Telekom rider). The team was built on the team license of Danish amateur team Herning CK, with headquarters in
Herning
Herning () is a Danish town in the Central Denmark Region of the Jutland peninsula. It is the main town and the administrative seat of Herning Municipality. Herning has a population of 50,565 (1 January 2022)Denmark, with the goal of being picked for the
2000 Tour de France
The 2000 Tour de France was a multiple stage bicycle race held from 1 to 23 July, and the 87th edition of the Tour de France. It has no overall winner—although American cyclist Lance Armstrong originally won the event, the United States Anti- ...
.
home-Jack & Jones: 1998–1999
The team was assembled for 1998 with Alex Pedersen and Torben Kølbæk as sports directors. The team started with 11 riders, a mix of first-time professionals with Danish veterans Brian Holm and Jesper Skibby who had competed in the Tour de France several times, Skibby having won stage 5 in
1993
File:1993 Events Collage.png, From left, clockwise: The Oslo I Accord is signed in an attempt to resolve the Israeli–Palestinian conflict; The Russian White House is shelled during the 1993 Russian constitutional crisis; Czechoslovakia is peace ...
. The main sponsors were a Danish real estate agency ( home a/s), and a clothes manufacturer ( Jack & Jones, a brand owned by Bestseller) and the budget was around €1,000,000 for 1998, including secondary sponsors. The team rode its first season in 2nd Division races, and during the first month both Christian Andersen and Jesper Skibby had minor wins. Holm quit the team in April 1998.
The doping scandal in the
1998 Tour de France
The 1998 Tour de France was the 85th edition of the Tour de France, one of cycling's Grand Tours. The race was composed of 21 stages and a prologue. It started on 11 July in Ireland before taking an anti-clockwise route through France to finis ...
didn't affect the team directly, but Riis, who was part of the peloton in the Tour de France, was branded a doping cheat in the Danish media in early 1999. He sold his stock in Professional Cycling Denmark.
The team finished 32nd best of 1998, and with an increased budget of €2,400,000 combined,Half a million dollars needed in Denmark ''CyclingNews'', 23 September 1999 the number of riders was increased to 14, with riders of a higher standard. In terms of races won, 1999 was the most successful season until 2005: with 26 UCI victories the team was promoted to the 1st Division. In September 1999 Belgian rider
Marc Streel
Marc Streel (born 12 August 1971 in Waremme) is a Belgian former racing cyclist.
Major results
;1993
:2nd Overall Tour de Liège
;1994
:3rd Duo Normand (with Peter Verbeken)
;1996
:1st Flèche Hesbignonne
:1st Stage 3 Tour de Picardie
:2nd Bo ...
was tested with a hematocrit level of 53.4, a value above 50 being an indicator of EPO doping, and he was fired Home stopped sponsoring the team from the end of the season, citing doping.
Memory Card-Jack & Jones: 2000
For 2000, Memory Card A/S, a Danish producer of memory cards, stepped in as co-sponsor and Danish cyclist Bo Hamburger was brought in as captain. The 2000 season did not have as many wins as in 1999 but the calibre was higher and the team took part in the
2000 Tour de France
The 2000 Tour de France was a multiple stage bicycle race held from 1 to 23 July, and the 87th edition of the Tour de France. It has no overall winner—although American cyclist Lance Armstrong originally won the event, the United States Anti- ...
.
In April 2000
Nicolai Bo Larsen
Nicolaj Bo Larsen (born 10 November 1971 in Roskilde) is a Danish former professional cyclist, who currently works as a directeur sportif for UCI Continental team . He is most notable for winning a stage of the 1996 Giro d'Italia and winning the ...
was tested with a 51 hematocrit level, but wasn't fired, as he had been tested with a 47 level the day before. The morning after his result of 51, he again tested 47%. However, the apparent double standards harmed its image in Denmark and Jack & Jones did not prolong sponsorship, despite Bo Larsen's later being acquitted of doping by a medical report.
In fall 2000, Riis took over Professional Cycling Denmark and the team. After 2000 the contract with Jack & Jones expired, and Riis did not continue working with Memory Card due to their financial difficulties.
CSC-Tiscali: 2001–2002
CSC ( Computer Sciences Corporation) and the European Internet provider World Online took over as sponsors in a combined sponsorship of €4,500,000. World Online was bought by the Italian telecom giant Tiscali and the team changed on 1 July 2001 to CSC-Tiscali.
In April 2001, Bo Hamburger tested positive with a newly developed methodAvis: Hamburger testet positiv i 1999 '' Danmarks Radio'', 11 September 2005 which distinguished natural EPO from synthetic EPO used in doping by determining the percentage of
basic
BASIC (Beginners' All-purpose Symbolic Instruction Code) is a family of general-purpose, high-level programming languages designed for ease of use. The original version was created by John G. Kemeny and Thomas E. Kurtz at Dartmouth College ...
EPO. The first test showed 82.3 which was above the maximum of 80 imposed by the UCI, but as his secondary tests showed both 82.4 and 78.6 he was cleared by the Court of Arbitration for Sport (CAS) in 2002. Bo Hamburger was released from his contract with CSC-Tiscali in September 2001.
The team gained international prominence after signing Laurent Jalabert before 2001, following his many years with the Spanish
ONCE
Once means a one-time occurrence.
Once may refer to:
Music
* ''Once'' (Pearl Jam song), a 1991 song from the album ''Ten''
* ''Once'' (Roy Harper album), a 1990 album by Roy Harper
* ''Once'' (The Tyde album), a 2001 debut album by The Tyd ...
team of Manolo Saiz. Jalabert said that, "I wanted to retire with a French team, but nobody gave me a good offer, so I went with CSC instead". At the time, CSC was sponsored by the French bike manufacturer Look, which is associated with Jalabert. The team also signed American Tyler Hamilton, formerly of U.S. Postal. The 2001 season was a breakthrough with Jalabert's win of the King of the Mountains competition and a stage on Bastille Day at the Tour de France. The season ended with Jalabert winning the 2001 Clásica de San Sebastián.
In 2002 Hamilton came second in the Giro d'Italia despite a broken scapula. The team also nearly won the
team time trial
A team time trial (TTT) is a road bicycle race in which teams of cyclists race against the clock (see individual time trial for a more detailed description of ITT events).
The winning team in a TTT is determined by the comparing the times of ( ...
at the
2002 Tour de France
The 2002 Tour de France was a multiple-stage bicycle race held from 6 to 28 July, and the 89th edition of the Tour de France. The event started in Luxembourg and ended in Paris. The Tour circled France counter-clockwise, visiting the Pyrenees b ...
, thwarted by a flat tire. Jalabert again won the King of the Mountains and repeated his victory at the Clásica de San Sebastián. He retired at the end of the season.
Team CSC: 2003–2008
In 2003, Riis changed Professional Cycling Denmark to Riis Cycling. Tiscali ceased sponsorship, and Riis Cycling was unable to find a new co-sponsor, hence the team changed CSC-Tiscali to Team CSC and continued 2003 on a reduced budget. The headquarters moved from Herning to the headquarters of one of the sponsors, the Danish insurance company
Alm. Brand
Alm. Brand (until 2002 Alm. Brand af 1792) is a Danish financial services group operating within the markets for non-life, life and pension insurance.
History
The company was founded in 1792 and its activities were originally limited to mutual ...
in Lyngby, a Copenhagen suburb.
Hamilton stepped up to be the team leader in 2003, with the goal of winning the Tour de France. He won Liège–Bastogne–Liège and was in form when he broke his collarbone in a pile-up on stage 1 of the Tour. He lost a lot of time. He made it up by winning a stage and finishing fourth, while his teammates
Carlos Sastre
Carlos Sastre Candil (; born 22 April 1975) is a former Spanish professional road bicycle racer and winner of the 2008 Tour de France. He consistently achieved outstanding results in the Vuelta a España and in the Tour de France. Sastre establi ...
and Jakob Piil also won stages.
In 2004 Hamilton switched to the
Swiss
Swiss may refer to:
* the adjectival form of Switzerland
* Swiss people
Places
* Swiss, Missouri
* Swiss, North Carolina
*Swiss, West Virginia
* Swiss, Wisconsin
Other uses
*Swiss-system tournament, in various games and sports
*Swiss Internation ...
team, Phonak, citing lack of support from Riis. The team brought on Ivan Basso from
Fassa Bortolo
Fassa Bortolo (2000–2005) was a professional road bicycle racing team founded in 2000 and led by Giancarlo Ferretti. Dubbed the 'Silver Team', it managed to be one of the most successful teams of the era, not in the least due to top sprinter ...
to join Carlos Sastre in competing for Grand Tour wins. Basso had been a former winner of the maillot blanc in 2002. In the
2004 Tour de France
The 2004 Tour de France was a multiple stage bicycle race held from 3 to 25 July, and the 91st edition of the Tour de France. It has no overall winner—although American cyclist Lance Armstrong originally won the event, the United States Anti ...
, Team CSC had a very successful Tour, with Basso winning a mountain stage and reaching the podium in Paris with his third place finish. Bjarne Riis and Team CSCs efforts in the 2004 Tour were made into the cycling movie ''Overcoming''.
Following an off-season marred by financial difficulties that resulted in wage cuts for a number of riders, the 2005 spring season was the strongest yet for CSC, with wins by Julich and Jens Voigt. Julich's victory in
Paris–Nice
Paris–Nice is a professional cycling stage race in France, held annually since 1933. Raced over eight days, the race usually starts with a prologue in the Paris region and ends with a final stage either in Nice or on the Col d'Èze overlookin ...
made him the first rider to wear the leader's jersey in the new UCI ProTour. This was followed by three team stage wins in the Giro d'Italia, one by David Zabriskie and two by Basso, though the overall victory escaped from Basso when he was beset by a stomach ailment.
Midway through the 2005 Tour de France, CSC extended sponsorship until 2008 at a higher level, enabling Riis to renew the contract with Basso for an additional three years. Basso got second place in the tour and Zabriskie won in the prologue. Julich won the Eneco Tour and
Carlos Sastre
Carlos Sastre Candil (; born 22 April 1975) is a former Spanish professional road bicycle racer and winner of the 2008 Tour de France. He consistently achieved outstanding results in the Vuelta a España and in the Tour de France. Sastre establi ...
came second.
Nicki Sørensen
Nicki Sørensen (born 14 May 1975) is a Danish former professional road bicycle racer, and was directeur sportif of UCI Professional Continental team . He competed in five consecutive editions of the Tour de France from 2001 to 2005. Riding as a ...
won a stage of the Vuelta a España. Team CSC won the 2005 ProTour, with Julich as the #8 ranked individual rider of the year, the highest placed rider in the team.
Until 2009, the team used Cervélo bikes and Shimano components. The arrangement with the small Canadian manufacturer worked well for CSC, as Cervélo's strength is time-trials, at which CSC has specialists.
2006 season
In 2006, with sponsorship for several years, the focus was to win all three Grand Tours, with Ivan Basso riding both Giro d'Italia and the Tour de France, and Carlos Sastre the Vuelta a España. They had come second in the 2005 in the Tour and Vuelta, respectively. The team had several time trialists, including Zabriskie, who had won time trials at the Giro and the Tour, Julich, as well as Fabian Cancellara. Others included Jens Voigt and Stuart O'Grady from Australia, the only sprinter name in the team.
The first victory of the
2006 UCI ProTour
The 2006 UCI ProTour was the second year of the UCI ProTour system, in which the ProTour teams are guaranteed, and obliged to, participate in the series of ProTour races.
The prelude to the 2006 ProTour was dominated by a dispute between the ma ...
season was in the prologue of Paris–Nice by Julich. The spring was plagued with injuries hitting a third of the team, most notably O'Grady. Cancellara won the time trial at Tirreno–Adriatico and then Paris–Roubaix. Fränk Schleck won the Amstel Gold Race a week later.
Team CSC surprised by announcing that Sastre would ride the Giro as helper for Basso, that he would ride all three Grand Tours. 2005's winner Paolo Savoldelli was strongest in the first stages, and Jan Ullrich took a surprise win in the time trial ahead of Basso, but Basso dominated with three wins on mountain finishes and in the team time trial. Basso won by 9'18''.
On 30 June 2006, the Tour de France announced that Basso would not ride the 2006 Tour after apparent involvement in the Operación Puerto doping scandal. Sastre took over as captain and was the strongest in the favorite group on the last mountain stages, but a poor last time trial placed him fourth overall. The team scored two stage wins, the most impressive Fränk Schleck's win on
Alpe d'Huez
L'Alpe d'Huez () is a ski resort in southeastern France at . It is a mountain pasture in the Central French Western Alps, in the commune of Huez, which is part of the department of Isère in the region of Auvergne-Rhône-Alpes.
It is part of th ...
. Voigt had already won a flat stage after a long break.
The autumn was dominated by the Basso's involvement in Operación Puerto. His contract was cancelled by mutual consent, and the case against Basso was eventually dropped by the Federazione Ciclistica Italiana for lack of evidence, but without him authorizing a DNA test that could have cleared him conclusively. Basso adamantly denied being involved. (On 7 May 2007 Basso admitted involvement in Operación Puerto). Team CSC have since started an ambitious anti-doping program together with the Danish anti-doping expert Rasmus Damsgaard. Meanwhile, on the road, Voigt dominated the Deutschland Tour, winning overall and three stages, including a mountain finish and a time trial. Sastre came fourth in the Vuelta after starting in the lead when CSC won the initial team time trial. It was Sastre's fifth Grand Tour in a row.
2007 season
New rider
Juan José Haedo
Juan José Haedo (born 26 January 1981) is an Argentine former professional road racing cyclist and track cyclist, who rode professionally between 2003 and 2014. He is the brother of Lucas Sebastián Haedo.
Haedo started his career on the track ...
gave the team a good start by winning early minor races. The classics season was a success by having O'Grady win Paris–Roubaix. Voigt managed to defend his victory in Tour of Germany. CSC won the UCI ProTour team competition for the third year in a row.
Sastre had a team dedicated to him for the Vuelta, while the team for the Tour was support riders and riders who could make individual results. This left the Giro without a clear rider for the general classification. Instead a youthful team was chosen, with the hope that
Andy Schleck
Andy Raymond Schleck (; born 10 June 1985) is a Luxembourgish former professional road bicycle racer. He won the 2010 Tour de France, being awarded it retroactively in February 2012 after Alberto Contador's hearing at the Court of Arbitration f ...
might win the youth competition. He won the youth competition and came second overall .
For the Tour, Cancellara followed up a strong showing in the Tour de Suisse with two stage wins and seven days in the yellow jersey. But doping returned when the race hit the mountains.
Alexander Vinokourov
Alexander Nikolayevich Vinokourov ( Kazakh and russian: Александр Николаевич Винокуров; born 16 September 1973) is a Kazakhstani former professional road bicycle racer and the current general manager of UCI WorldTeam ...
tested positive and leader Michael Rasmussen was withdrawn by his team for "internal code violations". Sastre finished fourth.
For the Vuelta, Sastre again lost time in time trials, especially the first, but climbed to second place.
Because of the team's link to drug use (Riis admitted doping, and Basso was suspended until 2008), MAN Trucks dropped co-sponsorship midway through 2007.
CSC-Saxo Bank: 2008
CSC announced that they would not renew the contract in spring 2008, meaning Riis Cycling A/S would need a new main sponsor from 2009. Mid-June, Riis Cycling A/S announced that Saxo Bank had entered a three-year contract as name sponsor, with immediate effect, so the team entered the
2008 Tour de France
The 2008 Tour de France was the 95th running of the race. The event took place from 5 to 27 July. Starting in the French city of Brest, the tour entered Italy on the 15th stage and returned to France during the 16th, heading for Paris, its regu ...
as Team CSC Saxo Bank.
Carlos Sastre
Carlos Sastre Candil (; born 22 April 1975) is a former Spanish professional road bicycle racer and winner of the 2008 Tour de France. He consistently achieved outstanding results in the Vuelta a España and in the Tour de France. Sastre establi ...
, having taken a lead of about two minutes on the final climb of L'Alpe D'Huez, won the Tour, and the team took the team classification.
Team Saxo Bank: 2009–2010
It was announced 28 September 2008 that for 2009, IT Factory would be co-sponsor. However, the company went into receivership some two months thereafter. The team also began riding Specialized bicycles for the 2009 season.
Saxo Bank-SunGard: 2011
Although Saxo Bank had previously announced that 2010 would be the last year they would sponsor the team along with SunGard as secondary sponsor. The 2011 name for the team was announced in August 2010 as Team Saxo Bank-SunGard, and the signing of 2 time Tour de France champion Alberto Contador on a two-year contract was also revealed. On 29 July 2010,
Andy Schleck
Andy Raymond Schleck (; born 10 June 1985) is a Luxembourgish former professional road bicycle racer. He won the 2010 Tour de France, being awarded it retroactively in February 2012 after Alberto Contador's hearing at the Court of Arbitration f ...
and his brother Fränk announced their departure from the team effective from the start of the 2011 season.
On 16 November 2011 it was announced that SunGard would no longer be a title sponsor after 2011.
Saxo-Tinkoff & Tinkoff-Saxo: 2012
2012
On 25 June 2012 it was announced that the Russian Tinkoff Bank would join the team as co-sponsors for the rest of the 2012 season and through to the end of 2013. Saxo Bank also renewed their sponsorship through 2013, with the team's name thus becoming Team Saxo Bank-Tinkoff Bank.
Alberto Contador returned from his doping suspension and won the General classification of the 2012 Vuelta a España This marked the first overall Grand Tour win since Andy Schleck's retroactive victory of the
2010 Tour de France
The 2010 Tour de France was the 97th edition of the Tour de France cycle race, one of cycling's Grand Tour (cycling), Grand Tours. It started on with an 8.9 km prologue time trial in Rotterdam, the first start in the Netherlands since 1996 ...
.
2013
Following the 2013 season Oleg Tinkov purchased the team from manager Bjarne Riis with the team renamed Tinkoff-Saxo.
2014
In March, the team announced the signing of Colombian rider
Edward Beltran
Edward is an English given name. It is derived from the Anglo-Saxon name ''Ēadweard'', composed of the elements '' ēad'' "wealth, fortune; prosperous" and '' weard'' "guardian, protector”.
History
The name Edward was very popular in Anglo-Sax ...
on a 2-year contract, Beltran was promoted from Tinkoff-Saxo's affiliate amateur team, Nankang–Fondriest,
2015
For the 2015 season the team announced the major signing of Peter Sagan on a three-year contract, as well as: Pavel Brutt,
Ivan Basso
Ivan Basso (born 26 November 1977) is an Italian former professional road bicycle racer, who rode professionally between 1999 and 2015 for seven different teams. Basso, nicknamed Ivan the Terrible, was considered among the best mountain riders in ...
. and Robert Kiserlovski.
In March 2015 the team confirmed that Riis had been removed from active duty due to differences between Riis and Tinkov. Media reports had initially indicated that Riis had been suspended when he did not appear at the 2015 Milan–San Remo as planned, and that this was due to a disappointing start to the season for the team. Later that month it was announced that Riis' contract had been terminated with the agreement of both parties. Subsequently the team revealed its new management structure, with Riis' former duties being carried out by new general manager Stefano Feltrin and
Steven de Jongh
Steven de Jongh (born 25 November 1973 in Alkmaar) is a Dutch former road bicycle racer.
Biography
De Jongh made his professional debut in 1995 at TVM team where he stayed until 1999. From 2000 to 2005 he was part of , while he made the move t ...
, who was promoted to the role of head sport director.
In a December 2015 interview, Tinkov announced that he would sell the team at the end of the 2016 season, citing on the one hand a business decision to redirect Tinkoff Bank's marketing budget from sports sponsorship to TV advertising from 2017, and on the other a lack of support from other teams from his proposed reforms to the sport's business model.
2016
In February 2016 Tinkov said that although he was "happy to talk to any buyer", he expected that the most likely outcome for the team would be its disbanding at the end of the year. However in July 2016 he said that he was planning to return to the sport after "a few seasons off", once Chris Froome retires from competition, with the aim of winning the Tour de France.
Final roster (2016)
Major wins
National, continental and world champions
1999
: Danish Time Trial, Michael Sandstød
: Danish Road Race, Nicolaj-Bo Larsen
: Belgian Time Trial, Marc Streel
2000
: Danish Time Trial, Michael Sandstød
: Danish Road Race, Bo Hamburger
: Latvian Road Race, Arvis Piziks
2001
: Danish Time Trial, Michael Blaudzun
: Danish Road Race, Jakob Piil
2002
: Danish Time Trial, Michael Sandstød
: Danish Road Race, Michael Sandstød
2003
: Danish Time Trial, Michael Blaudzun
: Danish Road Race, Nicki Sørensen
2004
: Danish Time Trial, Michael Sandstød
: Danish Road Race, Michael Blaudzun
2005
: Danish Time Trial, Michael Blaudzun
: Luxembourg Time Trial, Andy Schleck
: Russian National Time Trial, Vladimir Gusev
: Danish Road Race, Lars Bak
: Luxembourg Road Race, Fränk Schleck
2006
: Austrian Time Trial, Peter Luttenberger
: Danish Time Trial, Brian Vandborg
: Norwegian Time Trial, Kurt Asle Arvesen
: Swiss Time Trial, Fabian Cancellara
: USA Time Trial, David Zabriskie
2007
: Swiss Time Trial, Fabian Cancellara
2008
: Swiss Time Trial, Fabian Cancellara
: Danish Time Trial, Lars Bak
: Danish Road Race, Nicki Sørensen
: Luxembourg Road Race, Fränk Schleck
: Norwegian Road Race, Kurt Asle Arvesen
2010
: Sweden Time Trial, Gustav Larsson
: Denmark Time Trial, Jakob Fuglsang
: Luxembourg Time Trial, Andy Schleck
: Poland Time Trial, Jarosław Marycz
: Denmark Road Race, Nicki Sørensen
: Luxembourg Road Race, Fränk Schleck
: World Time Trial, Fabian Cancellara
: Denmark Track (Madison), Alex Rasmussen
: Denmark Track (Madison), Michael Mørkøv
2011
: Denmark Road Race, Nicki Sørensen
2013
: Denmark Road Race, Michael Mørkøv
2014
: Denmark Road Race, Michael Valgren
2015
: Denmark Time Trial, Christopher Juul-Jensen
: Slovak Time Trial, Peter Sagan
: Slovak Road Race, Peter Sagan
: Denmark Road Race, Chris Anker Sørensen
: World Road Race, Peter Sagan
2016
: Poland Time Trial, Maciej Bodnar
: England Road Race, Adam Blythe
: Poland Road Race, Rafał Majka
: Czech Road Race, Roman Kreuziger
: Slovak Road Race, Juraj Sagan
: European Road Race, Peter Sagan
: World Road Race, Peter Sagan