Astana Cycling Team
The new Astana Cycling Team is in its second year under the leadership of Johan Bruyneel, the eighttime winning Sports Director of the Tour de France. In Bruyneel’s first year, Team Astana accumulated 35 victories, including the prestigious Grand Tours of Italy and Spain. Sponsored by a consortium of companies hailing from Astana, the capital of cycling enthused Kazakhstan, the Team was created to foster national pride and develop the next generation of professional Kazakh cyclists. The 2009 squad consists of 27 riders representing 9 countries and includes Grand Tour leaders, Lance Armstrong, Alberto Contador, Andreas Klöden and Levi Leipheimer. Team Astana is a member of cycling’s elite UCI ProTour and competes in a clean and ethical environment under the guidance of Dr. Rasmus Damsgaard’s anti-doping program.
