Astana Qazaqstan Team is a professional road bicycle racing team sponsored by the Samruk-Kazyna, a coalition of state-owned companies from Kazakhstan and named after its capital city Astana. Astana attained UCI ProTeam status in its inaugural year, 2007. Following a major doping scandal involving Kazakh rider Alexander Vinokourov, team management was terminated and new management brought in for the 2008 season. The team was then managed by Johan Bruyneel, former team manager of U.S. Postal/Discovery Channel team. Under Bruyneel the ethical nature of the team did not improve, although Astana in this period was very successful.
Alexander Nikolayevich Vinokourov is a Kazakhstani former professional road bicycle racer and the current general manager of UCI WorldTeam Astana Qazaqstan Team. He is of Russian origin. As a competitor, his achievements include two bronze medals at the World Championships, four stage wins in the Tour de France, four in the Vuelta a España plus the overall title in 2006, two Liège–Bastogne–Liège monuments, one Amstel Gold Race, and the gold medal at the 2012 London Olympics Men's Road Race. Vinokourov is a past national champion of Kazakhstan, and a dual-medalist at the Summer Olympics. In 2007, he received a two-year ban from cycling for blood doping. In 2019, he was accused of race fixing by prosecutors in Liège but was later cleared of the charges.
Cofidis is a French professional road bicycle racing team sponsored by a money-lending company, Cofidis. It was started in 1996 by Cyrille Guimard, the former manager of Bernard Hinault, Greg LeMond and Laurent Fignon of the Renault–Elf–Gitane team of the 1980s. The team's sponsor has supported the team despite repeated problems such as doping scandals. After it was part of the UCI ProTour for the ProTour's first five seasons, from 2010 the team competed as a UCI Professional Continental team. The team joined the UCI World Tour for the 2020 season.
Lars Michaelsen is a Danish former professional road bicycle racer who last rode for Team CSC. He got his break through in his second year as a professional, when he won the 1995 edition of Gent–Wevelgem. In the 1997 Vuelta a España he won stage 1 and wore the leader's jersey for three days. In 2002 he finished fifth in Paris–Roubaix, a result he would duplicate in 2005. In the 2006 Paris–Roubaix he was once again in the group of favourites, but he helped teammate Fabian Cancellara win the race and finished 19th himself. In his last race, the 2007 Paris–Roubaix, he finished 11th after a strong race, where only a mechanical failure prevented him from following the favorites. Again a teammate, Stuart O'Grady, won the race. Michaelsen rode at four Olympic Games.
Andrey Grigorievich Kashechkin is a former Kazakhstani road racing cyclist, who last rode for the UCI ProTour team Astana.
Luis León Sánchez Gil is a Spanish former road bicycle racer, who last rode for UCI WorldTeam Astana Qazaqstan Team. Sánchez's major achievements include winning the overall classifications of the 2009 Paris–Nice and the 2005 Tour Down Under, as well as the one-day race Clásica de San Sebastián in 2010 and 2012. He also has four Tour de France stage victories and is a four-time winner of the Spanish National Time Trial Championships. He is a time trial specialist and has improved his climbing skills over the course of his career.
The men's individual road race at the 1976 Summer Olympics in Montreal, Quebec, Canada, was held on 26 July 1976. There were 134 cyclists from 40 nations starting the race. The maximum number of cyclists per nation was four. Fifty-eight cyclists finished the race. The event was won by Bernt Johansson of Sweden, the nation's first victory in the men's individual road race. Giuseppe Martinelli put Italy back on the podium with his silver; the nation had won gold or silver at every Games from 1956 to 1968 but did not medal in 1972. Mieczysław Nowicki's bronze was Poland's first medal in the event.
Mieczysław Paweł Nowicki is a retired road bicycle racer from Poland, who represented his native country at the 1976 Summer Olympics in Montreal, Quebec, Canada. There he won the bronze medal in the men's individual road race behind Sweden's Bernt Johansson and Italy's Giuseppe Martinelli. In the men's road team trial he won the silver medal with the Polish team. He also competed at the 1972 Summer Olympics. In 1973 he set a Polish national hour record of 42.231 km, a record that stood for over 40 years until it was broken by Andrzej Bartkiewicz in 2014.
Mario Kummer is a retired track and road racing cyclist from East Germany, who represented his native country at the 1988 Summer Olympics in Seoul, South Korea. There he won the gold medal in the men's team time trial, alongside Uwe Ampler, Jan Schur and Maik Landsmann. He was a professional road cyclist from 1990 to 1998, and afterwards became a cycling manager, managing Astana for the 2007 racing year.
Andrey Sergeyevich Zeits is a Kazakh former professional road bicycle racer. In 2009, Zeits rode the Giro d'Italia, the first grand tour of his career, which he finished in 31st place.
The 2011 season for the Astana cycling team began in January at the Tour Down Under and ended in October at the Tour of Hainan. As a UCI ProTeam, they were automatically invited and obligated to send a squad to every event in the UCI World Tour. In a change from the 2010 season, the team's manager was Giuseppe Martinelli, replacing Yvon Sanquer. There was also a major change in ridership, as three-time Tour de France champion Alberto Contador departed for Saxo Bank–SunGard, while his doping case remains unresolved. Three Spanish domestiques followed Contador to Saxo Bank–SunGard, while two climbing talents who spent the previous season with Liquigas–Doimo, Roman Kreuziger and Robert Kišerlovski, were notable additions to the team for 2011.
Ion Izagirre Insausti is a Spanish professional road bicycle racer and cyclo-cross rider from the Basque Country, who currently rides for UCI WorldTeam Cofidis. He is sometimes referred to as Jon Izaguirre, to retain the correct pronunciation under Castilian orthography.
Carolina Rodríguez Gutiérrez is a Mexican racing cyclist, who last rode for UCI Women's Team Astana. She competed in the 2013 UCI women's road race in Florence.
Hugo Houle is a Canadian professional cyclist, who rides for UCI ProTeam Israel–Premier Tech.
The 2014 season for the Astana cycling team began in January with the Tour Down Under. As a UCI ProTeam, they were automatically invited and obligated to send a squad to every event in the UCI World Tour.
This season was sponsored by the Samruk-Kazyna group as well as Air Astana, Astana Motors and Expo 2017.
Merhawi Kudus Ghebremedhin is an Eritrean professional cyclist, who currently rides for UCI Continental team Terengganu Cycling Team. During his professional career, Merhawi has taken six victories including three national road titles as well as the general classification and two stages at the 2019 Tour du Rwanda.
Davide Martinelli is an Italian professional road bicycle racer, who currently rides for UCI WorldTeam Astana Qazaqstan Team.
Gianni Moscon is an Italian professional cyclist who rides for UCI WorldTeam Soudal–Quick-Step. He competed at the 2020 Summer Olympics in the road race.
Gleb Brussenskiy is a Kazakh professional cyclist, who currently rides for UCI WorldTeam Astana Qazaqstan Team.
The 2021 season for the Astana–Premier Tech cycling team was its 15th season, all of which have been as a UCI WorldTeam. For the first season in its existence, however, the team had two title sponsors, as Canadian tech company Premier Tech joins longtime Kazakh sponsor Samruk-Kazyna.
