The Italian road race champion Simone Velasco (27) has agreed to extend his contract with Astana Qazaqstan Team for the next two seasons (2024 and 2025).
“Coming in Astana, immediately I found here a great family atmosphere and my own place. I feel really good in this team. Astana Qazaqstan provided me a chance to make my step into the WorldTour, to ride the biggest races as the Giro d’Italia and the Tour de France. I improved a lot as an athlete, as a rider and now I can look forward, aiming something bigger and more ambitious. This season one of my dreams came true – I won the “maglia tricolore” and this victory means a lot to me. I am ready to keep on working hard to become better and better, together with the team achieving new big results. I know, everything is possible”, – said Simone Velasco.
Since joining Astana Qazaqstan Team in 2022, Velasco has already achieved notable results. He secured a third-place finish in a stage of the Tirreno-Adriatico, took fourth place in a stage of the Volta Ciclista a Catalunya, placed seventh in the Coppa Sabatini, and finished 30th in the General Classification in his debut Tour de France.
During the current season, Velasco reached his biggest success by winning the road race title in the Italian National Championships. He also claimed a stage victory in the Volta a la Comunitat Valenciana, achieved a third-place finish in the Circuit de Getxo, came fifth in the overall classification of the Vuelta a Castilla y Leon, and finished 26th in the General Classification of his first Giro d’Italia.
“Simone shows an impressive progress throughout these two seasons with Astana Qazaqstan Team, and we are happy to continue our adventure together. Simone is a strong, motivated, and very ambitious rider who can act as a leader in one-day or short stage races, but also can be a solid helper for his teammates. In the next two years, we are going to set some new important goals, and I believe together we can achieve them,” – said Alexandr Vinokurov.
Photo credit: @SprintCycling
