New roster of Astana Pro Team presented in Dubai
As was informed, president of the Kazakhstan Cycling Federation Darkhan Kaletayev, team manager Alaxander Vinokurov and members of the team Vincenzo Nibali, Fabio Aru, Lars Boom, Maksat Ayazbayev and Bakhtiyar Kozhatayev delivered their speeches at the press conference. Speaking at the conference Darkhan Kaletayev noted that the main goal of the team's trip to the UAE was the participation in "Dubai tour-2015" and promotion of Kazakhstan's sport in foreign countries. Alexander Vinokurov noted that the roster of the team was seriously upgraded in the offseason. "We chose Dubai because we are a well-recognized team in Europe, and it time now to popularize our sport in the Middle East. The races will soon start here in Dubai, then in Qatar and Oman. It is time for our victories in this Arabian Peninsula. I have to also note that our team was significantly upgraded in the offseason. We found really good sidekicks to our leaders. We face serious tasks, and one of them is to retain the leader's bib in the Tour de France race," A. Vinokurov said. Despite the dominance of foreign stars in Astana Pro team, some Kazakhstanis also represent their country at the highest stage. According to Vinokurov, it is the necessity for development of sport in Kazakhstan. Thus, Maksat Ayazbayev and Bakhtiyar Kozhatayev will represent Kazakhstan in 2015.