Gruzdev, Zakharov stay with Astana Qazaqstan Team
Dmitriy Gruzdev (35) is preparing for his 11th season with the Kazakh team, which he joined in 2012. Dmitriy is one of the most experienced active Kazakh riders in the peloton with eight Grand Tours, 17 Monuments and 7 Road World Championships to his name. Dmitriy Gruzdev is triple National and double Asian individual time trial Champion and this year, he represented Kazakhstan at the Olympic Games in Tokyo.
«The new contract with Astana Qazaqstan Team motivates me to keep on improving, to keep on providing my best for the team goals, to keep on working side by side with the team leaders, together achieving success. The last two years turned out to be a serious challenge for everyone but stepping into the new season I hope that everything will return to normal. I think I will be useful to the team in any kind of race; classics, stage races or Grand Tours», said Dmitriy Gruzdev.
Artyom Zakharov, who turned 30 today, joined team Astana in 2017. He is a track specialist who represented Kazakhstan in omnium at the Olympic Games in Tokyo, but at the same time Artyom gained good experience at the Northern Classic races and short week-long stage races.
The 2017 National road race Champion, this year Zakharov claimed the bronze medal in the road race behind his teammates Yevgeniy Fedorov and Yevgeniy Gidich.
«The last year turned out to be tense and nervous due to the continuing pandemic and the preparation for the Olympic Games which was also a bit difficult because of many restrictions. Due to my track preparation, for the Olympics and Track World Championships, I did not spend too much time on the road together with team Astana this year. In the upcoming season, I would like to concentrate on the road, on helping my team, on working for my personal results in any one-day race or a small stage race. Despite the fact I spent a lot of time on track, I was able to gain some important experience during these five years in the WorldTour, and I feel like it is the right time to use it to achieve something important», said Artyom Zakharov.
«Dmitriy and Artyom are very experienced riders, and we need them in our team to share this valuable experience with the new generation of Kazakh riders like Yevgeniy Fedorov, Gleb Brussenskiy and our neo-pro Nurbergen Nurlykhassym. Despite his age, Gruzdev is still improving and during the last two seasons, especially at La Vuelta in 2020 and the Tour de France in 2021, he proved to be an important team player. Zakharov is also a strong and very loyal rider, always ready to provide good help to the leaders both at the classics and stage races. In the upcoming season, I am expecting both riders to work hard for the most important team goals», said Alexandr Vinokurov, General Manager of Astana Qazaqstan Team.