Cycling: Marcel Kittel changes from Quick-Step Floors to Katusha-Alpecin. After two years with the Belgian racing team, the 29-year-old is now moving on - at Katusha-Alpecin he not only meets his former sponsor Alpecin, but also Tony Martin. Kittel signs a two-year contract.
The rumors about a move from Marcel Kittel to Katusha-Alpecin had persisted in recent weeks. Among other things, Fernando Gaviria's contract extension at Quick-Step Floors, who was already one of the strongest sprinters in the field at a young age, and the departure of Alexander Kristoff at Katusha-Alpecin spoke in favor of this. The freshly crowned European Road Champion will join Team UAE Team Emirates from 2018.
For Kittel it is a reunion with Alpecin and also Tony Martin, with whom he was on the road together at Quick-Step Floors until this season. With the signing of Marcel Kittel, the transformation of Katusha-Alpecin, which has been operating under a Swiss license since this season and wants to establish itself as a European team with a strong core of German-speaking professionals, is progressing. With the aforementioned Tony Martin, plus Nils Politt, Marco Mathis and Rick Zabel, four German professionals have already been under contract this season, as well as the Austrian Marco Haller and Reto Hollenstein from Switzerland.
“I am absolutely looking forward to a new challenge in new colours. This moment is exciting for me, because I'm naturally hoping that this step will also give me new impetus. I think I have all the prerequisites in the team that I also need to be successful in the sprint finals. From what I've seen, the sprint train works very well. There has been a big change in the KATUSHA ALPECIN team in recent years. I've noticed this change for a long time and I think it's good. That's why I'm looking forward to being part of the team and the new path we've taken in the future. Team spirit was always important to me and that's also why I became a racing driver." Marcel Kittel is quoted in the corresponding press release.
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