Chinese carbon product manufacturer XDS Carbon-Tech, one of the largest companies of its kind in the world, will invest in the Astana Qazaqstan team, with a long-term strategy to compete with the biggest teams in the WorldTour.
Cyclingnews understands that the Shenzen-based company will become a major investor in the team for a period ranging from five to 10 years.
The Chinese-registered team will have a budget in line with the 'super teams' of cycling's top tier such as UAE Team Emirates and Visma-Lease A Bike.
The team will also switch bike suppliers as part of the deal, moving from Wilier to little-known Chinese brand X-Lab.
Last week, Astana Qazaqstan general manager Alexander Vinokourov met with Chinese representatives in Florence ahead of the Grand Départ of the Tour de France. The deal could be finalised and announced during the Tour.
The team is close to signing Australian sprinter Kaden Groves, who is out of contract at Alpecin-Deceuninck at the end of the season.
The 25-year-old has racked up five stage wins across the Giro d'Italia and Vuelta a España over the past three seasons but hasn't yet raced the Tour de France with Jasper Philipsen and Mathieu van der Poel taking the team's focus at cycling's biggest race.
Astana Qazaqstan are determined to retain their WorldTour status for the next license period from 2026 to 2029 and the Chinese investment should allow Vinokourov to sign several other big-name riders and so score sufficient points to stay in the WorldTour.
According to a report in L'Equipe last month, as many as 18 of the team's current squad of 29 riders are out of contract at the end of the season, meaning an influx of funds could result in a revamp of the racing squad.
A history of Chinese involvement in top-level cycling
China currently boasts 15 teams racing at Continental level, as well as several UCI races including WorldTour and Women's WorldTour stage races, the Tour of Guangxi and the Tour of Chongming Island. Several Chinese riders have competed at the top level, including Fuyu Li, Meiyin Wang, Gang Xu, and the first Chinese rider to race the Tour de France, Cheng Ji.
The country has, for over a decade, been hailed as a new frontier in the expansion of top-level cycling as the sport seeks out new audiences and revenue. The Tour of Beijing, a legacy event born out of the 2008 Olympic Games, ran from 2011 to 2014, while the Tour of Guangxi has run four editions since its founding in 2017.
Several grand projects have fallen by the wayside over the years, including the Champion System team, which ascended to UCI ProContinental status for 2011 and 2012 before folding, and an abortive 'Global Cycling Project' helmed by Shane Sutton and Brian Smith in 2018. In 2016, rumours circulated that Chinese conglomerate Wanda Group was in talks to buy the Tour de France from ASO.
However, the XDS Carbon-Tech deal with Astana will now deliver China's first-ever WorldTour team for the 2025 season. The investment comes shortly after Chinese President Xi Jinping said that his country and Kazakhstan "have established a unique permanent comprehensive partnership."
Xi recently visited Kazakhstan on a state visit to attend the 24th meeting of the heads of state of the Shanghai Cooperation Organisation, a regional economic and defence group. Chinese state media reported that it endorsed Kazakhstan's accession to the BRICS intergovernmental organisation.
Last month, while on a diplomatic visit to France, Xi was invited to the Col du Tourmalet by Emmanuel Macron, with the French President gifting his counterpart a Tour de France yellow jersey.
China's new big-budget WorldTour team will no doubt be hoping to deliver more to the country, next season and beyond.
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