What shall we say of this now long-staple team of the peloton? They have had a checkered past, but surely by a couple years ago they won all our hearts with that highly memorable Rap Music Video—a must watch if you have not seen it, Youtube: “Astana Rap,” and it shall be the first link. Surely ‘twas the greatest Gem to come out of an altitude-training camp hotel. A star of that video is Jakob Fgulsang, and he’s a good premiere rider to start with. In 2020, the veteran Dane won il Lombardia and finished 6th at the Giro. Despite the Monument victory, alas! it must at least be conjectured: Only 6th in the Giro when most of the big favorites abandoned the race, Jakob, is the specter old age creeping up on you at 35 years old? How many seasons do you have left in you? At this point, Jakob, you are Astana’s top GC man: Vincenzo Nibali (Trek-Segafredo) and Fabio Aru (Qhubeka Assos) are long gone, and now Superman Lopez has departed for Movistar as well. Your schedule seems to indicate you shall return to the Tour, shall you finally be able to string together a spectacular Grand Tour run: twice you have been winner of the Dauphine—the Tour’s ultimate preparation, you have won the climbers’ Monuments of Liege-Bastogne-Liege and il Lombardia, and you took the Silver Medal in Rio; surely you need or deserve an excellent Grand Tour result to good with it: perhaps not a victory, but surely at least a podium.
What of the man who is perhaps the heart and soul of the team? Surely you all know your world capitals and regurgitate that Astana is the capital of Kazakhstan, hence the national identity of this team. And hence my claim that surely Alexey Lutsenko umpteen-time champion of Kazakhstan is the heart and soul of this team. Last year he won that stage of the Tour up to Mont Aigoual. What shall his objectives be in this coming season? He is so versatile it is hard for me to tell what he shall target: the Cobbles or the Ardennes? Which Grand Tour stages best fit into his wheelhouse? Surely, with his talents and still in his prime at 28 years old, the world is his oyster. But alas! I dare move on from this champion and not waste time hypothetical-ing what he might ride and win, for there are too many other talented riders on this deep line up.
Surely I do believe the revelation for this team last year on the international stage must have been the climbing talent Aleksandr Vlasov. He beat the mighty Richie Porte (Ineos Grenadiers) at the Mont Ventoux Challenge one-day race. He won the Giro dell’Emilia on that iconic San Luca colonnaded climb. He worked hard in the Vuelta, why on the Angliru stage he finished second to only the mighty Hugh Carthy (EF Education-Nippo). What are the limits on this 24-year-old? Tenatively, he is pencilled in for the Giro, shall he be Astana’s young leader, a protected rider throughout the race? What of their other talented all-rounds: the Izagirre brothers, Ion and Gorka? Ion has won GC at the Basque Country and Poland and stages of the Tour and Giro; but at 32 years of age, how much more does Ion have in him? The same goes for his surprisingly OLDER brother Gorka who has been the nearly-man for so many big results. And the same goes for that long time great but current Champion of Spain Luis Leon Sanchez. Shall any of them take a one last big victory before they grow too old?
And what does the rest of the lineup have in store? I have fond memories of Fabio Felline in the Spanish races: the Basque Country and the Veulta both. He, like Lutsenko, is quite a Swiss Army Knife, where shall he ride this season? The Cobbles? The mountains? The lumpy stages that finish with a small-group sprint? What about Omar Fraile? Another climber I am fond of, a member of the exclusive clubs of people that have won a stage of all three Grand Tours. How shall he capitalize on his success this year? Merhawi Kudus is another talent as well. Perhaps the 27-year-old Eritrean climber is finally due. Due for a stupendous result. And what of the others? Manuele Boaro, Davide Martinelli, Hugo Houle, Nikita Stalnov, or Harold Tejada? Yes, with the departure of Superman Lopez and the big budget names mostly in their 30s, surely it is time for Astana to unveil some new younger top talent.
Cycling Odysseys 