"I used to watch the great stages of the Tour with my grandfather": Andres Iniesta reveals close tie to cycling during NSN team presentation

The Palau Martorell, located next to the port of Barcelona and very close to the canvases of Sorolla exhibited there (an inevitable nod to the recent concentration of the team in Denia) was the setting chosen for the presentation of the NSN Cycling Team, direct heir of the controversial Israel - Premier Tech. Now, under the license acquired by NSN, a company with the ex-football player Andrés Iniesta as a partner, the structure begins a stage aimed at building its own identity and leaving behind past labels.

Iniesta evoked his childhood memories linked to cycling: "Cycling has been part of my generation. I remember whole afternoons with my grandfather watching the Tour, Giro and Vuelta, with references such as Induráin, Contador or Samuel Sánchez."

For the Spaniard the presentation is "a very important step at all levels". He underlined the enthusiasm and eagerness with which the organization faces this new project: "I hope we can do beautiful things and that people can enjoy it."

With direct entry into the WorldTour, a Swiss license and an operational base in Girona, the team's sporting leadership will fall to Biniam Girmay, considered the best African cyclist of the last five years and winner of three stages in the Tour.

"It's the best team I could find for my characteristics," said the Eritrean, delighted to share a project with "a legend" like Iniesta. "We have great potential; we want to win stages of the Tour," he added.

From the sports management, Kjell Carlström, who already held this role at Israel - Premier Tech, highlighted Girmay's ability to lead and assured that this stage represents "the great beginning of a new era".

"We want to win, there is no doubt about it. And to do well in Barcelona and at the Tour," he remarked.

The team claims a diverse identity. "We are a multicultural team, with many nationalities, and that is one of our values," insisted Carlström. Riders Jake Stewart and Pau Martí, the latter promoted from the reserve team, presented the new jersey, inspired both by Barcelona and the team's solidarity project in Rwanda, Racing for Change.

The Swiss license is explained by the link with the Stoneweg fund, whose CEO, Jaume Sabater, emphasized the ambition of the project: "We are entering at the highest level, through the big door, with something unique and unexpected, and with the incentive of having the Grand Départ of the Tour in Barcelona."

In parallel, NSN president Joel Borràs defined the moment as "a dream." "We want to connect cycling globally and bring our way of interpreting the sport," he said.

Asked about his presence in races, Iniesta joked: "In the car, yes. I'll have to train, because they are very strong."

More seriously, he explained the team's objectives: "I don't like to ask for anything. It's about working as a team, improving, being competitive and better every day. Cycling teaches that only one wins, but working together makes everyone proud."

The mayor of Barcelona, Jaume Collboni, highlighted the city's role as the epicenter of world cycling in 2026: "The Grand Départ will be a dream come true. Barcelona and cycling are an unbeatable combination."

Collboni was especially grateful for Iniesta's commitment: "He has carried the name of Barcelona around the world and now he is once again betting on this city. The Grand Départ will have a team born in Barcelona."