"Overwhelmed by the political situation. That's changed now" - Biniam Girmay's agent on timeline of NSN Cycling Team transfer

Biniam Girmay has moved from Intermarché - Wanty to NSN Cycling Team. This was a move in the making for several months, delayed by the merger of Intermarché with Wanty and also the complete rebranding of Israel - Premier Tech after the departure of all its title sponsors. Alex Carera, agent of Girmay - and in between others, Tadej Pogacar too - shares insight into the omve.

"We've already made the decision to leave regarding the merger plans. However, we noticed within the team that management was already preoccupied with the merger project," Carera said in words to Bici.Pro.

There was good reason for this, as most Intermarché riders are not going to be part of the merger team, and in both projects promises were made that were not kept. A few riders retired, a few are still looking for new teams, whilst others are unofficially part of the Intermarché-Wanty which hasn't been presented yet in an official capacity.

The contracts that existed with the Intermarché - Wanty now also had a loophole, as the paying agent was no longer the same, and riders had on paper the possibility of signing with other teams. Several did, and Girmay's decision was supposedly made in early September, according to a post shared by Carera himself.

However this happened right during the peak of the protests against Israel - Premier Tech; and at a time where the team was under serious pressure from race organizers, its own sponsors; with Derek Gee breaking his contract and with the team virtually unable to sign other riders. Girmay did agree to join the team, which has in the meantime become NSN Cycling Team.

"The problem with Israel-Premier Tech wasn't a sporting one. We saw that the structure was good, but were overwhelmed by the political situation. That's changed now on the financing side, but on the sporting front, it's still good," Carera argues. "The Finnish manager (Kjell Carlström, ed.) is and will remain Finnish."

He believes it will be a better environment, in which he can evolve, and potentially get back to the results that he achieved in 2024 - where he won Tour de France stages and the green jersey too. "A sprinter needs much more structure than a climber. A team that puts him in the best position and waits for the right moment to launch his sprint."

"Last year, Bini finished second six times, four of those times behind a breakaway rider who stayed ahead of the sprinters. That shows that the quality is definitely still there," he added. "He's also still very hungry, and I believe he'll be among the top ten riders in the world again in the next three years."