"Top people have been brought in, for example Alex Dowsett" - Astana coach quite positive that team will take a leap in 2025

Helmut Dollinger was with BORA - hansgrohe for a long time and most recently with the Q36.5 Pro Cycling Team. He is now one of the new coaches of the Astana Qazaqstan team, which is undergoing a complete makeover thanks to the new Chinese investor XDS, which will probably also be the main name sponsor, and he spoke to CyclingMagazine.de about the upheaval and his role in his new team.

"I'm delighted to be back in the WorldTour. As a coach, you are a bit vain and want to have your riders at the front. I'm happy to have the chance with Astana." The contact ultimately came about through Rüdiger Selig, whom Dollinger originally wanted for a stronger sprint leadout at Q36and as the two knew each other from their time at BORA - hansgrohe.

"We got on well straight away. We talked about our ideas on training and development and we immediately agreed on many points. When we spoke to Vasilis (Anastopoulos; ed.) and Maurizio (Mazzoleni; editor's note), it was as if we had known each other for a long time and had now met again," says Dollinger, explaining the situation when he was offered a coaching position.

"You can feel the spirit of optimism in the team. You can sense that, even if you're new to the team. Top people have been brought in, for example Alex [Dowsett], then we have a very good nutritionist and the overall approach is very scientific. Absolutely top league" is Dollinger's impression of the fresh breeze blowing through the team and he himself is all fire and flame.

"Unlike other teams, it's not the head coaches who also train the stars," says Dollinger, explaining the approach. Vasilis Anastopoulos is a pivotal figure as Performance Chief, "but he also gets everyone on board. If you bring something to the table, for example experience with a new field test, then that is looked at and the better option is chosen. It's about moving the team forward in order to achieve the goals. You can see that very clearly. We already have a fixed and ready race plan up to the Tour de France - you can work with that."

There also seems to be a plan in place for the situation in the WorldTour and the risk of losing the license, and the minimum goal of 18th place in the three-year ranking is being specifically targeted: "Of course that's our goal. We want to get as many points as possible and still pull off the miracle, and to be honest, when I look at the squad, it's also possible. The team has strengthened and I can feel that something can happen here. They are tackling things head on and trying to do things better. In my case, for example, we didn't spend a lot of time talking. A 'Servus' and off we go. Smart and straight to the point - I really like that," says Dollinger optimistically.