Santa Rosa, CA - On the heels of signing some of the most established riders in the peloton such as Georges Hincapie, Karsten Kroon, Alessandro Ballan, Marcus Burghardt and Steve Moribito, BMC is reiterating its dedication to building a team of youthful talents by signing Mauro Santambrogio (25) from Italy and Alexander Kristoff (22) from Norway.

Cut his teeth in Italy
Mauro Santambrogio has been a professional since 2004. He turned professional with Team Lampre and has thus far ridden his entire professional career with the Italian squad. “Our two latest signings are both very interesting for our team,” Directeur Sportif John Lelangue explained. “Santambrogio will be a good addition to our stage race team since he is young, but he has already found a good deal of success racing in Italy. And to win in Italy is already quite an accomplishment he can be proud of.” Already friends with fellow new BMC arrival, Alessandro Ballan, Santambrogio is looking forward to being an indispensable member of the UCI Pro Continental Team team. “I have chosen to join BMC because I think it is the perfect team for me to work towards becoming a better rider and improving to another level,” Santambrogio said. “I believe in the philosophy of the team and I hope to participate in the top races so that I can compete against the best in the world.”

Young but experienced
Neo-pro Alexander Kristoff will be among the new crop of riders who will be building up the BMC program for 2010 and years to come. “Kristoff has a really good classics résumé. I saw him racing in Ireland and was hugely impressed,” Lelangue explained. “He is already a good sprinter so we will be looking for him to help build up our lead-outs while also making strong contributions to our Classics program.” Coming from the Norwegian Joker Bianchi team which has successfully spun off high-calibre riders like Edvald Boasson Hagen, Kristoff has proved his mettle in some of the toughest races on the calendar, though he is only 22 year old. “I am very proud to have been offered the chance to sign a contract with BMC. BMC is one of the most interesting teams in professional cycling at the moment,” Kristoff said. “The team has an excellent and ambitious leadership with a long term strategy that is sure to bring it to the top of international cycling. I believe that BMC represents my
best opportunity for my further development as a rider, and I hope to contribute to the success of the team and my new team mates.” A popular rider in his home country, Kristoff will bring a pleasant Nordic flavour to the rapidly internationalizing team. “We are very happy that both of these talented riders are so young and enthusiastic,” Lelangue said. “They will be very important components to our team for many more seasons.”