WHO WE ARE
TEAM VIDEO
Kim Anderson and Emelia Fahlin at Route de France 2009
Cavendish and Renshaw celebrate stage 21 on the Champs Elysees
WHAT SETS US APART
World’s Most Successful Teams - In 2008 and 2009, Team HTC-Columbia won more races than any other team in professional cycling. Last year our men tallied 86 wins including 17 Grand Tour stage wins. Season highlights included six stages at the Tour de France, victories at Milan-San Remo, Ghent-Wevelgem, Paris-Bourges and Eroica Classics, six stage wins in the Tour of Switzerland, six national time trial championship titles, and the US National road-race championship. We held multiple leader’s jerseys including the Maglia Rosa, the points jersey and the young rider’s jersey at the Giro d’Italia, the green and white jerseys at the Tour de France, and we won the overall green jersey at the Vuelta a Espana - HTC - Columbia's first in a Grand Tour.
In 2009, HTC-Columbia riders scored overall victories throughout the world: Multiple stage wins in the Tours of Britain, Missouri, Poland, Austria, Qatar, California, the Basque Country and Murcia in Spain; the Ster Elektrotoer in Holland, Eneco Tour in Benelux, the Bayern Rundfahrt in Germany, the Tour of Romandie in Switzerland and the Three Days of De Panne in Belgium.
In 2009 the HTC-Columbia women’s team achieved 46 wins including Ronde Van Vlaanderen, Liberty Classic, stage wins in Tour de l'Aude, Giro d'Italia, Holland Ladies Tour, the overall General Classification in Redlands, Thuringen and Route de France.
WHAT SETS US APART
BEST METHODS AVAILABLE
TOOLS AND TECHNOLOGY
Together with our 30 partners, we develop and use the best products and practices that can be applied to cycling, including nutrition, aerodynamics, materials, and sports psychology.
We want to give our riders every chance of success. We constantly seek the best tools and technology available in cycling and across the world of sport. We work closely with our partners to continually improve the products we use, and we choose partners and suppliers who seek to provide the best products, solutions and methods to their customers and our team.
We are supported by experts in the fields of exercise science, nutrition and orthopedics, as well as specialists in cycling who provide our athletes with specific training programs and methods to develop each individual. We use the data produced by the SRM power meter to analyze performance in training and in racing and as a guidance tool for our athletes during training.
We are continually working with new ways to enhance recovery from training and racing and of increasing core strength to prevent injury and to maximize the transfer of power from the athlete's bodies to the pedals. We believe in the power of mental training and motivational support. We provide our riders with expert support as well as the undivided attention of our management team to the mental strength and health of all of our athletes.
WHO WE ARE
World’s Most Successful Team – For two consecutive years, Team HTC-Columbia, owned and operated by High Road Sports Inc., has been the world’s most winning cycling team. Our international roster of 39 men and women is comprised of talented young cyclists and supported by a leadership group of experienced riders and management. Together, our teams achieved 285 victories in 2008 and 2009 combined, more than any other team. And in 2009, we won 132 races by 22 different athletes.
The Future of the Sport - Team HTC-Columbia is made of top young talent representing the future of the sport. Our team boasts 21 athletes aged 26 and under, making us the youngest team at the top level of professional cycling. We count nine current national titles and six current or former world champions on our roster. We proudly represent national champions of Australia, Germany, Sweden, Denmark, Czech Republic, Italy, Slovakia and Belgium.
Credible Success Through Teamwork – 22 of our 37 riders in 2009 won at least one race, a stunning demonstration of true teamwork that is a unique achievement in pro cycling. We take a leadership role in the fight against doping, and each member of our team adheres to a strict code of conduct through our independent anti-doping program. We are a strong supporter of the UCI Biological Passport program and take concrete action toward ensuring clean competition.
Best Tools, Technology and Methods in Cycling - HTC-Columbia is recognized as a leader in the best technology (link to Tools and Tech), practices and methods used in the world of sport. We work closely with our partners to continually improve the products we use, from bike and equipment design to aerodynamic race clothing to nutrition products and sports science methods.
Innovative and Experienced Management – Owned and managed by American entrepreneur Bob Stapleton, Team HTC-Columbia is lead by the world’s most progressive managers (link to Experienced Management) from 8 different countries. With more than 250 combined years of racing experience, our international team of managers raced in 41 editions of the Tour de France and count more than 700 individual race victories. They bring their diverse knowledge to meet our team goal of relentless improvement.
2008 and 2009 Team of the Year – For two consecutive years, we have been ranked as the world’s number one team by industry experts including Eurosport, ProCycling magazine, Velonews magazine, and Cyclingnews.com. In 2009, three HTC-Columbia riders were ranked among Eurosport’s Top Ten Cyclists, including Number One-Ranked Mark Cavendish. And the fans spoke clearly, with website polls on at least three continents voting our team “best team” or “favorite team.”
WHO WE ARE
EXPERIENCED LEADERSHIP
INNOVATIVE MANAGEMENT
We believe that common goals and unity of action are the essence of team success. Led by American entrepreneur Bob Stapleton, the team has been recognized for driving the sport into a promising future, where success is measure not just by winning but by winning by fair means. Our organization focuses on providing the athletes with the right attitude, tools and support to achieve their goals and the goals of the team.
Our sports managers come from six different countries and bring comprehensive real world knowledge and experience to the team. We have the depth and breadth of experience necessary to develop athletes from any country and any skill for any competition.
We have a common set of beliefs that guide our actions: Only with success won by fair means can we create change, inspire people and shape the champions of the future.
CREDIBLE SUCCESS
LEADERSHIP IN ANTI-DOPING
22 of our 36 men and women riders won at least one race in 2009 – a stunning demonstration of true teamwork that is a unique achievement in pro cycling. At HTC-Columbia, we place ourselves at the front of the relentless fight against doping. Since 2009, we participate in an independent, program run by the Anti-Doping Sciences Institute (ADSI). Designed by leading anti-doping expert Don Catlin, this third-party testing program complements the UCI’s Biological Passport program. Our athletes adhere to the strictest code of conduct by participating in this independent anti-doping program.
The testing keeps us more informed about the conduct and health of our athletes, ensuring the future of the team and the future of the sport.
About Don Catlin:
For 26 years, Dr. Catlin has been instrumental in the global battle against the use of performance-enhancing drugs in sports, and he is often referred to as one of the fathers of drug testing in sport. In 1982, Dr. Catlin founded the UCLA Olympic Analytical Laboratory, the first anti-doping lab in the United States, and served as its director for 25 years. Under his direction, the lab grew to become the world’s largest. At the UCLA Olympic Lab, Dr. Catlin oversaw the drug testing at the 1984 Summer Olympic Games in Los Angeles, the 2002 Winter Games in Salt Lake City, the 1994 Soccer World Cup and the testing for anabolic agents at the 1996 Summer Games in Atlanta. In 2005 Dr. Catlin and colleagues founded Anti-Doping Research (ADR), a nonprofit organization dedicated to research and testing development.