Azernews.Az

By Sabina Idayatova

The Synergy Baku Cycling Project and Fuji Bikes intend to join forces for the 2014 season.

The American-based bike company will provide the Fuji SST 1.1 model to the Azerbaijan team, the Azerbaijan Cycling Federation reported.

"We at Fuji Bicycles are enthused to have the opportunity to support the Baku Cycling Project," said Milay Galvez, Professional Sponsorship manager for Advanced Sports International, which produces the Fuji brand.

"This project reflects many values which Fuji has and from the first moment the team approached us, we were convinced we wanted to support them," he said.

"The international nature of the Baku Cycling Project, reflected in the riders on their squad but most notably in their race calendar, reflects the diverse focus. Fuji has been present for some time in professional cycling in Western Europe, but in the past few years we have sponsored teams which have spanned the globe such as Baku does with a strong focus on races including Western Europe and Asia and Australia. These regions are developing quickly and are very important for Fuji. Cycling is growing strongly there, as the Baku Project and also the work of the UCI reflect," Galvez said.

"The Fuji SST model is the perfect choice for a professional racer. The model's name is 'Super Stiff Team', meaning it is an ultra-stiff bike for our professional teams and provides maximum efficiency for the sprinter and pro rider."

The brand is not a new one for the team's top new riders. As a matter of fact, the team's new captains have experienced working with Fuji. Matt Brammeier rode it last year at Champion Systems and Marcus Eibegger rode it at Footon-Servetto.

The new bike has already been used by the team, as Pat Lane rode his new Fuji bike at the Australian national road race on Sunday.

"It's an awesome machine. My result wasn't so awesome today, but it wasn't the bike's fault. In the team have had the bikes for a couple of weeks now, but it feels comfortable already. We thank those people in Fuji, and hope to achieve many successes this season using the SST," he added.

Fuji is only one of the team's new equipment suppliers, joining BBB Cycling, Bont Cycling (shoes) and Schwalbe (tires). HED Cycling (wheels) and SMS Santini (clothing) will continue providing supplies from last year.

The Synergy-Baku Cycling Project promoted itself to the world with the slogan "From Baku with Love." The project has been put together by Irishman David McQuaid, the eldest son of UCI president Pat MacQuaid, in collaboration with the cycling federation of Azerbaijan, with the aim of raising the standard of cycling in the country.