Paweł Poljański joins Team Saxo-Tinkoff

Team Saxo-Tinkoff announced the signing of young Polish rider Paweł Poljański on two-year deal. 23-year-old has recently raced for the team as a stagiaire and is joining its ranks along with two other neo-pors – Slovak Michael Kolar and Dane Jesper Hansen.

Poljański raced for Team Saxo-Tinkoff as a trainee in autumn 2013, having previously impressed Bjarne Riis with test results. During trial period, he took part in three races – World Ports Classic, Giro dell’Emilia and Gran Premio Bruno Beghelli. He didn’t have the results but managed to meet team’s expectations, during tests once again confirming that he has the potential and capability to become a pro rider.

As a stagiaire Pawel has shown he is a versatile rider, who can climb. He has done some great races for the team and on top of that he had some fantastic results in the testing, we did with him

– Bjarne Riis said in team’s press release.

Poljański is understandably excited about becoming a professional rider:

– It has been great to be part of Team Saxo-Tinkoff this autumn, so it goes without saying that I’m very excited about signing with the team, and I’m really looking forward to getting the new season started. This is a fantastic opportunity for me, and also a challenge that will require tons of hard work. But I feel I’m ready for this, and I will do my very best to meet the team’s expectations

– he declares confidently.

Poljański won Polish U-23 road race champion title in 2012, had some good results in one-day races in Italy and subsequently signed a contract with ProContinental team Vini Fantini. His professional debut never took place. Young Pole lost half of a season and faced massive uncertainty as the team’s financial problems delayed his registration as a rider. He managed to terminate his contract in May 2013 and after two months of racing for amateur team he dropped an anchor in Danish team. He now has to show his potential and prove that giving him a chance was the right decision.

Team Saxo-Tinkoff becomes Team SaxoBank in 2014, as Bjarne Riis and Oleg Tinkov failed to reach an agreement on future sponsorship and cooperation.

Poljański won’t be the only Polish rider in team’s ranks – he will race there at Rafał Majka’s side.