Moroccan cyclist Tarik Chaoufi will ride for Euskaltel-Euskadi next season as the team abandons its policy of only hiring riders from the Basque region. Euskaltel-Euskadi are putting preventative measures in place in order to keep its WorldTour licence and brings Chaoufi on board as the winner of the UCI Africa Tour this season.
Star rider Samuel Sanchez has previously been the only non-Basque on the team. However, Euskaltel-Euskadi finished fifteenth in the WorldTour this season and is pushing for more points to ensure it stays in cycling’s top echelon for next year.
The 26 year old won six races this season including the Moroccan national road championships. All of his wins came from the African continent but he did also notch up two top ten places at the Tour de Slovaquie.
According to Biciciclismo, the 32 year old Ioannis Tamouridis, who also carries a lot of points, has confirmed his signing to the team.
The Greek rider came close to joining the WorldTour last year with Geox-TMC but the team folded unexpectedly. He’s consequently relieved to get another chance. "I am very happy to complete my move and I hope those responsible will meet the requirements so I will have the opportunity to ride in a WorldTour team," he said.
Other riders who’ve been linked with a move to the Basque team are Jon Aberasturi (Orbea), Gari Bravo (Caja Rural), Jure Kocjan (Team Type 1), Juan José Lobato (Andalucia), Ricardo Mestre (Carmim-Prio), Steffen Radochla (Team NSP -Ghost), André Schulze (Team NetApp), Alexander Serebryakov (Team Type 1) and Robert Vrecer (Vorarlberg).