HTC-Columbia kicks off season in Qatar

New U23 time trial champion Ellen van Dijk (Columbia-HTC) at the Tour of Qatar

New U23 time trial champion Ellen van Dijk (Columbia-HTC) at the Tour of Qatar (Image credit: Gregor Brown)

The women's professional season gets underway on Wednesday with the Ladies Tour of Qatar, a three-day sprinter's race on the  Arabian peninsula. The HTC-Columbia squad will be just one of many teams heading to the Middle East in search of good results.