The Israel-Premier Tech team have shaken up their group of directeur sportifs as they prepare for 2023. The team is set to be relegated from the WorldTour despite threats from team owner Sylvan Adams to start legal action, with the UCI due to make a final decision on the 2023 teams in the next few weeks.
After other ProTeams scored more points in 2022, Israel-Premier Tech may also need wildcard invitations to the Grand Tours and major races but appears determined to prove their worth in 2023. The team is expected to have a roster of 27 riders, including Chris Froome, Michael Woods, Giacomo Nizzolo, Hugo Houle, Simon Clarke and new signing Dylan Teuns.
The team held a pre-season staff meeting in Barcelona last week, where Sam Bewley and Rene Mandri were welcomed on board as new directeur sportif, and Steve Bauer was confirmed as Head Sports Director.
Somewhat surprisingly, Zak Dempster, Claudio Cozzi, and Nicki Sørensen will leave the team despite being highly regarded by some riders. René Andrle, Dirk Demol, Oscar Guerrero and Dror Pekatch, Ruben Plaza all remain as part of the directeur sportif group for 2023.
“Our Sports Director group will have a new look next year with Sam Bewley and Rene Mandri adding their unique experience and a fresh outlook so we are excited to see them join the team,” team manager Kjell Carlström said in an official announcement.
“Steve Bauer will move into the role of Head Sports Director, a role he previously held at CCC Team, which will see Steve lead our DS group and work alongside Sporting Manager Rik Verbrugghe, while Eric Van Lancker will transition to an operations role.
“At the same time, I want to extend a big thank you to Zak Dempster, Claudio Cozzi, and Nicki Sørensen, who will be leaving IPT. They have all contributed significantly to the team over the past years, and we wish them well with their next endeavours.”
Bewley retired as a rider last month after a 13-year career as a trusted domestique, largely with the Bike-Exchange-Jayco squad.
“I’m really excited to start this new chapter in my cycling career and get stuck into my new role as Sports Director. After a long career as a pro, this felt like the natural next step for me and Israel – Premier Tech presented a great opportunity that will allow me to develop and also offer my experience to the team,” Bewley said.
Mandri retired in 2013 and has been working as the manager for Estonian Team Ampler-Tartu2024 Continental squad.
“In my recent work as Manager of Team Ampler-Tartu2024, I was really missing working as a Sports Director and being at the races. So I was looking for something more exciting and having a good structure around me. After the three days of meetings this week, I can see this is a great group of people, and I’m excited to get started,” Mandri said.
2023 Israel Premier-Tech directeur sportif group: Steve Bauer (Canada), René Andrle (Czech Republic), Sam Bewley (New Zealand), Dirk Demol (Belgium), Oscar Guerrero (Spain), Rene Mandri (Estonia), Dror Pekatch (Israel), Ruben Plaza (Spain).
