Although the subscriptions are still open for the Continental ranks, a remarkable newcomer can already be noted for the 2011 season. Team Cyckelcity.se has put in their bid for a UCI Continental license last month and will enable the team to ride more international races.

It is a remarkable newcomer as Sweden failed to produce a Continental team since 2004 (Team Nordic Bianchi). Team Cyckelcity.se has been quite successful in 2010 as they won the Univest Grand Prix in America, albeit more people will remember the great Olympia's Tour queen-stage victory by Johan Lindgren.

The Swedish are modest about their ambitions for 2011, for now it's all about getting their name established and races on three continents have already been planned. The Tour of Norway, the Philadelphia Championships and the GP Suzuka in Japan the team will experience the first clash with the big ProTour teams, while finding race-speed and race-experience as the main goal for now.

Team manager Johan Ottoson hopes to be at the start of the Tour de France one day, "but first we need to establish ourselves and position as a good Continental team, when more partners have been found we can develop further. This is just the first step."

As far as we know, Jonas Ahlstrand (Swedish U-23 Champion), Tobias Ludvigsson (8th WC-Juniors) and Patrick Stenberg (winner Scandinavian Open Championships) will be riding for the team in 2011. The younger talents finally get their platform to show themselves, and the strategy by the team also becomes clear. Long term investment in a good bunch of talents aiming to put Swedish cycling back on the map of the international cycling-scene.

Anderz Persson, owner and main sponsor of Cykelcity.se, is particularly happy: "It was about time that something was done to help a great generation of talented cyclists. Together with the main sponsors we were able to get the required budget on the table. All that is needed for 2011 is now in place and we can look to the future with confidence."
The final list of Continental team applicants will be released after December 10th by the UCI.