NSN Cycling Team
NSN Cycling Team is a UCI ProTeam registered in Switzerland and managed by Kjell Carlström. Founded in 2015, the organisation raced for several seasons as Israel Premier Tech and held WorldTour status from 2020 to 2022 before returning to the ProTeam level. The Israel branded identity also brought challenges, with growing political sensitivity and reputational debate after Israel's invasion of Gaza. Now rebranded as NSN Cycling Team, the project continues with a mix of experience and emerging talent, targeting major WorldTour starts via wildcard invitations. Key riders include Biniam Girmay, Stephen Williams and Jake Stewart. Discover NSN Cycling Team’s riders, race calendar and recent results on this page.
Full official team name and common short name
NSN Cycling Team; commonly “NSN”.
Team category and status
UCI WorldTeam in 2026 with automatic entry to all WorldTour events, including the three Grand Tours and five Monuments.
Primary disciplines
Men’s elite road racing across Grand Tours, one‑week stage races, and one‑day classics, with emphasis on sprints, puncheur finishes, and stage hunting.
Country of registration and base location
Swiss-registered WorldTeam, with a headquarters in Barcelona.
Founding year and origin story
Rebranded for 2026 from Israel-Premier Tech with an established WorldTour structure, pairing a refreshed identity with an upgraded performance setup and equipment platform.
Current title sponsor and key partners
Bikes by Scott; SRAM Red AXS groupsets; Zipp wheels; Continental tyres; Selle Italia saddles. Fully integrated, tubeless‑first race setup with course‑specific pressure and insert strategies.
Key achievements
The underlying structure has delivered Grand Tour stage wins, national titles, and WorldTour victories. The 2026 NSN project aims to add consistent sprint results, deeper climbing support, and a stronger classics footprint.
Notable riders
NSN’s 2026 squad has clear headline strength across sprints, classics and the hills. Biniam Girmay is the star finisher for hard northern days and reduced-bunch sprints, with Ethan Vernon, Itamar Einhorn and Corbin Strong covering pure and selective sprint finales, backed by experienced engines Hugo Hofstetter, Tom Van Asbroeck and Ryan Mullen for positioning and lead‑outs.
Alexey Lutsenko gives the team a proven winner on hilly one‑day races and one‑week stage races, while Stephen Williams and Jake Stewart add punch for rolling finales. In the mountains, George Bennett and Jan Hirt anchor the climbing group, with Nick Schultz and Marco Frigo offering depth for GC support and stage hunting.
Krists Neilands brings breakaway bite, Dion Smith all‑round reliability, and Matis Louvel and Floris Van Tricht bolster the classics unit alongside Guillaume Boivin and Pier‑André Côté. Emerging names Joseph Blackmore, Pau Martí, Alessandro Pinarello, Oded Kogut, and Nadav Raisberg add genuine upside, while Riley Sheehan provides race craft well beyond his years.
Key staff (2026)
NSN Cycling is led by general manager Kjell Carlström, with Olympic medallist Steve Bauer directing race operations.
A deep bench of assistant sports directors supports every facet of the calendar, blending WorldTour experience and national program pedigree. Alexander Cataford and Tim Elverson bring stage‑race structure and development know‑how, while Dimitri Claeys, Eric Van Lancker and René Andrle add classics and one‑day race craft. Former Grand Tour winners’ mentor Rubén Plaza and ex‑pros Sam Bewley and Oscar Guerrero strengthen in‑car tactics for breakaways, lead‑outs and mountain support.
Key alumni
NSN Cycling’s alumni reflect the team’s Israel-based heritage and its evolution into a WorldTour mainstay. High‑profile names like Chris Froome brought Tour‑winning prestige in the later phase of his career, while Dan Martin and Michael Woods delivered marquee Grand Tour stage wins and Ardennes podiums.
André Greipel signed off with his final victories in, Alex Dowsett set national time‑trial standards and added a Giro stage, and Daryl Impey and Giacomo Nizzolo contributed WorldTour wins and leadership experience. Classics stalwart Sep Vanmarcke anchored northern campaigns before retiring, as Ben Hermans and Patrick Bevin stacked stage‑race victories and time‑trial titles. T
he collective footprint of these riders underlines the structure’s role in mixing proven winners with developing talent to compete across Grand Tours, one‑week races and the northern classics.