CCC Sprandi Polkowice has signed a 2-year deal with the Austrian rider Felix Großschartner.

"Felix is a young talent with good climbing abilities. We want to help him develop and we believe that he can deliver great results in the future. If he works on his time trial skills, he can do really well in the stage races," Piotr Wadecki, sporting director of CCC Sprandi Polkowice, explains. "We had the opportunity to see him race many times this year, since his racing program overlapped  with ours on a few occasions. He took part in the Tour of Austria, Tour of Croatia, Coppi e Bartali and some U23 races in which our team also participated. Therefore, we could watch him compete up close and get to know him better.

Felix Großschartner is 21 years old (he will turn 22 in December) and this season is his last one in the U23 category. He has spent the last 4 years in the Austrian continental team Felbermayr - Simplon Wels (previous names - Team Gourmetfein Simplon Wels, RC Gourmetfein Wels ,Team Gourmetfein – Wels).

"I consider myself as a good climber and I think I’m at my strongest on climbs which are 4-7 kilometers long," Großschartner talks about his characteristics. "I had offers from a few other teams, but I’ve decided that CCC Sprandi Polkowice is the best fit for me. The team has been developing very fast, has a good racing program and provides great support for young riders.

"My main goal is to develop. I want to achieve the professional level and be able to compete against the best teams in the peloton. In 2016, I hope I will be a valuable domestique and also that I can claim good results for the team, if I get a chance to ride on my own account." 

Season 2015 was the most successful in his career. He won the mountains classification in the Tour of Austria, the U23 race Trofeo PIVA and one of the stages of Giro della Regione Friuli Venezia Giulia. He also finished 2nd on a Tour of Croatia stage where Maciej Paterski took the win, and 3rd on the hardest day of Rhône-Alpes Isère Tour.

"I think that my biggest victory was at Italian one-day event, Trofeo PIVA. Although taking home the mountains classification jersey at Tour of Austria was very big in my country. I was in a breakaway on the toughest stage and I was the first one to reach the top of famous Grossglockner."

Großschartner lately drew the attention of one of the best UCI WorldTour teams, Tinkoff-Saxo. As a trainee, he raced in the American stage race USA Pro Challenge and a few prestigious one day events - Milano-Torino, Giro del Piemonte and Paris-Tours.