Alexander Kristoff has extended his contract with the Katusha team for two more years.

The Norwegian has really come into his own since his switch from BMC Racing Team to the Russian squad ahead of the 2012 season, winning stages in the Tour of Denmark and Driedaagse De Panne that year. In 2013, he has taken another step up, with top-10 results at Milano-San Remo, the Ronde van Vlaanderen and Paris-Roubaix. Kristoff also won another stage in De Panne, three stages in the Tour of Norway and one in the Tour de Suisse.

Team general manager Vyacheslav Ekimov said: “Alexander Kristoff is a magnificent athlete and a talented rider. He is continuously developing in our team. Alexander is very ambitious sprinter and quickly progressing as a classics rider. We are happy that he will continue as a professional rider in our team. We are counting on him in spring classics season, where he already showed his great potential during the current season.”

Kristoff is currently riding the Tour de France, where he was runner-up on the first stage and 6th in three other bunch sprints. He commented: “I am very glad to have a possibility to continue with Katusha Team. I feel here very comfortable in the team; there is a fantastic family atmosphere here. I am looking forward to the next two years with Katusha, and I would like to get more victories for the team in the future. I hope to win a stage here at Tour de France.”