History
The team was created as Quick Step-Davitamon in 2003 from staff and riders of Domo-Farm Frites and Mapei-Quick Step when the latter disbanded after nine years in the sport. Paolo Bettini won the UCI Road World Cup in 2003 and 2004 as well as the 2004 Summer Olympics road title in 2004. In the 2005 UCI ProTour season, renamed Quick Step-Innergetic, the team won a large number of classics: Tom Boonen won Ronde van Vlaanderen and Paris–Roubaix, Filippo Pozzato the HEW Cyclassics, and Paolo Bettini the Züri-Metzgete and the Giro di Lombardia. In late 2005 Tom Boonen won the 2005 UCI Road World Championships in Madrid, where Michael Rogers won the time-trial.
In 2006 Boonen retained the Ronde van Vlaanderen and held the yellow jersey in the 2006 Tour de France during stage 3–6, and Filippo Pozzato won 2006 Milan – San Remo. Paolo Bettini won the world championship in Salzburg and retained his Giro di Lombardia crown. In 2007 Tom Boonen won the points classification in the Tour de France, taking two stage wins. Bettini defended his world championship in Stuttgart. In 2008 Gert Steegmans took the final stage of the 2008 Tour de France on the Champs-Élysées. Paolo Bettini retired after the world championship in Varese. In both 2008 and 2009 Stijn Devolder took the Ronde van Vlaanderen and Tom Boonen, Paris–Roubaix. After two seasons of disappointment, a resurgent Omega Pharma-Quick Step and Tom Boonen, took four major Spring classics victories, including the four cobblestone courses E3 Harelbeke, Gent-Wevelgem, Ronde van Vlaanderen, Paris-Roubaix.
Read more about this topic: Omega Pharma-Quick Step
Famous quotes containing the word history:
“It takes a great deal of history to produce a little literature.”
—Henry James (1843–1916)
“The history of this country was made largely by people who wanted to be left alone. Those who could not thrive when left to themselves never felt at ease in America.”
—Eric Hoffer (1902–1983)
“The basic idea which runs right through modern history and modern liberalism is that the public has got to be marginalized. The general public are viewed as no more than ignorant and meddlesome outsiders, a bewildered herd.”
—Noam Chomsky (b. 1928)