After spending the last two seasons wearing the colors of Vorarlberg, Alexander Konychev has changed scenery and, following in the footsteps of Lorenzo Cataldo and Filippo Tagliani, has headed to Asia, becoming the third Italian rider to embrace the cause of a Chinese team in 2026.

While the first two, however, chose together to go and fuel the ambitions of the China Chermin Cycling Team, the twenty-seven-year-old from Verona opted to wear the jersey of the much better-known China Anta-Mentech Team, a team that in recent years has become increasingly international in scope, aggregating a growing and varied number of non-local riders.

Among these, to continue on its own growth path, the Chinese team this year wanted to bet on the qualities of the former BikeExchange rider who, without much hesitation, wasted no time in securing a winning move at the Tour of Rhodes and achieving four other top-ten finishes. The last of these was obtained by Dmitri's son in the third stage of the latest Tour of Hainan, an event where we had the opportunity to meet him and get him to tell us in more detail how he experienced his first months in China, what the adventure he has embarked on is leaving him with, and how one of the most representative teams of a country that is, cycling-wise, increasingly on the rise and appreciated is structured.

Alex, how did this opportunity to race in China with China Anta materialize?

"Last year, at the end of the season, I found myself in a somewhat particular situation because I still had something pending with a few Italian ProTeams, so I wanted to wait until the last moment and see what would come through. In the meantime, I told Vorarlberg, which needed to close its roster, not to hold a spot for me. In the end, it happened that nothing was concluded in Italy, and so, after considering what they had put together in 2025 and their calendar for 2026, I was convinced to accept the opportunity offered to me by China Anta, which had contacted me earlier to give me the chance to race with them. I left and immediately did a training camp in January in China, which for me was absolutely something new, and so I participated in races that were a bit different from the usual, but in any case, I will soon find myself racing in Europe as well since, after Hainan, we will participate in several races in the Old Continent that will be a bit more suited to my characteristics. In general, I can say I'm happy and enjoy this world which, although completely different, I also like because of the passion I've always had for Asian culture".

How are you organized at the team level?

"Our Chinese teammates have a house in Spain, near Calpe, and often base themselves there. This is no small matter as it testifies to the team's willingness to help them grow by getting them used to the European style and races, since when they are in the Old Continent, they suffer greatly from narrow roads and the alternation of climbs and descents. In this way, used this year to start adapting and getting into gear, next season they will be able to go after the points needed to qualify for the 2028 Olympics, which are very important for them".

So it's for this reason and to give them greater experience that the team created an international roster.

"Certainly. In total, besides me, there are six European guys and a Colombian in the squad, all with a lot of experience here in Asia since they've been racing at these latitudes for several years. Their presence helps not only the Chinese riders but also, more broadly, all team members who can better understand which aspects they need to improve and how to best perform every task. For this reason, in the team people quickly swap roles and, for example, it can happen that one day a person works as a mechanic and the next day works as a masseur: in this way everyone learns and is able to do everything in any situation".

You're not the first one this year to move from a European context to a Chinese or Asian one: the cases of Cataldo, Tagliani, and Lucca demonstrate this.

"This is a movement that, in my opinion, is growing a lot and I believe that in the coming years there will be an ever-increasing number of UCI races on the calendar because we know well that, in terms of budget and sponsorships, they have great potential here. It should also be said that for us guys racing in Continental teams, from an economic point of view, coming to race here rather than doing it in Europe is today a sensible choice. Many might ask me "how can you stay away from home for so long" but I can say that, in the end, nothing is lacking here and the team, when I ask to return to Italy, always accommodates me. Every time, in fact, they ask me from which airport I prefer to depart and they always try to meet my needs. After the Tour of Thailand, for example, I wanted to spend a week at home and then return to China to race Hainan and there were no problems doing so. On this front, that of travel and movements, I can say that the organization here is better than that of several ProTeams".

So the problem of being far from home hardly arises for you.

"Maybe there are periods when I'm away for a long time, as happened from February 26 until the week before Hainan when we did all the races in Greece and then flew to Thailand, but you absolutely can't complain, we're in the best conditions to race and if, for example, there's a need to reach a country earlier to acclimatize, there's no problem at all".

You've already managed to win and a victory, regardless of where you get it, is always a victory, but how will your season continue now?

"I trained well this winter and I wanted to start off on the right foot because, as you know, whoever starts well is already halfway there: winning in Greece in the first stage and wearing the leader's jersey was a great feeling. Hainan was a major objective for the team but the level was very high compared to previous editions. Now, back in Europe, we'll do a couple of days of racing in Portugal, then we'll continue with the European calendar and then we'll prepare for the Chinese appointments, very important for us, of the Qinghai Lake and the Trans-Himalaya Cycling Race".

Is there a particular goal you've set for yourself for 2026 or will you simply try to do your best while also enjoying this experience?

"Many think that when a rider goes to Asia, his career ends. I don't see it that way, but I consider this as an opportunity to be able to return to a pro team next year, and that's why I'm working as if I had to regain a trust that perhaps was a bit lost in recent years. The goal, therefore, is to try to be consistent throughout the year (as I demonstrated in 2025) and hope that some team sees that, after spending one or two years at good levels, I can deserve a chance. Otherwise, if that doesn't happen, I won't deny that I wouldn't mind continuing this adventure in China: in the end, the movement is in continuous growth and the team, being practically part of the Chinese federation, has good guarantees".

What aspect surprised you the most coming here and racing with a Chinese team?

"I think it's really the budget that the teams have at their disposal to operate. We, for instance, don't have a headquarters and don't base ourselves anywhere fixed, so for example, when we did the training camp in Hainan, all the equipment was brought to the island, put in a kind of warehouse, and brought back to China once the camp was over. The same thing was done when the team flew to Spain, and this shows what basis this project is founded on. Besides that, I could mention the communication with the Chinese guys: they don't speak English and to talk we have to use a translator, which is sometimes fun but other times less so. It's therefore a bit difficult to get close to them, but that's also part of the game in an adventure that, overall, I find to be interesting, motivating, and different from the usual".

You can see from the way you talk about it that you're happy to be living it.

"Absolutely. This is an experience you live only once in your life. Many riders when they come here complain, but in my opinion you need to have an open mind and accept everything that comes. It's in this way that you really realize, for example, how the places you get to see here are truly incredible and how, in the end, behind cycling there is much more".