The ties between China and Italy have always been quite special, but we would never have imagined such a particular attachment between Qinghai and our country. In the Chinese stage race, there is a team that immediately caught our attention: the Qinghai Tianyoude Hotel Cycling Team, a local formation with a truly unique history, but above all a gigantic dream linked to the cycling of great champions.

It all started from the early editions of the Tour of Magnificent Qinghai (at that time called the Tour of Qinghai Lake) and the desire of the local government to invest in the development of this region, especially with the Chinese population. Then year after year, the dream grew bigger and bigger until they decided to create their own team. Zhang Xiaolong, the team manager still in his apprenticeship (as he defines himself), madly in love with cycling, tells us the incredible story of this team. Interviewing him is not easy—no English and the awareness of never having given an interview to foreign journalists—but fortunately the race's communications team helps us again with English-Chinese translation and allows us to access an extraordinary story.

The continental formation was born from general enthusiasm and public interest in a sport that in Qinghai, an extreme region of China very close to Tibet, is truly rarely practiced. The fairy tale begins with just one team, the first investments arrive, and step by step not only does the squad begin to have a structure, but it also starts competing in races. It's 2009 and the Chinese team throws itself into the fray with a strong desire to learn. "In China, cycling is not very practiced, and in Qinghai it's really complicated. Before the race, almost no one knew about the existence of this sport, but little by little more and more people became interested and began to understand what they were watching," Zhang explains to us, pointing out how seeing children on their own bikes was an extremely exceptional occurrence not long ago. Now the population is curious, asks questions, parents give bikes to their children, and they start thinking there might be a future on two wheels.

Step by step, the project grows. In 2015, Zhang Xiaolong officially acquires his sports director's license and takes the helm of the Qinghai cycling federation. Currently there are 4 teams—one is the continental team that competes with professionals, while the others focus on developing young riders. The youngest are thirteen years old and are eager to ride bikes and learn. With no strong cycling tradition in place, the best choice was to bring in someone from outside, so from almost the beginning they decided to recruit foreign riders who could somehow teach the others how to ride in a group. "We have a lot to learn, and I believe that riders from other countries are our lifeblood for the entire staff as well—they teach us how to behave, they tell us what we need to improve to be professionals. The Tour of Magnificent Qinghai is the most important race of our season; we have the opportunity to be seen by the population and to compete with teams that race in Europe. I always tell my boys to keep their eyes open—every day they can learn to move better in the group, to understand what it means to be athletes."

Zhang Xiaolong is truly a flood of words. Without our translator Charles, it would be impossible to understand a single word, but we immediately understand his boundless love for cycling. His connection to this sport is something vital, and he has a burning desire to talk about it. For Zhang, true cycling is what is done in Europe—the races he regularly watches on television and that one day he dreams of being part of. For him, however, the homeland of cycling is Italy. He began to understand this when his boys received some gleaming Colnago bikes to use, and from that moment on he was fascinated. "I believe that Italy is a point of reference for cycling culture and there are great opportunities. There are many races of different types, and then there are so many passionate fans. I regularly watch cycling on TV—the Giro d'Italia, the Milano-Sanremo—the streets are packed with fans, it's beautiful, and one day I'd like to be there," Zhang tells us. Speaking with us Italians becomes an opportunity for him to touch a piece of that world, and so in a short time the situation reverses and he starts asking us questions. He wants to know as much as possible about our country and how we experience cycling.

The Chinese team still has much to learn. Zhang Xiaolong repeats to us several times that there are still many steps to take, but unfortunately it's a very slow process. A region like Qinghai could potentially become the perfect place for cyclists—climbs, flat terrain, and above all high-altitude training. One of the big projects is to intensify the work of the youth teams and perhaps one day create training camps with European teams. The dreams are gigantic, the investments substantial, but everything must contend with a zone of difficult climate and, above all, a population that is not yet ready. Thanks to the stage race, giant steps have been taken, but it's still not enough. Zhang sees it as the beginning of a dream, of an opportunity.

The press van calls us loudly—it's time to tackle a new stage. We say goodbye to Zhang, who promises us that one day he will manage to bring his boys to Europe. In the meantime, he's laying another brick in his dream. He wants to go far, step by step.