Tamara Dronova is a relative newcomer to the peloton, but with a background in Nordic skiing and track cycling, she quickly moved onto the road racing scene and surprised herself and her team, Israel Premier Tech Roland, with good results in several big races She has been a member of the team for over 30 years.

The 29-year-old is originally from Russia but lives in Turkey with her family. Entering her third season with the team, she hopes to show the sporting world that she and her team belong on the Women's World Tour.

"This team is my second family, and even though few people believed in us, we wanted to prove to everyone that we can do great things," Dronova told Cycling News from a recent training camp.

Dronova made the switch to full-time road racing three years ago and was given the chance to grow under the Cogeas Mettler Pro Cycling team in 2021.

"My sport director (at the time) was acquainted with the current sport director, Sergey Klimov, and asked him to test me on the road. I joined cycling at the age of 15. Before that I was working on cross-country skiing, but until 2021 I was exclusively on the track," Dronova said.

Over the years, the program has recruited well-known athletes such as Amber Neben, Elise Shabby, Tenniel Campbell, and Olga Zabelinskaya. However, it came as a surprise when the sports governing body announced that it had selected the then Roland Coggies Edelweiss Squad as the new team for the 2022 Women's World Tour.

The team, previously registered in Russia, was based in Lausanne and registered in Switzerland.

"For me, it was truly a new adventure. It was a challenge for myself, because this year the race calendar is much bigger than before," said Dronoy.

The program has secured Israel Premier Tech as its financial backer and intends to continue its growth in the pro cycling world under the ownership of Ruben Contreras.

Dronoy's performances have been among the strongest of the 2022 team, with highlights including 8th in Ghent-Wevelgem, 6th in the Navarre Classic, Vuelta a Burgos, Tour de France Femme, Tour of Scandinavia, Simac Ladies Tour, and top 10 finishes at the Tour de Romandie.

"I didn't expect the results myself. I trained hard, followed the plan, and trusted that everything would work out," said Dronoy.

"It just takes time and experience, and I'm sure the team didn't expect such good results from me in my first year. Until last year, my name was not well known in the road cycling world."

Israel Premier Tech increased its funding and transitioned to the role of title sponsor in 2023, when the team was renamed Israel Premier Tech Roland.

"I consider the merger of Roland and IPT to be very important. I met with the CEOs of both teams and liked their attitude towards cycling and people. As a rider on the team, I hope to be able to show the team colors to the fans in the best possible way."

Dronova is joined by Fariba Hashimi, who won the Afghan championships in Switzerland in October, Caroline Baul, Hannah Buch, Sofia Collinelli, Fian Delbert, Nathalie Eklund, Mia Griffin, Sylvia Magri, Ti Tat Nguyen, Elena Pirone, Claire Steele, and Lara Vieseli will be part of the team of 13 riders.

Dronoy hopes to continue his success at the highest level, but does not want to put pressure on himself by announcing specific future goals.

"It's hard to predict anything. I have dreams and goals that I want to achieve, but only my husband and son know about them. I want to continue to train hard and keep my competitors happy."