Vassili Davidenko

Atlanta, GA

Senior Vice President of Athletics & GM

2021 is a significant year for people affected by diabetes all over the world, it’s 100 years since the discovery of insulin and all of us at Team Novo Nordisk want to celebrate that. We want to do that by sharing all our hard work in research, training, preparing and developing over the years and show that we can have our best season yet and give everyone something to be inspired by.

Vassili Davidenko brings more than thirty years of bike racing experience to the team.

After ending his own 13-year professional cycling career, the former USSR and Russian National Champion on Track and MTB and 20-time Georgian (USSR) National Champion began directing with Navigators Pro Cycling Team in 2007. Davidenko joined Team Novo Nordisk’s predecessor, Team Type 1, as an assistant sports director during its inaugural season in 2008. A year later, he assumed the role of head sports director and in 2010 was promoted to his current position as Vice President of Athletic Operations and General Manager.

Though he has directed races all over the world, Davidenko brings a wealth of cycling knowledge and experience from his years as a professional. As a racer, he specialized in sprinting and stood out in criterium and multi-day stage races.

Davidenko’s illustrious career includes winning the silver medal at the Junior World Road Race Championships (1988), and stage wins at the Giro de Abruzzo (Italy 2001), Tour du Pont (1995), Tour of Poland (1996), Tour de Beauce (2000, 2003 and 2005), Clarendon Cup (2002), GP Liberazione (Italy 1992) , Sea Otter Classic (2001), Housatonic Valley Classic International Road Race, CT (2002), CapTech Classic Criterium (2005), and Athens Twilight Criterium (2005 and 2006). He also won five stages at the Tour of Venezuela (1990), four stages at the Tour of Mexico (1990), and three stages at the Tour of Connecticut (2003 and 2005). Davidenko was a member of the Russian 1996 Summer Olympics’ team, a four-time member of the USSR and Russian National World Championship team and competed in five Grand Tours: Giro d’Italia (1995,1996,1997) and the Vuelta a Espana (1993,1994).

As a director, Davidenko helped riders achieve excellent results including winning the overall at the Vuelta Mexico and Tour of Turkey and stage wins at dozens of races including the Tour of Austria, Tour de Beauce, US Air Force Cycling Classic, Philly Cycling Classic and Fitchburg Longsjo Classic.

Born in Tbilisi, Georgia in the Soviet Union, Davidenko began cycling at the age of 13 after a Georgian national team coach visited his school. In 1983, he began training with the Georgian National team. Three years later he began training with the Soviet Union National team and finished second at the Junior World Road Race Championships at 18 years old.

Davidenko currently resides in Marietta, GA, near Team Novo Nordisk headquarters with his wife and two children.