Igor Makarov (businessman)

Igor Makarov (Russian: Игорь Викторович Макаров; born 5 April 1962) — Russian businessman, proprietor of Areti International Group. President of the Russian Cycling Federation (RCF) and founder of the Russian Global Cycling Project (RGCP).

Igor Makarov was born on 5 April 1962 in Ashgabat (Turkmenistan). In 1983 graduated from the Turkmen State University and served in the Soviet army. In 1986-1989 he was a professor at the Kazan State University. In 1989-1992 worked in private sector. In 2011-2013 Makarov is a member of the Board of Directors of OJSC "Rosneftegaz" and of the Board of Directors of OJSC "Transneft".

For over ten years Makarov was in the USSR cycling team as a repeated champion and prizewinner of the all-Union and world competitions, international master of sports. His sporting days over, he went into business and made his way up from a small production and trading enterprise to a large international holding company. In 1992 he became the founder and the Chairman of ITERA.

Apart from making money, Igor Makarov performs an array of public duties. In 2005 he was appointed the Honorary Consul of the Republic of Belarus in Moscow. He has been the Deputy Chairman of the Board of Trustees of the Russian Cycling Federation (RCF) since 2008 and in June 2010 he was elected President of the Federation. In September 2011 he was appointed by the European Cycling Union to serve on the International Cycling Union (UCI) Management Committee. In 2008 he started a professional cycling team named Katusha – the only Pro-Tour Russian team licensed for Tour de France, Giro d’Italia, Vuelta a España and others races. Russian Global Cycling Project (RGCP) initiated by Makarov includes, apart from Katusha, RusVelo, ‘Rus’ and “Russian Helicopters’ teams.

ARETI is a project by the Russian businessman Igor Makarov which was created as a result of rebranding of ITERA International Group of Companies, which history started in 1992.

ARETI is a private company which consolidates most of the current Group’s projects and seeks to implement new ones.

Main business areas of ARETI are projects in Fuel and Energy Complex, in particular, offshore mining in Turkmenistan (the Caspian Sea), energy commodities trading, crops trading, engineering, real-estate development, and investment to the real economy.

The name ARETI symbolizes transition of the company to a new stage of development. A new name mirroring the previous one confirms that the main economic areas, the way of doing business, staff, values, and social responsibility remain the same.

Igor Makarov is involved in charity, including a major international project to save the population of Siberian white cranes "Flight of Hope". In 2012 the President of the Russian Federation Vladimir Putin took part in the eminent flight with cranes as a part of the project.

He has been decorated with state awards from different countries for his significant contributions to developing economic relations and strengthening friendship and cooperation between the people. Among the awards are the Order of Friendship of Peoples and the Medal of Francisk Scorina (state awards of Belarus), the Friendship Medal (state award of Mongolia), the Order "Gloria Muncii" (Work Merit) (the state award of Moldova), as well as the Order of Holy Faithful Prince Daniel of Moscow and Innokenty the Sanctifier Metropolitan of Moscow and Kolomna, 3rd Class of the Russian Orthodox Church, the Order of Saint Sergius of Radonezh, 3rd Class of the Russian Orthodox Church, Honorary Reward "Аkinfy Nikitich Demidov" of the International Demidov's Foundation. He has also won the Manager of the Year nomination in the ‘Energy of Russia 2003’ National Prize Award.