BMC announce Martin Elmiger signing

Martin Elmiger will ride in the red and black colours of BMC Racing from 2017 with the Swiss-American team announcing the signing of the 38-year-old. Elmiger moves across from IAM Cycling after four seasons to bolster the team's classics squad. It will be the second time his Elmiger's career that he will race BMC bikes on a Andy Rihs backed team having started his career with Phonak Hearing Systems.

"I'm not the youngest rider anymore so it wasn't that easy to find a new team but BMC Racing Team was always one of my favorite teams," Elmiger said in a release from his new team. "I pretty much started my career on BMC bikes with Andy Rihs at Phonak and after speaking to Andy about joining the team it was a perfect opportunity to also end my career on a BMC bike. It is an honor to ride with BMC Racing Team with riders like Greg Van Avermaet and the young Swiss guys who I know well. It's going to be a nice experience and I'm very motivated."

The four-time Swiss national champion, who has ridden 41 monuments, added that will aim to help Olympic champion Greg Van Avermaet in the cobbled classics but will also look to take his own opportunities when thy arise.

"I'd like to help Van Avermaet win one of the big Classics like Tour of Flanders, and maybe take an opportunity to win a stage at some of the smaller races like Tour de Suisse, or help whoever is there for the General Classification. I think I can help a lot in every kind of terrain, whether it's the Classics or stage races as I have a lot of experience," he said.

BMC's general manager Jim Ochowicz announced his pleasure with the addition of Elmiger to the team and believes will be an important rider in achieving several goals from 2017.

"Martin Elmiger brings a wealth of experience to BMC Racing Team and is a very welcome addition to our 2017 roster. Martin will join us in his 16th year as a professional cyclist, during which time he has consistently proven himself as a versatile and strong road captain, and a rider more than capable of playing both a support role and winning in his own right," Ochowicz said. "Martin was 5th at Paris-Roubaix in 2015, showing that he has what it takes to be up there on the cobbles, and is often seen trying his luck in a breakaway during stage races. We have a clear focus for the 2017 season and we're excited to have Martin on board," Ochowicz explained.