Bob Jungels will ride for Bora-Hansgrohe next season, leaving AG2R Citroën to move to the German team.
Jungels has had a difficult couple of seasons after being diagnosed with arterial endofibrosis but has been on the comeback trail in 2022, culminating in his memorable long-range solo victory on stage 9 of the Tour de France.
After going on to finish 12th overall in Paris, Jungels has renewed optimism in his career but has decided to have a change of scenery to achieve his next ambitions.
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He joins the ever-evolving Bora-Hansgrohe team on a contract of unspecified length, other than it being a 'multi-year' deal.
"I am very excited to be riding for Bora-Hansgrohe from next season onwards," Jungels said.
"As a team I feel it's the right fit for me to return to consistent performances on the WorldTour and I look forward to playing a big role in team victories for the coming seasons.
"I’m sure that I can still develop as a rider and I'm also willing to work hard for it. For me, this change feels like it's the start of something big."
Jungels turned professional in 2013 with the Radioshack team, now known as Trek-Segafredo, before spending five years at QuickStep and the past two at AG2R. He made a name for himself as one of the most versatile riders in the world, able to win time trials, perform sprint lead-outs, finish top-10 in Grand Tours, and win one-day Classics - both in the hills and on the cobbles.
He signed for AG2R in 2021 alongside Greg Van Avermaet but had a disappointing start and was soon diagnosed with arterial endofibrosis, a condition that limits blood flow. With double surgery and plenty of time off the bike, he recovered from what he described as 'dark' moments to rediscover himself this season.
Bora-Hansgrohe were clearly impressed, and clearly feel he has even more room for improvement.
"Bob is a very interesting rider. One gets the feeling that he's been in the peloton forever, yet he is just in his prime racing age," said sports director Rolf Aldag.
"He brings an incredible amount of experience, but at the same time also a lot of potential. We also believe that this potential is not yet fully exhausted and we would like to work together with Bob on his development.
"In terms of rider type, he fits perfectly into our multi-captain strategy. We’d like to continue to add more depth to our squad to make it difficult for our competitors to predict our racing. Bob can certainly play a key role in important races as he is very versatile."
Jungels is the first signing of the season for Bora-Hansgrohe, who have been developing a stage racing focus in recent years. They are set to lose Wilco Kelderman to Jumbo-Visma but already have the lion's share of the squad in place for 2023, with leaders including Hindley, Aleksandr Vlasov, Lennard Kamna, Max Schachmann, and Sergio Higuita.
