Ahead of her first season riding for a Women’s WorldTour team, 21-year-old Shari Bossuyt is hoping to further develop as a cyclist within the Canyon-SRAM set-up.
“For me, it’s a dream to be in this team with these girls and I hope to learn a lot from them,” she said. “It’s so nice to be here. In training, I don’t learn as much but I think in the races I can learn lots like how and when to eat.”
Bossuyt joins Canyon-SRAM Racing from NXTG Racing, the development team where she has raced for the last two seasons. In this environment, she secured a string of results indicating towards her potential such as becoming the U23 Belgian National Time Trial Champion, as well as a seventh place in the general classification at the Lotto Belgium Tour and an eighth place in the U23 European Championship road race.
“After two years of NXTG it has been a step up for me to go to the WorldTour team,” Bossuyt said. “I think I am ready for that so it is a big change for me to be in a professional team with these girls.”
Looking ahead to the upcoming classics season, Bossuyt anticipates participating in more of the smaller races.
“I will do a lot of smaller races, not the big races so I think that’s good for me to grow in the peloton and grow as a person and as a rider.”
When she does take part in the larger races, Bossuyt will support her teammates’ hopes of victory.
“I want to show myself in these races,” she said. “Maybe attack or to do some efforts for the other girls and maybe in a small race ride for myself.”
Alongside her road racing commitments, Bossuyt is an accomplished track rider. At the 2021 European Track Championships, she won a silver medal in the Points Race, and placed eighth in the Madison at the 2021 World Track Championship. This season, she will continue balancing both disciplines.
“Normally, the plan is to do track and the road so that was no problem for Canyon and a reason to sign with them,” Bossuyt said. “I hope to do a lot of road races, but also the track races. I hope that it works together. Between the track and the team, it is a good programme so I think it will be a good balance.”
