2021 may be drawing to a close but cycling's 'transfer window' continues apace with a number of late moves announced in the past several days.
Cofidis have announced two more additions to their squad for next year, bringing their roster to the maximum of 31 riders. 2017 Vuelta a España stage winner Sander Armée, who spent this season at Qhubeka NextHash, will be joining the French squad along with Frenchman Alexandre Delettre, who moves on from Delko.
"I have wanted to join Cofidis for several years," Armée said. "It's a team that is very well-known in Belgium and that has allowed many Belgians to express themselves and give their best.
"In all the races I participate in, I give my best to win. I like the hard races – the Walloon Classics, in particular – and I want to give everything to help my leaders and contribute to the team's future victories."
The WorldTour team has undergone a revamp this off-season, signing Ion Izagirre, Bryan Coquard, Davide Cimolai and Max Walscheid as Elia Viviani (Ineos Grenadiers) and Christophe Laporte (Jumbo-Visma) lead the departures.
Emmanuel Morin is the latest confirmed departure from the squad, with the Frenchman heading to Continental squad Team U Nantes Atlantique. Meanwhile, the future destinations of out-of-contract trio Nathan Haas, Jempy Drucker and Natnael Berhane have yet to be announced.
QuickStep have almost completed their team for next season, with the Belgian squad now at 30 contracted riders following the contract extension of Czech time trial specialist Josef Cerny.
30-year-old Cerny, who won stage 19 of the 2020 Giro d'Italia, has signed up for two more seasons, leaving one spot open for the expected announcement of Mark Cavendish's contract extension.
"I can still improve my tactics during the race and gain more experience," Cerny said. "I just want to race and to win as much as possible with the Wolfpack.
"The mentality and the winning spirit here are so nice. Everybody, both riders and staff, are always motivated and go for it 100%. We won the UCI ranking and we topped again the victory classification, so we really showed we're the best and I'm so happy I can stay for two more years."
Team BikeExchange-Jayco have also announced a two-year contract extension of their own with Michael Hepburn is set to take his stay at the Australian team to 12 years. The 30-year-old will continue at the squad through the 2023 season.
"I'm really pleased to be staying with GreenEdge for two more seasons," Hepburn said. "It's been a great journey these past 10 years and I'm looking forward to continuing that. I know this team very well, the team understands me well, there are many great people in this organisation and it's the right environment for me to be able to perform in."
Elsewhere, several riders are stepping down or away from WorldTour level for 2022.
Slovakian Erik Baška is moving on after six years spent alongside compatriot Peter Sagan – the last five at Bora-Hansgrohe. He moves to Slovakian Continental team Dukla Banska Bystrica.
Colombian squad EPM-Scott have captured the signatures of two WorldTour riders. Rodrigo Contreras heads back to the team he raced for in 2018 following three seasons at Astana, while Cristian Camilo Muñoz joins after three years spent at UAE Team Emirates.
Click below to see the Cyclingnews transfer guides:
The Cyclingnews guide to 2021-2022 rider transfers
The Cyclingnews guide to 2021-2022 UCI women's team transfers
