The women’s Trek-Segafredo team have boosted their sprinting and Classics squad by signing Australia’s Chloe Hosking and 2016 world champion Amalie Dideriksen. The team have also signed 18-year-old Dutch rider Shirin van Anrooij after she showed her potential as a stagiaire.
Trek-Segafredo are currently the number-one ranked UCI women's team but face growing competition as other WorldTour teams strengthen their rosters for 2021.
Hosking, 30, is racing with Rally Cycling this year after three seasons at Ale’ Cipollini. She is considered one of the fastest sprinters in the women’s peloton and will also bring a decade of experience to the team.
"I've been around the peloton for a long time, and 2021 will be my 12th season as a professional. I'm coming into this team as a sprinter, so obviously my main goal is to win big sprint races," she said.
"I would love to play a role as a team captain on the road. I've done a lot of the races and have a lot of experience on that front. Often it's an asset for a team leader to not be the protected rider as she can take some of the pressure off the rider who is going for the victory, so I would love to step into that role in some of the races."
In her early years as a professional, Hosking raced alongside Ina Teutenberg and will now be guided by the Trek-Segafredo directeur sportif.
"One of the huge draw cards for me in making the move to Trek-Segafredo was Ina Teutenberg," Hosking said.
"I came to the professional peloton when I was 19 years old under the tutelage of Ina. I rode with her for three years. I learned a lot from her then, but I feel I wasn't good enough at the time to get the most out of the extensive knowledge that she has. So, I'm really looking forward to coming back on-board with Ina and learning from her as she's a great leader with a wealth of information.
"I'll also be reuniting with some of my old teammates. I rode also with Elisa [Longo Borghini] and Audrey [Cordon-Ragot] for four years, and I'm really looking forward to being back with those ladies. I also rode with Ellen van Dijk and Trixi [Worrack], who gave me a phenomenal lead-out to help me win one of my first big races in Europe, Drentse 8, back in 2012.”
Dideriksen and Van Anrooij
Dideriksen joins from Boels-Dolmans. Along with the 2016 road world title, she has won the Ronde Van Drenthe, three stages in the Boels Ladies Tour and a stage of the OVO Energy Women's Tour but will be hoping to get her career back on track with Trek-Segafredo.
In her first season, the Dane will split her focus between road and track, with the Olympic Games being one of her big goals.
"Amalie will add strength to our classics group. She's a former world champion and a good sprinter who has the ability to win out of breakaways, and I think she will be a really good asset for the team and help us be stronger in those specific race scenarios," Teutenberg said of Dideriksen.
"She's still quite young, and I'm confident she can still improve a great deal year by year. I'm excited to work with her starting next season."
Dideriksen added: "I feel excited to take the next step in my career, and I truly feel that Trek-Segafredo is pushing women's cycling in a good direction, and I am keen to be a part of that process.
"I have a big goal next year with the Olympic Games on the track, which I hope to combine with a strong road program. I look forward to helping strengthen the team's lead-outs and being the designated sprinter when the opportunity comes.”
Shirin van Anrooij earned herself a neo-pro contract with Trek-Segafredo after an impressive period as a stagiaire during summer. She will join compatriots Ellen van Dijk and Lucinda Brand in the elite ranks as she takes the first steps in her career as a professional cyclist.
"I still can't quite believe it that I'm part of the Trek-Segafredo team from now on. It has always been a dream of mine to become a professional cyclist, but it's so surreal to think that I'm already getting this opportunity at such a young age," she said.
"I know that I can learn so much from my new teammates, who have so much experience. The team feels like one big family, and I would love to be able to offer support during the races and do the best I can because I know they'll try and do the same for me as well."
