Cecilie Uttrup Ludwig hoping to 'find myself again' with switch to Uno-X Mobility after 'difficult' spell at Canyon-SRAM
Danish rider says 'it feels like coming home to my Scandinavian roots'
Former Tour de France Femmes stage winner and veteran of 15 Grand Tours, Cecilie Uttrup Ludwig takes her climbing talents to Uno-X Mobility for the next two seasons. The 31-year-old punchy rider competed the last two seasons with Canyon-SRAM, though was not able to reproduce the success across her first five years on the Women's WorldTour with the FDJ programme.
Uttrup Ludwig won stage 3 at the 2022 Tour de France Femmes and also delivered the GC title at the Tour of Scandinavia that year. A year later she secured a bronze medal for Denmark in the road race at the World Championships in Glasgow.
However, her last race podiums came in her final season with FDJ-SUEZ when she won a stage at the Tour Down Under, finished third in the Deakin University Road Race and added third the uphill finish into Urbino on stage 4 at the Giro d'Italia Women. She showed form at Tour of Britain Women with sixth on GC last year and eighth this year, but welcomes a fresh start for 2027.
"The last couple of years have been difficult in many ways, so it means a lot to me to step into an environment where I feel a sense of calm and a real belief in what we can achieve. Uno-X seems incredibly professional in everything they do, and that gives me the confidence to find myself again and build towards my highest level,” she said in a team statement on Monday.
"I am incredibly excited to put on the Uno-X jersey. In a way, it feels like coming home to my Scandinavian roots."
The Danish-born rider began her cycling career as a teenager with several Continental teams based in her native country and Germany. She moved to the Women's WorldTour in 2020 as one of the most charismatic riders in the peloton, with a gift for climbing. Uno-X welcomes her as a fourth new rider on the squad for next season for her to showcase her strengths as not just a climber but also her attacking style.
"She is a great climber with a good punch and a real fighting spirit, and she will strengthen our team," Anna Badegruber, head of sports at the Uno-X Mobility team, said in a press release.
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"She has the drive, motivation and dedication to become the best version of herself, and her work ethic aligns really well with Uno-X. We really believe we can take the next step together and race for great results."
Uttrup Ludwig is the fourth rider added to the Uno-X Mobility women's squad for the new year. Compatriot Sitje Weitze Antvorskov, who just turned 22, moves up for her WorldTour debut for the 2027-2028 seasons while 19-year-old Norwegian Oda Aune Gissinger is set for four seasons.
The team signed Spanish climber Usoa Ostolaza Zabata for three seasons in September, a rider who finished fourth overall at La Vuelta Femenina. Her presence alongside Uttrup Ludwig signals a new focus on stage races for the WorldTour programme.
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Jackie has been involved in professional sports for more than 30 years in news reporting, sports marketing and public relations. She founded Peloton Sports in 1998, a sports marketing and public relations agency, which managed projects for Tour de Georgia, Larry H. Miller Tour of Utah and USA Cycling. She also founded Bike Alpharetta Inc, a Georgia non-profit to promote safe cycling. She is proud to have worked in professional baseball for six years - from selling advertising to pulling the tarp for several minor league teams. On the bike, she has climbed l'Alpe d'Huez three times (not fast), and spends time on gravel around horse farms in north Georgia.
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