After 4 years with Visma-Lease a Bike the two-time Dutch time trial champion Riejanne Markus is making the shift to Lidl-Trek, signing on for the subsequent three seasons.
The 29-year-old rider who began her biking profession with Parkhotel Valkenburg a decade in the past has been constructing to a brand new stage in current seasons and is seeking to proceed that construct on the group which since 2020 has been the closest challenger to SD Worx-Protime on the prime of the rankings.
“For years, I’ve admired their pioneering position inside girls’s biking, offering the identical stage of help as their males’s group; one thing that has impressed me deeply,” mentioned Markus within the Lidl-Trek announcement. “I’ve all the time been drawn to well-organized groups, and Lidl-Trek is famend for simply that. Plus, the environment among the many riders and employees seems improbable, and I can’t wait to be part of it.”
The new Lidl-Trek rider, who was additionally Dutch street race champion in 2022, stepped up the general podium of La Vuelta Femenina this 12 months, ending in second total each on the Spanish Grand Tour and on the Volta a Catalunya Femenina, with a win in between at Veenendaal-Veenendaal.
“I’ve massive targets for the upcoming seasons, notably concentrating on GC in stage races and excelling in time trials,” mentioned Markus. “The European and World TT Championships are main aims for me, in addition to tackling the Tour de France, the Vuelta a España, and the hilly classics like Strade Bianche and Liège-Bastogne-Liège, which swimsuit my strengths completely.”
Markus supplies one other GC and time trial bow for the group, which this 12 months gained the Giro d’Italia Women with Elisa Longo Borghini, who was additionally on the rostrum of La Vuelta Femenina with Markus, although the Italian is anticipated to go away the squad in 2025.
“Riejanne has confirmed herself to be a drive in each one-day races and stage races, and we’ve seen her take a giant step up in current seasons,” mentioned Luca Guercilena, General Manager of Lidl-Trek. “She’s a rider whose ambition matches the drive of our group, and we’re assured that with Lidl-Trek, she’ll proceed to make vital strides. Our R&D investments in aerodynamics will give her the instruments she must excel even additional, notably on in time trials.
“Her qualities on the bike – climbing and time-trialling – will complement the remainder of the Team nicely, permitting us to chase success in a wide range of conditions. Bringing her into Lidl-Trek will make us extra aggressive all through the season, from the Classics to the Grand Tours.”
Markus is the primary of the 2025 signing bulletins from the Lidl-Trek Women’s WorldTour squad in a season which is about for various big-name biking transfers. However, we already know the Dutch rider is about to line up at Lidl-Trek alongside Elisa Balsamo, Lucinda Brand, Gaia Realini and Shirin van Anrooij.