Lidl-Trek had a clear transfer policy ahead of the 2024 season: invest in the future. The US-based Women’s WorldTour outfit signed no fewer than five young talents straight from the junior ranks.
Teutenberg’s team acquired the services of 2023 junior time trial World Champion Felicity Wilson-Haffenden of Australia, multi-discipline Canadian twins Ava and Isabella Holmgren, Gent-Wevelgem-winning Brit Issy Sharp and junior road European Champion Fleur Moors of Belgium.
“I think it’s just nice to try to work and bring up the talents from within, not just buying good talents,” the team’s director Ina Yoko Teutenberg told Cyclingnews.
“The men [Lidl-Trek men’s team] have a devo team coming on and we had the thinking of maybe developing a devo team as well to have it separate from the women’s team, but we thought it’s a better idea to actually embed it and then have some older riders go with the young ones to teach them more.”
The new riders are five of the highest-rated juniors from this year’s crop and expectations are high for what each of them can achieve in their careers. However, Teutenberg is focussed on keeping their wheels on the ground in these formative years.
“We can’t really expect huge results for them because it’s a big step… Time will tell, I think they have some talents and they’ll show what they can do, but this is a whole different ball game so we’ll see what they evolve into.”
Races will tell where their talents go
Wilson-Haffenden and Sharp conquered the steep, cobbled slopes to Stirling Castle to claim the top-two positions in the junior individual time trial at the 2023 Road World Championships.
Both have clear potential to become world-class time triallists, but Teutenberg is wary of pigeon-holing her young stars too early.
“I think with 18-year-old riders, it’s really dangerous to say you’re going to have to grow into this because we would crack them with the pressure. We’re going to have to see what they do and how they can do and find the natural way about it.
“Yes, we have some good time triallists there. Will they be competitive in the elite time trial? Who knows? Maybe one of them develops into a sprinter. You even see this in the men’s peloton with the likes of Marcel Kittel, he came as a time triallist from under-23 and…
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