Amy Pieters moves to Boels-Dolmans to bolster classics squad in 2017

After only one year with the Wiggle-High5 team, Amy Pieters will return to a Dutch-registered squad. She has signed a two-year contract with Boels-Dolmans Cycling Team and is expected to bolster the team’s options in the spring classics and the sprints.

“My main hope for the next season is to achieve a really big victory,” said Pieters. “I made a step higher this year, but I didn’t have the big victory I had hoped for, and that’s the goal for next season. I hope I can do a good winter and be important for the team in the spring and in the sprints.”

The Dutchwoman has spent the majority of her professional career racing for a Dutch team. She turned professional with Merida Cycling Team, which became Skil-Koga, Skil-Argos, Giant-Shimano and finally Liv-Plantur during her six-year tenure with the organisation.

In her years as a professional, Pieters has garnered a string of steady results. Her biggest victories include a stage at the Women’s WorldTour Aviva Women’s Tour (2016), back-to-back wins at Dwars door Vlaanderen (2014-15), the prologue at Route de France (2015), a stage at the Tour of Qatar (2014) and the Omloop Het Nieuwsblad (2013). Plus, she’s ridden herself onto the podium on stages at the Boels Rental Ladies Tour (2016), Thüringen Rundfahrt (2016), Lotto Belgium Tour (2015) and BeNe Ladies Tour (2014) as well as one-day races La Course by le Tour de France (2015), the World Cup Ronde van Drenthe (2015) and Boels Rental Hills Classic (2014).

“I moved to Wiggle last year after six years for a Dutch team to try something different, but I think I learned that a Dutch team suits me better,” said Pieters. “In the Netherlands, cycling is so important, and with that comes a certain way of thinking and a specific way of running a team. The organisation suits me better. There’s more structure and more clarity, and I realise now that I need this.”

“Amy’s a complete rider,” team manager Danny Stam commented on signing the 25-year-old. “Her abilities would suit every team. Her nationality is an additional bonus. I believe she will fit in well with the team.”

“My biggest ambition is to be there for the team in the spring,” said Pieters. “I hope by stepping up for the team, I can help the team achieve more victories and have a win for myself. I can sprint, but I also like the other roles. I want to be in the breaks and race aggressively and show that I can help the team in every situation.”

“When I’m the rider that is there for the sprint, I can do the sprint, but we have a lot of fast riders on Boels-Dolmans,” Pieters added. “We’ll have to see how things are going in the spring and how the other girls are riding and racing before we really know.”

The fourth Dutchwoman on the 2017 roster, Pieters is the eleventh rider Boels-Dolmans Cycling Team has announced for next year. She is one of three new signings, all of them Dutch riders.

The 2017 roster of Boels-Dolmans now looks like this:

Chantal Blaak
Jip van den Bos
Nikki Brammeier
Anna van der Breggen
Karol-Ann Canuel
Lizzie Deignan
Amalie Dideriksen
Megan Guarnier
Christine Majerus
Kasia Pawlowska
Amy Pieters