Former world champion Amalie Dideriksen inks two-year deal with Uno-X
Dideriksen leaves Trek-Segafredo, Vuelta a España stage winner Clément Champoussin signs with Team Arkéa Samsic.
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One day after Monday’s announcement that Alexander Kristoff will join the Uno-X Pro Cycling Team, the squad revealed another big-name Scandinavian signing.
Former world road race champion Amalie Dideriksen is moving to the Norwegian team on a two-year contract following two seasons with the Trek-Segafredo squad.
“To become part of a Scandinavian team is a dream come true,” the Danish star said. “I can’t wait for 2023 to begin and we can start chasing some great results.”
Now 26, Dideriksen won the junior world road race championships in 2013 and 2014 and then stunned the pro peloton when she outsprinted Kirsten Wild and others to take the elite women’s title in 2016. She was then just 20 years of age, making her the youngest winner of the world title since Marianne Vos 10 years earlier.
Also read:
- Worlds: Dideriksen claims rainbow jersey for Denmark
- Dideriksen wins Ronde van Drenthe
- Amalie Dideriksen repeats as junior world road champion
Dideriksen had a strong 2017 season, winning the Ronde van Drenthe and taking other good results including bronze in that year’s world championships, but since then she hasn’t consistently reached the same heights.
Her results in the past two and a half years have been noticeably quieter, but she is hoping to hit the reset button in 2023 and return to her past successes.
One standout from recent seasons was her silver medal in last year’s Olympic Madison with compatriot Julie Leth. She will be reunited with Leth next season as she is part of the Uno-X team, a pairing she will hope will bode for better results.
Champoussin switches French squads
Meanwhile promising young French rider Clément Champoussin has signed a contract with Team Arkéa Samsic, moving to the team after three years with the Ag2r-Citröen setup.
The 24-year-old won stage 20 of last year’s Vuelta a España, soloing in ahead of Primož Roglic and Adam Yates and is regarded as a big talent for the future.
He said that a big reason for his decision to move to Arkéa Samsic is the commitment of its general manager to allow his career to develop step-by-step.
“Emmanuel Hubert presented me with a great career plan. His words immediately demonstrated the trust he placed in me. This was a decisive aspect in my decision-making,” he said in a team announcement on Tuesday.
Also read: Vuelta a España stage 20: Clément Champoussin attacks to glory as Primož Roglič defends red
“There is a good atmosphere within the Arkéa-Samsic team, with a very strong family spirit highlighted. Emmanuel Hubert presented me with a progressive career plan: in 2023, he wants me to express myself in mountainous races with the aim of achieving stage success. That does not put too much pressure on me with possible general classifications.
“I will try to achieve those performances in a crescendo way thereafter, focusing first on the one-week stage races, then on those of three weeks.”
Hubert pointed out that Champoussin’s mountain bike background has meant he is used to high intensities and that this will benefit his climbing and time trial performances. He said that he “will have a well-established and programmed career plan. He knows what we expect of him for the future. We don’t want to put pressure on him right away.
“On the contrary, our desire is to continue to polish this rough diamond in order to bring him to the highest level.”