Team Tibco-Silicon Valley Bank, which will be stepping up to the WorldTour in 2022 has been joined by EF Education First. The U.S. squad is the longest-running women’s team in North America and one of the most tenured in the peloton, by virtue of the long-standing support of TIBCO and Silicon Valley Bank.
The team’s manager, Linda Jackson, remarks: “I’m thrilled to be a part of the professionalisation of women’s cycling. The opportunity these women have now is amazing. I’ve been in the sport for 30 years; I raced in the ‘90s in horrendous conditions and with very little support. It’s been a long road, but to see money finally coming into the sport so that women can make a living while racing their bikes is a very gratifying feeling.”
Maria Norrman, global chief of staff at EF Education First, comments: “We’re excited to be part of this team and to help these amazing riders reach their goals. The salary component is incredibly important to all of us, because it allows the riders to pursue the sport full-time. We can’t wait to help add the next chapter in this team’s great history.”
Many of the partners of the current men’s team, EF Education-NIPPO, will also support Team EF Education-Tibco-SVB, including Cannondale (Tibco-SVB’s existing bike partner), Rapha, WHOOP, and POC.
The team consists of 13 riders from six different countries and will welcome seven new riders next season. The full roster will be announced in the coming weeks. As has been the case with the men’s team, EF Education-TIBCO-SVB will also race “alternative” events in its pursuit of inspiring more women to ride.
Linda Jackson concludes: “Women have demonstrated for years now how exciting their sport can be and what they are capable of. I truly believe that the media exposure around the new Paris-Roubaix for women and the emergence of the Tour de France Femmes next season are helping to draw more women to the sport. A friend of mine just told me yesterday how her local cycling club has seen an influx of women this past year. We’re at an inflection point where young women are seeing cycling for the first time and thinking, ‘This is a sport that I can do.’ That’s exactly what women’s cycling needs, growth in the base of the pyramid. Now it’s up to us to keep pushing.”
