Current road world champion Mads Pedersen has extended his contract with Trek-Segafredo through till the end of the 2022 season, the outfit announced today.
Mads Pedersen has extended his contract with Trek-Segafredo through till the end of the 2022 season. Photo: Tim de Waele/Getty Sport
The 24-year-old won the men’s road race at the 2019 UCI Road World Championships in Yorkshire, England, and became the first Danish rider to win the title.
Pedersen said the team’s general manager Luca Guercilena really believed in him three years ago when he first signed with the team.
“In fact, even in the previous year before that when I was in a bit of trouble with Cult (Energy Pro Cycling) and Stolting, he had already shown great confidence in me when he told me I would have a contract if the team closed.
“That team continued for one more year so I stayed with them, but I was really happy that Luca gave me the confidence already back then. It was a huge factor in re-signing with the team now.”
Guercilena said it was very important for them to have the opportunity to work with Pedersen for another couple of seasons.
“Having discovered him when he was a young talent, developing him into a world champion has been hard but deeply rewarding work and I believe this gives us confidence in a bright future.
“He is a winner and has a winning instinct and I firmly believe he is on his way to be successful at the classics.
“Last season he had a hard time, but I trust that after the win at the worlds he will be more confident in his abilities, and I believe he will obtain great results during the upcoming seasons.”
To date, Pedersen has 12 professional wins under his belt and is eager to add more victories to that tally.
“I want to keep winning races. I want to be more consistent and more on the top level in the classics, not just the big races but in all the races, instead of popping up occasionally.
“That’s my main goal right now. And then, of course, to honour and show respect for the rainbow stripes.”
This year the classics will, once again, be one of the biggest goals of the season for Pedersen, who is also scheduled to make his Tour de France debut.
