Team Visma | Lease a Bike is pleased to welcome Austrian cyclist Katharina Sadnik to the team with a two-year contract. The twenty-two-year-old comes from the KTM Factory MTB Team after an impressive season, in which she won the overall UCI XCC Under 23 World Cup title. After an extraordinary year in mountain biking, Sadnik is ready to take on a new challenge by switching to road cycling.

Katharina grew up in a sporty family in Austria, where her love for cycling began at a young age. "I started mountain biking when I was about nine years old. At school, they had us try mountain biking, and one of the teachers told my parents: 'She has talent on the bike, let her try racing'. That's how it all began," the Austrian explained.

After years of success in mountain biking, Sadnik felt it was time to take a new step: "I was already thinking about it last year. I was training a lot on the road bike and enjoyed the speed. I started doing my first road races. This year I raced the Tour de l'Avenir and the Tour de Féminin, where I finished tenth. It was my first real approach to road cycling, and I liked it very much."

The decision to join Team Visma | Lease a Bike marks an important turning point in her young career. "I never thought Team Visma | Lease a Bike would be interested in me. When the first contact came, I couldn't believe it. I have great respect for what this team represents, and I'm truly proud to be part of it," she admits.

Sadnik expects to feel comfortable in the toughest one-day classics, like Paris-Roubaix. The Austrian cyclist is motivated to learn the dynamics of team racing. "In mountain biking, you race individually, but on the road, you have an entire team around you. It's something I'm looking forward to: sharing experiences, working together, and relying on each other. I want to support my teammates and grow to become a valuable element for the team. I'm excited to focus completely on road races and see how far I can go."

Team manager Rutger Tijssen shares the enthusiasm for Sadnik's arrival: "Katharina comes from mountain biking, which has given her exceptional bike handling skills. This will be very useful in the spring classics. We see her in a supporting role for our team in these races. She is still young but has great potential, and we will give her the time and space to grow into the role we have in mind for her."