An unusual move: Blanka Vas leaves SD Worx-Protime under contract and signs with Lidl-Trek

Blanka Vas will change colors and also bicycles starting this autumn. The Hungarian cyclist will leave Team SD Worx-Protime and her Specialized to join Lidl-Trek, with whom she has signed a contract until the end of 2028. The change will take effect on October 1, just in time to start the cyclocross season with her new team.

Blanka Vas opens a new chapter at Lidl-Trek

At just 25 years old, Vas remains one of the great multidisciplinary talents in current cycling. Road and cyclocross have focused almost all her competitive activity for several seasons, but her career began divided between these two disciplines and mountain biking.

In fact, at Brújula Bike we talked about her in 2022 as one of the cyclists expected to stand out in various modalities. At that time, she had just burst onto the elite scene after finishing fourth in the XCO at the Tokyo Olympic Games, second in the U23 XCO World Championship in 2020, and fourth in the overall standings of the U23 World Cup in 2021.

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Although she has not competed in mountain biking since 2023, Vas has established herself as an international reference in cyclocross and road cycling. In the latter modality, she has stage victories in the Tour de France Femmes and the Giro d'Italia Women, while in Paris 2024, she finished fourth in the Olympic road race.

Her signing with Lidl-Trek also marks the end of a particularly long chapter. Vas joined SD Worx in 2021 and still had a contract with the Dutch team, but both parties have agreed to end their relationship early.

SD Worx-Protime itself has explained that the decision comes after the sports results of this season did not meet the expectations that both parties had. Danny Stam, the team's performance manager, acknowledges that this situation led Vas to consider what she could achieve in another structure.

"This has not been an easy decision, but after several conversations, we all felt it was the right time to take a different path," Vas explains about her departure.

At Lidl-Trek, the Hungarian hopes to find precisely that new drive and also begin to take on greater responsibilities.

"I have very good feelings and I am looking forward to meeting everyone on the team. I am very excited," Vas explains. "I hope to continue improving and become a stronger cyclist. I would also like to gain experience as a leader in some races and see how I can perform in that role".

Frank Schleck, head of the Lidl-Trek women's team, highlights her ability to compete in very different scenarios and confirms that the structure aims to maintain that multidisciplinary character. Her debut in the new colors will come almost immediately, during the upcoming cyclocross season.

Vas will officially join Lidl-Trek on October 1 and will remain with the team until the end of 2028. The 2027 season will therefore be her first full campaign with the American team.