Ceratizit–WNT Pro Cycling
Ceratizit–WNT Pro Cycling (UCI code WNT) is a professional women's cycling team, based in Kempten, Germany, which competes in elite road bicycle racing events such as the UCI Women's World Tour.
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| Team information | |
|---|---|
| UCI code | WNT |
| Registered |
|
| Founded | 2014 |
| Discipline(s) |
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| Status | UK National (2014–2016) UCI Women's Team (2017–) |
| Bicycles | Orbea |
| Website | Team home page |
| Key personnel | |
| General manager | Claude Sun |
| Team manager(s) | Dirk Baldinger Carmen Small |
| Team name history | |
2014–2016 2017 2018–2019 2020– | Team WNT Team WNT Pro Cycling WNT–Rotor Pro Cycling Ceratizit–WNT Pro Cycling |
History
The team was founded in 2014 as an amateur club team in Sheffield / UK competing in regional and national races with the occasional UCI level race. After three years the team was transformed from an amateur team into a professional UCI team, and is invited to compete in major races all over Europe. The team itself no longer consists purely of British riders. Since 2019 the team includes women of seven different countries (Germany, Austria, Netherlands, Italy, Spain, France and Canada) giving it an even greater international flavour. 2019 saw a big expansion and inclusion of high-level riders into the team roster such as Kirsten Wild, Lisa Brennauer and Ane Santesteban. Due this expansion the team made the step-up into the top 10 of the UCI-ranking, with a ranking of 7th place. In 2020 the team signed Maria Giulia Confalonieri of Italy and Julie Leth of Denmark, both double European Champions.
2017
Ahead of the 2017 season, WNT made another leap in the team's progression by applying for a UCI Women's team licence, with former Scottish Cycling head coach Graeme Herd as their directeur sportif.[1][2] Expanding its roster outside the UK and Ireland, gaining Austrian Anna Badegruber and Luxembourger Elise Maes from Austrian team Vitalogic Astrokalb Radunion Nö as it stepped away from its UCI Women licence in 2017.[3][4][5]
The team won its first professional race in its first outing as a UCI team in March 2017, on stage 4 of Setmana Ciclista Valenciana when Irish Champion Lydia Boylan soloed to victory. The team's second UCI victory came at the Lotto Thüringen Ladies Tour on stage 3, when Hayley Simmonds attacked in the closing kilometres, taking a solo victory of over a minute, and consequently moved into the yellow jersey. Simmonds finished 3rd place on general classification behind Lisa Brennauer.
At the end of 2017, the team's service course moved from the UK to Reutte, Austria, the hometown of WNT's parent company, Ceratizit, although the team's address registered with the Union Cycliste Internationale was still located in Sheffield.[6][7]
2018
2018 saw a further internationalisation of the roster, with the additions of German Lea Lin Teutenberg and Dutchwoman Aafke Soet.[8][9] Spanish bicycle component manufacturer, Rotor signed onto Team WNT as a second naming sponsor, setting the team to be the first to race full-time on hydraulic shifting and braking groupset.[10] WNT-Rotor took on a greater Spanish influence with its switch from long time frame partner Specialized to Orbea. The team also joined as one of five UCI women's teams to transition to disc brakes in 2018, moving from its already new hydraulic Rotor rim brake groupset to debut the disc brake version at Dwars door Vlaanderen.[11]
Shortly after the team completed Setmana Ciclista Valenciana, it was announced that Graeme Herd would leave the team immediately, with Dirk Baldinger taking up Herd's role as DS.[12] Former Cervélo–Bigla Pro Cycling rider, Canadian Gabrielle Pilote-Fortin was a late signing for 2018 at the end of March.[13]
Half the team's then ten rider roster were selected to compete on the road and track at the 2018 Commonwealth Games; for Northern Ireland, Lydia Boylan, for Wales, Hayley Jones, for Scotland, Eileen Roe, and for England Melissa Lowther and Hayley Simmonds. While Melissa Lowther had been selected for both the time trial and road race, but due to an administrative error by Team England, Lowther was barred from starting the individual time trial.[14] Hayley Simmonds earned a bronze medal in the Commonwealth Games individual time trial, behind recent ITT world championship medallist Katrin Garfoot and former time trial world champion Linda Villumsen.[15]
Aafke Soet earned WNT Rotor's first win of the 2018 season at the start of April by winning the last stage of the Healthy Ageing Tour in solo breakaway, the victory was also her first-ever elite-level win.[16] Soet would back up that road race win at her next race appearance, with the fastest time in the time trial event at Omloop van Borsele.
2019
The Season 2019 started very successfully for the WNT-ROTOR Pro Cycling Team. After wins at the Six Days in Bremen (Germany) on the track the new team member Clara Koppenburg won stage 3 of the Seltmana Ciclista Valenciana and took over the General Classification jersey. The team defended this jersey on stage 4 and also won the team classification. One-week later Kirsten Wild and Lisa Brennauer won in total 5 medals at the Track World Championships in Pruszkow, Poland. (Kirsten: Gold in Madison and omnium, Silver in the scratch race and Bronze in the points race. Lisa: Silver medal at the individual pursuit and a new German record).
The team won its first UCI Women's World Tour race at Driedaagse Brugge-De Panne with Kirsten Wild who won the bunch sprint after a big lead out form Lisa Brennauer. Three days later, Kirsten Wild won our second UCI Women's World Tour race, Gent-Wevelgem, becoming the first rider to win the Belgian spring classic twice.
In total the team amassed 15 victories in road racing during the 2019 season with four different riders. Kathrin Hammes won the overall classification of the Lotto Thüringen Ladies Tour after being in the breakaway on stage 1. The team helped defended the yellow, where Kathrin was able to win her home tour by 11 seconds.
On the 28th November 2019, the team announced that the CERATIZIT Group, who are the parent company of WNT would be joining as title sponsor of the team.
Sponsorship
The WNT company is part of the CERATIZIT Group which offers high quality tools and a unique service to the metal cutting industry. The Ceratizit Group is a privately owned company, based in Mamer, Luxembourg which develops and manufactures highly specialised carbide cutting tools, inserts and rods made of hard materials as well as wear parts. With over 9,000 employees at 34 production sites and a sales network of over 70 branch offices, the Group is a global player in the carbide industry. Cycling has a close connection to WNT products. Many bicycle components are manufactured using metal cutting technology. Important customers, such as the British firm Hope Technology or the Spanish company Rotor Bike Components, use WNT's quality tools to produce their high-quality bicycle parts. Therefore, cycling sponsorship is an ideal marketing tool for WNT to increase brand awareness and make products more accessible to the general public outside of the narrow target groups. Despite this, cycling embodies exactly this same spirit, which is already present within the company and its values. For the 2018 season ROTOR joined the team as a named sponsor, with the team running their high quality bike components.
ROTOR not only sells its products, the company is also developing and manufacturing its products. The manufacturing is mainly done via CNC machining and this is where the cooperation between Rotor and WNT started already a few ago. As a supplier for metal cutting tools, WNT has always been a reliable partner for ROTOR and therefore the partnership within the WNT-ROTOR Pro Cycling Team is another perfect fit. Other Partners in 2019 are Orbea, Cuore, Seitz, Suplest, Edco, Repente, Wahoo, Tubolito, Wolfpack, Velotoze, Lizardskins, Gairrit and DryFluid.
The team's partners for 2020 are Orbea, ROTOR, Cuore, Seitz, Suplest, Schmolke Carbon, Repente, Wahoo, Tubolito, Wolfpack, Velotoze, Lizardskins, Gairrit, Morgan Blue, KCNC, KMC, Powerbar, Kask, KOO and Scicon.
Team roster 2020
- As of 21 January 2020.[17]
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Major wins
- 2017
- Stage 4 Semana Ciclista Valenciana, Lydia Boylan
- Stage 3 Thüringen Rundfahrt der Frauen, Hayley Simmonds
- Round 2 Stoke-on-Trent Tour Series, Katie Archibald
- Round 6 Bath Tour Series, Eileen Roe
- Round 7 Motherwell Tour Series, Eileen Roe
- Round 8 Team Time Trial, Stevenage Tour Series, Katie Archibald, Emily Kay, Keira McVitty, Gabriella Shaw, Lydia Boylan
- 2018
- Stage 5 Healthy Ageing Tour, Aafke Soet
- Omloop van Borsele Time Trial, Aafke Soet
- 2019
- Stage 3, Clara Koppenburg
- 1st
- 1st
- Stages 3 & 5 Healthy Ageing Tour, Kirsten Wild
- Stage 4b Healthy Ageing Tour, Lisa Brennauer
- Stage 2, Lisa Brennauer
- Stages 1 & 2 Tour de Bretagne Féminin, Kirsten Wild
- 1st
National, European and World Championships
- 2015
- 2016
- 2017
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- 2018
- 2019
- 2020
References
- "Team WNT apply for UCI Licence for 2017 season". The Bike Comes First. 27 September 2016. Retrieved 26 April 2018.
- "Team WNT has appointed Graeme Herd as Director Sportif". WNT Rotor. 10 October 2016. Retrieved 26 April 2018.
- Arthurs-Brennan, Michelle (9 January 2017). "Team WNT Pro Cycling Announce Roster & Gain UCI License". Total Women's Cycling. Retrieved 26 April 2018.
- "Austrian all-rounder adds more international flavour to Team WNT". WNT Rotor. 9 November 2016. Retrieved 26 April 2018.
- "Team WNT goes home for latest signing". WNT Rotor. 24 October 2016. Retrieved 26 April 2018.
- Rogers, Owen (28 September 2018). "Team WNT-Rotor cuts British ties". Cycling Weekly. Retrieved 27 October 2018.
- "WNT Rotor Pro Cycling Team". Union Cycliste Internationale. 2018. Retrieved 27 October 2018.
- O'Shea, Sadhbh (15 February 2018). "Lea Lin Teutenberg: Carrying on an iconic family name in pro cycling". Cycling News. Retrieved 26 April 2018.
- "Former European Junior Time-Trial Champion signs for 2018". WNT Rotor. 26 September 2017. Retrieved 26 April 2018.
- Robinson, Joe (22 November 2017). "WNT-Rotor women's team to be testing ground for Rotor Uno groupset". Cyclist. Retrieved 26 April 2018.
- "WNT – ROTOR Pro Cycling". Facebook. Retrieved 26 April 2018.
- "Team News: Dirk Baldinger Joins WNT as DS". Velo UK. 28 February 2018. Retrieved 26 April 2018.
- Tremblay, Philippe (28 March 2018). "Gabrielle Pilote-Fortin lands last minute gig with WNT-Rotor Pro Cycling". Canadian Cycling Magazine. Retrieved 26 April 2018.
- "Team England statement – Melissa Lowther". Team England. 10 April 2018. Retrieved 26 April 2018.
- Wynn, Nigel (10 April 2018). "Harry Tanfield and Hayley Simmonds claim silver and bronze in Commonwealth Games time trial". Cycling Weekly. Retrieved 26 April 2018.
- "UNO victory for Aafke Soet after a sensational performance". WNT Rotor. 10 April 2018. Retrieved 26 April 2018.
- "Ceratizit - WNT Pro Cycling Team". UCI.org. Union Cycliste Internationale. Archived from the original on 21 January 2020. Retrieved 21 January 2020.
