Our Thanksgiving-themed cycling news roundup, offering our list of ten sources of bike racing-related gratitude — plus Wout’s schedule, Chaves’ retirement — and in the spirit of this American holiday, more, more, more cycling news!
TOP STORY:
- The PEZ 2025 Gratitude List
RACE NEWS
- USA Cyclocross National Championships Coming to Fayetteville on December 10-14
RIDER & TEAM NEWS
- Esteban Chaves Retires from Cycling
- Jayco AlUla Has a New (Australian) Sports Director
- Novo Nordisk Confirms Ten-Rider Development Team
- UCI Publishes Sustainability Report
The PEZ 2025 Gratitude List
eTrashMike sez: Here in the U.S., we’re celebrating Thanksgiving today. So I thought I’d offer what I and my fellow PEZzers are thankful for as we reflect on the 2025 cycling season. Please consider this list — in no particular order — to be our show of appreciation.
Tadej Pogačar’s Joie de Vivre — We’ve gotten so used to the G.O.A.T.’s laid-back, joyful, playful attitude that when he betrayed something between fatigue and ennui during the Tour de France, fans recoiled in disdain. This is a guy who chases every race from Grand Tours to Paris-Roubaix, and looks cool doing it. We all live in Pogi’s world — and I’m happy to do so.
Mathieu van der Poel’s Foil — The gushing above notwithstanding, we’re also grateful that Pogačar doesn’t win every race. When MVDP stamps on the pedals I rise up off of the couch, and I can’t help but root for him when he squares off against Pogačar.
Wout’s Win in Paris — Actually, van der Poel wasn’t the only one to vanquish Tadej in 2025; perhaps his most notable “loss” was in Paris, in the final stage of the Tour. In front of what appeared to be hundreds of thousands of fans, Wout rode away from Pogačar, to victory — and into my heart. (*flutter*)
Kigali’s Worlds Show — I was fortunate to be in Rwanda — on behalf of PEZ — for the Women’s and Men’s Road Races. The first major bike race in Africa was a clinic in organization and zeal. The crowds were massive and fervent, and I had a blast.
The Next Generation — While Pogačar, MVDP and Wout — and Jonas and even Remco — are starting to feel very familiar, cycling’s ranks are being fed by a steady stream of precocious talent. Paul Sexias, Isaac del Toro, Oscar Onley and many others will keep us cycling fans entertained for the next decade.
Ben Healy’s and Quinn Simmons’ Audacity — We cycling fans appreciate panache: attacking, even against a rider’s better judgment. Riders like Ben Healy and Quinn Simmons, rolling the dice of fitness and circumstance against some of the strongest riders ever to pedal a bicycle, make this sport worth watching.
Milan-San Remo’s Final Hour — From the Cipressa to the final meters in San Remo, the finale of the “sprinter’s classic” is cycling’s most thrilling hour. It’s utter unpredictability, calling on the skills of the climbers, the sprinters, and the all-rounders, keeps us fans on the edges of our seats — this year as much as any other.
The Growth in Popularity of Women’s Cycling — We PEZzers could stand to write about women’s cycling more: There are storylines and personalities to cover, as much as in men’s cycling. WTF? Yes, we should, and we will.
Resolution of the Israel-Premier Tech Saga — With its unique fan-to-rider proximity, cycling is more vulnerable to disruption than any other sport. Israel-Premier Tech’s transition to NSN Cycling Team will surely not put an end to protests and other incursions into races, but — irrespective of one’s political views — we can feel thankful for a likely cessation in race-stopping protests (however temporary this may be).
This Sport and this Website — More gushing: Even in this oligopolistic era, when results can seem pre-baked, road cycling remains cool, and PEZ remains a die-hard fan’s best bet for following all that’s cool about it.
How many days until Strade-Bianche?
RACE NEWS
USA Cyclocross National Championships Coming to Fayetteville on December 10-14
The 2025 USA Cycling Cyclocross National Championships will take place December 10-14 Centennial Park in Fayetteville, Arkansas.
Fayetteville has established itself as a prime destination for cyclists and cycling fans, including cyclocrossers. This year’s national championship will feature 37 championship races where junior, collegiate, masters, and elite athletes will be crowned. Championship racing will take place each day, concluding with the Elite events on Sunday.
Leading up to the weekend’s pinnacle events, USA Cycling will be airing a pre-show on Friday, December 12, on the USA Cycling YouTube channel. The pre-show, On Course with USA Cycling, will feature course previews, athlete interviews, and event highlights. The link to watch LIVE can be found here.
RIDER & TEAM NEWS
Wout Pushes Back His ‘Cross Kickoff
After recently suggesting that Wout van Aert would open his cyclocross season relatively late, we’re backtracking, based on new reporting: according to Het Laatste Nieuws, we’ll now have to wait a bit longer for the Belgian’s cyclocross comeback.
WVA is evidently prioritizing a Visma | Lease a Bike training camp in Oliva, Spain, from December 8th to 16th. The three-time world champion has been making no secret of his eagerness to return to cyclocross for some time now and often begins his cyclocross campaign in early December. However, it appears that he’ll launch his season particularly late this year.
If so, his first race options will be in late December, including World Cup Antwerp (December 20), World Cup Koksijde (December 21) and the X2O Badkamers Trophy of Hofstade (December 22).
Last year, Van Aert also made his cyclocross debut relatively late (December 27th), but this was due to a knee injury sustained in the Vuelta a España. While he only competed six times, he did win the World Cup in Dendermonde. He also made a last-ditch effort to compete in the World Championships in Liévin, France, where he finished second behind Mathieu van der Poel .
Speaking of whom: A specific cyclocross date is still unknown, MVDP’s schedule will be presented at the official course presentation of the 2026 Cyclocross World Championships in Hulst, Zeeland. Team manager Christoph Roodhooft already revealed something about the world champion’s season debut to Sporza . “He’ll be visible somewhere around Christmas.” (Thanks to Wielerflits for this content.)
Esteban Chaves Retires from Cycling
For 16 years, Esteban fulfilled his boyhood ambition to be a pro cyclist. Five grand tour stages, the 2016 Il Lombardia and general classification podiums at the Giro d’Italia and Vuelta a España crown his list of accomplishments.
Chaves bounced back from a life-threatening crash in 2013 and continued to pursue his dream, encouraging the people of his native Colombia to pursue theirs as well. Chaves’ greatest cycling dream was to become his country’s national champion, a feat he achieved in 2023. According to Chaves, though, his proudest moment was becoming a father. His daughter Lucia was born this summer. The 2025 Vuelta a España was Esteban’s final race.
“The decision is the right one,” Esteban said of his retirement.
“I am very happy. I am very proud of the sporting career I have had. I’m very happy to close this chapter in the way we are closing it. Who am I without my bike? Without the bike, I am Esteban. I am a son, I am a brother, I am a husband, I am a father. I am a human being who dreams of setting an example, who dreams of being at peace, who dreams of having a lot of contact with nature. I am a human being who learns.”
Jayco AlUla Has a New (Australian) Sports Director
GreenEDGE Cycling has announced announce that Neil Stephens will return to the squad next season as a sport director for Team Jayco AlUla.
The Australian former professional racer was an original member of GreenEDGE Cycling’s staff when the team launched in 2012. He has played an integral part in some of its biggest successes, including the team’s first Monument victory at the 2012 Milan-Sanremo and its first Tour de France win in 2013.
Said Stephens, “To be able to come back to the team after seven years away, a team that I helped create many years ago, it’s exciting. I’m really looking forward to it and it just feels like a natural fit.”
Novo Nordisk Confirms Ten-Rider Development Team
Team Novo Nordisk today confirmed its ten rider Development Team roster for the 2026 season with eight different countries represented, seven new riders and an average age of 20 years old with the focus clearly on fresh faces and youth.
“Obviously we don’t want to get ahead of ourselves and say that everyone will eventually make it to the pro team,” said Devo Team General Manager Daniel Holt. “2025 was a positive Talent ID camp and to have this many young athletes showing desire and potential is really motivating. We had many strong and for their age experienced racers, making it an easy decision to bring in some fresh faces. It’s a great way to raise the overall level of the team.
“We have been in similar situations before and having the experiences to learn from is always valuable, particularly with regards to the environment we try to create for the riders. I’m looking forward to getting started with the guys in January and ready to hit the ground running.”
Team Novo Nordisk Development 2026:
- Timotej Banovec (SLO, 22)
- Jeffe Beets (BEL, 20)
- Olly Clements (AUS, 20)
- Marco Grittner (DEU, 25)
- Donovan Mackie (AUS, 19)
- Lucas Lusinchi (FRA, 20)
- Richard Ründva (EST, 20)
- Luca Sacher (SUI, 20)
- Hayden Stevens (AUS, 19)
- Aleksander Zubek (POL, 22)
UCI Publishes Sustainability Report
To mark World Sustainable Transport Day, the Union Cycliste Internationale (UCI) has published its second Sustainability Report. It highlights the UCI’s achievements and initiatives in 2024 and 2025, as well as the remaining challenges in advancing the ecological and social transformation of cycling worldwide.
The principal results presented in the second UCI Sustainability Report are:
- 133,310 kWh generated by the solar panels at the UCI World Cycling Centre (WCC) in 2024 (the share of this energy consumed by the UCI WCC is equivalent to 30% of its total annual consumption)
- A 15% reduction in emissions compared with the 2019 baseline year; to be noted that emissions increased by 11% between 2023 and 2024
- 104 signatories to the UCI Climate Action Charter
- 15 Climate Action training sessions delivered
- 30 cities and regions awarded the UCI Bike City label across 15 countries
- 77 applications for the new UCI Cycling for All & Sustainability Trophies
- 602 projects supported by the UCI Solidarity Programme
- 108 countries represented at the 2025 UCI Road World Championships in Kigali (Rwanda), with 34% of athletes from Africa;
- 222 athletes (including 157 women) followed a training programme at one of the UCI WCC Development Satellites in 2024.
UCI President David Lappartient said: “This second Sustainability Report is a cornerstone of our commitment to sustainability. It ensures transparency in our approach and enables progress to be tracked. Our ambition is clear: reduce emissions, promote equity in competitive cycling, and champion the bicycle as a sustainable, inclusive, and healthy mode of transport.”
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