Picnic PostNL signs talents from Colombia for men’s and women’s teams: "Plenty of room to grow"

Team Picnic PostNL has announced several new riders just before the new year. The Dutch team, which until the end of this year ontinues as dsm-firmenich PostNL, has signed some talents from Colombia: Juan Martinez will join the men's team, while the women's team acquires Juliana Londoño. Youth will thus continue to play an essential role in the formation.

The 20-year-old Martinez rode for the Q36.5 Pro Cycling training team last season. There, he made an impression on several youth races. He finished sixth in the Giro della Valle d'Aosta and won the mountain classification. He did not get a contract with the pro team, but Team Picnic PostNL gave him that chance. "Team dsm-firmenich PostNL is one of the biggest teams in the world, and it will be special to turn professional with them," the Colombian said on the team's website. "They have developed a lot of great riders in the past, so I think it will be a good fit for me as I make the next step in my career."

Head coach Rudi Kemna is delighted with the young Colombian's arrival. "Juan has shown himself to be a very exciting climbing talent, and he really excels when the road goes uphill. He's experienced racing in Europe with Q36.5 Pro Cycling's Development team over the past two years and this season he won the mountains jersey at the Giro Valle d'Aosta, which is one of the most prestigious races in terms of climbing at this age level. As he is still a young rider, we believe there is still a lot of space for him to progress and develop in the coming years with us."

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Juliana Londoño makes the switch to Team Picnic PostNL's women's team

Fast Londoño joins women's team

Nineteen-year-old Londoño will make her WorldTour debut with her new Dutch team. "It will be a big step for me to race in the WorldTour, but I just want to learn as much as I can from the rest of the girls in the team and the staff here, especially in my first year as I settle in. The team is really professional and structured, there is someone to help you for everything, and I think that suits me as a person." Where Martinez is a race climber, Londoño has yet to see her specialty. "I'm not fully sure what type of rider I am. I do have a good sprint, but I also want to be a complete rider and not focus on only one speciality as I am still young, so I think that will work well with the team and how they do things. I'm looking forward to it."

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