Femke Markus is set to leave SD Worx-Protime at the end of the 2026 season and join Visma | Lease a Bike, according to a report from Wielerflits.
The 29-year-old Dutch rider is understood to have agreed a move between two of the biggest teams in the women’s peloton, bringing an end to her four-season spell with SD Worx-Protime.
It comes during arguably Markus’s strongest season to date. She won the Antwerp Port Epic earlier this year and finished second at both the Dutch road championships and NXT Classic.
She has also put together a consistent run of results across the spring and summer, finishing ninth at Gent-Wevelgem, sixth at Dwars door de Westhoek and eighth overall at the recent Baloise Ladies Tour.
Markus adds depth rather than another outright leader
For Visma | Lease a Bike, the move looks less like signing another headline leader and more about adding a rider capable of contributing across a wide range of race situations.
Markus has become particularly effective in difficult one-day races where endurance, positioning and repeated efforts matter. Her results this season underline that versatility, with strong performances across cobbled Classics, national championships and stage races rather than one narrow type of event.
That profile should make her valuable alongside a team already containing major names such as Pauline Ferrand-Prévot and Marianne Vos.
She can ride for her own result when the opportunity appears, but her ability to work deep into selective races also makes her a useful support option for Visma’s leaders.
Following Riejanne Markus to Visma
The transfer also creates a family link with Visma | Lease a Bike.
Femke Markus follows the path previously taken by her older sister Riejanne Markus, who rode for the Dutch WorldTeam through the end of the 2024 season before moving to Lidl-Trek.
Femke’s own rise began with Parkhotel Valkenburg, where she claimed her first UCI victory at Leiedal Koerse in 2022. That breakthrough season earned her a move to SD Worx-Protime, placing her inside the Dutch powerhouse that has shaped much of the recent history of women’s cycling.
Four years later, she appears ready for another change.
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Photo Credit: Fred Machabert/Mont Ventoux Dénivelé Challenges
A timely move after her strongest season
Markus’s departure would come at an interesting point in her career.
At 29, she is no longer being signed for long-term potential. Visma would be acquiring a rider who is producing some of the best results of her career now.
Her Antwerp Port Epic victory showed she can still convert opportunities into wins, while her Dutch championships runner-up finish reinforced her ability to perform against high-level opposition in major one-day races.
Her eighth place at the 2026 Baloise Ladies Tour also added another useful stage-racing result to a season built on consistency.
That makes this less about changing teams to rediscover form and more about capitalising on a rider whose value has increased during 2026.
For SD Worx-Protime, it would mean losing an experienced Dutch rider capable of filling several roles across the calendar.
For Visma | Lease a Bike, Markus would bring exactly the kind of dependable depth that becomes increasingly important across a full Women’s WorldTour season, particularly when leaders such as Vos and Ferrand-Prévot are targeting different objectives.
Neither team has yet formally announced the transfer. Wielerflits reports that multiple sources have confirmed Markus will make the switch this winter.
