Nina Buijsman will remain with Human Powered Health through the end of the 2028 season after signing a two-year contract extension with the American team.
The 28-year-old returned to Human Powered Health for 2026 following two seasons with FDJ-Suez, having previously raced for the team in 2022 and 2023. Her second spell has quickly developed into a more prominent role, with Buijsman combining leadership opportunities with increasingly consistent performances in the Women’s WorldTour.
Her season began with sixth overall at the Tour Down Under and continued with solid general classification performances at the Giro d’Italia Women, Tour de Suisse Women and Tour de France Femmes. Buijsman eventually finished 16th overall at the Tour, one place behind Juliette Berthet and only 10 seconds behind the French rider.
“I’m really happy to stay with the team. It felt good to come back after two years, and I really feel at home here,” Buijsman said. “The respect and trust within the team, as well as the motivation we have, are things I really like.”
The extension secures another established part of the Human Powered Health squad as the team continues shaping its roster for the next Women’s WorldTour cycle.
A return that immediately produced results
Buijsman’s first race after returning to Human Powered Health gave an early indication that the move suited her.
She finished sixth overall at the Tour Down Under after moving up three places on the final stage, a result she described as a fresh start after a difficult 2025 campaign. It also came after the team immediately trusted her with a leadership role despite her two years away.
“The Tour Down Under in Australia at the beginning of the year was very special for me,” she said. “From the start, the team gave me the trust to be the leader there, even though I had been away from the team for two years and had a difficult year last season.”
Buijsman carried that consistency deeper into the season rather than relying on one early result.
At the Giro d’Italia Women she repeatedly stayed involved when the race became selective, including joining Silvia Persico in a late move on stage 3 to Buja. Her performances later in the summer showed further progress on longer climbs.
The Tour de Suisse Women was particularly useful evidence. On the final mountain stage around Villars-sur-Ollon, Buijsman was active in the chase behind Franziska Koch before the general classification riders took control, completing a week in which she was regularly visible when the terrain became harder.
That continued into the Tour de France Femmes, where she finished 16th overall. The final Tour de France Femmes classification placed Buijsman immediately behind Berthet and ahead of Noemi Rüegg and Magdeleine Vallieres.
Longer efforts have become a focus
Buijsman believes one of the clearest changes during 2026 has been her ability to deal with sustained climbing efforts.
“I’ve developed a lot in longer efforts, which is important for climbing, so I’m really happy with that,” she said. “Step by step, I’m getting closer to the top in climbing stages, which makes racing more exciting for me.”
That development changes what Human Powered Health can ask from her.
Buijsman has always been capable of handling rolling terrain and selective finishes, but improving on longer climbs gives her greater scope in stage races where the general classification is decided by sustained mountain efforts rather than short, punchy finales.
She has accumulated 50 race days during 2026, giving the team plenty of opportunity to use her across different terrain and roles. That workload has also allowed Buijsman to become more comfortable carrying responsibility within the team rather than operating mainly in support of others.
“I’ve also developed mentally, especially when it comes to trusting the process and dealing with the responsibility of being one of the leaders,” she said.
“In my last season with the team in 2023, I wasn’t at the physical and psychological level I’m at now. With the right training and racing, I’ve been able to develop physically.”
Human Powered Health see more to come
General manager Ro De Jonckere believes Buijsman has returned as a noticeably different rider from the one who left at the end of 2023.
“Nina’s story with us has always felt a little unfinished, so having her back this season has been really special,” De Jonckere said.
“She has grown enormously over the past year, both as a rider and in the way she approaches racing, and we have started to see the Nina we always knew was there and, honestly, even more than we expected.”
The two-year deal also gives Human Powered Health continuity while the team makes changes elsewhere.
Yara Kastelijn will join Human Powered Health for 2027 on a contract through 2028, adding another rider suited to hilly stage races and selective one-day events.
Marta Lach is also joining from SD Worx-Protime on a two-year contract, while Quinty Ton has been recruited from Liv AlUla Jayco.
Buijsman offers something slightly different from those additions. Rather than arriving as a new signing who needs to settle into the structure, she already knows the team and has spent 2026 establishing herself within its leadership group.
De Jonckere believes that familiarity can now be used as a foundation rather than another transition.
“She has taken another step this season, and it has been great to see her confidence and understanding of her own abilities grow,” he said. “We know there is still a lot more to come.”
Buijsman wants a bigger role in race finales
The extension gives Buijsman two more seasons to turn her improved climbing and stage-racing consistency into more decisive results.
She has already moved closer to the front of major races during 2026, but the next target is to become more influential when those races are being decided rather than simply finishing close behind the leading group.
“My goal is to keep developing and to play a role in the finals of races,” Buijsman said. “I love the game of racing, and it’s really cool to be part of it.”
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Photo Credit: Getty
Her return to Human Powered Health has already produced a stronger season than the one which preceded it. With her place secured through 2028, the next question is how far that progression can take her when the team gives her responsibility in the races best suited to her improving climbing profile.
