Eline Jansen will join Team SD Worx-Protime from VolkerWessels from the 2027 season, signing a contract that runs through to the end of 2028.
The 24-year-old Dutch rider has emerged rapidly over the past few seasons after making the full transition from speed skating into professional cycling. SD Worx-Protime have been monitoring her development closely and believe her profile extends well beyond the Classics results that first brought her wider attention.
Sports manager Danny Stam sees particular potential in hilly races and smaller stage races, where he believes Jansen could eventually develop into a genuine general classification rider.
“Eline still has enormous potential,” Stam said. “There are opportunities for her especially in hilly terrain. I also expect that she can develop into a general classification rider in the smaller stage races.”
Jansen’s rise has happened remarkably quickly
Jansen’s route into professional cycling has been anything but conventional.
She originally focused on speed skating and used cycling as part of her summer training before discovering that her ability on the bike could take her much further.
“When I was still ice skating, I rode my bike during the summer as a variation to my indoor skating training,” Jansen said. “But it soon became clear that I was good at it.”
VolkerWessels then gave her the opportunity to develop as a professional cyclist, and the progression since has been rapid.
“I never thought my transition from ice skater to cyclist would happen so quickly,” she said.
That background helps explain why SD Worx-Protime still see so much untapped potential. Jansen is already producing high-level results despite having considerably less race experience than many riders of the same age.
Tour de France Femmes performances accelerated her reputation
Jansen first attracted significant attention with victory at La Classique Morbihan before producing one of the most eye-catching breakthrough performances of her career at the Tour de France Femmes.
She recorded three top-10 stage finishes, with fourth place in Poitiers behind Lorena Wiebes her best result.
Those performances were significant because they showed Jansen could remain competitive deep into the biggest stage race in women’s cycling rather than simply collecting isolated results at lower-level events.
Her ability to survive difficult terrain and still finish strongly was reinforced during the 2026 Tour de France Femmes, where she remained in the race all the way to the final stage and made the time cut by just five seconds on Stage 9.
That kind of resilience is part of why SD Worx-Protime believe her future may lie beyond the Classics alone.
Her 2026 Classics campaign confirmed the progression
Jansen backed up that Tour de France Femmes breakthrough with a strong spring campaign in 2026.
She finished fifth at Dwars door Vlaanderen and Omloop van het Hageland, seventh at La Flèche Brabançonne and eighth at Nokere Koerse.
In May, she added victory at the Grand Prix du Morbihan, strengthening the argument that her development was becoming more consistent rather than being built around one exceptional race.
Those results also explain why SD Worx-Protime believe she could become valuable across several different race types.
“Eline is a young rider whom we see as an important addition to the team,” Stam said. “She is very capable in the classics.”
The key point, however, is that the team do not want to restrict her to that role.
SD Worx-Protime see GC potential
The most interesting element of the signing is Stam’s belief that Jansen could eventually become a stage-race rider.
“I am convinced that, besides the Flemish races, she can also compete with the best in the hilly classics,” he said.
“Furthermore, I believe she can develop into a stage racer who can achieve strong general classification results in the smaller stage races.”
That is a significantly broader projection than simply identifying Jansen as another strong Classics domestique.
Her skating background provides a substantial aerobic base, while her recent racing has shown that she can cope with repeated climbing and still retain enough speed to finish well.
The challenge now is developing the tactical and positional side of her racing to the same level.
Photo Credit: Grand Prix Morbihan 2025The move initially felt like a big step
Jansen admitted that SD Worx-Protime’s interest created some uncertainty.
“When I heard that Team SD Worx-Protime was interested, I was immediately enthusiastic,” she said.
“I did hesitate for a moment, wondering whether the step might be too big, but Danny Stam assured me that it was exactly the right move for me to continue growing.”
That concern is understandable.
SD Worx-Protime remain one of the deepest teams in the women’s peloton, meaning Jansen will move from a structure where she has increasingly been able to race for her own results into one containing multiple established WorldTour winners.
The upside is equally obvious.
Training and racing alongside that level of rider should accelerate the learning process for someone still relatively new to elite road racing.
“So I simply could not let this wonderful opportunity pass me by,” Jansen said.
A contract through 2028 gives her time to learn
Jansen is not presenting the move as one where she expects immediate leadership.
Her first priority is development.
“It is very special to sign with Team SD Worx-Protime,” she said. “When I definitively made the transition from ice skating to cycling in 2024, I never would have imagined this.”
“I am still learning every day. Fortunately, we have a horizon through to 2028. During my first year, I mainly hope to learn and, over time, be able to compete in race finales.”
That approach fits the length of the contract.
SD Worx-Protime can integrate Jansen gradually rather than expecting her to justify the move immediately, while still giving her opportunities in races that suit her increasingly broad profile.
For Jansen, the next two seasons will be about learning how the strongest teams control races and how their leaders position themselves before decisive moments.
The team’s aggressive racing style appeals to her
Jansen specifically highlighted SD Worx-Protime’s willingness to race with several options.
“What appeals to me about Team SD Worx-Protime is the way they race,” she said. “The team is not afraid to play multiple cards and has incredibly strong riders.”
That tactical approach should suit a rider who may ultimately become difficult to categorise.
If Jansen continues developing her climbing while retaining her finishing speed, she could become useful as an attacker, protected rider or late tactical option depending on the race.
She also pointed to the team atmosphere as an important factor.
“At VolkerWessels, there is a family-like atmosphere as well, and that suits me perfectly. I have the feeling that I will find the same environment at Team SD Worx-Protime.”
Anna van der Breggen could become an important influence
One rider Jansen is particularly keen to learn from is Anna van der Breggen.
Jansen grew up looking up to both Van der Breggen and Marianne Vos and believes the former world champion can help with one of the areas where she still feels inexperienced.
“One of the things I need to improve is staying calm in the finale,” Jansen said.
“That just so happens to be something Anna excels at. The way she rides in the peloton and makes the right tactical decisions is something I can still learn a lot from.”
That may ultimately be as important as any physical development.
Jansen already has the engine required to reach difficult finales. Learning how to conserve energy, position correctly and recognise the right moment to act should determine how often she can turn that physical ability into results.
SD Worx-Protime are signing potential as much as results
Jansen already has enough results to justify a WorldTour move.
What makes the signing particularly interesting is how much of her development may still lie ahead.
She only committed fully to cycling in 2024, yet has already won professional races, finished repeatedly inside the top 10 at the Tour de France Femmes and become competitive across a range of spring Classics.
Her 2026 Tour de France Femmes also showed the other side of that development. Surviving the hardest mountain stages and reaching the finish of a Grand Tour-length women’s stage race is valuable experience for a rider now being discussed as a future GC option in smaller stage races.
Stam believes the next stage is broadening that profile further.
“From our very first conversation, she made it clear that she was very eager to ride for our team,” he said. “We have the utmost confidence that, with our support structure, she can continue to make major strides.”
The transfer will be tracked alongside the other confirmed 2027 moves in ProCyclingUK’s women’s cycling transfers hub.
For Jansen, the move represents a significant step without requiring an immediate transformation into a team leader.
The first season can still be about learning.
The longer-term target is much more ambitious: becoming a rider capable of influencing Classics finales and challenging for general classifications when the terrain suits her.
