Gaia Segato will join St Michel-Preference Home-Auber93 for the 2027 season after agreeing a two-year contract with the French team.
The 22-year-old Italian will move from Vini Fantini-Bepink and remain with St Michel-Preference Home-Auber93 through the end of 2028. It will be her first move outside the Italian team system.
Segato has already raced three editions of the Giro d’Italia Women and made her La Vuelta Femenina debut in 2026. She will add climbing depth to a team preparing to place greater emphasis on its women’s programme from next season.
“I’m truly delighted to be joining the team,” Segato said. “For me, this is a very important step in my career and a fantastic opportunity to keep progressing.
“I’ve always raced for Italian teams, so joining St Michel-Preference Home-Auber93 will be a completely new experience for me. I can’t wait to get started, give my very best and learn from my teammates and the entire staff.”
Segato strengthens the team’s stage-racing options
Segato is still developing as a professional but has already gained experience in the two largest stage races on the Italian and Spanish calendars.
She briefly moved into the young rider jersey during the 2026 La Vuelta Femenina, taking the classification lead after Stage 5 before the summit finishes at Les Praeres and the Angliru reshaped the standings.
Her 2026 programme also included another appearance at the Giro d’Italia Women, where she featured in the Stage 7 breakaway and completed the race seventh in the young rider classification.
Those results underline why St Michel-Preference Home-Auber93 view her as a rider capable of contributing on mountainous routes and across multi-day events rather than simply providing general support.
“She is still very young, but she already has valuable experience competing at the highest level,” general manager Stephan Gaudry said.
“She will be a great asset in stage races and on demanding courses, where she can fully express her climbing abilities and further strengthen our team in this area.”
A new environment as St Michel build around the women’s team
Segato’s arrival comes as St Michel-Preference Home-Auber93 prepare to concentrate their professional resources on the women’s programme from 2027.
The French organisation confirmed earlier this season that it would focus its professional future on the women’s team, ending its men’s professional operation while continuing to build the women’s squad.
That shift makes the recruitment of young riders with WorldTour stage-race experience particularly important. Segato offers development potential alongside immediate value as a climbing domestique.
The move should also broaden her racing programme after a career spent entirely with Italian teams. St Michel-Preference Home-Auber93 regularly compete across the French and northern European calendars, giving Segato access to different terrain and tactical environments as she attempts to develop into a more complete stage racer.
Her two-year contract provides time for that progression rather than demanding immediate leadership results. For St Michel-Preference Home-Auber93, she represents another building block in a women’s project that will become the organisation’s primary professional focus from 2027.
