‘The peloton is no longer my place’ – time trial specialist Ellen van Dijk announces retirement

by July 30, 2025

written by July 30, 2025

Time trial powerhouse Ellen van Dijk has announced that the 2025 season will be her last, closing the chapter on a decorated cycling career that spanned two decades. The 38-year-old Dutchwoman, currently riding for Lidl-Trek, shared the news during a guest appearance on the Dutch sports programme De Avondetappe.

“I think time trialing is the most beautiful thing there is, but cycling isn’t just about time trialing,” Van Dijk said. “Riding in the peloton, I just no longer enjoy that. I feel that it’s no longer my place.

In 2022, she undertook the UCI World Hour Record, and cemented herself as the fastest woman of her generation when she set a new record of covering 49.254 kilometers in 60 minutes. That distance stood as the world’s best until Italy’s Vittoria Bussi broke it, twice, most recently extending the record to 50.45 kilometers in May 2025. But Van Dijk’s mark remains the third-best distance ever recorded.

On the road, Van Dijk has long been one of the peloton’s most respected and dependable riders. She celebrated for her selfless domestique work, but also very dangerous in a breakaway. Over the years, she’s amassed an impressive palmares, including victories at Tour of Flanders (2014), the Vuelta España Femenina (2018), Dwars Door Vlaanderen (twice: 2018 and 2019), Omloop van het Hageland (2018), Le Samyn (2013), as well as the GC at Boels Ladies Tour (2013), Ladies Tour of Qatar (2011) and Baloise Ladies Tour (2022).

Van Dijk will retire on her own terms, leaving behind a legacy as the best time trial specialist of her generation.

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‘The peloton is no longer my place’ – time trial specialist Ellen van Dijk announces retirement

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