De Bod, a South African native, has signed a two-year deal with EF Education-EasyPost
For the next two years, South African star Stefan de Bod will be playing for EF Education-EasyPost. De Bod has been racing for 10 years and has been particularly successful in time trial events since he was a youngster.
The 25-year-old South African joins compatriots Richard Carapaz and Andrey Amador of Ineos Grenadiers, the Drone Hopper-Androni Giocattoli tandem of Andrea Piccolo and Jefferson Cepeda, and Mikkel Honoré of QuickStep-AlphaVinyl on the US-based WorldTeam for the next season.
In 2016, De Bod began his professional cycling career with Dimension Data, and he remained with the team until 2019 when it was promoted to WorldTour status. In 2020, when the team competed as NTT Pro Cycling, De Bod made his Grand Tour debut at the Vuelta a Espaa.
I’ve been keeping an eye on Stefan, the cyclist, for quite some time. According to EF Education-EasyPost CEO Jonathan Vaughters, “he is an underappreciated talent that may be a crucial addition to a team like ours aiming to concentrate on huge success in difficult events.”
His time trialing exploits, which were mostly unrecognized, are indicative of his extraordinary skill. I really think he could be a huge asset to the squad if we could help him reach his full potential.
De Bod has consistently been at his best in the time trial discipline. He has finished in second place four times in the elite time trial national championships, including as a 19-year-old rider in 2016. After practicing for three years, he finally made it to the WorldTour.
Stefan de Bod
My first year of work was 2019, and it was really difficult since I could only stay in Europe for three months on a tourist visa. In an effort to rack up extra racing hours, I entered a slew of events, including the Tour of Turkey and the Tour of Guangxi. Afterwards, 2020 was Covid, and I don’t think I need to elaborate,” De Bod said in a news statement for the team.
“Illness made for a rough start to the year. The previous few years have been challenging, but I’m proud of how far I’ve come because of my will to succeed. The future holds many possibilities for me if I can realize my full potential. I’m glad I stuck it through and developed some resilience and fortitude along the way.
The South African finished in the top 10 in the time trials of both the Sibiu Cycling Tour and the Tour of Slovakia in his last season with Astana Qazaqstan. Even he recognizes that he is not an expert on TT. He’s happy to get his head down and show his power on any course.
A time trial is one of my strengths, although I don’t consider myself an expert in the field. Despite his confidence in his abilities, he refused to label himself an expert.
“Sure, there’s aerodynamics, and maybe one man is more aero than the other, but in the end, it comes down to who’s the strongest and who can dig deeper to cross the finish line first. It’s nice to feel that way. But I doubt anybody loves the last kilometers in a time trial.
Eritrean Merhawi Kudus, a former colleague of his at Astana and Dimension Data, has joined EF Education this season to bolster the team’s climbing capabilities. The 2023 season’s program and objectives will be determined at a December training camp. He plans to visit his parents in South Africa until then, where he may take a break from his road cycling career.
“It’s simply great to be able to ride in such beautiful areas all around the globe and see such breathtaking scenery. There are some of the spots I like to go mountain riding in South Africa that you can’t get to in a vehicle. To me, cycling is incidental to everyday life. It’s a great asset to the world.
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