After six seasons with Team DSM Liane Lippert is leaving the organisation she started out with as an 18-year-old and making the shift to Movistar.
The German champion will join the Spanish WorldTour team with hopes it will help her pursue a further performance step-up while Movistar is working toward filling the void that will be left by Giro d'Italia Donne and Tour de France Femmes winner Annemiek van Vleuten when she retires at the end of 2023.
“We're so happy to be able to announce Liane's signing with the team. We want to keep building a strong future for the team, and she's one of the riders poised to become a leader of the team once Annemiek ends her successful career," team manager Sebastián Unzué said in a statement.
"She's a solid rider for all kinds of scenarios, one who can be at the front of the bunch near the end of the most important races. She's also someone who will play a crucial role for Annemiek, yet I'm also sure that having someone like Van Vleuten by her side will help her grow much and complete her progression as one of the best in the field."
Lippert, who has signed with Movistar from 2013 through to the end of the 2026 season, took a Women's WorldTour in 2020 at the Cadel Evans Great Ocean Road Race and this season has repeatedly stepped up to the podium.
The 24-year-old all-rounder came third at the Amstel Gold Race and Brabantse Pijl in April, second on stage 3 of the Itzulia Women and third on stage 3 of the Vuelta a Burgos Feminas in May.
She then was back on the podium in June with a third on stage 3 of the Tour de Suisse and a victory in the road race at the German National Championships. Last month she also added a second place in stage 5 of the Tour of Scandinavia along with second overall.
Van Vleuten, the world's number one ranked rider, has dominated the win count of the team in 2022 particularly when it comes to top level Women's WorldTour victories, but she is not alone with a number of riders from the team making a mark on the results sheet this season. They include Emma Norsgaard, Arlenis Sierra, Jelena Eric and Sarah Gigante.
“I’m really excited to join the team for the next three years. I think the environment in the team is really great, and also the way of working and improving riders should help me much," said Lippert. "I’m really happy that the team wants to help me grow stronger in the future, bring me to the next step physically.
"I’m already on a really high level, but I want to learn, especially from the more experienced riders in the team, to hopefully win races together. From the outside, the Movistar Team looks like a big family, which is a big reason why I’m looking so much forward to this."
