Corso Sports Marketing, the agency that represents Giro d’Italia winner Tao Geoghegan Hart, Joao Almeida, and former world champion Mads Pedersen has created a women’s division and announced the signing of five initial athletes.
Coryn Rivera, Hannah and Alice Barnes, Emma Norsgaard, and Franziska Koch have all been recruited, with Corso set to represent their interests when it comes to marketing and contractual negotiations. The new division will be headed up by Katie Bolling, who has previously worked at inGamba Tours and World Bicycle Relief.
In a joint statement the directors of Corso, João Correia and Ken Sommer said: “This is an exciting time in the evolution of the agency. For so many years, a lot of the women athletes have gone at it on their own.
“The efforts they have tirelessly put in are now reaping the rewards as the sport continues to grow and we’re excited to be in a position to support that drive and offer the same representation that has helped make our men's athletes household names.
“At Corso, we’re a tightly-knit crew and we know how much work it takes to make in the sport so we’re privileged to help out and take care of the business side of things so the athletes can focus on their craft. We've been inspired by everyone's efforts to grow women's cycling and rightly give it the attention it deserves.”
The rider agency has worked with Geoghegan Hart since before he turned professional with Team Sky, currently represents a swathe of young riders in the men's peloton, and has previously represented Laurens ten Dam and Ted King.
Rivera joins as one of the most high-profile riders in North America and a winner of the women’s Tour of Flanders. Currently on the books at Team DSM, she has yet to race this year but is expected to have a full programme. Barnes sisters both race at Canyon-SRAM and have both won national titles, while Norsgaard has been one of the revelations of the season.
The 21-year-old finished second in both Omloop Het Nieuwblad and Le Samyn at the start of the season and then followed that up string of impressive riders and third overall at the Healthy Ageing Tour earlier this month. Koch turned professional with DSM last year and won a stage of the Boels Ladies Tour in 2019.
