SD-Worx Protime tried to retain both Demi Vollering and Lotte Kopecky for 2025 onwards and stated today that both were offered contract extensions at the same time with no priority given. But ultimately Vollering is not set to stay with the women's super team.
Team manager Erwin Janssen gave details of the contract negotiations at the team’s pre-Tour of Flanders Flanders press event, revealing that Vollering had been given an ultimatum to an offer. However, after a lengthy negotiation period, her management did not accept, leading them to believe she would leave the team.
“We gave them both an offer at the same time and it was the priority to keep them both,” Janssen told Cyclingnews and GCN.
“So it’s not that we wanted Lotte or Demi, we wanted to keep them both.”
“The goal all the time was to keep Lotte and Demi together because we saw last year how good they are together and how strong. We were negotiating for eight or nine months with the management of Demi.”
“Now we are in the season and we need to look forward to which riders are staying with us or will leave. So then we made an ultimate, last offer and it was in our opinion a really good offer,” Janssen said.
“But we know now how the market is, it’s sometimes crazy. But the offer we did was really good and we said ‘Okay this is an ultimatum’ because we have to go on. But the management of Demi did not give go to that, so that means for us, 'okay, they don’t want to go on in the team.'”
Danny Stam first confirmed the news of Vollering’s departure to GCN on Wednesday after weeks of speculation about her future. Kopecky happily signed her extension that will see her stay at the team until 2028 but it appears that Vollering's demands were higher than what SD-Worx Protime was willing to offer.
“We have a budget, which is what Danny [Stam] said. We have a good budget and we made also a really interesting offer in our opinion but that was for us the max,” Janssen said.
“If there are other teams who can pay more, then…”
Vollering was reportedly offered a contract past the €1 million mark by UAE ADQ, but Janssen had no information on whether Vollering had signed any new agreement. However, he is convinced that Vollering wanted to remain with SD Worx Protime.
“I really think Demi also wanted to stay with us. We also wanted to keep her and that was the goal from the beginning, so I don’t think there is another team at the moment, but for us, it is important that we have to go on,” Janssen said.
“I think it’s best to ask her, or her management at least. I think she really loves to race with us, but that’s just my feeling.”
The team manager insisted that the breakdown in contract negotiations wouldn’t have any effect on the way the team races in support of Vollering throughout 2024. She remains one of the best riders in the world and the big favourite to retain her Tour de France Femmes crown.
“She’s the best rider in the world,” Janssen said, later confirming that she still was Plan A for the Tour in August.
“Of course, we love to ride with Demi so we will do everything to win the Tour de France and stay in the number one position.
“They [the team] all want to win and they all want to stay number one in the world and we need to keep this, we need to focus on the races. I’m fully convinced that we’re going to do that.”
With Vollering’s departure now certain, Janssen confirmed that the team were not yet looking for a replacement for 2025 with the season still only three months in.
“So far we don’t look, we want to know exactly the situation, but of course, we’re thinking about a plan B,” he said before admitting there were other GC options in the team.
He didn’t explicitly say Kopecky's name but she showed she is a real threat in stage races after her tenacious performance to win the UAE Tour in February, adding to her brilliant second-place finish from last year’s Tour de France Femmes.
