2014 will mark the 10th season of racing for Team TIBCO/To the Top, and the Team’s roster is rapidly taking shape for next season. The team will be returning a solid core of riders who helped make 2013 one of the Team’s best season ever, both in the United States and internationally.
“The 2013 squad achieved our top goals domestically, winning the NRC and Women’s Prestige Series overall team titles, and delivered at the highest level in international racing,” said Team TIBCO Founder and General Manager Linda Jackson. “It was important for us to return a strong group from this year so that we can make our 10th year an even bigger success.”
Headlining the returning group will be 2012 U.S. Olympian Shelley Olds, and 2013 Women’s Prestige Series overall winner Claudia Haüsler. Olds and Haüsler finished 2nd and 3rd in the USA Cycling NRC individual standings and delivered numerous wins and podiums for the Team this season, both nationally and internationally. Olds will also be a part of the U.S. team for the World Championships later this month.
Also returning will be Team TIBCO veterans Amanda Miller, who won a stage of the Cascade Classic and the Clarenden Cup this year, as well as Samantha Schneider, who continued to deliver results, including a pair of wins and the overall title at the Tour of America’s Dairyland.
Lauren Stephens returns as well after proving her abilities with a number of big wins, including the Crystal Cup, and stages of the Nature Valley Grand Prix and Cascade Classic.
2012 Canadian Olympian Jasmin Glaesser also returns for 2014. In her first full road season, Glaesser regularly donned the Best Young Rider’s jersey at races, including the Cascade Classic and the Drenthe World Cup, where she also won the Sprinter’s jersey, an honor she also earned at the Lotto Belisol Tour..
First-year pro Kristabel Doebel-Hickok will also return to the Team for her second pro season after showing her climbing abilities and willingness to ride tirelessly in support of her teammates day after day.
“We’re very happy to have this core group of returning riders,” said Team Directeur Sportif Manel Lacambra, who will continue to direct the team in 2014. “This group came together very well early on in the season and began to deliver great results from the start, and then just kept getting better at every race.
“Having a good group of riders return who have raced a lot together will give us a head start on making our 10th season even more successful,” he added.
Building for the future
Team TIBCO is also adding several new riders for the 2014 season with the intent of maintaining its level of excellence for years to come. With an eye on the future, Team TIBCO is happy to announce that Canadian Anika Todd and American Scotti Wilborne will join this strong core group of returning riders.
Twenty-three year-old Todd, from Victoria, B.C., turned heads in June when she placed 2nd in her first-ever elite Time Trial National Championship race. Todd followed that up with 7th place in the Road Race.
“Her time trial performance at nationals definitely got our attention,” said Team TIBCO Founder and General Manager Linda Jackson. “And then to follow that up with another strong performance in the road race was impressive, especially since this was her first elite national championships and she had only been racing a few months.”
Her performances at nationals were all the more impressive given that she was also finishing her studies and graduating with honors and distinction with a degree in molecular biology from the University of Victoria in June.
“The more we got to know Anika the more we realized that she was a perfect fit for Team TIBCO. We always look to hire riders who are not only strong on the bike but also display strong qualities off the bike. With her intelligence and drive, Anika is another excellent role model for young women. She has a lot of talent and determination, and we want to give her the environment and opportunity to help her grow.”
Wilborne joins Team TIBCO after posting solid results all season, though often riding in a supporting role. She started out the season with two stage wins and the overall title of the Iris Stagner Memorial Stage Race, and also won a stage of the Tour of America’s Dairyland. In between, she finished 15th overall at the SRAM Tour of the Gila, and placed 12th at both the Parx Philly Classic and the National Championships road race. Wilborne is also part of the USA National Team squad currently racing the Tour de l’Ardeche in France.
“Scotti really stood out at the Nationals Road Race,” Jackson said. “She is strong and very smart on the bike. She balances being the mother of two-year-old twins and running her own coaching business with the hours required to train for her goal of making the 2016 Olympic team. She is yet another incredible ambassador and role model for women’s cycling.
“As we approach our 10th season of racing, our primary objective continues to be to find and develop riders that show the talent to become top international competitors,” Jackson added. “I’m really excited to be adding Anika and Scotti to our roster. They’ll both have the benefit of a strong, experienced group of returning riders to race with continue developing.”
The Team is still reviewing riders for a few key positions, and will finish filling out its roster over the coming weeks.
Ron Callahan is the chief cook and bottlewasher at Bike World News, doing everything from website design to bike reviews.