Nicolas Roche hung up his road wheels at the end of the 2021 campaign but the four-time Olympian has been keeping very busy, including with his gravel team and clocking up almost 26,000km last year.
And now Roche is expanding the NR GRVL team, with the addition of two riders, both from a pro road background, for the year ahead.
They will be joined Roche and his brother Alexis, who represented Ireland on the road at U23 level, for a programme of international graveling racing through the season.
Minke Bakker, a 26-year-old from the Netherlands, is the first rider coming on board for next season. She has raced at UCI Continental level for the last four years, most recently with the Belgian Duolar-Chevalmeire squad.
During her time in the women’s pro peloton she has gained a lot of experience across Europe, and further afield, including riding many of the big classics; Paris Roubaix among them.
“Minke will join us for a good few races on gravel,” said Roche. “She is a sprinter and cant wait to see how she manages the tricky gravel trails.”
The second rider joining the Roches in 2024 is 28-year-old Frenchman Julian Lino. He has competed on the road with Conti teams for the last few seasons, including Nice Métropole Côte d’Azur last year.
Lino has been getting acquainted with the gravel scene of late, riding the Gravel World Championships last year and also placing 8th in UCI Gravel World Series-La Monsterrato in Italy last September.
We’ll have more news on Roche’s plans for 2024 shortly.
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