GIANT LEAP
SMALL STEPS
FOUR YEARS AFTER IT LAUNCHED AS A PLATFORM TO DEVELOP HOME TALENT AND FOSTER GENDER EQUALITY IN CYCLING IN SPAIN, MOVISTAR WOMEN’S TEAM H A S HIT A TURNING POINT IN 2021 FOLLOWING THE SIGNING OF POWERHOUSE ANNEMIEK VAN VLEUTEN. PROCYCLING FINDS OUT MORE
WRITER: REBECCA REZA IMAGES: PHOTO GOMEZ SPORT
Movistar ventured into the unknown in 2018, after nearly four decades of being one of the most successful teams in men’s professional cycling. The team announced, at their sponsor headquarters of Telefonica, the launch of a women’s programme. The Spanish outfit would take their experience from men’s cycling to foster women’s cycling in Spain and generate equal opportunity in the sport. Working alongside the Spanish cycling federation, they would be joining a growing number of programmes with both men’s and women’s teams, including Sunweb, Astana, and Mitchelton-Scott.
It started small with a list of 10, mostly young, under-23 riders.
The team enjoyed a slew of top-10 finishes throughout their debut season, including at the Ladies Tour of Norway, Giro Rosa, and the Madrid Challenge. Movistar began with a few international riders, national champions from France and Poland -Aude Biannic and Małgorzata Jasinska -but focus remained on the talent at home.
They signed an additional two riders for 2019 but struggled, totalling three wins in Spain for the season.
“We were not into women’s cycling; we didn’t know that much,” team manager Sebastián Unzué tells Procycling of those first two years. “We never had any ambitious sporting goals because we wanted to work with young talent to help them develop.”
By contrast, the men’s team has a long, well-known history of success, beginning in 1980 as Reynolds and with the success of a young Pedro Delgado. Delgado would win the 1988 Tour de France for the team, and the Vuelta a España in 1989. The 1990s not only brought a new decade but also ushered in a new title sponsor, the Spanish bank, Banesto, until 2003.