In 2007 25-year-old Annemiek van Vleuten lined up for her first professional race. On Sunday, Van Vleuten bid au revoir to the peloton at the same event, after a 16-year career that saw her win four World Championships jerseys, an Olympic gold and silver, the women’s Vuelta a España, Tour de France, and Giro d’Italia in the same year and more. Her departure from the sport is a monumental one, the end of an era. During her glittering career, she rode for teams like Orica-AIS, Rabobank, Bigla, and Movistar and was teammates with some of the other legends of the sport.
Before and after her final race, where she was greeted at the finish by her mom and countless supporters, past and present teammates reflected on being teammates with one of the best in the world, a woman who changed the game and whose dedication was unmatched. Here are some of those tributes.
For more ‘Vleuty’ memories, reflect on her history with the Giro Donne here, and check out this photo gallery Matt de Neef put together.
Jess Allen – teammate on Orica-AIS/Mitchelton-Scott from 2016 to 2020
“I was lucky enough to have been teammates with Annemiek for my first five years with GreenEdge. Watching Annemiek set huge goals and overcome adversity to achieve them was inspiring and a true testament to her ‘never give up’ attitude.
She was able to lift every rider in the team to a new level which then created further success for others too. She will be missed in the peloton but her impact on the sport and the people she was lucky enough to be teammates with will remain forever.”
Ellen van Dijk – teammate on Vrienden van het Platteland in 2008 and Dutch national team many times
Jelena Erić – teammate on Movistar from when Van Vleuten joined in 2021
“Well first of all it’s a pleasure to be here in Annemiek’s last race. In the past three years, she took our team to the next level by showing us that being professional and dedicated can really pay off. Her way of racing is that the mindset is everything, so I am definitely going to take that lesson with me for the next season and I’m grateful for everything she did for us.”
Lourdes Oyarbide – a longtime member of the Movistar team
“Sharing the team with Annemiek the last years has been something really special. As a Spanish cyclist, racing with one of the best cyclists in the world as a teammate was a big step forward, a good chance to continue improving, to continue learning. Especially this year in the Vuelta a España, she wins but the way she wins, it’s clear she has every stage how she wants to race, what she wants to do, and how she needs the team around her was really special.
The way she has really clear ideas and goals and how to achieve them. It was an honour to be next to her the last years and especially here in Simac [Ladies Tour] the last stage race of her career.”
Demi Vollering – chief rival of Van Vleuten since the retirement of Anna van der Breggen in 2021 and teammate with the Dutch national team for the Toyko Olympics (plus a few Worlds)
Georgia Williams – teammate on Orica-AIS from February 2017 to the end of 2020. Williams was part of Van Vleuten’s Giro Donne team multiple times
“Dear Vleuty, a huge congratulations on your career, it was truly inspiring! I feel so lucky to have been a small part of it. The years we rode together were some of the best, even if it meant a lot of time riding on the front of the pelo 😉 I’ll remember the fun times we had together in New Zealand and your adventurous go-getter attitude. Thank you for everything you taught me on and off the bike. It’s not goodbye, it’s see you later mate! xx”
Iris Slappendel – teammate on Rabobank from 2012 to 2014, transferred together to Bigla Pro Cycling in 2015. They also raced together with the national team many times.
Amanda Spratt – Orica-AIS/Mitchelton-Scott teammate from 2016-2020. Spratt rode in support of Van Vleuten at many Giros
“I was teammates with Annemiek for five years at GreenEDGE cycling. I have no doubt that being teammates with Vleuty was a big reason for me being able to raise my own level and become a much better rider and I know I learnt a lot from her over those years. What I will always remember is the moment the team suggested she could actually become a climber and GC rider and the belief and work that followed after that. The two Giros that we won with Annemiek were big career highlights for me because I know the work that went into it from everyone involved- riders and staff. Everyone turned up to the race in the best form of their life and we all knew what we had to do.
I’ve honestly never seen a rider who is able to hurt themselves as much as Vleuty on the bike. It’s a killer combination when you have a rider with Annemiek’s strength plus mental ability too and I think that’s really what helped her reach the top. It will be hard to fill the gap Annemiek will leave but I think she has left a lasting legacy in the sport and really helped to push the sport as a whole to a higher level.”
Gracie Elvin – another Orica-AIS/Mitchelton-Scott teammate from 2016-2020
Loren Rowney – a teammate of Van Vleuten in 2016 on Orica-AIS
“The first time I really had any interaction with Vleuty was during our first training camp with Orica AIS in 2016. My first impression of Vleuty was that she was inquisitive, interesting, and had this almost childlike curiosity about things. I immediately liked her for her seemingly relaxed but professional attitude to being a pro athlete. She was just really normal and so adventurous which was a breath of fresh air for a lot of us Aussies on the team. She was a great teammate the one year I raced her, and her presence lifted a lot of riders on the team.
I hope Annemiek’s next chapter is full of adventures and testing the limits in different parts of her life.”
Sarah Gigante – joined Movistar one year after Annemiek, they have been teammates for two seasons
Sarah Roy – teammate from 2016-2020 on Mitchelton-Scott, including when Van Vleuten won her first Giro Rosa in 2018
“When Annemiek really started to win big and win big consistently it was pretty clear her approach to training and her season schedule was very different to just about everyone else. I think this is one aspect of the Vleuty influence on women’s cycling as many riders have evolved in their approaches since.
Annemiek hasn’t been afraid to speak her mind, occasionally controversially but this kind of assertive voice is exactly what women’s cycling has needed and continues to need. Of course, there are other great voices in our sport and we need them all.
As a teammate, she gave us the exhilarating experience of winning ‘grand tours’ with multiple Giro wins. They’ve been a massive highlight of my career and I’ll always remember those years.”
Emma Norsgaard – teammate on Movistar from 2021 to present; they joined the Spanish team the same year
“I think it’s pretty clear that a lot of years will go before we see anyone like Annemiek. She’s like no one else I have ever met. Mentally, physically, all in one, she really wins a bike race because mentally she’s crazy I tell you, she’s mental, but in a really good way.
From an athlete’s perspective, she’s probably the most impressive one I’ve ever met and I’m sure we are not going to meet a cyclist like Annemiek for many years now. Funny stories about her? I have quite a few but they are not good for the public, it’s better we keep them secret.”
Finally, Jayco-AlUla, the team where Van Vleuten really started to reach her potential in 2016 and beyond, put together a great little going away video with input from female and male riders, staff, and management:
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