Kate Courtney Makes Shock Mid-Season Move to the WorldTour

Kate Courtney has taken a major step on her journey from mountain to road cycling, signing a contract with FDJ United-Suez, one of the top teams in the women’s peloton, led by Demi Vollering.

Starting her career on the mountain bike, Courtney won the cross-country world championship at just 22 years old and enjoyed extended success on the UCI World Cup circuit. She transitioned to longer events last year, securing the marathon mountain bike world championship and setting a new course record at Leadville.

Those major results seemed to set the course for Courtney to make a pivot to a broader calendar in 2026, which included road ambitions with her own privateer setup under the moniker She Sends Racing. That campaign generated immediate success, with Courtney notching a few pro wins and a U.S. National Title in the few opportunities she has had.

Nevertheless, this mid-season move to a top-tier team is a significant change of course that underscores just how much promise the 30-year-old has on the road.

“Kate is a remarkable athlete with a particularly promising profile for short, hard efforts,” Stephen Delcourt, General Manager of FDJ United-Suez, said. “We will have the opportunity to support her as she discovers European cycling. FDJ United-Suez has always been committed to welcoming athletes who thrive in disciplines other than road cycling. It is this mix of backgrounds and cultures that allows our team to be driven forward, in our quest for peak performance and in our ambition to leave a mark on women’s sport.”

The contract begins with immediate effect and will extend through December 2028, the winter following the Los Angeles Olympic Games. Courtney will no doubt look to make the selection for the games on home soil. That ambition seems fitting, especially after she featured in the Paris 2024 closing ceremony video which included Tom Cruise and the Red Hot Chili Peppers among other important figures.

While this may have been Courtney’s long-term ambition, a mid-season transfer to the WorldTour this year is a much shorter timeline than even Courtney could have hoped for when she lined up for her first pro road race this May.

“It’s difficult to put into words what I’m currently experiencing because I didn’t expect to be able to reach the WorldTour level so quickly,” Kate Courtney said. “I’m extremely motivated to take on this huge challenge to truly discover what I’m capable of as an athlete and as a woman in this final chapter of my career.

“It’s easy to see, even from the outside, that FDJ United-Suez is building something truly exceptional. The way the team races—with aggression, boldness, and complete trust in one another—has always inspired me as a fan. And now, it inspires me even more as a rider. I feel I’ve finally found the team environment I’ve been looking for since the beginning of my career, and I couldn’t be more excited to start learning, progressing, and pursuing one of the most ambitious goals of my sporting life.”

The addition does come at a time when fans might get tempted to wish-cast FDJ United-Suez’s newest rider into the Tour de France Femmes, but the team is taking a much more conservative approach to Courtney’s development. Courtney will make her debut in the team jersey at La Périgord Ladies this month, before racing La Picto-Charentaise and the Lloyds Tour of Britain Women later this year. Given the course, we could also see Courtney line up at the World Championships in Montreal this September.