John Wakefield has been appointed to the newly created position of Director of Development at Red Bull - BORA - hansgrohe. In this role, he is responsible for the team's Rookie Program, which includes the two talent squads as well as the scouting unit. John Wakefield will report directly to Rolf Aldag, Chief of Sports at Red Bull - BORA - hansgrohe.
John has been with the team for two years. As one of the coaches, the 47-year-old South African looks after selected WorldTeam riders. He will continue in this role alongside his new job.
Rookie Program: Talent Squads
A new U23 team is currently being set up to fill the gap between the U19 GRENKE - Auto Eder team and the WorldTeam from next season. This development team will be registered as a UCI Continental Team and will initially consist of 12 riders.
This leads to an organizational change in the junior team: The team and Dr. Christian Schrot will end their long-standing cooperation at the end of the season. As Sports Director and Coach, Christian has been instrumental in developing GRENKE - Auto Eder into one of the world's leading junior teams. Three world championship titles and countless successes in the most important junior races crown the outstanding record of the past years.
Ralph Denk
“I would like to thank Christian for his enormous commitment to our junior team. With passion and dedication, he has brought our talented squad to such a high level and made a significant contribution to the careers of many young riders. I wish him all the best in his new projects, which he will dedicate himself to starting next year.”
Rookie Program: Scouting
In addition to the junior and devo team, scouting serves as the second pillar of talent development. Red Bull - BORA - hansgrohe has already embarked on an innovative path with the Red Bull Junior Brothers and will continue to expand its scouting activities. Tim Meeusen will continue to contribute his many years of experience and complement John Wakefield's team as Head of Scouting.