Young Dutch talent Nienke Vinke is setting her sights on the Ardennes Classics in her first year with new team SD Worx-Protime, but with an eye on her ultimate goal of a Grand Tour podium as she starts 2026 as one of the peloton's future GC prospects.
Vinke, who is 21, finished ninth at the Vuelta Femenina and claimed the white jersey at the Tour de France Femmes in 2025, results that surely contributed to her mid-contract move from Picnic PostNL to SD Worx until at least 2028.
Speaking to Cyclingews and other media from her new team's launch day on Thursday, Vinke was excited about her arrival at one of the peloton's super teams, though she remained quiet about why she had left her former team.
"I cannot really say a lot about it, but I had a clause in my contract that meant I could leave after this year [2025]," she said. "It's a good step and I'm looking forward for the next years with SD Worx."
SD Worx had reportedly been courting the Dutch rider for some time, and things aligned to make the move happen this winter, which seems a benefit to both parties.
"We had our first team camp already, so that was really good to get to know everyone and also the staff. It's a lot of new people so a lot of new impressions, but so far I really like it and I think I will fit in the team. I'm really excited for what's coming," Vinke said of her first weeks with SD Worx-Protime.
"That's also one of the reasons I chose this team, because I really want to learn from good and experienced riders, and I feel like then you learn in the quickest way. And in a team camp already you can talk with them and they give you tips, so I think that already helps.
"In racing, it will be even better because then you can also talk about tactics and you can race together so I think that will be a really good opportunity for me to help them and learn from them."
For this year, Vinke's racing focus will largely be on the Ardennes Classics, with a season debut likely set for Omloop van het Hageland on March 1. She was named on the provisional start list for the Tour Down Under, but will not race there.
"I don't know exactly which races yet, but for me the most important part are the Ardennes Classics, so I think before I will do some Belgian races, but for me that's not so important. I want to do well in the Ardennes Classics, because that suits me better," she said.
Long-term, though, her biggest goal will be stage races: "I want to develop myself as a GC rider, so my dream would be to be on the podium in a Grand Tour."
With her notable results at the Vuelta and Tour this year, a lot of attention is already on Vinke as a future GC talent, even if she underplayed how important it was to win the white jersey last August in France. Despite her protestations that the white jersey was just a byproduct of "getting the best out of myself", a classification victory at the sport's biggest race does put a rider on the radar.
"I don't really see it as a pressure, because the white jersey is not the most important thing in the race – in the end, you race to win," she said about the expectations on her shoulders going into 2026.
"I think especially in this team with really strong riders like Anna [van der Breggen] and Lotte [Kopecky] and all the other girls, it also takes a bit of pressure away, because there are so many girls that can finish it off. There's still pressure because you want to perform, but it's a different kind of pressure, I would say."
Vinke will still be in contention for youth competitions this year, but will focus on overall results.
"I'm not really thinking about that anymore, and also last year it was not really a goal," she said. "For this year, we want to win races, so the white jersey is not the goal."
Despite being the latest addition to a whole list of riders who had exited the Picnic PostNL set-up early, Vinke was positive about the three years she spent there, which acted a bridge between junior ranks and where she stands now as a possible GC contender.
"I went as a junior directly to DSM, so I think at this team I mostly learned about how to live as a pro cyclist because this was all new for me to live for the sport and that cycling is your number one. So that was a big change for me and at the beginning that cost a lot of energy," she said.
"So now I think in the last few years I got way more professional and I got used to longer distances, because in the junior races you do two hour races and now it's four hours. It was a big step but I feel like I got a lot of experience in these last three years and now I have a better feeling and idea about how I need to live as a pro."
However, that purpose has apparently been served, and she was clear that the reputation and strength of SD Worx is what she thinks is best for the next step of her career, as she hopes to move from potential talent to a real winner.
"I really like this team because they already have experience with the developing other young riders, a lot of riders improved a lot when they were in this team. And also because they have so many strong riders, I feel like that's really important because then you can learn from them. For me that's the most important thing and why I chose this team."
