Jayco AlUla and Liv AlUla Jayco narrowly escaped collapse last week, but now that all issues have been resolved, these teams can look to the future again. Some changes are on the horizon: Gene Bates will be the new sporting director of Jayco AlUla from next season, while Wim Stroetinga will take on this role for the women’s team.
Bates brings considerable experience as a coach and team manager. The Australian joined GreenEDGE Cycling (the umbrella organization that includes Jayco AlUla and Liv AlUla Jayco) in 2014 as sporting director of the women's team. After five seasons, he moved to the men's squad. After a few years, he had a brief stint with Cycling Australia, but this year he returned as team manager and directeur sportif at Liv AlUla Jayco.
"Gene has been an indispensable part of GreenEDGE Cycling since he joined us more than ten years ago," outlines team manager Brent Copeland. "I have great confidence in him and am proud that he will take on the role of sporting director at Jayco AlUla next season. I believe his experience will be a huge asset to the team, and I look forward to seeing the impact he can make in 2026."
photo: Fotopersburo Cor Vos
With Bates moving up, GreenEDGE Cycling had to find a new sporting director for the women's team, but the squad will handle this internally. None other than Wim Stroetinga will take on the role. The Dutch former pro cyclist has been working as a directeur sportif for the Australian team since 2024.
Stroetinga: "We want to take an extra step"
"I'm very excited to take on this role. It makes me positively nervous," Stroetinga says. "Gene (Bates, ed.) did a fantastic job this year, and we’re continuing down the path he paved for us. We want to maintain the progress we’ve made and take an extra step to close the gap. It’s really going to be a challenge, but we can do it with the group of riders we have now."
