There will be significant changes at Red Bull-BORA-hansgrohe. The German team has not only added an extra leader with Remco Evenepoel, but it has also made several important changes to its technical staff with the arrival of a Chief of Sports, Head of Racing, and multiple team directors.
Zak Dempster has been appointed Chief of Sports by the team. The Australian will lead the entire sporting department of the team starting next year. The 38-year-old Dempster is no stranger to team manager Ralph Denk, having a background as a rider for predecessor teams Team NetApp-Endura and Bora-Argon 18. In recent years, Dempster worked as a team director at INEOS Grenadiers.
"He knows our team like no one else," Denk said in a press release. "He is still young at 38, but already brings a wealth of experience. I am confident that his fresh ideas, clear leadership style, and fearlessness will help us write the next chapter of our sporting evolution."
"For me, this feels like coming home," Dempster described the move. "I have shared so many important moments of my career with this team and I am excited to now contribute in a new role. I know Ralph as an ambitious team manager, and Red Bull-BORA-hansgrohe is the most exciting project in cycling. Now, it’s about realizing this enormous potential together."
Even more new names
Dempster is not the only new name at Red Bull-BORA-hansgrohe, as Oliver Cookson is also making the move from INEOS Grenadiers to take on the Head of Racing role. One of Cookson's tasks will be to manage the team directors. Here we also see several new faces, including Sven Vanthourenhout, Klaas Lodewyck, and Tony Gallopin. It was already known that the two Belgians would be joining the German team.
The arrivals of Vanthourenhout and Lodewyck are closely linked with the signing of Remco Evenepoel. The Belgian will transfer at the end of the year from Soudal Quick-Step to Red Bull-BORA-hansgrohe. The double Olympic champion is set to become the new flagship rider of the ambitious German squad.
