Team Ceratizit - Interview with Dirk Baldinger: "We are consistently continuing on our path"
Jens Claussen
· 22.11.2024
Interview with the sports director of Team Ceratizit, Dirk Baldinger
TOUR: Mr Baldinger, how would you sum up your first season as a World Tour team so far?
Dirk Baldinger: Apart from the status, not much has actually changed for us. We are racing in the same races as last year, as we were automatically seeded for all the big races last season as the best Continental team. The Stage victory for Cédrine Kerbaol was of course the absolute highlight. We were also able to improve on our record of 15 wins per season from 2019. As a World Team, we now have 95 to 110 race days per year, and the trend is rising. We continue to take on this challenge.
TOUR: Ceratizit-WNT was placed in the first division of the World Teams by the UCI for the 2024 season. Was that a planned process?
Dirk Baldinger: Yes and no. In 2018 and 2019, we noticed that something was going to change in women's cycling in the long term, partly due to the rumours that the UCI was planning to split all teams into World and Continental teams. Looking to the very top, we had to and were able to go along with the changes, not least thanks to a further increase in sponsorship money from Ceratizit. You have to imagine that: Just because of the World Team status, you suddenly have a cost increase of 400,000 to 500,000 euros for fees to the UCI, the anti-doping fight, the payment of minimum salaries and the mandatory expansion of personnel (editor's note: the UCI requires World Teams to have a performance director with proven coaching qualifications).
Young talents bring success
TOUR: After Lisa Brennauer's career ends in 2022 there was a big gap. What idea did you have to close it?
Dirk Baldinger: We knew early on that Lisa wanted to quit and were therefore able to look around the market at an early stage. When it came to planning, we stayed true to our policy of bringing young talent on board that we can develop. However, you also have to be able to give yourself a period of two to three years to achieve success. See the example of Cédrine Kerbaol.
TOUR: Kerbaol's victory at this year's Tour de France Femmes was surely the highlight in the team's history so far?
Dirk Baldinger: We had already seen on the previous days that Cédrine has extremely good legs. But when you sit in the car and hear that your rider has won a Tour stage - it's just a huge feeling of happiness and hard to describe.
Team Ceratizit: More media presence through female track cyclists
TOUR: With Franziska Brauße, Lana Eberle and Lea Lin Teutenberg, you have some German track riders in the team. Is there a special collaboration with the German Cycling Federation?
Dirk Baldinger: No, nothing special. But always having female track riders in the squad is part of our philosophy. This also gives us media presence and attention in the winter months. And, of course, having a team member win a medal at the World Championships or the Olympics also makes the sponsor happy.
Dirk Baldinger is optimistic about the future
TOUR: Can you say something about the team budget, how has it changed in recent years?
Dirk Baldinger: Last year, the average budget of all World Tour teams was 3.8 million euros according to UCI figures. We are currently at around three million euros, with large teams such as SD Worx - Protime or Lidl-Trek rumoured to have budgets of five to seven million euros.
TOUR: Contracts of some riders expire at the end of the season. Key riders such as Marta Lach, Kathrin Schweinberger and Martina Fidanza are leaving the team. With Sara Fiorin and Sarah Van Dam, very young, relatively unknown talents have been signed. Is the team on the brink of upheaval and what challenges await you in the coming season?
Dirk Baldinger: Of course, we had to make some sacrifices with the departure of some key players who were able to sign with bigger teams. But that's part of it and we can live with it. We will be keeping six riders from the current squad, plus seven new signings as things stand at the moment. We are consistently continuing on our path of improving young athletes with potential.
