Elias Maris turns pro at Sport Vlaanderen-Baloise
2023 will be a special year for Elias Maris as he will celebrate his first season as a pro rider. Recently, he signed a contract with Sport Vlaanderen-Baloise.
"For 2022 I am striving to have a consistent season with hopefully some very notable results in the races that suit me." It were the words of Elias Maris at the end of last season, when he made the move from Basso Team Flanders to Leopard Pro Cycling. Coming in hot with wins at the Giro del Veneto, the Vuelta a Madrid, the Tour de Moselle and the Arden Challenge, an exciting season was ahead of him.
At Leopard Pro Cycling, the Belgian had the consistent season he was hoping for. Seventeenth in the GC of the Tour of Antalya in February, eleventh in the highly-rated Tour Alsace in July, where he amazingly finished fifth in the stage up to La Planche des Belles Filles. And in between? Solid performances at races such as the Flèche Ardennaise (14th), Paris-Troyes (12th) and the GP Pérenchies (7th) and an exemplary teammate throughout all the races. We are convinced that the 22-year-old will continue to fullful his potential at Sport Vlaanderen-Baloise next year.
Leopard Pro Cycling is proud to add yet another name to the ever growing list of riders that the team brought up to the pro ranks. Maris will be the next pro rider and follows the example of amongst others Alexander Krieger (Alpecin-Fenix), Mattias Skjelmose Jensen (Trek-Segafredo), Mauro Schmid (Quick Step-Alpha Vinyl), Miguel Heidemann (B&B Hotels-KTM), Filip Maciejuk (Bahrain Victorious) and Jan Maas (Team BikeExchange-Jayco).
Photographer
Fellusch
Elias Maris
"First of all, I want to thank everybody from Leopard Pro Cycling to help me achieve my dream to become a pro cyclist. Leopard offered me the opportunity to learn and show myself in a lot of races this year. Although I didn't reach my top shape in the first part of the season, myself and the team kept confidence and I am happy that I could show my capabilities later in the year. I am deligthed that I was able to convince my new team Sport-Vlaanderen Baloise. Of course I am very much looking forward to next year, but my aim is to finish this season on a high first."
Markus Zingen, Team Manager
"When Elias joined our team, he had already quite a good track record with those wins in the 2021 season. During his time at Leopard Pro Cycling, you could clearly see his potential once again, especially on difficult and hilly terrain. When you combine this with the good results he had in our team, it is no surprise that Sport Vlaanderen-Baloise adds him to their roster for 2023. We are very happy for him and we are also proud that we were able to support him in his development. We will keep an eye out of his perfomances next year, as we are sure that he will have much to offer in the pro ranks."
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