Ricarda Bauernfeind won a stage at the Tour de France in 2023 but has endured two difficult seasons. Photo courtesy of A.S.O./Jennifer Lindini.
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Two years ago, Ricarda Bauernfeind achieved what remains the biggest win of her career, a stunning solo victory in Albi on stage 5 of the Tour de France Femmes avec Zwift.
It was a victory that introduced the young German to the broader cycling community and marked an outstanding day of racing, which ended with a nearly 40km solo break that started on the slopes of the Côte de Laguépie and concluded with Bauernfeind holding off a strong challenge from SD Worx and Movistar, after both teams had launched a fierce chase.
When Bauernfeind crossed the line, her hand covered her mouth, almost in disbelief at what she had accomplished, and it seemed as though a star had been born.
Two and a half years later, much has changed for the now 25-year-old Bauernfeind, as we meet at the Lidl-Trek training camp in mid-December.
Older and wiser but still on the comeback trail following two knee surgeries, Bauernfeind has switched teams for the first time in her career after parting ways with Canyon SRAM – the team she turned professional with in 2022.
“Nervous probably isn’t the right word, but I was really excited to have a new start,” she says as she explains her departure from her previous squad.
“After four years with Canyon, it was time for a change for me. I had a really good time with that team, but at one point, you want to see something new. I wanted a new environment,” she adds.
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2025 was a year characterised by cautious progress and a prolonged recovery for the German rider. The previous season saw Bauernfeind perform decently, finishing sixth overall in the Vuelta a España – her third top-ten finish in Grand Tours – and ninth in Liège-Bastogne-Liège Femmes.
However, while preparing for the summer and the Olympic Games in Paris, she began experiencing pain in her left knee during a routine training ride. By the end of that session, she was riding on one leg, and what was initially planned as a single knee surgery in August that year ultimately led to a double knee operation, with her right knee needing the exact procedure that October.