Peter Stetina announces he’s leaving the WorldTour to focus on gravel racing
The US star has taken the major decision to leave the top tier of the sport


Peter Stetina has announced he is leaving the WorldTour to focus on gravel racing.
The 32-year-old revealed he will leave Trek-Segafredo at the end of 2019 to instead race in the emerging off-road scene, where he hopes he will be more fulfilled and more successful.
Stetina is one of the many US riders discovered by team boss Jonathan Vaughters who went on to ride at the highest level, alongside the likes of Taylor Phinney and Alex Howes.
The 32-year-old said: “Ultimately, this is a move of freshness, joy, progression and longevity.
“This is not a retirement as some traditionalists would think, rather I am throwing my entire self into the burgeoning world of gravel racing and being a bike racer across all tyre widths.”
Stetina started his career with Vaughters’ Continental outfit TIAA-CRED in 2006, winning multiple junior and under-23 national titles and making the step up to WorldTour with the Garmin-Transitions squad in 2010.
Since then Stetina’s career took him to eight Grand Tours and 12 Monuments, riding for BMC Racing before joining Trek in 2016, but the Boulder, Colorado-born rider never took a pro win.
News of his career change was broken by American cycling site VeloNews (opens in new tab).
Stetina added: “While the initial steps to leave the WorldTour behind were scary, I am certain this is the right choice, it will be more fulfilling and I hope more successful.
“I love the vibe of these races: the solo battles within and with others, but the communal celebration afterwards, knowing we all conquered an odyssey individually and together.”
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Stetina’s off-road results have included victory in the 200km Belgian Waffle Ride, second in Dirty Kanza and fourth in the Leadville Traill 100, joining EF Education First riders Lachlan Morton and Alex Howes who have been racing their own ‘alternative calendar.’
Last month, Stetina’s compatriot and former team-mate Taylor Phinney announced his retirement from professional racing at the age of 29.
Stetina added that he will be announcing his 2020 sponsors in the coming months.
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Alex Ballinger is editor of BikeBiz magazine, the leading publication for the UK cycle industry, and is the former digital news editor for CyclingWeekly.com. After gaining experience in local newsrooms, national newspapers and in digital journalism, Alex found his calling in cycling, first as a reporter, then as news editor responsible for Cycling Weekly's online news output, and now as the editor of BikeBiz. Since pro cycling first captured his heart during the 2010 Tour de France (specifically the Contador-Schleck battle) Alex covered three Tours de France, multiple editions of the Tour of Britain, and the World Championships, while both writing and video presenting for Cycling Weekly. He also specialises in fitness writing, often throwing himself into the deep end to help readers improve their own power numbers. Away from the desk, Alex can be found racing time trials, riding BMX and mountain bikes, or exploring off-road on his gravel bike. He’s also an avid gamer, and can usually be found buried in an eclectic selection of books.
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