Toronto’s Noah Ramsay to ride for Alpecin-Deceuninck in 2025

It’s official! Canada’s Noah Ramsay will ride for the Alpecin-Deceuninck Development Team after impressing at the Zwift Academy program. On the women’s side, Australia’s Emily Dixon was selected to ride for CANYON//SRAM Zondacrypto Generation.

Now in its ninth year, the Zwift Academy has been a pathway to the pro ranks for riders such as Giro d’Italia Women’s stage winner Neve Bradbury and two-time Vuelta a España stage winner Jay Vine. This year’s competition saw more than 100,000 participants, with eight finalists earning invitations to training camps in Portugal and Spain.

8 riders went for 2 contracts

At the camps, the finalists—four men and four women—faced a series of physical and tactical challenges, both on the road and on the Zwift platform. The tests included races, performance evaluations, and a repeat effort of an early challenge—this time with accumulated fatigue.

Ramsay, 22, said the Zwift Academy process was great. “It was handled so smoothly and allowed me to perform at my best alongside the Alpecin-Deceuninck riders and the other finalists,” he said. “I don’t think it’s really sunk in yet, as I didn’t think I stood out as the best among the other riders. There will be a different type of stress this year as I step into the Alpecin-Deceuninck Development Team, but I’m excited for the challenge it will bring.”

The Canadian actually won the competition in mid-December, but had to “keep his mouth shut” until the final GCN episode aired.

Although the rest of the cycling world may only now be learning about Ramsay, those in Canada have long been aware of the Toronto, Ont., rider’s power and skills. In 2024, he didn’t race much on the road, but when he did, it was impressive.

In August 2024, at the Tour de Via Italia in Windsor, Ont., Ramsay, riding for Bateman’s Bicycle Company, dominated the race. He broke away on the first lap and stayed off the front for 74 km to take the win, averaging a blistering 47.4 km/h.

400 W for 90 minutes: Noah Ramsay rides solo for entire crit

Kristof de Kegel, performance manager at Alpecin-Deceuninck, said Ramsay excelled throughout the Zwift Academy finals and was exactly the type of rider they were looking for. “He clearly demonstrated how he will be able to fit in with the Alpecin-Deceuninck Development Team during the sprint challenge, where he held his own and outperformed the rest of the finalists.”

A great training camp

Ramsay said it was great to spend time with the WorldTour riders, on and off the bike. “We ate all the meals with them. So our daily plan meshed with theirs. Whenever we had breakfast, lunch, dinner, all those snacks in between, they were eating at the same time as us,” he said. “It was basically like we’re a part of their training camp with them. We just did our own challenges from time to time.” He said he learned lots during the camp, including how to do leadouts and motorpacing.

If you missed the four-part series following the finalists competing for a contract, you can check it out on GCN’s YouTube channel. And by the way, Ramsay is the next guest on the Canadian Cycling Magazine Podcast, so be sure to tune in!