The 34-year-old Näf, who started his career 16 years ago, still has the ability to keep up with the top riders in the Cross-Country World Cup. "Ralph plays an important role in the team and is a highly respected athlete. Part of his role is to pass on his experience and knowledge to the younger riders on the team," explains Alexandre Moos, the sporting director of the BMC team.

The BMC Mountain Bike Racing Team also announces the extension of the contracts of Martin Fanger and Reto Indergand. Fanger, the 26-year-old Swiss Eliminator champion, demonstrated his skills at the World Cup in Nove Mesto and can continue to benefit from the wealth of experience of his team colleagues.

Reto Indergand, at 23 the youngest of the bunch, has a successful first elite season behind him. "Moving up to the next category is always difficult," explains Moos. "We are convinced that Reto has the potential to progress further if he continues to learn so much from his team-mates."

Team Manager David Chassot confirms; "It is almost impossible to top last season, with the overall World Cup victory, the title for the best team as well as the European and World Championship titles. But the riders and coaches are all the more motivated to work towards next season."

Source: Press release

Moritz Milatz (GER) and Stephen Ettinger (USA) are coming to the end of their contracts with the BMC Mountain Bike Racing Team. For Milatz in particular, who has been with the team since it was founded, the decision is not easy to understand. Milatz rode his strongest cross-country season, finishing third and fifth in the World Cup and fourth at the World Championships. The only plausible reason for no longer signing such a strong rider is probably the fact that Julien Absalon's market value has risen massively after this season - but so has Milatz's. Two such calibers would certainly have exceeded the team's budget. So this tough decision will probably have been carefully considered.