The announcement of Ashleigh Moolman-Pasio's retirement was made earlier this month during the presentation of Dutch Team SD Worx for the 2022 season. Although she remains extremely competitive within the international peloton, the South African has set herself new challenges for the rest of her career, still in the cycling world. The booming esports scene calls for her.
“For me it obviously has been a little bit more difficult to find the time to retire because although I'm the oldest rider on the team and I'm getting older, the reality is that I'm still very young in cycling. I only came to cycling later in life after studying for a degree, so I still feel quite young on the bike,” she explained at the start of the year.
“So it is quite difficult to hang up the bike when there is still a chance to progress. But I just feel like I've had an incredible journey as a cyclist. I've grown so much as a person, and I feel now is the time to take the next steps to look more into the business side of things.”
Her 13th season at the highest professional level will therefore be her last. Back in 2009, Moolman-Pasio made a remarkable breakthrough appearance: still an amateur, she took second place in the South African National Road Race Championships and attracted the attention of the professional world. In 2010, she made her debut with the Lotto Ladies Team.
Over the years, she has claimed 42 victories, including several successes in her National Championships (six titles in the road race and five in the time trial). But Moolman-Pasio has shone well beyond South African borders, winning on a continental level (quadruple African Champion between 2011 and 2015), and reaching the podium in the Giro d’Italia Internazionale Femminile (2nd in 2018 and 2021) as well as claiming the rainbow jersey at the first UCI Esports Cycling World Championships, in 2020. The latter appears to be a stepping stone for her future projects.
“I want to give back, and I believe esports is the way to do that”
In 2020, after winning her world title, Moolman-Pasio explained: “It's really awesome. I wasn’t a fan of virtual training before the lockdown, but it converted me and I’m super proud to win the first UCI Cycling Esports Worlds. I know it’s something quite new but it’s going to become a big thing. In time, more and more will convert. There’s a lot coming and I’m proud to be part of that movement.”
Aware of what esports can bring to new riders and to cycling, Ashleigh Moolman-Pasio has launched the Rocacorba Collective project. This program aims to create a “safe space for women to come together and ride at any level in cycling esports”, especially for her compatriots and those who don't have access to the international scene.
“As a South African, I'm in Europe very far away from my home country and I see so many young girls who would love to be in the position”, she explains. “I came to have a pro career, and it's very difficult for South Africans to come over to Europe for various reasons. So I feel like at that time in my life I want to start sort of giving back. For me esports, at the moment, is the way to do that.”
2022’s program: esports and the UCI WorldTour
At the same time, Moolman-Pasio still has dreams on the road: “If I could get that elusive UCI WorldTour victory and then just have an amazing year with my team… I look forward to riding with my teammates and winning many races together. Whether that's me or another teammate – I think it will be amazing."
The South African also has an appointment on February 26 in the virtual world of Zwift, for the second edition of the UCI Cycling Esports World Championships. The defending UCI World Champion will face the Knickerbocker, a futuristic course located in New York.
She’s then expected to return to road competition in March, for the Strade Bianche (Italy), before embarking on the spring Classics campaign. This summer, she has another historic rendez-vous in her sights, the first Tour de France Femmes avec Zwift, before devoting herself to esports. Moolman-Pasio has not finished reaching for new horizons!