Having begun the season in Spain, the squad was quickly into the thick of the action at the classics, laying the groundwork at Strade Bianche, Danilith Nokere Koerse, Exterioo Classic Brugge-De Panne, Gent-Wevelgem and Dwars Door Vlaanderen. 

Then came the big ones, the monuments of the Tour of Flanders and Paris Roubaix Femmes avec Zwift – with the Amstel Gold Race and De Brabantse Pijl sandwiched in between – followed by the Ardennes doubleheader of La Flèche Wallonne Féminine and Liège-Bastogne-Liège Femmes.

The highlight of Spring came at the cobbled beasts with Marit Raaijmakers racing as part of the front group up the iconic Koppenberg and Katie Clouse joining the early breakaway at the Hell of the North. Tough days in the saddle, but ones that will live long in the memory.

In May the riders ditched the Pactimo jackets and Spring gear in favor of summer jerseys as they headed back to Spain to begin a stage race campaign. While Mieke Kröger embarked on a Grand Tour of her own, the athletes raced Emakumeen Nafarroako, Navarra Women’s Elite Classic and Itzulia Women, before concluding the block at the Vuelta a Burgos Feminas. 

One of the high points of the season, Nina Buijsman scored a Women’s WorldTour podium when she lunged for victory on stage 2 after evading the peloton, with a photo finish required to separate her from the rider on the top step. 

With the Tour de France Femmes avec Zwift on the horizon, it was time to get even more stage racing in the legs at the UK-based Women’s Tour. Lily Williams may have called it a “bonkers” week but the team left their mark on British roads with Williams’s bid for glory on day two, Buijsman going for a good overall place and Kröger emptying the tank in a breakaway on the final stage… and who could forget the podium dog in Wales?

The German Olympic champion’s efforts got her back on track for the season ahead and she quickly displayed her TT prowess by finishing runner-up at both the Lotto Belgium Tour and Baloise Ladies Tour time trials. 

After a bigger European campaign for the program than ever before it was time to return to the United States for the national championships in Knoxville, TN. The squad came away with a heap of medals in the under 23 races with Kaia Schmid adding bronze in the road race to her silver medal from the criterium, where teammate Katie Clouse finished third.

Ahead of the Tour, Buijsman, Raaijmakers, Henrietta Christie and new signing Antri Christoforou headed to the mountains of Andorra for altitude camp, a final chance ahead of the great French circus to train, relax, bond and even get out into nature to calm body and mind.

Then came the big one, Le Tour de France Femmes avec Zwift, most likely one of the most important moments in women’s cycling history and Human Powered Health were there for every pedal stroke. From a Parisian départ and crunching gravel in the Champagne region, to Antri Christoforou’s courageous breakaway and a battle up the fierce walls of the Vosges, the Tour had it all. It was an event unlike any other, our very own Lily Williams even got a message of good luck from First Lady Dr. Jill Biden. 

The Tour de France Femmes avec Zwift promised that the finish line on La Super Planche des Belles Filles was the beginning of a new era in women’s cycling, so it was time to prove that at the next major race, the Ceratizit Challenge by La Vuelta. 

Throughout the season, the squad has carried the Human Powered Health message at the forefront of their minds, competing on a world stage for something different.

In 2023, we will continue to empower people of all ages, cultures, abilities and backgrounds to embrace healthier lifestyles. If you can see it, you can be it.