Human Powered Health is thrilled to announce the signing of promising Dutch rider Jente Koops, who will join the team through 2027.
“I’m really excited,” Koops said. “If you had told me last year that I would be riding for Human Powered Health, I definitely wouldn’t have believed it. I’m really excited to meet everyone and to be in the team for the next two years.”
At 18 years old, Koops is the youngest athlete on the roster but has already shown early signs of promise. She has racked up an impressive selection of podiums at the junior level, including third place at both Gent-Wevelgem and the Tour of Flanders, as well as helping the Netherlands to victory in the 2024 European Continental Championships Junior mixed relay.
“I like really hard races,” explains Koops. “I definitely want to be better at the time trials as I really love time trialling, but also improve in longer races. I think everyone on the team can help me a lot. I’m the youngest, so I can learn so much from them. I really love that.”
Signing from the NXTG Racing U19 Development Team, these aspects will be key to her development on the WorldTour.
“We are excited to have Jente begin her professional adventure with our team,” says Ro De Jonckere, General Manager. “Jente has an abundance of talent, and we are looking forward to developing her skills on the biggest stage with a combination of her teammates, our expert staff and the help of data collected at the Human Powered Health Performance Lab.”
Koops recently completed testing at the Human Powered Health Performance Lab in Wellesley, MA.
“My experience at the Human Powered Health Performance Lab was amazing,” says Koops. “I enjoyed meeting everyone and catching up with all the new people. It was also very interesting to see where the team partner was located and get a feel for how everything works there.”
Typical for Dutch athletes, Koops’ journey to professional cycling began on the ice.
“I started with speed skating when I was younger,” she says. “Five or six years ago, I started cycling in the summer for speed skating training, and actually, I liked cycling more. So I stopped speed skating and started cycling.”
That switch and the skills developed in speed skating laid the groundwork for Koops, who now approaches every new challenge with enthusiasm.
“I’m really excited for every race, I just love racing,” she ends.
Off the bike, Koops balances her passion for training and racing with studies in sport and business, but says she loves riding her bike above all.
