Team Jayco AlUla welcomes back a renowned breakaway specialist as part of the 2026 DS shakeup
Team Jayco AlUla has announced a major addition to its revamped sporting-director lineup for 2026: Alessandro De Marchi will return to the organization, stepping directly into the team car after ending an 18-year professional career. The Italian will carry forward the structure he represented in his final three years as a rider, transitioning into management with the same blend of experience and reliability he built on the road.
De Marchi retires as one of the era’s defining breakaway specialists, a rider whose endurance, race smarts, and tactical bravery yielded Grand Tour stage wins and WorldTour victories, earning him widespread respect within the peloton. His return forms part of Jayco AlUla’s broader staff reshaping for 2026, emphasizing voices with recent racing experience combined with long-term strategic insight.
A trusted road captain moves into the team car with ease
The move feels almost preordained. Across his journey—from Androni to Cannondale, BMC, CCC, Israel–Premier Tech, and finally Jayco AlUla—De Marchi built a reputation for intelligence and dependability. He was the kind of rider teams leaned on to calm chaotic race moments and mentor younger teammates in their early seasons. Now, after closing his final chapter with a retirement-focused schedule centered on Italian races, he embarks on the next phase of the same vocation.
“I’ve been waiting a long time for this new position,” De Marchi said in an official press release. “I’m happy to finally take this step, and above all, I’m happy because I can begin this new journey in an organization I know, one that recognizes me, and one that has always valued me for who I am. I know I’ll be starting from scratch, I’ll begin to reconstruct myself in this new role, which I’d like to interpret a bit like I did as a rider: with passion and determination for a job I love. I’m also very intrigued to see and work on the process from a new perspective; it’s stimulating to think about how I can contribute now.”
For a rider whose hallmark was long-term commitment and composure under pressure, the idea of “reconstructing” himself in a new role fits his character perfectly.
De Marchi earned seven professional wins, including three Vuelta a España stage victories
Jayco AlUla sees him as a cornerstone of the 2026 setup
Sporting Manager Gene Bates highlighted De Marchi’s standing within the team. “It is fantastic to have Alessandro staying with Team Jayco AlUla for the next phase of his cycling career. During his time in the peloton, Alessandro developed a reputation as an intelligent rider, and he is well respected within the bunch. Transitioning from rider to staff member can be challenging, but we believe he will flourish, and GreenEDGE Cycling will be an excellent place for him to learn.”
De Marchi’s retirement at the end of 2025 closed a chapter defined by grit, consistency, and a racing style increasingly rare in today’s data-driven peloton. Joining Jayco AlUla’s sports-director group ensures those qualities remain within the sport—and within a structure that values what he brings.
His second career now begins exactly where the first ended: deeply embedded in a team that trusts him, ready to shape races not through solo breakaways but through guiding the riders he mentors.
