Dehai News

Tesfatsion will be the fourth Eritrean and sixth African rider in the 2023 UCI WorldTour

Trek-Segafredo’s climbing squad has gained a new talent with Natnael Tesfatsion signing a contract that will tie him to the team for the 2023 and 2024 seasons.

Born in Asmara, the capital of Eritrea – like friend and future teammate Amanuel Ghebreigzabhier – Tesfatsion has distinguished himself over the last two seasons as one of the most interesting prospects from the African continent.

After gaining his first experiences in Europe with Team Qhubeka (2019-2020), the 23-year-old rider has made a name for himself in 2021 and 2022 with the Italian pro-continental Team Androni, which allowed him to race the Giro d’Italia and rise to international prominence.

"Tesfatsion has proven to be a solid rider ready to move up to the big leagues. We have been monitoring him for two years and, in that time, he has showed remarkable skills on both short and long climbs, as well as a decent sprint. He immediately gave us the picture of a complete rider, an interesting prospect worth investing in. We believe he has lots of room for improvement to also stand out in the WorldTour.

With regard to numbers, Tesfatsion has won five races as a professional: a stage at both Tropicale Amissa Bongo and the Tour of Rwanda as well as the GC in 2020 and 2022 plus, a few months ago, he won the queen stage of the Adriatica Ionica Race.

Tesfatsion has also collected a series of important and promising results such as three top-10 finishes in stages at the Giro d’Italia 2021 and 2022.

"Joining Trek-Segafredo is the greatest opportunity I’ve had so far in my life."

“Joining Trek-Segafredo is the greatest opportunity I’ve had so far in my life,” says Tesfatsion. “I really want to thank everyone who has helped me reach this point and, of course, to the Team management for the trust they’ve shown in me.”

“I have a new and big challenge in front of me but I’m happy and super excited to face it. I really feel that my dream has come true. As part of Trek-Segafredo I’m sure I’ll be able to improve my skills and grow more and more in the coming two years. I really want to do my best to contribute to the Team’s successes and to repay the trust they have put in me. This motivation and the desire to make my country proud will be the engine to stand out at the highest level.”