CRUCIAL FOR SUCCESS. Jelena Erić’s victory on stage three of the Vuelta a Andalucía, her second pro success after another stage in the 2019 BeNe Ladies Tour, was one of the biggest moments of joy for the Movistar Team in its spectacular 2022 season. It rewarded the work from someone who devotes herself more than hundred perfect to her team-mates when needed, while also showing talent and skills when given opportunities wherever her leaders are not present. Despite physical problems early in the season, she recovered well, then became absolutely key for Van Vleuten’s success in the Giro Donne, and also came close to a second victory last season with good results in races like Eibar (4th) or Ardèche -2nd at a sprint stage-. The appreciation towards her work was underlined by an in-advance contract extension, with one year still left for her last summer, which will mean she will wear the Movistar Team jersey at least through the end of 2025.

(ALMOST) PERENNIAL CHAMPION. She’s worn the Serbian flag around the world, even well before her first contract with a UCI-registered outfit, thanks to her countless road race and time trial titles obtained, almost uninterruptedly, since 2011 -aged just 15-. She’s also represented her country at eight World Championships -two as a junior, then six as a pro- as well as at races all across the WorldTour, from the big spring classics to events in China, Australia, the US or even Costa Rica, where she came close to opening her victory account in her first pro season.

ALMOST ANOTHER SPANIARD. Owner of a degree in Architecture -a discipline she left aside for sports, her current big passion-, Jelena was already living in Spain before joining the team, more precisely in La Nucía, in the Alicante province, where she spends the whole season and has become a fully-fledged member of its community. Other than perfect Spanish (she learned it two decades ago), she also speaks English, some Italian and even some Russian, which again speaks loads about her privileged brain. She also shared teams in 2018, at Cylance, with Sheyla Gutiérrez, who supported her en route to a contract with the Telefónica-backed squad.