Manon Carpenter has today announced she will be racing with Radon FActory DH in 2017.

Manon has signed a two year contract with the German brand and will be racing on the Swoop 200 bike. She joins Johannes Fischbach (GER/28, current City DH World Tour Champion) and Faustin Figaret (FRA/23, French DH talent). Raphaela Richter (GER/18, current U21 Enduro World Champion) will complete the team – Radon should definitely be applauded for supporting two female racers.

The Radon team only formed in 2015 but has already enjoyed decent success, most notably Johannes Fischbach‘s domination of the 2016 City Downhill World Tour.

Under the management of former 4X World Champion, Joost Wichman, the team has its focus on World Cup podiums and a strong media presence.

Manon has been with Madison Saracen since it formed in 2011. In that time she has won two World Championship titles (one junior and one senior) and the World Cup overall.

Manon said: “I’m very grateful to Madison Saracen for the opportunities they have provided me with over the last six years. I’ve witnessed it grow from a young development team to the factory World Cup team it is today.

“Helping the team step onto the World Cup team podium was a huge highlight, along with myself topping the World Cup podiums in 2014.

“I’ve learnt a huge amount about myself and racing through my years with Madison Saracen and I feel like it has put me in a great position going forward. So I want to say a big thank you to all those involved, and to the companies who have supported us so well along the way. I wish everyone the very best for the future!”

Will Longden, team manager, said: “We are delighted with Manon’s achievements during her time at Madison Saracen, helping her develop from an aspiring junior to World Champion. Aside from her results on the race track, Manon has inspired countless women to try the sport, acting as an ambassador not just for the team, but for British mountain biking worldwide.”

Manon’s Madison Saracen career

Even from her earliest days Manon was tasting success with Madison Saracen. When it was just a development team in 2011 she stormed to her first BDS elite win at Llangollen with the first race of the year. Later that year she proved she could eat up techy tracks as she won the Junior World Championships in Champery.

Manon claimed her first elite podium at Pietermaritzberg in 2012 and backed it up with a clutch of top threes through out 2012 and 2013.

2014 was Manon’s dominant year. She won her first World Cup in Pietermaritzberg and backed it up in Leogang and Mont Sainte Anne, taking the World Cup overall in the process. She topped it off with the World Championships at Hafjell.

Bad luck seemed to haunt Manon’s 2015 season with her huge crash in Fort William (as the only woman to go off the Visit Scotland sender) and disqualification in Leogang being unfortunately memorable moments. She battled through the year to finish second behind a dominant Rachel Atherton. She repeated this feat in her final year with the team in 2016.