Pfeiffer Georgi – Getting back to business

With the cobbled classics now behind the peloton, attention turns to the hills with Ardennes week just around the corner – getting underway at Amstel Gold Race

It’s a race that is special to the team not only for being on Dutch roads, but because our Keep Challenging Center is based in Sittard; and the parcours takes in a lot of training roads for our Women’s program in that area.

One rider who bridges the gap between the cobbled and hilly classics is Pfeiffer Georgi; with the young Brit having finished in the top ten on multiple occasions in both Paris-Roubaix and Amstel Gold Race.

If you happened to miss our visit to Pfeiffer ahead of Roubaix, then you can watch it below on YouTube still!

Setting the scene – Coming back from a fractured vertebrae

If you cast your mind back to the 2024 edition of Amstel Gold Race, Pfeiffer was in the mix all day and narrowly just missed out on a podium place, coming fourth in the bike throw at the line in Berg en Terblijt. That result  came off the back of a seventh place the previous year in 2023, having learned the ropes in the years before that where she helped teammates to the podium.

A superb 2024 season, which also saw Pfeiffer finish on the podium at Paris-Roubaix, retain her British title and net an impressive fifth at the Olympic Games was building towards the Tour de France. However, things would change in the summer of 2024 when Pfeiffer had a nasty crash on stage five of that race, resulting in a fractured vertebra in her neck and a broken wrist.

The rest of the year was a write-off naturally, but she made her return to the peloton with the team in 2025, but that also came with its challenges.

“I think only looking back now do I realise how much that crash did affect me still. Not only physically at that time, but also the mental side of things too. It was quite scary getting back into the peloton.

“That was really challenging for me in the classics, and I would say it definitely wasn’t my best season. But I think towards the end of the year I started to feel more like my old self, and I had started working with a psychologist.”

A trouble-free winter

Continuing from the end of the 2025 campaign, Pfeiffer managed to have a straightforward off-season without any injury or illness and could start to build for the spring campaign.

“I had a really good winter actually, which after the previous few years was really nice.”

Getting back into racing action she started her season at the UAE Tour where she rode strongly in support of Eleonora Ciabocco who claimed the best young rider jersey and sixth overall, while Pfeiffer also managed to pick up 13^th on GC.

“After UAE Tour I went back to Andorra and did a good block at altitude and came down for Trofeo Alfredo Binda.”

Since then, Pfeiffer has done five one-day races, all only at the WorldTour level, of which she has finished in the top 15 on four occasions; showcasing her versatility and ability to mix it on different terrain.

“Results-wise I don’t think we’ve had that standout performance yet, but we’ve been racing well. Binda was a good race for me and being in that late break gave me some confidence, and in Sanremo I felt physically very good. I think we’ve maybe just had some poor positioning at key points in some of the recent classics and that’s made it more difficult to be in the race.

“I’m still really motivated for Amstel this weekend, and now I’ll be doing Liège as well. The race in Binda has given me some confidence for Amstel, because it’s a bit similar with the relentless course and constant climbs.

“I just hope to be able to get a top result to kind of repay the team and the girls for the work that they’re doing for me.”

From the KCC to the start line and sharing her wisdom with the squad

As we already mentioned, this weekend is a special race for the team and it’s no different for Pfeiffer who lived at our KCC full time for a few years and every spring she goes back to stay there during this period.

“I think I know all the roads they use in Amstel inside out, so it does feel like a second home race for me. That’s also quite an advantage too because they’re narrow and technical, and it’s a race where positioning is crucial to be competitive in the final.”

Having gained that experience from having been a pro since 2019, and despite still being only 25 years old, Pfeiffer has taken on a role as both a captain and a confidant for the young and new riders that have joined the team.

“On the bike in the races where I am the finisher then we have someone else taking the role of road captain, but in the other races then I keep an extra eye out for them. Then off the bike I try to pick it up again.

“If some of the younger girls need any help with anything or want to ask questions then I say to them that ‘my door is always open’, because I was also once their age in this team too, so I can help pass on my experience.

“It’s also really nice because they are all so eager to learn and improve, and they are always asking questions which I think is very important.”

One race stood out for Pfeiffer where she was particularly impressed with Daniela Hezinova at Ronde van Vlaanderen and how she handled herself there.

“I did my first race with Daniela at Flanders, and it is a massive race to do when you’re a first year in the elite peloton. As a team we tried to share our knowledge with her as much as possible, but it was great to see how she moved through the bunch and was also searching for us and her leader, wanting to help.”

Now with two hilly classics ahead of her where she will start as the team’s finisher, before a period of rest and reset ahead of her next goals, it’s clear that Pfeiffer is as motivated as ever to perform on the bike. Equally her endearing personality and openness to help those looking to gain experience, continues to shine through, and showcases that side of her which is more than just an athlete. Epitomising the Keep Challenging philosophy of pushing each other to be better but also allowing those around her to make a mistake, learn and grow.