Everything about Mads Pedersen

Mads Pedersen is a Danish professional racing cyclist, who currently rides for UCI WorldTeam Lidl-Trek. He was born on December 18, 1995, in Tølløse, Denmark. Pedersen is a sprinter who has won both stages and points classifications in all three Grand Tours — the Tour de France, Giro d’Italia, and Vuelta a España. He won the men’s road race at the 2019 UCI Road World Championships in Yorkshire, England, becoming the first Danish cyclist to win the men’s elite World Championship road race title.

Name: Mads Pedersen
Birthday: 18 December 1995
Birthplace: Tollose, Denmark
Turned Pro: 2014
Height: 1.79m

Mads Pedersen is a Danish cyclist, born on 18 December 1995 in Tølløse, Denmark. Pedersen is best known as a strong sprinter and classics rider, with an impressive track record, including his 2019 world championships road race title in Yorkshire. He is also known for his endurance and ability to perform in tough weather conditions, earning several victories in races where many riders typically struggle in.

Pedersen rides for the Lidl-Trek team, where he plays an important role in both one-day classics and Grand Tours, where he often competes in sprints and breakaways.

Pedersen comes from a sporting family, although little information is publicly available about his private life. He remains one of the top names in international cycling, with a reputation as one of the most complete riders of his generation.

Mads Pedersen began his professional cycling career in 2015 with Cult Energy Pro Cycling. Already in his debut year, he showed his talent with strong performances in smaller European races, which quickly put him on the radar of larger teams.

In 2016, Pedersen made a big step in his career by moving to Stölting Service Group. That year, he achieved his first professional victory by winning a stage in the Tour of Denmark, a major achievement in his home country that confirmed his potential as a rising star. The year 2017 saw Pedersen move to the WorldTour team Trek-Segafredo. In his first year with the team, he took honorary places in several one-day classics and stage races. His consistency and strong performances showed that he was a promising rider for the future.

2018 marked Pedersen's breakthrough on the international stage. He finished second in the Tour of Flanders, one of the most prestigious classics on the calendar. This performance established him as one of the best young classics riders in the peloton.

In 2019, Pedersen experienced his greatest triumph to date by becoming world road champion in Yorkshire, England. This surprise victory, achieved in tough weather conditions, confirmed his status as a top-class rider. He also won in smaller races and continued to develop in the classics.

Pedersen built on his success from the previous year in 2020. He won Gent-Wevelgem, one of the most important classics, and was successful in other one-day races. He showed strong performances in the Tour de France, where he actively participated in the sprints.

The year 2021 brought further success for Pedersen, with victories in Kuurne-Brussels-Kuurne among others. He confirmed his status as one of the most versatile riders in the peloton, with strong performances in both the Classics and Grand Tours.

Pedersen continued to perform at a high level in 2022, winning three stages at the Vuelta a España and featuring prominently in the sprints and Classics. His performances in both the Tour de France and the Vuelta further cemented his reputation as one of the most consistent riders in the peloton.

Pedersen continued his strong performances in 2023, with victories in Paris-Roubaix and a stage at the Tour de France, among others. He remained one of the leading riders in the Classics and was a key player in the sprint stages of the Grand Tours.

In 2024 Pedersen once again started his season in France with a lot of success. He won a stage and the overall classification at the Etoile de Bessèges; and then won three out of four stages at the Tour de la Provence alongside the overall classification. In the spring he finished fourth at Milano-Sanremo, won Gent - Wevelgem in a sprint against Mathieu van der Poel and then rode to third at Paris-Roubaix.

Pedersen won the first stage of the Criterium du Dauphiné but at the Tour de France, where he aimed for a win, he was unable to finish the race after crashing hard mid-sprint in the first week. In August, the Dane was the winner of two stages and the overall classification at the Deutschland Tour.

The 2025 season was a big one for the Dane, who simply became one of the very best in the world and his unstoppable form saw him perform from start to finish of the year. Pedersen began his year at the Etoile de Bessèges but actually did not perform there, and the American team left the race after safety issues emerged. His 'true' start to the year competition-wise was at the Tour de la Provence, where he won the queen stage and the overall classification ahead of Matej Mohoric. At Paris-Nice he won a wind-ridden stage 6 and showed incredible form ahead of the classics, riding the climb to Auron alongside the big GC favourites including GC winner Matteo Jorgenson after his leader Mattias Skjelmose won the race; and then also coming close to a great result on the queen stage around Nice. He won the points classification.

In the spring then he rode to seventh at Milano-Sanremo, second behind Mathieu van der Poel at the E3 Saxo Classic, comfortable solo victory at Gent-Wevelgem, fifth at Dwars door Vlaanderen, second at the Tour of Flanders behind Tadej Pogacar and then third behind van der Poel and Pogacar at Paris-Roubaix. His true power, endurance and consistency were in full display for weeks where besides the two greats of this generation, he put on displays that were the closest to them.

Pedersen then raced the Giro d'Italia, dominating the first few days. He won the opening stage in Tirana to take on the pink jersey, lost it the next day in a time trial, and won it back on stage 3 with another win in Albania. He also won stage 5 and 13, en route to winning the points classification in Rome. Pedersen then became time trial national champion and won the Tour of Denmark alongside three stages - including the queen stage to Velje solo. His final big goal of the season was the Vuelta a España where he didn't show the same form as in the Giro, but won the points classification once again, winning also stage 15 out of the breakaway.

Pedersen's 2026 season began with a brutal fall at the Volta a Comunitat Valenciana. On his very first race day of the year, Pedersen fell at high-speed, fracturing a collarbone and wrist on opposing sides. His recovery and return to racing in high form was deemed as an impressive feat, after spending several weeks completing his entire training program indoors. His return to racing, only six weeks later, was met with a fourth place at Milano-Sanremo.

Pedersen's goal had been made clear: Win a monument. He began the cobbled classics with a ninth place at the E3 Saxo Classic, backing that up with a tenth position at Dwars door Vlaanderen. The Dane showed his best form on the cobbled monuments afterwards, racing towards fifth position at the Tour of Flanders and seventh at Paris-Roubaix, where he was highly competitive in both.

Pedersen's run-in to the Tour de France featured the Boucles de la Mayenne and the national championships. In France the goal was the green jersey, after he had won the points classification at both Giro d'Italia and Vuelta a España in 2025. Pedersen added the Tour's green jersey to his collection thereafter. The Dane won stage 4 into Foix from the breakaway and, much due to Lidl-Trek's spectacular collective performance, grabbed the points classification in a race where he was present on no less than eight breakaways.

Pedersen then started the Vuelta a España, but was a non-starter on stage 11 after coming down with illness. Beforehand, he did not manage to take a stage win. Despite the difficulties of the Montréal World Championships, which featured mostly climbers in the fight for the medals, Pedersen was able to finish sixth on the day, making an impressive comeback to join the group of favourites in the latter stages of the race.