Greg Minnaar states afterwards an interview on the Pink Bike portal, of having reached an agreement with Norco. After many years with Santa Cruz and the Syndicate team, Greg decided not to give up and continue with his competitive spirit. And all at the ripe old age of 42.
After 16 years together, Greg Minnaar was synonymous with the Santa Cruz Syndicate, but in a move that surprised everyone this offseason, even Minnaar himself, the Syndicate let the 42-year-old South African go. That left the four-time world champion scrambling for a 2024 seat in mid-October, in a year when budgets were tight. But, unlike Danny Hart, he immediately found a place.
Minnaar signed a three-year contract with Norco Bicycles and was able to put together a team at the last moment that looks more than promising. Minnaar will race alongside Gracey Hemstreet and Lucas Cruz this season.
In a bold move, DH champion Greg Minnaar has signed with the Norco Factory racing team. With four World Championship victories and 23 World Cup victories, the South African is one of the most decorated athletes in the sport and has big plans with Norco for next season and beyond. Minnaar will focus on collaborating with Norco engineers to develop game-changing equipment while cultivating the next generation of talent.
Until recently, I had no idea Norco had such an incredible engineering team. I've never seen something like this in the bike industry, where the engineering team has a separate division to work with the race team. I will be fortunate to lead this program, be part of a culture of performance and leverage my years of experience, while giving myself the best possible chance between races. This is the beginning of a new chapter for me and Norco: we have just started – Greg Minnaar
Greg will also mentor Norco's youth development team, The Source, a program aimed at finding and promoting the future of DH racing, providing them with the support and tools they need to succeed.
We can't think of a better way to kick off our 60th anniversary than to have an icon of the sport like Greg join our team. Not just looking at the present, but planning for the future is exciting for Norco, Greg and the sport as a whole – Gwen van Lingen, Norco manager
