Lisa Bone is preparing for a new working life on the bike
At 27, the South African is preparing to leave full-time work for the WorldTour. Before her first European start come a job to leave and a new one to learn.
SNA editorial team · Author profile · · Updated 03/11/2026 09:28 UTC
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The contract is signed; the new life has not yet begun. On 21 October 2026, EF Education-Oatly announced Lisa Bone’s arrival for the 2027 and 2028 seasons. Until then, turning professional also involves something quite ordinary: telling her employer. Speaking to Cyclingnews on 1 November, she described the moment when signing became a decision she had to announce at work.
Another kind of work
Lisa is a physiotherapist. Her sporting career developed alongside full-time work, following years of field hockey. She is not arriving from a life devoted entirely to training. There were two commitments to fit together before racing could become her main occupation.
With Chloé Bishop, she has also developed a cycling coaching service. Training plans account for riders’ experience, goals and the time they can actually spare. Coaching offers another way into her story: this is a rider who also understands the place training has to find among other responsibilities.
The sprint starts before the finish line
On 8 March 2026, she won the elite women’s Cape Town Cycle Tour over 78 kilometres. It was a win prepared together: a teammate attacked early, then Lisa went on Smitswinkel after the race came back together. Near the finish, she decided against another attack and waited for the sprint.
She had studied the finish. The wind was coming from the right; the left offered more shelter. That was where she launched her effort, finishing ahead of Daria Pravilova and Kate Courtney. Afterwards, she stressed what her teammates had made possible: “This victory is entirely down to my team.” At the finish, she thanked each of them for the work they had done.
Choosing the road
Her year has not been confined to tarmac. She also won Around the Pot, a South African round of the UCI Gravel World Series. As gravel racing opportunities have grown at home, she has taken them. Still, she wants road racing to be her main focus.
What draws her is the teamwork: watching other squads, deciding when to wait or commit, building a result together. Her Cape Town win shows that tactical interest in action. The next change is also about how often she can race and the opposition she will have the chance to test herself against.
Room to discover what comes next
A two-year contract gives her that space. It does not yet tell us where she will fit in the international peloton. Lisa has mainly raced one-day events; she wants to discover stage races and major climbs. She puts her favourite efforts between one and five minutes, while recognising that this profile also reflects what she has trained for.
Her South African results opened a door; they do not take away her right to learn what follows. A first camp with her new teammates has been announced for November, without a precise date in the announcement. The next step is taking shape between a place on a team and everyday routines that will have to change.