Happy Birthday Ellen van Dijk!

Ellen van Dijk
(image credit: My Women's Cycling Tumblr (Sarah Connolly))

Eleonora van Dijk - known as Ellen - was born in Harmelen, Netherlands, on this day in 1987. She became National Champion in the Newcomers class in 2003, then in Juniors the next year; adding a bronze at the World Championships in the same class later in the year. She won Stage 2 at the Tour Féminin en Limousin in 2006 before becoming Individual Pursuit National Champion and winning Stage 1 at the Tour of Chongming Island in 2007.

2008 brought her first World Championship title, for the Scratch race, a gold in the Under-23 class at the European Championships and Stage 2 at the Tour de l'Aude Cycliste Féminin. She won another gold for the Under-23 Individual Time Trial at the 2009 European Championships and Stage 6 in the Holland Ladies' Tour of 2010. 2011 has been a good year with the overall General Classification and a stage win (2) at the Ladies' Tour of Qatar (a race that often reveals cyclists who are going to do well in the big European races within a few years), Stage 2 at the Holland Ladies' Tour and further track success. If ever there was a young professional on the up, it's Ellen.