Artem Schmidt, the 23-and-under U.S. national time trial champion, has signed a two-year contract with Ineos Grenadier that will keep him with the WorldTour team through 2026.

This is the first professional contract for Schmidt, a Georgia native. Schmidt will join the development team at the end of August after competing with Team USA in the Tour de Lavenir, August 18-24.

“I am very grateful to be joining the Ineos Grenadiers for the remainder of this season and for the next two years. It has been my goal since day one to ride with this team and it is truly a dream come true,” Schmidt told Cycling News. [I] can't wait to learn from the riders and staff and improve my game. I can't wait to see what the next couple of years will bring!”

Schmidt showed off his big engine at the age of 12 when he won all the junior national titles in time trial, road race, and criterium. With development teams Mission Source/NGCA and Hot Tubes Development, Schmidt worked his way up the ladder to Pro 1-2 events, winning two silver and a bronze medal at the road nationals in the 17-18 year old boys' junior division in 2022. He also gained experience with the Belgian Cannibal team, winning two European GCs as a junior.

His last race as a junior was the UCI Road World Championships in Scotland in 2022. He finished sixth in the men's junior time trial, becoming the top American in both events. For the last two seasons, Schmidt has raced for Hagens Berman-Jayco, one of the top American development teams.

“I can't thank Hagens Berman Jayco and Axel Merckx enough for the past 1.5 seasons. I have grown a lot, not only as a rider but also as a person, and I wouldn't be where I am today without them. I can also say the same for Hot Tubes, Toby (Stanton), the Cannibal team, and Mission Source.”

Last year while at Hagens Berman-Jejko, he took a stage win at Istarsko Proljeće and a podium finish at the one-day Coppa della Pace, and in 2024, he finished second at the Alpes Isère Tour and fourth at the Circuit des Ardennes. He placed in the top mountain class and demonstrated his all-around ability.

“Artem is not entirely new to the team. He has attended our training camps many times and impressed us both with his approach and his ability on the bike. He is an exciting young talent with a wide range of skills, including time trial, climbing, and rolling,” Ineos Grenadiers performance director Scott Drower said in a team statement.

“He comes from a background and environment that is familiar to us and has a proven track record of giving pro bike riders a great background.

Hot Tubes Cycling Club has also produced rising Ineos stars Andrew 'AJ' August and Magnus Sheffield. Sheffield, who represented the U.S. in road events at this year's Olympics, signed with Ineos in 2022, while August joined this year. Both August and Schmidt have previously won the SPIE Internationale, a prestigious three-day junior race in the Netherlands.

“I am very excited to be teammates with AJ again, as we have been very close for some time. I also want to learn as much as I can from Magnus. He will help me improve and I am confident he will help me grow.”